The Dawn of the New World

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"When you see my sister, tell her she was right about this damned place. It is a land abandoned by the ancestors! The old scriptures couldn't be more wrong, it is not our salvation, but the path to damnation."

Within the sea of clouds still hanging above, the fight between the gargantuan creature and the lightning web was at its peak. Just a simple glance above showed something so improbable that even though Hao Xuan could see it with stark clarity, his mind couldn't comprehend it.

The lightning bolts congregated around the belly of the creature and repeatedly attacked the same spot. From Hao Xuan's perspective it looked like he was watching a hologram or a movie being projected on the clouds. He felt detached from that reality and it did not even feel real for some reason.

'Is this another memory I'm seeing? Or something else entirely?'

But the effects of the battle could be seen and felt by everyone that was on the ground. Wherever the yellow lightning fell, the area around it would be charred black leaving only a several meter deep hole in its wake.

The remnant energy was enough to boil the air and send all unfortunate souls close enough reeling further into this unknown land.

Hao Xuan slowly got back on his feet, holding the shield in his right hand for dear life. Burak's wide back still provided enough cover for him to stand upright but that won't be the case once he leaves.

Hao Xuan patted Burak on the shoulder. He could feel his internal energy depleting at a rapid speed, obvious from the network of cracks on the crystal shield.

His legs that were as thick as Hao Xuan's waist were starting to tremble. There were several dark brown burn marks along his hands and feet since they were exposed to the copious energy released from the exploding bolts.

Hao Xuan wanted to tell Burak it was going to be okay, that he and his fellow warriors should hang on while he went and got help but...he couldn't bring himself to tell such an obvious lie.

Burak felt the warmth from Hao Xuan's unsteady hand and knew what he was feeling. He freed one hand pushed Hao Xuan away.

"Go...human. It is my fault you are here in the first place, at least you can still make it out alive. Go back the way we came from, do not wander off. Go now!"

*Craaack*

An inch deep crack appeared in the middle of the shield. Burak quickly moved his hand back in the same position to keep it from spreading anymore.

"Fuck, FUCK!" Hao Xuan couldn't help but curse aloud.

To his left, the poor barbarian that was struck by the lightning bolt was still alive somehow. He was slowly crawling on the ground akin to a snail without a shell, leaving a trail of blood and his own organs that were leaking from the skin bag that was his body.

"Aho urhhh laaa."

He was trying to say something but most couldn't hear his words and those that could weren't able to understand him.

That truly was one of the most horrible ways to die, and it wasn't a quick one either from the looks of it. Hao Xuan looked around to find that he was the only one idle enough to pay attention. All the others were deaf and blind anyway so how would they know to help him?

Hao Xuan raised the shield while lowering his frame to hide behind it as much as possible. He moved towards the barbarian who was less than 17 meters away now, reaching him in less than 30 seconds thanks to the shield.

This blob of flesh and muscle somehow felt Hao Xuan's presence. He stopped crawling and looked in his direction, trying to reach out with his hand.

One could only imagine how much pain he was in right now.

Hao Xuan reached into the storage space and took out a small dagger.

"I'm sorry, I wish I could do more," he said to the melting clay-like figure that was a powerful warrior until just a few minutes ago.

*Thwack*

The dagger pierced his skin with barely any resistance and stabbed into the brain. What was left of his body went limp. The man was finally put out of his misery.

Hao Xuan covered his mouth and nose as the stench of leaking bile and excrement reached him. He had just turned around to head towards the exit when something shone in the corner of his eye.

'Hmm?' by instinct, he turned to look towards the dim golden light that was coming out of the nearby pit that had evaporated this barbarian's skeleton.

Hao Xuan craned his neck to peek into the cavity with extreme caution but what he saw in there left him confused and somewhat at a loss for words.

There was a crystal shard embedded into the ground, pulsating rhythmically. It gave off a dim golden light that dimmed and brightened every other second.

The strand of Chaos Qi that was circulating within Hao Xuan's meridians suddenly throbbed and increased its speed, moving faster and faster by the second.

Hao Xuan's heartbeats increased and he felt a suction force inside his own body that was calling for something.. The golden crystal shard suddenly brightened by several degrees as if reacting to this force of attraction.