Ken and Ragna tumbled forward, falling past the portal. They carried Sieg, who was thrashing around and began to get louder and louder as whatever was hurting him got worse.
As soon as their feet touched the ground, Ragna placed Sieg down and began to frantically check him out.
"Young Sieg! What's wrong?" Ragna took his finger and began to jam it into sections of Sieg's body using his acupuncture to hopefully ease the man's pain, but it didn't work. "I've never seen anything like this?" Ragna gulped.
His acupuncture allowed him to apply pressure to a person's body. Despite typical mages not having Qi Lines, they still had veins and nerves through which their mana ran, and hitting a specific point in a very specific way would close off or open those points. Most people couldn't use this information for anything great, as the speed, force, and angle at which a line was touched all mattered greatly, but both he and Ken Yuan were mentally insane and were able to store the trillions of notes required in their brains.
Despite knowing a person's body inside and out, Ragna was stumped when he pressed his finger into a vein on Sieg's stomach, through which an impressive amount of mana was flowing from.
He had tried to seal off the tunnel, but it had no effect. Most mages were only using a tiny bit of their natural mana, and those veins needed to be forcefully opened to access it all, yet that's exactly what just happened with Sieg. The tunnel connecting his Core to the rest of his body had expanded all on its own. This should normally be impossible, but the flow of his mana was so great that the tunnel had no choice but to expand.
There was so much mana within him it had forcefully twisted and opened that vein. To make matters even stranger, the mana wasn't coming from his Core. Instead, it was going to his Core!
Somehow, Sieg was absorbing mana! So much so that his body was being put under an immense amount of stress.
Davi had a technique that allowed him to absorb mana from the air and pull it into his Core, or at least he did have this move before he changed it, but that situation was vastly different, as the amount of mana Davi could pull in was only the same amount his Core could hold. Also, that mana had been chaotic mana, or untamed mana, and was highly explosive.
The mana that was entering Sieg's body was greater than the amount in his Core and was actually swelling it. On top of that, it wasn't chaotic mana but instead was an element. Lightning mana was entering through every pore on his flesh.
The mana wasn't his own, which thankfully meant it wasn't him using it, so the King's mark in him wasn't being alerted, but even still, if it kept up at such a speed, it'd rupture something inside of him.
Sieg was starting to become a bomb.
Ragna gritted his teeth, and then without any warning he slammed a chop to the back of Sieg's neck. All at once the chaos died down, and Sieg blacked out.
"There." Ragna let out a sigh of relief when the energy flowing into Sieg halted. "I don't know what was making him absorb all that energy, but it stopped the moment he fell asleep."
While that was going on, and Ragna was left scratching his head, Ken looked around at where they had appeared.
They were indoors but still above ground. The place looked like it was a warehouse, having dozens of shelves and tarps scattered everywhere, and chains were holding up heavy metal engines and other things.
She noticed several hollowed-out power suits that the guards had been wearing, and just like the rest of the city, this place was covered in sand.
"Seriously, what is with all the sand?" Ken yelled.
A pile of it twitched, and a mouth formed into existence. "What? You don't like me?"
Ken jumped back and raised her arms, eyeing the sand. "You're the one who helped us, right?"
"Hehehe. Yes indeed, yes indeed!" The mouth grinned up at her, and the pile of sand grew larger, becoming the head of a camel, which winked. "You can call me Ock!" More of the camel formed, the thing growing out of all the sand, and it stood before her, made of millions of tiny particles. It walked on all fours like a regular animal but had a top hat and a smoking pipe that blew out more sand.
Ken opened her mouth to speak, but before she could, the gourd that held Yujin began to shake and glow. "Ock!" The tiny fire spirit left his container and was in his true form, that of a small fox made of red flame. "As in, Ock the brilliant?"
Ken blinked in surprise. "You know this guy?"
"Ah! Yes, Lord Ken." Yujin eagerly nodded his head and landed on her shoulder. "He's a spirit!"
"Really?" Well, actually, she wasn't that surprised. He was made of sand, looked like an animal, and had used a spell without casting. It was pretty obvious he was a spirit; she was getting a good look at him, and the Qi he was giving off was familiar. "Why are you here? Spirits should never be here."
Ock puffed on his pipe and stalked forward, his sandy body breaking down and reforming constantly. "The very same reason your spirit is here," Ock stated, giving Yujin a nod. "My master brought me to this land, and so long as she draws breath."
