After half a day's voyage, Fa and her companions finally arrived at a desolate small island southwest of Salto Island—Shadow Abyss Island. This island was completely different from the other islands in the Salto archipelago; there were no dense jungles or vibrant swamps. Instead, it was a lifeless wasteland. The air on the island was filled with thick poisonous mist, with gray-green fog slowly flowing in the wind, blocking the sunlight and shrouding the entire island in an eerie shadow. The ground was covered with cracks, from which black smoke occasionally billowed out, emitting a pungent sulfur smell. In the distance, several sharp rocky peaks stood tall, like dragon claws piercing the sky, and at the top of the peaks, faint ruins of ancient buildings could be seen, revealing the island's past glory and mystery.
Zhamisi stood at the bow of the ship, her snake tail lightly tapping the railing, a hint of vigilance flashing in her eyes. She turned to the group, her tone steady: "I've been to this island before, but every time it makes me uneasy. The poisonous mist here is extremely corrosive to living beings, but fortunately, I know anti-poison magic." She raised her hands, and a faint green magical glow condensed at her fingertips. Immediately, a thin protective shield enveloped everyone, isolating them from the external poisonous mist. Inside the shield, the air was fresh as ever, allowing everyone to breathe a sigh of relief.
Yuyuer looked at the island, his fish tail slapping the deck, excited but with a touch of nervousness: "Zhamisi, you mentioned there's a huge stone gate on this island, right? It should be the Shadow Abyss Gate?"
Zhamisi nodded, a flash of reminiscence in her eyes: "Yes, that gate stands in the center of the island, ancient and mysterious. No one knows its origin, and no one can open it."
Fa gazed into the distance, her right eye's star pupil faintly glowing as she tried to penetrate the poisonous mist to see the island's scenery clearly, but the fog was too thick, limiting her vision. She said softly: "We have to be careful; the atmosphere here feels off."
Arya stood beside Fa, gently stroking the Storm Bow, with the five elemental crystals emitting a faint light: "No matter what, we have to go and see. Perhaps that key is the crucial to opening the Shadow Abyss Gate."
The group disembarked onto the island, where the ground under their feet was hard and cold, producing a dull echo with each step. The poisonous mist flowed slowly outside the protective shield, and occasionally eerie sounds came from the mist, like whispers from ancient creatures, sending chills down their spines. Zhamisi led the way in front, her snake tail gliding flexibly over the ground, avoiding cracks and poisonous gas vents. Yuyuer followed closely behind, the blue gem at the top of his staff flickering with light, illuminating the path for the team.
After two hours of arduous trekking, the group finally reached the center of the island. Before them appeared a massive stone gate, tens of meters high, engraved with intricate runes that emitted a faint blue light, pulsing slowly as if breathing. The stone gate was tightly closed, with wisps of black gas seeping from the seams, intertwining with the surrounding poisonous mist to create an eerie atmosphere. In front of the gate was a vast plaza, with ancient magic arrays etched into the ground, the patterns deep and profound, as if leading to another world.
Fa stepped forward, gripping the mysterious key tightly in her hand, carefully observing the stone gate in an attempt to find a keyhole. However, the stone gate was smooth as a mirror, with no openings or grooves. She furrowed her brows and said softly: "Strange, no keyhole. How do we open this?"
Tisk stroked his warhammer, a hint of confusion flashing in his eyes: "Could it be that this key isn't for opening the door?"
Rex's mechanical eye scanned the stone gate, data streams flickering on his goggles: "According to analysis, the material of this gate is extraordinary, containing high concentrations of magical energy. Perhaps it requires a specific magic trigger."
Salsa's soul form floated in the air, her amber eyes fixed on the stone gate: "I sense a powerful force sleeping behind the door; this isn't an ordinary gate."
Kayla waved her Thunder Claws, lightning flashing: "Who cares what kind of gate it is? Just smash it open!" She was eager to act, ready to strike.
Zhamisi quickly stopped her, her snake tail whipping: "Don't be impulsive! There's a powerful magical barrier around this gate; forcing it open could trigger a disaster."
