Chapter 4: The Oracle and the Demon
Rem was still wiping himself with a large dry leaf when he was suddenly dragged away. He squealed as he found himself hanging just a few inches above the ground with his butt utterly exposed. In a flash, he threw away the leaf and pulled his pants up.
Still confused about what in the world was happening, Rem saw something move rapidly behind a few trees. Knowing the barren lands, there was no way in hell were they friendly.
Phen was able to run just shy of a hundred meters while carrying Rem on one hand before he felt his right arm go sore. Seeing that they were still quite far from the main group, Phen gave in to exhaustion.
"Can you run on your own? I can't carry you while running," Phen asked.
"O-Of course! Just put me down!" Rem yelled against the howling of the wind.
Phen slowed down to a halt before dropping Rem on the ground. It was then that he realized that contact with the faros was inevitable.
It was impossible for them to outrun a faro.
Phen swept his eyes all over the surroundings. He took into account anything that moved and where they were so he could plan out an escape route for him and Rem.
It didn't take long for him to assess the situation.
There were two faros running from two different sides.
Only two!
Phen felt relieved. Luckily, it was just enough for them to handle.
"Follow me," Phen told Rem who was still setting himself upright.
Due to adrenaline, Rem was able to find his footing immediately and bolted away. He subconsciously followed Phen who was running who knows where.
From a distance, Rem could make out the sound of combat. He could even see flashes of green light from time to time.
Earthflame Arts!
Their warriors were that way!
Rem could not hide the joy and relief on his face. But those feelings did not last long as he started to realize that they weren't heading towards their people.
"Phen, are you planning on saying hi to the faro?!" Rem yelled in panic.
"Keep running!" Phen urged. Despite all that was happening, he was quite calm.
The faro that was about to intercept their route was already within their vision, but Phen showed no signs of stopping. Rem was sweating profusely as he started reciting a mantra for protection.
"Pull out your knife!" Phen suddenly yelled.
The clueless Rem could only utter a 'what' before he saw the faro, a wolf-looking beast with black fur, pounce at Phen. Fear and panic overtook him and he subconsciously reached for the side of his bag.
Contrary to his expectations, Phen dropped the large bag he was carrying and jumped forward. Midair, he turned and stretched his right leg outward into a kick.
Thwack!
The maneuver happened so fast that Rem was only able to comprehend what had happened when the wolf's head had already connected with a tree. Rem cringed at the sight, but he felt no mercy towards the faro. Actually, he was glad because, to him, it was a chance for them to run!
However, Phen's words afterward were not something Rem had been expecting.
"Stab its neck!" Phen yelled as he looked back to locate the other faro.
Stab the what now?!
"Wh-what do you mean?! Are you crazy?!" Rem asked, still confused about why they were still lingering around the faro that was knocked out cold.
The faro squirmed, making Rem panic even more.
"We have to kill them here! Stab it!"
"Ehhh?!" Rem yelled back. He hesitated for a moment, but he ended up charging towards the groggy faro, his knife made of sharpened stone in front of him. His body subconsciously followed what Phen said.
Phen finally located the other faro. Thankfully, they still had time. His calculation earlier was on point.
Good.
With a roar, Rem forcibly drove the knife in. Blood spattered from the wolf's exposed neck, painting Rem's clothes with a crimson hue. The body of the wolf limped as its life force started to fade away. It couldn't hold its head up anymore, much less bite.
Rem, wide-eyed, panted as he looked towards the side. Strangely, he didn't find Phen there. He looked back to see that the guy was already in a hurry to pull out his own stone knife.
Rem had momentarily forgotten that the fight was not yet over.
Another wolf faro was still approaching.
Phen backed up a bit, trying to position himself between a couple of trees to prevent the wolf from exploiting his weak angles. He eyed the second faro as it approached, his knife stood ready by the side.
