The obsidian towers of the city's heart loomed overhead like jagged teeth, their tips disappearing into the crimson-tinged clouds above.
The thunderstorm rumbled, but here, in the core of Obsidian City, it was muted- almost ceremonial. The vibrations of the Old Ones thrummed through the obsidian beneath their feet, a deep resonance that could be felt in the chest, spine, and even teeth.
Hei Shisan bounced lightly on the balls of his feet, eyes sparkling in the shadowy light.
"Finally," he murmured, almost gleeful. "The real stage." He stretched his arms theatrically. "All that chaos in the outskirts was just the opening act. This… this is the main event."
Jin Huang, golden aura subdued, felt his meridians thrumming with the power of the latter stages of the Energy Gathering realm. He stepped forward, fists clenched in anticipation. He could feel the demonic energy in the air, thicker and more condensed than anything he had ever tasted. His body ached to get started devouring it.
Xu Ye, however, felt a different weight. He had entered alongside Jin Huang and Hei Shisan, braving those hoards- albeit from a distance. Now, standing in the presence of the Old Ones, he felt something that he had never experienced.
His ocular divinity, his precious gift, was still recovering from the Mint Flavor backlash. The fractures in his vision made the lines of karma almost indecipherable. He could feel, vaguely, the magnitude of what was just ahead of them, but it was like trying to read a storm through a thick fog.
Helplessness sat in his chest like a stone. For the first time, he didn't have the advantage. For the first time, he could not predict what was coming next.
The vibrations coalesced again as the voices repeated, deep, resonant, and layered with authority.
"Golden One…" they said, the syllables vibrating in Jin Huang's bones, near enough to cause a rumbling in his chest. "Name yourself."
Jin Huang froze, his grin faltering for only a fraction of a heartbeat before it returned, wider, sharper, more daring than before. "Golden One?" he repeated aloud, testing the sound on his tongue. "I don't mind it, but my true name is Jin Huang."
A pulse of energy radiated from the city's core, brushing against him like fingers of invisible lightning. Jin Huang felt them observing him- not like beasts or mortals, but with that patience of ancient existence. The kind that could likely watch millennia pass in a single blink.
"I…" Jin Huang hesitated for only a heartbeat before straightening, exterminating fear and common sense alike. His golden energy flared in his eyes, still unable to extend outward due to some form of suppression. A suppression that his body did not seem to like.
"I came here to cultivate in the heart of Obsidian City," he said, voice carrying easily across the obsidian. "Now I see why those putrid beasts were so rude to me. It's because mannerless rulers govern them. Should you not have given your names first, before demanding mine?"
The vibrations deepened in response, like guttural growls.
Hei Shisan's grin turned wicked. "Oh-ho… now he's really pushing it. That's Number Fourteen for you."
Xu Ye's stomach dropped. "He can't… he doesn't understand what he's doing. These aren't just random beasts. These are the oldest and most powerful demons in all the Earthly Realm."
His voice caught, and he had to swallow the feeling down. His vision was too fractured to read them fully, but he could feel the centuries, the millennia, compressed into the presences before him.
Then, the shadows stirred. The air thickened as the crimson lightning above began to bend unnaturally, and the forms began to coalesce.
Two figures rose high amidst the thick miasma.
Not in shape alone, but in presence. One was taller, broader, with edges that seemed carved from the obsidian itself; the other was smaller, more sinuous, yet every movement hummed with inevitability. They seemingly did not speak with mouths; their voices carried like the low rumble of tectonic plates, felt as much as heard.
"Golden One…" they intoned together, the syllables vibrating in sync with the obsidian foundations. "Jin Huang. You ask of us our names: we shall tell."
Jin Huang's grin widened further, the discomfort in his body becoming something closer to annoyance. He hated the suppression that was weighing down on his body, but he did not truly understand what he was feeling or why. Only that his energy was subdued.
Xu Ye's hands twitched at his sides. He wanted to protest, to pull Jin Huang back, to whisper cautions, but his own lack of energy betrayed him. In the end, he conceded that even the Old Ones weren't exempt from the whims of an Unteachable One.
