*Bing-Bong*

We interrupt this chapter to inform the reader that the original set of chapters focused on Zhen Liu and his friends travelling further into Dozing Salamander to reach the city of Riannowden have been more or less removed.

It was determined by the writer of this work and the [CENSORED] that this part was incredibly... repetitive and not inter...what the fuck?

|Hmmm? What's up? Why'd you stop?|

You're kidding right? You didn't notice when I try to say the [CENSORED], that it just got censored. Like it did, right now?

|Oh, yeah, that. Apparently it has to do something with, and I don't quote me on this, attempting to keep the higher-ups safe from possible retaliation or something like that.|

Okay...why?

|There's been...kind of an uptick in violent activities against people in power because of...what's the phrase? A lack of bread and circuses? Either way, this is a gehr minor change that shouldn't affect anything.|

Okay then...*ahem*.

The following chapter, maybe two, will be focusing on Zhen Yue and Zhen Hai since what they're doing is much more interesting.

We will now return to your regularly scheduled chapter, thank you.

...

I hope you know this is still weird.

|Meh.|

___________________________________

The Abyssal Lands—The Colossal Gravemarker

When Tortallion made the ultimate sacrifice, he didn't go quietly.

He took with him an ancient weapon that had almost wiped out his beloved Undertow centuries ago, and made sure nobody in this world or the next would be able to use it again to cause havok in any capacity.

Well...he mostly destroyed it.

The ancient weapon may have lost the ability to channel dragon force, it may no longer be able to use as intended but the materials that composed its body was still usable to an extent.

They just needed to be salvaged by the right hands with the right amount of knowledge.

However, such an outcome was less than ideal for the Zhen Clan, the people of Undertow, and the [Library of Nowhere].

As such, any attempts to try and salvage the remains of the ancient weapon, regardless of their origins, had to be met with unrelenting force.

While this level of drastic action sounded extreme to most people, it was considered the absolute bare minimum for this particular scenario.

After all, the type of beings that could survive the trip through the Abyssal Lands and know for certain what kind of materials to salvage from such a wreck were definitely not ordinary by any metric.

Hence why, the moment that Zhen Xun Tian, Zhen Long, Zhen Hai, and Zhen Long all collectively noticed that someone or something was snooping around the site with a clear purpose in mind, they were all on high alert.

Evidently, their alertness was incredible foresight on their part.

Shortly after the group had gotten closer to the wrecked superweapon, they had found the intruder camouflaging themselves with [Chaos] as they attempted to hide directly attached to it like a fly hiding on a bull's hide.

This was actually a very apt comparison, due to the intruder in question resembling a cricket.

To be more precise, it was a Grafted warrior that none of them had seen before this very battle.

This Grafted one, whoever they were, looked as equally disturbing as the ones that had attacked Undertow, if not more so.

This disturbing visage was thanks to the fact that this warrior, from the neck up, essentially had a giant locust for a head. Or rather, it would be accurate to say that he was a giant locust with a human neck and body dangling off the very bottom of their insect face.

[You annoying gnats! Master Buzza and Lord Lightwing will not appreciate you interrupting my harvest!] the Grafted locust warrior snarled in a voice that was clearly much too human-sounding for the vocal cords of an insect to mimic.

The Zhen Clan warriors didn't give two shits about pissing off the Grafted warrior's master, but they couldn't help but notice how the freaky flyer had mentioned an unexpected name.

"Wait a minute, Lightwing? As in that angelic-looking guy who dipped out of the battle once his compatriots got captured?" Zhen Hai asked his elders. "I thought that dude ran away with his tail between his legs to parts unknown."

"Evidently, that doesn't seem to be the case," Zhen Xun Tian added. "But let's worry about that after we capture this buggy bastard."

"Right!"

As soon as they made this intention clear amongst themselves, all four of the Zhen Clan warriors began to channel aether and [Chaos] in their next wave attacks.

[Ocean Cutter!]

[Binding Tidal Chains!]

[Inked Asura's Hands!]

[Primordial Scripture: Dire Wolf Howl!]

Despite staring down the barrel of these attacks, though, the Grafted Locust remained remarkably level-headed to the point that they launched a counterattack of their own.

[Chaos Art: Buzzing Madness!]

Needless to say, the sound of these attacks colliding into each other was absolutely deafening.

…Meanwhile, in the Bronze Bell Kingdom…

After Zhen Yue had informed her fiancé, Santiago, about the [Mines of Malevolence] and its main export of [Malevolent Gold], the young noble had made a startling realization.

"Darling, you remember that gift we received from my cousin not too long ago? The on that she said was made by a master craftsman?"

"You mean that horrendously ugly golden statuette that radiated an absolutely awful feeling no matter what angle we looked at it?" Zhen Yue replied.

"Yes, the one that you said looked like a long turtle was smashed together with a warthog and an ogre," Santiago nodded.

"I believe we left it in the store room."

"Excellent."

After confirming that the statuette was in a secure location, Santiago proceeded to make move towards the aforementioned room in order to take a closer look at it.

Sensing the determination in her lover's stride, Zhen Yue proceeded to follow him.

Partially out of wanting to see what her man has in mind, partially because she felt compelled to be there in case shit went sideways.

That said, it didn't hurt to confirm whether this was going to be the case or not.

"Honey, why are you moving like your heels are being nipped at by killer Desert Piranha?"

"Well, my dear, it's because I think that statue we received may be related to what you just told me moments ago: a cursed treasure."

"Oh."

A grand majority of cursed treasures never really activate or cast their curses unless an aether warrior was dumb enough to activate them in the first place.

However, as it was always the case, there were exceptions to these rules.

Some cursed aether treasures could be wired in such a way that the curses the produce become environmental hazards as opposed to singular ones that target a specific person.

These type of environmental cursed treasures, though, needed time to fully take root in a location before they had time to do their dirty deeds.

In other words, if they were identified and dealt with in an appropriate timeframe, they could be rendered inert before something terrible happened.

Luckily for Santiago and Zhen Yue, they had managed to do just that.

Well, sort of.

"We're here."

As the couple stopped at the entrance of the store room, they could both sense a sinister aura leaking from behind the door.

It was as if a snarling, rabid beast had themselves a nest in this humble little storage space.

"Shit. Did we arrive too late or just in time?" Santiago couldn't help but to ask as he sensed the ominous energy. "I should've known something like this could happen."

"It's not your fault, darling," Zhen Yue assured Santiago as she placed a loving hand on his shoulder and slightly moved him out of the way. "Sometimes it's hard to believe that family members, even distant, can harbor such secrets."

Once her darling was out of the way, Zhen Yue began to circulate [Chaos] throughout her body in preparation for what was to come next.

"And in those situations, the best thing you can do is to either ignore it or face it head on!"

Whilst making this declaration, Zhen Zhen flung open the door and fully exposed herself to whatever dangers was behind it.

Immediately after she had done this, the sinister aura behind the door began to rush outwards for a brief moment before attempting to strike at Zhen Yue directly.

Alas, this attempt amount to doing absolutely nothing.

As soon as this sinister aura of cursed aether made contact with Zhen Yue, the [Chaos] in her body dispersed it and kept her completely unharmed.

This confirmed to the duo that at the very least, this cursed aether treasure that they had received as gift was made by aether warrior hands, and not by those who understood [Chaos].

At least, they hoped that was the case.

"Darling, stay behind me!"

"Right!"

Their formation set, the couple entered the room and got ready to deal with whatever bullshit this cursed treasure was ready to throw at them.

Evidently, it was going to be more than what the either of them bargained for.