[You may now proceed and challenge the "Sanctuary".]

Click!

'I guess you just need to defeat a powerful boss to prove your worth.'

Still, Stark noticed something strange in the panel.

It didn't call him "Oblivion," his actual ID, but "Heir of Oblivion." A title.

It was obviously tied to the [Authority of Oblivion], though he didn't dwell on it too much.

The mysterious aura around the gate faded.

The lock symbol vanished as a mechanical click echoed out.

Creak...

The gate opened slowly, heavy stone groaning as the view beyond revealed itself.

And what lay past wasn't another cramped hall, but something entirely different.

Beyond was an actual sanctuary, wide, filled with bright vegetation that didn't look corrupted.

A circular courtyard, massive in scale, surrounded by walls with arching windows.

Flowers and vines bloomed across the ground and walls as if nature itself had been preserved here.

But the center drew his attention immediately.

A single pedestal stood there, an item glowing faintly atop it.

The light pulsed rhythmically, like a heartbeat, visible even from this distance.

Stark's eyes narrowed, "Hm."

No hesitation. He stepped forward.

Ding!

[You have arrived at the "Sanctuary".]

So the [Church Sanctuary] wasn't just the outer halls filled with crazed devouts.

That was merely the first section. The real test was here, in this core.

The moment Stark entered, the gate behind him swung shut.

A heavy slam shook the ground, and a faint shimmer sealed it in place.

Stark stayed calm and kept moving. He had expected as much.

The atmosphere inside was strange, bright, almost holy, yet thick with tension.

The light was ethereal, filling every corner with unnatural clarity.

It wasn't comforting though.

Instead, it felt like the air itself was watching him, waiting for him to slip.

Step by step, he walked toward the center.

The sanctuary wasn't empty.

Four tall marble pillars held up the domed structure, each etched with faded carvings.

They were a different symbol form the one of the [God of Fate] though.

It looked like a heart.

They glowed faintly with runes, humming softly.

But what mattered wasn't the walls or the pillars. It was the pedestal.

Stark reached it and inspected the object carefully.

[Heart of The Sanctuary]

It was a crimson heart the size of his palm.

It pulsed steadily, radiating aura in waves.

Every beat reverberated faintly in his bones, as if the heart was alive.

"Hm."

Stark extended his hand to grab it.

Thud!

His fingers hit something invisible. A barrier.

He frowned and pulled back. So, he couldn't just take it.

As he scanned the surroundings, something else caught his attention.

The sanctuary wasn't just a closed room.

Along the circular walls, spaced evenly apart, were passageways.

Narrow tunnels carved into the stone, ten of them in total.

Each was dark, deep, and impossible to see through.

But from inside... rustling sounds echoed.

Stark's expression hardened.

He didn't need a system prompt to guess what would happen next.

He had the advantage of information from his past life.

And right on cue—

Ding!

[You have triggered the "Sanctuary" challenge!]

'Ah.'

In [Eternal Soul], challenges were rare.

Some were hidden, others were locked behind requirements.

All were dangerous. But clearing one came with huge rewards.

This was Stark's first real challenge since his rebirth.

He clenched his staff tighter.

Ding!

Panels stacked up in front of him.

---

[Challenge: Defend the "Heart of Sanctuary" from the monster tide.]

[Description: The "Heart of Sanctuary" has 50,000 HP.]

[If it is destroyed, it will explode, killing you as well as destroying the "Sanctuary" forever with it.]

---

Stark exhaled through his nose. "Hm."

Challenges usually gave a general idea of what to do.

But in that case, it didn't actually tell him anything except for the fact he needed to defend the heart from the monster tide.

Players who first experienced this would be confused, but not Stark.

The moment he saw the passages positioned around, he had already figured out...

That the monsters would come from there!

Meaning that to complete this challenge, Stark needed take care of them all.

A low hum rattled through the air.

The heart pulsed violently, and above it, a health bar appeared.

[Heart of Sanctuary: 50,000/50,000]

Then—

Fwish! Ding!

A high-pitched chime rang out. The challenge had begun.

Stark turned to face the nearest passage.

The rustling was louder now, footsteps scraping stone.

Then a figure lunged out of the shadows.

"Too slow."

Fire Meteor! Sharp Bone Spikes!

BOOM! CRACK!

-163,125! -225,000!

The monster didn't even get its full body out before it died.

Its charred corpse flopped to the ground, twitching once before disintegrating.

Stark didn't even bother checking what it was.

His eyes darted back across the ring of passages.

Ten entrances. Monsters from all directions.

For a normal player, or even a team, this setup would be nearly impossible.

You'd be overwhelmed in minutes. But Stark wasn't a normal player.

His arsenal of AoE spells gave him full control.

He could turn the battlefield into his domain.

And just to cover himself, he reached into his inventory.

[Mount Bell (Ghost Wolf)]

He activated it.

Fwoosh!

The [Ghost Wolf] appeared, its translucent form solidifying on the sanctuary floor.

Immediately, it shivered, sensing the hostile aura spilling out of the passages.

"I want you to watch the entrances I'm not looking at. If anything comes out, howl."

The wolf tilted its head, then nodded.

Ding!

[The Ghost Wolf's Loyalty has increased by 2%.]

"Damn," Stark muttered, "I wonder why."

Rustle!

Two more monsters lunged out, this time from adjacent passages.

Storm of Lightning! Vines of Fate!

Zap! Slam!

-130,500! -124,500!

Both collapsed instantly, reduced to nothing before they could make a move.

The monsters were adjusted for the challenge, most had around 150,000 to 250,000 HP.

For other players, that was absurd. For him? Easy prey.

He didn't even let them leave the tunnels.

His spells mowed them down the moment they peeked out.

Two minutes in, the sanctuary was littered with fading corpses.

Then—

A sharp howl. Stark spun toward the sound.

The [Ghost Wolf] barked at one of the tunnels, backing away as something massive stepped out.

"Oh, goddamn it."

---

[Rotten Sanctuary Visitor (Level 25)]

[Rank: Epic (Boss)]

[HP: 350,000]

---

A hulking, rotted figure dragged itself out of the passage.

Its body was covered in festering wounds, its mask cracked and glowing faintly.

Stark didn't hesitate.

Fire Meteor! Crystals of Death!

BOOM! CRACK!

-163,125! -131,250!

The boss staggered, barely getting a roar out.

Vines of Fate! Slam!

-124,500!

The corpse was crushed back into the tunnel, twitching once before collapsing.

Stark focused again.

So bosses could appear too. That made things trickier.

Still, thanks to his cooldowns being low and his damage being overwhelming, he could manage.

But then—

Howl!

Another warning from the ghost wolf. Stark whirled toward the sound.

This time, though, no hulking boss emerged.

Instead—

Fwish!

A streak of light zipped out of a tunnel.

Slam!

The projectile struck the [Heart of Sanctuary].

-9,700!

The heart pulsed violently as its HP bar dropped.

[Heart of Sanctuary: 40,300/50,000]

Stark's eyes narrowed, "Ranged monsters, huh? They're not making this easy."

Nearly a fifth of the heart's health gone from a single arrow.

If multiple ranged enemies spawned at once...

He tightened his grip on his staff, "Tch."

Backing down wasn't an option.

'I need to beat it.'

His eyes sharpened, scanning all ten passages at once.

'Can't back down.'

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