Alm and Bruno were completely confused and alarmed. ’How the hell did they find us?!’ Bruno exclaimed as his thoughts raced.
’It doesn’t matter now, we have to...’ Alm started to say but quickly stopped when he felt a massive disturbance.
The entire planet was wrapped in golden runes that seemed to spring from the void itself, creating an impenetrable net. Escaping from there seemed technically impossible for anyone.
Alm and Bruno immediately sensed that this was a measure created by the heroes, specifically to confront them. They had already caused a lot of trouble before; the heroes were alerted and tried to open a channel to reach them, but the cunning Heaven-Defier always managed to escape in time.
These heroes came from another universe, but they surely researched all the recent events. Now, at the slightest sign of the Heaven-Defier, they would first activate all their power to manipulate the spatial laws and seal the area before arriving in person.
Doing this was immediate and safe. But they hadn’t done it before because they were now sure that the Heaven-Defier had low cultivation. A powerful cultivator could sense spatial fluctuations and escape before being sealed. But a young Heaven-Defier would have to use extreme methods and wouldn’t have time.
However, this measure to prevent escape definitely wouldn’t work on them now.
’If we use the Eraser to the max, we can still escape. But they’ve found a way to make this truly impossible in the future,’ Bruno quickly commented.
Alm didn’t need to say what they both knew: they could escape, but it would be alone. Taking all their allies would be problematic. And even if they managed, the heroes would arrive and furiously investigate what had happened.
It wouldn’t take long for them to discover the presence of the visitor from another sect. Then, they would go to the Yinblood sect and start thoroughly investigating planet Gloom. It wouldn’t be long before they uncovered everything hidden there and concluded where the fugitive had been all along. The result would be catastrophic.
’If we escape, everything will fall apart,’ Alm spat. ’But we have no options, no time.’
Bruno was also thinking frantically, but because of this ’security measure’ from the heroes, the six closest to them would take two or three minutes to arrive. They had to first channel a lot of heroic power to seal the area.
There was no clear solution, but if Heaven’s Will gave them this side quest that was a trap, there had to be some escape route. Until they both thought of the system.
Without hesitation, they accepted the rewards of the Side Quest. A new green screen appeared.
[System upgrades applied.]
[You can now take helpers for your main missions. However, these helpers must be approved by the system. They need to have some connection to the mission and a role to play.]
[Note 01: There’s no clear limit on the number of helpers. You can name them, and the approved ones will receive a notification from the system. When they leave, their bodies will enter a suspended state, and only their souls will be taken.]
[Note 02: The system only offers minimal support to the helpers. Depending on the mission and their capabilities, they may face great challenges. Choose capable people wisely.]
[Mental indication of who you want to take, and the system will evaluate immediately.]
Alm and Bruno read the message, surprised. They had received this upgrade and were informed that it would only be applicable in the main mission. Before, they imagined that in the future, they could expand the inventory and take helpers on their own; but they knew it would be very limited and problematic.
’The manipulative Heaven’s Will sensed our intentions and decided to help us minimally,’ Alm murmured.
Bruno sighed, and his mind glimpsed a possibility. ’This is our way out. We’re not running.’
Alm heard this, and immediately, their minds aligned with the same plan. There was no time for discussion. They would either blow everything or use this tiny window of opportunity that had appeared.
Quickly, the whale thought of all his allies on planet Gloom. Fortunately, they were resting at that moment, not in a sealed world.
[Evaluating...]
[Thea, Ruri, Corin, and Maelik are the only approved ones.]
Alm and Bruno immediately activated the array and all possible Qi to send a message: ’Thea, Ruri, Corin, and Maelik; isolate yourselves in the building immediately and tell Mistie to prevent anyone from entering until further notice.’
The whale’s message echoed, and a green screen appeared before the four. They jumped in surprise; the whale and Kaiyka had already described something similar as a notification from Heaven’s Will.
