Author's Note: For those interested, there are now five advanced chapters (we're on chapter 30) and a poll about drawing that we will be requesting in the future for this story on my on P-atreon, which you can read and vote for just $5.
I also finished the first volume of my other story, "Welcome to the Alternate Multiverse Chat Group."
So if you can, please go to my profile and check it out.
Remove the spaces and dash: p-atreon/ Krakenian01
X-X-X-X-X
Third Person P.O.V
Leek, Huyan Xiong, and Ye Shuo advanced step by step through the paths of the Dark Ruins, with both adults paying attention to every possible detail, the trio's pace was neither too fast nor too slow, and unlike when they were in the middle of St. Ancestral Mountain Range, this time there was no barrier protecting them.
This was because, after weighing the pros and cons, they decided it would be best for Leek to focus entirely on his ki sense in an attempt to find Hong Yue Mu as quickly as possible, and if the young Saiyan split his attention between maintaining a barrier strong enough to protect them from threats at minimum peak gold rank level, then his detection range, already reduced due to the Dark Ruins themselves, would shrink even further.
This resulted in both black gold rank spiritists remaining completely focused on their surroundings, since their "compass" was in his most vulnerable state, they needed to ensure that if any surprise attack occurred, they would be ready to counter immediately.
Seconds turned into minutes, and after a while, Leek exhaled, expelling air from his lungs, relaxing his body slightly as he opened his eyes to observe what was in front of him before stopping, the adults imitated him, and once he was certain he had their attention, he began to speak.
"I have good news and bad news." He said, inserting a brief dramatic pause before continuing. "The good news is I've detected a human presence, and I'm at least 80% sure it's someone at the early stages of black gold rank, and from what I sensed, he is weaker than both of you, he is in that direction"
"80%?" Ye Shuo asked.
"Yeah, well, the problem is that he's almost at the limit of what I can sense, so it's hard to be certain." The Saiyan said in an apologetic tone.
"Hmm." Huyan Xiong rubbed his jaw, humming thoughtfully before speaking. "Still, it seems it's really him, I doubt there's anyone else in this place right now"
Ye Shuo nodded, sharing the same thought before turning back to Leek. "And what's the bad news?"
"There are three things." The Saiyan raised three fingers. "First, I've detected multiple black gold rank demonic beasts, most are weaker than you two, around the same power level as the human I sensed, but a handful of them, five to be exact, radiate energy levels very close to yours." Leek pointed at Ye Shuo before continuing. "And there's one that surpasses you." Once again Leek paused to let this information sink in before continuing. "Additionally, three of those six beasts feel... strange, it's like they're in different places at once, and the nature of their energy keeps changing, not in power level, but in essence, it's as if something hot suddenly turns freezing, or something sweet becomes salty, it's confusing"
"And where are these beasts located?"
"Those who remain still and their presence is "normal" are there, there and there." Leek pointed in three different directions before specifying distances. "Between three and four kilometers away, and the three that feel weird are below us, about five or maybe six kilometers down, but like I said before, it's like they're in two distinct places simultaneously, or the time between their shifts is so short it feels that way." Leek explained that while he was already forming a theory about these beasts, the idea that monsters this powerful might possess some sort of teleportation-like ability put him on high alert.
And for that very reason, he decided not to voice his theory with both spiritualists, he didn't want to raise unfounded doubts and fears, or risk them deciding to turn back, after all, he was certain that as long as they kept a safe distance from the beasts, there wouldn't be any problems.
And even if they encountered one of these three beasts, they could probably escape if they really tried.
"And the rest of the bad news?"
"Well, the other two aren't nearly as alarming as the first one, at least that's what I think, the thing is that based on the number of presences, their distribution, and the distances, I can assume this entire place is a massive underground structure extending several kilometers beyond the maximum range of my ki sense, of course, I know this doesn't directly impact our mission, but if we get lost it would be incredibly dangerous, not just because of the beasts, but also due to the difficulty of finding an exit, so I'd recommend doing everything possible to stay together and somehow mark our path so we can return"
Ye Shuo and Huyan Xiong nodded, seeing no issue with Leek's suggestion. "Most explorations of the Dark Ruins have only managed to map a small portion of it." Said the eldest of the three. "I know the maps and some paths, at least at the beginning, but beyond a certain point, I agree we should leave markers to retrace our steps"
"And the last piece of bad news?" asked Huyan Xiong.
