Chapter 68: Fate

Chapter 68: Fate

At the burial site. Mo Fei’s body lay still, but suddenly from the ground, a soft, pale glow illuminated the place entirely. The sand shifted, forming a hollow, and his body disappeared from deep within the ground.

In the Lightless realm. His body slowly sat on the throne; the realm was no longer bright; the sky was grey like a stormy season. The ground beneath was littered with scattered leaves, like an abandoned temple. And so-called, the spirits’ voices were partially vague; they were pleading to nothing. There was no God that’d give them the madness to eat.

One by one, the spirits’ bodies shrank, and some of them began to eat each other. They consumed the flesh of each other as they grew further, devouring each other slowly.

All of them had no corruption to eat; there was no madness to pity. At that moment, the spirit world was in chaos. All those hungry spirits lurked, trying to find something to snatch up.

Mo Fei’s body leaned against the throne, clean without any dirt or soil sticking to him. Slowly, the cloth covering his eyes slipped on the ground, revealing the closed eye, yet it was not a great sight to them. The Serpent curled around the throne, its head caressing his cheek. An attempt to wake him up, but it was useless; he didn’t wake up. The mask was there without any performer to wear it.

The Serpent hissed. Its eyes only watched his dull face; Mo Fei didn’t move. There was no life to move after all.

It raised its head toward the pillars. Some of them were still broken, then its eyes lingered on the broken seats; no one was there yet. It wrapped its tail around him.

The mist covered Mo Fei’s figure in the endless realm; there was no sign of life.

Finally, it began to whisper words. "The Lord Light that walks beyond the Sun. The Keeper of Godless Heaven. The Last God of a Dying World. The Lost Destiny of Time. I call out your great honor to embrace the dark and awaken the dead."

Suddenly, two beams of light shot out toward the seats a few meters away.

The dust fell upon the realm and slowly revealed two figures of men standing near the seats. Both of them looked at each other, but their faces were hidden, not hidden by mist or anything, but they were not present there at all.

Then, the ancient voice echoed in the realm. "Welcome."

Both of them looked toward the throne; their gaze froze at the vastness of the Serpent. Its body was hidden behind the thick mist, and then their gaze fell upon the figure at the throne.

One of them whispered. "Why are we here?"

"You will have to obtain the artifact necessary for the spiritual transfer. My lord allows you one week to get it, and if you reject that, then you may return as a spirit again."

Another man questioned. "What will we get?"

"A temporary flesh." The Serpent’s voice grew in the void. "If you get both parts, I shall grant you access to consult my lord, and he may decide your fate next."

The Serpent paused and then added in a heavy tone. "But if you tell the mystery of my Lord to anyone, the outcome will be grim."

Hiss

With that, both of the figures disappeared; they weren’t real; they were projections of a soul who got temporary bodies.

***

Back in the world four.

The rotten empire stood large; the capital, Trasia, was still alive with nobles. The hearts were still cold like the snow falling over the houses. The nobles walked there with their dogs on the street, their whole bodies covered in the finest fur ever made, yet it couldn’t warm them.

In the royal palace of the Dreamer, Xue Lan entered through the main hallway. His footsteps echoed as the lower-ranked guards bowed to him.

All of them greeted him, taking back a few steps, as if they didn’t wish to become a minor inconvenience.

In his line of sight, a man walked toward him. His younger brother, Yin. He wore his signature light blue and pale white-streaked robe. He welcomed Xue Lan with his usual expression, slightly happier to see his brother back. "Welcome back, brother. How did your research go?"

Xue Lan walked past him silently with a single small nod and three words. "It was inconvenient."

Yin gave a confused expression as he tilted his head slightly at Xue Lan’s tone, but he ignored it as exhaustion. "The Overseer wants to meet you."

Xue Lan stopped; his eyes darted around, and then he walked again toward the hall of the ’Honorable Court.’

The hall was vast, its ceilings lost in shadow, and many seats were built alongside the walls, whole shape of a meeting room. At the far end, on a raised dais, sat a figure that made the air itself feel heavier. His presence made the world seem smaller.

The Overseer’s face was hidden behind a thin veil, even though it was thin, yet no one could ever see through it. And his voice... it was clear—far too clear, as if it came from inside Xue Lan’s skull. "You’ve been busy, Dreamer. I got a lot of information regarding your confrontation. I heard you fought a God. I also heard you lost."

Xue Lan’s expression didn’t change. "The Hanged God was already corrupted. I did kill him, but it was for you so that your cult can destroy the FleshWeaver cult."