The eyes of the four sparkled with excitement, and within five seconds, they sent the message to Mistie and sealed the building with them inside.
Alm and Bruno felt death looming over them with an almost palpable solidity, making it hard to breathe. Less than a minute remained.
They quickly thought of the three squad leaders and the recruited soldiers who were on the planet.
[Avaluating...]
[All approved.]
The evaluation took only two seconds, and Alm and Bruno sighed with relief.
Without wasting time, they grabbed all the thousands of Void Pills that Almin had prepared for them. Each pill could contain anything and fuse with the body. Bruno placed a small divinity rune on each one, the ones he had obtained after destroying the God of Wealth.
They turned to Oami, who was dazed, feeling the golden runes covering the planet. Their eyes met, and she sensed the urgency.
"We don’t have time to explain. Please, swallow this pill. I swear I won’t harm you, your sect, or your race. I’ll also be in your debt for trusting me."
They tossed the pill to her, and at the same time, removed the formation sealing the area, keeping the divine seed they had created.
Outside, all their allies were stunned to see the green screen appear before them, with the message:
[You have been selected by the Missionary to be taken on a mission. Awaiting his command to depart.]
The whale, not wasting any time, sent a pill to each of them. Almin had prepared thousands of pills, way more than the number of people present. This would be crucial for the plan.
"Swallow quickly," he ordered, and in that instant, everyone obeyed without hesitation.
Then, the whale turned to Oami. His eyes reflected an indescribable seriousness and confidence. Oami stared at him but, realizing there was no time to think, sighed.
Her instincts had always been sharp, and she had lived through a lot. After interacting with him for a while, she felt strangely calm in his presence. She refused to believe he harbored any malice. And for some inexplicable reason, she was certain that if she didn’t swallow the pill, her entire race would regret it forever.
"Alright," Oami said as she swallowed the pill.
At the same time, Alm and Bruno saw a new green screen appear.
[Approved.]
[Do you wish to depart?] [Yes / No]
The Eraser hammer appeared in the whale’s hands. Bruno activated all the runes embedded in the pills that had been distributed to the thousands of cultivators. Simultaneously, Alm activated the two rune seals of the hammer and swung it toward the sky.
**CRACK!**
A powerful wave of energy shot out, breaking and piercing the golden runes sealing the planet, creating an opening.
Immediately, the whale stored the hammer, and they both murmured: "Yes."
Less than a minute later...
Six figures wrapped in a golden aura invaded the planet. In their eyes was a terrifying disbelief.
The fluctuations of power, along with the hole in the golden field that was supposed to seal the place, were evident to everyone. It was something that should have been impossible. And the most unsettling part: they couldn’t detect what had escaped.
Without delay, they found the source of the fluctuations on the planet. As they approached, their eyes widened at the sight of thousands of young people fallen on the ground, with an ancient figure among them.
"There’s no sign of a struggle," one of the heroes commented in a serious tone.
They moved quickly, assessing the bodies on the ground, and soon realized something even more terrifying.
"How is this possible?! They’re alive, but I can’t feel their souls," one of them said, incredulously.
"Their souls must be sealed…" A hero invaded the mental sea of one of the young people, and his body trembled. He opened his eyes in shock. "This is a divine seal!"
The most experienced hero huffed. "If we try to read the memories of their bodies, the seal will blow everything up. Their souls are sealed by a strange power, inside their mental seas."
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"That damn Heaven-Defier! He used these people and then fled, erasing the evidence with some trick," another one said, filled with hatred. "We can remove this... but it’s going to take a lot of effort and time. If we do, we’ll have to slow down the investigation."
"This could be a trap," murmured the most experienced hero seriously. "He didn’t kill them and still did this, maybe knowing we could break it over time. If he was confident enough to do this, these people probably didn’t see anything. We’ll just waste time."
"Or we ignore it and double down on our attention, changing our tactics. Or we waste time and resources on something that might lead to nothing..." He finished, and everyone’s expression sank.