Myriad Rivers to the Sea

A full month had passed since the apocalyptic war came to a sudden and unceremonious end. The Demonic armies had returned to their respective territories to rebuild and recover from the devastating losses.

An additional piece of bad news arrived after things had settled down. The Night Queen was missing, leaving her children in charge to rule. She disappeared a few weeks before Lucien performed his ritual. Normally this would have created devastation towards her lands but the rumors and pacts from before held. No one bothered her lands.

Li Yu went to investigate but found no clues as to her disappearance. He still felt the soul connection towards her so he knew she wasn’t dead. That bit of news brought a lot of relief to Vespera and her other children but their burden remained the same. Li Yu chose not to stay in their lands or at the Eternal Crucible. He had a different path to walk and a journey to continue.

He was currently traveling along a wide peaceful trade route near the borders of Sovereign Morven’s territory. The sun was shining brightly overhead and the gentle coastal breeze carried the faint scent of wild ocean flowers.

Li Yu was not walking alone. He was accompanied by Sovereign Malos and his daughter. Malos was dressed in simple and comfortable robes. He walked next to his daughter and was pointing out interesting animals that they saw. He was also telling her extravagant stories that made her laugh brightly.

Garrick trailed a few paces behind them and was carrying a pack of supplies over his broad metallic shoulder. The Great Sage looked incredibly bored. He kicked a small rock down the dirt path but he kept his complaints to himself.

The peaceful afternoon was suddenly interrupted by a strange sound.

A sharp tearing noise echoed across the quiet dirt road. The space directly to their left distorted violently. A jagged crack appeared in the fabric of the realm, revealing a swirling vortex of deep purple and chaotic black energy. It was one of the random spatial rifts that occasionally appeared across the continents, acting as unpredictable doorways to unknown destinations.

Li Yu stopped walking. He stared at the swirling vortex. He felt a sudden draw pulling at his very soul. It was an instinctual magnetic feeling that told him he needed to step through that exact tear in reality. After a few moments of thinking, Li Yu decided.

"I am going to take it," Li Yu announced and quickly made up his mind. "Perhaps it will lead me back to my original realm."

Malos stopped and looked at the unstable spatial rift. He then looked down at his daughter who was holding his hand tightly.

"I would have followed you before, Li Yu," Malos said with a gentle smile. "In the past I would have jumped right in just to see where the chaos led us. But I think I want to stay right here and spend more time with my family now."

Malos patted his daughter on the head affectionately.

"Being around you blocked my visions for quite some time," Malos began to explain. His dark eyes filled with a strange sense of peace. "It taught me how to actually live in the present, instead of constantly chasing the future. I learned how to fight off the urge to act on every single vision I see. I just want to be a father now. At least for some time."

Li Yu felt a deep warmth in his chest. He was happy for the Lord of Foresight. Malos had spent his entire long life burdened by the chaotic threads of destiny and he had finally found a way to simply exist and enjoy the world around him.

"I wish you, your daughter and your son the absolute best, Malos." Li Yu said sincerely while offering a deep respectful bow. "Please let Ignis, Morven, the Night Queen, when and if she returns, and others know that I am leaving. I truly wish I could go back and say a proper goodbye to everyone but I do not know how long this rift will stay open."

Malos returned the bow with equal respect. "I will deliver your farewells Li Yu. May the Dao guide your steps."

Li Yu turned toward the chaotic vortex. Garrick sighed heavily and adjusted the supply pack on his shoulder. Bound by the strict soul contract, Garrick had absolutely no choice but to follow the young wanderer into the unknown and keep him safe.

With a few more words of farewell, Li Yu and Garrick stepped through the jagged tear in reality.

The transition was instantaneous. The bright, sunny trade route vanished completely. It was replaced by a swirling tunnel of blinding purple light and absolute crushing darkness. They floated rapidly through the chaotic spatial passage surrounded by streaks of strange ambient energy.

Midway through the journey the entire rift began to shake violently.

The walls of the spatial tunnel groaned and warped. Massive cracks spiderwebbed across the purple energy. The sound of grinding glass filled the void as the dimensional pathway began to buckle under some unseen pressure.

"You need to be careful kid!" Garrick yelled over the deafening roar of the spatial storm. He quickly made his way next to Li Yu and was prepared to shield them if needed. "This sometimes happens with random portals! The passage is completely unstable!"

