Chapter 497: Chapter 497: Opening the Lord’s Sanctuary
Brandon Barton turned and left with Heath Summers and Vincent Sharp, quickly disappearing into the shadows of the ruins.
Nicholas Jensen watched them go, then turned to Seraphina Sullivan with a sly grin. He also prepared to take his leave. "I was hoping to chat a bit longer, but I have to go too.
This place out here is no place for a person to be—"
He wiped the sweat from his forehead, his hand immediately coming away sticky and wet. "You guys feel it? It’s even hotter at night than during the day. It’s hot enough to roast you alive!"
That wasn’t an exaggeration.
Everyone was drenched in sweat.
The extreme heat during the day was already hard enough to bear. At night, as the ground released the heat it had absorbed, the entire city became a giant oven, so suffocatingly hot it was hard to breathe.
Sweat trickled down their cheeks, and the backs of their shirts were soaked through.
"Alright, we’re off then."
Nicholas waved, then made a point to look at Sean Chandler. "Hey, you! Let’s have another go next time we meet!"
Sean Chandler gave a sullen "hmph."
Nicholas chuckled and turned, his lanky figure quickly vanishing into the night as well.
...
At last, the ruins fell silent.
Only Seraphina Sullivan and her teammates remained.
Dexter Luther let out a long breath and plopped down on a nearby rock. "Phew—they’re finally gone.
All that talking... I’m dying of heat."
Crystal Lynn wiped the sweat from her face and looked at Seraphina Sullivan. "Sullivan, let’s head back, too? It’s just too hot out here."
Seraphina Sullivan nodded, tightening her grip on the token in her hand. "Let’s go."
...
The group made their way through the night, returning to the underground parking garage of the residential building they had been using as a temporary base.
Deep within the garage, a flashlight beam illuminated a small area.
It was still muggy, but at least they were spared the scorching heat from outside. Thanks to the snow or hail provided by the Weather Cloud, the place was just about tolerable.
Seraphina Sullivan stopped in the middle, and the others formed a semicircle around her, their gazes fixed on her hand.
The crimson token lay quietly in her palm. In the faint light, the Cat Demon pattern on it seemed to flow.
"Ready?" Seraphina Sullivan looked up at her teammates.
Dexter Luther nodded vigorously, his eyes shining with excitement. "Ready, so ready! Hurry up and open it! I want to see what a Lord’s Sanctuary looks like!"
Crystal Lynn nervously clenched her fists.
Sean Chandler was silent as usual, but his gaze was locked on the token.
Flora Sullivan’s long hair stirred slightly in the still air. "Sullivan," she said softly, "you can start."
Seraphina Sullivan took a deep breath and clenched her hand, tightening her grip on the token.
She recited silently in her mind—
[Activate Lord’s Sanctuary]
[Ding! Congratulations to Player Seraphina Sullivan for binding the Lord’s Sanctuary.]
The next second, the token vanished from Seraphina Sullivan’s palm.
The crimson token seemed to melt, transforming into a flowing stream of light that coiled and condensed between her fingers, finally solidifying into an ornate, old-fashioned key.
The key was silvery-white and cool to the touch. Faint red patterns swirled along its teeth, like the sealed Flame of the Cat Demon.
At the same time, a clear message flooded her mind—
[Lord’s Sanctuary Key has been bound.]
[To Use: Find any door and insert the key into the lock to open a passage to the Sanctuary.]
[Note: The key is soul-bound to you and can only be used by you. The Sanctuary entrance will temporarily attach to the door you open. This connection will last indefinitely, until you choose to close it.]
[Note: The Lord’s Sanctuary cannot be opened within a natural disaster instance!]
Seraphina Sullivan looked down at the key, a slight arch to her brow.
’Find a door and stick it in?’
She glanced around the underground garage. There were plenty of doors, but they were all either dusty, dilapidated doors from rooms or the doors of abandoned cars.
"So, I have to find a door every time I want to get into the Sanctuary?"
She muttered to herself with a hint of resignation, "A bit tedious."
But she didn’t hesitate for long.
She turned and walked toward the nearby RV, which had served as their main transportation and temporary home for the past few days.
The door to the RV was right in front of her.
Seraphina Sullivan aligned the key with the lock on the vehicle’s door and gently inserted it.
It met no resistance.
The key slid in as if it were a master key. The moment its silvery teeth sank into the metal, the entire door shimmered with a pale golden light that quickly faded.
She took hold of the handle and gave a gentle push.
The door swung open.
But behind it were not the familiar seats and beds of the RV’s interior, but a completely different world.
A cool draft flowed from the doorway, brushing against Seraphina Sullivan’s cheeks. It carried the fresh scent of grass and earth, so clean she couldn’t help but take a deep breath.
It was the long-lost feeling of normal air.
There was no scorching heat, no anxious tension, no inescapable, suffocating baking sensation of the extreme weather disaster.
Seraphina Sullivan’s eyes widened.
She lifted her foot and stepped through.
Behind her, Dexter Luther and the others watched with wide eyes as Seraphina Sullivan disappeared through the doorway. They continued to wait expectantly, but all they could see inside was a tranquil, faint glow and no sign of movement.
"Sullivan?" Dexter Luther called out tentatively.
There was no response.
He hesitated for a moment and reached for the door, but Flora Sullivan stopped him.
"Wait," Flora Sullivan said, looking thoughtfully at the faintly glowing door. "She probably hasn’t granted access yet."
The moment Seraphina Sullivan stepped into the Sanctuary, the sight before her left her stunned.
It was... a massive Space.
How big was it?
She gazed into the distance, estimating its size—at least as large as a standard sports stadium.
A wide plain stretched as far as the eye could see. The ground was flat, black soil, and the air was filled with a damp, earthy scent.
Overhead, a soft light emanated, not as glaring as the sun, but bright enough to illuminate the entire Space.
There was no sky, no clouds—just a soft curtain of light that served as the Space’s "ceiling."
The boundaries on all sides were shrouded in a faint mist, obscuring whatever lay beyond.
Her footsteps echoed softly as she walked across the black soil.
Empty.
Completely empty.
There was nothing at all.
And yet, Seraphina Sullivan felt an inexplicable sense of familiarity—it was the same feeling she’d had when she first entered her Scavenger’s Farm.
A blank slate, where everything had to be cultivated, built, and managed by her own hand.
She crouched and scooped up a handful of the black soil.
It was loose and moist to the touch, and she could faintly smell its fertility.
’I can farm this.’
She stood up and continued walking, doing a full circuit of the Space.
The air remained at a pleasant temperature—not too hot, not too cold. There was no wind, and not a single trace of the disasters outside.
’This place... If the survivors outside knew about it, they would go insane.’
A Space completely untouched by natural disasters, with land, a pleasant temperature, a place where one could plant, build, and truly *survive*.
Not just be alive.
Seraphina Sullivan stood in the center of the Space, a slight smile playing on her lips as she surveyed her surroundings.
She was very satisfied.
After completing her tour, she realized there was a problem.
’Where is everyone else?’
She looked back the way she came. The door was still there, floating in the mist at the edge of the Space, its frame glowing faintly, but the doorway was empty.
Seraphina Sullivan frowned, walked back, and pushed the door open.