Ery was in the middle of instructing the acolytes at the academy when Yama's urgent ssage reached him. The news struck him like a lightning bolt, his expression turning ashen. Without a word, he vanished, leaving the stunned acolytes behind.
"Sothing bad is happening," Klea said, her voice tight with concern.
Ashaka, who had been ditating nearby, felt an unsettling pang in his chest. His eyes snapped open, reflecting the sa worry.
Within seconds, Ery materialized at the waypoint gate at Earth Moonbase, his mind racing. He imdiately ordered Yami to raise the alarm, activating all sensors to their maximum capacity, and instructed VIA to start a full-scale investigation.
Ery didn't wait for a response, he bolted out of the base, transforming mid-flight, his body pulsating with Khaos energy that distorted the space around him, propelling him forward at breakneck speed.
"VIA! Give sothing!" Ery's voice was a mix of desperation and fury as he soared through the atmosphere.
The artificial intelligence responded swiftly, reporting the detection of partial signatures of a cloaking vehicle. But it wasn't a ship—sothing smaller, more compact, like a capsule.
VIA's analysis led to a 68% probability that it was an advanced vehicle, likely used by a powerful individual for personal space travel. But as quickly as the data had appeared, it vanished, leaving no trace behind.
"Has it left the planet?!" Ery's frustration mounted as the realization dawned that he might be too late.
[Insufficient data to conclude,]
"DAMMIT!!!" Ery's frustration boiled over.
"Who it is!! Where is it!!" Ery's voice echoed in the empty sky, filled with rage and helplessness as the gravity of the situation settled in.
The sense of loss, the fear of the unknown, and the frustration of not having answers fueled the storm brewing inside him. Within a few minutes, Ery blasted through Earth's atmosphere, descending rapidly toward the desert ruins. As soon as he touched down, his divine sense spread out, scanning every inch of the area with an intensity that matched the urgency in his heart.
Sensing nothing out of the ordinary on the surface, he summoned Livi, the Baphot, to stand guard and maintain vigilance over the surroundings.
Without wasting another mont, Ery teleported himself to where Yama was waiting.
He materialized in the decimated subterranean forest, the air thick with the scent of destruction. Yama stood silently, his gaze fixed on a single tree.
Ery's heart pounded as he approached, and when his eyes fell upon the figure hanging from the half-destroyed branches, a cold dread washed over him.
There, lifeless and broken, was Fuxi, the Eastern Sage.
"No... no..." Ery whispered, his voice choked with disbelief and sorrow.
He stepped forward, his movents heavy with grief, and gently took Fuxi's body down from the tree. The sight was devastating—Fuxi's organs were utterly destroyed, and the absence of his soul was palpable.
Ery could barely breathe, the weight of the loss pressing down on him.
"Senior... who did this to you...?" Ery's voice trembled, his mind racing with questions, yet knowing that no answer would bring peace.
Yama started detailing the anomalies he had encountered. He spoke of the false reading of a vessel, the inability to detect any signs of a battle within the cave, and the unsettling fact that no evidence of the intruder could be located.
Ery listened to the report in full, but the raging storm within him refused to be quelled.
"Who IS IT?!! Who dares to do such a thing?!" His heart pounded in his chest as he struggled to rein in his emotions, his mind racing to make sense of the horrific scene before him.
"It's only been minutes... Whoever did this... might still be here." His thoughts whirled, trying to piece together the puzzle. "But, Where?!!"
His eyes narrowed as they locked onto the pyramid structure looming behind the barrier.
This ancient palace said to be the King's Tomb, had always eluded him—its secrets guarded by an impenetrable formation. But now, with Fuxi's murder, Ery's suspicions grew. The culprit, soone capable of bypassing multiple powerful formations and overpowering a master like Fuxi, might possess the knowledge and skill to navigate the tomb's defenses.
Without hesitation, Ery knelt and placed both hands on the ground. He took a deep breath, focusing his energy. This ti, he wasn't just relying on his divine senses; he intertwined them with his [Nature Sense], amplifying his awareness of the surrounding environnt.
Every inch of the ground, every crevice within the barrier, was scrutinized, searching for even the faintest trace of the intruder.
Despite his best efforts, Ery sensed nothing around the caves. He was also unable to penetrate the barrier. It was as if the place was wrapped in a veil of impenetrable darkness, guarding its secrets with unyielding force.
Frustration gnawed at him, but then a faint clue caught his attention.
The forest revealed signs that so of the destruction hadn't just co from above ground—it had also co from beneath.
"What is going on?!" Ery muttered, his mind racing as he tried to delve deeper into the earth. But again, he found nothing.
The silence beneath the surface was as unsettling as the devastation above.
Unwilling to give up, Ery considered another possibility—there might be one witness to this atrocity who could still provide answers, Gaia.
With renewed determination, he dashed toward the massive dead white tree at the forest's center. This tree, long connected to the spirit of Gaia, might hold the key to uncovering what had happened here.
He touched the rough bark and closed his eyes, reaching out with his soul.
"Gaia.. please... Tell … what's happened here…" For a mont, there was nothing.
Then, as if in response to his plea, he felt a ripple—a faint connection to Gaia's energy.
It was as though the ancient being was guiding him, urging him to follow its lead. The connection grew stronger, pulling his attention to a particular spot deep beneath the ground.
Ery's instincts flared, and he knew what he had to do. He extended his hands, channeling his power into the earth, urging it to reveal what lay hidden. The ground beneath him began to tremble, and soon, thick roots burst through the soil, twisting and coiling as they erged. The roots wrapped around sothing, lifting it slowly from the soil.
Ery stepped closer, his heart pounding. As the roots parted, revealing what they held, his breath caught in his throat. Lying within the embrace of the roots was a body—one he recognized all too well.
It was the young monk, Damo, who appeared fragile and lifeless.
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