Rem stood still. He did his best to not catch the other faro's attention so it wouldn't suddenly change targets. Currently, the faro locked on to Phen who looked like he did not have any intention of fighting back. He was trying to make himself an easy target to bait the beast into attacking him.
As the faro got closer, it started to increase its speed. It brandished its claws and teeth coated with world essence.
Then, it pounced.
At that moment, Rem felt his spine go cold.
It didn't look like Phen was going to dodge.
He was going to die…
But, at the very last second, Phen crouched and his arms moved.
Schlikk!
The wolf crashed on the ground, half-dead, with blood gushing out of its neck.
The bout ended as soon as it started.
….
Phen panted heavily. His body was not conditioned for such fights anymore. Luckily, there were only two faros. Seeing that the warriors were still fighting, Phen sighed with relief. He slowly went back to his backpack and rummaged through it.
"Phen! What the fuck was that?!"
Rem beamed as he approached Phen. The guy was laughing like a maniac. Phen wasn't sure if it was just due to the heat of the battle or if his friend had gone nuts after his first encounter with a faro.
Phen shook his head.
"Shut up and go change your clothes," he said as he tossed a new shirt over to Rem. "It would attract some more faros if you continue wearing that."
"Ah!" Realization dawned on Rem and he scrambled to remove his bloody shirt. He tore the clean part and poured some water over it then began wiping himself. After he changed into the clothes Phen had given him, the latter was already walking away, and he hurriedly chased after him.
"I didn't know you can fight!" Rem said in utter awe. "You were really awesome back there!"
Although the praise was nice to hear, Phen didn't want to leave this sort of image of him on Rem. Rem would definitely ask about it, and if his parents would get wind of it, he wouldn't know what to say or do.
If only this guy got eaten by the wolves, Phen thought as he pocketed the stone knife he just cleaned. Then he stopped and turned towards Rem with a serious look. "Let's keep this between you and me, alright?"
Rem who was still babbling immediately stopped and pursed his lips. He was caught off guard by the seriousness on Phen's face, but he was even more curious about his reasons for saying that.
"But why? You could be a great warrior! Imagine the amount of extra food you'd get!"
"That's the point...I don't want to be a warrior. My handsome looks would be wasted," Phen jokingly replied as he continued walking.
Rem was stunned, hearing Phen's answer. But it didn't take long for him to come up with a comeback.
"But chicks do dig warriors!" Rem replies in his defense.
"Unless they're dead!" Phen shot back.
"Hey, if you're that strong, why'd we have to run away in the first place?"
"The faros would've arrived at the same time if we ran straight back. We had to eliminate one before fighting the other."
"That makes no sense! You just had to kapow! And hiya!"
"...."
The two continued bickering back and forth until they stealthily rejoined the sea of panicking people.
The skirmish ended after half an hour.
Thankfully, no one died and the warriors were all completely safe and unharmed. It wasn't really much of a challenge, especially to those who were cultivators. It just took longer than expected because the faros were quite cunning and knew how to exploit their openings.
In the end, the attack on their group served as a blessing. They now have more meat for their journey. If they added the two faros that Phen and Rem killed, they would've gotten more. Unfortunately, they didn't let anyone know about it, despite all of Rem's itchings.
Phen felt his body ache. His right leg, the one he used to kick a faro, was left bruised, and he was continuously shifting the weight of his bag to feel more comfortable. He had used the muscles he thought he would never use again.
….
Within a space pocket in the Nirvana Realm.
Two people stood face to face.
One was an oracle while the other one was a demon.
One had a look of utter disgust and anger on her face while the other held no expression.
One had her golden breastplate torn open, looking like a giant blade had just ravaged through it, while the other's black robe was pristine.
Both were Divine Nirava Saints, the peak of cultivation.
But one was no match for the other.
Nine burning black flags manifested from eerie shadows and surrounded the oracle.
Seeing this, her eyes dilated in shock and fear. The person in front of her was preparing to use one of the strongest cultivation arts in the Nirvana Realm, the Nine Banners of Belial.
