58 Ashen Heart I

In the heart of Hell's Keeper Mountain, in the center of Hell's Keeper City, lied a gigantic tree. Its height spammed hundreds of meters, and its crown overshadowed everything beneath it. In a place that was either in the dark or in the gloom, it was almost a miracle for such a tree to appear.

Its white and twisted trunk looked very beautiful, almost ethereal, as it seemed to glow under the faint starlight that managed to get past the gray leaves above it. Under the night sky, it seemed to be a tree made of light and silver.

The scenery was almost ruined by the lonely figure standing beside it. It was a towering silhouette that gave an oppressive feeling just by looking at it. Looking at it from the back, a wild fiery-red mane seemed to cover all of the back of its upper body, but it couldn't hide the figure's wide shoulders.

One would feel that such a being would be able to crush rocks with a wave of its arms, and the aura it emitted gave nothing but the impression of overwhelming strength. However, the silhouette's shoulders were drooped, and its back was somewhat arched, as if the figure was carrying an unbearable weight. The pale glow the figure suffused made it seem sickly, but also gave it an eerie feeling.

Nemeus had a rare look of weariness on his face as he reached for the Ashen Heart Tree. His hands could cover a grown man's head and crush it without difficulty, but there was nothing but tenderness in his touch as he extended his thick fingers to the tree.

"I am sorry." He said in a low voice, with nothing but regret showing in his scarlet eyes.

It was an expression Lya had never seen him make. A rare moment of vulnerability for one that had to handle the matters his master had left to him. A moment of vulnerability for one that should never show weakness, or his master's work could fall apart.

In truth, Nemeus was truly tired. He felt he would not be able to handle his responsibilities for much longer. Something told him a change he would not be able to stop was coming. It did not start with Amon Skoller or Lya, but they certainly had a big part to play in it.

He looked up, to the night sky. The sky Nemeus saw was not the same anyone else but Lya and the remaining Soul Cultivators had the privilege to experience. In the sky only them could see, there was a river.

It was comprised of countless dots of bluish-white light, shining with varied intensities and having a host of different sizes. A beautiful river that seemed to be made of stars and moonlight. It was wide, and shone over the sky like a beacon of light.

In the past, very few cultivators would spend a night without looking up even once, because no matter how many times one gazed upon it, it would always feel different. There was a certain magnetism to it, a certain attraction that seemed to affect the strong Soul Cultivators.

It was a river that never stopped flowing. A river that twisted and turned around the whole world they lived in, covering it all. A river that did not end nor began in the place they called home. If anything, this small world of theirs was nothing but another of the countless places in its never-ending journey through the universe.

Nemeus could faintly sense in the distance countless dots of light falling from the river like shooting stars, as well as many other dots of light rising from the earth and joining the stars in the river.

Because that wide river, the Starry River, was not made of stars.

The Starry River was a river of souls.

"Dale Loray…" He mumbled to himself, thinking.

Dale was not one to move in the open. Unlike Alexei, he would never give his opponents a chance to win. He would slowly build up strength, and even more slowly set his pieces in the board, in such a subtle way that no one would notice.

By the time he finally revealed himself, the board would be in his hands. It was how he lived, and it was how he fought. Nemeus knew that even if he was not as strong as Alexei Vine was, he was a much more dangerous enemy.

Just the fact that Nemeus was unsure if he was indeed alive made him worry. On one hand, it was possible that whoever was moving in the shadows was not him. On the other, if it was indeed Dale, than he had the power to hide from Arthur and even kill him.

Worst of all, even after that he had not revealed himself. This meant that he was still placing his pieces in the board, still scheming, and still turning stronger.

Nevertheless, this could be a good thing. Dale was still not assured of his victory. He knew he could still be stopped and, if Dale himself felt that way, Nemeus could only agree.

If his enemy was not Dale, Nemeus was assured he could deal with him. If his enemy was Dale, there was still some hope.

His eyes suddenly turned sharp as his hand seemed to melt and pass through the glowing trunk of the Ashen Heart Tree.

