Deep within the shadow choked forest, a round black object appeared on Seer's hand, but he wasn't focused on it, rather, he was staring at Jin Yu up and down in a slow, scrutinizing gaze, as if searching for something but unsure where it is.
Jin Yu was equally staring at him, already aware why Seer was staring.
"Did you get the token?"
Seer suddenly asked.
Nonchalantly, Jin Yu raised an eyebrow and asked.
"The cavern is a world of gamble, what makes you think I did?"
Seer was silent for a beat, his scrutinizing eyes never leaving Jin Yu.
"Nothing," he replied simply. "... you just looked.... different"
Jin Yu gave him an unimpressed look.
"I see." He said flatly.
Silence stretched for a while, both men stared at each other, having their own thoughts.
Seer finally broke the silence. He threw the ball up playfully, and caught it before speaking.
"I see you don't plan on giving it up"
Jin Yu rolled his eyes.
"Did you got it?"
"No." Seer answered simply.
Jin Yu gave him a disapproving stare, as if reproaching Seer for accusing him of what he did not.
"Then what crap are you talking, open the damn portal, I've got bones to stretch "
A smile tugged at Seer's lips.
"Much like you friend, but I hope you know..."
He drawled his words and tossed the round black object a few meters away, then continued.
"... the person we're dealing with."
Jin Yu’s lips curled into a slow smile.
"What’s wrong? Afraid?"
"Haha!" A sharp laugh tore out of Seer’s throat. He jabbed a finger toward his own masked face. "Me? Afraid?"
Jin Yu didn’t bother answering. He only let a smirk play at his mouth, the kind that mocked without words.
Seer straightened, his tone swelling with pride. “It seems you don’t realize who stands before you. Allow me to show you.”
Jin Yu’s smirk deepened, his eyes glinting with amusement.
“Using my young master’s lines now? Good. Don’t disappoint me.”
Seer’s chest puffed up, a faint swagger to his stance. “Words are wasted. You’ll see soon enough.”
The round black object hovered in the air, spinning slowly.
Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.
Then– CRACK!
A sharp fracture split it cleanly in two, halting its motion. A beat of silence followed, and then...
FHRROOOOM!
The two halves began to expand, each side stretching outward in opposite arcs before curving back in, joining seamlessly into a full ring.
A low hum vibrated in the air as the newly formed circle pulsed with spatial energy. A pitch black hole formed at its center, rippling, trembling, and twisting, as if a great invisible force was trying to tear open the void.
Only after a long moment did it stabilize, but still humming with suppressed power.
FOOOM!
The portal made a low humming sound as they stepped closer, it distorted around them and twirled in a circular motion as if it was trying to suck them into the void.
Their figures distorted when they entered the black hole before disappearing.
----
Creak!
Their bones creaked in protest as a crushing pressure descended on them, trying to mash them into paste.
Spatial turbulence came in waves, threatening to rip them apart.
But both men didn't falter. Instantly, a protective dome of Qi surrounded them, taking on the impact.
The chaotic void rippled at it violently, trying to break through, but both of them were already experienced, it barely made a dent.
A few moments later, the space in front of them started swirling, a black hole with faint spills of light formed in it.
Without hesitation, they stepped in.
-----
In the sprawling Forest beside the towering wall of Sigil City, the City Lord, Hei'an, stood calmly with his arms crossed behind his back, in a clearing surrounded by tall tree towering over twenty feats.
His eyes were fixed on a certain space in the forest.
And in that place, the air suddenly began to twist and ripple, distorting violently. Space itself writhed, as though the void was threatening to collapse.
A few moments later, the space tore open.
Two figures stepped out.
One was masked, clad in pure white from head to toe, like a divine being walking among mortals. His aura was light, carefree, almost ethereal.
The other was his shadowed counterpart. Long black hair flowed behind him, his dark robes a seamless extension of his cold, reserved presence.
They looked like the reincarnation of both good and bad.
They stepped towards Hei'an and stopped only a few meters away.
