Voyage With The Pirate King

But unfortunately for her, the Qilin Hao who would have done anything for her approval died the moment she crossed over into this world.

Meanwhile, Ji Yao had gotten up to his feet and he was looking around seeking out the brightest keystones. There were only three of them remaining as the rest of them had faded.

Ji Yao walked in the direction of the three keystones in slow steady steps. He had made up his mind to find this keystone and then decide at that time whether to continue to look for the rest or not. As he walked over in that direction his sheathed sword in his hand suddenly lit up for a split second before the light vanished.

Ji Yao paused in his tracks as he raised the sword and took a closer look. He had some suspicion that the old lady from before and this sword were linked but this wasn't the time for further scrutiny.

He lowered his arms and walked to the brightest keystone. From where he stood he could already feel the unsettling amount of dark energy coming out of that keystone. For a while, he stood there staring at the place he was meant to go.

His body was suddenly overwhelmed by an inexplicable sense of fear. Beads of sweat laced his entire forehead his expression like that of a person who had seen a ghost. His blood ran cold but he still took a step forward not out of his own will.

Something inexplicable was drawing him towards the keystone like someone had taken over his body. He found his hand stretching out on its own to reach for the keystone. He didn't want to do it but he found he couldn't resist.

His hand slowly entered the keystone in front of his very eyes. His heart was beating in his ears his chest tightening making it very difficult to breathe. He only managed to regain some sense of clarity when his hand was halfway in.

Looking down at his arm that had been partially consumed by the light he saw vines of black matter crawling up the rest of his arm outside the light. An icy chill spread with the vines attacking his aetherial veins.

It felt like his veins were being severed from the rest of his body. The pain was so excruciating that he almost cried out. He tried to pull his arm out but the more he tugged the more his arm was swallowed into the keystone. After a round of tugging and pulling he lost the rest of his arm to the keystone before the rest of his body was pulled in.

When he opened his eyes he was in a thick dense forest covered in inky darkness. Though it was a forest there was no life in it like everything was dead. There were no sounds of birds chirping or small animals scurrying in the dry grass. The stench of death all around him was so overwhelming.

The trees were tannin-brown and aged like they had seen better days. When a breeze blew by their branches creaked loudly like their trunks were going to snap in half at any moment. The moss on the ground wasn't as green as it should be. It was dark brown and made crunching sounds when he stepped on it.

If this was any other place outside a keystone he wouldn't be terrified at all. He would have taken a look around with no issues. Now, his nerves were stretched taut and the hairs at the back of his neck were standing on end.

This fear was almost the same as the one he felt when he first met Rui Fei only that Rui Fei was much more terrifying than this forest. Thinking about Rui Fei and how they get along now he felt a bit better. Sometimes scary things are only terrifying in the beginning but once you are exposed to them you will see how less terrifying they are. Well, at least that's what he thought.

To gather his courage he exhaled deeply and took a step forward but the once still forest suddenly became active. Loud bellows echoed in the forest causing slight tremors on the old trees uprooting some of them. Ji Yao paused in his tracks as he unsheathed his sword ready for anything.

The loud bellows paused for a moment with the forest falling into eerie silence. The silence was even more unsettling than the loud cries. It was just like the calm before the storm, a massive world breaking storm.

A blazing red flame spread down to the tip of the blade before he brought the blade in front of his face. The bright flame was reflecting in his dark pupils like a fiery storm.

The loud bellowing continued after that only that this time the pitch had changed. It was deep and came down in intervals as though it was communicating with someone or something. As expected soon after that several animal calls followed each different from the next.

The cries flooded the forest for a while before it came to an abrupt end. Rustling sounds of leaves and the creaking sounds of snapped branches filled the air. It seemed Ji Yao could already guess what was going to happen next.

He took one step back with the flame growing bigger and bigger. Soon a horde of creatures that closely resembled that of insects but their bodies were nothing like normal vermin exited the thick bushes.

They had multiple insect-like legs and a hard shell of armour with multiple grey eyes embedded in their heads. They emerged from the thick bushes and began to surround him. Ji Yao was about to strike but he soon discovered these creatures seemed not to see him. They could sense him but they couldn't accurately place him.

Ji Yao stared down at those sharp legs with sharp pointed tips that could stab someone to death. He had never heard of this place that had such weird creatures but maybe there was a reason for that. This place was the epitome of death.

The high pitched sounds they made was irritating to the ears. Ji Yao could only take a step back at a time as he tried to focus and get himself out of this place. He had already found what he was looking for and didn't want to be here any longer than he had to.

The creatures kept sniffing around walking in circles looking for him and the longer they searched the more agitated they became. Sooner or later they would eventually find his conscience and who knows how much of his power could he use here?

Lucky for him getting out this time was as easy as getting in. He managed to gather his seraphic energy and pull himself out...... or so he thought.