The Activation of the Star Pupil Magic and the Opening of the Ruins
Just as the group was at a loss, Fa suddenly felt a sharp pain in her right eye, with a silver light flashing in her star pupil. She instinctively gripped the key tightly in her hand, closed her eyes, and tried to sense the connection between the key and the stone gate. In an instant, an invisible force surged from the key, resonating with the runes on the stone gate. The milky-white stone at the end of the key began to glow, emitting a soft light that intertwined with the blue light on the stone gate.
"Fa, what are you doing?" Arya asked in surprise, a hint of worry flashing in her eyes.
Fa gritted her teeth, sweat beading on her forehead: "I'm trying to activate the key with star pupil magic... perhaps this can open the stone gate." Her voice trembled, clearly under immense pressure.
As Fa infused her star pupil magic, the key's glow grew brighter, and the runes on the stone gate flickered more frequently. Suddenly, the entire island began to shake violently, the ground cracking open in several fissures, and the outer poisonous mist quickly condensed, forming a massive barrier that tightly enveloped the island.
At this moment, the stone gate slowly opened, and a thick darkness overflowed from the seams, like the breath of an abyss, devouring the surrounding light. The poisonous mist condensed into a barrier on the island's periphery, isolating them from the outside world. The air was filled with the scent of sulfur and magic, creating a oppressive and uneasy feeling.
Fa gripped her short blade tightly, her right eye's star pupil flickering with silver light. She said in a low voice: "Everyone, be careful; the atmosphere here feels off." Her voice was calm and firm, trying to stabilize her teammates' emotions.
Arya stood beside her, gently stroking the Storm Bow, with the five elemental crystals emitting a faint light. She said softly: "No matter what, we've come this far." Her gaze fell on Fa, carrying unspoken trust and support.
The group cautiously stepped through the stone gate, their footsteps echoing in the vast space, sounding particularly eerie. After just a few steps, pitch-black darkness enveloped them, making it impossible to see their hands in front of their faces or discern directions. Suddenly, Salsa's voice broke the silence: "Everyone, stop! There's danger ahead!" Her voice carried a hint of tension, her soul form faintly flickering in the darkness, as if the only guide.
The group immediately halted and began observing their surroundings. As their eyes gradually adjusted to the darkness, they discovered they were standing on the edge of a bottomless cliff. On the opposite side of the cliff, an ancient ruin was faintly visible—a massive dragon skeleton lying quietly in the darkness, emanating an ancient and mysterious aura. However, there was no bridge or path connecting the cliff to the ruin, as if this space had been deliberately isolated.
The Appearance of the Transparent Bridge
The scale of the ruin was awe-inspiring, with the dragon skeleton's enormous size almost unbelievable. Its rib bones towered like pillars, the skull ferocious and majestic, engraved with ancient runes that flickered with faint blue light in the darkness, as if recounting the dragon clan's glorious history. Scattered around were dragon clan relics: damaged dragon scales emitting weak magical fluctuations, broken dragon claws lying quietly on the ground, and some fragments of gems glowing with eerie light, intertwining with the blue light of the dragon skeleton to form a mysterious and spectacular scene.
At this moment, Salsa volunteered: "I'll go scout the path first." Her soul form floated out from the mechanical cat shell, flickering with faint light in the darkness, like a shooting star across the night sky. She glided lightly over the cliff, trying to find a way to the ruin. As she approached the ruin, a transparent bridge suddenly appeared between the cliffs, constructed purely from magic and emitting a soft glow, illuminating the path ahead for the group.
The appearance of the bridge astonished everyone. The bridge surface was exquisitely beautiful, with magical flows forming arcs of light on it, echoing the blue light of the ruin. The ends of the bridge connected perfectly with the cliff and the ruin, as if it were part of the ruin, waiting for the destined ones to arrive. Yuyuer exclaimed: "This bridge... did it form from magic on its own?" His fish tail slapped the ground, his eyes sparkling with curiosity.
Rex's mechanical eye scanned the bridge, calmly analyzing: "This is some kind of automatically triggered magical structure, possibly resonating with Salsa's soul energy." A string of data flashed on his goggles, displaying the bridge's stability.
