One second, he was surrounded by shocked soldiers and the faint rumble of thunder overhead.
The next? Silence. Utter, maddening silence.
He stood in what looked like... nothing. A void, but not his Void. The space was white—almost glowing—but there were no walls, no sky, no ground. Just infinite, pale emptiness.
"Okay, not creepy at all," Zane muttered, eyes narrowing.
> [System Message: Welcome, Host. Initiating Dimensional Calibration...]
[Warning: No external time passage detected — real-world time flow paused.]
[Syncing with Higher Plane...]
"Higher plane?" Zane asked aloud, arms crossed. "Is that your way of saying I've ascended, or is this just Void-flavored purgatory?"
A familiar voice snorted on his shoulder — Link, in miniature form. "Oh no. You definitely ascended. You've got abs now. That's the final boss sign."
Zane deadpanned. "You've been quiet ever since I passed out."
"I was giving you a dramatic cooldown. Also, watching you sleep for seven days straight? Kinda boring."
Nyx floated beside him, arms folded. "Wherever this is... it doesn't belong to the material world."
Zane looked down at his hand — everything about him still felt real. His clothes. His weapons. His mana. His breath.
> [System Notification: Commencing Integration — Final Authority Check Required.]
[Accessing Sealed Title: "Sovereign of the End"]
[Binding all artifacts to soul-signature... Complete.]
[Calibrating Realmwalk Capacity... Complete.]
The space around Zane shimmered, and then from the glowing mist came a structure — an ancient black gate covered in shifting runes, floating in midair.
Link floated above his shoulder and muttered, "You sure you're ready to walk through something with skulls engraved on it?"
Zane rolled his eyes. "After being almost cooked alive by sunlight, I think I'm due for a stroll."
As he stepped forward, Nyx whispered, "This may be where everything changes."
Zane placed his hand on the black gate.
It flared with purple light and parted open with a low rumble. Cold wind rushed through as an entirely new realm revealed itself — jagged cliffs, floating temples, and rivers of glimmering shadows.
> [You have unlocked: The Forgotten Dominion]
[Only accessible to beings of multidimensional potential]
Zane stepped through.
Link adjusted his tiny cloak. "Congratulations. You're now officially too overpowered for one universe."
Zane smirked. "Let's find out what's hiding in this one."