A week had passed and Amon still hadn't managed to control a single strand of qi. Instead of going to the Northern Junction again, he took long walks around the area in the mornings and completed a few odd jobs to earn contribution points.
As the sun rose on the day of the Scavenging, Amon was gathering some clothes for his journey. Daniel had arrived an hour earlier and had made his way to Rebeccas's room.
"Here, auntie. I've brought you enough water, bread, cheese, and dried meat to last for a week," Daniel said, taking a bottomless pouch from his robes.
She gracefully accepted the pouch, though her expression turned funny when it was fully in her hands.
"It's been a while since I've held one of these. I could never get used to putting my arm into one. It's like submerging it in water, but without getting wet. It gives me the creeps."
They both laughed merrily. The bottomless pouches weren't favored by everyone. After a short moment, Rebecca regained her serious tone.
"Daniel, be very careful in this Scavenging," she said in a low, but stern voice, her eyes fixed on his.
"Did something happen?" he asked, surprised.
"No… at least I think not. It's just a bad feeling. Though, you are venturing into the Broken Forest, so keep your guard up."
She seemed a bit confused as to why she felt this way.
"I promise you, auntie. I'll be careful and take good care of Amon."
His words slightly soothed the churning pit in her stomach and the worry in her heart.
"Thank you," she replied, her eyes lighting up as Amon entered the room.
Daniel stood up and said his goodbyes. Meanwhile, Amon stood at the corner of her bed with a small linen sack full of clothes on his shoulder. His black hair had a strange glint to it, almost as if it was shining. It had been more than a week since he last used the black nuts and soon the dye would lose effect.
Rebecca opened her arms and beckoned for him to give her a hug. She ruffled his hair and kissed his forehead.
She whispered into his ear, "You have to be careful, okay?"
Her voice was full of worry.
"I will, mom."
"Listen to Daniel and, if something happens, promise me you'll run to safety."
"I—"
"Promise me!"
"I promise. I'll run."
Amon was starting to feel insecure. What is this about?
"Good. I'll see you in a few days."
She tightened her hug and kissed his forehead once more. Amon kissed her cheek and left. Rebecca ran her hand across her neck, and twirled the scarlet gem between her fingers as she watched the two of them walking down the front path. The sun slowly peeked over the horizon, its bright rays illuminated Amon and Daniel as they laughed and joked with one another.
A strange feeling churned in her chest. Was this worry or fear? She had dismissed Amon's worries a week ago. She thought it was just him blaming himself for something that was out of his control.
Yet, she felt strange whenever she remembered his words. What if it wasn't just his guilt speaking? She didn't know what Lloyd had done to her son that day. Maybe she had made a mistake. Hoping she was wrong, Rebecca lightly pressed the necklace onto her chest with her palm.
★☆★☆★☆★☆★☆
After a few hours, Amon and Daniel had finally reached the Broken Forest. Black stone watchtowers were manned by heavily armed guards throughout the day and night. They were connected by a thick, black stone wall that clearly defined the sects grounds from that of the forest.
The Abyss Sect lay alone in the area. Spirit beasts, animals that cultivated by instinct, lurked at every corner. Fraught with hidden dangers, none of the nearby mortal kingdoms or smaller sects dared to venture into its maw.
Should the beasts decide to invade the sect's grounds, people in the Outer Sect had no chance of fighting them. Despite it being an extremely rare occurrence, a stampede of these formidable creatures could attack with little notice.
As Amon and Daniel approached the golden gate in the wall, they saw a multitude of people gathered at the entryway. They were divided into more than twenty lines. An elder stood at the head of each one, confirming the participant's prior applications to the Scavenging.
When Amon and Daniel reached the front of their queue, Daniel presented two wooden plaques with their registration information. Glancing at the plaques, the elder instructed the two of them to stand off to the side after he confirmed their applications.
Soon after, a middle-aged man approached them. His purple robes were embroidered with silver embellishments, and his short, salt and pepper hair was neatly combed to the side. With a light kick on the ground, his body shot up, creating a gust of wind that blew into the faces of a few dozen people next to him. Once he landed atop the wall, he began to speak and his voice sounded clear in everyone's ears. His voice was calm and serene, his tone steady.
"Good morning. As you all know, today we will open the Broken Forest for the Scavenging. Twenty elders will be roaming the forest for the next four days. They will provide assistance to anyone who needs it. For the parents that brought their children, I don't recommend staying more than two kilometers away from the gates. Nevertheless, the forest is big and the elders are few. Your lives are ultimately in your hands."
