Dawn broke over the desert of red sand, a surreal landscape bathed in shades of crimson. The sun, a blazing orb of deep red, hovered low on the horizon, casting long shadows and an eerie, otherworldly glow across the undulating dunes. The air was still, heavy with a silence that felt ancient and profound as if the desert itself was holding its breath in anticipation of the day's heat.
Each dune rose like a wave frozen in time, their smooth, flowing shapes punctuated by the occasional jagged outcrop of red rock. The sky was painted a deep, velvety red color to match the sun of this particular level. It was as if the heavens themselves were covered in the same blood as the one that poured over the desert.
There were no clouds to break the vastness of the sky, only the relentless, burning gaze of the red sun as it slowly climbed higher.
Amid this striking but harsh beauty, a small group was traveling across the world of red. They were accompanied by a large armored machine that was in charge of carrying their supplies in large storage containers that were conveniently attached to its body. The machine's eight steel legs pierced through the red sand with ease and sometimes provided shade with its shadow.
Luna paused at the crest of a particularly high dune, taking a moment to survey the landscape. From this vantage point, the view was both awe-inspiring and humbling, a reminder of the raw, untamed power of nature. The red sun blazed overhead, a constant reminder of the unforgiving environment. But there was also a sense of peace in the simplicity and vastness of the desert—a beauty in its stark, unadorned reality.
“How long till we find them?” she yelled at a man in similar armor. His chestnut hair was contaminated with red sand crystals after their struggle through a sandstorm earlier.
The man looked around and closed his blue eyes for a few moments before opening them again. “About two days, my lady.” The man answered as he stared at the rest of the desert.
Nothing could be seen for miles, apart from the few bodies of undead and cursed creatures scattered around. That, and the diviner provided to her unit were the only signs showing they were on the right path.
Luna and her small unit had of course encountered a few creatures on the way. But none of them were of a higher rank, so taking care of them was an easy job considering how strong her unit already was. At some point, she didn't even have to lift a finger.
Roughly three days had passed since they crossed the gateway and stepped into the Crimson Tower. Even after all the time spent here, Luna couldn’t help but marvel at how beautifully terrifying the interior looked. Truly, such a place was constructed by the gods. The red sand, the red sun that disappeared at dusk, and the red sky. All of this reminded her of a planet called Mars, which was depicted as a red planet from the webtoons. They were yet to find any signs of civilization, but Luna hoped they found something from the divine realm. Learning about the realm of the gods was both intriguing and important for humanity.
“Two days you say.” She stared at the expanse and then jumped off the small dune she was formally standing on. On landing down, her boots made the usual crunching noise she was starting to hate more and more.
'This is so boring.'
With nothing to do, Luna sent a mental message to her suit and a black helmet materialized over her head. Her nanoskin armor was of course a unique model solely designed to fit her. According to the scientists who had examined her body multiple times, the reason why Luna was as strong as most ascenders—maybe even stronger—was due to a genetic mutation caused by the mystical aspects of her blood type.
That was their theory, at least.
In the new world, those born with the spark of divinity usually had divine blood types. A person born with divine blood was more akin to ascending because the spark of divinity only grows from birth. Once that person reaches the expected age for awakening, the divine blood’s special traits have already prepared the human body for ascension and the formation of a Soul gate. Divine blood types were categorized in variant groups of (A) with some being unique like Special Inheritance (A1) which meant that the owner had inherited the divine qualities already present in their bloodline.
Luna’s blood group was Generation Inheritance (AX), the rarest and most powerful of the divine blood types. But somehow, the spark of divinity was inexistent in her soul. She wasn’t the first case of such of course. But she was the first legacy and person of this specific blood group to miss the spark of divinity. Luckily, she was blessed with the abnormality of superhuman strength and the inherited qualities that made her a fierce fighter.
This customized suit was meant to help with the limits that usually forced her to hold back. So far, she was impressed but how it responded to her biology. Luna's armor buzzed with energy, its systems seamlessly integrating with her body's natural rhythms. The suit’s HUD displayed critical information about her body status, troop movements, and environmental conditions.
As she was still enjoying her display, something entered her perception range and forced her body to halt instinctively. The Diviner was the second to stop and his eyes widened when they identified motion in the red sand. After exchanging looks with their captain, he signaled everyone else to stop and extend their senses through the ground.
"Something's heading towards us. Everyone, stay alert," Luna whispered with urgency as she scanned her surroundings carefully. She couldn't sense everything with zenshi, but she was well-versed in sensing life essence from living creatures.
The two summoners accompanying them nodded and manifested their weapons, shortly after her warning. One of the summoners was a woman with short navy blue hair and dark eyes that sparked with pristine bluish flames as a bronze spear manifested in her right hand. Her name was Monic, a soldier from one of the Feng's Vassal clans.
The other was a tall muscular man with short blond hair and hazel brown eyes. His weapons were a pair of twin blades that curved at the end and glowed with an extension of his aura, making them forged weapons. His name was Adam.
On that note, Darkness proceeded to create her silver jian while Mira prepared her charged rail gun that seemed to be taller than her. Heavy as it looked, the human girl carried with ease thanks to the nanoskin armor which slightly enhanced her strength.
Gail shot into the air and prepared his enchanted bow.
Everyone’s armor started to blink as the sand started to tremble even more.
With anticipation, Luna withdrew her black blade from its protection and placed both hands on the handle. Her breaths were controlled, her mind free of fear as she stood behind the arachnid with the diviner and Mira since they were the most vulnerable.
Gail was the first to act by shooting one of his energy arrows into the sand to draw the creature's attention. His plan worked perfectly...
Sending their part of the desert into a chaotic mess.