Mystical Journey

Kasha!!

A flash of lightning streaked across the sky.

It illuminated the hall of Holy Fist Palace and it glowed as bright as snow for a second.

Garen stood in the dark hall. Unconsciously, he had already been standing here for the entire afternoon.

For an unknown reason, he was constantly disturbed by an extremely agitated feeling recently. Although he used the duration of an entire afternoon this time, he was still unable to find the root and cause of this irritation. Perhaps it was caused by practicing the Holy Phoenix Scriptures. In the end, he always felt that his emotional fluctuations were decreasing and his feelings were becoming colder. In the past, there were many things that would stir his emotions but now he only felt indifference.

Kasha!

The lightning struck again and illuminated the hall in blues and whites immediately.

Garen stood in the large hall alone while the flash of lightning caused a long shadow to form behind him instantly.

“This world…” he looked at the endless sea of clouds outside the window. “It’s rejecting me.”

‘You’ve felt it?’ Black Sethe’s weak voice could be heard occasionally. ‘You passed through the Mother Stream accidentally. Moreover, your original plan was not to come here and your arrival in this world was merely a mistake.’

“This world does not possess any form of consciousness. How did this phenomenon occur?” Garen could not understand.

‘Yes… Most worlds do not possess consciousness but each world has a different state. They resemble the various different types of plants,’ explained Black Sethe softly, ‘but the Holy Phoenix Scriptures that you practice are scriptures that are heartless and lack character. Their goal is to heighten one’s spirit to its limits which require a large number of energy sources from the outside world. This is actually equivalent to plundering the world. Any actions that absorb energy from the outside world to strengthen oneself will naturally cause chain reactions. This is due to the changes that occur when the cycle of equilibrium is destroyed.’

Garen remained silent for a moment before nodding his head faintly.

“I know what you mean. It is similar to how certain beasts of prey in a mountain forest require more food when they become stronger suddenly. When the mountain forest is unable to satisfy their needs, they are forced to widen their range which will ultimately destroy the natural cycle of equilibrium in their surroundings.”

‘To be more precise, absorbing too much energy without producing an equal amount in return. It is similar to the deformed and distorted cancer cells in the human body that rob energy that is originally used for other functions. This causes faults and the destruction of the natural cycle before serious environmental changes are finally produced. These changes have also been detected by the creatures in certain areas of this world, and they are currently taking action,’ Black Sethe explained. ‘This was also caused by the Holy Phoenix Scriptures’ overly extreme true intentions.’

“Looks like this is the source of my agitation,” Garen nodded. “My five senses and instincts have become sharper, making it possible for me to detect the threats that I am about to encounter in the future…”

‘Your powers are getting even stronger and their influence towards their surroundings will naturally become greater as well. This is unavoidable and amplified effects like these will form traces that will make it easier for others to observe and grasp. Initially, you were not like this. However, the Holy Phoenix Scriptures were too strong and their plundering techniques were too extreme. Therefore, the changes in your surroundings were intensified,’ answered Black Sethe casually.

Garen did not speak anymore and merely looked out of the window silently into the sea of white fluffy clouds below.

Kachak!!

There was a flash of lightning.

Large sheets of rain cascaded downwards and left yarn-like traces when it was stirred by the wind.

Dahm’s entire body was covered in fresh blood while the base of his back was pressed against the icy cold green mountain wall. He glared daggers at Hochman who stood on the opposite side of him not far away.

Both of them stood under the heavy rain without the intention of shielding themselves from it at all.

There were potholes everywhere on the ground. The mud inside most of these was filled with red and yellow fresh blood. It was clear that these potholes had just been formed and were quickly being filled by rainwater.

The raindrops shook the surrounding leaves, branches, and undergrowth continuously while the wind gusted and howled. It sounded like the crying noises of a human or the ghostly howls of an animal.

“Give up.”

The suit on Hochman’s back was already soaked through. However, he remained emotionless and looked quietly at Dahm who was nearby. The raindrops rolled off his cheeks continuously and wet his hair, causing the strands to stick against his forehead closely.

They had already been fighting in the valley for an extremely long and continuous period of time. To prevent Dahm from counter-attacking with all of his might, or perhaps to ensure that he would win without any injuries, Hochman did not close in on him unnecessarily at all. Instead, he would chase Dahm step-by-step and step forward to clash with him occasionally. He was constantly keeping his opponent in a panicked state to exhaust him.

The effect of this was actually very satisfying. Currently, Dahm had almost exhausted all of his energy and was unwilling to even move. To preserve his energy, he was leaning against the side of the mountain. Being unable to restore his energy for a few days had caused him to deplete his resources and fall into a troubled state much earlier on.

“You don’t even stand a chance anymore,” said Hochman lightly.

“I was ambushed by you after I completed a mission. Master… Master will not forsake me…” said Dahm furiously. “You’re ignoring the bigger picture and fighting a member of your own branch. Did you forget that the whereabouts of your cousin is still in my hands…”

“You’re too naive…” Hochman laughed suddenly. “To think that you really believed that I truly liked my cousin?” He raised his head and looked at the color of the sky. “It’s almost time.”

He removed his glasses slowly and exposed his cold, sharp and narrow long eyes.

