Cultivation Through Artifacts

The instant as the space split into two before Khal, a completely new scenery got revealed.

Right at the other side of the 'door', what Khal was able to see was a whole, real-life island that looked like it just came out of a dream.

Beautiful clear blue sky with fluffy white clouds, emerald green grass field with small hills and trees all around the place on the sides.

Yet the most shocking sight wasn't this, but the sight at the opposite side of the small island. There, a large mountain was going up right above the skies, from where a glamorous river fall descended right into the small lake below.

The whole scenery before him was just simply so stunning that Khal was unable to say a single word.

While he was mesmerized by the sight, suddenly got a glimpse of a small, luxurious-looking house on the side, making his eyes to widen even more.

"Just what is this place? It's so beautiful! It looks like a resort!", said Liza from the side and tried to step through the split space, but found out strangely that she was unable.

It was like the moment she tried to step foot into the paradise-looking island, her body suddenly got hit by an invisible barrier, making her unable to pass through the space.

"Huh? Why... Why can't I go inside? I want to see it from closer!", said Liza as she struggled to go through.

Khal on the side seeing Liza's funny look as she tried to push herself through the invisible barrier chuckled slightly and said, "Stop it. It seems only those can enter who have the key. You can't force yourself through it."

Liza hearing this stepped back and looked at the key in her hand and without hesitation, she put it before her just like Khal did and turned it to the right.

*Click!*

Just like what happened with Khal, space before her split into two and revealed another spectacular sight instantly.

However, instead of Khal's stunning island, what appeared before Liza was a massive mountainside with only a single cave opening on its bottom.

The sight was quite... miserable if one could say that.

"..."

Seeing Liza's frozen expression, Khal stepped closer to her to see what happened, but when he saw the scenery, he froze up too.

"Oh...", was the only thing Khal was able to say after a small while.

Hearing Khal only say an 'Oh...', Liza raised her head slowly and looked at him with a darkened expression, without saying a single word.

Seeing the eyes that were almost able to pierce holes right into his soul, Khal started to sweat profusely.

Feeling the awkward atmosphere in the air, he decided not to hesitate any further and instantly after turning around, he started to walk toward his space.

"Then let's meet tom-, argh?"

However, just before he could have done anything, Liza suddenly grabbed him by his collar and stopped him from moving.

"!"

Feeling the ice cold touch of hers, Khal glanced back at Liza slowly with a wry smile and didn't know what to say.

"Give me your key."

"..."

***

"How the hell did I end up here?", asked Khal quietly as he looked at the massive mountain with the cave before him.

A moment ago he was standing right before paradise itself, but now, he was looking at a mountain that had nothing else but a single opening on its bottom.

Exactly from heaven, he fell right into hell, making him wonder if whether he should cry or laugh at his luck.

"Well... I can't do anything about it. It's hard to admit it, but she is stronger than me currently. She has two Cultivation Talent, so I would not stand a chance against her... Yet."

As he said that he looked at the cave before him and after thinking for a small while he sighed and shrugged.

"Well, not like I can change back the keys now, so let's head in and check what is inside. It's a V.I.P key, so this can't be as bad as it looks from outside... right?"

With that optimistic attitude, he put the key away and started to walk forward.

But the moment he entered the cave, Khal strangely found himself in complete darkness. Not even a slight light source could be found, making Khal believe that maybe this cave was truly as it looked from the outside.

"I don't believe that there is nothing here!", said Khal kinda angrily and instantly activated his Heaven's Eyes.

As his eyes turned sky blue with a crimson slit in their middle, Khal looked around, but strangely, except for a huge empty space, he didn't see anything.

Not even a small stone or gap that could lead him into a secret passage.

"Is this some kind of joke right now?", asked Khal quietly as he looked around with a deep frown.

Compared to the one he got originally, this place was definitely not V.I.P. It couldn't even be called as a room!

Or at least that was what he thought when suddenly the familiar voice sounded in his head.

[Notify! A dense amount of Essence Particles has been detected in the environment!]

"Essence Particles? What should that even mean?", thought Khal with confusion, but obviously no answer arrived.

Even after asking the voice in his head about it from time to time, he didn't get an answer, so as a result he just sighed and gave up.

"Let's just put this matter to the side for the time being. First, I need to rest. I didn't have a proper sleep for days!"

As he said that, he lied down comfortably onto the cold ground and put his arms below his head.

Looking at the darkness around him, Khal strangely felt calm than ever.

He could clearly remember the time when he cried in his darkroom once just because he feared he would die.

Naturally, he was beaten up by his parents because being too noisy, but that is another matter.

However, this time, strangely he didn't feel anything at all. Not even the slightest fear or anxiety. He instead felt calmer than ever which was a bit strange for him.

"Should it be because I have already died once?", asked Khal in the dark, waiting for an answer to come, but naturally no reply came.

Instead, what he heard was only sheer silence and nothing more.

Closing his eyes with a slight smile, Khal turned to his side, and just like that, he went into a deep slumber.

***

Time ticked by slowly, and after unknown of how much time has passed, Khal slowly opened his eyes.

"What time is i-, eh?" asked Khal slowly, but the instant he noticed where he was, stopped in mid-sentence.

The moment he sat up and looked around, what he was able to see around his proximity was nothing else but complete greyness.

"Where... Am I?", asked Khal with shock, as he stood up, but suddenly a scarily familiar voice sounded from his side.

"It seems I can finally see the one who trapped me here."

"?!"

The moment Khal turned his head to the side to see just who talked to him, his eyes widened with both shock and alarm.

"You... It's you! But how?"

The one standing calmly before Khal was a boy who looked extremely like him, with the only difference that the boy looked extremely upset.

Hearing this, the boy who looked exactly like Khal crossed his arms before his chest, and with a mocking grin, he nodded.

"That's right. I am the real Khal and you have just stolen what has been rightfully mine! So stop f*cking around and give back my body right now!"