Chapter 766: Realm of the Dead I
Kyle's smirk faded when a pair of very familiar eyes stared back at him-eyes he had not seen since leaving the Lost Treasure Tomb that had exploded.
They radiated a madness that was starkly different from the calm and emptiness he had grown accustomed to.
Azazeal's figure, laughing maniacally, looked at him from his position at the heart of what could only be termed devastation.
Surrounding him, everything disintegrated into nothingness, echoing with the haunting and bewildered cries of confused souls.
He mumbled frantically as he tore apart and destroyed every confused soul in sight without a hint of hesitation.
"Where is she?? Where is she?!"
Even after seeing Kyle, he paid him no attention, as if he were trapped in a trance.
Kyle staggered from his position, his heart racing wildly at the sight he was seeing, as if it were trying to escape his ribcage.
His pupils burned and stung painfully, yet he refused to stop using his skill. He could see his breath coming out in erratic bursts, and sweat dampening his palms.
The reality of the present around him blurred at the edges as he stayed focused on what he was witnessing, determined not to look away or close his aching eyes, even as the weight of what was about to come threatened to crush him.
The space around Azazeal twisted and shattered into fragments, but he remained unfazed. A multitude of figures in white and dark robes, their forms obscured by layers of spiritual and divine energy, surged forth from the massive gray void that had formed where the two remaining crystal pillars of the Realm of the Dead should have stood.
The figures tried to stop the destruction, to halt the man surrounded by darkness, and to gather the escaping souls, but they were all consumed by the purple and obsidian particles emanating from Azazeal.
The countless particles roared hungrily as they merged with the darkness, giving birth to a beautiful purple flower with numerous petals that bloomed to hold the falling sky.
The flower petals radiated a faint yet brilliant purple light, but they were tainted by countless red and dark spots.
Kyle spat out blood as he stared at the flower. His ears rang with the haunting cries of the souls being destroyed. But before he could lose himself in the future, a familiar voice cried out his name.
His mind registered... Yue was calling him. Her trembling hands were gripping him. He needed to stop. He severed the connection with what he was seeing.
But his head spun because if this was the future, then what had happened to him and all those who were in the Forsaken Land?
What had become of them?
Where did they go?
How had the seals been destroyed?
Kyle's lashes quivered as he blinked the blood oozing from his eyes and glanced at the worried people around him.
Alec placed his arm around his neck and helped him land on the ground, which was covered in a thick layer of ice. He gritted his teeth as he pressed his hand against his back to transmit his spiritual energy into his body to heal him if he was injured.
"Why are you always worrying everyone?!"
Carcel and Sinon did the same.
Yue rubbed his palm as everyone surrounded him, calling out his name. They had no idea what had happened. Suddenly, Kyle's floating figure began to convulse, and blood started to pour from his eyes and mouth. Sinon was the first to notice his state and cried out to alert the others.
James shouted toward Odiak, Elizabeth, and all the elders, urging them to gather every healing treasure they possessed.
They couldn't let anything happen to the person who had given them hope for a better future, the one who had proved that the supposedly undefeatable shadow generals could be defeated.
Alec and the others also retrieved all their healing treasures, but in that moment, Kyle finally exhaled. He raised his hand to stop them as he calmed his racing heart.
"We need to leave... this place."
He clenched Yue's hand, which was rubbing his cold palm, and tried to stand. Only then did he notice the condition of his body; it was beginning to freeze.
Kyle's eyes widened as a very, very bad premonition welled up in his mind.
Everything that had happened flashed through his mind. His bloodline silence, even though it had the ability to know the dangers that the future held.
If it already knew what was about to happen, did it seek to exploit the chaos to fully merge with him?
But how? Over the past two months, Kyle had come to understand that his bloodline required something powerful to strengthen his body enough for the final step to merge with him completely and transform his supreme physique into Celestial.
It was evident that if something happened, Kyle would leap into danger to protect his loved ones, so why was it acting this way? Why was it not giving him any hints about the dangers so he could escape? Why was it trying to stop him? There was something crucial he was missing.
There was no way his bloodline was going to risk his life and endanger him by trying to forcefully merge with him in the chaos.
It cherished its own existence and wouldn't jeopardize his life, knowing it would return to nature and cease to exist if he died.
Yue's choked voice, filled with worry, snapped him out of his thoughts.
"Why? What happened to you?"
Kyle's jaw tightened as he fought against the cold freezing his internal organs.
"We need to leave! Now! Ugh..."
His voice trembled as he struggled to explain what he had seen and how he had seen it. The faces of the people around him grew paler the more he spoke.
James muttered a curse under his breath as he struggled to accept the future being described
to him. He glanced at Odiak and the other elders with anxiety, only to see that their faces were even worse than his.
Kyle hadn't even finished when a loud cracking sound suddenly echoed through the air, capturing everyone's attention.
James's heart stopped. Not just his; the hearts of every single person around the seals sank when they saw a large crack forming in the crystal-clear surface of one of the towering pillars. The moment the first crack appeared, another quickly followed, then another in no time.
The Will of the Universe appeared in the clear sky, filled with snowflakes cascading down to accumulate on the land, and the old man cried out in horror.
"No! No! No! This can't be happening!"
He tried to stop the two seals from cracking further by channeling all his spiritual energy into
them.
James and the elders shook off the terror that gripped their hearts and also spread their spiritual energy to prevent the cracks in the seals from worsening.
Odiak shouted with all his strength.
"Everyone, supply your spiritual energy to the seals! Don't hold back!"
His words echoed, and without hesitation, everyone around the seals began to pour their spiritual energy into them. Alec, Carcel, Mia, Lara, and Regius also rushed to help.
They couldn't let the seals break! If they did, no one in the Forsaken Land would survive! The universe would be plunged into chaos-chaos that couldn't be resolved even if they won
against the dark side!
Kyle forced himself to stand when he saw his friends leaping into danger right before his eyes.
He grabbed Yue and Sinon, who were still beside him, and shouted as he summoned his strength to tear the fabric of space in the sky, creating a massive crack.
"Leave! Go!"
He pushed them toward the crack but gritted his teeth when they refused to leave.
Yue clenched his arm.
"No! We can't leave everyone behind! The others are still on the floating islands!"
Dread and horror filled her entire being as she thought about the people fighting in the war
and the many on the floating islands.
Her friends and Nox... Nox and Bia! Her mind supplied as she tried to rush toward the floating islands, only to be stopped by Kyle as he grabbed her waist.
He panted as he rested his head on her shoulder, holding her tightly.
"I will not let anything happen to them. I promise. I promise. Please believe me. Just this
once. Just for the last time."
Yue froze when his touch became even colder, so much so that it pained her, as if it were not a
human hand but a block of ice.
She glanced at the seals and took a deep breath to steady herself.
She needed to stay clear-headed.
"I will! Okay, I will!"
Sinon grabbed Kyle as he staggered, his expression filled with concern and dread.
"What the hell is going on? Everything was fine just a moment ago! Why the hell is this
happening?!"
Seeing Yue calming down, Kyle relaxed a little as well. He knew that Yue and Sinon wouldn't
leave without him and the others, so he didn't waste any time urging them and vanished
toward the seals.
Yue and Sinon followed behind. They expanded their spiritual energy just like the others to
prevent the seals from breaking.
At that moment, Damien's familiar voice echoed from the distance as he stepped out from a
crack that formed in the air.
"It seems I am right on time."
He chuckled with pure amusement and mirth dancing in his azure eyes.
"I would have regretted it if I had missed such a beautiful sight."