Chapter 166: The Truth: Dangerous Storm [VIP]
"Don't dream! Goddess Sasha hasn't appeared before us in over a hundred years, nor has she responded to any of our prayers! She can't hear your voice! And there's no way she'll respond to your request!"
Alans emphasized angrily that if Xiao Yun hadn't been protecting Yaris, he would even want to -
Ding-a-ling! Ding-a-ling!
The crisp and gentle ringtone rang, as if it was as soft and pure as if it permeated every cell in the body.
The bright light that originally enveloped the entire room disappeared, and everyone seemed to be suspended in the dark and deep starry sky.
Nebulae slowly spun in a vast vortex. Cometary stars, nearing the end of their lives, transformed into meteor showers, streaking through the darkness. At the edge of the field of vision, a burned-out red giant star quietly transformed into a white dwarf...
This is an incredible world where the movement of the stars tells the story of the rise and fall of time. The sky slowly rotates with a slow but steady rhythm, giving people a dazzling feeling. The vast loneliness that can never be measured by individual lives surges into the thoughts of everyone present like a tide.
"This is...where is this..."
Alance made a fragile sound.
"Are we going to die? Or—"
"We are not dead, we are just..."
No one can answer this question accurately.
Xiao Yun lowered his head and nervously grabbed Yaris's hand: "Are you okay?"
"fine."
Yaris said weakly, "He heard my voice and is coming to meet me."
"He is—"
"Goddess Sasha!"
"What!"
Everyone exclaimed together.
"Goddess Sasha..."
“Yes, He heard me.”
Yaris said breathlessly.
A beautiful and slender figure gradually emerged from the darkness - this was the most incredible woman in the world. She had a beautiful pure white cat head and mysterious violet eyes. She had a pair of white wings on her back, but they sparkled with a rainbow halo under the starlight.
The goddess is wearing a white robe, with exquisite ornaments on her forehead, ears, neck, wrists, waist and ankles. When she moves her body slightly, a clear sound like a silver bell is emitted from her body.
[After so many years, you finally found this place~]
The goddess of dawn, Sasha, smiled gently, and a mysterious smile appeared on the cat's face. Her eyes first fell on the golden dragon and the dark dragon, which had briefly regained their original forms with the arrival of darkness, and then stared at Xiao Yun and Yaris with sadness and pity.
Long, long ago, I piloted a starship to this pristine, uncultivated land. I lived here for a very long time, experiencing countless things. Everything about this land was so beautiful, and the beings who worshipped me as a goddess were so lovely. Even in my dreams, I could always feel the purest thoughts and love of these beings through the temple...
[My current form isn't my original form... But compared to my original self, I like my current self. I like this form, born from the longing and love of all living beings...]
"so--"
[I can always hear your voice and understand your struggle, but I no longer have the strength. I’m so sorry…]
The goddess' voice was very soft, like the breeze blowing through the grass.
I feel sorry for you... I feel deeply sorry for the separation, pain, despair, darkness, and distortion you've had to endure over the years... You just wanted to take back what was originally yours, but...
The goddess closed her eyes calmly, as if immersed in long memories and sorrow.
Xiao Yun also felt a strong sense of despair and grief in his heart.
[When the Eternal Empire was destroyed, I should have stepped in to prevent the tragedy, but I chose not to because I was afraid that the Golden City would be dragged into misfortune... I even took it away after the war... I hope this eternal flame can atone for my sins...]
Goddess Sasha stretched out her fingers, which were shining with golden light, towards Xiao Yun.
Xiao Yun also instinctively opened his hands.
Squeak——
A faint, flickering golden flame appeared in the palm of his hand.
"This is--"
"Quick! Quickly absorb the flame into your body."
Yaris suddenly spoke.
"good."
Xiao Yun raised his hand and slowly inhaled the flame into his mouth. After a slight shock, a strong impact began to spread in his body.
[After so many years, my starship and I have become dilapidated, but the flame of light still shines brightly...]
The goddess' body gradually became transparent, and the stars in the universe behind her almost stopped moving.
The yellow gem suspended in the transparent cylinder disappeared into thin air and returned to the empty eye socket of the dark dragon.
[Ah! My eyes! My eyes are finally back!]
[I'm sorry for not being a millennial.]
The goddess nodded slightly to the "Tower Master".
, it’s all in the past, I——】
[I have already come to this planet and love this world full of love and warmth. I will use my last bit of strength to protect the Golden City. Then - on the day of the Golden City's destruction, as the fire burns down the temple, the city... will gradually turn into dust without anyone knowing.]
"goddess--"
call.
[Don't feel sad for me, and don't try to keep me. Life will eventually end, and gods will also turn to dust... I simply chose the same path as Gu Yin after experiencing the long years, and will forever merge with the world I love deeply...]
