"In both, I saw destruction, and an Angaria that had sunk into the sea."
"In both, I saw none of us alive."
Erin had stopped speaking, but these words seemed to hang in the air, echoing with the wind that blew across the center.
It was almost as if she had cast a spell to freeze time, as the others didn"t move an inch even after a minute pa.s.sed. She didn"t move, either. She just stood there, her eyes fixed on Daneel whose face had taken on a dastardly pale shade as the blood had completely drained out of it.
"What will you do with them, oh G.o.dking?"
If he hadn"t just broken through to the Hero realm, he would have remained in stasis for a lot longer. Thankfully, the breakthrough had made it so that his consciousness was much stronger, so a few moments later, he shook his head and staggered back.
Unconsciously, he realized that he was hoping that what she had said would cease to be the truth if she wasn"t in front of him. This made him feel ashamed, so he turned back to Erin and said, "A-are you sure?"
She let out the longest sigh as she heard the question, and Daneel could expect what her answer would be.
"Yes."
A single word shattered the slight hope that had appeared in the others, too, that she might be feeling doubtful about what she had seen. Prophecies had always been murky things that might hide different meanings on the surface, but when they all saw that the leader of the Eternal Blossom sect, who was supposed to be well versed in the mysteries of time was sure, they saw that it was foolish to think in this manner.
Yet, Daneel still clung onto denial. He had personally manipulated prophecies, himself, even creating a new one that served his purposes, so he wasn"t prepared to accept that the future had been dictated by something seen by someone who had disappeared until now.
"Am I acting like a fool? I don"t care!", he thought, as he said, "Give me the location of this place. I wish to go see for myself exactly what glimpse of the future you chanced upon."
Erin was taken aback by the request. After pausing, she said, "That"s… not wise. It"s dangerous, and the spells…"
"Let me worry about that. Nothing in the Sea or on this land can even hope to touch me. And as for your precious spells… I"ll have no problem understanding them. Did your glimpse also give you any information about the amount of time we have?"
He asked the question hurriedly, remembering that this was one thing he should have thought of first. From his carelessness, itself, he saw how shaken he was, but putting that thought aside, he waited for an answer.
Thankfully, it was the first good thing that came out of Erin"s mouth since her appearance.
"I don"t know the exact amount… but we do have some time. If you insist, go ahead. Here."
Taking out a stone-like object from her pocket, Erin threw it in his direction. He caught it, and an instant later, he had disappeared from the center.
[Location identified. Teleportation has been initiated. Deciphering spells required.]
He didn"t entirely trust what she had said, so he had decided to act as quickly as possible. He had told the system to get him where he had to be even while the stone had been in the air, and hence, he had left without saying anything to his sovereigns.
Despite his struggle to keep them in tow, his thoughts were in turmoil during the journey. Just like Xuan, he, too, had been about to relax and rejoice, but Erin had spoiled it all.
He knew that this complaint was almost childish. He could tell that his state of mind was such that he might even resent her arrival, next, but he couldn"t help it.
"If she hadn"t come, we would all be celebrating by now… and I would be on the way to Eloise."
His queen was still in his thoughts, but this matter had taken precedence. He was even surprised by all these thoughts, as he had imagined that the breakthrough might have changed him in some way… but on reflecting on the topic, he realized something.
"Breakthroughs only help with one"s capacity. They do not directly help anyone mature…"
These realizations were also an attempt to escape this new nightmare he had found himself in, and just when the frustration about never getting a moment to rest was about to rear its ugly head, he saw that he had stopped above an unremarkable spot over the Endless Sea.
A moment later, a waypoint appeared in his vision, clearly projected there by the system. Getting the hint, he shot off into the Sea.
On the way, he activated the blessing he had been given, making his presence known to all the beasts around him. They moved aside respectfully as he made his way deeper and deeper into the sea, and a few seconds later, he had no option but to pause and blink.
The depth of the Endless Sea was unknown. The attempt to find it was even notorious to have taken the lives of many, and from the a.s.sa.s.sins of the TriCobra sect, he had found out that it was a mystery even to the residents of the Mainland. Hence, he had been confused about where he was going, but now, as he laid his eyes upon his destination, he could only stare.
"Holy f.u.c.k!"
He had known that the creator of the Eternal Blossom sect was a powerful figure at the level of the Emperor, but now, he wondered whether the man had been underestimated all his life.
In front of him was a mountain that floated in the sea. It was easily as large as the largest mountains on Earth, and around it swam terrifying beasts that would have sent any Hero running in haste.
He saw no special details on the mountain except for the fact that its bottom looked like it had been cut by something sharp, and as soon as the beasts patrolling it laid their eyes on him, they immediately shot in his direction with the intent to kill.
This surprised Daneel, as the aura of the Mother that he had obtained was still active. Puzzled, but not afraid, he looked for an answer regarding why this was so while ten Great Sharks, fourteen Colossal Octopi, and thirty four hammerhead giants swam in formation to destroy him where he stood.
With a start, he found the reason just as the Great Shark furthest in the front reached him. With his lips compressed into a thin line, he raised his hand… and made them all stop.
"Brainwashed beasts…incredible! He incorporated the indoctrination into their blood, making it so that it was pa.s.sed down through the generations. I heard of a technique like this… but didn"t it need hundreds of attempts to get positive results? The Emperor even banned it for this reason! Should I call him a genius, or a bloodthirsty killer? Well, it doesn"t really matter…"
All that had been needed was a strengthened wave of aura to remind them of their true Mother. As they bowed in front of him with reverence, he saw that many of them still had the leftovers of humans in their teeth and upon their bodies.
"Well, she wasn"t lying in this, at least… here lie the Eternal Blossom Sect, eternal in their slumber."
His mind filled with forebodings, he flew forward. As he neared the mountain, the system used a spell in the data trinket given by Erin.
A void appeared at its highest point, and without hesitating, Daneel stepped inside.
There were many details about how this incredible place had been made which might have fascinated him if the need wasn"t so urgent. He ignored them all, and in the span of a few seconds, he had reached the place described by Erin.
On the way, he had come upon multiple magical traps that held more bodies of the members of the Eternal Blossom sect. He was still in the Sea, so he was filled with unlimited power that rendered them all powerless to stop his onslaught. He had shattered them all, one by one, not caring about anything except his goal.
It was at the heart of the mountain, making it obvious that the objective of this entire edifice was to protect it. It was in the form of a room around which formations had been set to make it look like it stretched in all directions to infinity, and at its center was a halo of glowing light. Wisps of it kept transforming into different colors, weaving a diorama that was glorious enough to make anyone pause.
"Welcome, disciple of-"
"Oh, shut up."
A voice began to speak as soon as he arrived, but Daneel instantly muted it and waited for the system to cast the rest of the spells given by Erin. A few moments later, the halo stopped moving and became affixed in a certain pattern, and in his mind, the system said, [Host must step forward to let the main spell take effect.]
He took in a short breath and did so without hesitation.