"How is this possible?"
Commander Genk's stunned voice stuttered out.
Everyone's eyes bulged in disbelief at the same time, except for Hartley and Zhi Ruo of course.
The group had just emerged from the forest into the bright sunlight, holding up their hands to shield their eyes from the blinding rays pelting down, the golden sun hovered over their heads, its brightness no longer hindered by the canopy of tree branches that protected them inside the forest.
Quickly everyone's eyes adjusted to the bright glare..... the scene facing them shocked the group into silence.
Never before had they witnessed such widespread devastation, even a seasoned war veteran like Commander Genk was gobsmacked.
He had to stop and take stock, mouth hanging wide open.
"Seems like a battle between high level demi-gods took place here, their full wrath must have been mercilessly unleashed without care," Kang mumbled out loud, he stood rooted to the spot, head panning from side to side with wonder etched in his eyes.
"Must have been a terrifying ordeal for everyone else." Qin Li gulped as he spoke.
Even though Hartley had seen it all before, he could never get used to the magnitude of destruction facing them.
Evidence of the brutal conflict and its apocalyptic outcome was laid bare before everyone's eyes, not a metre of the alien terrain was spared. It wouldn't be wrong to say the destruction was never-ending.
The remnants of mythical statues and majestic buildings were laid on the ground, abandoned and shattered like worthless coal.
Gouges and fissures wounded the terrain for miles in every direction. Nothing grew within a hundred metres around those scars scattered across the vista.
The most harrowing detail for first timers in the pocket dimension was the lack of human beings.
No signs of human activity was anywhere to be seen, no matter how far one travelled in any direction. It was unimaginable to think that the human race could come this close to extinction.
On the contrary, the constant roars and footsteps of powerful beasts, could be heard roaming everywhere around them.
Having been sheltered in the forest for a year, the majority of the group hadn't witnessed the real face of the pocket dimension.
The less trees, shrubbery and grass there were, the more apparent the real circumstances of the pocket dimension became.
Hartley inhaled deeply, addressing the group while their eyes were all plastered to the landscape of mass destruction.
"This will be our reality for at least the next ten years.
There is no place in this dimension untouched by disaster.
No respite from the wilderness and no mercy from beasts or hostile humans who cross our paths.
There will be situations where me or Kang won't be able to guarantee your safety.
It is up to you to not fall into those situations."
Hartley took a few seconds for his words to sink in.
"This is our new normal." He finished, pointing at the devastation.
The group exchanged serious looks, then silently took their first steps on their journey south, following as Hartley led the way.
...
Five humans moved across the massive dystopia ruled by the beasts.
Battles with lesser beast were almost as common as breathing. Through these tribulations the group bonded together, growing stronger and closer as they realised their survival was dependent on each other.
Another year passed without notice.
***
Whoosh!
Qin Li moved with stunning suddeness, three fluid steps took him pass a cluster of trees and five metres to his right, leaving a burst of green particles in the air and a pair of blurry after-images behind.
His relearned movements, reflexes and improved cultivation served him well in dodging the incoming threat.
A fraction of a second later, a screeching winged creature swooped down, clamping its talons around one of his unstable after-images, zooming pass like a rocket.
The captured after-image fluttered through its grasp, disappearing like smoke.
The creature released an almighty screech in frustration, realising the target had evaded.
Simultaneously green sparks sprayed from the soles of Qin Li's feet, propelling him forward like a bullet with the assistance of the wind element.
Within another five steps he caught up to the flying beast from behind, summoning his weapon from his space ring and attacking with precision, giving the creature no chance to gain elevation and escape.
The eagle-like beast had failed its attempted ambush, it was now looking to make a speedy retreat, only for its throat to meet the blade of Qin Li's double sided silver axe.
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A rank 6 spirit weapon flashed by.
Pfft!
Blood streaked from the creature's neck, dousing the trees and ground with splatters of red, it crash landed heavily into the craggy ground, kicking up an explosion of dirt and feathers.
Rolling to a stop after mowing through another couple trees.
Its blood began pooling under its body, seeping into the cracks of the soft earth.
The brown and black winged creature ended up sprawled across the ground like a rug, squawking out it's final breath, twitching multiple times before its eyes lost focus and going still.
This lonely stretch of woodland regained it's silence.
The group stood in place, keenly observing the wooded region, slender brown trees sprung upwards in loose clusters, their branches barely bearing any leaves.
Striped shadows crept from left to right, a result of the bright afternoon sun located high to the west.
Encounters like these had become commonplace when trekking through new territory, the important thing was not to relax, even after the perceived threat had been eliminated.
The feathered beast laying dead in a crater was the size of a small horse, these creatures were branded as lesser beasts by the group.
Anyone of them was capable of handling at least two of these creatures solo without breaking a sweat.
The biggest threat to the team was being ambushed by what the group now called king beasts, these massive beasts were usually the ruler of an area and the strongest in that area. Creatures that didn't take kindly to strangers trespassing through their territory.
Just like clockwork the ground started to tremble.
"Move back!" Kang warned with a stern face, waving his hand to the side.
The air crackled, a dark spatial crack swallowed Qin Li, just as a massive worm creature burst through the earth where he was standing.
Boom! Chunks of soft earth went flying.
The blood coloured beast rose up thirty metres, uprooting every tree in its path, turning them to splinters.
It had no face, just a massive mouth with over a dozen sets of interlocking razor sharp teeth.
Qin Li fell from another spatial crack that appeared ten meters to the left, sweat beading down his back.
