They all kept quiet as his words soaked into them. Death or power. They had little choice over it. Their fate was already tied to the Inferno Legion.

The only chance they had now was to come out of it not burned or at least, half-burned.

Stallus’s shoulders slumped. If she was looking for a way out of this, she wasn’t getting any soon. The only thing she could do now was get the power she needed and decide her own life.

Azaroth watched it all play on her face. He thought she had forgotten, that she had left her hate behind her, but it still burned in her eyes, only covered by something else.

"At least provide food," Catena muttered.

Crypt Master heard. "The crypt is teeming with meat. What else could you get but food that will build your physical strength? Your teacher already gave you something that he said would make you stronger."

"You knew about the seven days torture needles?" Alex asked in disbelief.

Crypt Master looked at him in amusement. "I gave it to him. Your training since you came to the outpost was decided between the two of us. But now, it all falls on me."

Azaroth stiffened. So it was not only the Inferno Legion playing with his future. Even an unknown entity like this was also in the play. He didn’t like it, but if it would give him what he wanted, then no problem.

"Why make it so painful then?" Alex muttered, then aloud, "So you are the one who designed this crypt or what? Why are you Crypt Master?"

"Because I’m the crypt. I’m the manifestation of this crypt. I am this crypt, and it is me," he said.

None of them had ever heard of something like this before. Manifestation of a crypt? A crypt is a crypt. Should there be anything like a manifestation of it?

"I have a question," Catena stepped forward. "Has the training begun?"

"Begun?" Crypt Master replied with a snort. "No, what you just passed through was me giving you a personal test to see if you are worth it. If you have the sufficient power to walk this crypt, and I was right."

"You are worth enough to at least do the training. Some more than others," Crypt Master said.

It was just as Azaroth thought. The real training had not begun. What they did so far was just something the crypt decided to test them on. "So when will the real training begin?" Azaroth asked him.

"It began the moment you stepped into this room. Wait, not true. It began the moment you stepped into the door that was promising you death," Crypt Master said.

"What’s the deal with that door anyway? We thought we were going to be fighting giant monsters, not those bunch of weaklings that we destroyed," Alex said.

"It’s just as it was. The door was simply there to stop you from entering. If you had not chosen the door, then you would still be wandering that place. It was the thought of going in or not that really mattered," Crypt said.

Alex and Stallus exchanged looks. They had nearly not entered the door, thinking it would bring death and destruction. Good thing they decided to follow Azaroth.

"That’s what I don’t understand," Azaroth began. "When we began this test, each room that we entered was like a place to learn something. We even learned a new skill. So why is the recent room devoid of anything?"

Crypt Master looked at him. "Curious. Curious indeed. The test might be designed to tell you things, or were you the one reading too much meaning into it?"

Azaroth narrowed his eyes. He had not thought of it this way before, but now, maybe he was indeed the one reading too much meaning.

"The last test is to show you that you should never raise your expectations about anything in life. If you weren’t expecting something big to happen, then you would have killed the monsters the moment they captured you."

"But you were expecting meaning in something with no meaning, and so you wasted your own time. It’s an important lesson. Not everything has a hidden agenda. It is just as you see it."

Crypt Master continued, "You must find a balance. See more than what is shown and yet, see it as it is."

Azaroth nodded. Indeed. It was an important lesson that would take him far in this training crypt. "But what about the rewards?"

"Which rewards?" Crypt Master asked.

"You said those who entered and cleared the room would be rewarded," Azaroth said. No way he would try to get out of this because it was for the reward that Azaroth actually went in, not for some life lesson.

Crypt Master’s eyes narrowed. "You are right. And I will reward you as I said because you did clear the room." He spread out his hand, and four rings came out. They spun and hung in the air before they descended on each person.

Azaroth stretched out his right hand, and the ring rested on it. He picked it up and turned it in his hand. Then he put it on his right-hand finger.

He expected something to happen, but nothing seemed to be out of the ordinary. "What is this?" he asked.

The rest of the team had also put them on. The rings were made of metal, black, and they fit snugly on their fingers. There was no aura coming from it. They didn’t know what the rings were for.

"The rings are called storage rings, and if you want to survive in this training crypt, then it is a must that you have one. It can store only things that are not breathing. But it will preserve such things."

Crypt Master gestured to their weapons. "Put essence in your rings and imagine it swallowing the weapon."

Azaroth drew his sword and put it down. He spread his hand on it and imagined the sword entering the ring.