The Record of Unusual Creatures

A massive swarm of shadows appeared on the horizon, as though a forest had sprouted out of nowhere and grew across the barren land. The shadows swayed as they came gushing like a tide towards the mirror tower. As they got closer, their monstrous, writhing form was visible. They were the same kind of monsters that appeared in the real world. They had impossibly strong bodies with all kinds of mishmash parts from head to tail and they exuded the madness that drove them. These monsters scampered and pushed against each other while they charged headlong across the plains. They were getting closer by the minute!

Everyone present immediately fell into an uproar, and even Geddon along with the Wardens were surprised by the appearance of the monsters on the horizon. Next to Hao Ren, Vivian deployed her wings and flew into the air, cold frost and lightning forming around her. Embers started to form in Y’zaks’ eyes, nostrils, and mouth as demonic energy welled up within him. Lily, on the other hand, began to jump up and down excitedly. “Mr. Landlord! Mr. Landlord! Time to grind mobs!”

Hao Ren ignored Lily’s overly-excited reaction. He sensed something and turned to the mirror tower.

Another tide was coming that way.

It was a human army, or at least it looked like one. In the rolling dust, innumerable men and their generals charged ahead, their armor rent, their blades rusted, and their bodies scarred. All of this left them looking about as battered as their armor. Their faces were gaunt, their limbs shrunken, and their skin hung like patches of dried leather from the bone. It was an undead army!

The “undead army” trudged on despite their battered equipment and bodies. In the blink of an eye, the army crossed the battlefield and collided with the Army of Chaos head-on…

…without a sound.

The two armies clashed as swords hewed and claws slashed. Every moment there were countless warriors and monsters being torn apart, falling into dust. The monsters wailed in fury and the men replied with furious roars of their own. Yet, there was no sound.

It was like watching a silent movie because the battle beside them was totally muted. As the blades collided, only dust was kicked up. After the initial astonishment, Hao Ren saw a knight run past him, and he realized that it was nothing but an illusion.

The rest had also regained their wits by then, and they watched the battle. Vivian was still airborne as she monitored their surroundings. Lightning rings were around her. While the fighting armies were illusions, in that nightmarish world, anything related to illusions could be fatal, and no one knew of a bigger danger that lurked within the illusion. Y’zaks did not withdraw his power as well, and he even placed Y’lisabet on his shoulder; the little demoness held a massive fel fireball in the air with both hands and looked about nervously. It seemed like she was prepared to lob the fel fireball at any sign of danger.

Even Lily was in full alert. She had placed her bestial army on the flanks of the contingent while she stared at the illusion with her golden eyes, searching for danger. Her ears started to twitch lightly, signaling her unease.

The battle soon came to an end, and by the looks of things, it had been a colossal battle. Almost every combatant perished in the fight. The monsters knew no fear or pain, and they refused to retreat, while the humans fought on with faith and courage. Even after the last banner fell, not a single solder ran away!

The killing stopped, and no combatants remained. Monsters, humans, all had turned into corpses, which littered the entire field. Following a faint light, they all faded away.

Geddon, the Lord of the Mountains looked on as the illusion faded, a pall of stupor enveloping his face. A moment later, his eyes glinted and he stared at the point where the light faded.

Hao Ren and Vivian had noticed that aura too.

“This was the final battle in front of the tower in the Realm of Reflection.” A slow, ancient voice came from the light. “But this was not their final hour. In the Eternal Battlefield, nothing stops. Heroes become bones, bones become monsters, monsters become dust, the cycle never stops…”

A frail old man stood before Geddon. He was barefooted and wearing a long, faded robe. He was also holding a staff made out of twisted wood. While he was exceedingly thin, almost skeletal, his frail limbs did not waver. The man stood there like a solid bramble, his messy white hair fluttering wildly in the wind. Light shone from the deepest recesses of his eyes, glinting directly at the colossal Lord of the Mountains, the powerful ancient guardian, Geddon.