Fa nodded and said gently: "Whatever it is, this is our path. Everyone, be careful and cross over." She took the lead stepping onto the bridge, the magic beneath her feet trembling slightly but remaining extraordinarily stable. The group followed closely behind, step by step toward the ruin.
Exploration Inside the Ruins
As the group crossed the bridge and reached the entrance of the ruin, a powerful pressure hit them head-on. This pressure came from the deep magical energy within the ruin, as if warning outsiders not to enter this sacred place lightly. However, Fa and her companions did not retreat; they mustered their courage and stepped into the ruin.
Inside the ruin's space, the walls were embedded with flickering magical crystals, the ground etched with ancient magic arrays, and the air filled with magical fluctuations. At the same time, remnants of technological equipment remained in the ruin: shattered mechanical arms scattered in corners, covered with magical runes; half-destroyed control panels flickering with faint light, displaying unknown data streams. These devices might have once been tools used by the dragon clan to study magic, but now they were badly damaged, emitting weak electromagnetic waves that intertwined with the magical fluctuations, creating a peculiar atmosphere.
Tisk's eyes widened in excitement: "These things... are a craftsman's dream! The combination of metal and magic is too perfect!" He stroked his warhammer, his eyes gleaming with a desire for technology.
Kayla waved her Thunder Claws, grinning: "The atmosphere here is perfect for battle! If only we could fight a dragon clan member!" Her beast ears trembled slightly, showing her inner restlessness.
In the depths of the ruin, the group discovered a massive stone stele, engraved with dragon clan script. These words were not static but presented in holographic images, constantly changing with the flow of magic, showing different historical scenes. The content of the stele revealed the dragon clan's past and the true origin of the star pupil power.
The Glorious Era of the Dragon Clan
The text on the stele recorded a long history:
Sixteen thousand years ago, the dragon clan were the guardians of this world, coexisting harmoniously with various races through their immense power and wisdom, living in a peaceful era. The dragon clan's technology and magic reached their peak; they built cities fusing high technology and magic, created devices that could manipulate natural elements, and even communicated with the stars to predict celestial events. At that time, the dragon skeleton was not the ruin it is now but a vibrant sanctuary, with the dragon clan's roars echoing through the skies, protecting the world's balance.
However, all this was shattered sixteen thousand years ago in the summer by a purple meteor. The meteor crashed into the earth, bringing a mysterious energy. This energy seeped into the dragon clan's bodies, altering their temperament. The once gentle and wise dragon clan became abnormally irritable, with rage replacing reason. They began attacking other races, their giant claws tearing the earth, flames burning forests, and dragon roars shattering mountains. The peaceful world collapsed in an instant, with the shadow of war enveloping every piece of land.
The Beginning of the War and the Birth of the Alliance
Faced with the dragon clan's atrocities, the other races of the world had to set aside their differences and form an alliance for survival. This alliance consisted of humans, elves, dwarves, beastmen, merfolk, winged folk, and many other races, each sending powerful warriors and sages in an attempt to stop the dragon clan's destruction. However, the dragon clan's power was too overwhelming; the alliance's weapons could not penetrate their indestructible dragon scales, and magic struggled to withstand the sweeping dragon flames. The war lasted for decades, with the alliance suffering repeated defeats. The dragon clan's destructive magical storms destroyed thousands of alliance cities. Battlefields were littered with ruins, rivers dyed blood red, and forests reduced to ashes. The alliance leaders realized that without a way to counter the dragon clan, they would face annihilation.
Just as the alliance was nearly in despair, a person with star pupils in both eyes appeared. His eyes flickered with silver light, and these eyes, known as "star pupils," granted him extraordinary abilities: seeing through illusions, pausing time, controlling dozens of types of magic, and even instant movement. These powers made him a dominator on the battlefield, becoming the alliance's beacon of hope.
The appearance of the star pupil holder changed the course of the war. Under his leadership, the alliance's armies reignited their fighting spirit. The star pupil power allowed him to predict dragon clan attacks, time pauses let him evade fatal strikes, and instant movement enabled him to appear quickly at weak points in the dragon clan's defenses, using powerful elemental magic and tactics to attack the dragon clan—like a sharp blade piercing their arrogance and defenses.
