The Dawn of the New World

Haeti's expression slowly twisted into that of a wild animal. Her pain was his pain and in his eyes, it was only caused by one man. He would not soon forget how she had cried because of Hao Xuan, not until he went through the same thing.

Hao Xuan had gone ahead but he could still hear the princess's silent sobs echoing through the forest. They fell heavily on his heart for more than one reason. He knew his words had hurt her a lot more than they were meant to but his own pride would not allow him to turn around. ​​

"It's not my fault," he said to himself before increasing his speed even further.

His mind was racked with useless thoughts but his body did not disregard the surroundings. He often forgot but it had already been more than four years since he first picked up the blade. He had fought in countless battles.

From unknown alien creatures to otherworldly beings, he had already visited numerous places both majestic and terrible in their implications, and all before stepping into the Profound Realm.

While he was lost in thought the first beast came into view. A 'midnight warthog' known for its ability to hide and meld into its surroundings. It sensed the approaching prey and readied itself in the shadows, waiting for the moment they would pass by leaving themselves open for an ambush.

But the rustling sounds of clothes flapping in the wind that was supposed to go past it suddenly vanished. It waited for a second before peaking its head, just in time to meet a silvery blade that was waiting for it.

Not a single useless movement was made. The glaive traced through the air in a semi-circle and returned to the resting position on Hao Xuan's shoulder. They didn't even need to pause, it was all done mid-stride.

The Warders exchanged silent glances before taking a huge step back in tandem. They had vastly underestimated the glaive's reach which was even wider and more far-reaching than their own great axes.

Hao Xuan continuously increased his speed until he couldn't hear Ceni's cries anymore, which was when he finally came to.

He was on the edge of a waterfall looking down at a gigantic forested basin. He couldn't see its other end but even without any special vision he could easily tell that this seemingly ordinary place was absolutely teeming various beasts.

To the left was the mountain cutting straight into the sky and to the right was the vortex that seemed to be getting bigger.

Hao Xuan took a deep breath through his nose to focus all the senses before looking towards the Orcs that were only dressed in simple clothes.

"Are you ready?"

They nodded back.

"Alright. Keep a low profile for as long as possible. Make it fast and try to finish them before they can make any noise. No unnecessary fights."

They nodded once more.

"Good."

Chaos Qi thrummed within Hao Xuan's meridians before breaking out and flooding every part of the body. Microscopic grey strands protruded from his skin and combined with one another to create an outer layer over his skin.

In the eyes of the warders, Hao Xuan appeared to be an empty image projected into this world. He didn't feel real at all for a moment but that feeling quickly subsided a moment later.

"Let's go," he ordered before taking a step forward and allowing himself to freefall 40 meters straight down into the lake below.

The battle was kicked into full swing at once with the sound of the water splashing

A muffled boom sounded underneath surface of the lake as Hao Xuan burst out with half a hairy corpse impaled on the glaive. A second later the Warders jumped out as well and they continued on, not understanding that blood had been spilled in a place full of bloodthirsty creatures.

Fifteen minutes, that was how long they managed to move without being found out by the vast majority of the creatures.

It was like they were the feed in a tank full of hungry piranhas, which wasn't too far off from the truth. But Hao Xuan wasn't easy to corner. This wasn't the first time he had to fight his way out of a horde of monsters.

Hundreds of precise thrusts each one landing a killing blow were dispensed one after another. Hao Xuan stayed upright for the most part but often ducked to take a short step back before regaining his balance and thrusting out the glaive once more.

It was his unshakeable balance and composure in the face of certain death that was attained through countless battles that shone the brightest here.

Not to mention he had already experienced death more than a dozen times which worked towards completely eliminating any hesitation that had yet remained within his psyche.

There weren't any ostentatious battle skills or some fancy movement techniques at work here, but a simple, well-organized, and experienced veteran of the battlefield.

At this moment in time, his battle instincts and killing intent were second to none.