Ark Undead

The plaza in front of the Temple of the Twelve Heroes.

Everyone seemed to be eagerly anticipating today's battle celebration; the place was already packed with people the moment the sun began to rise.

After squeezing through the crowd for quite some time, the Undead finally arrived at the altar and found Pallas, who was in charge of leading the heroes into the arena.

"You've come at the perfect time; the festival is about to begin."

Pallas said as he led the six heroes to the lounge near the altar.

"Although I know you are prepared, I still want to remind you of something."

Her expression turned solemn, and she became unusually serious.

"This is no ordinary battle. You are about to face countless heroic spirits from the long river of history."

This is an answer sheet for the heroes of the past. Failing to face it seriously will be a loss for everyone.

Melantha raised her head slightly; thanks to the reminder from the deceased, she had long been mentally prepared.

Maria, on the other hand, became increasingly nervous as the situation progressed.

It's normal for a novice knight to feel nervous.

The immortal placed his hand on Maria's head and rubbed it.

Maria slowly loosened her clenched fist.

"Relax."

He said in a low voice.

"Fight with respect and determination; that is the best preparation."

"it is good."

Maria responded softly, her left hand resting on the hilt of the sword at her left hip, feeling the power emanating from the blade and gradually calming her mind.

The rest area is right next to the altar, and each hero participating in the Undead Arena has their own rest area.

As soon as the Undead entered the room, they saw the royal artifact that had been temporarily placed on the altar.

And it was at this moment that the festival officially began.

From the Temple of Heroes in the distance, far from the altar, came a bell that silenced everyone.

The sound of the bell was like a light that cleansed everything, spreading throughout the entire venue along with the slowly rising sun.

Boom!

After a bell rang, all the noise in the venue disappeared.

Everyone turned their attention to the entrance of the Temple of Heroes, where the loud noise had come from.

The stone gates of the Hero's Temple slowly opened.

Priests dressed in black and gold robes formed a long procession and slowly walked out of the temple.

The elderly high priest held a magnificent piece of cloth in his hands.

The pattern on the cloth was black with blue borders.

And inside the cloth was a mass of grayish-white ashes.

Among them were unburnt lumps and mixed golden refined Originium fragments.

These are the ashes left after the twelve heroes were cremated.

Those were the twelve warriors who saved millions of Minos. Even in death, they are worthy of being called heroes in the annals of history.

Now that they are gone, their heroic bodies serve as nourishment for future generations.

The high priest, carrying the ashes, slowly walked through the Temple of the Twelve Heroes.

Beside him, priests carried small royal artifacts, flames burning within them, as they proceeded alongside the ashes.

As the high priest descended the steps of the temple, he arrived at the enormous royal artifact that had been placed on the altar.

The high priest stared at the ashes in his hand, and did not say a lot of words as he had at the beginning of the battle celebration.

Now, looking at the handful of ashes in his hand, he closed his eyes slightly, as if bidding farewell to the past.

He knew that once the Arena of the Undead opened, Minos would have to truly say goodbye to their past.

From this day forward, they will embark on a path devoid of sacred objects and divine gifts.

It is a belief truly composed of the human spirit.

However, this was both an unavoidable accident and a rare and fortunate turning point.

The struggle between Minos and Sargon has lasted for so many years, it's time for Minos to make a change.

Opening his eyes, the old man poured all the ashes in his hand into the enormous royal artifact in front of him.

As the flames drawn from the sacred object were poured into the royal artifact, another bell rang.

The priests, who had been waiting underground in the Temple of Heroes, placed their hands on the massive doors after hearing the second toll of the bell.

Slowly, the dusty iron gate was pushed open.

The fog inside remained obscured. But within the fog, a faint crimson light appeared.

At the same time, within the royal artifact on the altar, flames came into contact with ashes, and the golden flames burned quietly with the ashes, just like the rising sun.

Everyone could sense that something was about to happen. A heavy pressure weighed on their hearts, making it hard for them to breathe.

boom!

The flames, which had been burning quietly, suddenly shot upwards violently, and the entire royal artifact exploded in the midst of this intense burning.

