It took Zhang a while to digest that such a world could exist… His master tried to explain some concepts to him, but not even Immortal had any clear explanations for the existence of such a place…
Was it truly a different world, some sort of astral world that was not normally visible, or just some sort of vault for so-called forbidden treasures?
Opening the door was quite simple. The Eternal King, Immortal, and Zhang simply placed their palms on a certain location. Afterward, several sigils glowed, forming strange runes. Then the Eternal King used a round, dotted key to open a lock of the same shape.
Soon, the gigantic doors swung inward, but all that was visible was a powerful white light that nearly blinded them.
The Eternal King then stepped away from the door with the others, took out two Tree Pouches, and used his Soul Telekinesis again to hand them to Zhang and Immortal.
When Zhang picked up the bag and bonded with it, he could see five items resting inside. One of them was a black scythe identical to the one both Necromancer Masters wielded, and it was also the same scythe as the Reaper of Stygai's…
Although the scythe was the most eye-catching, the first item he picked up was a crystal; when he used it, he could immediately understand all the details of the remaining four items. Besides the scythe, two additional Primordial items were present: one for the body and one for the soul. The last item was something Zhang or any other Necromancer would kill for: a Resurrection Totem.
"We'll be in in 30 minutes. Prepare your totem. I'll have two Senior Lichs guarding the tower, and Immortal has also brought Zha'Thik…"
Hearing the Eternal King's instructions, Zhang followed every step to bind his new totem and hide it inside the tower. As for creating new innate spells, he left that for later; after all, he didn't know what he might need once he was inside that place…
Less than 20 minutes later, Immortal also finished his final preparations. He watched Zhang finalize his bond with the resurrection totem, but decided not to warn him that it wouldn't work where they were going… Soon, the two approached the open door again…
"Before we go in, I'll tell you about the forbidden treasures, or at least what I've managed to learn about them…"
Immortal shifted in his seat, even more anxious. Not even he knew what kind of items might be inside this place, since the Eternal King had kept it a secret all this time...
Zhang was the same, his curiosity killing him...
"The first item is already something that defies the heavens, and was considered forbidden for the most obvious reason... The Cloak of Ziron not only possesses frightening concealment abilities, but according to the legends left on the walls of this floor and some ancient scrolls found in Stygai, the wearer of this magical cloak can freely enter and exit the world of souls..."
"Is this serious?" Immortal asked in shock, while Zhang's mouth dropped open in disbelief.
"Yes, I went through so much to open this door, and knowing that such an item existed makes me very uneasy..." the Eternal King said, melancholy...
"So if we want to get out of there quickly, this would be the item we should go after..." Zhang muttered almost inaudibly.
"The second item is called the Crown of Eternity... It grants the bearer the ability to live forever, as well as absolute control over the cycle of life and death. Its powers and abilities are unclear. But as a Necromancer, I must say that such a power to bring the dead back to life shouldn't exist; the crown should bring them back in a distorted form, similar to what we do when creating undead creatures... But I could also be wrong..."
This time, both Zhang and Immortal fell silent. They had both had people in their lives they wanted to bring back to life. But they knew there shouldn't be such a miraculous thing...
"The third item is called Necronomicon, The Book of the Dead... This book grants absolute power over the undead, with many forbidden magics and powerful rituals... Like the previous items, I'm not sure about all its uses..."
Noticing the lack of comment again, the Eternal King explained the fourth and fifth items:
"The fourth item is called the Staff of Nergal. With an absurd amount of powerful, advanced spells of different affinities, this staff can also store infinite souls for the use of your many spells…"
This time, it was Zhang who reflected; his cloak could store 50 souls to utilize his advanced flight ability. And the scythe he had just received could store 10 times that amount… If he could obtain this staff, he would never again worry about spell reagents or soul stones… Indeed, this was one of the best items so far…
"The fifth item is a secret; it is my objective this time upon entering the world of souls… I recommend that none of you attempt to pursue it, or I will treat you as my enemies."
"I would never do that, Your Majesty!" Zhang said, bowing.
"We will follow your will, my King!"
"Well... Then let's go in, we don't need to waste any more time..."
Taking one last deep breath, Zhang stepped through the giant, luminous doors.
The Eternal King, entering first, only breathed a sigh of relief when he realized he no longer needed to undergo any restrictions...
Immortal looked worriedly around to ensure he was safe and clear of enemies...
As for Zhang, when his vision cleared again, he observed a different landscape, which was completely blue-green. With many semi-transparent mountains and trees in the surroundings. This strange coloration resembled the color of the souls he could see using his Astral Vision...
The second thing he and the others did was check the speed at which the stones that would allow them to return were charging. And to their surprise, none of them were charging energy...
"Er, um, is this defective, Your Majesty?" Zhang asked in a startled voice.
Immortal hid his concern as he also waited for an answer.
"It's working, but I made a mistake... Time here passes differently than in our world..."
"How long will it take, my King?"
"At least 200 years..."
"What? I haven't brought enough food for that long..."
"Enemies are approaching, flee in different directions!"
Ignoring Zhang's complaint, the Eternal King sounded a warning and began to float in the sky, preparing to flee...
Immortal was the second to sense the danger, and he also floated using his telekinesis...
Zhang was startled upon seeing the two figures, unbeatable in his eyes. He began to flee in fear. He activated Velo Mortis to fly, as his telekinesis was still far inferior to that of the two Millennial Necromancers...
When he rose high enough, he finally saw the disaster coming toward them...
A total of nine Reapers, with appearances far more frightening and cruel than that of the Stygai Reaper, flew at high speed toward them, each of them quite unique, wielding scythes of different and unusual shapes. They also lacked the color souls should have, proving they were special existences in this world…
The Eternal King tore through the sky, flying in one direction, and was soon followed by three Reapers...
Seeing Immortal about to do the same, Zhang cried out with tears in his eyes:
"Master, don't leave me!"
Immortal looked pitifully at his disciple and said,
"I'm so sorry, little Zhang. It seems I've failed as a master for the third time... This time it's every man for himself... Sigh..."
With a final sigh, Immortal flew off at high speed, followed by three more Reapers.
"MASTERRRRR!"
Zhang, with tears and snot streaming from his nose, cried out for his master one last time before his round figure also flew off in a different direction, followed by the last three Reapers. But compared to the other two, his flight speed was far slower, and he would soon be overtaken…
***
In the Corpse City, a few months after Zhang entered the World of Souls… All the remaining coffins in the central cemetery now had severe cracks and could shatter at any moment, releasing new, terrifying aberrations within Stygai…
It was also around this time that Rafael came to the city and was nearly killed by the new abomination that could roam the city even during safe hours.
What the city's 13 Master Necromancers and their many servants and disciples didn't know was that now, that abomination could also enter the towers, completely ignoring their protections and the city's natural law...
But for now, only the defenses of the small Towers had fallen… But it wouldn't be long before even the medium and large Towers lost their defenses…
Unaware of the approaching danger, Esmer continued his experiments within the Necro Tower using the young dragon he had stolen from Valyria…
End of Volume 1 - Stygai
****
Special thanks to Patreons:
Sage's Supporter: Jan, Vinnie, frimorigo, Parsa, Scott Robertson, and Pato Senalima!
Magic Apprentice: Axel Bour, Gabriele Sulpizio, Takatchi, mandeep singh, Austin, Kobe Robertson, Paul Gaslac, Niteo akuma, 704Corleon, Rodrigo, WhoisMitch, Leery Falcon, Grave Walker, and adam!
Senior Magic Apprentice: Cole Bromley, Avacus, and TabbyRabbit!