"It's that while I can tell you the direction where I sensed Hong Yue Mu, the same doesn't apply to the path we need to take to reach him, based on everything we know, I'd say this place is practically a maze, so unless we start breaking through walls, which I'm not sure would be safe since it might cause a collapse, we'll have to carefully consider which way to go"
"Things seem really complicated." Huyan Xiong complained with a sigh, though a moment later his irritated expression faded, and he raised his fist with a smile. "Alright, I've decided, when we find Hong Yue Mu, I'm giving him a good smack on the head, not just for being reckless enough to come to the Dark Ruins alone and worrying his son, but for causing us so much trouble"
"Normally I'd object." Ye Shuo added. "But I'll turn a blind eye this time, just for this occasion"
Leek simply let out a short laugh, he found it somewhat amusing that, despite the complicated situation, they were still willing to joke like this, though if Huyan Xiong actually went through with it, he would do his utmost not to laugh in Hong Yue Mu's face, if only as thanks for being the reason he could recover his spaceship without having to pay.
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Third Person P.O.V
While his "eyes" were closed and his concentration focused on his task, ████████ sensed something happening within his domain, it lasted only a few seconds, but he felt as if... something was trying to "see" him.
Naturally, the attempt failed, nothing outside the chamber where he resided could detect him, the inscriptions covering the walls, floor, and ceiling, combined with the fact that his spirit was sealed within the relic placed on top of the altar, ensured the probability of anyone outside this room finding him or sensing even a trace of his presence was practically zero.
Yet this still caught his attention, his focus shifted from the unconscious man on the floor to a rapid scan of the entire area using the inscriptions marked on the weaker demonic beasts, minimizing soul force expenditure to avoid detection by the enemy.
Then, ████████ saw a new group moving through the tunnels, two of them resembled most who dared enter this place, black gold rank spiritists.
But the third... the instant a shadow rat beast saw him and scanned him using a wisp of soul force, the young man turned his head, looked directly in its direction, raised his hand, and destroyed the shadow rat with a beam of light.
This alone was remarkable, neither of the two black gold rankers had detected the shadow rat, something expected given the beast's low power and shadow-concealment abilities, but a young boy who didn't even appear twenty years old had? This was nothing less than an incredibly interesting discovery.
His attention returned to the unconscious man floating a few centimeters above the ground before his altar, he had been analyzing him for hours, expending the minimal amount of soul force possible, and everything he'd discovered so far filled him with disappointment.
This person wasn't suitable for his goals, his potential was too low, and having reached black gold rank, his Soul Realm was too developed.
Even if his Soul Realm could withstand the process, it would undoubtedly suffer considerable damage, and ████████ wouldn't commit such cruelty, thus, he withdrew his soul force, and the man descended, lying motionless on the ground.
His focus now shifted to the young boy, the shadow rat had been destroyed a second after expanding its soul force to scan him, but that didn't matter, a single second had been enough, the power, age, and potential displayed made him more than an ideal candidate, and he could say this based solely on the little he had been able to feel in that brief moment, so he did not doubt that the boy was hiding even more impressive things.
████████ felt discomfort as his attention returned to the sphere anchoring his soul, more precisely, to the massive crack constantly leaking soul force.
He had been hibernating for years, hoping the soul force he imbued in the object years ago would repair it, but when his consciousness resurfaced months ago, he realized things hadn't gone as planned, the large crack had not been repaired, instead, it had grown deeper and longer, threatening his continued presence on the world of the living.
If the object were broken, there would be nothing to anchor his spirit, meaning he would inevitably fade away.
Initially, he had thought the unconscious man before him might serve as a vessel, but after careful study, he concluded otherwise; his plan had been to wait for the man to awaken, then release him unchanged.
At least, that was the original plan; now that he'd found someone sufficiently young and promising, everything had changed.
The young boy might not have sensed him during the scanning attempt minutes before, but he had undoubtedly detected the unconscious man, and if his conjectures proved correct, this group had surely come to look for the unconscious man lying in front of him, a goal that would inevitably bring the young man closer to this chamber, but there was a problem with this plan.
The two black gold rank spiritists could be a nuisance.
If he were alive and not just a mere spirit growing weaker by the day, he could have brushed them aside effortlessly, but in his current state, he couldn't afford risks, if things went well, this might be his only chance to return to the fight, to rise once more against the Sage Emperor, to avenge his fallen comrades and thwart their plans, no risks could be taken, he needed to separate these two black gold ranks from the boy and lure him to where he was.
Different scenarios to achieve this end flashed through his mind, based on where he'd seen the uninvited guests in the ruins and their current trajectory, they would cross the stone bridge that divided the caverns, just above the black lake, in thirty minutes, and if he could make the boy fall there, bringing him close enough would be simple.
Then, he could release a fraction of his soul force, and when the young boy sensed it, he would approach, thus sealing his fate.
Now all that remained was to decide how to separate them, and he already had the perfect method to achieve it.
#####
Third Person P.O.V
As the group of three walked through the Dark Ruins' corridors, Leek kept his ki sense constantly active within a 50-meter radius, he could extend it further, but chose not to, prioritizing detection clarity over range.
That rat-like beast lurking in the shadows had been close enough to bypass his perception, putting him on edge.