The smaller figure arced an appendage outward. Shadows flowed like liquid, swirling around its form before disappearing into the obsidian air. "Ours are not names as you have come to understand them. As Beings of Transcendence, we have been touched by the unseen Dao, and born anew- given new names. Such names are not for the fleeting, but for the eternal."
Jin Huang's grin faltered only for a moment before he laughed, rich and playful. "Ah! Clever. Mysterious. I like that."
The other creature stirred, its body alone weighing on the fabric of reality and threatening to tear it wide open. "Since you have asked, we will tell. I am called... Ever-Hell."
The utterance of that name shook Obsidian City to its core, and from somewhere beneath them in the Abyss, a breathless whisper arose.
"I am called... Samsara-Law," said the other, and the thundering sky silenced itself as crimson color was banished from it for a few moments.
Jin Huang nodded, "Greetings to you, Ever-Hell, Samsara-Law. Thank you for the warm welcome."
The Old Ones made low, rumbling sounds in response to that.
"As for your friend- the horse. Self-defense. You can't attack and expect not to be attacked, right? I will let the matter slide for now, as long as you both cooperate with me."
Hei Shisan whistled softly. "Brash, arrogant… and absolutely fearless."
Xu Ye's jaw tightened. He had no vision, no flashes of the future, no insight to rely on. Yet, somehow, his mind was sharper in this helplessness—he could feel the gravity of the challenge pressing on Jin Huang's shoulders. And in that feeling, excitement dared to be born.
The two Old Ones remained unmoving, yet Jin Huang felt their intent like molten gravity pulling at him. They were curious. They were measuring. They were… waiting.
"You shall... let us off easy?" the taller one intoned, voice vibrating the very air. "Golden One. Jin Huang. You disturb our peace, slaughter our worshippers, and kill our most astute student. Yet, you will spare us? Demand cooperation?"
The other made a sound that was closest to a scoff, "The mortal overestimates and, in doing so, offends. Have you no fear, Jin Huang? No respect?"
Jin Huang's eyes flared with golden sharpness, not in fear, but in sheer defiance. He took a step forward. "Am I expected to fear you? Respect you? I do not know you, and you do not know me. You have not earned my respect, nor made me fear."
One of them grunted, their voice booming as a soundwave broke the stillness of the miasma. "You, who speaks to us as if an equal!"
The other, Samsara-Law, followed suit, "You, who would deign to make demands of us!"
Together, their voices clashed, no longer coalescing as before. They were distinctly different, but fueled by the same anger.
"Jin Huang! Mortal! Who do you think you are!?"
Jin Huang folded his arms, the suppression of his energy strengthened by their anger- fueling his very own. The flames of resistance blazed in him, golden energy filling his eyes until it leaked outward, giving light to the dark and searing away the surrounding miasma. "I AM THE SUPREME IMMORTAL!"
His voice created a soundwave of its own, his energy breaking free of the suppression and arising in thick tufts of aura on his body. The miasma around him was burned away, becoming sustenance in the air for him to breathe in and devour.
Hei Shisan clapped softly, almost ceremonially. "And that, my dear Xu Ye, is why I chose him as my successor. Chaos, confidence, and a whole lot of insanity."
Xu Ye's lips pressed into a thin line. He was still helpless- but for the first time, he felt like he understood what fearlessness meant. What standing proud in the face of insurmountable odds meant.
The two Old Ones remained there, their forms rippling with the invisible energy of countless eons, observing the audacity of the Jin Huang, listening to the echo of his voice, feeling the pulse of his resolve.
Suddenly, Ever-Hell, seemingly the larger of the two, reigned in its presence and sunk into the miasma with a laugh.
Mimicking this, Samsara-Law chuckled and coiled itself. In unison, they spoke before returning to silence.
"So you know. Good. Our residence is open to you, Jin Huang."
Hearing this, and sensing the Old Ones settling down, Jin Huang unfolded his arms. The confident smile on his face didn't leave, nor did his expression change.
Hei Shisan came up beside him, nudging his arm. The simple action caused him to fall over, and he landed on his face, tears streaming from his eyes.
"Thank you for not killing me... Ever-Hell... Samsara-Law..."