Nuba

"It's late sir!" said the stocky man emphasized the word he says. Didn't like his words to be refuted even by a youngster like Xuan Yuan.

Xuan Yuan was about to make another sound but was restrained by Zhi Qiang. "They already know the terrain here, so we can only trust them"

"Then tomorrow we will follow them out of this Mountain just like that?" Xuan Yuan asked irritated because Zhi Qiang would rather believe them than him.

"Let's take a break" he didn't want to argue with him, Zhi Qiang just gave orders.

All rest. And through the mystery of the Iceberg, all fell asleep. Even though Zhi Qiang had been cleaning up hard against the drowsiness that invaded, in the end he still fell asleep.

Once again, the second Xuan Yuan closed his eyes, he falls asleep. He was in the strong waves of his dream the night before. His body was floating aimlessly. Up, down. Left right. No one was there to help him. Not Zhi Qiang, not even the two men he just met. He was alone in that room. Suddenly One voice roared. "Shi Xuan Yuan" Xuan Yuan startled, he snapped his head to looked for the source of the voice but he couldn't find who had called him. How could he clearly know his name, even complete with his surname.

"What are you looking for in this Mountain?" the voice asked. With the same tone of voice, flatly no emotion was heard.

"I, aaaa, I'm looking for the M-mei Looong Sworrrd," he said in a trembling voice. Of course, anyone would speak in such a tone if they were in the middle of a wave that shook their body.

The voice sounded like a mumble. Xuan Yuan was still being tossed around by the vortex of waves. His body tumbled back and forth. He tried to open his eyes to look around, looking for the voice that was talking to him. but his efforts were fruitless. Because the more he tried to circulate his eyes, the more the vortex of waves moved fast and hard. Making his body flung here and there. He felt his body like a soft object until it turned into a rigid object, which now felt pain all over his body. He winced in pain.

In the midst of the physical and mental turmoil, he heard the voice speak again.

"What are you looking the Sword for?" asked the voice. From his tone, it could be deduced that he was placing all his suspicions on that sentence.

"Master… Chi… You… ordered me to… look for it" Xuan Yuan replied in a voice barely clear due to the vortex of waves.

"Nuba!" snapped the voice, sounded angry. The surrounding aura suddenly turned down drastically, cold. Falling to the lowest cold point. In addition to the cold, it also sends a very strong wind gust. Making Xuan Yuan's body crash even more violently.

From the body that feels frozen, added by the gust of wind. He really wanted this to end quickly. "Nuba?... Who is Nuba?..." He asked confused. His body was spinning, giving him a headache. His eyes were tightly shut. He thought if he opened it, he would be much more dizzy. So, he decided to close his eyes tightly.

"Didn't you just mention that person?" the voice turned to him instead. Making Xuan Yuan's forehead wrinkle deeply, confused.

He had never heard of or knew anyone by the name of Nuba, this was the second time he had come out of the Banquan palace, but from the first trip until this time. Not a single person he's met with the name Nuba, so who is this voice referring to?

He thought hard as his body began to cramp up more and more, but he finally came to a conclusion. "You mean Master Chi you?" he asked to make sure what he thought was right.

"Yes," answered the voice curtly in a deep voice, to the lowest point. Sending a chill from his nape to his spine. Making his body cramp, now he can't move. Like a dead block.

"Why do you call him Nuba?" Xuan Yuan asked curiously. He had never heard Zhi Qiang mention another name for Chi You as Nuba. Even the people in the palace never at all, even uttered that title. So, it was a strange thing for him. After all, the title doesn't seem like it's from the country of Banquan.

"That's a title for his greed for power, so if you want to get that Sword just give it to him. You better go home. There's nothing left of your kindness in the past" snapped the voice. and this time the whirlpool suddenly stopped. His body was still hovering in the room.

The room was dark, as dark as the inside of a cave, with no outside light. It was pitch black, his eyes could see nothing but darkness. The breeze was not heard, the sound was not heard at all, it was silent.

What happened, was he going to stay in this room all the time. The room he didn't know was where. He also didn't know how to get his foot to hit the floor. Then find a way out of here.

But the last sentence of the voice made his mind jolt, curious. He asked, "What do you mean by nothing left of my kindness in the past?"

Not the answer he received. The second he finished asking, his body was blown away, flung deep into the darkness deeper and deeper. His heart winced, as if every second would suddenly stop beating and he would die there. His heart sank.

But the next second his eyes opened wide. It wasn't darkness that he saw, but the thick fog, the white expanse filling his vision, the thick snow of the Gangrim Iceberg.

He breathed a sigh of relief. He thought he was still in the dark room. His brow furrowed, maybe but he was dreaming, like yesterday's dream. From the same dark room. The difference is that he knows very well if yesterday he entered was in a cave. But today all is dark. So, he didn't know what it was. Maybe the space between the real and the unreal realm. He didn't know clearly.

He glanced around. Beside him lay Zhi Qiang's mighty body. On the other hand, five steps away lay the bodies of two men he had met, before he fell asleep without him noticing.

He moved his body, that second, he grimaced. His body felt cramped, and numb. He thought it was a dream just now, but why was his body actually feeling the effects of the crash from the vortex of waves. Or is this another effect of the current state of affairs being filled with snow plains? he asked himself. Without him knowing it, his tear flowed from the corner of his eye, down to his temple, down to his earlobe. Until it wets his hair.

He couldn't even move his hands. With difficulty he opened his frozen mouth. He tried to make a sound, calling out to Zhi Qiang. The sound that came out was a gust of cold air coming out of his mouth. He tried again, this time he managed to make a sound, but it was small, only his ears could hear the sound. He tried the third time. With all his might he expended the remaining strength he had in himself chanting "Zhi... Qiang..."