The Dawn of the New World

And then her voice echoed in his head a second later, 'You needn't hold back in here. Let it flow through you.'

From Mendax and the Ape's exchange Hao Xuan had already figured out the ape was also a servant of the 'Mother of Darkness' so the witch's intentions made a lot more sense.

She planned to use Hao Xuan's recently acquired position and title to leverage a deal with an age-old enemy. But he also didn't have much choice in the matter just yet since the ape's services were needed for the last step of her plan.

"Fine," Hao Xuan muttered under his breath and closed his eyes.

He had received the mark quite recently so this would be the first time it would be invoked properly. The mark was located on the highest point of his body, at the very top of his head hidden under the hair.

Hao Xuan created hundreds of threads of spiritual sense and sent them exploring upwards. All he had to do was think about it and the mark would come to life but this way he could control its strength. And since he needed to make quite an impression right now he opted to use everything at his disposal.

The white and golden threads came out from his skull, passing through the bone and skin to reach for something higher up. The ends of every single thread unfurled and divided into three pieces that were reaching out like a hand.

They latched onto an empty spot just a few inches above Hao Xuan as if it had always been there but only now was it being 'pulled out' for all to see.

When the hundreds of spiritual threads had all grabbed a hold of the invisible object its true appearance started to come into being. It was circular in shape, just over 4 inches in diameter, and empty from the inside.

Only when every single thread had made contact with it did Hao Xuan fully activate the mark. With a spark of chaotic energy the 'ring' was set alight with void fire, dying it in a black and purple hue that burned without any sound or heat.

In fact when the mark was activated the heat from the nearby lava instantly vanished. The temperature wasn't extreme in either direction but it had become relatively colder.

Everything within 4 meters of Hao Xuan was affected by this, including the light. It turned and twisted around him, sheltering him from its effects and casting a shadow in his direction.

Likewise, all the overbearing pressure weighing him down was eliminated in its entirety.

To the ones laying witness to him, the effects were significantly more amplified. Be it Mendax or the ape, neither of their energies or auras had any effect on him but even more than that, their senses were being pushed back and nullified when they looked at him directly.

Within an active volcano, standing in the middle of a lava lake Hao Xuan was covered in a shade and unaffected by all that surrounded him.

He looked at his hands and noticed the pale white color. But when he looked up he could see a lot more than before. It was as if another filter had been thrown over his vision that displayed things previously out of his reach.

The most obvious one was the information regarding the marks of all the others within his line of sight. The ape had a dark shadow behind his back but its color and aura were weaker than his own, albeit much more pure.

Mendax had a blue color mark on his body but it was constantly on the move, running up and down his form without stopping.

Curious, Hao Xuan raised his head to look at Baba Jezda but strangely enough, her entire figure was doused in shadows that hid her mark and almost everything else about her.

'Don't be so surprised, you have a lot more to learn,' she spoke directly to him again, 'Now that you can see his mark, call to it.'

Hao Xuan looked back at the ape whose jaw was about to hit the floor. He focused on the mark on his back and thought about making a connection to it. The space rippled around him and almost immediately the ape was pulled down to his knees.

He was just as shocked as Hao Xuan but none more so than Mendax who had to wobble back and get away from the ape.

Aghast, he clutched his chest with a pained expression, "Argh! I had heard about the strict hierarchy within your sect but I was not aware it could also affect others!"

Realizing that his actions had had unintended consequences Hao Xuan immediately removed his hold on the ape which effectively released Mendax as well.

"My apologies, I did not know it would bring you such pain," he said to the ape.

He was expecting to get at least an earful but surprisingly the ape kowtowed instead, "I have only myself to blame, my Lord Champion."