Chapter 115: "The Flames of Salvation!"

Chapter 115: "The Flames of Salvation"

Ashley stood reluctantly to lead the group, but an unfamiliar fear gnawed at her insides, one she hadn't even realized had taken root. Adrian is dangerous, she thought as she moved forward, tracing their path with the map after the harrowing encounter with the human-sized vultures.

Around her, the Rhemonic warriors couldn't stop chanting Adrian's name, their voices echoing through the eerie silence of the land. His name was on everyone's lips, and they sang his praises with reverence. He had, after all, saved their lives. Apart from Ashley and Ikehara, who could fend for themselves, the rest had been walking corpses, utterly doomed. Adrian's intervention was nothing short of a miracle.

Nymff sauntered over to Adrian as she always did, throwing her arm around his neck, a silent proclamation to the group: Don't mess with him; he's mine.

Adrian, unbothered, peeled her arm off without a word and kept marching forward. Nymff wasn't surprised; she was used to his growing distance, but that didn't stop the sting of it. Since they left Rivermount City, he had become a different person—cold, distant, and driven by something beyond her reach.

The group pressed on toward the Land of the Forgotten, a place as ominous as its name suggested. The deeper they ventured, the more the air felt thick with dread. Fear clung to their skin like a second layer, an invisible force that gnawed at their nerves.

The land seemed forsaken, discarded even by time itself. Piles of human bones littered the entrance to the desolate land, forming a grotesque monument of death that would make the bravest of men quiver in terror. The kind of terror that robs you of your voice, leaving your screams soundless.

Ashley's pace slowed, her eyes wide as she observed the strange creatures that scuttled before them—giant ant-like beings, nearly as large as the vultures from before, carrying bones to the entrance. They were terrifying, yet oddly indifferent, like soldier ants minding their own business unless disturbed.

"Are those ants...?" Abdel stammered, swallowing hard as he tried to make sense of the nightmare before him.

"No wonder," Nymff added, her voice uneasy. "After everything we've seen—vultures, these... things—Southernhill City was never safe."

Without a word, the group gravitated toward Adrian. It was instinctual. Like the shield of Captain America, they huddled behind him, hoping his presence would ward off the nightmares that lurked in every shadow. Except for Ashley, and Ikehara, who walked ahead, and Nyala, who stood her ground beside Adrian, everyone else sought refuge in his strength.

But Adrian barely noticed. His mind was consumed by a single thought—How do I save Tessa? His rage was like an inferno, burning him from within, desperate for release.

As they neared the foot of a steep mountain, they came face to face with an imposing sight. The mountain rose like a monolith, its peak crowned by the skeletal remains of a creature with massive horns—reminiscent of a long-dead mastodon. Suspended in the air within the horns was a shimmering white sand.

"The Sand of Lino," they whispered in awe.

"It can't be as simple as climbing up and taking it, right?" Abdel grimaced, his face twisting in skepticism.

"If it were that easy, we wouldn't be standing in front of piles of bones," Ecdy muttered darkly.

Nymff smirked, nudging Nyala. "Look at Ecdy, getting all wise on us."

Nyala chuckled. "Our boy's growing up."

Ecdy scoffed, stomping his foot like a petulant child. "Keep laughing. I might be the one to save your lives on this trip."

Ashley and Ikehara had already started their ascent up the steep, treacherous mountain. The path was so narrow and steep that one misstep could send them plummeting into the abyss below. As they climbed, they passed a vast gulf within the mountain, filled with bones—a grim reminder of what awaited them if they failed.

Suddenly, Ecdy's yelp cut through the tense air. A massive scorpion-like creature lunged at him, its pincers gleaming menacingly. Another scorpion aimed its deadly stinger at his throat. Ecdy barely managed to block the pincer attack and spun just in time to deflect the stinger, but the threat was far from over.

"Everyone...watch out!" someone screamed. "Scorpions...so huge!"

The group was under siege. Scorpions the size of men emerged from the shadows, their pincers snapping and their tails poised to strike. Ecdy was barely holding on, struggling against the weight of the assault from two scorpions. Every strike was bone-jarring, threatening to break his defenses.

A Rhemonic warrior tried to dodge a stinger, but it sank into his skull with a sickening thud, killing him instantly. Another warrior blocked an attack only to be swarmed by three more of the massive creatures. The battle was relentless, and it was clear—if Adrian didn't act soon, they would all be dead.

Surrounded by five of the monstrous scorpions, Adrian's fury reached a boiling point. His veins pulsed with the fire of the sun, and he knew there was no holding back now. With a roar that echoed through the mountains, he unleashed the Eternal Flame.

"Eternal Flames, light up these oversized excuses for crustaceans!" he bellowed.

Flames erupted from his hands, roaring like a dam of fire, consuming the scorpions in a blaze of fury. The creatures screeched in agony, their cries shrill and haunting as they were incinerated. The fire wasn't ordinary—it carried the essence of the sun itself, an unstoppable force that reduced the scorpions to smoldering ash in seconds.

In mere moments, nearly a hundred scorpions had been turned to charred husks. The few that survived scurried back into the dark gulfs of the mountain, retreating in terror from the inferno that was Adrian.

The flames swirled back toward him, returning to their master like a loyal servant. Adrian stood in the aftermath, his chest heaving, the ground littered with the smoking remains of his enemies. His friends were safe, but many had been poisoned. Two warriors lay dead, and the rest were barely clinging to life.

Ashley, frozen in place, realized that Adrian wasn't in the mood for games. He turned to her, his eyes burning with an intensity that chilled her to the bone.

"Give me the cloak," he demanded, his voice a low growl.

Ashley hesitated but knew better than to push him. She nodded to Ikehara, who quickly handed over the Cloak of Restoration.

With the cloak in hand, Adrian moved swiftly, healing the injured and even reviving the two fallen warriors. The air was thick with the sound of grateful sobs and murmured thanks. Some of the warriors cried openly, tears of joy streaming down their faces. Without Adrian, their group of forty-five would have been reduced to a mere fifteen.

As they continued their climb up the mountain, Adrian's name was whispered with reverence. He was no longer just a warrior—he was their savior, the one who had turned the tide of death itself.