In a key battle, the star pupil holder used his star pupils to see through the dragon clan's illusions, leading the alliance forces to break through the dragon clan's lines. He paused time to send an elite squad into the enemy ranks, destroying the dragon clan's magical machines. This victory greatly boosted the alliance's morale, while the dragon clan began to retreat step by step. After months of bitter fighting, the dragon clan was finally forced to retreat to an isolated island—now known as Shadow Abyss Gate Island.
The Sealing of the Shadow Abyss Gate
The star pupil holder pursued the victory to Shadow Abyss Island, engaging in a final dialogue with the dragon clan leader. The dragon clan leader was an elderly and wise colossal dragon who realized that if the war continued, the dragon clan would face extinction. He said in a low voice to the star pupil holder: "Our irritability is not our intention but stems from the curse of that purple meteor. This energy changed us, making us lose our reason. If you can seal our power so we no longer harm the world, we are willing to retreat and remain on this island forever."
The star pupil holder sensed the sincerity in the dragon clan leader's words and agreed to the request. Using his star pupil power, combined with the assistance of alliance mages, he performed an unprecedented large-scale sealing ritual. In the ritual, the dragon clan's power was extracted and sealed into a massive magic array at the island's center, and the Shadow Abyss Gate was built as a symbol of the seal. After the sealing was complete, the dragon clan's power was greatly weakened, and they could no longer leave the island.
As time passed, the powerful dragon clan gradually declined. Those once soaring dragons lost their ability to fly, and the weaker ones evolved over millennia into the current reptilian clans, losing their former glory. Their cities collapsed, technology and magic gradually forgotten, leaving only the ruins on Shadow Abyss Gate Island to tell this tragic history.
Another massive stone stele recorded that the star pupil power was not innate but originated from that purple meteor. The mysterious energy contained in the meteor not only affected the dragon clan, making them violent, but also granted extraordinary abilities to star pupil holders like Fa.
The essence of this energy remains an unsolved mystery to this day, but it undoubtedly changed the world's fate. Since the meteor's fall, the star pupil power began to circulate among various races. Every few centuries, a star pupil holder would be born, their mission to protect the world and prevent events like the dragon clan's from recurring. As the contemporary star pupil holder, Fa shoulders an even greater responsibility—not only to collect the scattered star fragments but also to face the unknown threats that the meteor's energy might bring.
The Group's Reactions and Reflections
When the group finished reading the text on the stele, they gained a deeper understanding of the dragon clan's history and the star pupil power. Fa stared at the stele, her right eye's star pupil flickering with silver light, feeling an unprecedented sense of responsibility. She said in a low voice: "So the star pupil power comes from the meteor... Our mission is not just to collect star fragments but to protect this world." Her short blade trembled slightly, with earth and water magic intertwining, as if responding to her determination.
Arya stood beside Fa and said softly: "Fa, we'll face it together." Her voice was gentle and firm, her fingers lightly stroking the Storm Bow, the five elemental crystals flickering with light, giving Fa infinite courage.
Tisk stroked his warhammer, a hint of awe flashing in his eyes: "The dragon clan's history is truly shocking; we must fight for the peace of this world." His warhammer emitted ice-blue and crimson light, showing his inner excitement.
Salsa's soul form floated in the air, her amber eyes fixed on the stele: "The origin of the star pupil power is actually the meteor; this is an astonishing discovery." Her voice was light and ethereal, carrying a desire to explore the unknown.
Rex's mechanical eye scanned the stele, data streams flickering on his goggles: "This energy is worth researching; perhaps it can help us counter future enemies." His tone was calm, displaying the rationality of a tech expert.
Kayla waved her Thunder Claws, lightning and frost intertwining: "No matter what, we have to become stronger to protect this world!" Her beast ears perked up, her fighting spirit high.
Yuyuer looked at the stele, his fish tail slapping the ground: "The dragon clan's fate is too tragic; we can't let history repeat itself." A hint of sorrow flashed in his eyes, empathizing with the dragon clan's plight.
Zhamisi's snake tail swayed gently, a hint of concern flashing in her eyes: "The star pupil power is so immense; we must use it carefully to avoid repeating the dragon clan's mistakes." Her poisonous mist swirled at her fingertips, showing her cautious attitude toward power.