DOCK!
Before anyone could react, Silvia aggressively shoved everyone down into the dirt.
A split second later, a sharp arrow flew through the air, piercing straight into a thick tree trunk right where they had been standing.
Suddenly, rustling sounds echoed from the shadows.
A group of masked people moved with lethal speed, completely surrounding them from all sides, weapons drawn.
Silvia’s eyes darted through the crowd, locking onto an old woman stepping forward.
The woman looked easily eighty years old, her face heavily lined with age, yet she moved with an unbelievable, sharp energy.
The old woman paused, her eyes scanning the ragged group.
She took one look at Reian’s bloody, unconscious body cradled by a heavily injured Flame, and raised her hand.
“Lower your weapons,” the old woman ordered her people, her voice firm.
“These kids are not a threat to us.”
The masked fighters immediately stood down.
Moving quickly, they picked up the unconscious Reian and supported the wounded Flame, guiding the exhausted group deep into the dark forest.
Soon, they arrived at a hidden village.
Even in the dim light, Silvia and Silya could see that the villagers were living in a state of absolute, high-alert panic, their eyes constantly scanning the perimeter.
Looking around at the tense, chaotic village, the little girl grew incredibly nervous, her small hands shaking as she tightly hugged Silya for safety.
They were brought directly to the Village Head’s house.
The moment they stepped inside, the little girl they had rescued began to cry softly, whispering that she was starving.
Hearing this, the old woman turned to her people and ordered them to bring food for the children right away.
“Go wash up first,” the woman told Silvia and Silya.
“You will feel better.”
After a quick, desperately needed wash, Silvia and Silya rushed back into the main room, anxiety chewing at them.
“Where are Reian and Flame?” Silvia asked immediately.
“Are they okay?”
The old woman gave a reassuring nod.
“They are fine.
Their injuries have been treated, but their bodies need deep rest.
Right now, they are both in a deep sleep.”
The heavy knot in their chests finally loosened.
With their minds at ease, they sat down and ate the warm food ravenously.
Once they finished, the old woman offered to show them around.
She took them on a quiet tour of their small, fortified village, pointing out their defensive lines, their standing soldiers, and their highly trained archers.
The entire place was built like a fortress hidden from the world.
Stopping near the edge of the camp, the old woman looked at the night sky.
“That is enough for tonight.
It is getting very late.
I will show you the rest of the village tomorrow morning, and we will visit the temple.
For now, get some rest.”
She led them to a small, private room.
As they settled down for the night, the silence of the room made the tension return.
Silvia turned to Silya, her voice barely a whisper.
“That old woman seems nice…
but we cannot afford to lower our guard here,” Silvia warned, her eyes darting to the door.
Silya sighed softly, pulling the blanket up.
“I know.
But they haven’t done anything wrong to us.
In fact, they saved us.”
“Maybe,” Silvia muttered, staring at the ceiling.
“But in this world, keeping your guard up is the only way to stay alive.”
With that uneasy thought lingering in the air, they finally closed their eyes and fell asleep.
The next morning, the group freshened up and followed the old woman toward the village temple.
As they approached, Silvia and Silya gasped.
The structure looked thousands of years old, its ancient stone walls covered in intricate drawings and historic paintings carved deeply into the rock.
“Before we begin, pay your respects to the Gods,” the old woman instructed.
After they bowed their heads in respect, the old woman walked toward the large wall carvings, pointing at the ancient images.
“Millions of years ago,” the old woman began, her voice echoing in the quiet temple, “two incredibly powerful Gods ruled.
One was known as the Absolute Overlord, and the other was the Phantom Asura.
They were best friends, bound by absolute loyalty. This chapter is updated first at g.com.
Their combined strength was so massive it could literally wipe out the entire universe, yet they possessed pure, kind hearts.”
She moved her torch closer to a darker section of the wall, where a terrifying figure was carved.
“But one day, an absolute nightmare appeared.
A demon god named Sargon.
He was the most powerful and ruthless demon god to ever exist.
To save existence itself, the Absolute Overlord and the Phantom Asura went to war against him.
The battle raged for three brutal days without a single second of rest.
Sargon was stronger than anything they had ever anticipated.”
The old woman’s face grew grave as she stared at the final carving.
“Realizing they couldn’t defeat him normally, the two Gods made the ultimate sacrifice for the sake of the universe.
They rushed forward, pinning Sargon down together, and forcefully detonated their own divine souls.
The massive self-explosion destroyed all three of them.
Heaven honored their grand sacrifice, worshiping them for eternity.
But there was a catch…
a single cell of Sargon survived the blast.
Heaven searched for millions of years, but they found absolutely nothing.”
The old woman lowered her hand, her story ending in a heavy silence.
Meanwhile, deep inside the pitch-black void of Reian’s mind, reality was shifting.
Reian opened his eyes, finding himself standing back in the dark consciousness void.
But as he looked ahead, his heart violently skipped a beat, and absolute shock took over his face.
This time, something was completely wrong.
The ancient, terrifying shadow locked in the center of the room wasn’t mocking him.
Instead, the dark entity was writhing, its smoky form glitching and shaking violently as if something was tearing it apart from the inside.
Reian stood frozen, staring in pure horror.
Finally back on my feet after being down all week!
Hope you guys enjoyed the change of pace in this chapter.
The world just got a lot bigger.
Who do you think the shadow is reacting to?
Let me know your theories below!