Soulbound: Dual Cultivation

The journey stretched on for weeks, long and exhausting, yet strangely uneventful compared to the chaos they had left behind, the army moving in disciplined formations across plains, forests, and broken terrain without encountering any significant resistance, as though the world itself had gone quiet in anticipation of what was to come. The vanguard led by Lucas remained sharp and alert throughout, never letting their guard down despite the lack of opposition, while the main force followed steadily behind, protecting the wounded and maintaining cohesion, and with each passing day, a cautious sense of progress began to settle among the soldiers, because for once, nothing was trying to kill them.

Then they arrived.

Or rather, they arrived at where the Abyss was supposed to be.

From a distance, the first thing that struck them was not danger, but absence. There were no blackened clouds swirling ominously in the sky, no oppressive pull in the air, no violent winds rising from an endless void, nothing that resembled the terrifying expanse they had crossed before. Instead, what lay ahead was... empty. Quiet. Almost unnaturally so.

Lucas slowed his steps, his eyes narrowing slightly as he stared ahead, the terrain stretching out in front of them in a way that made no sense. The ground bore marks, faint but undeniable, as though something immense had once existed there, something that had carved its presence into the very land, but whatever it was... it was gone now.

Behind him, the army gradually came to a halt, confusion rippling through the ranks as soldiers began murmuring among themselves, their eyes scanning the horizon, trying to reconcile what they were seeing with what they knew should be there.

"This... this is the place?" one of them muttered.

"It has to be," another replied uncertainly. "But where is it?"

Commander Alexander and Captain Varran soon moved forward, their expressions tense as they reached the front, both of them staring out at the same empty stretch of land. Varran frowned deeply, his instincts clearly unsettled. "Something’s wrong," he said under his breath. "This isn’t natural."

Alexander nodded slowly. "The Abyss isn’t something that just disappears," he added. "Not without leaving chaos behind."

Lucas didn’t speak immediately, his gaze sweeping across the area, his senses extending outward, probing, searching for any trace of the familiar distortion, that subtle pull of space, that suffocating pressure that had once defined this place, but there was nothing, only silence and faint remnants, like echoes of something that had once been.

The king stepped forward next, his voice low but firm. "Are we certain this is the exact location?" he asked.

"It is," the empress answered.

All eyes turned to her.

She stood slightly apart, her gaze fixed ahead, her expression more serious than before, her usual calm carrying a sharper edge now. "There is no mistake," she continued. "The Abyss was here. I crossed it."

Her words carried weight, and there was no doubt in them, only certainty, which made the current situation even more unsettling.

Varran let out a slow breath. "Then where the hell did it go?" he muttered.

No one answered immediately.

Because no one knew.

Lucas stepped forward slightly, his eyes still scanning the land, his mind racing through possibilities, none of them comforting, because something like the Abyss did not simply vanish, not without reason, not without consequence.

And whatever that reason was...It meant something had changed.

Something big.

The wind passed quietly over the empty expanse, carrying with it a strange stillness that felt far more unsettling than the violent chaos of the Abyss itself, and as the entire army stood there, staring at what should have been an insurmountable obstacle but was now nothing more than a hollow absence, one thought lingered unspoken among them all.

This was not a relief.

It was a warning.

The silence that lingered over the empty expanse where the Abyss should have been did not last long, because no matter how unsettling it was, they did not have the luxury of standing still and questioning it endlessly. The war had not paused for them, and whatever force had caused something as massive as the Abyss to disappear was likely tied to the same storm they were already caught in.

The king was the first to break the stillness, his voice firm as he turned back to the others. "Whatever happened here, we cannot afford to dwell on it," he said. "Our objective remains the same. We move forward."

Commander Alexander nodded, though his expression remained tense. "Yes, Your Majesty, but we should proceed with caution. If something powerful enough to alter the Abyss is at play, then we are walking into something far greater than we anticipated."

Captain Varran added quietly, "And blindly at that."

Lucas stepped forward slightly, his gaze still lingering on the empty land before shifting back to the group. "Then we adapt," he said calmly. "Standing here won’t give us answers. Moving forward might."

The king looked at him for a moment, then gave a small nod before his expression hardened again, his thoughts clearly shifting to something else. "There is another issue," he said. "Valerion."

The name alone brought a weight into the conversation.

"We still don’t know the current state of the kingdom," he continued. "We only have what Ken told us, and we cannot rely on the word of an enemy. If Valerion has truly fallen and the people are being held hostage, then every moment matters."

Commander Alexander crossed his arms slightly. "Sending the entire army there blindly would be unwise," he said. "If the usurpers are waiting, we could walk straight into a trap."

"Which means we need information first," Varran added.

A brief pause followed.

Then Lucas spoke.

"I’ll go."

The words were simple, but they carried weight.

The king’s gaze shifted to him immediately. "Go?" he repeated.

Lucas nodded. "I’ll take a small group," he explained. "We move faster, stay hidden, gather information on Valerion’s condition, and report back. If the situation is as bad as we think, we’ll know how to approach it. If it’s worse..." he paused slightly, "...then at least we won’t be walking into it blindly."

Commander Alexander studied him carefully. "That’s dangerous," he said. "If you’re discovered, you’ll be isolated, outnumbered, and cut off from support."

Lucas didn’t flinch. "That’s why it has to be a small group," he replied. "We move quietly, avoid direct confrontation unless necessary."

Varran looked at him, then at the king. "He’s right," he admitted. "A large force would draw attention immediately. A smaller unit has a better chance of slipping through unnoticed."

The king remained silent for a moment, clearly weighing the decision, his gaze fixed on Lucas as though measuring not just his strength, but his resolve. "And you’re volunteering to lead this group?" he asked.

"Yes."

There was no hesitation.

The king exhaled slowly, then gave a firm nod. "Very well," he said. "You will take a select team, move ahead, and investigate Valerion. Gather as much information as you can, but do not engage unless absolutely necessary. Your priority is reconnaissance, not battle."

Lucas nodded. "Understood."

The empress, who had been silent until now, stepped forward slightly, her gaze resting on Lucas. "Be careful," she said, her voice calm but carrying a subtle weight. "Whatever removed the Abyss may also be tied to what awaits in Valerion."

Lucas met her gaze briefly. "I’ll keep that in mind."

The king turned back to the rest of the army. "The main force will continue toward Blackmare Kingdom as planned," he announced. "We will secure the alliance while awaiting Lucas’s report. Until then, we proceed with heightened caution."

Lucas turned back toward his squad, his mind already shifting into preparation, because this mission would require precision, stealth, and absolute control, and whatever awaited them in Valerion, one thing was certain.

It was not going to be simple.