Ken gave a nod and hummed. The fact that the spirit hadn't fled back home meant it was extremely loyal, and since it could speak, it also meant that it didn't have its mind shattered like her family would do, so that also meant whoever its master was couldn't be that bad of a person. Also, Yujin seemed to recognize Ock and was treating him as if he were important.
"Where is your master?"
Ock clicked his tongue once again and spat a glob of pebbles out. "Well, unfortunately, the great master was captured."
"Captured?"
"Yes. She had come to this land with me to find her teacher. Unfortunately, she got ambushed by some dirty soldiers and got captured. Her last act was freeing me, and she told me to find help. Sadly, I'm not a fighting spirit, and I cannot travel very far from the young master, or my body will completely break down, so I've been stuck here for the past few days. It seems Lady Luck has decided to smile down upon me; a cultivator has arrived."
"Do you know who I am?" Ken questioned.
"Indeed. I'd be a fool not to recognize you. You have her hair, her face, her eyes, and even the feeling of your Qi." Ock crouched down to a half bow and brought his head low. "This one humbly requests that a son of Han Yuan help him out."
"Not a son…"
"Oh?" Ock looked confused. "But aren't all the Yuan clan men nowadays?"
"I have boobs."
"I don't know how human anatomy works?" The camel somehow shrugged. "All your kind look alike to me."
"I see?"
"The great Lord prefers the female form," Yujin explained. "She has defied all her family and become her perfected self! Truly she is grand in every way, is she not? Why, just gaze at how big her br-"
"Alright!" Ken silenced her spirit and chuckled. "So, Mr. Ock, if I'm getting this right, you want my help to bust your master out? Does that mean she was thrown in the jail here, and do you happen to know where she is?"
"That I do." Ock stood back up and gave her a toothy grin. "I got some sand where she is at, so I can take us there. As I said earlier, I'm not a fighting spirit, so I can't defeat the guards, sadly."
"Why can you not create the gateway to her?" Yujin asked. "Can't you just teleport her out like you did for the great Lord Yuan?"
Ock sighed and shook his head. "Unfortunately, no. In fact, I really didn't want to use that gate, as it takes me a day to recharge it. Even if I could use it multiple times, however, it still wouldn't matter. They got the master locked up in a seal cage."
"A what?" Ken shot Ragna a look, who finished checking up on Sieg.
"A seal cage." Ragna nodded. "There are a lot of prisons, but by far the most famous is Nightshade, which is stored within a pocket realm that can only be accessed by the king and his court. It is where the worst criminals go, and they're sent there for life, never able to leave. They say that this realm is a place where chaotic mana does not exist, which means it is impossible for a mage to draw in the energy around them. We use this energy to restore the lost mana in our core by slowly absorbing it, so without that, any person caught in this realm runs out of mana and loses the ability to store it. Their core is still technically fine, so they don't die, but they have no way to recharge the tank, so to speak. Likewise, sealing cages are lesser forms of this. They don't truly block mana like the realm does, but they do use an advanced form of spatial and gravity manipulation, making the mana particles in an area incredibly dense, causing them to not form properly. Being inside a zone like this is like being in a dungeon but far worse. Your mana will respond sluggishly and feel heavy. You'd basically only be able to use about twenty percent of your normal power, if even that, and for some mages it causes them to be unable to use spells at all."
"Sounds pretty intense." Ken hummed. "Why haven't we seen something like this before? Could be useful to use that in battle, right?"
Ragna shook his head. "Like the elf towers, this stuff was something the kingdom inherited from the age of elves. They cannot build these things and so only have a limited number of them, which they use in certain prison cells. They also have to be built into the walls, floor, and ceiling, making using them as a weapon basically impossible, and due to their nature, teleporting in or out of these rooms is also impossible. In fact, they make teleporting anywhere near them not work either, so you couldn't even just teleport someone directly into them or even close to the exit to push them in. Also, again, they don't fully block all the users' mana, and most dangerous mages are strong enough to break out of the room and leave, which is why those people are usually sent to the Nightshade realm, but that's a whole other can of worms."
"Makes sense." Ken stretched and glanced back at Ock. "Well, you're in luck. Rag and I need to find this prison and bust someone out anyway, so we'll help you get your master back."