But her expression only lasted for a moment. What followed immediately after was the feeling of acceptance.
Seeing this technique now only meant that what she had seen in her prophecy was real. Her love for this man, the man standing right in front of her, had actually made her doubt her own identity as an oracle.
Laughable.
If only she had delivered the prophecy secretly to her people instead of trying to dissuade the man, the king of all Demons, she wouldn't be in her pitiful state right now.
Once a monster, always a monster.
At that moment, she thought she would be filled with hate. No...she wanted to be consumed by it. She wanted to detest the man she loved. She wanted her entire being to abhor this person.
So why...
Why were tears flowing from her eyes?
The demon stared at her.
For the first time since the oracle created the space pocket, the demon spoke, "All you needed to do was trust me."
At that moment, she realized she couldn't do it. The only thing she could feel towards the man was love.
Hearing the man's voice, she was reminded of all of the time she spent with him, of all the happy memories they shared together.
She wanted to say that she trusted him.
But in the end, she was still an oracle.
Afula Reha smiled lovingly at the man, her face still wet from her own tears. With all the strength she could muster, even if her chest hurt as if it was being torn open, she said, "I trust the prophecy more."
She channeled her essence.
If her opponent was hell-bent on using the Nine Banners of Belial, then she would respond accordingly.
Reha's Gate…
A black hole that one could not peer into appeared behind Afula. The space around the two began to tear, forcefully being sucked into the hole. Even the shadows from the Nine Banners of Belial were being devoured. By the second, the banners grew weaker.
Spatial arts?
The demon wondered, his hair and robe flapping in the wind.
"You know I have counters for all of your relocation arts, even Reha's Gate," Baus replied.
"I know," the oracle responded, "but there's something you don't know..."
Hearing this, Baus finally showed an expression on his face. His eyebrows furrowed in both curiosity and disbelief. He knew the woman was not bluffing.
The oracle continued her words.
"If I use my lifeforce along with world essence, you would not be able to stop me from using my abilities"
He wouldn't be able to interrupt her spells?!
Baus reacted immediately. He stretched his left hand outward, summoning essence.
Shadows began wrapping around the black hole, meaning to close it.
He tried to cancel Reha's Gate, but he realized that he couldn't. What the oracle said was true! The gate devoured his shadows instead!
Baus' gaze fell towards Afula's face. Wrinkles started to appear on her forehead, and her cheeks began to sag. She was rapidly aging as she fueled the black hole with more energy.
All the while, the black hole that Afula opened, Reha's Gate, slowly reached its maturity.
When the gate was finally ready, Baus moved. He knew this was his last opportunity.
If he could not interrupt or cancel the spatial art, then he would break it.
Baus slashed his sword forward.
Hellflame Arts: Abyssal Blade!
Flames that squirmed like black ink streaked towards the black hole that Afula opened just as she entered it.
Before Afula could fully enter the spatial tunnel, she had seen this attack. This attack held corruptive properties, and her spatial arts were not immune to it. As she said, her abilities would not be stopped, but it wasn't immune to damage.
The abyssal blade hit the black hole. The walls of the spatial tunnel began to crack and corrode.
The demon king had actually succeeded in damaging her spell.
But that wasn't the end yet.
Afula pressed her palms together, she focused all of her world essence to fix the space tunnel that was slowly crumbling. When she realized that even her essence wasn't enough, she used more of her lifeforce!
She was determined to escape.
After all, all of the lower realms and even the Nirvana Realm itself were at risk.
She had to proclaim the prophecy!
Afula struggled.
And eventually, she made it.
The black hole closed.
The spatial tunnel was restored.
Unfortunately, during the process, she was only left with a sliver of her lifespan, and none of her world essence.
On top of that, she had failed to fix one more thing: the spatial tunnel's destination.
It was altered at the last second.
….
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