"Greetings, City Lord." Seer gave a small, polite bow.
Jin Yu stood with his arms folded, unmoving, making no effort to bow or offer courtesy. His gaze locked on Hei’an, cold and unwelcoming.
I came to fight, not to trade pleasantries. he thought.
Hei’an met their presence with the same indifference, his expression calm, unreadable. His eyes drifted until they fixed on Jin Yu.
“Hand it over.”
The words fell flat, a command without ornament.
Jin Yu’s reply came just as flat, but carried the weight of defiance, as though nothing in the world could stir fear in him.
“Take it.”
For a moment, silence stretched between them.
Then –
Ding!
Influence points +20,000.
(Emotion provoked: Killing Intent)
Hei’an’s eyes changed Instantly. Indifference replaced by something darker, subtle yet unmistakable. The air seemed to thicken, heavy with an unspoken promise, like skies moments before a downpour. His aura pressed outward, quiet but stifling, like a storm concealed beneath calm waters.
His face did not change, it was still composed, almost placid, as if that serenity itself was the veil hiding what lay beneath.
“Now.” His voice carried lower, colder, each syllable a chill against the skin.
But Jin Yu didn’t move, arms still crossed, his smirk faint but steady, as if Hei’an’s sudden weight in the air meant nothing to him.
Seer stood to the side, his masked face tilted, watching the exchange in silence. His eyes flicked between the two men: the unyielding youth who dared to provoke, and the City Lord whose composure concealed an abyss.
Hei’an’s gaze never wavered from Jin Yu.
“You won’t like the outcome if I move,” he said softly, his voice still calm but laced with a quiet weight that sent a shiver through the space.
Jin Yu tilted his head, a faint smile tugging his lips. “Then move.”
The air seemed to still completely.
Even Seer’s fingers twitched at his side, but he said nothing, he only watched, his silence feeding the tension as if he were waiting to see which way the blade would fall first.
The Silence stretched. And finally, the facade of peace fractured.
Wizz.
The air whistled slightly, barely loud enough to hear.
Jin Yu and Hei'an had vanished, leaving only Seer in the clearing.
But they didn't just vanished, rather:
Two streaks of light whizzed through the vast forest, one, blue with a faint hue of red, the other silver, almost transparent.
Space warped where the two ran across, bringing with them mild destruction, the forest started growing restless: growls resounded, roars echoed, birds called. Each loud and powerful.
As though the air forgot it's function, it only remember to stir after Jin Yu had gone tens of miles, he was so fast that it looked like he was teleporting. Hei'an was just a few meters behind him, but despite how close he is to Jin Yu, there seemed to be an invisible barrier behind Jin Yu that he can never cross.
Jin Yu tilted his head sideways as he ran, a smirk tugging on his lips.
"Just a low level Deity, yet so arrogant, I'll show you the fate of those who crossed my path."
Wiz.
He drove the divine Phase technique to the peak, his figure streaking through the forest, widening the gap between himself and Hei’an.
Jin Yu's voice was low, but Hei'an heard him loud and clear.
"You'll regret the day you were born" Hei'an muttered and picked up his pace.
Motion turned to light, trees blurred past, One running, the other chasing.
Though it seemed like Jin Yu was running about without a particular direction, the City Lord already caught on his thoughts, his eyes narrowed in alarm and he chased faster, but it seemed almost impossible to catch on.
-----
Seer sat on his snow mount steed, quite far from the city gate, his silver hair flapped behind him in gentle waves, coupled with his white attire, he looked ethereal and almost divine.
He gazed at the lines of people shuffling forward beneath hovering talismans that flickered with inspection light, and then the surveillance orbs drifting in the sky like glass eyes watching every motion.
A smirk tugged at his pale lips, the usual glint of mischief in his eyes.
“You chased the wildfire, and left the Serpent coiled in your home. How foolish.”
The smirk slid away, leaving only a chilling calm.
“Now… it is time my friend learned what I truly am.”
