Rivers of the Night

Frost clung to the tips of Theron's hair, but he continued to glide on the wind. Casting his Dark Mana techniques here was especially difficult because of the volatile winds. It required more control than it would in a calm environment. A single misstep and he could scatter his own body into the wind with one casting of [Shadow Step].

But Theron also found it to be interesting training. He also found it curiously easy to kill the Ice Spirit Beasts down here despite being certain they were stronger than the ones on the surface.

Part of that was because he wasn't hiding his other abilities like [Entangling Silence], which basically allowed him to vanish in the winds, and [Entangling Clouds], which allowed him to walk on the air currents. But another part was because of how sharp his mind was and how easily he was able to use the environment to his benefit.

He had yet to run into a single Gold Mancy Ice Spirit Beast. Every single one had been of the Touching Cloud Realm, and the sheer quantity of them allowed his point total to tick up even faster than before.

—

[Rankings]

[1. Orin Zimone - 633]

[2. Theron Galethunder - 488]

[3. Rose Milone - 487]

[4. Ailon Trum - 479]

[5. Bertrum the III - 444]

[6. Lilac - 322]

[7. Violet - 322]

—

Theron had almost fallen out of the top ten a mere dozen or so minutes ago. In a step, he had returned to second place, the number of enemies he was coming across becoming larger and larger, more numerous as he continued forward.

A part of Theron was tempted to take out his dagger and short sword. If he did so in an environment perfect for assassination like this one, his killing efficiency would hit a new gear.

But in the end, he decided against it.

He had noticed something peculiar the longer he used a spear. It was like weaknesses he had in his dual wielding were slowly being undone. Mistakes in his learning he had made in the past—things he had long blown past and managed to cover up with other strengths—were being ironed out.

It was like using another weapon had opened up a new perspective he hadn't considered before.

Plus, he had to become more comfortable with the spear. For now, it would be his main weapon. If he couldn't get as comfortable with it as he did his dagger and short sword, it would cost him his life one day.

So, he continued to kill…

And kill…

And kill…

Until he came across his first fork in the road.

'Good.'

This meant Brenson wasn't wrong. There were, indeed, branching paths. After calculating some things and retracing his steps, Theron decided to take the left. That should get him closer to what he wanted.

Almost the instant he did, the winds blew back harder, nearly throwing him off his feet.

Theron glided to a stop, digging his heels into the ground with narrowed eyes.

The narrower the valley becomes, the harsher the wind. The origin of the wind really must be down here…

It was a concept Theron was quite familiar with. It was easy to adjust the pressure of water by changing the hose it came out of. But this was only if the origin source remained uniform.

For a phenomenon like this to be appearing in a valley, it meant that it, too, had an identical origin source.

Deeper.

Theron adjusted himself, pulled on his Chilling Dark Mandate with greater force, wrapping it tightly around himself, and stomped a foot.

BOOM.

Theron shot out like an iron ball from a cannon, moving so swiftly he seemed to blur in the wind…

Right into the path of a descending club of ice.

Theron was ready, tapping a foot on the ground. His violet irises flashed and his body caught the momentum of a passing current, instantly pulling himself out of the way.

BOOM.

The club landed on the ground, but Theron had already canceled his ride, taking a step right outside the range of the club's destruction and tapping a foot onto the ground to accelerate forward.

His eyes flashed, his [Entangling Blood Vein Pupils] tying his steps onto another current of wind in the opposite direction. He changed directions so suddenly and forcefully that the Humanoid Ice Spirit Beast couldn't even react in time.

Theron had already stepped onto its ground-embedded club and slashed out.

A head flew into the skies.

Theron flipped through the air, landing on the ground and shooting off into the distance before the corpse even landed.

Faster. Faster. Faster.

He felt an intoxication deep within his bones, moving swiftly and reaping lives with a single strike.

He didn't even use Spells at a distance, but his killing efficiency was on another level, continuing until he reached another fork in the road.

This one, however, had four paths.

Theron's gaze flickered. This time he chose the first to his left rather than the one furthest.

Now, he was picking not just based on location, but also the harshness of the wind. He bet that so long as he continued to pick the ones where the wind became more wild, he would get closer and closer to the source.

…

In the outside world, many who thought that Theron would die for sure were watching his point total tick up without the words to speak.

They weren't just ticking up, but they were moving with such speed that it was like Theron had entered the core ring already.

'He's still alive.'

It was this thought that let Lyra exhale a breath in relief, her anxiety relaxing somewhat. She could also feel that the murderous intent coming from Matriarch Macie had likewise calmed somewhat.

Lyrah herself had also relaxed somewhat. But she knew more than the disciples did. There were some regions of that valley that were fine. But… it could quickly become like a winding maze.

Not only that, but as you moved through it, the walls became taller as you fell into a deeper and deeper quagmire.

If you traveled too far…