"Your...hmm?" The Overseer hummed a tone. "Not... Our?"

Xue Lan’s expression flickered slightly. "Yes, pardon my foolishness. Our cult. As for the God, it was corrupted and died." He tried to change the topic again.

"Corrupted... And yet you tried." The Overseer leaned forward slightly. The surrounding shadows deepened. "That’s what concerns me most. You’ve been making choices without my permission; remind me if I ever assigned you to go there."

Xue Lan remained silent for a while before speaking. "There have been a fe—"

"Was that because I can’t watch you in the other world if you do something behind my back?" The Overseer’s voice interrupted him.

Xue Lan’s eyes darted around, thinking of his next words. "You may not consider me too soon; I’ve been here longer than anyone else. If I wanted to betray, shouldn’t I have done that at the time of execution?"

"Ahh, execution." The Overseer rested his one hand on his thigh. "I may as well consider that you didn’t break down. Hmm, I suppose I can give you one and only chance to stay obedient."

Xue Lan nodded, but he didn’t change his expression into relief.

Behind the veil, the Overseer smiled wickedly. "You may very well know, no one can deceive a Dreamer. So, that’s your one chance, Xue Lan. Don’t bring me to disappointment ever."

With that, the Overseer raised his hand in a gesture to leave.

Xue Lan turned and walked toward the exit of the hallway. His expression remained unchanging.

Outside, he turned toward the path of the prison.

Soon, he reached the prison, the place covered in the dark, and the ground beneath smelled of a rusty scent of metal. His footsteps stopped near a cell where someone was sitting inside.

Xue Wei sat on a stone crafted with rough edges. A black fabric covered his eyes. Upon hearing the steps, he tilted his head up to look in the direction of the sound.

Xue Lan spoke in a flat tone. "It’s been a long time, hasn’t it?"

Xue Wei’s expression shifted into the realization of the voice. He had heard it, of course he did. "Xue Lan... you came?"

"Yes, and I have found out a few things."

Xue Wei looked at him; he couldn’t see through the fabric, yet he tried. "What do you mean?"

Xue Lan remained silent for a few moments, looking at Xue Wei’s weary face, and then he finally spoke. "I know about the cure now."

Xue Wei’s breath hitched under his breath. He looked down toward the ground and couldn’t say anything for a minute. With a long inhale, he whispered softly. "Cure? Why...? I didn’t expect this from you."

Xue Lan stared at him. "I know, but now I have. I will need a month or more to get that; I’ll save you, Father."

After hearing that, Xue Wei pressed his lips together. "How can I return that debt, son?"

Xue Lan closed his eyes for a second. "Debt? That was my duty." He paused for a few seconds and continued. "I only need the location of Blood Lake of the Divine Dragon."

Xue Wei lifted his head up. "I should tell you now... don’t tell this to the Overseer. I’ve been waiting for this day, when you stop trusting the Overseer."

Xue Lan tilted his head slightly. Trust, and at the Overseer? That was never the truth, but he had been hiding that. Xue Lan waited for him to speak. His eyes scanned the whole place for anything suspicious; he was certain that the Overseer had suspected him.

Xue Wei’s fingers intertwined as he whispered in a heavy voice, almost as if fearing someone else would hear. "It’s in the world seven... the mysterious Venenoth mountain. You can’t reach there with sheer traveling; the will of the dragon is still there, meaning you’d need at least one Authority and one spiritual person."

Xue Lan’s expression flickered as he understood the words. "The process?"

Xue Wei nodded. "One Authority must be either a Lightless or a GraveWalker(Authority of Death), or at least an Authority that can see the spirit world."

"And the spiritual person?"

Xue Wei lifted his one finger and circled it around the air. "A strong spiritual presence, a priestess, or a priest who is connected to the tree of ages, but they must not have any Authority."

Xue Lan’s eye twitched. He couldn’t take help from Yi Jyuhan even though Yi Jyuhan had a spiritual presence, but he was also connected to one Authority. As for Lightless... No one had ever chosen that Authority... and the one who did died two days ago. "Tch."

Xue Wei rested his hand on the hard stone. "When will you return?"

"One day before the execution date." Xue Lan assured as he turned his back on Xue Wei.

His father gave a gentle nod; a small hope curled up as a grin on his face. "I know you won’t let me die..."

Xue Lan walked without saying anything else, the boots clicking in the prison as he came out.

He was successful in his plan; the seeds of hope had been planted. Now the next step was to wait for a cruel, terrible day. He was prepared for that, his eyes not turning back to see his father again.