Chapter 618 - Undying Ones
As intrusive and overwhelming as Chaos Qi was having taken over each and every meridian inside Hao Xuan's body, no traces of it could be found within the first meridian where Nidhora had taken up residence.
Every time Hao Xuan entered, he would always see the exact same scene as he was seeing now. There were three eclipsed suns in the sky that seemed to be bigger than anything he had ever seen before.
It was eternally eclipsed and no matter how much time Hao Xuan spent in there, it would still look the same. Under his feet was a perpetual inky ocean that went on without end and from he was standing, it looked like the sky and the ocean would never ever meet but that was more of a feeling than anything real.
Hao Xuan was standing on the water but it felt like any regular solid surface. He moved a few steps forward before looking left and right.
"NIDHORA! SHOW YOURSELF!" he shouted again and again but there was no response whatsoever.
It felt like a dead world in there.
Hao Xuan could still clearly recall the events of the fight when he tried to use her power and it was intentionally and forcefully taken back. He could not help but get angrier by the second.
"NIDHORA!" he called out her name for the third time and after waiting an entire minute, received no answer.
Hao Xuan bit down on his lips and then in as low a voice as he could muster, spoke using the constitution's power, [Show yourself!]
*Ruuuuumble*
The entire world shook. Hao Xuan almost fell down on his back, barely managing to keep standing by a thread.
He looked left and right, there was nothing. He looked back and forth, nothing. He looked up to see the same old thing but as soon as he looked down, his heart almost jumped out of his chest.
Right under him where the previously dark ocean was, Nidhora's image reflected with stark clarity in the water. Her beastly vision of five horns and three eyes, the same as what Hao Xuan remembered from before was staring up at him in silence.
Every interaction with Nidhora made Hao Xuan extremely uncomfortable which was one of the reasons he put this off for so long.
Hao Xuan straightened his trembling legs, trying to calm both the thumping heartbeats. He cleared his drying throat that felt more painful than it should.
"Wh...y didn't you answer?"
He stared at the once almighty dragon as she gazed back at her, making him feel more and more nervous.
"Don't make me do it again, please," he said pleadingly referring to the power of the constitution.
Every time he used it, it gave him the feeling of absolute control and irrefutable obedience from whoever it was aimed at but...after the fact, it made him feel unclean...as if he had done something wrong.
They both stared into each other's eyes for what seemed like an eternity when Hao Xuan suddenly sighed.
"Fine the-" he was about to use it again when Nidhora's voice came into his ears cutting him off.
"You smell different," she said calmly. The image in the water did not change whatsoever but her voice was clear as day, although a tad bit weaker.
Hao Xuan blinked several times, not expecting such a comment from her.
"What...do you mean?"
"Something has changed about you, something minor yet significant enough to alter your fate. Something you did recently has put you on a different path."
"I don't know what you mea- Wait!" Hao Xuan suddenly paused, "Don't tell me I smell like death or something?!" he asked with a deep frown, making the connection.
"All mortals smell of death, but there is something different about you from before...something ancient."
"Ancient?" his brow creased more and more by the second, recalling the recent events. A lot had happened.
He met a Demon God King, or some form of it. He met Xue Meng, came into contact with the Mount Cae disciples, all those were things that could affect him in a big way, one way or another.
"I don't understand. Explain yourself," he asked authoritatively, trying to sound brave but Nidhora straight up refused.
"You will see in due time. Why have you called me out, human?"
It was only when she mentioned that did Hao Xuan remember.
"Oh yeah! Why did you take back your power?"
"It had to be done, to protect your mortal self."
"Protect? Me? From what?"
"Not what, whom. An undying one is near."
"Who the fuck is the 'Undying one'?!" Hao Xuan was getting angrier by the second listening to her cryptic bullshit. The more they talked, the less he understood.
A short bout of silence followed after that was broken by Hao Xuan.
"Well?" he asked impatiently, getting a vaguely reluctant response.
"Words hold power, human. More so than you will ever realize. The Undying Ones are immortal puppets of the Gods and one of them is here, the one that earned the title of the "Abyss Walker". I must hide, bury myself deep within your psyche, lest you desire a fate worse than even death itself."
"Do not call for me again until you return to the Origin Worlds. Only that place is out of his reach!"
The hard surface Hao Xuan was standing on suddenly gave way, swallowing him whole. When Hao Xuan opened his eyes again he found himself back in the outer world.
***
In the Walking City of the Academy, two men were sitting in the tallest building's highest room next to a window.
One of them was the Blood Prince Dai Zhi. He was sitting in front of another man whose facial features were concealed under a long black robe.
They were in the middle of talking when the man suddenly froze. He stood up and walked to the window, peering towards the pit and where Hao Xuan was.
"Is something the matter, Lord Yosef?" Dai Zhi walked up behind him reservedly. From his current demeanor, no one would have ever believed this was the same proud son of heaven as before.
The man named Yosef kept silent for a few seconds before shaking his head, "Nothing for you to worry about. Just an old acquaintance."
Dai Zhi smiled, "Should I prepare a room for them?"
"No need," he shook his head, "I don't think she wants to be found right now, hahaha," and started laughing like a madman.
"Haha, yes indeed," Dai Zhi awkwardly joined in before backing off a few steps and whipping the cold sweat off his forehead.