The blue communication crystal went completely silent. Prince Aurelius—Elias—had just revealed a terrible secret. The King on the throne was a fake. The real King was frozen in the golden pod right in front of them. Adam Cook did not show any surprise. He dropped the blue crystal onto the cold metal floor. He crushed it into gray dust under his heavy iron boot. "Adam," Catherine whispered. She stood behind him, looking at her frozen King. "If the real King is here... who is ruling the Capital?""A monster," Adam said flatly. His hollow mind processed the new puzzle perfectly. "Elias replaced his own father. He put a fake puppet on the throne. But we cannot worry about the Capital right now. We have to finish our mission here."Adam looked past the golden pod. At the very back of the massive cavern, there were giant, heavy steel doors. They were covered in thick black locks. "The central chamber is behind those doors," Kaelen said. The old mage was shaking in fear. "That is where th

Kael flew through the hot, bloody air. The invisible vacuum from the giant monster’s chest was incredibly strong. The blind boy screamed in terror as he was sucked toward the empty, hungry hole. Prince Aurelius—Elias—smiled, watching his cruel trap work perfectly. But Adam Cook did not let his friend die. Adam did not use his pitch-black Void magic. He knew that using magic would wake up the giant Synthetic God. Instead, Adam pushed all of his evolved, dense physical strength into his legs. Adam jumped off the metal floor. He shot through the air like a rocket. He reached out and grabbed Kael’s ankle just before the boy entered the giant hole. With a massive shout, Adam twisted his body. He used his heavy weight to pull Kael downward. They crashed hard onto the solid metal floor, rolling safely away from the terrifying vacuum. "I have you," Adam whispered, pinning Kael to the floor so the vacuum

The pitch-black Void magic buzzed violently around Adam’s pale hands. The bright golden stars in his dark eyes locked onto the High Frost-Mage. Adam’s hollow mind calculated the distance. The ancient, dead king stood forty feet away. The giant Synthetic God hung from the ceiling behind him, humming with a sick, heavy rhythm. “Target is tall. Armor is thick blue ice. Close the distance. Shatter the armor,” Adam’s cold brain planned perfectly. Adam bent his knees. He focused all of his dense, highly evolved physical strength into his legs. He prepared to explode forward with terrifying speed. He wanted to cross the forty feet in less than a single second. Adam pushed off the ground. But he did not move forward. He did not run. His body jerked to a sudden, violent stop. Adam looked down at his feet. His eyes widened in shock. Thick, glowing blue ice had covered his heavy iron boo

The roaring blade of violet plasma plunged straight into the High Frost-Mage’s chest. Thick, boiling white steam exploded into the cold air. The ancient, heavy blue ice armor instantly melted into hot water. Adam Cook pushed the burning energy deeper, aiming to destroy the dark red soul-matter hidden inside the dead king’s icy bones. But the High Frost-Mage did not fall apart. He did not turn to gray ash. Instead, the tall, frozen king raised his pale, icy hands. He reached out and grabbed Adam’s burning wrists. The Mage did not attack. He simply held Adam in place. The battle completely paused. Adam’s blazing violet eyes looked up. The thick, pulsing red meat inside the Mage’s empty eye sockets stopped moving. The giant Synthetic God hanging from the ceiling stopped its heavy, rhythmic humming. The entire room went perfectly, terrifyingly silent. The High Frost-Mage tilted his head. He studied Adam’s glowing face. He felt the intense, impossible heat coming from Adam’s body. H

The giant Synthetic God reached down with its massive, icy hands. The spinning, grinding metal blades inside its open chest roared loudly. It wanted to grab Adam Cook and tear his soul into tiny pieces. But the magic in the dark, underground cavern was not finished. On the wet metal floor, the boiling puddle of water and gray ash suddenly moved. It was the melted remains of the High Frost-Mage. The giant monster hanging from the ceiling pumped a thick wave of dark red blood magic directly into the puddle. In a single second, the water spun into a violent tornado. The High Frost-Mage reformed. The ancient ice king did not have legs anymore. His upper body grew directly out of the Synthetic God’s stomach. The Mage was now a living, magical defense system. He existed only to protect the giant machine. The Mage raised his pale, freezing hands. A massive, thick dome of solid blue ice erupted from his fingers. The ice grew with terrifying speed. It formed a giant ice-shield around the