Black, viscous liquid began dripping from the ceiling of the stone chamber. The moment Leon inserted the Resonance Crystal into the indentation on the central pillar, the ancient seal projection flickered and twisted—Arthus's face appeared in a holographic distortion, his staff corrupting the elemental nodes.
Chieftain Ironmane grunted in pain as shadow chains tightened around his chest, black mist surging like waves from his dragon-shaped prosthetic eye.
"We have to activate all four elemental nodes at once!" Leon shouted urgently, pressing the fire-thunder rune on his hand against the flame sigil on the eastern side of the pillar. Garrosh understood instantly, swinging his axe into the earth glyph on the western side. Golden sparks erupted from the carved stone.
At that moment, Elara's voice echoed from the crystal: "I found an ancient text at the Tree of Life! The wind node is on the northern ice wall—the water core lies in a southern fissure!"
Before her words had even faded, the ground beneath them cracked open, spewing forth dark purple chaos energy. Leon saw the wolf-claw totem hanging from Ironmane's neck glowing red-hot. He yanked it off and hurled it toward the wind node—upon contact with the icy wall, the bone totem unleashed a gale force wind that tore through the chamber, disintegrating the black sludge into dust.
Garrosh leapt into the fissure below, using his body to block the surging water element. Ice-blue currents flowed along his battle scars, solidifying into runic chains that bound the chaotic flow.
The four elements swirled together inside the chamber. Seizing the moment, Leon slammed the Heart of the Flame Dragon onto the central pillar. Red and blue light clashed and fused with golden-green currents in a thunderous resonance. The shadow chains binding Ironmane shattered. His dragon eye cleared—and roared with primal fury:
"By the oath of our ancestors—I break the seal!"
The pillar exploded, revealing the sealed Chaos Egg fragment—a pulsing black heart covered in eye-like runes. Remembering the warning from the First Bearer, Leon slashed at the heart with his flame dagger—but instead of blood, countless shadowy tendrils oozed from the wound.
"This is the *Seed of Chaos!*" Ironmane thrust the totem into the heart. "We must purify it completely through elemental resonance!"
Leon and Garrosh immediately channeled their fire and thunder power into the totem. Elara's voice crackled through the crystal: "Hurry! Arthus is reinforcing the seal with a blood ritual!"
As the full resonance of the four elements enveloped the seed, the entire chamber began to collapse. Leon hoisted Ironmane onto his back. Garrosh smashed through the ice wall. The three sprinted through the falling debris.
Behind them, the Chaos Seed shrieked in fury before dissolving into smoke. It surged into the rune on Leon's hand, coalescing beside the fire and thunder marks into a droplet-shaped imprint—the first sign of the Water Element awakening within him.
They burst out of the mountain just as the aurora above the Tree of Life turned crimson. Elara's image flickered in the crystal: "The Shadow Covenant is attacking the valley—they've taken Tom!"
Leon clenched the Heart of the Flame Dragon, feeling fire, thunder, and now water swirling within him. He glanced at the frost clinging to Garrosh's axe and finally understood the meaning behind the First Bearer's words—*elemental resonance wasn't just about power… it was the key to unity among all races.*
"To the Tree of Life," Ironmane pressed the wolf-claw totem into Leon's palm. "Remember—hidden within the *Forgotten Shrine* lies the seventh and final shard of the Chaos Egg. And the key to unlocking it…" he paused, eyes gleaming, "is the starlight buried deep in your blood."
Northern winds howled, whipping their cloaks as they stared toward the shadow-cloaked valley ahead. The three-element rune on Leon's hand burned hot.
He knew now—Tom's capture, the corruption of the Chaos Seed—these were only new trials. As fire, thunder, and water resonated within him, the true path of Azlan's salvation was beginning to reveal itself.
And the awakening of his stardust bloodline would be the final key to breaking the seals of fate.