When he noticed it, it was like seeing someone passing in the corner of your peripheral vision, there one moment, gone the next; he couldn't risk another, even stealthier creature spying on them.
He'd initially assumed nothing in this world could hide from him after learning they couldn't use ki, but now recognized that as a gross overestimation of his current abilities.
Certain abilities could clearly bypass his still-unrefined ki sense, he'd focused on expanding his range rather than sharpening detection clarity, and only now realized how reckless he had been.
A Dragon Ball memory surfaced in his mind, while it was true that warriors like Goku could fight in total darkness using his other senses, such as touch to feel even the smallest air currents or hearing to listen to the enemy's movements as he did in his fight with Yakon, that stemmed not just from his sharp instincts but decades of combat experience, varied opponents, teachers, and trainings, things that Leek lacked.
That's why Leek opted for the solution that Goku's eldest son came up with, Gohan, who, during his fight with Lavender, being blind, unable to feel his opponent's ki and also unable to hear it, used the constant expulsion of his own ki to "see" his surroundings, creating a form of ki echolocation similar to bats or dolphins.
For Leek, this would prove invaluable, an extra way to orient himself in case there was someone who might escape his ki sense and conventional senses.
The only problem was that he'd need practice to master this technique, adding another item to his to-do list upon returning to Glory City, but for now, the Saiyan decided to focus his ki sense on a limited area to be sure he would detect any creature within that range.
Thus, the three continued walking in silence, careful not to alert any beasts that might be lurking nearby.
This continued until they reached a crossroads with three paths; they stopped, exchanging glances with a single unspoken question.
"So... which way do we go?" Leek asked aloud to no one in particular.
"If we choose wrong, we might move farther from Hong Yue Mu's location or take a longer route." Huyan Xiong grumbled.
"Wait a moment, look there." Ye Shuo said, pointing to the ground.
There, on the corner of the right-hand path, almost hidden from view, was a small object that seemed to emit a faint glow.
"Is that... a broken piece of jade?" Huyan Xiong wondered.
"Yes, and it's bright enough to clash with the rest of this dusty old place, plus, look over there, there's not just one." Ye Shuo pointed about 20 meters ahead where another small jade fragment lay, and further away, there was even more, leaving a trail of jade pieces.
"Breadcrumbs, huh? Nice." Leek remarked with a slight smile.
"Breadcrumbs?" Ye Shuo asked.
"Ah, remember when I said we should mark our path? That idea came from a story I heard long ago, Hansel and Gretel, a pair of young siblings, who, in order not to get lost in a forest, left breadcrumbs so they could retrace their steps until they left the forest, it seems Hong Yue Mu had a similar idea, but with jade pieces instead of bread, with this, two of the three problems I mentioned earlier are now solved, if we follow this trail, not only are we likely to find Hong Yue Mu, but we will also be able to return to this point without any problems." The Saiyan explained.
This not only reassured him but also the two spiritists, who now appeared more encouraged than before.
"You seem to have heard quite a few stories." Remarked Huyan Xiong, recalling when Leek had told him about the legend of the three Saiyan warriors some time ago.
"Well, tales and legends always entertained me, they were a way to pass the time when I was bored with nothing else to do, so I know a lot of." Leek replied with a small smile, maybe this world lacked internet, but he'd make sure to share the stories he remembered from his own world.
With their path now clearly marked, the three continued forward, and it took only ten more minutes before they emerged into a more open section of the ruins.
The "block" they'd traversed connected to the next through several long stone bridges, as if the place had been cut by a massive sword in a single strike, dividing it in two, and after that, the people who lived here had built these bridges to connect both previously separated parts.
"Wow." Was all Leek could say, staring at the network of stone bridges above and below them, connecting various entrances and exits between both blocks.
This structure somewhat reminded him of ant colonies.
Huyan Xiong chuckled at the Saiyan's astonished expression. "That's the exact face everyone makes when they first see this place." He said, remembering how equally amazed he'd been when he first reached this point years ago.
"The downside is that beyond this bridge, we'll only have a few hundred meters of documented terrain." Ye Shuo explained.
"Eh? Has no one gone further into these ruins? Though... seeing this place, I can't blame you, I can't even see the bottom of this abyss." Leek said, leaning over the edge of the bridge, noticing how the bridges faded into shadow the deeper they went.
"It's not that no one has gone beyond the point I'm talking about, it's just that it's up to that point that we have a clear map of what's there, the paths we have to follow to get back, and the type of beasts that lurk"
"Well, if that's really the case, then judging by this place's size, I doubt I'll still be alive by the time they've fully mapped it all." The Saiyan replied to the Ye family elder while still looking down, trying to discern the abyss's bottom.
Then, just out of curiosity, he focused his ki sense toward this abyss, but as soon as he did, his eyes widened, and he moved as fast as he could while screaming.
