The bartender gestured for Eric to follow him before slipping into a narrow space between the shelves and the wall.
Eric followed without hesitation.
He was cautious of the man, but if he wanted to grow stronger, he would have to take risks.
They passed through the shelves and entered a dark tunnel.
Eric immediately spread his senses, trying to perceive what lay beyond the walls, but his senses couldn’t penetrate them.
Strange…
It’s been so long since I’ve felt this blind.
It’s almost unsettling.
They continued deeper underground.
The farther they went, the quieter it became, until Eric could hear nothing but the steady beating of his own heart.
Eventually, they reached a door at the end of the tunnel.
The bartender stopped and knocked in a rhythmic pattern.
Before the door opened, he turned toward Eric.
“Remember, discretion is the key to your survival.” Eric didn’t need to be told twice.
But before he could respond, the bartender had already turned around and begun walking away.
The door slowly creaked open.
Eric stepped through—and froze.
A vast underground market stretched before him.
It was enormous, far larger than he had expected.
Stalls and shops filled the cavernous space, while countless figures moved through the crowded streets.
Eric’s eyes narrowed.
This place is huge…
Judging by its size, he suspected that the entrance he had just used was far from the only way into the market.
Eric didn’t dare to spread his Soul Sense.
His past experiences had taught him that powerful people could be sensitive to the senses of weaker beings.
He walked through the market, searching for armor and other types of gear.
His clothes were always destroyed after a battle, so he needed something that could withstand more punishment.
After searching for a while, he stopped in front of a stall titled Basic Tools for All Adventurers.
He glanced over the contents of the stall.
There were weapons, potions, rings, and various other items he couldn’t immediately identify.
“Rings?” Eric stared at the display for a moment.
How could wearing rings help adventurers stay alive?
The shopkeeper, a bald man with a pouch beneath one eye, noticed his interest and immediately leaned forward with a smile.
“Oh, I see you have an eye for quality, young adventurer.
Are you familiar with magical accessories?” Eric raised an eyebrow.
“Magical accessories?” “Indeed.” The shopkeeper picked up one of the rings.
“Though, judging by your expression, I suppose you’re not familiar with them.” An expert?
Does this guy take me for a fool?
Eric didn’t trust the man’s sudden friendliness.
I might not be using my Soul Sense, but I can still tell when someone is about to swindle me.
He ignored the remark and pointed at the ring.
“What does this one do?” The shopkeeper’s smile widened.
“Ah, straight to the point.
I like that.” He placed the ring in Eric’s palm.
“This is a Space Ring.” Eric looked at it.
“A Space Ring?” “You’ve never heard of one?” “No.” The shopkeeper chuckled.
“Then you’ve certainly got a lot to learn, young man.
A Space Ring is one of the most basic tools an adventurer can own.” Eric frowned.
“Basic?” “Of course.
The Void Clan developed the principles behind them.
The ring contains a small pocket of space where you can store your belongings.” Eric’s eyes narrowed slightly.
“So…
I can put things inside the ring?” “Exactly.” “And take them out whenever I want?” “Precisely.” Eric stared at the ring again.
He examined it carefully, sensing the strange energy contained within it.
It felt similar to mana, yet it wasn’t quite mana.
The sensation reminded him of his Breath of Life, but even that wasn’t an exact comparison.
An innate energy belonging to a powerful element?
His gaze became more focused.
A pocket of space contained inside an object…
He turned the ring over in his hand.
So this is a form of craftsmanship tailored to the Space Element.
A thought suddenly crossed his mind.
I wonder if my own elements have something similar.Deep beneath the earth, in a dark underground chamber, a terrified old man hung upside down, bound tightly by his ankles.
His eyes were wide with fear, and although a piece of cloth had been tied over his mouth, muffled screams still escaped from between his lips.
It was Old Man Jones—the very man Eric had experimented on with his product.
But this time, there were no masked figures surrounding him.
Instead, a young man with red hair and cold, piercing eyes stood before him.
It was the very man who had been hunting Eric.
The red-haired man stepped forward and cut the rope binding Jones’s ankles.
Jones’s body dropped.
His head struck the stone floor with a loud thud.
Pain shot through his skull, and he screamed through the cloth covering his mouth.
Before he could recover, the young man grabbed him and dragged him toward an open area of the chamber.
A large mirror stood there.
Three candles burned before it, their flames flickering silently.
Beside them lay the heart of a phoenix, still radiating a faint warmth despite having been removed from its body.
The young man dragged Jones in front of the makeshift altar and forced him to his knees.
Then he knelt as well.
His expression became solemn as he clasped his hands and lowered his head in reverence.
“Hail Zorvath, God of War and Flames.
I pray unto thee.
I beseech thee, accept the sacrifice of thy humble servant.
Through this mirror, reveal unto me the source of his vitality.” The moment his prayer ended, a flame composed of hundreds of different colors erupted from the altar.
In an instant, it engulfed both the phoenix’s heart and Jones’s terrified body.
Jones didn’t even have time to feel the pain.
His body was reduced to ash in a flash.
The colorful flames vanished.
For a moment, the chamber fell silent.
Then the surface of the mirror rippled like water.
An image slowly emerged.
A masked young man walking through an underground market.
The red-haired assassin’s lips curled into a smile.
His cold eyes gleamed as he stared at the figure reflected in the mirror.
“I’ve got you now, bastard.” Unaware of the danger that had just found him, Eric continued browsing through the underground market.
He had already purchased the ring for ten gold pieces.
It was worth the price.
The ring would save him from the minor inconvenience of carrying all his belongings around.
After purchasing everything he needed for his journey to the ruins of his clan, Eric turned and left the market through the same door he had entered.
The moment Eric disappeared from the market, a hooded figure with red hair and cold eyes entered through another hidden passage.
The hunt had begun.