He combed his hair backward after removing his glasses to instantly form a clean and sharp slicked-back hairstyle. An indescribably imposing manner permeated from his body faintly.

“It’s impossible for people not to have weaknesses, Dahm,” a devilishly handsome smile appeared on Hochman’s pale and chiseled face.

“End it.”

He outstretched both of his hands and crossed all ten of his fingers to form a heart shape.

Boom!!

While the heavy rain continued to pour, his figure crashed through the sheets of rain suddenly. Only martial artists could notice that a large black aura had exploded suddenly around his entire body to form the black shadow of a terrifying dragon’s head that roared as it charged towards Dahm.

“Clouded leopard!!”

Hochman let out a low growl as his entire body charged forward in the rain. He was currently stretched out like a cheetah that was dashing forward. The air and raindrops sputtered around when he tore through them. As his speed was extremely fast, he formed a long cavity in the middle of the heavy rain.

His Upper-level powers were being released all at once from the palms of both of Hochman’s palms where they were gathered.

Bang!!!

Both of his hands sank into the mountainside deeply before the entire surface collapsed with a ‘crash’ after caving inwards.

Dahm was barely able to dodge this attack. However, he was still affected by the repercussions. The raindrops that were sent flying violently hit against his body painfully like bullets, forming a few more wounds.

“Bloody Night!!”

He roared loudly and threw out his last two silk strings. However, they were completely exposed amidst the rain and he was unable to hide them at all, making it easy for Hochman to evade them.

“Does God want me to die as well?!” Dahm staggered towards the left side and tottered into the rain. Feelings of dread filled his heart. His handphone and other electronics that were on him had been destroyed at the first moment. He was unable to ask for assistance as Hochman had intentionally driven away that chance as well.

“Don’t tell me I’m really going to die here…” Behind him, Dahm could hear the sound of Hochman tearing through the air hurriedly. “Master…” the last image that floated up in his mind was the scene when Garen had first taught them the Waterbird Fist. The memories from that scene… That marked the starting point of his journey into the temple of martial arts.

“White Bear!”

A low roar echoed behind him.

Bang!!!

Dahm felt a pain in his chest. He had detected the whistling sound of tearing air behind him long ago. However, his physical body was unable to keep up with his consciousness anymore. He wanted to dodge but was struck in the middle of his back.

Pfoo…

He lowered his head and spat out a mouthful of fresh blood before kneeling into the rainy dark night with a ‘thump’.

Bang!!

Another violent jolt of pain could be felt from his back when it was hit over where his heart was located. He was hit by yet another brutal punch before the immense pain passed through his muscles and bones. It hit his heart accurately and caused it to explode suddenly.

This was Hochman’s prized hidden Waterbird strength that was able to detonate the insides of his opponent’s body anytime. It was unlike Dahm’s own exploding blood. Hochman’s explosions were formed when he gathered his strength before releasing a one-hit killing blow.

“Goodbye… Dahm.”

Hochman’s voice echoed behind him.

Dahm’s vision was blinded before darkening gradually. Everything began to darken before becoming blurry and turning black slowly until he was unable to see anything anymore. He could feel the strength in his body flowing away quickly while an empty feeling drifted in his mind.

“Am I going to die?”

He fell into darkness finally while the sound of the rain began to soften. Soon, he was unable to hear anything and his nose was unable to smell the scent of rain anymore.

Shh!!

A sensation that resembled the feeling of a deflating balloon was felt inside his body. Dahm felt as if he was losing something extremely important that was currently escaping and being removed quickly.

Gradually, his consciousness fell into complete darkness.

The roaring sound of thunder echoed in the sky.

Hochman stood beside Dahm’s corpse quietly and looked at this man whom he’d once regarded as his best friend. His blood red aura flowed out of his body continuously before converging with his black aura.

The blood red aura resembled a bloody stream. It flowed out of the wound on Dahm’s back continuously before crossing the ground and converging with the black shadow below his feet.

Strong and intense emotions flooded the depths of his body and heart endlessly.

Hochman outstretched his right hand. The flesh on his palm that was initially covered by terrifying blackened skin and muscles was currently shrouded in faint threads of blood that were crawling there. These bloody threads formed on the surface of his skin like a large red web that covered the entire surface of his body.

“Power… This kind of power… Hehehehe…”

Continuous feelings of fulfillment and power flooded Hochman’s heart endlessly.

He could feel that the Qi of the Soul Primer in the depths of his spirit was continuously being nourished by this strength. Moreover, strange changes were gradually forming there.

The Qi of the Primer there was becoming stronger and more intense.

Boom!!

A crashing noise could be heard. No one knew if it was the sound of thunder or the sound of an explosion in his heart.

Hochman’s entire body trembled suddenly. He could vaguely see a figure that was fully dressed in black muslin walking out of the rain suddenly.

“Who are you?” it was difficult to distinguish the other person’s figure in the rain and they seemed almost transparent at times, giving off a strange illusory feeling.

“My identity is unimportant,” answered the person in a soft voice. Their voice was neither masculine nor feminine, making it impossible to distinguish their sex. “The important thing is that you’re currently in an extremely important phase.”

“Oh?” Hochman kept his guard up.