"RUN!" His voice reached both spiritists' ears just before a tar-black liquid projectile pierced through the bridge section where the Saiyan had stood a second earlier.
Huyan Xiong and Ye Shuo's eyes also widened in shock, but they reacted even faster than Leek, already sprinting as the bridge shuddered.
"What happened?" Huyan Xiong asked mid-run.
"One of the six black gold rank beasts I mentioned fired that black water bullet, but from way too far away!" Leek explained, glancing back to see the remnants of the black liquid corroding the stone.
"Is that thing acid?!" He cried out in alarm.
The mere fact that this beast could spit such potent acid bullets from such a distance made it more than considerable a threat, and that didn't even account for its raw power level or any other tricks it might have.
The 3 continued running as more bullets hit the bridge from below, while the beast that spat them out, a black chameleon-like one, let out a screech, scaling the walls while spitting more black acid projectiles, creating more holes, further destabilizing the structure of the bridge, and making it sway dangerously.
"We're almost there!" Huyan Xiong shouted as they kept moving.
But then all three noticed a long tongue extending from the bridge's right side, attempting to snatch the closest person, who in this case was Leek.
"Go to hell!" The Saiyan shouted, jumping to the side to avoid the appendage but losing momentum.
"Take this!" he yelled, raising his hands ready to fire ki blasts at the beast's tongue when Ye Shuo's voice boomed through the area.
"Another beast above!" The man shouted as a giant mole's head burst from the wall above the entrance to where they were running. "Look out!"
Leek felt his skin crawl as the mole leaped up the wall towards him, as if trying to ram him, but in the end, the beast missed, crashing into the bridge and destroying it completely as Leek floated in the air, using his flight technique while gripping Huyan Xiong's arm.
It was fortunate Ye Shuo had reached the opposite side, as Leek wasn't sure he could react fast enough to catch them both.
"Huh?" But his momentary relief at catching Huyan Xiong faded when the chameleon's tongue wrapped around his ankle and pulled him.
Ye Shuo, seeing this, immediately moved and threw a bottle at the beast's snout, while throwing a rope towards Leek.
The first bottle hit its target, shattering and spilling the liquid, and when it touched the beast's sensitive skin, it acted like a hot liquid or some kind of acid, causing smoke and the smell of burning flesh to rise from the chameleon's snout.
The beast screamed in pain and rage, losing its balance and falling from the wall where it was standing.
However, instead of letting go of Leek, its tongue tightened its grip on the Saiyan's leg, dragging him down with it.
Seeing that the beast hadn't released him, Leek swung his arm and threw Huyan Xiong towards Ye Shuo, not even bothering to take the rope Ye Shuo had thrown him, because he knew it would be of no use.
The Ye family elder also noticed this when his gaze met Leek's, so he threw a second rope, this time in Huyan Xiong's direction, because it was obvious that his momentum was not enough for him to reach the place where he was.
"Got you!" Ye Shuo shouted, clutching the rope from which Huyan Xiong now dangled.
"Keep going! I'll find youuuu!" Leek roared with all his strength as he was dragged down with the chameleon and the collapsing stone bridge debris.
X-X-X-X-X
God, you guys don't know how difficult it was to write this chapter, not because of the content itself, no, I already had a pre-existing structure of what I wanted to happen.
The real problem was that it's incredibly hot where I am, so sitting in one place for an extended period of time while writing is incredibly annoying.
I have to constantly go to the bathroom to splash water on my face, and my mood swings between irritated and annoyed, especially when I can't find the right words to express what's on my mind or when something I write doesn't convince me.
Every day I would reach a point where I would say, "Screw it, I'll continue tomorrow!"
But anyway, now that I've gotten some of my frustration out, let's talk about the chapter.
It's just something to introduce the "antagonist" of this mini-arc and his motives.
Throughout TDAG, it's mentioned that several people tried to fight the wise emperor and died, so I thought, how do I relate this to giving Leek the information that there's a super-powerful bad guy out there when he hasn't even interacted with Nie Li yet, and it's possible that he wouldn't tell him even if they became friends?
Well, this is my solution, let's wait and see how things develop.
Besides that, I also wanted to ask you for something else: I'd like to commission a drawing for this story, either a new cover or a fan art of a scene.
That's why I wanted to ask you to please join my P-treon, those who join, in addition to being able to read the 5 extra chapters there, will also be able to vote to decide which of these two options will be the drawing.
If we get 19 people with Legend rank to join, and I add a little bit of what I have saved (because the good artists I've seen on X aren't cheap), I think I'll be able to find a good artist to draw something for this story.
Remove the spaces and dash: p-atreon/ Krakenian01
Besides that, I wanted to ask you the same thing I did with my other story, if you could please leave a positive review for this story, that way it will reach more people, thank you very much!
That's all, see you in the next chapter.