Chapter 28: The Herald of Depths
The forest no longer whispered — it howled.
Behind the fleeing group, the air trembled with the roar of the awakened entity. Trees warped from the sheer spiritual pressure, leaves igniting into blue flame before crumbling into ash. The pulse from the ruined altar had become a full-blown storm, rippling out through the secret realm like waves crashing against fragile glass.
Lin Ho's breath came in steady bursts. Despite the urgency, his mind was unnervingly calm. Chaos Qi swirled around him, not resisting the outside pressure but harmonizing with it — as if it understood the nature of what had been awoken.
The others, however, were not so fortunate.
> "What in the nine heavens was that?" the green-robed girl panted beside him.
> "Something that should've remained sealed," Lin Ho answered grimly. "We triggered it… or perhaps it was waiting."
The tiger-cloaked boy clutched his side, blood seeping through his robe. One of the revenants had grazed him before they escaped. "We're not going to make it back to the entrance array in time, are we?"
Lin Ho paused. His eyes narrowed as he reached out with his senses. The exit array — the one anchored by the Qingye Sect elders — was now fluctuating violently, its energy like a beacon blinking in distress.
> "No. We'll be cut off if we go back the same way."
> "So what then?" the saber-wielder growled. "Run in circles until we die?"
> "We go forward," Lin Ho said, turning toward a thicket of dark brush. "There's another way — if the old maps are still true."
He led them into a narrow ravine, jagged cliffs pressing in from both sides. The wind here was strange — it carried the scent of salt and bone. Carvings in the rock hinted at forgotten histories: spirals, sigils, and images of sea kings kneeling before a black sun.
They trudged for an hour before the land opened into a shallow basin filled with standing stones. At the center stood a spire made of sea crystal, glowing faintly.
> "A waystone," Lin Ho murmured. "It's part of the Deep Court's old teleportation system. If we can activate it, we might be able to jump to another part of the realm — maybe closer to the surface."
The others looked at him with disbelief.
> "And you know this how?" the green-robed girl asked.
Lin Ho met her gaze. "Because my grandfather taught me things... and because the Chaos within me recognizes this place. It's part of the past I've inherited — even if I don't understand all of it."
He stepped toward the spire, pressing his palm against the surface. It responded instantly. Lines of black and gold light raced across its surface, forming a complex pattern of shifting tides.
But the reaction triggered something else.
A screech tore through the sky — and from the cliffs above, the creature finally revealed itself.
It was massive — twice the height of a man, with six limbs, a body formed of coral-plated muscle, and a crown of writhing kelp. Its eyes glowed abyss-blue, and in its chest pulsed the same sigil as the altar: the mark of the Deep Court.
> "The Herald…" Lin Ho whispered.
The saber-wielder drew his blade. "Then we fight!"
> "No," Lin Ho snapped. "You survive. Buy me time!"
As the others engaged the creature, Lin Ho knelt at the base of the spire, Chaos Qi flowing through his veins. He began to feed it, not with force, but with resonance — syncing his breath with the flow of the ancient formation.
The battle roared behind him. Screams, steel, and the guttural growl of the Herald filled the air.
The waystone pulsed once… twice…
Then erupted in light.
> "NOW!" Lin Ho shouted.
The group dove toward him just as the teleportation ring activated. The last thing they saw was the Herald lunging forward, claws outstretched — and then everything turned white.
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End of Chapter 28