Evolving My Undead Legion In A Game-Like World

Chapter 613: Instructor

The elevator continued its smooth descent.

"Do you know the main difference between our academy and most cultivation academies?" Lira asked.

Michael looked at her, brow slightly furrowed. "Difference?"

Michael tilted his head, intrigued. "How?"

"You’ll see soon," she said, not elaborating further.

The elevator finally slowed. The metallic doors slid open with a hiss.

What awaited them made Michael blink.

Directly before him stood a massive portal. A swirling oval-shaped gateway.

"Welcome to the real Veraunt’s Edge," Lira said softly. "This is the academy’s entrance — or more accurately, the gate to its realm."

Michael’s eyes widened slightly. "Realm?"

Lira nodded, finally glancing back at him with a grin. "Every top-tier supernatural academy has its own pocket world — an independent realm created and stabilized by space-folding technology and high-tier formation masters. Ours is no different."

Without another word, Lira stepped into the portal. Her form dissolved into ripples of light and vanished.

Michael stood there for a moment, silent. Then, curiosity got the better of him. He reached forward, his fingers brushing against the portal’s surface.

The next instant, the world tilted.

Colors bled and reformed, light stretching and folding until—

A low hum filled his ears as the distortion faded, and the first thing Michael felt was a faint breeze brushing against his face.

When his vision cleared, he found himself standing on a wide, circular platform made of pale metal that glowed softly beneath his feet.

In front of him stretched an expanse that made Michael’s breath still for a moment.

The space was massive. A sprawling city-like landscape spread across the horizon, filled with towering structures that blended modern aesthetics with a kind of ancient grace.

The two styles shouldn’t have matched well, but somehow they did perfectly.

Above him, the sky stretched wide and endless, painted in shades of deep indigo. Stars glittered brightly.

Above was a tranquil night that felt both real and unreal.

But what drew his attention most wasn’t the scenery — it was the colossus floating high above the city.

A massive construct hovered silently in the air, shaped like an enormous circular citadel.

The sheer amount of mana gathering there made Michael’s instincts flare. His sensitivity to energy almost worked against him; a chill ran down his spine as his skin prickled.

It felt... volatile as if the entire floating citadel was a restrained bomb of pure mana, capable of leveling everything below if disturbed.

His breath hitched slightly, and a faint layer of sweat formed along his temples.

Fortunately, Lira beside him didn’t notice. She was smiling, her tone bright and casual — as if the scene before them was nothing out of the ordinary.

"Welcome to the real academy," she said, turning to him with a hint of pride. "Veraunt’s Edge."

Michael didn’t respond immediately. His eyes lingered on the floating citadel, the steady pulse of power it emitted, before he finally exhaled a quiet breath.

"I never thought the academy’s location would turn out to be an artificial dimensional crack," Michael said at last, eyes still on the floating citadel.

Lira shook her head. "Not a crack. Dimensional cracks are semi-feral systems. They spawn and replenish monsters almost without end as long as there is negative energy to feed on. You could call them ’natural’ in the loose sense, though most are the result of contamination."

She gestured around them. "This place is artificial through and through."

Michael glanced toward the distant towers. "To hide the supernatural from the public."

"That is part of it," Lira said. "The Federation still prefers distance between everyday life and people like us. But it is not only about secrecy. There are some things that simply cannot be performed in the normal world without causing harm. Here, they can."

She started down the lighted causeway and waved him along. "Come on. Registration first, then I will show you around."

"This realm is called Duskwoven Expanse."

"The reason this realm is called The Duskwoven Expanse," Lira began, gesturing at the dark sky, "is because it never truly sees daylight. The energy matrix that powers this space stabilizes it under a permanent twilight state. The designers thought it was poetic."

Michael glanced upward again. "So it’s always like this? Dark?"

"Always," she confirmed. "The night sky here is constant.

Michael looked around.

His gaze returned to the colossal citadel floating high above the city. His curiosity finally won.

"What exactly is that construct?"

"That," Lira said, following his gaze, "is the Arc Core—the heart of the Duskwoven Expanse. It’s what keeps the realm stable and supplies the entire academy with mana. The gravity regulators, temperature control, purification systems... everything runs because of it. Without the Arc Core, this place would tear itself apart in minutes."

Michael’s brows drew together. "If it’s that important... why isn’t it guarded?"

Lira chuckled softly. "Who said it isn’t?" She tilted her head toward the citadel, her tone light but confident. "You’re standing in an academy filled with hundreds of Awakeners. If someone can reach the Arc Core without permission, bypass every defense layer, and survive the mana pressure up there—then they deserve it."

Michael’s lips curved faintly. "So it only looks unguarded."

"Exactly," Lira said.

Her words lingered as they continued along the glowing path, the hum of mana and the endless starlit sky accompanying their steps deeper into the academy.

The Duskwoven Expanse wasn’t bustling.

The few people Michael saw along the way couldn’t be above four dozen in this huge space.

"This place feels... empty," Michael remarked, glancing around. "Are there really that few students?"

Lira smiled faintly. "It’s because the older ones are mostly unavailable now. In a week or so it should get better."

They entered one of the academy’s administrative buildings, its halls illuminated by floating panels of light.

Rows of offices lined both sides of the hall.

Lira led the way confidently until she stopped before one labeled:

Instructor Yara Velin.

***

A/N: Thanks for reading and please point out any noticable mistakes you might encounter.