The Dawn of the New World

Tian Zheng held the heart in his hands like it was a piece of fruit. He brought it up to his face and started muttering a spell that revealed a series of runic symbols inscribed on its surface with some kind of a chalky substance.

This would be the best time to strike because he was so busy with the spell that he wasn't even paying attention to the surroundings but because of Xue Meng that was not possible.

Hao Xuan became vigilant.

[Look at him, he is completely open. He wouldn't even stand a chance. This wastrel has never even fought in real combat] the voice in his head commented.

'Damn it, I could kill this fool so easily,' Hao Xuan unwittingly agreed.

[It would be so easy]

'So easy.'

[If only the saber wasn't here]

'If only.'

[Or maybe...it is a gift for us. Maybe this too is a part of his plan]

'Huh? What plan?'

And just when Hao Xuan was about to wake up to it something happened outside that grabbed his attention.

"Ha! Ho! Ha! Ho! Ha! Ho! Ha! Ho!"

Countless chanting voices began to pour in from every possible direction.

Hao Xuan tightened his grip around the reins in uncertainty.

'Do I really have no choice but to wait for him to finish the spell?! Come on, think!'

The chanting grew louder and louder with no way to pinpoint its source. It was coming from everywhere and nowhere at the same time. It didn't make any sense.

'A distraction! I can't fight but I can distract him and make the spell backfire!'

He took in a deep breath and infused the chaos Qi into his words before yelling directly in Tian Zheng's direction.

A focused soundwave shot forward making the completely unprepared Tian Zheng flinch and jump back.

"HEY! IS THE CHANTING REALLY NECESSARY?! AT LEAST MAKE IT A BIT SOFTER!"

It wasn't a direct attack and not enough for Xue Meng to take action but when he heard what Hao Xuan had to say his brow shot up in confusion.

He glanced towards Tian Zheng who was equally bewildered.

"What are you talking about? What chanting?"

"You know what chan-" Hao Xuan froze mid-sentence.

'They can't hear it??'

But he could, as clear as day. It wasn't too loud or hindering his other senses but it was constantly ringing at the back of his mind.

"Ha! Ho! Ha! Ho!" over and over again. Countless voices speaking in unison. Young and old, men and women, some strong enough to make themselves stand out from the rest and some mere whispers.

But they were there.

'Then where is it coming from?!'

This was neither a vision nor a memory.

"Hah!" Tian Zheng scoffed, "He is already losing his mind! That's what you get for even thinking of going against me!"

But Xue Meng obviously didn't believe that. He looked around and inspected the surroundings in great detail but doing so caused an unsettling feeling to take root in his heart.

"Something is wrong," he muttered under his breath, "Something terrible is about to happen. The winds of fate are changing!"

Just then the spell Tian Zheng was working on was completed successfully.

The half-purple heart began to change its original appearance and started to look more like something that would belong inside of a living being.

But the runes encapsulating it were darker than before and made it look like the heart was imprisoned inside of them.

Tian Zheng's yellow pupils became bright enough to appear like lanterns in the surrounding darkness. And when he opened his mouth a long tongue slithered out, at the end of which was a bright green flame flickering like a candle in the wind.

"This last step, I wanted to do this in front of you. I wanted you to witness it yourself, unable to change its outcome."

Hao Xuan watched as the tongue pierced the beating heart and when it came out the green flame was nowhere in sight. He then reached down and placed the heart back in the undead figure's body.

The undead began to convulse and spasm uncontrollably.

Hao Xuan could feel it changing from the inside out when a pool of spiritual energy was birthed within its abdomen. The pieces of loose skin and muscles twitched and squirmed before attaching to each other and becoming even larger than before.

The undead roared loudly when the last of the transformation finished, creating a shockwave that sent everything around it spiraling outwards.

It slowly got up on its feet, towering over everyone else. It was a little more than 3 meters tall now.

Its body looked much better since the different colored pieces of skin could bind to each other without the help of the stitches.

But when Hao Xuan got a look at its face his eyes widened from shock and his mouth fell open.

"S-Salome...?"