To Walk The Mist

Space warped and Ed found himself in a large hall. Inside, he could see all the cultivators from all other great spills. Looking closer, he noticed that they were much less than when they had entered the astral roots. Most looked at those around them with caution. It was clear, a fight was going to break out. But just then, space warped again and they were standing in their respective great spills. Those from the south side city's great spill returned to where they had stood before entering the astral roots; around the underground pond. They looked at the elders before them in confusion.

"What's going on?" someone asked.

"I didn't even get the chance to find a treasure." another said.

"Not just you, me too."

"The experience in the astral roots was shorter than I expected."

"My master once said that it would sometimes take up to a month out here before people start coming out. What is going on?"

"What day is it, now?"

"Elders, why are you saying nothing?" many were worried that as they have been removed from the spill ahead of time, they will not have the opportunity to enter again.

"The pond is dry!" someone had finally noticed the empty pond and exclaimed.

"What does this mean?"

"Elders!!" someone called them in anger. The first elder cleared her throat and looked at the crowd.

"The astral roots have dried." she said. Silence hunted the grounds at that moment, before someone in the crowd sneered.

"That means my deal with you is off" he said and she sighed in response. They all somewhat understood what he meant. A lot of them had made deals with the elders so that they could keep their treasures.

"The great spill is no more. Then, you have no use." another said and her eyes narrowed.

"You would not even try to offer me what you have found?" she sneered, "No matter what, I am still a cultivator of the...."

"No matter what realm you are on, you don't compare to the host of powers waiting outside." another cut her off.

"Would you even dare collect anything I offer? With your little power, will you be able to escape the powers outside?" someone said.

"Even though we stayed there for a short time, I don't believe there are not some who have benefited. This great spill will soon disappear. How do you intend to protect yourself?" the first elder clenched her fists in anger. She could not retort to their words. They were right. Even if someone offered her a treasure, she would not dare collect it.

"Hurry up and open the gates! Send us outside!" many started to order. Ed watched the helpless faces of the elders and turned away. He had lost all interest now, he could not fight with others to horn his skills. He made his way back to his cave. Though he had nothing in cave, he wanted to sit down and analyse all that he had gotten from the astral roots.

He sat on the floor of his room and took out the Yhenxia sword. This sword was made of some special material that looked like liquid silver. It was engraved words with a foreign language on it's hilt. For some reason, this sword could handle a good percentage of his energy. He had always ignored the sword when given. When it came to this world with him, he had wondered about it. This was the first time he had gotten close to an information about it.

Like before, he could feel a lot of treasures inside the sword. Was it possible this sword had a storage space of it's own? If it did, then it probably stored weapons alone. But it had not responded even once since he had entered this world. He was sure that the weapons and treasures in the astral roots were of the highest grade. Was the sword picky? He tried reaching for an axe inside the sword and the next moment it was in his hand. The axe felt right in his hands; it had the right weight and proportion. He tried putting his energy through it. It started to tremble when it reached a certain....

Wait.. energy?

He had used his energy in the astral roots. Wasn't it said that there was a restriction on energy there? One could use their inner energy in the great spill, but could not in the monthly battleground. Could not outside in the demon lands, but could use in the salt bed. It was obvious that this restriction on energy was not for every place.

He was sure that it was not the spirit of the astral roots that lifted this restriction for him. How is he able to use his energy? How could he be so distracted that he did not notice? He knew he had felt completely normal, regardless of the restrictions after a little while in the south side city, but he did not think it anything. That means it had nothing to do with entering the astral roots. He was always able to use his energy in the demon lands. Maybe because one could use their energy in the great spill, he completely forgot this detail. How could he not tell at all? Was there even a restriction on his energy at all? He tried to think back to when he stepped out of the salt bed. He remembered that he had felt the restriction and removed his attention from it later on. How long did the restriction on his energy hold? It is said that only when one reached the soul realisation stage can one use their internal energy regardless of the restrictions.

He immediately got up. He needed to know. He stepped out of his cave and saw no one. The great spill looked much smaller than he remembered. He could see the entrance to the battleground from where he stood. The town was even nearer. This was not always so. Could it be as they had predicted? The great spill was collapsing into nothing? He decided he will not be waiting to find out. He had to leave the great spill. By now, everyone should have made their way to the gates. He wasted no time and did so too.

When he arrived the gates, he saw cultivators walking through one by one.

"We are leaving soon after we get out. Would you like to come with us?" Ed suddenly heard Ku Nam say beside him.

"No. I have somewhere to be." Ed answered. He had not forgotten that he was supposed to find the Hell tree. He wanted to ask Ku Nam, but something told him he did not want this boy knowing where he was going.

"Okay then. If you one day need to come to the Ku Clan, make sure to ask for me." he said and entered the gateway. Only after he had arrived at the other side, did he realized he had not asked for Ed's name.

Ed just looked at his leaving back and waited his turn. Soon, he stepped through the gate and left the great spill.