บท 20: Mysteries
After a few more minutes, the battles in the surroundings slowly wrapped up. Manny and Tina were subdued while Cyrus, exhausted from the intense exertion, succumbed to fatigue and passed out. That previously scorching heat that encased him gradually faded and was replaced by a pungent, burnt smell.
A brief overview of Cyrus's clothes showed no signs of damage from flames despite the steam rolling off his body. Only the nearby surroundings told a different story, with a few visible patches of black grass and singed flesh scattered around.
Jared's mangled and charred black body, in a completely unrecognizable state, served as evidence of his horrific end. This type of power was beyond their current understanding and opened their eyes to this unimaginable world of cultivators.
....
Don had left earlier to help subdue Manny, the most powerful amongst this group. His outstanding performance in the previous trials was not for show, as each attack carried a blistering wind that cut at his opponent's face. Those relentless and heavy attacks rained down endlessly on the twins.
Hearing those inhuman screams of pain and the hoarse roars left him deeply shaken. Without even bothering about his personal safety, he tried exchanging injury for injury in an all-out attempt to escape. Now was not the time to worry about how he would survive the later parts of the trial.
'I need to leave right now! DIE!' Roaring out loud, he redoubled his all out assault with blood-shot eyes.
In the end, it was all futile. Before he could take the complete advantage, Don's timely arrival resulted in a shaky equilibrium forming between both sides. His help brought some of the initiative back into their hands. Following the original plan became much easier as they forced Manny towards one of the trap infested areas. It was better to be safe rather than sorry, especially when an enemy has his back up against the wall.
A few minutes later and large amounts of sweat began accumulating on Manny's forehead. Each passing second saw his predicament turning worse and worse. Glancing at Tina, who was basically subdued, despairing thoughts slowly crept up in the back of his mind. And like an infectious virus, his strikes became sluggish and hesitation was apparent in his eyes.
The originally fierce offensive lost its sharpness, and his body language became a lot more reserved. With all of his hope lost, he stopped forcefully resisting their attacks and retreated in the direction they pushed him towards.
Even though he was giving ground, Manny's face portrayed someone that had absolute confidence in their victory. "Considering the fact that you guys are barely even with me, I don't mind letting you off this one time. Just take it as some charity for the younger generation in our group, a sentimental blessing for you, hahaha. I'll be off then!" That beaming smile and the soft sunny glow that gently covered his body created a heroic, although shameless, picture.
Despite the previous traumatic flashbacks, Don had a slight smile grace his face. "Aye, this idiot has delved deeply into the dao of shamelessness. Truly reaching the realm of 'one with shame'."
Manny's confident expression turned into a scowl. That momentary slip up lead to him falling into a 8 foot deep fall trap. Flailing his hands in the air as he fell, a loud thud sent up a cloud of dirt and dust.
"Man this guy is unlucky!" Peeking over the edge of the hole, James swore he could see stars circling around Manny's eyes. There was blood dripping down the one and only rock in that pit which basically told the entire story.
Connor could barely cover his smug smile as he mentioned from the side, "Hehehe, seems like he wasn't all that in the end."
Don, not paying attention anymore, gazed at the unconscious Cyrus worriedly. He had ended another human life and in such a brutal, primitive fashion. He could not help but shiver when he thought back to that frightening scene.
Don calmed himself down again and asked James for some help in tying up Manny so they could quickly leave. After all, it has not been long since those monstrous apes had left.
.....
Darkness enveloped Cyrus's mind. He felt like he had a high-fever that was burning his body from the inside out. Attempting to move only resulted in an unnerving feeling of weightlessness. There was no sound as it felt like this dark abyss went on for eternity.
"W-where am I," but only incoherent mumbling came out. His hazy mind could not comprehend what was going on before slipping back into unconsciousness. Cyrus barely awoke to a cool sensation that covered his forehead.
Cracking open one eye, a glaring light impaired his vision. Disoriented, his hand shakily reached out to grasp something real. A hand flew out, clasping his hand with care. A familiar, sweet voice said some words he could not make out. Only the caring tone let him know he was in a safe environment. Relaxing, he once again succumbed to the darkness.
