AnLi’s feet hissed on loose purple sand as he stepped through the domain gate. The dark flames of destruction licked at his heels, scorching the ground of this new world to black. When the gate closed, the heat vanished leaving only the charred ground as a reminder of the infernal flames.
The scent of battle and fire stuck to his clothes, but he was otherwise pristine. AnLi felt the barest brush of regret as he surveyed his surroundings. The amethyst sands rose and fell like waves, forming dunes that reflected the light of the sky. This new world was beautiful, much like his home. Though he could barely remember it now. He only had impressions. Happiness. Safety. Calm.
He hoped he would not have to burn this world to ash.
The qi here was relatively balanced—a middle domain like the one he was born to so many cycles ago. He pulled up his display, searching for the world designation—Midworld-x12. This domain was young, seeded only fifty thousand years prior. Even so, he could sense the undertones of chaos building here too. MoZi was working fast, faster than the council had predicted. AnLi held back a deep sigh. He dreaded this work, but he’d been specifically chosen by the Protectorate, and he was nothing if not obedient, or so he made them believe. He walked towards the glow of life energy emitted by the souls of millions. The sands under him shifted and its light dimmed as he passed.
When he saw the gates of gold looming in the far distance, he felt a surge of hope. If this world was advanced enough to create such grand and intricate distinctions of wealth, it boded well for their cultivation potential. However, his heart soon fell when he encountered the first human. A peripheral scan showed the man’s potential—Eighth Realm. The other guards were even worse, with most potential advancements capped at the Sixth or Seventh Realm. If these were the guards responsible for protecting such an opulent city, this world may be rich with resources, but devoid of real power.
AnLi slipped by the guards onto the gold-lined streets. The ground here was paved with large river stones and the edges of the path were reinforced with energetic beads, small beast cores, and gems. AnLi was surprised by the durability of the road, it would last for many centuries even with heavy traffic. The density and purity of the core and gems were extremely high. There must be a rich source of chaos energy near this world.
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As he entered an inn, AnLi felt the patrons turn to him, drawn to him like bees to nectar. He kept his spirit hidden, but there was still something perceptively heady about his aura. The young waitress kept her head lowered as she set a cup of steaming jasmine tea in front of him.
AnLi breathed in the scent, letting it wash over him. This was his favorite part of his job—the calm before the storm. He’d been reading about the history of the world. As expected, the powers ruling this world were from the original bloodlines. The Codex had been awakened in some of the choice families, but their development was lacking. The last update from the Protectorate was over a thousand years ago. To fill in the blanks, he would have to do his own investigations.
He gazed out the window. As the wind blew, the sands of the Sapphire Plains casted a glittering mist over the city. The sun was just touching the horizon, bloated and massive, bathing the world in a wash of pink and orange. AnLi watched the sunset. He sipped his tea as the sun relinquish its hold on the sky. Under only the light of the moon and stars, the glow from the sea of sand surrounding the city overpowered the light of the celestial bodies.
This world had been created as a variation of Midworld-A3, with a strong qi pool at the dead center of the world. He could feel the buzzing of the qi veins in the ground even under the cobble and mortar of the inn. Whatever small alterations had been made to create this domain, it had resulted in rich resources, both physical and spiritual. The culture here was highly hierarchical and competitive which boded well for its eventual technique development. If only its inhabitants had a few millennia more to develop, this could have been a boon to the Protectorate. If only. As it stood, AnLi was not so confident.
His gaze lingered on the patrons of the inn—they were full of laughter and loud conversations. This was a peaceful world. A happy one, if only by comparison. AnLi swirled the cup of tea in his hands, studying the twirling of white jasmine petals at the bottom of the cup. The pearlescent petals were wilted and gummy, sticking together to form amorphous shapes as they settled. AnLi was not a seer, but his untrained eyes couldn’t help but see the whisper of teeth and claws in the tea leaves as they settled against the dark porcelain.
They had no idea what was coming.