Chapter 185: An unexpected trial (1/2)

Stepping through the gateway, he was greeted with a slightly different experience than the last time he used a similar means of transportation. This one wasn't instantaneous travel, but instead, Aiden found himself in a strange cylindrical-shaped tunnel with a flat surface made out of transparent energy. All around, he could only see the swirling mass of the dark void with the occasional speck of light mixed in, creating a fuzzy, hazy experience.

The void-tunnel as Aiden nicked it in his mind wasn't long, nor did it spiral at all. It was a short, straight hallway, he could see a similar black door-shaped tear in the space marking his potential exit from this sub-dimension.

Instinctually, Aiden sent out a few pulses of energy, but there were no responses, his system map couldn't map and record anything. Since he couldn't find any traces of a trap, or danger at all, Aiden could only go forward, and embrace himself for the strange trip ahead.

Just with other experiences, the first step changed everything. Suddenly the short tunnel stretched out, just a little bit, pushing the boundaries and the exit just a step further, matching the distance he traversed.

Raising his eyebrows in curiosity, Aiden raised his left leg that hasn't made a movement as of yet, and slowly raised it from the transparent floor. Keeping a close watch on the exit, he slowly moved his leg, ahead of his right, whilst also shifting his center of gravity forward.

At the moment his left leg touched the 'ground', space buzzed once more, and the exit was pushed back just a bit, once again matching the distance his leg covered.

”What the…” He exclaimed, not understanding the logic behind the strange phenomena at all.

”Is this the trap?” He asked himself, but then remembering Sarah's words and expressions, he shook his head. ”No, it's probably not meant to be one. Hmm… Maybe a test? Does the exit move every time my feet touch the ground?”

To test his theory, he once again lifted his right foot off the ground and moved it ahead of his left, this time covering a bit more distance than what he usually does with an average step. Just like before, once his foot touched the hard surface made out of the unknown energy, the exit seemed to blur from existence and moved further away, matching the distance covered by his movement.

”I see…” His theory confirmed, Aiden began to dive into his thoughts, thinking of possible solutions to this puzzle.

”I can't walk that's for sure. What if I run?”

Continuing with his theories, Aiden lifted his left leg and placed it in front of the right. As the door began to shift to match the distance he covered, Aiden suddenly began to slowly jog forward. The door, however, seemed to be able to match his pace, it did not stop but kept matching the distance his feet covered with each step.

Expecting this result, Aiden only smirked, and slowly began to increase his speed whilst keeping a close eye on the exit portal's position.

His speed gradually increased, but to a normal degree only, which was always matched by the portal.

Seeing that his attempt was met with a failure once again, Aiden wasn't annoyed by the slightest, in fact, he was already expecting such a result. Closing his eyes, he pooled into his Soul Power reserves, and also activated his Mystic Martial Arts. Focusing on the flow, this time he guided the energy towards his legs. As the energy sept into his muscles, his dashing figure suddenly blurred as his speed crossed the limits of what naturally would be capable.

His figure gradually turning into a streak of a black bolt of lightning he zapped towards the exit with rapid speeds. This speed was still met with a failure, however, as the gateway managed to keep with his pace and zoomed back just enough to be a step away from Aiden's reach.

Still, it wasn't a complete defeat as the sudden increase in power seemed to cause an issue to the door frame to shift and match his speed, and the original distance almost halved.

Inspired by this realization, Aiden gritted his teeth, he activated his second innate, the [Dragon's Wrath]. His eyes suddenly lit up, they began to emit their majestic golden luster, basking the black streak of lightning with a golden afterglow. Controlling the change, Aiden focused on the transformation and the power on his wings and his legs.