Before Li Yu could summon his Void Qi to try and stabilize his surroundings, the rift shattered completely. The tunnel exploded into millions of jagged spatial fragments. They were suddenly cast into the endless dark void with no direction and no pathway forward. The crushing weight of the deep void immediately threatened to tear their bodies apart.

Just as absolute disaster loomed, another rift violently tore open directly in front of them.

It was not like the rift they had been going through. It looked more dangerous and surrounded by an energy that Li Yu couldn’t identify. Just then, a brilliant and blinding golden light erupted from Li Yu's chest. His Koi Soul emerged on its own. The majestic golden Koi soul swam out into the absolute darkness of the void.

The Koi soul opened its mouth and exhaled a shimmering translucent bubble. The bubble expanded rapidly and completely enveloped Li Yu and Garrick. Inside the bubble the violent destruction of the surrounding void completely stopped. The space around them stabilized perfectly.

The Koi soul guided the shimmering bubble directly into the newly opened rift passage. Garrick stared at the massive creature swimming gracefully through the spatial storm. His jaw dropped open in complete shock.

"You have another Nascent Soul?!" Garrick shouted while staring at the temporal bubble protecting them. "And it is completely unique too! It’s a creature? What kind of absolute freak are you?!"

Li Yu ignored the shouting man and was focusing entirely on the strange and shifting sensation occurring around them. The passage felt fundamentally different from any spatial travel he had ever experienced. It was not just moving them across physical distance but dragging them through a barrier that felt incredibly thick and ancient.

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As they crossed the threshold of the new portal, a massive disruption occurred deep within Li Yu's foundation.

Inside the Koi Sanctuary, the peaceful world suddenly rejected its most ancient resident. A terrifying foundational force pushed Khaos and violently ejected him out.

Khaos materialized in the shattered void space, just outside the fading rift that Li Yu and Garrick had passed through. The ancient warrior looked incredibly surprised. He had been sitting peacefully in the sanctuary meditating and was suddenly thrown out into the cold darkness.

He saw Li Yu and Garrick disappearing into the new rift passage. Khaos immediately stepped forward and tried to enter the rift to follow.

The moment his hand touched the edge of the portal a supreme force slammed into him. It was an irresistible and rejecting force that prevented him from taking a single step further. The portal simply refused to allow him to cross the threshold.

Khaos pulled his hand back and stood in the dark void. His sharp eyes narrowed in deep thought as he analyzed the strange and unique energy radiating from the fading portal.

"Is it time?" Khaos mumbled to himself with his voice echoing softly in the empty space. "Could this be... yes it must be.. But which one? Most likely yes…"

A rare smile touched the corners of his lips as he realized what was happening.

"Guess I have some time off now." Khaos said while he was casually adjusting his dark robes. "I can finally return to my wife for now. Have a good journey, Li Yu. I wonder...."

With a casual wave of his hand the ancient warrior completely disappeared from the void and left Li Yu and Garrick to complete their transition alone. After some time the protective bubble surrounding Li Yu and Garrick burst in a flash of bright light.

Li Yu and Garrick crashed heavily onto a wide dirt road. The spatial rift behind them instantly snapped shut. It left behind no traces of their chaotic arrival. Li Yu pushed himself up from the ground and immediately gasped for air.

The very first thing he noticed was the crushing weight of the world around him. The air felt incredibly thick and heavy. Drawing into his lungs like thick syrup. The dirt beneath his boots felt as dense as forged iron. The entire realm pressed down on his shoulders with a terrifying pressure that made his bones ache.

He stood up and tried to gather his Qi. The energy moved slightly more sluggishly through his meridians and required far more focus and willpower to control.

"This world is incredibly heavy," Li Yu muttered to himself as he wiped a bead of sweat from his forehead.

He decided to test his movement techniques. He locked his eyes on a large tree roughly a hundred yards down the dirt road. He channeled his understanding of the void and attempted to execute a standard void step.

He vanished and reappeared almost instantly. But he had not moved very far.

Li Yu stumbled forward and was completely shocked by the result. The spatial fabric of this realm was unimaginably dense. It felt like trying to punch through a solid wall of diamond instead of parting a curtain of mist. He could only travel a fraction of the distance he could normally cover in the previous realm.

He channeled his Qi and propelled himself into the air. Flight was still entirely possible but it was difficult. It took massive amounts of effort and drained his Qi reserves at a highly accelerated rate. The foundational laws of this realm were simply stronger and far more robust than anything he had ever experienced before. It was a completely different tier of existence.

