I Cast Forbidden Spells Until the World Breaks-Chapter 104 Seizing Immortality

The space around him shattered completely, then snapped back together like a broken puzzle being forced into place.

Zayne flickered through the void and reappeared in a place he knew all too well.

The slums.

Cracked, low buildings stood crooked and lifeless. Dead vines and moss clung to the walls, long since dried out. The air carried a stench he could not quite describe, something stale and rotten. Everything here looked even more ruined than it did in his memories.

He had shaken off the others for now, but Zayne knew he did not have much time.

John, Captain K, Astrachior. The moment they realized someone was missing, they would start searching.

He followed the pull coming from his abdomen, guided by the Apocalypse Ancient Key.

After winding through the slums for about five minutes, Zayne came to a stop in front of a low, dilapidated house.

This was the destination.

The moment he realized where he was, a chill shot up his spine and slammed into his skull.

This house was his home.

His home in the Old Shipyard Port slums. He had lived here for over a decade. There was no way he could be mistaken.

Zayne swallowed hard, a sense of dread crawling through him.

Was this really a coincidence?

Why would the Apocalypse Ancient Key lead him to his own home in this ruined version of the city?

Taking a deep breath to steady himself, Zayne stepped forward and pushed the door open.

The interior was dark and cold, as if time itself had frozen. The air was thick with decay and age.

The moment the door opened, Zayne froze.

In the corner of the room sat a massive lump of flesh.

It was taller than a man, uneven and swollen, as if stitched together from countless pieces of meat. Its color was a sickly purplish red, and a nauseating stench seeped from it. Countless thin tendrils extended from its surface, sticking it to the walls like a grotesque parasite.

Thump.

Thump.

Thump.

As the door opened, the flesh mass began to pulse like a living heart.

Zayne’s scalp prickled.

What the hell is this thing?

They had searched this ruined Old Shipyard Port for so long without finding a single living being. Was this monster the reason why?

Before Zayne could process it, the flesh mass spoke.

"Zayne..."

"You finally came, Zayne..."

The voice echoed directly inside his mind.

A wave of unnatural horror washed over him. It knew his name. It had known he would come.

Zayne forced himself to stay calm.

"Who are you?"

"I am the guardian of an Origin Relic. I have been waiting for you... for a very, very long time..."

Zayne’s pupils contracted.

The guardian of an Origin Relic?

So there really was an eighth Origin Relic behind the Gate of Apocalypse?

Suddenly, the massive flesh mass began to writhe violently, as if something inside was about to break free.

A blinding light burst forth, flooding the entire room.

When the light faded, an ancient object hovered before Zayne.

It looked like a balance scale.

Its surface was old and profound, carved with intricate patterns. The air itself seemed to solidify around it. On one side of the scale floated a radiant golden gem. On the other hovered a mass of black mist. Light and darkness, locked in eternal opposition.

Zayne’s heart pounded.

He could clearly feel it. The power contained within this scale was enough to drive any awakened being insane.

"Since you have come, the Eternal Scales should return to their rightful owner."

After releasing the scales, the flesh mass visibly weakened.

"This Origin Relic belongs to me?" Zayne stared in disbelief. "Am I really that special?"

"..."

The flesh mass fell silent for a moment before continuing.

"It once belonged to you. Otherwise, how do you think your immortality came to be?"

Zayne’s mind reeled.

It knew about his immortality. His greatest secret.

"Only an Origin Relic can create an ability that completely defies logic."

The flesh mass shifted again, and the Eternal Scales drifted toward Zayne, stopping just in front of him.

The moment they drew close, a deep, instinctive familiarity surged through him.

As if, long ago, these scales had always been at his side. As if they were once part of his flesh and soul.

Zayne slowly raised his hand, reaching out to touch the legendary relic.

Just as his fingertips were about to make contact, brilliant starlight erupted behind him.

The starlight exploded like an inverted galaxy. A terrifying force yanked at his body. Under the starlight, his arm began to vanish, dissolving into nothingness.

Fear slammed into Zayne. He staggered backward, barely escaping the starlight’s reach.

His right arm was gone. Completely severed.

If he had been even a step slower, his entire body would have been erased.

A figure emerged from the sea of starlight.

A refined middle aged man in a long coat stepped forward. His expression was cold, and behind his gold framed glasses, starlight shimmered in his eyes.

Astrachior.

This was the first time Zayne had seen him fight.

It was terrifying.

With a thought, Zayne’s missing arm regenerated. He tightened his grip on the Raging Flame Staff and looked at Astrachior with a complicated expression.

He had long suspected this day would come. Still, facing it head on left a bitter taste in his chest.

After forcing Zayne back, Astrachior ignored him entirely and reached toward the scales.

"Those who attempt to seize an Origin Relic shall die."

The flesh mass convulsed violently. A cold wind swept through the ruins as black silhouettes rose one by one.

They were tall and distorted, radiating murderous intent. Red light burned in their eyes like beasts ready to tear their prey apart.

Ignoring Zayne completely, the shadows charged straight at Astrachior.

"Starlight Extinction."

Astrachior lifted his hand, elegant and unhurried.

Starlight gathered, forming a devastating torrent that surged forward.

Where the starlight passed, the black shadows disintegrated instantly, erased without leaving a trace.

Any one of those shadows could have rivaled a level fifty awakened. Yet before this starlight, they were no sturdier than paper.

The flesh mass trembled violently and cried out.

"Zayne, take the Eternal Scales and run. I cannot stop him. The Eternal Scales possess the power of equivalent exchange. This man intends to use them to trade your immortality for his own!"