"Speak!" A voice that reverberated throughout the room said, as the individuals heard it, they became solemn. They looked towards a nearby water fountain positioned at the center wall of the room, it was a large fountain more than fifty meters wide and ten meters tall.
A pair of dark blue arms with strange markings could be seen around its edges as the back of a figure could be noticed, he calmly rested inside of this water fountain as if it were a bathtub. His long cyan-blue hair falling down the edges of the fountain reaching all the way to the shining floor.
"Yes, lord Rain Commander!" A trembling voice replied, as he promptly walked over and bowed before the figure lying in the water fountain.
"We have received reports from multiple pawns in our lower layered frontlines," The subordinate said in a hasty fashion.
"And?" The Rain Commander said once more with a tone of impatience, his finger gently tapped the corner of the fountain making 'tap' noises.
"Ah... ah, there is also a peculiar rumor going around, one that I think the lord will be pleased to h----" As he was speaking in a mumbling manner, he was soon cut off by a sudden action.
BANG! The speaking subordinate was promptly blown to pieces as his blue blood stained the beautiful glossy floor and his surroundings, the observing individuals seated in their chairs also started trembling as they looked at the corpse of their comrade.
Crack! "Speak, clearly!" The Rain Commander impatient said again, as he gripped the edges the water fountain causing a few cracks to appear on its surface.
"Replying to lord Rain Commander! We have received reports of there being sightings of humans in the lower layers, particularly the Interior Regions and Outer Regions," A prominent female subordinate said, as she swiftly appeared bowed politely.
"Hmm, well now... this is the quite interesting news. So, it's that time again I presume. After so long, we will finally be able to leave this wretched place." As the Rain Commander in the fountain though to here, he waved his finger towards the ball of water at the center of the subordinates.
BANG! A powerful presence soon filled the area as a set of blue battle armor flew out towards the figure lying in the fountain, as if its presence alone is enough to describe its wonders. It fused with the body of Rain Commander covering his entirety, leaving only his long cyan-blue hair and dazzlingly fiendish blue eyes for the world to see.
He slowly stood up with his tall figure eclipsing the height of the water fountain and moved his feet to the clear floor underneath, calmly stepping down from the fountain.
Instantly a terrifying aura shrouded the world as if the rain in a thousand kilometers started to flow towards the dark palace or perhaps it was towards him.
"All hail the Rain Commander!" The subordinates said in unison as they bowed politely upon seeing the Rain Commander equipped. The look of fear in their eyes was now replaced with a look of excitement as they could tell what was going to happen next.
Looking at his minions, the Rain Commander smirked as he spoke in a loud and powerful voice, "All Generals will heed my command! We will make haste to the 'Centre of All Zones,' as the time for this 'Cycle's Zone Conference,' will soon be at hand."
"Yes, lord Rain Commander!" The subordinates replied in unison as they promptly made their way outside of the central room.
The Rain Commander who stood proudly in his armor then looked outside of palace window, gazing through the cloudy and thunderous skies as he spoke to himself, "It seems like our monotonous days are about to once more liven up..."
∞ ∞ ∞
At the pinnacle of the skies, a region that was filled with endless white clouds, were a group of tall trees, each tree was almost 'limitlessly' tall as their lower trunks could no longer be seen blanketed by the sea of clouds. If one carefully looked, they would see a bunch of nests built on top of multiple large branches.
These nests were huge as the smallest of them were no lesser than 500 meters. A few odd-looking buildings where built on top of these nests each looking as if they were made from large twigs.
In front of these buildings, within an enclosed patch laid a group massive eggs each emitting a dark nefarious aura. A group of ferocious looking birdmen dressed in dark-feather armor stood around these eggs at various positions within the tree nests, they sharply gazed around the environment with their keen eyes as their armors gleamed with a sharp baleful light.
Swoosh! A cool breeze blew at this distance, filling the area with an atmosphere of freedom and looseness. However, at the summit of these trees, a feeling of oppression could be felt.
