118 The Chicken or the Egg

Xing Lei blinked. Settling back in the chair he looked at Tyrix and rolled his shoulders, "Reach the apex and obtain immortality, my plans have hardly been secret or untold. Hardly warrants an impromptu meeting between us."

Tyrix sighed setting down the cup in his hand, "Yes but mortals always have secret goals, ones they don't voice. That is what I want to know. With that former Dragon God scheming in the shadows, is Destorianaxe suppose to take his seat? Are you? You see we gods have a running bet on which poor fool will take on that cursed mantle and I'd like to hedge my own by getting the plot from one of the involved pieces."

Xing Lei sighed draining his cup, turning his face to onside as the reflexive expulsion of hellfire was spat to the side, "Sorry to burst your cheating but I have no clue about that plan, I'm as in the dark as everyone else, though I do say with certainty that I'm not aiming for his throne, I prefer my path."

Tyrix frowned sitting back his dark eyes narrowing as they swept across Xing Lei, "And what is your path? Will there be more of that lightning?"

Xing Lei nodded, picking up the wine bottle to refill his cup, he had to admit while the hellfire kick was a little unsettling this Balor's Bloodwyne was filling his spirit with energy. While it wasn't an elixir pill or heavenly treasure it was remarkably good for his cultivation. "There will be. Cultivation encounters tribulation about four times for sure. The first time one steps on the path from body cultivation. At the lesser gate which you recently witnessed. Again at the greater gate which there's typically three times as much lightning, and the last assured occurrence it will be after I achieve my goal. The heavens will do everything they can to erase me from this world."

The kobold contemplated his cup before tossing his drink back. "Past that its random. Whenever an apex existence hits a point of crisis the heavens will try to strike them dead. Depends how strong the will is."

Tyrix frowned as Xing Lei helped himself to more of the wine but listened intently, "Just what are these heavens you speak of? Before I was as I am now, I was the god of creation, I did not create such so it should not exist! Same for that lightning, it goes beyond the storm energy the world should be able to create, where does it come from?!"

Xing Lei reached for the bottle again but Tyrix pulled it out of the kobold's reach with a frown. Snorting at the god's stingyness he sat back in thought. "Creation god? But where did YOU come from? When you answer that riddle you will be qualified to know where the tribulation storm comes from. For you see, the heavens, damnable as they are, are above all else."

Tyrix sat back with a blank look while lost in thought. That question had never past his thoughts. Where did he come from? One moment in time he simply was with an empty canvas, alongside him others awoke but in the end something or someone had to have created the original old gods right? For once terror gripped his dark heart as his black eyes looked out into the stars trying to see beyond that veil he never thought to question. Grunting softly the table and chairs vanished, the god pushed the half empty wine bottle to the kobold.

"Our audience is concluded, return." Short and abrupt the troubled god winked out of existence leaving the kobold cradling the wine jug and blinking. Did those gods really never question what was above them? Smirking inwardly he pictured Tyrix years from now pulling out his hair trying to learn what only myths and legends could tell. A suitable revenge for the dark god's earlier trickery, plus he claimed the divine wine as well!

As the starry sky around him twinkled softly Xing Lei looked around. He had been 'dismissed' but just how does one leave this astral sea? Carrying the jug he darted through the nothingness retracing the frenzied chase Tyrix had lead him on originally, perhaps if he returned to the construction of the hospital he could exit where he entered. Sighting the damaged structure he stepped into the remains of the shattered hall carefully, he hoped his guess would be right otherwise leaving this starry, astral sea would prove very time consuming.

Returning to the room he awakened in he noted that Osilliaice's egg was no longer present, in fact, other than his bed the room was empty. Gazing at the cot the kobold quickly laid back and closed his eyes, falling within himself he stopped focusing on the alien exterior and steadied his breathing. Still, as much as he settled his being nothing around him changed, cracking an eye confirmed that the room was empty, in fact the walls were cracking exposing the starry vista beyond.

Rising Xing Lei investigated one of these holes, touching the crumbling stone, the once sturdy wall disintegrating under his touch exposing more of the astral sky beyond. Well this was a problem! The kobold frowned to himself, the reconstruction of the room was falling apart, eroding in the astral sea like a sand castle before a rising tide. It would not be long before only he remained, would it then corrode him? Lei really didn't want to stick around to find out, but Tyrix hadn't exactly been forthcoming with showing his guest the way home.

Leaving the ragged structure Xing Lei began wandering, rather than a set direction he just floated out letting the starry sky draw him along, at this point any direction would suffice so letting fate work her wiles was not a bad plan. Perhaps her sister luck would provide for him in this unknown location. If not, he would simply try to brute force his way out. That however was a last resort, who knew if there was time dilation in effect or even how long it would take him to understand this worlds laws?