He plopped onto the ground ungraciously. Just as quickly, the giant worm came darting towards him again, maw wide open, spewing out the scent of a rancid sewer.
Qin Li reflexively scrambled to the left, green particles exploding around his silhouette, desperately hurdling over some low branches.
"Go! Hartley instructed, the commander moved with excitement in his expression.
His body glowed brown, manipulating the earth elements, he transformed to five meters in height, looking like a stone golem.
Kang positioned at the back of the formation, waved again, a spatial crack swallowed the Commander, spitting him out at the base of the slimy worm.
The massive sword in his hand now looked like a kitchen knife, sunlight gleaming from the metal as it drew a high arc through the sky.
The earth shook as he rumbled forward like a tank.
Bang! The commander hacked at the thick body of the beast, opening up a deep wound that gushed gallons of blood.
The creature reeled from the impact recoiling backwards like an elastic band, letting out a grating screech, losing interest in chasing Qin Li.
Somehow, even without eyes, it located the commander, it dived at him with a weird scream, spewing out a stink that could tranquilize a horse.
Another crackle burst through the air and another spatial crack appeared, swallowing the huge commander who was now in the ninth layer of the xiantian realm.
He disappeared in a flash of darkness, the mouth of the giant worm crashed into the ground like a drill.
Boom!
The ground rumbled, sending out a shock-wave. A maelstrom of earth, wood, leaves and feathers flew everywhere like confetti, the body of the winged beast was pulverised along with ten meters of earth and trees.
Zhi Ruo was next to appear in the blind spot of the giant worm, stepping daintily from a spatial crack at its back as her pair of knives danced across its body, opening up multiple bloody wounds.
Kang controlled the fight by manoeuvring the team around the monster like pieces on a chess board, using spatial cracks to strategically place individuals where the worm was most vulnerable.
Hartley didn't join the battle, instead he kept watch for other creatures coming to join the fray.
The hunter could become the hunted at anytime in the pocket dimension. Elation could turn into desperation in a split second.
Hartley had confidence that the team would finish off the giant worm, he and Kang were already saints, the rest needed the battle experience so they could grow quicker.
Hartley kept watch, slaughtering the curious lesser beasts that strayed too close.
It took half an hour but the brute of a worm finally fell with a boom, its blood running like a broken dam and its stench acting as a repellant.
The stretch of wooded area was all but destroyed.
This was just another day in the pocket dimension.
Still the long journey south continued, through teamwork they overcame every obstacle in their path, rampaging across the damaged terrain like locusts.
One evening after easily defeating a pack of wild beasts, Hartley stopped as the group crested a hill and prepared to camp for the night.
The setting sun dipped behind a fluffy formation of cotton-like clouds.
Orange and yellow hues mixed in the sky on the horizon, shadows stretched long in the waning light.
Another day of battles and slaughter was coming to an end.
Everyone one was fatigued mentally. It was now the fourth year of their journey.
No matter how much their cultivation had improved, a single careless moment in the pocket dimension could still be the difference between life and death.
There was no unwinding or relaxation out here in the open, reflexes had to stay sharp at all times, especially when there seem to be no danger at all.
The setting sun illuminated the carnage below the hill. Ruins of a flattened city was overrun by weeds and lesser beasts.
"Sometimes wars have no winners, only survivors."
Hartley spoke from the vantage point of the high ground, his eyes panning over the destruction, his voice tinged with melancholy.
"What if humans and beast-men forced themselves into a state of mutual destruction like this.?"
Hartley asked no one in particular, but his eyes stopped on Commander Genk.
The commander didn't answer but he had a solemn expression.
For the first time in his life he questioned whether he hated the beast-men because they had wronged humans, or because he was told to by every officer he had ever had in his long military career.
"Could it ever come to this in Aidonia?"
He wondered internally, his eyes registering the complete destruction that had befallen this place.
Zhi Ruo came over and hugged Hartley. "We'll set up here and cultivate."
Her voice broke the awkward silence.
She and Commander Genk were now in the ninth layer of the xiantian realm.
Qin Li, as determined as ever, had improved to the eighth layer.
Between her last trip here, and the time spent trekking through the wilderness again, she felt like she had spent half of her life in this apocalypse.
"Alright," Hartley answered her with a smile, "I'll take the first watch tonight."
***
A crescent shaped half-moon graced the night skies, Hartley sat in the lotus position, his unkempt hair wriggling across his face, the wind caressed his skin and gently fluttered his robes.
His awareness was spread far and wide, suddenly Hartley's eyes flicked open with a blue flash, there was one of the most conniving and vicious threats in the pocket dimension approaching.
A human!
The night air tingled with the natural elements. It was like they had come alive and were dancing chaotically.
"Ambush!"
Hartley projected his voice into the tents.
At the same time a burst of green particles appeared in front of Hartley from nowhere, a black blade came whizzing down in a straight line, aiming to split his head in two like a ripe melon.
Hartley was unfazed, he caught the whizzing sword between his thumb and index finger, holding it firmly like excalibur fastened in a rock.
There was a gasp of surprise from the darkness.
The attacker struggled to free his weapon, hoping the razor sharp blade would amputate a few fingers in the process.
The weapon didn't budge, regardless of his efforts.
"Who are you?"
The attacker spoke in a language that only Hartley and Zhi Ruo could understand.
Hartley snarled, giving no answer, twisting his wrist instead.
Clang!
The sword shattered into a spray of metal shards.