Abyssal Awakening

"Master!" Jin called out after noticing Alyss making her way through the crowd.

But just as he was about to say something else, he noticed the stormy expression on her face and froze up.

He recognised that expression anywhere.

'She's pissed!'

Wanting to sneak away, Jin turned around and felt a hand on his shoulder.

"Where do you think you're going?" Alyss asked as Jin shivered.

"I was just looking for you." Jin made an excuse but seeing Alyss's glare, he gave up.

"I wanted to run." He admitted.

"Run? Why, I don't believe there's something that's scary. Or is it because you saw me? Am I scary? And what about your results? Did you even use that chance to practice your Zone?" Alyss asked, slowly leaning closer while Jin tried to back off.

"We're going to up the difficulty of the training when we get a chance." Alyss huffed in annoyance while Alice took over.

After all, Alyss was in a pretty bad mood thanks to the mysterious person controlling the test.

"Don't let what she said bother you. She's a little annoyed by her test. If anything, I think you did pretty well." Alice reassured with a grin.

Hearing this, Jin felt a strange warmth in his chest.

"If anything, I'm more happy with the fact that you didn't let your disguise get dispelled. If that happened, I'll annoyed too." Alice whispered with a firm grip on his shoulders.

While Alyss may be displeased that he wasn't able to reach the level of having distance measured rather than time, she'll be harsh about it upfront.

But annoying Alice meant getting hit out of nowhere without even expecting it!

He suddenly recalled their first spar. When he asked that forbidden question.

The speed of which she hit him into the lake still gave him nightmares to this day.

Swallowing his saliva, Jin nodded his head as the two of them left the testing venue for some food.

###

"You look like someone just kicked your pet. Why the long face?" The leader of the Demon Extermination Squad asked with a grin as he held a gourd of alcohol in his hands.

Staring at her master with a frown, Qiu Qiu gritted her teeth before snatching a gourd for herself and sitting down.

Tilting her head back, she gulped down several mouthfuls, surprising the old man.

"BLERGGGG! How do you even enjoy this sh*t? It's disgusting!" Qiu Qiu spat out in disgust as the old man snatched the gourd back.

"Youngin's like you don't understand the joy of drinking. Now tell me, what happened? I can only assume you lost to someone." He grinned, wiping the lip of the gourd with his sleeve before taking a drink.

"I lost. Decisively. Not to one person either, I lost to two people." Qiu Qiu glanced down at the table in frustration.

She had thought that Jin was the only one in there that would showcase a state beyond the weapon domain. But then another name appeared. They were able to set a record in distance rather than time.

There was no doubt that they had the state of Unity or something close to it. And from the rumours that she heard, the test only ended because she managed to break the chambers holding the test.
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"Hou? Two? I fully expected one but to think there were two." The old man raised an eyebrow as he recalled the young girl with no martial experience.

She had only moved based on instinct yet was able to showcase the state of Unity.

Contemplating to himself, the old man glanced at Qiu Qiu.

He could tell that the discovery that there were two potential users of the state of Unity unnerved her.

She hadn't lost many times in her life and was hailed as a genius of the next generation. Someone who could grasp one of the hardest martial arts in the East within a year's time.

First, she lost to the demoness who stole her martial arts with a single encounter. And now two rogues that could use a state that she struggled with herself.

As she is still young, he understood that her mental state might be a little fragile when it comes to setbacks like this.

At this point, there were only two paths that she could choose.

Either sink or swim!

Swirling the gourd in his hands, the leader's gaze softened as he recalled how he achieved his own state of Unity.

A pang of pain struck his heart as he took another drink.

"The… state of Unity is one that requires the utmost concentration from the user. A mental state that won't waver. Even if you are surprised, your body still understands what must be done in order to survive. It's both a state that can be reached through hard work and training yet at the same time, simply impossible for others.

"More often than not, there is a… moment where clarity hits you like a hammer. At that moment, the world slows down and your mind opens up to the possibilities. The thin line between life and death. If you are one of the lucky few, the state of Unity will open itself to you and reward your training.

"If not, you'll die. It's as simple as that. It's not something that can be forcefully achieved. I fully believe that you have the foundations to achieve this state. But that mental. . . needs work." The old man pointed at her head as Qiu Qiu glanced up.

Despite drinking, the leader was now showing a side of seriousness as she contemplated his words.

"Then am I supposed to accept my loss without doing anything?" Qiu Qiu asked.

In order to win, she needed the state of Unity to compete. She needed it to be on the same playing field.

She needed it to-

*Clap!

"Stop." The leader stopped her by clapping his hands in front of her face.

He could see the downward spiral that she was about to enter and knew that he had to stop it.

"It's not about winning or losing. It's not about the fictitious titles. Are you really concerned about winning the top spot? If so, why aren't you competing against the Lords out there? The apostles?" He asked with a frown.

Even though Qiu Qiu didn't say anything, it was clear what she was thinking.

"Is it unfair? They have more Sigils, they have more power. You can't compare yourself to them. Right?" He asked as she reluctantly nodded her head.

"You are not them, they are not you. Comparison is the death of joy. You're not achieving the state of Unity in order to hold it over someone else. You're trying to achieve the state of Unity in order to better yourself. To improve on the you of the past.

"Remember that. Win or lose, if you've improved during the fight, you've already gained more than what an easy victory would've given you. A difficult defeat is far better than an easy win. You merely need to observe it from a different angle."

Furrowing her brows, Qiu Qiu let out a sigh.

She understood what he was saying but… It's hard not to compare.

"Just keep an open mind when you challenge them in the next round." He concluded, knowing that saying any more than this would make it annoying for Qiu Qiu.

###

Glancing up at the sky, Ria frowned as she didn't feel a difference yet. Several days had now passed yet the Eclipse cycle still hadn't arrived.

Even though they were strong, Ria had to admit that the two of them were beginning to struggle with this curse.

The longer they stayed here, the hungrier the residents became.

At first, it was just a single pair of eyes staring at them, judging them and gauging their strength.

But later, it was several.

Always staring, never blinking.

They watched, watched and kept watching. Whether they were trying to sleep or keeping guard, there were always eyes watching their movements.

After a certain point, Ria began to wonder if she should just kill them all.

To stop the eyes from watching, to end their fleeting existence.

However, Luke helped her snap back to her senses.

"Freaky f*ckers…" Ria muttered, her voice weak.

Even when they venture out into the desert, there would always be a pair of eyes in the distance.

"The Eclipse cycle should be soon. They're becoming more and more restless. I won't be surprised if they start attacking us after a certain point." Luke sighed.

Not only that, but the strange teleportation was also beginning to fall apart.

They could get closer to others that wound up here. At least close enough to hear a single word before they were teleported away.

"I'm starting to feel like the Eclipse cycle isn't what we think it is." Ria spoke up as she glanced at the eyes staring at them from afar.

She stared back, not fearing their gaze and challenging them to meet hers.

"I feel like this Eclipse cycle is simply them opening the prison doors. To let all the inmates out for the culling."

She recalled her experiences in the ritual. It was a similar structure as to what they were experiencing right now.

A deprivation period in order to enhance the feelings of desire and violence before letting the subjects tear away at each other.

If they hadn't experienced this kind of treatment in the past, the two of them might've begun burning down every village they saw.

But doing so might help the ritual instead.

"Probably. But we can't do much about it. The truth of the matter is that we can't leave." Luke sighed.

Their only chance was during the main ritual. Like how Gin saved them, if this was indeed a ritual like the past, they'll have to disturb it from the heart of the ritual.

As time passed, the sun above began to waver as its light was slowly shielded by the moon.