"The what?!"
It wasn't just Niel who felt like the bottom was falling out of the world, even Sarriel reacted like this.
Little Gem, who was still in Ryu's arms, pouted in dissatisfaction, seemingly and quite adorably enraged by all the noise they were making. It wasn't until Ryu gave her a few gentle pats that she nuzzled back into her deep sleep.
What Niel and Sarriel didn't know, though, was that Ryu was just as shocked.
He had researched a lot for this entry into Tri Palace. He knew that it was one of his best shots at becoming a Summoning Necromancer even though there was no history of such a thing happening in the past.
As an Origin Grade Ruin Master, Ryu was a scholar of the highest level. He could draw conclusions many couldn't even begin to think of. Even without tangible evidence, the fact he had reached such a conclusion gave him a better than 80% chance of being correct.
But… Even Ryu hadn't expected for such a thing to happen.
Tri Palace was supposed to be a trial zone. The youths would enter together and go through a series of tests, wherein those with a Tri Key would have a small advantage during certain key moments. It was because of this Ryu wouldn't have given up the key unless he could save Ailsa in return.
That trial zone was supposed to be a closed space and should have taken place within the Palace itself. But, very obviously… this place was nothing like that.
One would never think that this was the Nether Realm, but Ryu knew that he was correct. He wasn't fooled by the expansive blue skies or the looming moon in the skies that actually looked quite beautiful. This place was a danger zone the likes of which reaped lives at a rate no other location within the martial world could match.
'It's not safe to be in the air… I didn't prepare for such a possibility, but luckily I have the Incubator or else this may very well have been a death sentence.'
Ryu had Little Rock dive down from the skies. Staying up there for any longer than they should was only asking for death.
Unfortunately, Ryu wasn't so na?ve to think that they would be fine after this. They say that ignorance was bliss, but Ryu was certain that they had already been spotted. The only question was how many enemies they would be facing and how soon.
Sarriel and Niel kept looking toward Ryu for an explanation, even after they landed on the ground. But, the moment their feet met the soil, their expressions changed. Looking around, they felt as though their world views were being slowly distorted.
The world here looked so beautiful from afar. But, when they looked at it this closely, they felt their skin crawling. A gripping fear took hold on their hearts, their chests trembling as their hearts tried to lodge itself in their throats.
They originally thought that they had just landed in a forest of ancient trees, gorgeous works of nature that represented thousands of years of history. But, the truth was completely unlike this.
All the trees around them were rotting from the inside out. Their bark looked like a healthy brown on the outside, but a subtle rancid odor hung in the air.
If one looked closely, it was possible to see black sap oozing out from between the bark. And, in places where the bark had been chipped by outside influences, there was nothing but a rotting black wood within as opposed to a beautiful brown grain one would expect.
As though this wasn't bad enough, everything that looked beautiful on the outside seemed to follow this exact pattern.
The soil beneath their feat was actually piles of ash layered atop of each other. Rather than earth worms, blood sucking leaches and grotesque, flesh eating beetles weaved in and out of it.
The Spiritual Herbs they saw which painted a pretty picture from the distance were actually carnivorous demons waiting to snap at their ankles.
The chirping birds that had been perched, adding to the ambience of nature, opened their beaks to reveal jagged edges and forked tongues. Even their eyes seemed to have been dug out, leaving nothing but vacant abysses of darkness.
This time, when Niel and Sarriel looked into the skies, they didn't see a beautiful expanse of blue. Instead, they suddenly became very keen on the fact there wasn't a single cloud in sight. The air content was so dry that none could form.
The large moon in the skies they felt as though they could reach out and touch suddenly made it strikingly obvious that there was no sun to speak of. So, where was all this light coming from?
They focused on their surroundings, trying to find an answer, only to finally realize what was happening.
Panicking, they immediately covered their bodies in a layer of qi skin.
Ryu observed all of this without saying a word. These two were geniuses in their own right and things would be easier if they figured it all out on their own.
The lights in this place came from a radioactive type of qi that perpetually hung in the skies and gave what loomed above its gentle blue color. Specifically, it was a type of Death Qi known as Nether Qi. Ironically, though, this Death Qi was corrosive even to the dead. Only the creatures born and raised in this Realm could withstand it normally, making them far more powerful.
This was only the first level. The denser Nether Qi became, the darker blues it would radiate, making subsequent levels become darker and darker until the world was perpetually shrouded in darkness.
"Go on for now." Ryu patted Little Rock's long neck and sent him into the Incubator alongside Little Gem.
In the next instant, a handsome steed that stood at over two meters tall appeared before Ryu.
"~Nie! Nie!~"
Nemesis stomped his steel hooves into the ground, his muscles rippling beneath his crimson coat. Sensing the world around him, he felt an instinct that swelled up from deep within.
"Get ready." Ryu said sternly, snapping Niel and Sarriel out of their stupor. "They're here."
"JIJIJIJIJIJIJIJIJIJIJI!!"