It was a large and stunning construct whose architecture though crude, exceeded the likes of any which could be built by man. An unknown crystal that gleamed like metal was stacked together in a manner like that of twigs in a bird’s nest. With a width of no less than a 100 kilometer, a stream of runes could be seen trailing from the center of this crystal 'nest' all the way to its edges. Each rune glowed with a neon-like light, further adding to the mystery of this construct.
A collection of odd-looking chairs shaped like eggshells were placed around at specific locations each with a pillar protruding from the floor in-front them.
A few elder birdmen could be seen inspecting the information shown on these terminals. At the center of these groups where another set of chairs, however, these chairs were arranged around a single larger chair.
A group of intimidating birdmen with dark auras flowing from their bodies sat on these chairs, as they calmly looked at the figure seated at the central position. It was a large birdman, one that carried a dark but noble presence filled with arrogance as well as dignity, he was garbed in an unusual looking dark-feather armor with his beak facing the peak of the sky and his eyes closed in a relaxed manner as if everything below was not worth seeing.
Suddenly, his large eyes opened as he gazed towards a distant part of the cloudy sky and spoke, "Oh, my crow was injured this makes another failure. Hmph! Reinz, your barrier won't last forever!"
As he said this, he couldn't help but look towards his subordinates as he was about to prepare a new command. However, before he could speak a small hawk flew from the distance and landed on his shoulders. The hawk's eyes gleamed with intelligence as it opened its beck releasing a melodious sound that traveling to the ears of the large birdman.
Upon translating the words, the large birdman frowned before smiling. He patted the head of the hawk while speaking to his surrounding subordinates, "Good, very good! Humans in the Ancient Dragon Battlefield? Hahaha! I haven't been this excited in a long, long time. Men of the skies, prepare! For we shall immediately head to the 'Centre of All Zones' then straight to our destined battlefields!"
"Glory to Sky Commander!" The birdmen shouted with excitement as stood on their claw-like feet and soared to skies, their feathers falling about the area creating a glorious scene...
∞ ∞ ∞
A dark chilly wind blew in this area, as a cloudy atmosphere lingered throughout its fields. It was a dark land filled with dead meadows, an endless assortment of graves filling one's sight as far as one could see, and endless graveyard too nefarious for any forms of life to be...
However, a few strange entities could be seen wandering in this area.
They were a group of green, dark blue and other ominous looking balls of light patrolled about these lands. As if attracted to gloomy atmosphere and skeletons resting peacefully at the gravestones. One of these balls of light quickly flew into one of these skeletons soon after causing the empty eyes sockets of the skeleton to light up in its ominous hue, the skeleton then stood up as it assorted its armor and looked towards the endless sea of graves.
"Jie Jie Jie! It'sss ssssooo dull here, I sssshould travel to the lower battlefieldssss and see what'ssss happening there..." As it said this, the skeleton was about to make its way out of graveyard but was suddenly disturbed by a sprite.
Swish! A beam of light quickly travelled from the distance making its way towards the centre of these endl
ess fields of graves, as the skeleton saw this it couldn’t help but reveal a stunned light from its empty sockets as it looked towards the central location.
Resting quietly in the central area, was a large Necropolis filled with a variety of unusual looking tombs each arranged in a peculiar manner. They were surrounded by many large tombstones with the biggest tomb resting at their center, surrounded by special tombstones.
This place was dead, the very definition of true stillness. A pity, however, some beings didn't abide by this rule.
Bang! Following a loud sound, the massive tomb at the central area shook as its stone entrance cover was pushed away by some unknown force revealing a dark passageway.
Step. Step. Step. A series of slow, heart shaking footsteps soon echoed throughout the quiet Necropolis. As the footsteps grew louder a figure could barely be noticed making its way out of the tomb slowly. Soon, the figure arrived at the tomb’s exit and looked around at the environment in silence.