The high priest, who had long since left the altar, was unharmed.

The exploding royal artifact turned into ashes before the stone even flew off the altar, swirling and intertwining with the flames.

The burning flames and ashes coalesced in the air, then dispersed once more.

Sixteen flames flew toward the sixteen lounges, passed through the open windows, and landed in the center of each lounge in a round vessel that had been prepared beforehand.

The remaining flames in the air gradually spread, transforming into a huge dome that enveloped the entire altar.

"The ceremony is complete! Now, respectfully invoking the spirits of the fallen heroes!"

As the high priest shouted, the scene at the altar inside the dome suddenly changed.

To everyone else, the scene inside the dome changed as if they were watching a fleeting, breathtaking panorama.

There are magnificent castles, and there are also desolate deserts.

Finally, amidst the ever-changing scenery, a dimly lit, circular arena gradually came to a standstill.

Countless weapons were stuck in the ground, along with broken tree stumps and countless grayish-white embers scattered all around.

The Undead stared at the transformed altar, pressing his hand against the spiral sword hanging at his waist.

He saw the campfire, now extinguished, in the very center of the area.

Of course he recognized this place; even though it was a scene simulated by flames, he would never forget what it looked like.

This is the beginning of everything, and it is also the end of everything.

Initial furnace.

364. Heavy Hammer

The First Furnace is where the First Fire was born.

In that world without light or darkness, towering ancient trees and ancient dragons that dominate the sky are the main themes of the world.

Then came fire, and people found power in the vicinity of it. The place where the first fire remained was called the First Furnace.

After the War of the Ancient Dragons, in order to continue the First Flame and distribute its power to the gods, King Gwyn went alone to the First Flame and fed the flame with his own body, thus extending its life for millions of years.

Therefore, King Gwyn is also known as the King of Cinder, the first to restore the fire.

But even a god's power has an end, and there must be others to collect the separated souls and continue the primordial flame.

Thus began the story of the Undead traveling to Lordran, the land of kings, to hunt down the gods, collect the souls of the kings, and go to the First Flame to inherit the First Flame at the First Forge.

Strictly speaking, only the immortals, who are inherently without fire, can be considered the first to pass on the fire.

The end of the Age of Fire, perhaps a cruel joke of the times, was also the beginning of the path taken by this immortal who had awakened from his slumber and turned into ashes without fire, to end the chaotic world.

Finally, at the First Forge, he defeated the incarnations of the Lords of Cinder throughout history, received the Spiral Sword from the King's hand, and waited for the flames to die out.

The Undead has been to this place twice, and each time it marked the end of his journey.

Just seeing this, the Undead was overwhelmed with countless thoughts.

Why was the Undying Arena here? He already had the answer in his heart.

Once the scene on the light screen settled, the audience began to murmur and whisper again.

Some people speculate about what that scene was and why it looked like Ragnarok.

The high priest was also seeing the appearance of the Initial Furnace for the first time, and he simply continued to wait according to the instructions in the ancient text.

So, after waiting for a few minutes, the soldiers finally saw some changes in the scene.

In the center of the initial furnace, a white mark slowly revealed its light on the ground.

A flash of white light, and flames engulfed the runes.

Amidst a burst of sparks, a warrior clad in ancient heavy armor, wielding a giant hammer, rose from the sea of ​​flower-shaped weapons and ashes, slamming the hammer from his shoulder to his side.

Standing over two meters tall, just seeing him is enough to intimidate you with his massive size and intense killing intent.

He smashed a crater in the sea of ​​ashes with his giant hammer before turning his head to survey his surroundings.

"This person... seems somewhat familiar?"

Those who know a little about the history of Minos will find the image of this warrior surprisingly familiar the moment they see it.

Especially when you see the hammer in his hand and the emblem on his breastplate.

"The Twelve Heroes? It's that Minos hero who single-handedly charged into an army of a thousand."

Scholars with a modicum of knowledge, upon seeing the soldiers' attire, immediately recalled descriptions from ancient texts.