As he fell onto the ground, he released a low growl, "Ouch."
As he touched the scorched earth, a "thud" greeted him.
With a flick of thought, he summoned both of his artifacts—Gravewings and the Wolvenhide Mantle—into his soul core. The dark cloak and huge wings vanished into thin air, leaving him bare and naked. Yet, he didn't flinch or move; he just lay on the scorching earth like a dead log.
In his mind, he muttered with a smirk on his face, "What is the point of being embarrassed? There's no one to see me in this forsaken world," and "For the record, I'm not a pervert—just a man trying to save himself from this scorching heat."
His body was drenched in sweat, aching under the weight of exhaustion and heat. Using what little strength remained, Kael scanned the desolate landscape for any sign of cool refuge and anything that could be dangerous, since this barren world offered no mercy.
In a hoarse voice, he said, "I'll have to try the forest…" With a grunt, he stood up and walked toward the treeline a few meters away, a blur of shadow and hope for survival from this scorching heat.
As he reached the embrace of the forest, the trees stretched high above into the sky, their shadows long and soothing. The deeper he ventured, the more the air cooled—just enough to comfort his burning body.
Despite the momentary relief from the shade, he never let caution leave his mind. The memory of the serpent that had ambushed him that day was fresh, and he wouldn't let his guard down again. With that thought, he placed his left hand on his chest, which had nearly been crushed by the tail of that serpent.
Eventually, Kael found a narrow, shaded spot nestled between two massive twisted trees. "It is cooler here—silent and at least safe for now," he muttered. With a "thud," he sank deep into the narrow nest, leaned his back against the twisted tree wall, and started to exhale the heated breath slowly. "This will do," he whispered, letting his body rest, surrounded by the cool shadows of the trees. While lying in the narrow nest, Kael murmured under his breath, "From today onwards, I'll travel only at night…never again in this freaking heat.
That's final." As time slowly passed, the blazing sun in the sky eventually sank beyond the horizon. As the darkness of the night embraced the forsaken world, a chilled wind swept in.
As the wind grew colder, he manifested his Wolvenhide Mantle back onto his body to protect against the chill of the night. After manifesting his mantle, Kael, with friction against the wood, made a small bonfire in front of him.
After some time, Kael knelt near the bonfire he'd made, preparing a modest meal from the carcass of the huge serpent stored within his serpent ring.
The aroma of the modest meal hit him like wildfire in a dry forest. He took a bite, chewed slowly, and muttered with a glint in his eyes, "Damn, that's good! This is the best food I've made in this shitty world."
Once he finished eating, he stood up and walked a short distance ahead. After reaching a clearing, he disposed of the trash and answered nature's call. Then, using his only hand which was the left hand to take out the water pouch from the serpent ring, he secured it onto a low tree branch, tilting it just enough to let a small stream of water pour out. He used it to wash his left hand, cleaning up as best he could before heading back to camp.
With a thought, he manifested his artifact, Gravewing, behind him—as those shadowy, obsidian-black wings unfurled in the vast forest and spread into the night sky.
Without any hesitation, Kael launched himself into the cool dark night, continuing his journey towards the Cloud touching Mountains.
As his journey moves forward.
It had been 49 days since kael got stuck in this trial of misery. The sun had risen and set countless times, yet the mountains were still far ahead. His mind echoed the thought as he trudged along, exhausted and weary.
"Seems like I will be able to arrive at the base of the mountain by dawn," Kaelvren murmured to himself, while yawning though these words were more to encourage his tired body than a true belief.
His eyes were heavy, filled with sleep that had been denied him for many nights due to the relentless heat of the day. The temperature was unbearable, forcing him to travel only at night when the air was cooler, but it had drained him further.His body ached, muscles strained to their limits, but kaelvren pushed through, whispering to himself, "Just a few hours more."
With a flick of the thought, he activated the effect of the Serpent Ring, feeling the familiar surge of power as his senses sharpened. His vision instantly became clearer, and in the distance, he finally saw it—the base of the mountain. The sight filled him with a renewed sense of purpose and energy but just as quickly, his excitement turned to confusion. His vision began to blur, a strange distortion obscuring his view.
"What is this?" kaelvren muttered, squinting as he tried to make sense of the landscape. There was something blocking his sight—something unseen, lurking in the air around the base of the mountain.
Realization hit him like a cold wave. It wasn't his eyes. It was something preventing him from seeing clearly.
Without wasting another second, kaelvren deactivated the Sense Enhancer from the ring. The pressure lifted from his senses, and his vision cleared once more. The distortion vanished, leaving the mountain base visible again.
He didn't hesitate. With a swift motion, kaelvren flew toward the base of the mountain for hours, pushing his tired body further despite the overwhelming exhaustion. When he finally arrived, the warmth of the dawn struck him like a breeze of spring. The scorching heat he was expecting from the dawn was nowhere to be found. Instead, the breeze of spring, which was turning into an unnatural chill in the air, as if winter was coming in this scorching land.
"What the fuc* is going" the whole weather was changing in front of his naked eyes.
His breath formed mist in front of him as he stood there, confused. The mountain, which had once seemed a distant away, seems to be a bonfire of warmth. The breeze cut against his mantle, making him little shiver despite his mantle. The freezing air made his muscles ache even more which were already aching due to the exhaustion, but it was clear he had no choice but to press forward.