Following the goddess's whisper, the vast universe behind her began to move rapidly again. All the stars were whispering, and all the light turned into will-o'-the-wisp, swaying and burning madly!
While spinning,
“Ahhhhhh!”
"W-what is that!"
The crowd was seized by great sorrow and fear and cried out in terror.
The goddess' body became increasingly transparent, and from the depths of the pitch-black universe, a strange baby slowly emerged.
Although it had the general appearance of a human infant, it lacked basic organs like eyes, nose, and mouth. Its body was curled up like a fetus, and its vague hands and feet, which were unclear whether to call them limbs or tentacles, were holding a ball of light that was about the same size as itself and was extremely bright and dazzling...
His body seemed to be made of the starry sky. Countless stars twinkled in the clear darkness. The stars moved constantly within his body, converging towards the ball of light he held tightly in his arms...
He is so huge that he cannot be ignored even in the void of the universe.
All living beings who witnessed this scene—their senses were captured by Him floating in the vast universe!
They tried to see the baby's appearance and the ball of light in His arms, as if they had lost their souls. However, they could see nothing. They only felt indescribable fear, trembling, sadness, and emptiness...
even--
“This, this, this—”
(—I know this baby!)
Xiao Yun thought painfully.
The moment the baby and the ball of light appeared, this idea came into his mind.
Yes, he not only knew this baby, was familiar with this mysterious baby holding a ball of light like a monster... he also felt fear.
Just looking at the baby, he felt an unprecedented fear!
(Why are you afraid?)
A voice whispered in my heart.
(Why are you afraid of this baby!)
(because--)
(Because that baby represents what you are most reluctant to face in your heart——)
(No! No! Stop talking! I don’t want to hear it!)
Xiao Yun bit his lips tightly, his spirit almost collapsing.
(Don’t tell the truth! Don’t—)
(Still don't want to face the truth? The old era is about to end, and the new era is about to begin. Everything you have been avoiding will be torn apart and revealed at the moment of transition between the old and the new... There is nothing left to hide! Bring it all out! Stop avoiding the painful truth... From now on, gradually accept the truth...)
The deep voice continued.
As the voice spoke, the mysterious baby slowly lifted the thin transparent layer that looked like eyelids, revealing pure black eyes, and then -
Everything is gone!
Whispering stars, strange babies, swaying will-o'-the-wisp, including Goddess Sasha herself—
All disappeared!
People are brought back to the real world, back to a room shining with bright light.
Only the empty transparent cylinder and the dark dragon with golden eyes again proved that what had just happened was not an illusion.
Xiao Yun lowered his head and glanced at his palm - the flame of light given to him by Goddess Sasha had completely merged into his body.
…
"——What just happened?"
The staff gradually came to their senses and looked around in confusion.
Alans smiled bitterly and walked up to Xiao Yun: "The goddess just now-"
"He responded to my request and gave the flame of light to my brother."
Yaris smiled and looked at Alans and the others. "Although your memories have been erased, please remember that Goddess Sasha loves you deeply and will always protect you. She hopes that you can accept your fate of losing her and find a new and better future after losing her protection."
"Goddess Sasha..."
Alans shed tears.
The staff on the scene also lowered their heads sadly, and the soft and pleasant bell sounds made by the goddess's accessories colliding with each other echoed in their ears again.
…
…
After finishing the wonderful communication with Goddess Sasha, Xiao Yun abided by the agreement and handed the golden dragon to Alans and others to maintain the barrier of the Golden City.
The Golden Dragon himself was also very happy to stay in the Golden City and use the special energy field of the Golden City to restore his severely injured and weakened body.
After that, the group stayed in the Golden City for a few more days to make sure that Samit, Lily, Luke, and the Wild Dog Gang children could adapt to life in the Golden City, and that Alans would wholeheartedly train Luke.
"We're leaving."
Xiao Yun looked at Luke tenderly: "I hope that when we meet next time, you will have become a household hero in the East Continent."
"Owner--"
Luke looked at Xiao Yun with tears in his eyes and said through gritted teeth: "I will definitely fulfill Lord Yaris's prophecy and become the Emperor of the East!"
"I'll wait for your good news."
Xiao Yun patted Luke's shoulder.
Upon seeing this, the golden dragon followed suit and stretched out its claws towards the chubby little wings that had newly grown on the back of the "Tower Master".
[Brother, I hope that next time we meet, your wings and claws will be——]
[When my wings and claws grow back, I will beat you until you kneel down and call me brother!]
The "Tower Master" roared in frustration.
…
…
This is the land of demons.
Time seemed to be fixed at dusk, with the sun never rising or setting. The sky always maintained the soft and drowsy feeling of the moment before nightfall, and a lazy atmosphere like smoke hung in the air.
