Domain.

Arriving at the stream, Theo looked into the body of water in hopes of finding the consumed Liam but failed to see anything.

It was just his reflection as the stream flowed at a steady pace leaving him dumbstruck. Theo could also notice the stream bed where discrete quantities lay.

Pebbles were one of the most noticeable quantities, having a variety of colors and shapes. 

Still, in awe of how Liam got consumed by the normal-looking stream, Theo moved to and fro contemplating his next actions.

Though the stream had rare features it was not something new to Theo. The forest had a lot of mythical and rare existence, so he couldn't find any reasonable cause for the phenomenon.

"Should I jump in?!" Theo asked himself, moving to the exact location Liam stood before getting drawn into the stream. "No! What if I get consumed… then my master?!"

Theo knew his priorities, and going after Liam was not one of them. "I'll just let him die…"

As he turned his back to the mysterious stream, a thought clicked in his mind, giving him a bad premonition. "What if it's a Domain, cut out of our world…"

Domains were known for their qualities. One of them was their ability to produce rare treasures, allowing whoever entered their premise to gain unimaginable profits. Though with pros come cons. The domains also produced a defense for every treasure it produced, balancing the equation.

For an individual to gain from domains, he/she had to have a quality that aligned with their gains.

"No!" 

Considering all the facts, Theo dived into the stream with no care for the consequences. 

"What?!"

He moved to the exact spot Liam got consumed from but couldn't feel any suction force. "No…! It can't be!" His sudden outburst sent the small creatures around the vicinity running.

No matter how Theo tried, he could only feel the streambed. The stream, though refreshing, had no other mythical element he could perceive.

"I can't let this happen!" He yelled in annoyance. But everything was futile. In the end, he came out every part of his being drenched with the sky-colored water. 

Theo couldn't help but shiver despite the glaring sun. It was currently summer, so the whole situation seemed surreal to Theo. 

"I'll have to wait then… I hope whatever domain he entered only has a single path… for both entry and exit."

Concluding, Theo prepared to camp at the stream, waiting to end the human he deemed dangerous to his goals.

_________

'Am I still sinking… I can't seem to move… not like it matters.'

The surrounding was completely dark with no source of light. 

Though Liam could feel gravity acting on his body. So he decided to form a thesis of himself sinking in a body of water, after all the last thing he recalled was drinking from a stream and then being drawn into it without any warning.

'Nothing new though… just hope I come out alive. I still have things to accomplish.'

Building his resolve, Liam fought desperately against his fall but failed. It was a continuous and steady motion.

'A waste of energy… I'll just let fate take its course.'

Liam felt his consciousness fading, only to be revived by the acceleration at which he fell. It was so sudden that he was caught off guard.

"Ahhhh!" Liam screamed out loud as he opened his eyes. The sky was illuminated by brightly shining orb-like matter. It was strange for Liam… the orb-like matters were suspended in space and their structures were also visible for Liam to see.

Their size decreased as Liam fell further downward at a high speed, uncertain of his landing point.

Stretching out his arms, Liam struggled to keep balance but failed miserably as he turned uncontrollably in space, allowing him to have a glance of the ground level.

It was mostly dominated by tall trees, with some open lands in sight. Though Liam had an overview of the landscape, his current circumstances didn't let him survey the region to a greater extent.

"Haaaaaa!!!" 

Liam screamed in fright, scared of the fall's impact on himself. 

'No! No! No! I can't go this way!' Liam thought in fright as he ran simulations on how to avoid certain death.

'I have to figure out a way… I can't die now!'

Liam had figured out a way to harden his palm to make wood chopping easier. Recalling how he hardened his palm, Liam worked on spreading that feeling through his whole being.

It was difficult at first but he slowly caught grip of the procedures as he drew closer to the ground.

'Fuck! This has to work.' preparing for the impact, Liam shut his eyes tightly in hopes of reducing the fear with his sight cut off.

Thud

Bam

The tall tree's canopy was the first thing Liam got into contact with as they helped reduce the acceleration at which he fell.

"Ouch!"

"Oo!"

Colliding with the ground, Liam released a subtle sound from pain. Everything just seemed surreal to him. He expected broken bones out of the collision but couldn't feel anything of such.

"Uhhh?!"

Surprised by the situation, Liam stood up immediately, scanning his body for any abnormality.

"Yup! It has occurred again; I didn't suffer from such a brutal fall." Liam muttered to himself as he glanced at his surroundings.

He was perfectly fine, only feeling a slight backache. The surroundings didn't look different from the other forest. From the trees and plants that Liam could see.

"What the…?!"

Silencing him was the sight of what he assumed to be a temple. Huge statues are situated on different corners of the structure.

The front yard had two huge standing statues, placing an arm before their faces. Based on the exterior, the statues seemed to have been depicted with monks' clothing.

There were other small statues situated in different corners, some having strange features. Horns, tails, pointed ears, scary faces, and many other strange features made their characteristics.

Liam didn't bother to dwell on them as he eyed the statue situated at the structure's top.

Unlike the rest, this one had unique features. 'A Buddha?!'

Liam thought as he scrutinized the statue. Though far, its features were so clear that Liam couldn't misinterpret it in any way.

"Shit!"

100 ps= 1 extra chap.