"You may return anytime between now and the deadline. If you overstay the allotted time, a penalty will be applied for trespassing. Are there any questions?"
He looked around the crowd and a few people inquired about a few unimportant matters. When they were done, he raised his hands high into the air.
"Let the Scavenging begin!"
The enormous gate slowly opened. There was pushing and pulling everywhere. Daniel grabbed Amon by his collar and held on tightly. He didn't want to explain to Rebecca that her son was trampled at the entrance by their fellow cultivators.
Once they managed to step out of the center of the madness, Daniel pointed east and said, "Come on. We have to be fast!"
They ran for a few minutes without slowing down. Amon tried his best to keep up with Daniel's long legs. They had barely covered a kilometer, but Amon was already panting for breath and covered in sweat.
"Alright, this should be far enough. We can slow down a bit."
Amon couldn't speak, he needed to catch his breath. Giving a slight nod, he motioned for Daniel to continue.
"We're about thirty kilometers away from the Red River. We should get there by nightfall if we don't take too many breaks."
"I… fine. G-give me a s-second," Amon stuttered as he took several deep breaths.
He sat down on the ground and slowly regulated his breathing. They were still near the wall, but he could already see the forest from up close.
The trees were dozens of meters tall, with dark green leaves at their crowns. Their branches intertwined, blocking the sunlight. Their twisted, dark trunks had a circumference of at least three meters. The trees were hundreds of years old, if not thousands.
Amon couldn't see past a few meters inside the forest. A sharp chill ran through his body and he suddenly felt pressure within his chest. He found it difficult to breathe, and his face paled.
Daniel realized it and slapped his back, snapping him out of it.
"Are you okay?"
Amon looked delirious and his arms and legs were trembling.
"I'll be fine."
Daniel nodded and sat by his side. Amon clenched his fists hard and tensed his muscles, trying to stop his body from trembling. It took him a few minutes to collect himself. When Daniel saw that he was somewhat better, he jumped to his feet.
"Let's go, or we will never get there in time," he replied, helping Amon to his feet.
"What's the plan? I don't know if we'll be able to get there and return in four days."
Daniel scoffed. He continued walking east and Amon cautiously followed suit.
"Once we reach the river we'll build a raft. It should only take us half an hour at best. The river will take us straight to our destination and we should arrive by sunrise. If you get tired you can sleep on the raft."
Amon was impressed, but not surprised. Daniel always seemed to be thinking a few steps ahead.
As the midday sun lazily rose into the sky, the temperature rose as well. They walked closer to the edge of the forest to seek refuge in the shadows as they moved. Being that close to the forest put him on edge. Daniel tried to lighten his mood, but was unsuccessful.
They had spent over eight hours walking along the forest's edge. Their journey would have been quicker, but Amon's young and weak body demanded rest every few hours. The soft sound of water trickling gave them a boost of energy. Quickening their pace, they approached the river in the distance.
The mud-brown water of the Red River gushed loudly at their feet. Amon took several steps back, fearing he would fall in and be swept away in its current. Daniel, on the other hand, wasted no time getting started on the raft.
He pulled open his bottomless pouch and retrieved an axe and some rope before powerfully striking one of the young trees along the river. His axe whistled through the air with each swing, its impact shaking the surrounding trees. When he was done, several logs sat on the ground, each four meters in length.
"Help me out a bit," Daniel said.
Amon helped hold the ropes in place as Daniel firmly tied them around the logs. After he was satisfied, he let out a long breath, cleaning the droplets of sweat from his face. By the time they dragged the raft into the water, only a few slivers of red light still shone on the horizon. They climbed on the raft and secured their belongings. Using a long stick he made from one of the branches of a tree, Daniel pushed the raft away from the riverbank. By then, Amon was falling asleep. His face was pale and his clothes clung to his body, covered in sweat. The dropping temperature made him shiver. He retrieved a blanket from the pouch and used his own bag as a pillow. Before long, he fell soundly asleep, not acknowledging the gentle rocking of the raft.
Daniel, on the other hand, was fine. He had done most of the work, but he only felt slightly tired. He could actually go on for a few days without sleep, although he hated doing so. He seemed to enter a trance as he navigated the raft downstream. Stars slowly lit up the sky, and a full moon appeared from behind the clouds, coldly gazing at them from above.
