Temporal Pearls

"You came from Red Valley!" The man said. Seth smiled as he looked at the man's red lips and asked, "you have red lips!" That made the man frown and Seth's heart stopped beating.

Seth's breathing became hard too and his shadow that was making him feel like drowning in mud increased, now he was using all his power to move, if not because he had a lot of buff in walking, he would have collapsed. His Exertion points too were consuming faster.

Seth reached the man with sweat on his forehead as he tried to breathe, so he raised his can't to tap the man on the shoulder. He felt that he would be swallowed, he felt that his being would be consumed if he touched the man but he did it nonetheless and a burst of aura that expanded for kilometres came out of the man's body.

The kilometre-expanded aura became thick and flowing like pale water but with tints of black and white ashes in it. Seth floated in that water and other objects that weren't very heavy.

The pale water was the man's aura that became active. The sun that was above boiled the aura and the black and white ashes in it were purged.

Seth's shadow that was swallowing him also became normal, the fear he was feeling was also gone. He also felt the red string and other things in him were not affected even though his attire was soaked in it.

The moment the sun shifted from the centre, the aura thickness reduced and gradually it disappeared. Seth dropped and stood panting, he was able to breathe in the water aura but hard and it entered him which made his Guru gam heart and the Blood Aura Flower purify him.

"I came from a not distant place, I went to Red Valley and received my name. I was also opportune to come across healthy seeds and fruit that I use to barter and also hoped to afforestate other barren lands." Seth explained.

The man's pale face now has blood running in his vein, but nothing about the rest of his body.

"You passed by the nightmare and even got some fruits!" The man spoke.

Seth smiled at the man and nodded. The man turned and went inside, "come with me!" The man said.

As Seth entered the shade of the dead trees he felt as if something close to him was being cleaved away. He turned and found that his shadow was left behind and when he looked at the man, he was looking at him with a sinister smile, "come on!" This time he said it playfully.

'No!' Seth thought and decided to turn but the man kept walking and he became like a marionette mimicking what the man was doing, that was walking deeper into the dead forest.

When they were about 100m from his shadow, Retina shrieked in his mind, 'why are you with Shadow Stealer? Go back and pour blood in your shadow!'

Seth's body didn't stop but now he saw that his body was fading away, strangely not even First Might was reacting. In fact, Seth's thoughts had slowed down.

A flood of red liquid came out from Red River Stone and entered Red Signature stone before it flooded toward Seth's shadow, a portion of it gulped Seth and dragged him back.

That was when Shadow Stealer turned with a scowl and a black sword appeared on his hand, leaking black blood and he struck the river. A flying crescent of black energy came toward the red river but it moved fast and dumped Seth in his shadow which also began to sink him like mud, with no question, he bit his hand and blood dripped on it and he stopped sinking.

"You will have become my guest and I will have to show you great hospitality as compensation for activating my Aura!" The man said casually.

'Wait, you activated his Aura? You should have said so. He is a friend if that was the case!' Retina said. Seth wasn't convinced because he saw how the man looked at him with a sinister smile but then he recalled the quest.

[Willpower Evolution Quest]

[You have scared a dragon, your Will grow stronger]

[Pure Stone Will Level Maxed]

[Black Void Sanctuary was always a mystery, the people, the animals, and the objects might not always be what they seem but are they good or bad? Regardless, that isn't the most important, surviving means gaining something infinitely important]

~Visit Dark Void Sanctuary

[Reward]

~Pure White Stone Will Evolution

____

[Hidden Quest]

~You have failed to obtain shadow stealing ability by not trusting your guide.

________

Seth read with a forward but he thought, 'It's better to be safe than sorry'

"Sorry for my ignorance!" Seth said and the man smiled sinisterly and said, "I'm not offended, I'm used to it!" And then he turned while Seth followed him again. This time he felt he was free, not compelled.

*****

The battle ended, and Zambia and his group didn't get a single moon core. They were too weak against a battle that involved Sanctuary's Chiefs. And they have witness power that they can only hope to get, so they also gathered the soil in the crater because it too was valuable. They were also thankful that Seth gave them a crystal.

"Ash, why are we lagging behind!" Zambia asked and the group of 8 players stared at him. He was in thought before he said, "I need to go back!"

"What do you mean by that!" Juma disgruntled, "you want to bail on me after I helped you? Or was it your plan to make us go to that sanctuary of yours!"

Ash frowned at what she said before he sighed and said, "None of that, the truth was I'm destiny driven. My sanctuary is misunderstood most of the time as such, at various points in time, a person was sent out to be a guide. I'm the guide now. I'm destined to meet with people that will require me to go to my home.

It's not straightforward but among the people I may meet, one or two or all of them will go there. My job was to befriend them, guide them, safely in and out!"

"And!" Zambia asked with a frown he already recognized what was happening.

"One of such people I shall guide has just reached the place."

"Who will be idiot enough to go there alone!" Zero asked but seeing the knowing look of everyone, the boy realized who and he muttered, "Seth!"

"Yes. He is with Shadow Stealer and passed the first test. I need to go there before he faces a more unnecessary test that may lead to his demise." Ash said, "the tests will keep but it will become harder!" Saying that he puffed up in ash and blew in the wind.

*****

Seth's body was now protected inside a cocoon of red that kept shimmering, changing nature from semi-Lequid to hard to liquid. Outside was another red liquid but this time it was the blood of an animal he was unfortunate to pass by while it was being slaughtered.

The notion was the slaughtered animal became angry because Seth looked at it without permission as such the blood attacked him.

[Hidden Quest]

~You have failed to obtain the approval of a slaughtered bovine and for that, all bovine animals in the sanctuary will try to kill you!

____

Seth stayed in the red ball till the blood calmed down and dried before he came out. The slaughterer smiled sinisterly at him and said, "it is very shy when it was dying"

Seth was speechless, not only that, Shadow Stealer seemed upset about the delay. He was about to move but then he saw a herd of bovines grazing in a pen, a little distance away and he knew they would attack him.

But he too has a sinister smile stretched on his face as he strolled as if there was nothing. Eventually, the bovines saw him and all of them mooed at him before they dashed toward him.

[You have attracted the ire of bovines!]

When they were close, Seth brought out something from his pocket and threw it at them. Not only were the people around walking normally but even the bovines, the birds, the ants and all animals around attention turned toward what he threw and they dashed toward it.

Shadow Stealer's face froze and he slammed at his shadow, which made all of their shadows turn ovals and they froze in place. The whole town came to standstill.

What Seth threw were moon crystal fragments.

Seth strolled as if nothing happened and passed Shadow Stealer that was now going there to fetch the fragments, "I have some here that I can give you!" Seth said. But the man still fetched the other ones and came with a stretched hand for more.

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They passed the town until they reached a large grey mansion that had black smoke coming out from its chimney. It was heavily guarded with soldiers in grey armour and in between the armoured joints was as dark as an abyss.

Seth's sight was deemed as he looked at that part.