Ock once more bowed to her. "This one humbly thanks the mighty Lord Yuan."
"Indeed, Lord Yuan is truly amazing," Yujin bragged. "She is kind to all spirits and a very capable warrior. She will get your master back; of this I have no doubt."
"Well, as I said, we have someone else we need to break out first." Ken scratched Yujin's chin. "We have to save some guy named Biggie. After that, I don't mind helping you out, though. Think you can lead the way to this prison? We haven't been able to find it yet."
"I can, but what of your teammate?" Ock glanced at the slumbering Sieg.
Ragna sighed and brushed his hand through Sieg's hair. "He's out cold. Something is seriously bothering him." The large man stated. "I think he should stay here, hidden away, while young Ken and I bust Biggie and your master out of jail. Afterward, we can pick him back up and quickly leave."
Ock suddenly looked a little nervous. "Ah. It seems I forgot to mention something that the great Lord and her companions might find a bit annoying."
"And what's that?" Ken narrowed her eyes slightly, getting an uneasy feeling.
"Well, this place isn't exactly hidden." Ock chuckled. "In fact, we don't have a lot of time before-"
The entire warehouse shook, and the doors that were bolted to the wall were ripped off and went flying forward. Yujin flew up and turned into a spinning blade of fire, slashing through the wood before it reached anyone. Lightning thundered outside, the storm seemingly growing worse, and the wind was starting to pick up, but Ken paid no attention to that. Instead, her eyes were fixed on the person who had barged in.
"Ock, Ock, Ock." The figure walked forward, and behind him were several guards all holding guns, as well as a large robotic suit with a shield and lance. "We aren't able to capture you since you just keep shifting your consciousness into all this sand, but did you really think we'd sit by and not do anything when you reached out for help?"
The man who entered was rather handsome. He had pale skin and messy blonde hair, and he was dressed in green camo pants with a casual black leather jacket zipped up around his body. He didn't have any weapons on him, and his hands were in his pockets.
"So, Ock, who are your friends?" The blonde man asked, his smirk growing.
Ock growled. "Lord Yuan, this is Genbu. He is one of the four Beastly Stars."
"The four what?"
"The four Beastly Stars." Ragna placed Sieg down and walked over to Ken. "I've heard a bit about them but didn't know if they existed or not. The military is trying to make a soldier that has strength rivaling an Arcane Knight. They've been doing experiments that were left behind by Adamaska the Pilgrim, trying to create their own version of a golden core and figure out the tech that Gallenth has."
"And they accomplished that," Genbu announced proudly.
"I don't think they did," Ken said flatly. "No offense, but you don't seem all that strong."
Genbu scowled and then squeezed his hands into a fist. "Oh really?" He flexed, and then suddenly he began to change. His clothing was torn as his flesh opened up? It was artificial skin, revealing metal bones beneath, which formed claws along his arm, and then from his back, what looked almost like a turtle shell jutted out. It had various spikes all along it; more metal bars jutted from it, forming armor around Genbu's legs and body. "What do you think of me now? I am Genbu, the Black Turtle!"
"Oh, yo, he's a cyborg." Ken blinked. "That's pretty rad. Why are you a turtle, though?"
Genbu grinned. "I think you should be more concerned about whether my friend will slit your teammate's throat or not."
Ken froze, and she turned around, finding someone was next to the unconscious Sieg. It was a woman in the same outfit Genbu had been in. She had long red hair, and a smirk was on her face.
Like Genbu, her clothing was torn, and metal flesh was revealed. Her nails extended out, and her feet twisted and morphed into what looked like talons, and then a pair of robotic rings jutted from her back. The woman placed her nails on Sieg's throat.
"One wrong step and I'll tear his throat out."
"You should listen to her." Genbu chuckled. "Zhuque, the Vermillion Bird, does not joke around."
"Seriosuly?" Ken clicked her tongue. "Ock, why didn't you tell us these guys would show up?"
"Sorry." The camel bowed his head.
Several of the guards moved forward, holding their guns up, and the robotic suit also entered the warehouse. "Put your hands up! You mages are under arrest! You've been recognized as the escaped fugitives, Ken Yuan, Sieg Hawker, and-"
"Yujin." Ken scratched her fox spirit and ignored the ranting officers. "Ready to kick some ass?"