On occasion, large waves would pass beneath the raft, briefly waking Amon from his slumber. It wouldn't take him long to fall asleep again, but these interruptions occurred quite often throughout the night. This left him feeling groggy and heavy when Daniel finally woke him.
"We're here."
The sky was still dark, but Amon could already hear the chirping of the birds alongside the screeching of cicadas.
"What time is it?" Amon asked, rubbing his golden eyes which seemed like lanterns glowing in the dark.
"There are two hours left until sunrise. Let's go. The quicker we search here, the quicker we can return," Daniel said, jumping off the raft and dragging it onto the riverbank.
Meanwhile, Amon splashed the cold river water on his face to properly wake up. Daniel began to rummage through his pouch, handing several items to Amon. The first was a slender sword with an azure scabbard and pure white handle. It was a high-grade artifact that his father had given him long ago.
The second was a palm-sized, crystalline shield. It was an expendable treasure that could create a thick barrier around the user for a limited time. The third item was a jade disc filled with runes that glowed with a green light. Daniel injected his qi into the disc and it spun madly before floating slightly above his hand.
This qi compass was designed to tilt in the direction where qi was more abundant. Artifacts had high concentrations of qi and thus the compass was a great tool to have on their journey. It was extremely rare and it cost a fortune, which was why not many used it in the Scavenging.
Daniel and Amon walked along the riverbank with the disc in hand. They had walked for over an hour, covering two kilometers east of their starting point, yet they found nothing. When they were about to give up, the disk suddenly tilted towards the river.
Daniel was surprised. He had never expected to find anything and was waiting for Amon to give up so they could return. Amon's eyes shone with excitement as they carefully inched towards the river, desperately scanning for treasure. Suddenly, the disc flew out of Daniel's hands and started floating above the ground. Using a burst of his divine sense, Daniel examined the area and detected an object shaped like a spearhead buried a few feet underground. The duo kneeled on the ground and started digging frantically.
The sun had already started to rise on the horizon, painting the river with a hellish red tint. There were no birds chirping. No cicadas screeching. There was no sound at all, almost as if time had stopped. However, the pair was far too excited to notice.
Amon felt his hair stand on end and his body started to heat up. He could feel his blood churning from what he thought was excitement. A strange numbness started to course through his body like electricity. His primal instincts kicked in as he felt something approaching from the forest at an incredibly fast speed.
Trembling and pale, a cold sweat ran down his back. This familiar feeling was not nearly as strong as the one he felt five years ago, but he wasn't going to take any risks.
"Daniel, we have to go!"
Daniel stared up at Amon's ghostly face, slightly confused.
"Daniel, we have to go now!"
Without asking questions, Daniel grabbed the disc and tossed Amon onto his left shoulder, running back from whence they came. Unfortunately, it was too late.
A black shadow jumped in front of him and blocked his path. Daniel barely managed to keep his balance as he slid to a halt. A piercing trill echoed through the forest as Daniel drew his sword with his right hand.
He heard something snap to his right. Slowly turning his head towards the sound, Daniel saw a huge shadow taking shape between the trees. With each step it took, the ground shook beneath his feet. The color drained from his face and Amon's heart skipped several beats.
A pair of crimson eyes locked onto the two young men. A paw that was as big as an adult's torso appeared from the shadows. The creature's large, dagger-like claws scratched the ground as it walked, leaving large grooves in the earth. Its black fur presented itself more like an armor made of iron needles. The beast opened its mouth revealing a row of razor-sharp fangs.
"AWOOOOOOOOOO!"
The beast's howl made Amon's ears bleed as he was blown off of Daniel's shoulder, causing Daniel to stumble. Its eyes then focused on Amon. He tried to inch his way over to Daniel, but to his horror, he couldn't control his frail body. The beast approached him and stopped five meters away, glaring at him with hostility as the fur on its back stood up and a deep growl resonated from its throat.
Daniel snapped out of his trance. He recovered the shield talisman from his clothes and shattered it, moving closer to Amon. A thick and translucent golden light materialized from thin air and encompassed them. Daniel grabbed Amon and threw him over his shoulder once more. He used the shield covering them to smash through the wolf like a cannonball before bolting at full speed towards the raft.
Another howl echoed around them, making the surface of the shield ripple, and the beast ran towards them. Daniel was scared out of his mind. A beast like that shouldn't be here. He refused to believe what he was seeing, but the name of the beast still made its way out of his mouth.
"Dire wolf!"