My Charity System made me too OP
Chapter 427 - 427: Void Walker VIII

Phase 2: The Hollow Choir

At the forest's center, the silence broke—not with sound, but with vibration.

A ring of thin, humanoid forms sat around a cracked obsidian altar. They had no mouths. No eyes. Their skin was waxy and pale.

And yet… they were singing.

Not audibly.

But in the way your bones feel thunder.

Leon stepped closer, and his Shell Reverb trembled in response.

One of the wax-things turned its head—and stared at him.

No eyes.

But it saw.

Suddenly, one of them stood and extended a hand.

And Leon heard a voice—not aloud, but in his mind, trembling with static and dissonance.

"One of you must give up a memory to pass."

Roselia stepped forward before Leon could react.

She pressed a palm to the altar.

A flicker—of her hugging her brother. A moment long gone.

Then the wax creatures bowed… and melted.

Phase 3: Sovereign – Erasure

They reached a clearing where the trees bent inward like ribs.

In the center stood a figure wrapped in silence itself.

Its form was indistinct—smoke in humanoid shape, shifting constantly, as if resisting definition.

The moment the team approached, they forgot why they came.

Just for a second.

Then it came back.

And then the figure spoke—not aloud—but directly into their souls.

"I am Erasure. I do not seek to rule. I do not seek to climb. I exist to undo."

Leon staggered as visions of being forgotten flashed in his head—his name erased, his victories lost, his soul dissolved into silence.

Roman fell to his knees.

Kael clutched his head.

Only Leon stood firm.

He raised his blade—not in anger, but in defiance.

"You exist to undo," he mouthed. "I exist to remember."

And he charged.

Boss Battle: Erasure – The Unclimber

There was no music.

No screams.

No clash of steel.

Just movement.

Just memory.

Erasure's attacks stole things. A glancing hit made Naval forget his own weapon form. A close swipe left Milim staring blankly, as if her thoughts were ripped out.

Leon used Shell Reverb not as a weapon—but as an anchor.

He focused on every moment of his climb.

Every floor.

Every friend.

Every loss.

And the Tower responded.

His blade glowed—not with power—but with memory.

He slashed through Erasure—not physically, but with intent. With proof of his existence.

Erasure reeled, its form flickering violently.

"You will be forgotten."

Leon's answer was simple.

"No."

Final strike.

Erasure burst into silent dust—disintegrating not into light or dark, but emptiness.

Gone.

Truly gone.

[Floor 527 – Cleared]

• Trait Gained: Memory Anchor – Cannot be erased, forgotten, or removed from temporal timelines.

• Title Earned: The Remembered

• Chain Protocol Node 6/12 Acquired

The Pale Forest regrows slowly. But it will never forget the one who passed through whole.

The moment they stepped through the gate, the heat hit them like a wall.

Not just warmth—pressure, like being dropped into a volcano mid-eruption. The air shimmered with waves of molten haze, distorting vision and pulling sweat from skin instantly.

The world around them was an endless coliseum carved from emberglass—a strange, obsidian-like material laced with glowing red-orange veins. Massive stone braziers lined the rim of the arena, each burning with fire that hissed like it was alive. The ground was cracked and scarred, and in the distance, molten rivers flowed like slow-moving blood.

But what caught their attention first… was the smell.

Burnt stone. Singed metal. And old, long-dead ash.

[Welcome to Floor 528 – Emberglass Arena]

• Domain Type: Trial Forge

• Floor Hazard: Firebound Gravity – Movement drains stamina

• Trait Restriction: Regeneration sealed

• Objective: Survive Trial Combat

• Sovereign: Vurnak, The Pyre Challenger

Kael grimaced, shielding his eyes. "This heat... even my bones feel like they're sweating."

"Don't complain," Roman muttered, already coating his weapon in heat-resistant compound. "This floor doesn't like weakness."

Leon didn't say a word. His eyes were locked on the center of the arena.

There, impaled into a blackened stone platform, was a massive sword. Its blade was chipped, cracked, and glowing with internal fire. It radiated pain—not the feeling, but the memory of pain. As if a hundred thousand battles echoed from its metal.

And seated behind it, arms crossed, eyes closed, was a man.

Broad-shouldered. Shirtless. Skin layered in burn scars and ash tattoos.

[Sovereign Detected – Vurnak, The Pyre Challenger]

Challenge Level: Lethal

Intent: Combat Trial

Reason: "To see if your scars are deeper than mine."

Vurnak stood.

And the heat intensified.

"I don't care about your names," he said, voice like gravel grinding in a furnace. "I don't care about your crowns, or your titles, or what floor you crawled up from."

He grabbed the sword with one hand, and pulled it free in a burst of sparks and smoke.

"All I care about... is if you can stand through pain."

He pointed his blade at Leon.

"Because pain's the only thing that doesn't lie."

Leon stepped forward, calm and steady.

"I've lived with it. Climbed through it. Lost in it."

He rolled his shoulder, drawing his own blade.

"Show me if yours means more."

Vurnak smiled.

And then charged.

Boss Battle: Vurnak – The Pyre Challenger

There was no warm-up.

Vurnak moved like an avalanche of flame, swinging the colossal sword in wide arcs that tore through the stone beneath. Each strike left lingering embers that burst moments later into flares, forcing the team to keep moving.

Leon ducked under the first sweep and retaliated, only for Vurnak to catch his blade mid-swing with the flat of his own, twisting and slamming Leon backward.

"No technique," Vurnak growled. "Only instinct."

Kael and Roman flanked from both sides—but their blades melted just by clashing against Vurnak's sword.

Milim tried to cast a defensive ward—and the moment the barrier formed, the heat exploded, shattering the spell.

[Warning: Magic Suppression – Fire Density Critical]

Roselia gritted her teeth and activated a blood-forged sigil, drawing heat away—but Vurnak absorbed it, laughing as the veins in his body glowed brighter.

"This arena burns cowardice!" he roared. "Burns doubt!"

Leon understood then.

This wasn't a test of power.

It was a test of resilience.

He triggered Shell Reverb: Absolute Return, not to strike—but to endure. Letting each wound echo back into him, controlled, grounded. He felt his muscles scream. His bones strain.

But he stood.

Even when a two-handed smash broke the earth beneath him—

Leon stood.

Vurnak paused.

"…Still standing?"

Leon spat blood and wiped it from his mouth.

"I've stood through worse."

Final Clash

The air rippled.

Leon's blade burned white-hot.

Vurnak roared and surged forward one final time.

They met in the center—fire and pulse, steel and soul.

And when the dust cleared—

Only Leon was standing.

Blade buried in the molten ground beside him.

Chest heaving. Body shaking.

But standing.

[Floor 528 – Cleared]

• Trait Gained: Scars of the Forge – Immune to pain-based illusions and fear-type debuffs.

• Passive Acquired: Trial Tempered – +10% stamina regeneration in all heat or stress zones.

• Chain Protocol Node 7/12 Acquired

Vurnak's blade shattered—on purpose. A smile cracked across his face as he vanished in steam.

"You're more than strong," his voice whispered. "You're real."