The caravan moved forward slowly. Wherever it passed, whether it was flat grasslands, dense forests, rolling hills, or sparkling rivers, it was unusually quiet and peaceful. There was no sign of settled human life, nor were there cultivated fields or orchards.
…
"His Majesty--"
Flora, who was flying at the front of the team, suddenly shouted, and Xiao Yun, who was on horseback, was startled: "What's the matter? What happened? Is it Yaris—"
"His Highness Yaris is not feeling unwell, but..."
Flora pointed forward.
There is no day or night in the sky of the Twilight Kingdom, so the western sky cannot be dyed bright red by the sunset, and there are no faint stars shining in the eastern sky.
However, where the sky and the mountains merge into one, an unprecedented black storm is brewing.
"We must stop immediately! The Wraith Storm is coming!"
"Wrathful Spirit Storm..."
Xiao Yun narrowed his eyes.
"Yes, Wrathful Storm!"
Flora shouted, "The Wraith Storm is a nightmare even in the Twilight Realm! Every time a storm hits, demons mysteriously disappear—said to be carried away by the undead lost in the Twilight Realm."
"Undead?"
"That's right! Thousands of undead are wandering this land! The undead from the Eternal Empire! Their resentment has not dissipated after six thousand years, and finally formed a storm of resentful spirits!"
"Is it that bad?"
Xiao Yun raised his head and looked towards the horizon.
The place was already filled with terrifying dark clouds, and the clouds looked extremely ferocious, like a terrifying combination of countless different human silhouettes - entangled hands, screaming faces, struggling bodies...
Screaming sounds drifted in the lazy wind.
"What's that noise?"
Xiao Yun asked.
"It's the screams of the dead...Ahhh! How terrifying!"
Flora let out a nervous scream.
A strange echo suddenly rang out from the clouds—
[horrible! ]
[horrible! ]
[horrible! ]
"No, what on earth is this?"
[No! No! No!]
[What! ]
[What what!]
[What what what!]
The repeated echoes from the clouds made Xiao Yun realize that the situation was not good. He decisively rode his horse back to Yaris, opened the car door, and shouted to Romila, who was telling jokes to make Yaris happy, "Get out of the car!"
"Why?"
Romila pouted.
Xiao Yun didn't bother to pay attention to him, got into the car directly, and told Yaris: "We may have encountered some trouble."
"What is it?"
"The undead... the undead of the Eternal Empire..."
Xiao Yun explained the situation outside to Yaris in simple terms.
After listening to Xiao Yun's story, Yaris opened the car window and looked at the strange cloud formation in the sky, which looked like countless living bodies entangled in extremely twisted postures. He sneered, "I don't know what this thing is, but I can be sure that it is definitely not the undead of the Eternal Empire."
"Why?"
Xiao Yun looked at Yaris in confusion.
Yaris: "Because the original darkness in my body did not react, Xiao Hei did not wake up."
——After getting the second eye back, not only did the "Tower Master" gradually grow soft little balls of flesh that looked like limbs on his abdomen, but also a pair of fleshy little wings on his back. His temperament also became increasingly lazy, and he would curl up in a ball and sleep on the mat day and night. He would only instinctively open his eyes when darkness, depression, and distortion that could serve as food passed by.
"Hearing you put it that way, maybe that thing really can't be—"
"Wow!"
Flora screamed again, interrupting Xiao Yun's thoughts.
"Here it comes! Here it comes! Something horrible is coming!"
[Come come come come come come——]
The echo from the clouds rolled in again, and Xiao Yun could clearly feel the subjective will contained in it.
"Well, whatever it is, let's stop the team and ride out the Wraith Storm."
Xiao Yun spoke seriously. After taking Yaris off the carriage, he immediately asked Kelly and others who were traveling with him to untie the two horses, and then used both hands to push the carriage to the ground.
"There will be danger when the storm passes, so hold on to me."
After saying that, Xiao Yun spread out his cloak and wrapped Yaris in his arms.
"Master! What about me! I——"
Romila cried out.
"Figure it out yourself!"
Xiao Yun replied coldly.
At this time, Kelly and others also found a big tree to tie the horses, returned to the carriage, and protected Xiao Yun and Yaris in the middle.
…
Snore!
Gurgle gurgle!
Da da da!
Hiss, hiss, hiss—whoosh!
The dark clouds finally arrived, and the sharp wind tore at everything it touched, causing screams to pierce the air. In the chaos, the whole world seemed to be turned upside down.
Xiao Yun gradually lost consciousness, but his hands always followed his instinct and held Yaris tightly.
…
…
"ah……"
Xiao Yun slowly woke up and found that the world had become pitch black and the surroundings were extremely quiet - except for Yaris in his arms, everyone else had disappeared. The carriage was still there, and the horse pulling the carriage was still tied to the tree, but except for the tree where the horse was tied, all other trees in the field had disappeared.
