Five Boundless Days Later...
The Raiders Faction gathered in front of the World Tree’s Dimensional Mirror under the gaze of the majority of its citizens and staff members. They surrounded the mirror from everywhere, some floating, some sitting on branches, and the majority packed on the first floor.
They cheered nonstop with eyes filled with hope and support as they watched Levi leading the pack inside the mirror... he wore a mixed scarlet-and-black, leather, skin-tight uniform with the Raiders Logo marked on the right side of his chest.
The Raiders’ emblem represented wealth contorted by brutality... it incorporated greed with destruction.
At the center was a broken crown made from shattered coins and cracked gemstones, forming a rough circle... the crown was tilted and falling apart, as if ripped from a defeated ruler.
A crooked blade pierced straight through the crown at an angle, symbolizing riches taken by force rather than earned or inherited... the weapon looked worn, chipped, and stained, showing signs of constant use.
Surrounding the emblem were floating fragments of gold dust, torn banners, and broken chains, creating an uneven halo.
One look at the logo and anyone would assume that it represented villains, rebels, outcasts, the ones desiring to bring chaos and destruction through their greed.
Although it was considered the opposite in real life, as most Raiders joined the faction as a last measure to save their planet or to avenge their fallen homes by becoming mercenaries, the CRS Platform didn’t care... the faction was created to harbor chaos amidst the two main factions, and the logo was meant to represent their vile nature.
Yet, Levi and the rest of the Daywalkers wore it proudly as they walked through the mirror one by one, their expressions cold and solemn.
The platform could print whatever narrative they wanted on the Raiders... it didn’t matter to them. All they cared about was the reclamation of their planet, and they would do anything to achieve it.
’A victory without my family’s name at the helm is no victory of mine...’
Wei-Lan showed a cold grimace as he gazed at the rippling mirror... he was standing on a branch a distance away, his arms crossed behind his back.
’You will regret outcasting my agency’s squad dearly... Dominic.’
His gaze soon switched to Dominic, who was addressing the crowd after the squad left. Wei-Lan visited the World Tree for the sake of finding his son and bringing him back, but alas... Dominic refused to tell him about his location or the rest of the squad, as he also had no clue where Fang Ling had taken them.
Wei-Lan reached out to his region’s Saviors and explained the situation to them in hopes of putting pressure on Dominic... unfortunately, his entire squad had willingly gone to the Boundless Expanse of their free will, and they could do nothing about it without investing too much effort and creating rifts within the World Tree.
In the end, they kicked him out the door, telling him to handle his own private matters, as they weren’t his servants to search for his son.
This left Wei-Lan with few options... he couldn’t threaten Dominic when he was one rank above him, leaving him to hire private investigators within the Boundless Expanse to search for him.
Though he knew that was a futile attempt, as it was nearly impossible to find someone in the Boundless Expanse if they refused to be found.
’You can’t keep him away from me forever, Dominic...’ Wei-Lan sent a dimensional message with a sneer, ’No matter how far it flies, a bird remembers its nest.’
Dominic raised his head and gazed directly into Wei-Lan’s eyes... then, he retorted with a cold tone, ’A bird remembers its nest... unless the nest was a cage.’
Hearing this, Wei-Lan snorted in resentment and left the gathering... he no longer had a reason to be here now that he was assured no one was on his side.
...
Meanwhile, Levi and the rest of his teammates teleported straight away to the Howling Abyss... the abyss was more or less similar to the one they spent ten days training in.
The immense chasm, the jagged black cliffs, the gloomy cloudy sky, and the pitch-dark abyss... everything was the same, except for the absence of the giant statues. There was not a single soul in the abyss besides them.
However, this didn’t last for long... a few moments later, a shadowy gate appeared on the other side of the chasm. Then, humanoid nightcrawlers of different species stepped into the abyss in a chaotic formation.
If it weren’t for them wearing the same Conquerors uniform, they would resemble a ragtag group of monsters. Their uniform matched the will of the Primordial Tree of Death and its insatiable hunger for lifeforce.
The Conquerors’ logo was ingrained in the central chest area... it was an image of the Primordial Tree of Death, spreading its pitch-black roots and branches across the entire uniform... front and back.
Although the uniform itself was black too, the tree still stood out, as its roots and branches appeared three-dimensional and alive... the only other color visible was a deep amethyst, which dotted the sides of the uniform, representing the Oblivar’s Void and their eternal loyalty to the Primordial Tree of Death’s purpose.
The moment the Daywalkers’ eyes met with their enemies, the atmosphere turned tense and silent... the howling wind roared nonstop, adding to the tension.
While Tyrese, Evangeline, Shia, and the rest were scanning the nightcrawlers with solemn expressions, a sudden envious voice broke the silence.
"Damn... their uniform is way cooler than ours..." Arthur exclaimed annoyedly.
At once, the grim mood collapsed as the Daywalkers rolled their eyes in Arthur’s direction.
They were about to embark on a game to the death, and Arthur’s focus was on who looked the coolest... either his priorities were truly messed up, or it was his confidence speaking for him.
"Sometimes I wish I could sew your lips together," Jojo muttered.
"You have to reach them first, shorty," Arthur snickered while towering over Jojo.
"Don’t start now... focus."
Levi cut them off before they could launch another round of infighting... then, he focused his spiritual vision to the limit to get a detailed reading of their opponents, since his Harmonic Spine’s range failed to cover such a large distance between them.
Just like he was checking them out, the nightcrawlers were doing the same.
"Insane... I can sense all of their spiritual auras besides their captain. I got nothing, like he isn’t standing there," Vael’Thyssar remarked solemnly. "Such high spiritual prowess is too alarming."