Gu Fan stepped over the shattered, sludgy remains of the last Nether-Stone Sentinel, and walked away leaving black footprints on the pristine stone floor.
He walked straight through the massive, ornate stone door and into the inner sanctum.
The moment he crossed the door, the temperature around him plummeted. It was an unnatural, bone-chilling cold that seeped through his tough skin and sank directly into his marrow. Even his breath plumed into thick white clouds in the freezing air.
The sanctum was a circular chamber, and the walls were made of dark, smooth black rock, reflecting the mesmerising blue light.
In the exact centre of the room stood a single black pedestal.
Floating two inches above the pedestal was a fist-sized cluster of blue flames. It didn't crackle or spit like normal fire. Instead, it burned in absolute, eerie silence, casting long, dancing shadows across the walls.
