Black Vein-Chapter 17: The Phanteon

They walked in*

Through the broken roof, moonlight shone straight down, making the dust in the air visible. Rin, Hana, and Surado stayed close behind him. Venshiro felt alone. His breathing echoed off the old stone walls.

The shrine - very big , circular hall made of living rock. The floor is smooth stone plate , broken in places by creeping roots.

In the center , a shallow pit filled with sand marks where offerings were once laid.

"Stay sharp," he murmured, more to himself than to the others. The Black Vein at his side pulsed like a heartbeat.

Rin's voice came back soft. "I hear it too. The shrine is waking."

Hana lifted Surado onto a broken pillar. The boy looked at the place with wide eyes. "It's... beautiful," he whispered.

"Don't let it distract you," Rin warned. "Places like this hide more than treasure."

They looked up . Before them stood seven towering statues carved against the far wall—gods older than memory, each clutching a weapon so lifelike it seemed ready to swing free.

Venshiro stepped forward. "The Seven Divine." His voice trembled. "The Pantheon the Keeper spoke of."

"Rin .. you are full of secrets."

"Good morning . Of course i'am". Rin responded with surcasm expression.

Hana traced a finger along the nearest figure. "Moonshade... Ashen Fang... Stone Veil... Sky Reign... Duskwater... Verdant Bloom... and here—the Crimson." She pointed at the final god, draped in mist. Its face was featureless, the sword's hilt merging into shadow.

"His eyes..." Surado said. "They're watching me."

Rin knelt beside the boy. "It's only stone."

But Venshiro wasn't so sure. The Black Vein's pulse quickened; he felt a whisper brush his mind: Remember me.

He swallowed. "We need to read these runes," he said, kneeling before the base of the reliefe. Ancient script written on the stone:

"When balance shatters, the Crimson shall rise.

Seven blades, seven trials— Forge the promise, bear the price."

Rin translated in a low voice. "Trials... price... promise. This is a test."

Something shook the shrine. Pieces of debris rattled overhead.

Hana gathered Surado's cloak. "Then let's not fail."

Venshiro rose. He drew the Black Vein. The blade's dark steel drank in the moonlight and glowed with a soft red vein-pattern.

"Stand back," he said.

He pressed the sword's tip to the stone beneath the Crimson god's relief. The moment steel met stone, the entire shrine shooked. Vines were growing in their carvings; the other gods' weapons trembled as if alive.

Rin read aloud the next line of rune that glowed blood-red:

"First Trial: Face the Shadow of Blood. Only the bearer may awaken the blade."

A flaw cracked through the relief. Stone splintered, and from within spilled a dark mist—shaped faintly like Venshiro, but twisted: three glowing eyes, veins of crimson flame, and the Black Vein fused to its arm.

The shadow raised its blade-mist and attacked. Its swing carried no weight but cut through the air with a scream of memory. Venshiro met it strike for strike—Black Vein against black mist—each impact sending shockwaves through the shrine.

Rin lunged forward, twin daggers flashing. She struck at the shadow stomach ,but her blades passed through it like smoke. "It's not real!" she yelled. "It's a memory given form!"

"Then I must break the memory!" Venshiro roared. He gathered his will. He dashed into the shadow, blade humming. On impact, light exploded. The shadow shattered into motes of black mist and fell silent.

Surado clapped. "You did it!"

Venshiro with hard breath, gripping the hilt. "One trial... down."

Rin wiped her blade on her sleeve. "Seven to go."

A new line of runes glowed beneath the Stone Veil god. Rin translated:

"Second Trial: Endure the mountain's heart. Stand unbroken."

"Endure?" Venshiro repeated. He sheathed the Black Vein and looked to the massive stone hammer in the hand of the Stone Veil. "Then we fight rock."

Before he could move, the floor beneath the Stone Veil statue rumbled. A section of the wall slid open, revealing a narrow corridor lit by green lanterns.

Rin pointed . "This way."

They entered. The corridor curved downward. Roots pressed through cracks, glowing faintly. The air grew heavy.

Surado whimpered. "It's... dark."

Hana squeezed his hand. "Stay close."

At the corridor's end, they found a cave. A single monolith of living stone towered at its center. The Hammer of Dreymar lay embedded —massive, rune-etched, silent.

Rin stepped forward. "Second Trial—pull it out?"

Venshiro added. "Or be crushed trying."

He approached and placed both hands on the hammer. The moment he touched it, the cave shook. Stone tendrils snaked from the monolith, wrapping around his arms.

He grunted against the weight. "I... can...withstand."

Rin braced herself. "Hold on! You can do it!"

Hana and Surado backed away as the stone tendrils tightened. Pain bloomed across Venshiro's arms. But he held hard. The Black Vein at his back thrummed, lending him strength.

After a tense moment, the tendrils recoiled. Venshiro pulled out the hammer—it came easily in his hand. The cave calmed.

Rin caught the hammer's handle. "You did it."

Venshiro's arms shook, but he nodded. "We endured."

He set the hammer back on the monolith. The rune glowed gold and faded.

Back in the shrine's main hall, two stutues glowed softly now—the Crimson god and the Stone Veil god. The path onward layed open: the central door carved with elemental symbols.

Hana looked at Venshiro. "Two trials done. Five to go."

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He sheathed his secondary blade. "And I've never felt more alive."

Surado hopped up and down. "Can I try the hammer too???"

Rin laughed. "You jump too high , kid."

Venshiro glanced at the central door. Moonlight streamed through its cracks. Beyond lay the next trial—and deeper truths.

He took a breath. "Let's go."