"I'll need your help, brother." He spoke in his usual deep voice, but a surprising tenderness could be felt in it.

Nemeus was still looking tired, his shoulders were still drooped, but a fire had been lit in the depths of his eyes.

---

The sun was rising, tainting the farmlands and streams in the Outer Sect in a reddish light. The stones in the crude path that Daniel followed were slippery with the morning dew, still darkened by the humidity.

Even if the sun was rising, the temperature was still very cold. White mist shot out of Daniel's mouth as he breathed lightly while walking to an unsuspecting and shabby house in the Outer Ring.

Daniel's face was pale, and his eyes were still surrounded by dark circles, but his complexion was better than it had been in the Promotion Competition. Two days had passed since Amon had been eliminated and Daniel had won the competition, but he felt it had been weeks.

Jake had been very eager about his success, clearly very happy, but the Elders presiding the competition were clearly not excited. They had cold faces as they gave a half-hearted applause to his victory, before turning silent again.

Daniel did not expect anything else but that. Anyone that showed the smallest trace of happiness would, without a doubt, be seeking trouble with Lawrence Meyer.

Daniel had been promoted to the Inner Sect, receiving the rights to live in a residence of his choice in Hell's Keeper City. In addition, as a bonus reward for being the champion, he received from the hands of his smiling brother ten Water Crystals.

Elemental Crystals were an incredibly rare treasure. They were a form of crystalized Qi, naturally formed in areas where the Elemental Qi was thick and some kind of phenomena made it condense in a single place.

The degree of such crystals varied greatly according to where they were formed and their size, but even a crystal of the lowest grade would be incredibly helpful for one to undergo their Elemental Purification.

Daniel had received nothing more than ten low-grade Water Crystals. It was a very valuable prize, but it would not be of much use to him. His father had spent maybe dozens of high-grade crystals with Daniel before Jake was born, and Daniel had failed to enter Elemental Purification even with that huge boon.

Daniel's low affinity meant he would waste the vast majority of the Elemental Qi in the crystals, and the small quantity he managed to absorb would be lost in his body, mixed with the regular Qi flowing in his meridians.

He would need an overwhelming number of high-grade Water Crystals to get himself into Elemental Purification. Ten low-grade crystals would not make the cut. That being the case, he decided to put them to better use.

He stood before the wooden door of the small house in a daze. He felt a bit awkward a he knocked on it a few times. The knocks were not too loud, but were also not too low, but they were somewhat hesitant.

It took a couple of minutes for him to hear light steps coming from the other side of the door, and with a faint 'creak' it opened, revealing Amon.

He had a deathly pale face and beads of sweat rolled down his face, making his clothes damp. He walked with some difficulty, as if his legs were weak and could not sustain his body. His ashen hair was a mess and his golden eyes had a pained look in them.

"What happened to you?" Daniel couldn't help but ask instead of greeting Amon. He raised his brow as an inquiring gaze showed in his dark eyes.

"Another round of Body Tempering." Amon said a wry smile. Daniel gave him pat on the back, showing support and making Amon freeze in pain for a moment.With a disgruntled look in his face, he invited Daniel in, ignoring the wide grin he had on his face.

"Is your mother up?" Daniel asked with some hesitation as he sneaked a glance at Amon. Amon raised a brow seeing him acting like this, but shrugged it off.

"She is." He answered bluntly.

"Good. I need to speak a bit with her." Daniel said with a smile, but Amon could see the deep hesitation he showed in his eyes. It was almost as if Daniel was afraid.

Amon could understand if he felt awkward or ashamed of speaking with his mother after seven months of absence. However, the way Daniel was acting was too strange. He decided he would not think too hard on it as he made his way to his room to continue his recovery.

As Amon walked away, Daniel furrowed his brows deeply. He walked to Rebecca's room with a complex look on his face, a look that bordered unwillingness.

Taking a deep breath, Daniel raised his left hand and lightly knocked on the door.