Chapter 25: A Trade

“Hand over the dark attribute’s essence and you will be let go!” A voice from Zax’s rear shouted.

Ignoring the quickly approaching Martial Mortal, Zax immersed himself in converging kinetic energy to Kinetic Force and drilling faster.

There were currently around fifty persistent experts on his tail. Five of which were Gong Vreil, Kirik and the other three who collaborated with him for the dark attribute’s essence. Another four, and at the lead, were four Martial Mortals.

Pushing his endurance to the limit, spent to the point that his body no longer had the excess vitality to heal itself, while his right arm ceased regenerating at the beginning of the elbow, Zax still refused to give up.

Except from the Linder Seeds, anything and everything consumable, every bit of food or medicine he purchased in Glorious Ground or hunted have been depleted.

Suffice to say that Zax initial plan of losing his pursuers and finding a place to rest was annulled.

“You won’t be able to escape for long, brat!”

“To hold this dark attribute’s essence you better pray for a miracle!”

“Even if you’ll escape, it would only be a temporary alleviation. In the end we’ll catch you and the more you prolong the chase the less likely you’ll get to live afterwards!”

These lines and more hassled Zax unceasingly.

CRACK!

BOOM!

The ground up ahead raptured, and then broke as long sharp claws burrowed from the front, targeting Zax.

It was an Advanced third level Core Master, mole type beast and its speed underground was not inferior to Zax’s.

WHOOSH!

Zax bent back, hardly avoiding the two sets of giant claws. Instead of having his head cut open, he only sustained a shallow scratch from his upper chest to his forehead.

BANG!

Kicking up, he hit the abdomen of the mole type beast. He was not able to place much force in the strike, just enough to jolt the mole’s internals.

“Bastard!”

Both the mole type beast and Zax cursed, before he renewed his escape.

‘These encounters becoming more and more dangerous! If I were in my best shape then I would only have to worry from the Martial Mortals catching up!’ Zax shook his head. ‘“If” and “If” and “If” and “If” ... there are better things that I should consider than wasting time lamenting’.

Shifting his thoughts to the two pills in the spatial ring, he wondered about their medicinal properties. They could be poisonous or remedial. Although the former could bring disastrous effects should Zax consume them, the latter, regardless what they are supposed to treat, due to his cultivated physique, could be safely and wantonly absorbed whichever way he wants. In the latter’s case, should the pills have enough vitality, Zax could directly accelerate the recuperation of any wound!

‘Should I... ?’ Zax was indecisive. Stupidly relying on the short secession caused by the black sky event; he failed to predict the capacity of how much his situation can deteriorate. Another misstep was all he needed to cross the line between life and death.

CRASH!

The wall of earth he drilled through crumbled and Zax abruptly halted his advancement as he almost fell into a large pit.

Instinctively looking down, his face blanched and his body stiffly grabbed the encompassing earth.

The space he arrived to was not any regular pit. It had a diameter of roughly eight hundred meters and appeared five to six kilometer deep. Up above the black sky were still apparent and down below ... tens of thousands wraiths aimlessly hovered, fully awake!

The pit was one of the wraiths’ slumbering chambers in the ridge, where myriad of them assembled, and Zax just drilled one third to the bottom!

Momentarily stunned, Zax forgot everything and concentrated on doing nothing that will alert the wraiths to his presence. It took him till his palms felt the tremors his pursuers caused in the ground to recall his rotten situation.

Panting and shaking he tried to think... ‘Too much, all of this is too much!’ He could not help himself from suffering the initial panic.

To drill forward he had to cross the pit, whether by climbing alongside its round walls or jumping to the other side and hoping that none of the wraths will notice him. Going any other direction would slow him down.

First and foremost, he hurriedly consumed a Linder Seed. ‘Relax!’ He berated himself. ‘They are approaching ... if they’ll arrive before I pass the pit there will definitely be mayhem for the dark attribute’s essence, I would be caught in it and the wraiths will surely join in the fray-’ He was about to finish the thought when his eyes suddenly shone and his mind came up with an idea. ‘Mayhem!’

Zax stopped ruminating and focused on sensing how close his pursuers are.

Clenching his fist and gathering his resolve, he took a deep breath and jumped, not down or up, but to the other side of the pit. The distance was too far to make up without utilizing Kinetic Force to kick the air and stay afloat. Luckily, Zax control on the Kinetic Force was high enough to prevent the eruption of miniature explosion with every kick from making a sound.

CRASH!

CRASH!

CRASH!

CRASH!

...

Earth and stone collapsed as cavities started to form in the pit’s wall. One figure after another showed up with ferocious countenance that turned aghast the instant they scrutinized the pit.

Be they Core Masters or Martial Mortals, one has to admit that their reflexes and perception is really outstanding. Regardless of how engrossed with the chase they were, all pursuers froze in place when they arrive to the pit, as if their lives depended on it.

‘Don’t move! Don’t talk!’

Sublime Soul Senses spread to the sea of consciousness of all the experts, very subtly, to not arouse the kin senses of the wraiths.

A hairy and short Core Master who received the warning had a change of mind when he glimpsed at the wraiths. His party belonged to the Mercenary Association and each member was promised a great sum of Splinters if not for obtaining a dark attribute’s essence, then for acting as surveillance. Nonetheless, due to the cluster of wraiths the risk significantly just outweighed the gains.

He was about to turn back when the figure of the leaping Zax entered his field of view and his mouth unintentionally uttered in agitation. “This lunatic... !”

Naturally, the short and hairy Core Master was probably among the last to notice Zax, though no one dared to chase, or more accurately “distract”, him in fear that any clamor will attract the wraiths’ attention.

Zax gently fell on the other side of the pit, grabbing the earthy wall and hastily burrowing a nook to stand in and finally letting out a long bated breath.

Turning around he saw his pressures. Some moved after him the moment he landed on the other side of the pit. They glared at him, but were not so gutsy as before to shout threats and conditions for the dark attribute’s essence.