Myriad Rivers to the Sea

The serene courtyard was perfectly still once again. The horrific purple aura of the parasite was completely gone and the ambient energy of the pocket dimension returned to a peaceful calm.

Khaos stood over the old gardener. The dark and terrifying presence of the ancient warrior retracted entirely. He knelt beside his old friend and carefully placed a hand on the center of the old man's back.

He closed his eyes and channeled a surge of foundational Qi. The energy flowed directly into the old man, bypassing his physical meridians and targeting the very core of his mind. Without the malicious interference of Xyphyra, the memory restoration technique worked flawlessly. The trauma forged seal that Xyphyra implanted dissolved like morning mist under a blazing sun.

The old man gasped and his eyes snapped open.

He did not look like a peaceful gardener anymore. The clear bright eyes were instantly flooded with the heavy burden of thousands of years of warfare. The memories rushed back in an overwhelming torrent. He remembered the apocalyptic skies, the seas of blood and the desperate final stand that had shattered his foundation.

He remembered his name. He was General Zarek.

Zarek looked up and saw the face of his leader. The white haired general immediately tried to push himself up off the jade stones to offer a proper bow. But his physical body was completely unresponsive. The massive spiritual upheaval combined with the sudden eviction of the ancient parasite left his muscles paralyzed.

"My Lord," Zarek whispered. His voice was incredibly weak but it carried an undeniable fierce loyalty. "I apologize. I cannot stand to greet you properly."

"That is entirely unneeded Zarek." Khaos said softly while placing a gentle hand on his general's shoulder to keep him resting. "You do not need to bow to me ever again. You have suffered unimaginable horrors and you did your duty amazingly."

Hearing those words from VoidClaw broke the final emotional barrier within the old general. Tears streamed down Zarek's weathered face. He wept freely on the jade stones and was moved by the validation of his endless sacrifices.

"Your family is safe." Khaos continued while his voice remained incredibly gentle. "They are waiting for you. I will take you back to them right now so you can enjoy the rest of your days in absolute peace."

Zarek wiped his eyes with a trembling hand. He looked at the ancient warrior and his jaw set with that familiar stubborn resolve.

"I still want to serve you." Zarek stated firmly. "Once I see them and know they are safe I will return to the vanguard. I will make more time for them this time as well. Point me toward the enemy, my Lord."

Khaos smiled a warm and sad smile. He shook his head slowly.

"Your oath is more than fulfilled," Khaos replied. "You gave me everything you had, Zarek. You are officially free. You can leave the battlefield behind and do whatever you want with your life now."

"Serving under you has been the greatest honor of my entire existence." Zarek insisted while his eyes burned with absolute conviction. "I want to continue that honor. I will spend time with my wife and my son but my blade still belongs to you."

Khaos looked at the stubborn general and felt a profound sense of humility. VoidClaw stood up, took a step back and did something he had not done in a long while.

He bowed. Khaos offered a deep bow to his subordinate.

"I am so incredibly sorry that it took me this long to find you." Khaos apologized with sincerity. "Xyphyra was too powerful and far too careful. She masked your spiritual signature perfectly. I searched the cosmos but I could not find you after that war."

"It is nothing, my Lord." Zarek dismissed the apology instantly. He was deeply shocked to see Khaos bow to him. "You are here now. That is all that matters to me."

Khaos straightened up and reached into his dark robes. He produced a small jade vial and uncorked it. He poured three golden pills into his palm. They radiated a terrifying amount of life essence. He gently fed the pills to Zarek.

The effects were instantaneous. The golden energy rushed through the general's paralyzed meridians. The coarse grey robes fluttered as his physical foundation rapidly repaired itself. The deep exhaustion in his bones melted away.

Zarek sat up properly and crossed his legs to digest the legendary medicine. As he circulated his Qi, he finally noticed the other figure in the courtyard. He looked over at the young man sleeping face down on the jade stones a few yards away.

Zarek studied the dense physical foundation and the incredibly unique spiritual aura radiating from the boy. Zarek turned his head and looked at Khaos with wide eyes.

"Is that..." Zarek started his voice dropping to a reverent whisper. "Is that who I think it is?"

Khaos looked at Li Yu and nodded his head slowly. A bright smile touched the corners of his mouth.

Zarek was completely taken aback. He immediately shifted his position on the jade stones. He turned fully toward the unconscious Li Yu and lowered his head until his forehead touched the ground. He offered a bow of supreme respect, showing the exact same level of reverence he had just shown to Khaos.

The courtyard fell into a comfortable silence. Several hours passed smoothly while the warm light of the glowing pearl washed over them. Zarek fully absorbed the golden pills and stabilized his internal foundation. He stood up and rolled his shoulders. He was feeling the ancient strength returning to his limbs. He was finally in good enough shape to travel across the cosmos.

"Are you ready?" Khaos asked while stepping forward.

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"I am," Zarek nodded. He looked around the pristine courtyard one last time.

"Do you want to take the clam with you?" Khaos asked curiously. He gestured toward the massive glowing pearl and the surrounding boundaries of the pocket dimension. "It provided you with a safe haven for a very long time."

Zarek looked at the quiet garden and let out a long heavy sigh.

"This beast was a chance meeting after the war." Zarek explained softly. "I was broken and dying. I used every single ounce of my willpower and my remaining energy to keep Xyphyra in check. I had to completely seal away my own body and my own soul just so she could not take control. We were both broken and battered. I was trapped in a prison of my own making."

He reached out and gently touched the leaves of a nearby willow tree.

"The clam found me drifting in the void and swallowed me," Zarek continued. "It kept my physical body safe while my mind went dark. Even now I do not quite fully understand this creature. It is a true anomaly. I was able to enjoy the peace during this time and I am grateful for it. But it also represents the time I lost with my family and my time as a prisoner here. I do not wish to carry it with me."