"What's going on?"
"I don't know, but—"
Yaris opened his eyes, his beautiful face unusually pale.
He grabbed Xiao Yun's arm and sat up with difficulty, looking around in the dim light: "We seem to have fallen into someone's independent dimension."
"Um?"
boom!
Suddenly, there was a loud thunder in the sky.
Immediately afterwards, a pale flash of lightning passed through the clouds, bringing with it rolling thunder.
The two horses tied to the tree suddenly stood up and neighed sharply.
Rumble——
“It’s going to rain!”
Xiao Yun was shocked.
He was not afraid of the rain, but Yaris's body—
"I have no idea……"
Yaris said weakly, hugging Xiao Yun painfully: "This heavy rain is probably a unique welcome ceremony for the owner of this space -"
"All right."
Xiao Yun carefully helped Yaris up and decided to straighten the carriage first so that Yaris could get in to shelter from the rain.
As for what happened next—
…
Crash! Crash!
The torrential rain beat mercilessly against the carriage, and fierce thunder roared all around, as well as the neighing of horses and the stampeding of horses' hooves.
Snap!
Lightning struck the big tree, and the frightened horse took the opportunity to break free from the reins and rushed into the storm.
As if abandoned by the whole world, the two people clung to each other in the carriage, using their body temperature to drive away the cold and using touch to offset loneliness.
"Don't worry, the rainstorm will end soon. When the sun rises, we'll know where this place is... and how to get out..."
"Fortunately, we unloaded the horses before the Wrathful Storm arrived..."
Yaris leaned against Xiao Yun and murmured, "In such a terrible rainstorm, the horses will surely go crazy due to the lightning and thunder, and run wild with the carriage in the rain."
"No matter what, the goddess of luck still favors us and does not separate us—"
Xiao Yun, who had gradually gotten used to the lightning and thunder outside, began to think: "I suspect that our arrival in this dimension is not accidental."
"Not only that, I always feel that this place... well, I'm very worried about Kelly and the others now. Although they have followed me for many years and have learned to be strong and brave, and should be able to protect themselves, if they encounter a supernatural threat-"
"You're worried—"
"In fact, after entering the Twilight Kingdom, I could vaguely sense the aura of the Dark Mage... but it wasn't strong, and with you by my side... I didn't take it seriously. Now it seems..."
“It’s not your fault.”
Xiao Yun hugged Yaris's cold body tightly.
At this moment, bright lightning flashed across the sky outside again.
"ah--"
Yaris shrank into Xiao Yun's arms, trembling, showing unusual fear.
"Yaris, you seem to be allergic to lightning..."
“No, no…”
Yaris raised his head with forced composure, panting.
…
The thunder and lightning gradually stopped, but the storm continued. Bean-sized raindrops repeatedly hit the axles, and some rain even leaked into the car through the gaps in the door.
"It looks like this rain will last a long time."
Yaris said worriedly.
Xiao Yun noticed that the blanket in the carriage was damp, so he quickly wrapped Yaris completely in his arms and covered him with a leather cloak to prevent him from catching a cold.
"Don't worry, we won't stay here long. When the rain stops, I'll go get the horse. If the horse I find is a wild one that has nothing to do with us, I'll tame it and let it lead us to find a way to leave this world."
"Actually, as long as I'm with you, I won't be afraid no matter where I am."
Yaris spoke softly, his cold fingers gripping Xiao Yun's shoulders. "It's so strange. The carriage is so small and narrow, and there's a heavy rain outside that won't stop for who knows when, yet I feel like I own the whole world."
"Me too."
Xiao Yun said gently, looking out the window.
The dark night was rapidly fading, and the east was gradually becoming brighter.
"It's almost dawn, and the rain should stop soon."
"Will this rain really stop soon?"
Yaris bit his lips tightly, his body growing colder and colder.
"If you feel cold, just hold me tight and I will—"
Xiao Yun's voice suddenly stopped.
He saw a group of dark knights appear below the light in the sky.
“——Someone is coming.”
Xiao Yun said in a low voice.
"Anyone?"
Yaris raised his head alertly, trying to see the dim light ahead through the rain that was pouring down the roof of the car like a waterfall.
"Those people... probably aren't human... Although we're far away and the lighting isn't good, I can sense a strong inhuman aura emanating from their bodies..."
"Inhuman?"
Xiao Yun subconsciously lowered his voice.
At this time, the suspicious black knights had broken through the rain and arrived in front of the carriage.
Lightning suddenly flashed across the sky, illuminating their faces as pale as death.
"We are Earl Kang's retainers. We are here on the orders of our master to welcome the first emperor of the Holy Sun Empire, Aura I, and His Highness Yaris, the last high priest of the Holy Family!"
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