"Of course!" Yujin announced happily. "Let us destroy these losers."
Genbu frowned and shook his head. "You don't even care about your teammate? How heartless. Zhuque! Slit his throat!"
"No!" Ken got ready to launch Yujin toward the woman, but before she could, Sieg woke up, and he instantly began to scream.
What came from him, however, wasn't a mere yell. It was a cry. One that shook the room itself, and far above, lightning began to gather. A bolt struck the warehouse, setting it on fire, and then it was followed by a second and a third. The lightning was crashing down in waves, trying to reach the downed Sieg.
"W-What's going on?" Zhuque asked, and she stumbled back as an aura of electricity formed around Sieg. "What is he doing? Is this freak a mutant?"
Sieg was used to pain.
He had once had every bone in his body shattered, and the feeling of scales growing across his flesh was one he'd never forget. Physical pain was something he was accustomed to.
Likewise, he had witnessed the destruction of his entire village, lost his father, was sent to a time where the rest of his family would be long dead, and failed to protect his younger brother, who had to suffer more than he should have. Emotional pain was also something he was very accustomed to.
He was sure that when it came to him, he was someone who could proudly claim they wouldn't scream in pain, yet here he was.
Sieg screamed. His voice exploded out of his mouth so strongly that his lungs felt like they'd collapse and his throat began to tear. Every nerve in his body lit up, and his flesh felt like it was ripping. Usually, he'd use Polymorph to hold back his mutations, but he was unable to, and they tore out of his body. Literally.
Blood splattered out as jagged claws forced their way out beneath his finger tails. A hole was torn open above his anus, and his spine began to dance out of his body, turning into a tail. Cracks then formed on his skin as a mix of black and dark blue scales began to sprout. By the first, the pain was at the base of his skull, which was torn open by the emerging horns.
And while all of this happened, his mana also went out of control. Powerful jolts of electricity zapped across Sieg's body, and the air around him was superheated.
Of course, he barely noticed any of this as his mind was transported somewhere else. He found himself falling into his soul realm.
He wasn't quite as good as reaching it as Davi, but with access to the Shadow Vault spell, he had entered it a couple of times. Usually, manifesting one's realm and entering it or bringing it out of their body was magic that was on the level of Vow, but Davi was basically a walking cheat code, and since he could trick the universe into thinking he was Davi, he could also cheat.
Back in the day, his soul realm looked like the island he grew up on. There was a dense forest, and the place where his village stood was filled with various stone blocks. Each block had flowing runic symbols across them, and they glowed with a golden energy. The island itself wasn't in the water and instead was suspended in the middle of a golden void. Above it were harsh black clouds, which rained down blue streaks of lightning, and the wind would howl and twist, forming into various tornadoes.
This was how his soul realm had once looked.
After gaining his mutation, it had changed and evolved due to the coroding monster core.
Now, the lightning that rained down was a milky white, and the golden void had various black dots scattered throughout it, which would squirm and then burst, spreading like a disgusting cancer. The grass was all dead, and globs of pale flesh spread out across the stone cubes.
Somewhere in this realm would also be his Core. It was a ball of yellow energy shaped like a lightbulb, and it was being squeezed by a fleshy hand that was sluggishly moving over the lightbulb, blocking it out.
Of course, when the hand fully covered the bulb, that would be the end of him. Last time he had looked at it, the monster Core had been at nearly fifty percent. Could it have reached that point, and was his mutation speeding up?
No.
Sieg didn't know what exactly was going on, but he knew that something that didn't have to do with his monster core was wrong. The pain had started ever since the storms, and now that he thought about it, those same storms had followed him all the way to the city.
Several thoughts went through his mind as he fell down onto the land below, his spirit dropping into his soul realm while his real body remained in the real world.
His back smashed into the cubes, and he groaned as the flesh began to jiggle and grab at him. His body felt so weak. His eyes were getting heavy also. He stared up into the clouds above and watched as a bolt of lightning twisted in the air, and then it came toward him.
Meanwhile, in the real world, Ken and the others watched in horror as the roof above them was torn open and a brilliant blue bolt of lightning smashed down into Sieg's body, over and over again.
The heavens themselves were seemingly attacking Sieg, and at that same moment, on the outskirts of the city, a massive Oni began to step out of the forest and grunted.
The former Knight, Battery, now known as the Oni Ruler, had arrived.