CHAPTER 283: 283: THE VISITOR IN CRIMSON MIST

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He could still see her curled on the mountain balcony, staring out over the forest, one hand always resting on the moonvine bracelet that is the proof of their marriage.

And then Miryam. His daughter...

His little wyrmling with big dreams, sharper claws, and zero respect for gravity or bedtime. She had once tried to eat a sun beetle because it "looked crunchy." She would leap from shelves to land on his head just to yell "Papa attack!" and then demand hugs from him.

Were they safe? Were they missing him? Was Luna still wearing his scent near her heart every night?

He had to let them know he was very close to home. Within days he will be back to them.

Kai raised one arm and focused. His posture straightened, shimmering with spiritual energy. A faint aura gathered around his claws, tiny sparks of soul power dancing between his fingertips like fireflies made of memory.

"Soul mastery... long range connection..."

It wasn’t risky. Or unstable across realms connection, especially when he knew exactly where the others were. Now that he is close enough. He can connect with them again. It won’t cost much aura. His aura saving time is over.

A faint pulse flickered at the edge of his awareness.

Luna’s bond. It was still there. Not that long of a distance. It was faint. But alive, he can connect with her.

He smiled softly. Just a moment of contact was all he needed. A whisper, a feeling. He would tell them he was close to home. That he missed them. That he was coming with new companies.

"Alright let’s establish the soul connection."

Suddenly, his thoughts shattered. The world shifted. A cold wave prickled across his entire body like someone had replaced the air with liquid frost.

Kai’s eyes fully snapped open.

The coals did not crackle anymore. The smoke above the fire froze. Literally. The curls of gray vapor stopped in mid spiral, like someone had hit pause on the world’s animation.

The predator instinct inside him lit up like fireworks.

Danger.

But nothing moved. Not a shadow. Not a whisper. Not even the wind. Then it came. A crimson mist.

It rolled in without sound. Not like smoke. Like something alive. It slithered over the grass, spreading with eerie precision, painting the camp in a soft red hue. The edges of the mist shimmered, as if woven with threads of alien energy. It smelled of burnt roses and old blood.

Kai stood slowly. Carefully.

His aura pulsed, wrapping around his limbs with reflex. A thread of frost energy gathered along his claw. Fire hovered under his tongue. One thought hovered in his mind like a sword.

"Do not wake the others. Not yet."

It was the same mist that they saw earlier. The one fighting with the nine star rank predator. The one whose aura pressure makes them unable to breathe. The mist parted before him. And dropped something.

Thump!

A glowing orb the size of a big coconut slammed into the dirt before his feet. Cracks webbed across the ground from the impact.

Kai’s jaw tensed. "A predator core." But not just any.

It hummed with layered energy, rippling in concentric rings of violent heat. The pressure coming off it bent the grass. The essence was thick enough to taste. He could smell the death in it.

"Nine-Star Rank."

This was not a free core. It was a declaration of something.

Whoever had killed this beast had done so effortlessly. Whoever had brought this here had tossed it at his feet like it was nothing more than pocket change.

Kai’s claws curled. This was no gift. It was an introduction. He was about to call out when he heard it.

A shriek. Not a loud one. But wrong.

It came from within the mist. It was high pitched and layered, like a dozen bats all squealing at once. But it was deeper. Broken. Distorted.

The sound bent the air. His vision shimmered. The voice spoke. But not in any language he knew.

It was not a beast tongue. Not human. Not the language of earth. Not insects. Not ancient old beast tongues. It was something else entirely.

Something that was not supposed to exist in this universe. Kai did not understand a word. But before he could move, the familiar voice of his system rang gently in his ears.

[Ding! System notification- Unknown language detected: NULL TONGUE. (Unknown to Kai)

Incoming communication contains high level language protocols from all universes and void. Would you like to initiate real time translation?]

Kai froze reading the system notifications. His mind raised some questions, "Null Tongue? What the hell was that?"

The name alone felt forbidden. Like something that existed only in buried tablets or the nightmares of gods. Even the system’s tone had changed slightly. Slower. Almost hesitant. As if it doesn’t want Kai to know about it.

He glanced behind him. Akayoroi stirred and hugged her pillow tighter, mumbling about roasted cheese worms.

Everyone else was still asleep. Whatever this was, it had come for him. And only him.

He narrowed his eyes. He was no coward. And he would not let anything threaten his girls.

"...Yes," he said. "Translate it, system. I want to know what this thing wants."

The air around Kai shimmered with a faint aura as the system activated the translation feature. A low hum echoed in his ears, not physical sound but something deep inside his star core. Like a tuning fork being struck in the heart of his soul.

[Ding! Translation activated. Outbound speech will be converted to Null Tongue.

Caution: The Entity’s energy signature is equivalent to a pseudo- God. Engage with caution.]

"Wonderful. What the hell is a pseudo god?"

So not only was the creepy mist visitor fluent in a forbidden language, it also happened to register as a pseudo-God. It was a class of power that, in every known world, usually meant run, scream, and hope you are not tasty. But Kai is totally unaware of that.