Death... and me

Rean also added. "To be honest, the weird issues aren't that only. For example, why can't we see anything other than this gray mist in our Divine Senses? If you think about it, why didn't the devils investigate it further? Suppose they couldn't find an answer to this mist in our Divine Senses. What stopped the Divinity Realm devils from blowing everything up to ensure it wouldn't be a problem in the future?"

Zandolf bitterly smiled. "That might also be related to why the devils are here now."

"Exactly," Rean nodded. "There might be a reason why the devils left this place standing. Maybe... just maybe... they aren't after you, senior Zandolf. Instead, because your army is advancing, they decided to give it another try at this place to figure out its secrets or something like that."

Zandolf then looked at the gate in the distance. "Well, regardless of the reason, I still don't see a way past it. I can blow everything up as well, but it would be idiotic if it means I will destroy what I'm looking for."

Rean then looked at the two sides of the gate. There, there were another two small symbols of the colored cube. Rean then had an idea. "Let me step forward and give it a try. Senior Zandolf, what was the distance that activated the gate?"

Zandolf thought Rean to be crazy to wanted to approach it. Nonetheless, since he was without ideas, he might as well let him try anything. "Fifty meters. Once you enter the fifty-meter range, the gate will activate."

Rean nodded while he talked with Sister Orb. 'I'm going to get close so I can check how it works. Sister Orb, if you see it releasing any attack, immediately bring me into the Soul Gem Dimensional Realm. Your reaction as part of the system is much faster than my own, after all.'

[It is still somewhat risky, you know? What if the attack is faster than I can react? It even hit Zandolf, after all.]

'Well, so what do you suggest? To simply look at it forever?' Rean asked back.

[No, but you could ask someone else,] Sister Orb commented. [Did you forget? There are plenty of cultivators and demon beasts in the Soul Gem Dimensional Realm.]

Rean narrowed his eyes. 'But that would mean to sacrifice someone else.'

[On the other hand, if you die here, the universe will be done for, and then everyone will die. I think I don't need to tell you what weighs more, do I?]

'Just go already,' suddenly, Roan's voice echoed. 'You aren't the type to accept such an arrangement anyway, so I would rather not waste my time here.'

Rean was surprised to hear that. However, his expression turned black right after. 'You're just looking for a chance to get rid of me, aren't you?'

'That too,' Roan didn't hide his intentions at all.

Rean was speechless.

'However,' Roan continued. 'If you don't go, I go. We need this Essence Race member. If you are too afraid, swap with me.'

'Forget it,' Rean shook his head and began to walk forward.

Everyone looked at Rean while they took several steps back, all gathering at the entrance of that room, ready to flee.

Finally, Rean stopped right before the fifty-meter mark, taking a deep breath. Then, with another step, he got into the range of the gate's attacks.

Immediately, the two cubic images on the two doors of the gate began to shine with colored light. Rean immediately stopped, watching it nervously. 'Pay attention, Sister Orb, pay attention!'

Finally...

*Zash, Zash!*

Two rays of colored light immediately shot in Rean's direction. It was just like Zandolf mentioned. Their speed was absolutely incredible, not something Rean could hope to dodge.

In that fraction of a second, Rean hoped for Sister Orb to be fast enough. Yet... Sister Orb did nothing. Rean only looked at those two rays of light with despair and closed his eyes.

But then, a second passed, then two, then three... Rean then opened his eyes, finding it weird that he wasn't killed by the rays of colored light.

Only then did he notice. Right in front of him, a colored object floated, having absorbed the gate's attack into itself. "This..."

Rean, Kentucky, Roan, and Sister Orb identified that object with a single glance. 'The Hyeoumu's Shell!'

Indeed, at the critical moment, the shell came out of the Soul Gem Dimensional Realm on its own, something that even Sister Orb didn't expect to see. However, seeing that the two rays of colored light changed direction to strike the shell, Sister Orb refrained from bringing Rean into the Soul Gem Dimensional Realm. [Don't ask me how it happened. This thing moved on its own!]

Zandolf looked at that from the back and couldn't believe there was some treasure capable of stopping that attack. Even he, with his armor and Divine Origin Energy protection, was easily pierced through. "Goku, what is this thing?"

Rean wanted to answer. However, the gate didn't simply stop attacking. After all, it did attack several more times while Zandolf retreated to the back of the room before.

*Zash, Zash, Zash, Zash, Zash...*

More and more colored rays of light came from the door, but they all ultimately changed direction and hit the piece of shell. Rean could tell that the shell wasn't really blocking the rays of light. Instead, it was absorbing them, getting more and more brilliant.

Rean then took several steps back, coming out of the fifty-meter range. Yet, the shell continued to float in there, not being the real target of the gate cubic images.

That scene continued for a whole minute, which Rean had already used to retreat to the entrance as well. If things went south, he would flee with everyone else.

However, the colored shine of the two cubic images on the gate seemed to lose its power. Finally, the rays of colored light stopped, returning the environment to the previous silence.

*Clack...*

Hyeoumu's shell, now without anything to absorb, fell to the ground right after. It's just that it was now shinning more than the gate, obviously filled with the gate's attacking energy.