Most people would find looking at a Warden a terrifying experience, but the seemingly frail, powerless man stared the Lord of the Mountains in the eye unwaveringly. His eyes even bore a hint of judgment to it.

“Who are you?” Geddon asked, his curiosity piqued by the presence of the old man.

Hao Ren looked on curiously at the mysterious old man too. He simply could not piece the old man’s looks together. Perhaps it was simply a wrong perception on his part, but every time he observed the man’s looks, he received an entirely different impression altogether, and that feeling confused him.

The old man did not respond to Geddon’s question or to the looks that the rest gave him. He only turned back and walked away. “On and on, without rest, without pause…”

The other Wardens all looked at each other quizzically before Geddon realized something. “That’s the direction of the Scorched Plains!”

Hao Ren immediately recalled the images from the recording. The soldier in the recording had mentioned this place.

He looked up at Geddon and shouted, “Follow him!”

The old man may have looked like he was trudging on slowly, but in reality, he was unimaginably quick. Just a few seconds later, he was already hundreds of meters away!

Fortunately, everyone in the expedition was your usual rabble. Even the weakest was probably the strongest knight or cleric within the church. No one would have lost sight of a target on a flat plain. After receiving their orders, they immediately followed the mysterious old man.

However, just as they were about to reach him, he disappeared.

After recovering from the temporary surprise, Hao Ren decided that they should continue forward.

If the old man had disappeared on a path leading to the Scorched Plains, then they would look for clues there!

As they approached their destination, Hao Ren detected the stench of death and decay.

The clouds got denser and the corruption of the land grew even more horrifying. As they approached the Scorched Plains, or rather, as they got farther away from the mirror tower, the force of Chaos grew stronger. Closer to the ground, the soldiers detected monstrous appendages coiling out from the cracks on the ground. They looked like brambles but were continuously coiling as if they were living. Disgusting did not even begin to describe them. Farther away, a shadowy figure moved in the dim light of dusk and countless tentacle-like objects appeared from the clouds. They were Lockmarton’s projections. But, if the group was able to see those things there, it meant that the monster’s real body was close!

Pushing on to the Scorched Plains was the right choice.

The corruption of Chaos was getting denser and the Light of Order was shining brightly from Lily as well as the rest. Yet, they could not stop the Power of Chaos outside the sanctuaries from disrupting everyone’s senses. Just as Geddon motioned that the Scorched Plains was close, Hao Ren’s already-slightly-addled senses picked up a massive energy signature!

At the same time, the MDT also reported, “Life signature detected ahead… Amount: numerous!”

“Everyone on alert!” Calaxus raised his staff. “Full Alert!”

With the MDT’s accurate guidance, the expedition skirted around the path where they could possibly expose themselves. They traveled across a treacherous mountain range before coming to a hill littered with bizarre rock formations.

There was no more cover, and being on the hill itself was enough for them to tell the situation ahead.

Geddon and the rest of the Wardens crouched down. Despite their massive size, they were totally silent when they were moving covertly. They had also totally hidden their aura and presence, so even if they were standing before you, you would consciously ignore their presence. Hao Ren went past Geddon before he poked his head out.

He saw a camp.

Or rather, a messy ruin of rock, steel, and rotten wood.

In the ruined camp, countless deformed soldiers were moving about.

Nevertheless, this was not the most shocking scene. The real one was the location a distance away from the camp. On the smoking barren land, stood a ruined city.

The city walls were tall with towers all around. The grand-looking structure bore plenty of scars from the many collapsed buildings and burnings. The city itself was so shattered that it looked like the entire place had been thrown down from the sky.

From a distance, the city could be visibly divided into three circles. The outer circle was the civilian zone, the middle ring held many great cathedral-like buildings, while the core circle was a shattered ruin with only a few grand towers and palace complexes standing.

“Oh heavens…” Calaxus lost his composure. “Is that Fidelinopolis?”