It was a corpse, an unusual kind. Its skin was transparent leaving its interior clear enough for all to see. However, these internals where not of the kind belonging normal lifeforms as it was a colorful network of interconnected purple lights gathered around a central core. An ethereal-like being with its form vaguely real, eyes of a color that was a mix of blue and purple, they glowed in a bright ominous light.
He swept across his naked body and shouted towards the void, "Ar----mo----ur!"
The voice of this being echoed throughout the silent area, followed by a loud booming sound.
Poof! Quickly, a semi-transparent armor materialled out of thin air, it equipped itself around the body of the figure, a dark cloak formed from cape around his back, wrapping around him creating a dark silhouette with ominous eyes that shone underneath his cloak.
The being smiled as he saw his complete form and then moved his foot forward placing it on the ground outside of its tomb.
Step. Rumble! The instant its feet touched the ground, all of the still tombstones suddenly started to shake violently as beams of green, dark blue and other ominous looking lights illuminated the Necropolis surroundings. Very shortly, a group of similar corpses appeared each equipped with different standards of armors as they all bowed towards the figure at the central area.
"We greet lord Ghosssst Commander!" Their voices echoed throughout the silent surroundings as they spoke in unison.
"I have recently sssssensed the presence of a greater elder among our kinsssssman, but it was of a vague nature. Where are our sssssprites? Summon them at once! For I require an update of our sssssssurroundings," The Ghost Commander ordered.
"As the Ghost Commander wishes!" A silhouette said who was amongst the subordinates garbed with unusual robes, but as he was about to use his powers a beam of light swiftly made its way from the distance and appeared before the gathered individuals.
Poof! An evil looking sprite appeared, revealing a vile kind of aura. However, despite its cloudy nature. Its face was filled with solemnness while at its depths it held a tinge of excitement. Quickly, it flew towards the Ghost Commander's side and spoke in whispers.
As the Ghost Commander heard its words, his ominously looking eyes flickered for an instant soon after glowing in a richer light. Lifting his head up he laughed while speaking, "Jie Jie Jie! The time for our Ghossssstkin to rise has come, the ssssshadow rises from the cornersssss of all light. Using the darknessssss we shall sweep over our enemiessssss and use their corpses as fuel for our campaign!"
"Glory to our kinsssssmen!" The group shouted in unison, as they raised their weapons to air, they glowed in an ominous light that painted the area in their hues.
"Prepare at once, for we must head to Centre of all Zones!" The Ghost Commander said his voice echoed throughout the distance of this dark gloomy region...
Chapter 80
__
The End of the Adaption Phase
The world was gloomy as the rain fell heavily, causing the people gathered in this area to have a dark mood. A humanoid creature carefully made its way through some tall unusual shrubberies, before it was a muddy ground with vaguely visible footprints, each leading to an odd arrangement of bushes.
Chaaaaaaaa! Splash-crunch!
However, the sound of its steps through the muddy water and trodden wet grass were mostly drowned by the unceasing downpour. Quickly, the creature managed to make it to the strange looking arrangement of bushes. It then swiped its claw-like hands towards the shrubberies attempting to rip it to pieces.
A cold and cunning light shone brightly within the depths of its red eyes.
Swoosh! Quickly, the arrangement of bushes was destroyed by the creature’s claws, but what laid underneath its covering filled the humanoid creature with confusion.
It was a small unfinished hollowed section of the earth looking as if it was recently dug by an animal to rest that soon after left in a hurry. There were no signs of any creature laying in the small pit as it was too little to fit even small deer.
The creature looked at the pit and cursed under its breath, “Tsk! Another dead trail, where the hell did this damn human hi---?” But, before it could finish its statement, there was an interruption.
Shing~! The sharp cry of the sword echoed vaguely for a moment in this dense pouring rain as a cold gleam of light flickered across the neck of the unguarded humanoid creature.
As the humanoid creature felt the sudden change, it tried to react by opening its mouth to warn its 'kinsmen' within the vicinity. However, it was too late, for its head had already soared into the air while blood shot forth from its neck only to be drowned away by the harsh rain.