"Then we shall leave it to him." Khaos said while pointing a thumb at the sleeping Li Yu. "Perhaps encountering this impenetrable beast is simply part of his own chaotic fate."

Khaos walked over to the center of the courtyard. He raised his hands and began weaving complex golden seals in the air. He intended to forcibly bind the foundational core of the Samsara Dream Clam directly to Li Yu's soul.

It was a highly aggressive maneuver. The clam possessed an absolute defense and Khaos fully expected the ancient beast to resist the binding with incredible force. He prepared to use his Void Qi to crush the beast's will and force compliance.

He pushed the glowing golden seals down through the jade stones and into the living mantle of the creature. Khaos braced himself for the spiritual backlash.

Nothing happened.

There was absolutely no resistance. The ancient beast did not fight the binding at all. In fact the spiritual energy of the clam seemed to eagerly reach up and wrap around the seals, pulling the binding contract into its own core. It was almost as if the giant mollusk actually wanted to be with Li Yu.

Khaos blinked in mild surprise. He dropped his hands and shook his head.

"This boy truly collects the strangest things," Khaos muttered with a dry chuckle.

With the binding complete Khaos turned his attention to their exit. He did not wait for the clam to slowly open its shell at an agonizingly glacial pace. Khaos simply waved his hand and exerted his will.

The sky above the glowing pearl violently tore open. The two massive halves of the pearlescent shell were forced apart in a fraction of a second exposing the bright coastal sky of the Violet Deep.

Khaos walked over to Li Yu. He did not gently wake the young wanderer. He reached down and grabbed Li Yu by the back of his dark robes. With a casual flick of his wrist Khaos threw the unconscious human straight up through the massive opening like a sack of potatoes.

Li Yu flew through the air and cleared the edge of the shell completely.

Khaos turned to Zarek and placed a hand on his general's shoulder. The space around them folded perfectly and the two ancient beings completely disappeared from the pocket dimension.

Outside the giant floating clam, Li Yu was currently soaring through the salty coastal air completely asleep.

The moment his body cleared the shell, the newly established binding contract activated. The Samsara Dream Clam which was roughly the size of a royal palace suddenly began to glow with a blinding white light. The massive physical form of the beast rapidly shrank and condensed into a stream of pure dense Qi.

The stream of light shot directly toward the falling Li Yu and struck him in the chest. The clam was instantly sucked inside Li Yu's Koi Sanctuary.

The massive clam materialized perfectly at the bottom of one of the ocean trenches within the sanctuary. It was settling comfortably into the sand directly beneath the roots of the giant lotus flower. The pocket dimension inside the clam remained perfectly intact, creating a sanctuary within a sanctuary.

Back in the physical world, Malos and the three Violet Deep generals were sitting around the stone table on their portable courtyard. Nearly a full day had passed since Li Yu had been abducted. They had been passing the time by playing countless rounds of cards, eating good food and drinking wine.

"I raise you fifty spirit stones." One of the generals grunted while tossing a handful of glowing gems onto the center of the table.

Malos picked up his cards and studied his hand. He was just about to declare his victory when the massive shell beneath them violently shuddered. The four cultivators instantly dropped their cards and scrambled to their feet.

The top of the shell split open with incredible explosive speed. The sudden movement completely destabilized the portable courtyard the four were using. The stone table flipped over and the tea cups went flying into the ocean below.

Before Malos could even draw his sword a dark shape shot out of the opening. It was Li Yu. He flew through the air like a discarded ragdoll and began plummeting toward the water.

"I have him!" Malos shouted. He immediately activated his spatial manipulation and warped directly next to him, catching the sleeping Li Yu by the arm before he could crash into the waves.

The three generals panicked as the massive shell beneath their boots suddenly turned into pure light. They lost their footing entirely as the giant clam vanished from existence. The three elite warriors plummeted out of the sky and crashed headfirst into the salty coastal water with ungraceful splashes.

They most likely could have reacted but they were just too surprised by the events. These were hardened warriors in battle, not dealing with disappearing clams. Most likely though, they were too tipsy from the constant wine.

Malos hovered in the air and was holding the unconscious Li Yu. The Demon Lord looked around in absolute bewilderment. The giant indestructible anomaly that had terrorized the borders of the empire for years was completely gone. There was no trace of its Qi and no sign of its massive shell. It had simply vanished into thin air the moment Li Yu was ejected.

But the most ridiculous thing of all was the location they were at. Malos looked over his shoulder. The port town that they had originally arrived at a full day ago was literally still right there. It was perfectly visible down the coastline.

They had spent nearly twenty four hours waiting on top of the escaping kidnapper. They had played cards, they had drank wine and they had watched the sun set and rise again. And in all that time the Samsara Dream Clam had managed to travel a grand total of maybe two miles.

It was without a doubt the most pathetic escape attempt in the history of the realm.

“You truly do bring about a ton of surprises Li Yu. I knew sticking with you was the right choice.” Malos said to the unconscious Li Yu.

The three generals broke the surface of the water. They floated in the waves looking up at Malos and the sleeping Li Yu with expressions of confusion.

"Where did the giant clam go?!" One of the generals yelled while wiping wet hair out of his eyes.

"I have absolutely no idea," Malos yelled back while securing his grip on Li Yu. He looked down at the young human wanderer who was currently snoring softly in his grip.

Malos let out a loud booming laugh that carried over the crashing waves. The entire situation was completely absurd. A Sovereign tier threat had abducted a man and crawled away at a snail's pace. It held him for a day, launched him into the sky and then magically evaporated.

"Well my friends." Malos called down to the soaking wet generals. "It seems the crisis has been averted. Let us get this young man a proper bed."