Garrick was now already standing and rolled his shoulders. The Great Sage cracked his thick neck and looked around the surrounding landscape.

"The laws here are incredibly solid." Garrick noted casually. But then Garrick frowned. His expression darkened as he focused his divine senses.

"Do you feel that kid?" Garrick asked Li Yu with his voice dropping to a serious tone.

Li Yu closed his eyes and then felt it too. It was a subtle but undeniable pressure pressing against their very existence. It was not a physical attack or a hostile intent but a fundamental rejection. It felt like a body trying to fight off a foreign sickness.

"The realm feels like it is trying to push us out." Li Yu observed while rubbing his chest.

"It is a rejection force." Garrick estimated. "I have felt something similar when entering heavily restricted cosmic domains. The realm simply does not want us here. Based on the current pressure, I estimate we will be forcefully ejected from this place in about a month."

They both incorrectly assumed it was a standard realm rejection designed to keep out foreign cultivators. They had absolutely no idea that the rejection force was actually something far more profound.

"Then we only have a month to figure out where we are and find a way to properly travel to the next realm." Li Yu concluded.

“You don't need to worry about that. When we get rejected out, I can safely take us to the next nearest realm. But don’t ask me to find your ‘home’ realm. That would be impossible for me unless you could tell me exactly where it is.” Garrick reassured Li Yu.

After taking some time to get adjusted to this realm, they decided to walk down the dirt road since flying was far too exhausting for Li Yu for long periods. The landscape around them was beautiful but untamed. Towering trees reached high into the sky and strange glowing flora that Li Yu did not recognize lined the path. The ambient spiritual energy in the air was so rich and pure it was almost suffocating.

His body was absorbing it all in greedily but the time it took to process it all increased massively. After walking for a few miles they heard the distinct sound of heavy footsteps and rolling wheels approaching from behind.

Li Yu and Garrick moved to the side of the wide road to let the travelers pass.

A luxurious carriage pulled by two large armored beasts slowly came into view. The beasts resembled giant rhinos with thick crystalline horns and they pulled the carriage with effortless power. The carriage itself was crafted from dark polished wood and adorned with intricate silver carvings that hummed with defensive arrays.

Walking alongside the carriage was a highly disciplined team. There were four heavily armored guards radiating intense killing intent and moving with perfect and synchronized precision. A tall and elegant male butler walked near the front carrying a silver staff. A quiet female maid walked near the rear keeping her eyes respectfully lowered.

Walking at the very head of the group was a young man.

He wore immaculate dark robes that flowed seamlessly as he walked. He carried an aura of dignity and supreme confidence. His face was entirely flawless and incredibly handsome. Despite looking relatively young, he radiated a dense and terrifying power that seemed to naturally command the heavy space around him.

The young man looked thoroughly annoyed. He was clearly displeased with something. Li Yu looked at the young man and stopped completely.

A sudden and intense wave of familiarity washed over him. He stared at the handsome face and felt like he was looking at someone he had known for a very long time. It was a deep and instinctual recognition. But he simply could not place the identity.

The young man stopped walking. The entire entourage also halted behind him. The young man looked at the two strangers standing on the side of the road. His sharp eyes scanned Garrick and noted the physical threat of the man before locking onto Li Yu.

"You do not look like locals." The young man stated. His voice seemed to carry the weight of control. He looked at them with a mixture of boredom and slight suspicion. "I am Muten. Where exactly are you two going?"

Li Yu stepped forward and offered a polite but guarded bow. He knew they were completely lost and needed information about this realm they were in.

"I am Li Yu and he is Garrick. We are honestly not sure." Li Yu decided to answer honestly. He summarized their chaotic arrival. "We were traveling when a random spatial rift opened up. We went through it, the passage shattered and we ended up here. We are just trying to figure out exactly where we are."

Muten raised an eyebrow in question. He looked at Li Yu and then looked at Garrick.

"You fell through a shattered rift and survived?" Muten asked but his tone was laced with mild skepticism. However, it could be seen from his face that he was also curious. Perhaps he thought they were interesting.

"We got very lucky," Li Yu replied with a smile.

Muten stared at them for a long silent moment. The dense air of the realm seemed to pause around them as the young prodigy evaluated the strange duo blocking his path.