"May the worthy rise. Let the Gate of Trials now open."
Her voice was calm, but it carried the weight of finality.
The massive gate standing at the center of the arena shuddered, then slowly creaked open. The sound echoed through the silent crowd, ancient and heavy, like the groan of something alive. But beyond the widening entrance… there was no clear path. No defined terrain. Just a swirling wall of mist, thick with mana and uncertainty.
You couldn't see what was on the other side. That was the point.
"Just don't get me dropped into the middle of ocean everything other is fine"
"Just give me a forest, please. Not lava. Not or desert."
"What if it teleport us straight into a monster's nest is that even legal"
The candidates were murmuring among themselves, some joking to hide the tension, others genuinely afraid. The gate didn't choose kindly. Since trial was random, brutal, and solitary.
There would be no second chances.
Without a word, Razeal stepped forward.
Some were nervous. Some were terrified. A few were far too excited for their own good. But all followed.
Just before stepping in, Razeal paused.
He could feel them sharp, pointed stares from high above. Not just from the audience around the arena, but from the elite viewing chambers. Watching him.
He didn't look up. Didn't flinch.
He simply walked through the gate, silent and composed before anything strange could happen.
The mist swallowed him whole.
As soon as Razeal stepped through the gate, the world shifted.
There was a sharp pull like space itself had been ripped apart and then, nothing. No ground or light. Just an instant of freefall into a black void.
Then impact.
Solid ground met his back like a hammer. Cold. Cracked. Stone. He rolled, coughing dust, ribs protesting. A short, sharp exhale slipped out through clenched teeth as he pushed himself to his elbows.
Every breath pulled stone particles into his lungs. The air itself felt broken. Grit floated in it like powdered glass. It clung to skin, burned in the throat.
Everything around him was rock. The floor, the horizon, even the air tasted like a quarry left to rot. Stone crust. Ancient. Cracked.
"…Ahhh, my ass," he muttered. Not even pain. Just irritation. A low heat spreading from the base of his spine to the back of his skull. Not bad enough to stop him just enough to make him want to break something.
He sat up, gritting his teeth, brushing dust from his clothes with short, pissed-off swipes.
Where the fuck am I.
He stood. Stiff. Checked himself over. Nothing broken. No blood. Just sore.
Then he looked around.
And stopped moving.
Statues. Enormous ones. Towering over everything. Dozensb maybe hundreds. Some upright, others collapsed and shattered like old bones. Dust blanketed every surface. Debris piled in corners, between broken wings and twisted spines.
Dragons.
These were carved in brutal detail. Scales. Claws. Jaws stretched open like they'd been mid-roar for centuries. Some missing heads. Others fused to the ground. Wings like collapsed monuments.
Each one was different. Each one was as if they were real dragons turned into stones literally.
The whole place was stone. Big stone. Cracked stone. Shattered legends turned to rubble.
Razeal just stared for a second. Eyes narrowing.
"I am so fucked."
No. No, no, no.
"I know the world hates me," he said, under his breath. "But this…"
His voice caught. Not exactly fear but with Rage mix.
He turned, scanning again. There was no mistaking it.
He clenched his jaw.
"Of course."
He recognized it.
The Graveyard of Forgotten Stone.
He took a slow breath and dragged a hand down his face. He knew exactly what this place was. Third arc. Deep endgame zone. Supposed to show up way later. Not now. And definitely not for him.
"This is protagonist shit," he muttered. "That dumbass with the sword supposed to find this place two years from now."
Everyone who read the novel knew this place and how important it is. one will read about it halfway through the third arc. Deep lore shit. This is where the Protagonist finds the remnants. The truth. The call to rise. and one of the strongest cheat ability for himself.
This place was not supposed to exist for him.
This was not his destination.
"This is a joke," he said flatly. "It has to be."
[Host, you are so fucked. Why is your luck always this shitty.] The System didn't waste a second. Of course it didn't.
Razeal closed his eyes. Just for a beat. Not to breathe. Just to contain the immediate desire to punch himself in the throat so he didn't have to hear it anymore.
His voice came out dry. Bitter. "Isn't it all thanks to you?" He started walking again, brushing off stone flakes still clinging to his sleeves. "Carrying shit around long enough, you start smelling like it."
[You're welcome.]
"Shut up," he said. No pause. No emotion. Just done. His boots echoed through the graveyard as he moved faster. "Where's the new function? Be fast."
He didn't even want to say "please." Didn't care what sequence it needed. He wasn't here to play by script.
The trial window was eight hours.
He'd already burned what five minutes?
And standing around arguing with a voice in his skull wasn't part of the plan.
But of course, the System went quiet. No reply. Just dead air and dust. Just as Razeal thought he was scammer
Then.
DING!!
The notification didn't sound. It hit. Right between his eyes.
Congratulations. Starting quest completed: ENTER GATE OF WORTH.
Main System Function Unlocked:
🜇 VALLEY OF VILLEY
Razeal stopped walking. His hand dropped to his side.
"…Valley of what now?"
He blinked at the message, then again, slower. The light of the system interface faded, but the words stayed. Burned into his skull like branded iron.
"Valley of Villey," he repeated, low. Like tasting something rotten. "That supposed to mean something, or did you just roll a name out of a trash bin?"
The system dropped the full description in front of him like it was proud.
Function: Valley of Villey – ACTIVATED
This function will assist in completing the main directive: Make Host into the best and perfect villain across all realities.
To teach you, the system has summoned villains from every known dimension Murim, Cultivation, Supernatural, Urban, Martial Arts, Mecha, Mythology and beyond.
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