F-ranker Sword Saint: My Soulbound Sword is Secretly SSS-tier!-Chapter 370: Unsettling Developments

"Should I have called for reinforcements first?"

A bit deep into the chasm, Daru suddenly found himself regretting his carelessness.

Baal’s Mark had never gotten him into trouble before, but it didn’t mean it wouldn’t.

He didn’t want to waste time and return, though.

He was a bit uneasy, sure, but with the Dark Sentry on his back, he felt a bit better. Whatever it was that he was looking for in here was also not too deep into the chasm.

Thus, Daru decided to go through with the risky journey.

He strained his eyes, but they couldn’t pierce through the darkness. He could only hope that nothing would suddenly lunge at him and eat him whole.

’That would be scary...’ he mused.

Thankfully, nothing did.

To Daru’s puzzlement, he felt as though he had already passed what it was that he was looking for, but there was nothing there except for the chasm walls.

Still, he returned and flew closer.

Daru confirmed that whatever it was that Baal’s Mark wanted him to see, it was hidden somewhere deep in the branch he was on.

The problem was that he was nowhere near strong enough to dig it out.

Subconsciously, his right hand reached for the walls...and they passed right through.

His eyes widened.

In the next moment, he pushed deeper, then with his other hand until, finally, the "wall" absorbed him.

Daru found himself in the middle of a massive dark space that was similar to a grand hall, though it was completely empty, except for the strange silhouette at the far end.

It didn’t seem like some living being, so he wasn’t too worried.

Strangely, the space was not as dark as the abyss.

Daru approached the silhouette, his Bloodscarlet Cardari Wings dissolving as he stepped onto the wooden floor surface.

The Dark Sentry remained at peace.

Baal’s Mark told him that the dark silhouette was the thing it was leading him to, and so he touched it.

In the next moment, he froze — greatly similar to what happened to him when he tried to connect to the Verdant Nucleus, and a flood of information about the Continuum...and this time, the Void, too, had entered his mind.

[You have gained 20 Will.]

Of course, not everything about them, just what was necessary for him to form a connection with what was called a Void Gate.

Frozen in his pupils was the image of a forming, purple key that could easily be mistaken for black.

Around him, strange crystals — eerily similar to the ones Kazuraga had — dimly illuminated the light space.

Daru would’ve been in awe had he had the mental capacity to process what was happening in front of him.

The oval, egg-like silhouette broke into pieces, then the pieces began floating, locking themselves in both space and the void.

The strange mystical formation ended at that, though, while the key continued to form.

To Daru, everything happened in an instant.

It was like the formation was just there. Then, a moment later, his attention was snatched by a notification that suddenly appeared.

[You have received a Soulbound Relic: Lower Yggdrasil Void Key (Skjallroot).]

His heart skipped a beat as he read the notification.

Another Soulbound Relic.

From this, Daru concluded that Yggdrasil was yet another special location, just like the Underworld was.

He was far too weak and insignificant to even dare think of unveiling divine secrets, though, so he simply proceeded to read the description without any major expectations.

==

Name: Lower Yggdrasil Void Key (Skjallroot)

Type: Relic (Soulbound)

Tier: SSS

Level Requirement: N/A

Description: A forbidden key forged from divine and profane laws. Should not exist but does anyway — a physical attestation that a god has strayed from the heavens.

Innate Abilities:

[Profane Cloaking (Passive)] - Conceals the existence of the relic and its abilities from divine eyes.

[Voidwalk] - Activates the Void Rift connected to Skjallroot. (Note: When [Voidwalk] is used, a part of the key will be left at the return location as a tether. 14-day cooldown. Cannot be used in Yggdrasil or the user’s Origin Realm.)

[Return Rift] - Activates the Rift Formation in Skjallroot. No Cooldown. Cannot be used outside the formation’s activation range.

==

[The Overseer smiles at you.]

Daru was shocked by the item’s description and the Profane Cloak passive ability. In fact, he felt uncomfortable about it.

Why did Baal’s Mark push him towards such an item?

But more than those two, why was the Overseer smiling at him?

Are the two in cahoots?

He was up for challenges. However, what was currently happening seemed to be way out of his league.

After all, he was but a mortal, and he felt uneasy about the idea of slowly being dragged into the matters of the divine and the profane.

’That Baal...’ Daru shook his head.

Who else was to blame for this?

Still, he had free will, and while he was forced to own such a harrowing item that would allow him to return to Yggdrasil in the future, he could choose not to use it.

There should be no reason to, anyway.

His enemies were the Vesharis, the Aetherborns, and the Vyrrkans, not the divine nor the profane.

Sighing his heavy emotions out of his system, Daru looked around what he decided to call the Skjallroot Hall, but aside from the strange, purple crystals illuminating the surroundings that he couldn’t take no matter what he did, there was nothing else.

He turned to leave, flashing the strange location hidden behind a Spatial Mirage one last look before flying off with a pair of Stormcrest Jayari wings.

Daru then carefully followed his trails and navigated his way back to camp

It took him around an hour and a half, but he made it back.

The half-frustrated, half-worried look on the princess’s face vanished immediately the moment she spotted him in the distance.

"Took you long enough! I thought you weren’t returning."

Daru’s attention, however, was glued to something else. Planted close to Durandal was a strange golden sapling with a faint golden aura.

"The...Sovereign Sapling?"