"Golden Vault Room! Key Fireworks!"
Raindor's voice rang out, cold and decisive, instantly putting Blondie and the jellyfish woman on high alert.
Below them, Raindor leaned over the railing, his body almost inverted as he looked straight up at the two above. On the backs of his hands floated two small silver keys, each surrounded by a slowly rotating pale golden Essence circle.
He slowly raised both hands, aiming directly at his targets. A thin thread of Essence began to run along his fingers, extending forward and connecting to the golden circles around the keys.
The moment the Essence thread touched the circles, both detonated.
A burst of energy exploded outward, making the surrounding air tremble as the keys were fired like bullets.
The first key shot straight at the jellyfish woman, piercing through her head in an instant before embedding itself into the ceiling, leaving a small crack spreading outward.
Her body convulsed violently. From the hole in her head, clear liquid gushed out continuously, as if forced out of a ruptured container. Within seconds, her entire body lost its tension, shriveled up, and collapsed onto the floor like an empty husk of skin.
Blondie immediately sensed the danger and reflexively dodged to the side.
Not giving him any time to recover, Raindor activated the second key.
This time, the explosion was smaller, but still powerful enough to drive the key straight into Blondie's shoulder. It burrowed deep inside, tearing a hole that forced him to stagger back in pain, grabbing the railing to keep his balance.
However, his grip slipped.
He slammed his head into the railing and fell hard onto the ground.
Blood continuously seeped from his shoulder, staining his body red, yet the key remained firmly lodged inside, unmoving.
Blondie clenched his teeth and slowly raised his head. His eyes turned bloodshot, burning with intense rage.
"Water Control Art! Azure Shell Blade!"
Right beside him, sand and debris began to gather, spinning rapidly before forming into a large shell. From within it, a long spiral shell grew outward, perfectly shaped for Blondie to grip as a handle.
The end of the large shell twisted and extended, transforming into a blade.
Blondie stood up, gripping the weapon tightly.
The sword had a bizarre form: the handle was a long blue spiral shell, the guard was a large white clam shell, and the blade itself was the extended tail of the shell, glowing with a cold blue hue.
"You bastard! I'll rip your guts out!"
He roared in fury, swinging the blade and carving a wide circle around himself.
The floor beneath him was instantly sliced into a perfect ring, cracking before beginning to fall to the level below.
Down below, Raindor let out a soft laugh and calmly stepped aside, avoiding the falling slab.
The large chunk of floor crashed down and shattered. Blondie stood on what remained, breathing heavily, his gaze locked onto Raindor.
Without hesitation, he lunged forward, delivering a direct slash.
Raindor tilted his body and dodged to the side. The attack passed him and struck the wall behind, splitting it cleanly in two.
"Impressive… princess of the sea."
Raindor's mocking voice echoed, further fueling Blondie's anger.
Blondie twisted his body and unleashed dozens of rapid thrusts in succession, so fast they left afterimages.
But Raindor did not run.
He simply stepped back once—then suddenly stumbled.
His body fell backward, arms spread wide, his back touching the floor—
But there was no impact.
His body passed straight through the floor as if sinking into water, disappearing completely.
Blondie froze.
He stopped attacking, standing there in stunned silence for a few seconds.
"What the hell… where did he go?"
He turned, scanning the hallway, his eyes beginning to waver.
Suddenly, a piercing sound rang inside his head, forcing him to clutch it in pain.
"Blondie… do you know what the key in your shoulder does?"
Raindor's voice echoed from all directions.
Blondie immediately looked at his shoulder. The key was trembling uncontrollably.
"What is this?! My shoulder—!"
Before he could finish, a pitch-black portal suddenly opened right above the wound.
Caught off guard, his arm was instantly pulled into it.
From the outside, the portal was an endless darkness, yet inside it shimmered with light, as if containing an entire starry sky.
Blondie tried to pull his arm back, but the suction only grew stronger, dragging him deeper inside.
The surrounding space began to distort and warp, forcing him to grip the railing tightly to avoid being completely swallowed.
"Seems like you underestimated me… Don't forget, I'm a Commander of Heavenfield."
Raindor's voice carried absolute confidence.
Blondie's arm was almost completely pulled inside. He strained with all his strength to pull back, but instead, his entire body was lifted off the ground.
"Damn it! It hurts!!"
He screamed.
Then—the portal began to shrink.
Blondie looked up, a glimmer of hope flashing in his eyes.
The portal was no longer pulling him in… it was just getting smaller.
He gathered all his strength and tried to yank his arm free—but it was useless.
"Wha—"
The portal touched his arm.
It didn't pass through.
It touched… and then cut.
Blood burst out instantly.
Blondie screamed in agony as the portal continued to shrink, slicing deeper into flesh, crushing the bone within.
A dry cracking sound echoed.
The next moment, the portal vanished.
And Blondie's arm vanished with it.
He collapsed onto the ground, clutching the severed shoulder. Blood gushed endlessly, staining the floor and washing away dust and debris.
At that moment, from the wall behind him, a foot emerged—passing through the solid surface as if it didn't exist.
Raindor stepped out, a cold smile still on his lips.
"Does it hurt?"
He tilted his head, his voice dripping with mockery.
"This place… is my space. I can do anything I want."
Blondie completely lost control. He slammed his head against the ground in pain before collapsing.
"It's just a small wound… why are you so weak?"
Raindor raised his hand, a hint of amusement flashing in his eyes.
"Blondie… are you sure you're lying on the floor?"
He snapped his fingers.
Instantly, Blondie was pulled downward.
His body began to sink through the floor as if it had turned into liquid mud.
He struggled, grabbing at anything within reach, but nothing worked. His body kept sinking deeper and deeper.
He raised his remaining arm, desperately reaching upward, incoherent sounds escaping his mouth.
Then—everything went dark.
Only absolute blackness remained.
A few seconds later, space returned.
Blondie suddenly emerged from the ceiling of the floor below… and continued falling.
He passed through the floor above, only to fall again from the ceiling of the next level.
And right behind him—
A massive black portal opened.
Inside it, countless stars rotated and shimmered, casting a cold light, while the surrounding space twisted and warped as if on the verge of collapse.