A thick wave of warmth hit Kiernan in the face, and he felt like he was standing under a sun in the middle of a desert.

The humidity was low because of the dry heat.

In the moss-covered ground, insects, snakes, and all kinds of creatures scurried about.

The prison guard yanked on the chain and dragged Kiernan behind as they made their way down the floor.

The path wasn't as simple as just walking straight like in the previous floors. There were trees sprouting from the ground, and they had to also dodge the roots, and fallen tree trunks.

This time around, the prisoners had collars around their necks as they were hunched inside their prison cells.

Martial Masters were already strong enough that they had to have collars, as they could pose a serious threat if all of them were unleashed without collars.

'He should be here.'

Kiernan looked at the surrounding prison cells, and at that moment, they arrived at the section of the level where some prisoners were hunting down the snakes.

"Damn it!"

A prisoner hacked down his machete, missed the snake, and in return, the snake turned on him and lunged at him.

With its poisonous fangs bared, it sank them into the prisoner's leg, and following his scream, his face turned poisonous purple.

"God damn it!"

A prison guard shouted and kicked the snake away, but when he looked at the prisoner, he was already foaming from the mouth.

"He was bitten by King Venom Snake. He is as good as dead…"

The prison guard said and ordered a couple of the prisoners to drag him back to his cell.

Swoosh!

Cling! Cling! Cling!

At that moment, they heard the sound of the clinking of the chains and turned around to see Daemon walking in with a group of prison guards and a new prisoner.

"Vice Prison Warden, sir!"

The prison guards saluted.

With nasty gazes, the prisoners looked over and watched as the weathered-looking man stumbled about.

"A new prisoner for us?"

A prison guard asked.

"No, this one goes to level eight."

Daemon said with a smirk.

"Martial King? This sorry-looking fuck?"

They eyed Kiernan and thought that he didn't quite look like a Martial King powerhouse.

When the prisoners heard that, they looked over and wondered just how horrible level eight was if their level was already so terrifying.

At that moment, from the thickness of the tropical jungle, Julian emerged with a couple of dead snakes draped over his shoulders.

He had a busted nose with some bruising around his face that came from the punch that knocked his lights out.

'Level eight?'

He wondered and looked at the chained prisoner.

In that moment, the prisoner looked back at him with a deep gaze, and it stunned Julian for a moment.

There was something about that gaze…

However, at that moment, a dark-furred creature appeared behind Kiernan, as if he had taken off his invisibility cloak.

'Fen?!'

Julian screamed inwardly, was about to make a big reaction, but quickly calmed himself down, and took a second look at the man.

'Don't tell me… Kiernan?'

He realized that he must be the only one to see Fen, as no one else seemed to react, and since he was following behind this man, it must mean only one thing.

'Y-You fool…'

Julian's lips trembled, but a slight blooming hope grew in his heart, even though it was small.

He felt ashamed that Kiernan had to come to save him, but he was feeling very nervous as well.

It would be his fault if Kiernan got stuck in the Downed Prison because of him. His life would be ruined.

Kiernan's future was going to be bright, and he would be known as one of the greatest martial artists in the future.

He put all that at risk just to help Julian.

Kiernan, Fen, Daemon, and the rest of the prison guards made their way to the elevator and descended down.

When they were out of view, Julian strolled back to his cell and sat down with a heavy look.

'If I had a way to talk to him, I would've told him to never come. This is my fault, and he shouldn't be punished for it. He should've just stayed with Aoi and… had a proper life.'

…

Downed Prison, Eight Level.

A blizzard of white snow swept through the floor with biting cold, and the floor was icy like that in a frozen tundra.

The prison guards, despite wearing warm clothes, were trembling in the cold.

With a key-holding hand, which was trembling, the prison guard unlocked the cell door and pushed Kiernan inside.

They removed the chain that was attached to the collar, and slammed the cell door shut.

"…"

Kiernan rubbed his arms, which were already starting to get cold, and looked around his cell, which looked frozen.

"We got a new fish!"

In that moment, a shout came from one of the cells, and the rest of the prisoners jeered.

"Shut your mouths!"

Daemon shouted.

"Fuck you!"

A shout came back from some cell, and the rest of the prisoners laughed.

"Tch…"

Daemon clicked his tongue.

He hated coming down here, as these prisoners did not have the same fear and respect as prisoners of the previous floors had.

It was because they were already Martial Kings, and they wouldn't show respect to someone like Daemon, who was a Martial King just like them.

It didn't matter that they couldn't use their strength.

They still had to carry the pride of being Martial King!

"Have fun… We only bring food once a week here. It shouldn't matter, as we, Martial Kings, can feed ourselves with nothing but the energy from the world."

Daemon said.

"…"

Kiernan sat down on the frozen bed, nodded, and then Daemon and the rest of the prison guards left.

In that moment, Fen jumped to his lap and started warming him up with his soft fur, and it did help to scare away some of the cold.

"Hey new fish, who are you, and why are you here?"

A gruff voice asked from the shadows.

"…Captain Jack. Piracy."

Kiernan said with a rough and deep voice.

"I know of you! Didn't you sail through the Tempest Region, burning every village in your wake?"

"…What about you?"

Kiernan asked.

"I am innocent! My lawyer fucked me!"

The gruff voice shouted, and everyone just laughed.

With a shake of his head, Kiernan patted Fen on the head and looked around the floor.

The cells were stuck inside frozen walls, but luckily for him, the cells were really scattered, and thus, no one had a really good view of his cell.

It also helped him that the prison guards definitely didn't seem to go here often, but Kiernan had already managed to see many cameras.

There was already one camera looking straight at his cell.

'…Now, where do I begin?'

Kiernan thought.

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