Time had no meaning here, nor did distance. Xing Lei continued to float what he hoped was forward, when he grew bored he cultivated, just letting himself be drawn along. As pretty as the glittering stars could be, they gave no indication that they were constellations, even if they were, there was no basis to judge to tell where they pointed. At times he felt other presences but when he went to investigate he found strange creatures that seemed to be here yet at the same time elsewhere. Yet nothing that could help him.

Xing Lei cultivated in silence, the time lost to him. There was no day or night, just stars. Solidifying his breakthrough finally he flexed slowly relishing the strength in his body. The qi flowing through his veins was rich and in his mind sounded like thunder stampeding through his body. Judging by the sparse spiritual energy here, he'd have enough power for one, maybe two tries at escaping, after that he'd be a parched man in a desert. Thinking he began slowly punching forward as he recalled the technique he needed.

* * * * * * *

Elsewhere a red skinned man was watching the kobold curiously. Tyrix had been rather amused by the kobold's earlier attempts to escape the astral plane, it was clear that the being had no history of planar travel or would know without a tether to the prime material plane, escape was impossible. A rather sinfully beautiful drow woman curled against his arm looking at the appearance of the kobold lazily punching, her dark lips pulled back in a snarl.

"He's still struggling?"

Tyrix gave a slow chuckle and nodded at his consort, wrapping his thick muscular arm around her body, "Aye, the mortal tried exploring for an exit and waiting, and now he's back to practicing. Soon enough he'll beseech me to release him."

The dark goddess slowly licked her lips, "That one will make a good toady. He shall be beneath me for an eon before my anger will be sated husband." Quellia had been so close to the surface, yet at the last moment of her ascending victory this mortal had intruded. Not because he was a hero or because he had been tasked by opposing forces. No, this mortal had prevented her mortal avatars birth on mere whim and chance! To say she wanted to eat his flesh, drink his blood and flay him alive was a gross understatement of the drow goddesses ire.

Tyrix chuckled rubbing her hip, "Yes my consort. AFTER he interrupts DG's plan. That absent brother of mine is up to something, and if we can't walk the mortal plane then he surely must not either!"

Quellia pouted, "Very well but no second longer, after that the wretch is mine. Cheth Rrihinn is still in havoc and has yet to sort itself out after his visit."

Tyrix smirked, "As if you'd have it nice and calm anyways." The misshapen brute glanced back to Xing Lei, his dark eyes narrowing. Just what was the mortal doing? Xing Lei was still just slowly punching, as if anything in the astral plane had a physical form to even hit!

Quellia turned to saunter back to bed, "When he begs for freedom I want to be there husband."

Tyrix bobbed his head cackling softly, his dark eyes watching Xing Lei intently. So focused on the kobold, the lord of demons didn't notice a third figure watching from further back, a wry smile on its face as yellow eyes focused on Xing Lei. A soft whisper that eluded the demon gods notice slipped out, "Show them."

* * * * * * *

Xing Lei did not even feel the watchful eyes of the trio that observed his every move. While it might seem he was punching slow and hitting nothing, the truth was the gods were merely seeing an after image of his strikes and while there was nothing to physically punch, he could see minute cracks before his fist, each punch spreading the crack further and further.

Steadying his breathing, a deep fatigue was building in his body. While each punch looked slow and easy, they were in fact unbelievably savage. Each strike was not only made with his full physical power but also an explosive release of spiritual power. [Immortal Shattering All] was a fist technique that had been popular for dealing with spatial prisons, even those with limited spatial enlightenment could use it to shatter lesser spatial prisons and techniques. Break out of a plane though? Risky.

Still he continued to strike the very nature of the plane. Were Tyrix and Quellia to be more aware they'd have watched slack jawed as a mortal attempted to brute force his way out of the astral plane. To them it was futile, impossible even! Yet the cracks hanging before Xing Lei's fist spoke otherwise. No sound of damage was heard but those cracks grew wider, he could feel something beyond the astral sea reaching through those cracks to pull at him.

Narrowing his eyes he pushed harder, slamming his qi against the fabric of reality. Tyrix felt his jaw drop, his clawed hands grabbing at the scrying mirror as the kobold punched through the astral barrier with his next strike. His scream of anger roused Quellia who rushed to his side, glimpsing for a brief moment the kobold slipping through a crack in the astral sea... but to where?! The spying magics shattered as Tyrix ripped the viewing portal in twain tossing the two halves through existence with a roar of frustration.

With labored breaths he and his consort looked to each other, then the growing crack in the astral sea. Tyrix cursed as his body slipped through the planes, not to follow Xing Lei but desperately trying to stop the growing rift that was expanding slowly. It might take a millenia but if not fixed the rent in the astral plane would consume it. Tyrix stared into the void beyond and roared in the kobold's wake, foiled for the second time with the same disregard as the first...