Chapter 355: Rust Belt Chase

Whoosh!

The spatial ship descended through the thick, smog-choked atmosphere of Sector 9-Vex. This was a rogue mining world in the Ashford Belt, technically within Churchill territory but far enough from the Thirteen Worlds that the Vorn name held little weight here. Massive drills bored into the scorched earth, and towering refineries belched black smoke into the sky.

Clank. Hiss. The ship landed on a remote, dusty platform.

Kael stepped out, flanked by Vyra and a male Pillar Knight named Darian, whose cultivation had recently reached the Late Spirit Soul realm. Vyra herself had grown rapidly, now at the Rank 6 Spirit Soul realm. With Kelvin and Yuki both pushing toward the Origin Realm, Kael’s forces were becoming a terrifying juggernaut.

Kael reached into his storage ring and pulled out the Mask of a Thousand Faces.

FWOOSH!

As he placed it over his face, the artifact rippled. The mask transformed into a cool, pitch-black visage that looked like liquid shadow, completely featureless save for a thin, silver seam where his eyes would be. Simultaneously, Kael let go of the suppression on his bloodline. His dark hair shifted, turning pure, brilliant white.

Vyra’s eyes widened. "My Lord...?"

"Keep a low profile," Kael commanded, his voice slightly muffled by the void-like mask. "Vyra, rent us a room in the nearest, most secure inn. Vane, sweep the perimeter. I want to know the local hierarchy before we make a move."

Meanwhile, a few kilometers away, in a dilapidated safehouse across the city.

Smack! Crash!

Sebastian Vorn slammed his fist against the rusted metal table, his knuckles bleeding. He was pacing back and forth in the dim room, his face pale and slick with sweat. He bit down on his thumbnail, eyes wide with frantic desperation. He held a communication rune tightly.

"You don’t understand!" Sebastian screamed into the device, his voice cracking. "I don’t have time! The Vorn family has mobilized! I barely escaped the estate! Where are your people?!"

A cold, distorted voice crackled from the device. "Calm down, boy. Our people are on the way. You just need to sit tight and—"

"I’ve been sitting tight for days!" Sebastian roared. "If you don’t get me off this rock, I’ll tell them everything! I’ll tell them about the Shadow Vatican’s—"

A smooth, chilling voice echoed from the rune. "Calm down, boy. Keep your head down. If you die before we get there, that’s your own fault."

Click. The line went dead.

"Damn it! DAMN THEM ALL!" SMASH!

Sebastian hurled the communication device against the wall, shattering it into pieces. He collapsed onto a rusted chair, burying his face in his hands. He had sold out his own family, betrayed his sister, and thrown his lot in with monsters. Now, he was trapped in a cage of his own making, terrified of the shadow that was coming for him.

Back at the Inn.

Kael sat on a makeshift throne-like chair in the center of the rented suite, his white hair cascading over his shoulders, the black mask making him look like an ancient, wrathful deity.

Two Shadow Hounds, dressed in ragged civilian clothes, knelt before him, their heads bowed.

"My Lord," the first Hound began, his voice steady despite his young age. "We tracked the target’s spatial signature to the Rustveil Wastes on the eastern continent. It’s a massive network of abandoned mines and scrapyards. His exact location is still unknown, but we are sweeping the area."

Kael turned to Vyra. "How many Hounds do we have on this planet?"

"Eight, my Lord," Vyra replied, her hand resting on her sword.

"Converge all of them on the Rustveil Wastes," Kael ordered. "Find him. I’ll give you eight hours. Whoever locates him first will be heavily rewarded—a full set of King Grade cultivation pills and a promotion."

The Shadow Hounds’ eyes lit up with fierce determination. "As you command!" They vanished into the shadows, slipping out of the windows.

Five hours later, BEEP! BEEP!

Kael was meditating on the time dilation of his inner world when a sharp Beep! cut through the silence. Vyra burst into the room.

"My Lord! One of the Hounds found him. He’s making a run for it!"

Kael stood up, the black mask shifting fluidly with his movements. "Move out."

The Rustveil Wastes.

SCREEEECH!

A massive, terrifying screech tore through the smog-filled sky.

Kael, Vyra, and Darian arrived landing on a high ridge overlooking a vast scrapyard. Above them, soaring through the clouds, was Sebastian. A massive Crimson-Feathered Roc, its plumage dripping with red, corrupt energy, swooped down from the clouds. On its back sat Sebastian, clinging desperately to the harness, his face twisted in terror.

Beside him on the beast was a cloaked figure, his face hidden behind a bone-white mask radiating a sickly aura.

Sebastian looked down, his eyes locking onto Kael. Even with the mask, there was no way he wouldn’t recognise that visage. Pure terror washed over Sebastian’s face. "GO! FLY FASTER!" he screamed at the Roc.

Kael didn’t hesitate. "Come out."

ROOOAAAR!

A deafening, primal roar shook the very earth. The skies darkened as the Dark Wyvern materialized from Kael’s shadow. It had grown immensely, now a terrifying Rank 6 Spirit Soul beast. Its scales were as dark as the void, and its eyes burned with demonic fire.

Vyra and Darian stumbled back, their jaws dropping. The aura radiating from the Wyvern was suffocating. But they quickly composed themselves—after all, this was Kael Cassian Vorn. Impossible things were his norm. They quickly buried their shock as they leaped onto the Wyvern’s back.

"Kill the mount!" Kael commanded, leaping onto the Wyvern’s back too.

FWOOOSH!

The Dark Wyvern beat its massive wings, launching them into the air with explosive force. It opened its maw, gathering a massive orb of pitch-black flames, and blasted it toward the fleeing Vulture-Roc.

The people in the slums below screamed in panic, thinking the world was ending. BOOM!

Just as the dark flames were about to engulf Sebastian, two figures erupted from the scrapyard below, intercepting the attack.

They were Ironhide Rhino Beast-kin, their bodies covered in thick, metallic gray plating. The two Rank 5 Spirit Soul beast-kin slammed their massive fists into the ground, raising a wall of dense, earthen metal.

BZZT! The dark flames collided with the barrier, shattering it but dissipating in the process.

Beside him, a Storm-Devil Hawk-kin (Rank 5 Spirit Soul) flapped his crackling wings, summoning a massive tornado that swept the residual flames away.

Kael frowned beneath his mask.

Before he could press the attack, the sky suddenly grew crowded.

WHOOSH! WHOOSH! WHOOSH!

A dozen more flying beasts broke through the smog. On their backs sat figures draped in dark robes, their faces covered by identical red masks.

A sickening, corruptive aura washed over the scrapyard. The air grew heavy, and the ambient mana began to curdle.

Kael’s eyes narrowed beneath his mask as he sensed their sickly, corrupted auras.

"House of Crimson," he murmured.