"Guys! Cyrus woke up, he finally woke up!" Talia, choking up a bit from her emotions, called out to the rest of the group.
Don and Sasha were the first to rush over with visible excitement. However, just as they arrived, he was already asleep again. "Talia! Are you lying to me? Tch, acting all innocent but deep down she's a vixen. They really teach them young nowadays." Shaking her head as if she had been given a shock, Sasha already saw the steady breathing and the slight rosiness in Cyrus's cheeks.
Don was not in the mood to joke around right now, though. He was troubled, contemplating how to break the news of Jared's death. No matter how you look at it, enemy or not, he killed a human and brutally at that, for the first time. Anyone would be emotionally scarred afterwards and being the bearer of bad news left him a little scared.
"Whatever, I'll just go with the flow." After deciding to put it off, he released that breath he had been holding for what seemed like eternity.
...
"Ughhhhhh, what the hec-, ah ah ah." That slight movement to gather his bearings sent immediate signals of pain everywhere on his body. The injury halted any further idea of surveying the rest of the area. Besides, a long stretch of fresh grass swayed in the wind as birds gently chirped in the afternoon sun, calming his worries. Unware of how much time had passed while he was asleep, he could only wait for his friends to come back.
'I think I might have torn every muscle in my body. Even my fingers are struggling to move.' Doing an internal check of his body left him stunned speechless. For the first time in his life, he was panicking about whether he would be able to move again. Little did he know, a few hours ago and his life as a crippled was basically guaranteed.
"Cyrus! Hahaha, you 're finally awake, sleepy head!" Talia's sweet voice echoed over the empty plains.
Slightly turning his neck to see her approaching figure left him wincing from the sharp discomfort. With a smile that looked more like crying, he mustered a feeble response. "Thought you guys ditched me. Good to see that at least little sister Talia still cares about me, haha- cough."
Running over, she went off on a tangent. "Hehehe, I would never leave brother Cyrus behind. How are you feeling now? Does it hurt anywhere? You look much better than before. We honestly thought you might not recover until the end of the test!" Touching him all over, he hissed in pain as she poked and prodded all around his body. It was like she forgot he only recently fell unconscious from severe wounds.
"Relax, relax, injured man here. I'm pretty hurt, but not sure what's wrong if I'm being honest. By the way, where are Jared, Manny and Tina?" Cyrus was doing his best to look around as he was worried that Jared, the primary culprit, had escaped or not.
Talia's face rapidly paled as she avoided his gaze. The panic in her expression did not escape his eyes, but Don, from behind, butted in to alleviate the situation. "Cyrus, we should discuss this later, but right now, we need to figure out what are next plans are."
He was right. Currently, they had a few days left in the survival challenge. That reminded brough him back to what John had mentioned when he gave him the techniques. There was a legend that passed from mouth to mouth about an ancient heritage deep in the forest. No one had ever found it, but to this day, that story is still passed on. Based on their current team set-up. It wouldn't be too hard to make it there, hopefully.
Coming back to reality from zoning out, he quickly responded, "Y-yeah, you're right. I need to heal up, and I don't know how long this could take. It might be a couple days in the worst-case scenario."
Don inwardly shook his head at that. They may be safe right now, but nobody could guarantee that being the case tomorrow. It was best to stay on the move or find a very inconspicuous hiding spot to wait out the rest of the trial. If it were not for the fact they already acquired the necessary number of monster kills, they would be in trouble.
Before Don could reply, Cyrus continued, "However, I think I might recover a lot quicker than expected."
Don, Talia, and the new arrivals in the twins, Sasha and Jacob, glanced at him with weird expressions. If it was before seeing him go berserk and burning Jared, and the surrounding forest, black, they may have considered it as boastful words. Now, they all had an awkward and pale countenance similar to Talia from earlier.
Confused, Cyrus directed a questioning gaze at these people. "Is there something you are not telling me? Also, where are Jared, Manny, and Tina?"
Don, being the one closest to Cyrus, signaled for the rest to leave as he decided to explain the situation.
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