The Dawn of the New World

Not getting an answer Zou Huan took it as the truth which made it even worse.

"I have a very bad feeling about this," he sighed.

Han Rong kept his silence. His mind was racing with countless thoughts none of which were particularly good.

'No such thing as a coincidence...it can't be...' he thought while scratching his back where the black spot became even darker and larger.

***

Hao Xuan was in a world of his own as he 'danced' through the air with perfect rhythm. The things he was seeing weren't real, at least not for now, but they weren't illusions conjured by his own mind either.

There was a fire giant in the sky and everything around it was slowly burning up. It looked like meteors were forming in the sky that would begin their descent the moment he came into being.

Currents of spiritual energy were rampaging across the atmosphere and even certain pieces of land were forcefully being lifted into the air by them.

If there was ever an apocalypse, this would probably be how it would begin. It was a picture of absolute destruction, one that even Hao Xuan had only ever seen once in all his lves.

The screaming got louder and louder until it was all that he could hear. With a soft tap Hao Xuan's feet touched the ground once again, right outside of a barren mountain that was exuding copious amounts of Yin energy.

His legs moved on their own pausing only in front of an old doorway etched from the mountain rocks.

It looked like there was a swirling mass of Yin energy trying to pull him inside but his destination was to the immediate left which wasn't much better in comparison. He turned towards the room which was completely set alight.

It was like an inferno with raging flames adorning all the sides, rending everything into ash and dust.

Hao Xuan's skin pricked just from looking at it from the outside where the Yin energy was still overflowing. And right there in the middle of the room was the source of it all, a dainty little figure cowering on the ground.

Her back was embellished in winged flames with a halo made of the purest white fire crowning overhead. Blood poured out of her eyes in place of tears as she gritted her teeth not uttering even a single cry out loud.

But he could still hear them, her thoughts, which were asking to be saved from the excruciating pain.

And it was at this moment that he finally snapped out of it.

Hao Xuan extended his left hand towards the room and the moment it passed the boundary he felt the Yang energy rush into his body.

'It's almost at the same degree of the Heavenly Thunder!' he thought pulling back his hand.

The skin of his palm was already singed just from that brief exposure but even then it was worth it because he had understood a great deal.

'It's not actual fire but energy, the purest most untainted form of Yang energy I have ever seen. The flames are only an obvious side effect.'

He redirected his attention towards Ma Jiang recalling what he had seen before.

'There was an entity sealed within her mind palace. The most probable explanation is that it is trying to escape. The seal which was holding it down must have been damaged or weakened...come on, think!'

Hao Xuan closed his eyes and tried to recall every minor detail he could about that incident.

'I didn't wake up there, I remember it was a raging snowstorm that I had to walk through to get to her. There were gargantuan chains running all the way to the center holding the thing in place....!! Could it be that simple?!'

Hao Xuan looked back at the doorway doubtfully.

'If this creature is solely made from Yang energy then Yin energy would be the most effective deterrent. I...have to try, she doesn't have much time,' he concluded upon seeing the obvious changes in Ma Jiang's physique.

With a deep breath he inched back towards the doorway. His gaze fell upon the many runes and inscriptions carved along the ridges and just like Princess Ceni he also understood what they meant. But unlike her-

'A gate to the underworld, best not utter the incantation. As long as I don't go through it should be fine. I need to borrow just a little bit of Yin Energy,' he chose not to vocalize it.

Once again Hao Xuan extended his hand toward the gaping darkness. This time he was even more afraid because he understood the true dangers of such an action.

If he was pulled in then that would be the end of his story.

He flexed every muscle on his body and firmly planted his feet on the ground ready to pull back at the slightest change. From his side he couldn't see anything but that wasn't actually the case.

There was a barrier separating both sides of the doorway, the veil.

But from the other side he was visible to all who stood before it.

Countless shadowy figures squirmed in anticipation on a barren wasteland.