Fwap! Its corpse fell into the muddy water on the gloomy but lush field, as the odd grasses that grew nearby quickly reacted by wrapping their vines around its form and drawing it further beneath the earth, eventually, the corpse became one with the scenery.
Sou! The figure of handsome red-haired youth appeared holding a sharply shimmering black sword in one of his hands. Looking at the sword in his hand, one would notice that the dark-colored blood from the fiend was dripping down its edge onto the muddy grounds. His clothing was dirty, his hair unkempt and face was coated with dark, dirty marks, filling him with a wild, ferocious spirit.
Feng Yu looked at the now ‘grassland-corpse’ of the Ghoulfiend that became a part of the earth with a cold glint in the eyes and spoke, “Hmph! Trying to sneak up on my hideout by yourself is a fool’s errand.”
After finishing his words, Feng Yu then jumped back into another section of dense shrubberies his figure fading away into the darkness beneath this cluster of bushes.
Step-step-step!
Quickly, the sounds rapid of footsteps could be heard as a group of Ghoulfiends made their way over to the area where vague sounds of battle had slightly echoed. A pity though, for what lingered there was nothing but the vestiges of swift struggle as the corpse and its killer had both faded away...
∞ ∞ ∞
Drip… Drip…
Inside of a dark cave, Feng Yu sat quietly around a bonfire. He sat calmly while pondering, “It’s dark out, and I have almost no clue how long this strange limit on my essence-energies will last. If this situation continues, I’m almost certain that I will be caught in by those damn fiends sooner or later.”
He then looked at his palms placed before the flames, a sharp aura rose above them as if they were trying to turn everything within their reach into a sword. He moved one palm towards the small flame and swiped his finger across it as if he were using a sword.
Puff! A tiny section of the flame was partially cut into two as the fire burned in confusion for a short while before quickly reforming and burning in its usual manner.
Feng Yu then looked at his palm and smiled before saying, “Still, the only upside is that I’ve successfully comprehended a fraction of Sword Intent, thus achieving Half-Step Sword Intent. With this, my battle power has noticeably risen. If I can truly go a step further and achieve real Sword Intent
, I might be able to achieve First Layered Strength.”
Upon saying this, he couldn’t help but sigh to himself as he spoke, “The Central Regions of all places, sigh, not to mention this odd stream of information.”
He then willed within his thoughts causing an interface to appear before his eyes. However, the current information shown had slight differences compared to the ones viewed previously.
“Candidate Class: True Chosen – Feng Yu…”
“Strength Level: F++ Class | Bloodline: Unknown…”
“Race: Humanity | Force Energy: Uncommon Fire-Lightning Type …”
“Talent – Half-Paragon Class…”
“Location: ADB - Central Regions, Endless Rain Zone, Gloomy Forest…”
“Survivability Assessment: 5%.”
“Body Adaption Phase: 99.8%.”
As Feng Yu saw this new parameter, he felt surprised. He questioned, “Eh? What’s going on here? Body Adaption Phase? Hmm, so it seems that before one can utilize their full strengths in this mystic realm, one must go through a period of adaption. A good constraint as typically everyone would be gathered together with their respected influences upon entering, but for cases like mine...”
The moment Feng Yu said this, the entrance of his hideaway finally began to make some rustling noises. He looked at the entrance of this rocky cave hideaway covered with thick shrubs as he slowly reached for the hilts of both swords on his back, and continued speaking, “It’s nothing more than an endless nightmare...”
Bang! The entrance of the cave crumbled into many fragments of rocks revealing the dark sky covered by clouds, as the relentless downpour soon began to force its way through the ceiling of the destroyed entrance.
A group of Ghoulfiends quickly rushed into the cave followed by a towering figure that took up most of the space.
The Ghoulfiends upon seeing Feng Yu trapped in a corner like a rat started to mock excitedly.
“Ke-ke! Human, where will you run to now?!”
“I see no exit! Ke-ke! Unless you want to try and run through us brothers here!”
Dual Sword God Box Set Page 56
