Return of the Fallen Volume 7 Chapter 34
A streak of blue light flashed across the northern skis like a bolt of chaotic lightning. Fire beneath his feet, Kazuki flew like a speed demon. Passing over the ground like a blur, were common fol to look up at the moment he passed by, they would catch a glimpse of flitting blue light and nothing more.
As Kazuki passed through the north of Feya, he remembered Sid’s words clearly.
“The creature you’re looking for is called a Motozu. It’s said to be as big as a mountain and as quick as lightning in the sky. This small piece of scale I got is said to be from that creature. As you saw before, this scale has a unique quality to it. One that is unlike any other. Its scales can block energy or reflect it back. This rare material is what I’ll need if I’m to make your weapon. Only with these scales can we contain your ki energy properly inside of the device. Go north, far north, to the frozen ocean of Asadiah. In the deepest region and darkest part of the icy waters, you should find this creature of legends. Once there, I can’t say what to do when you come face to face with this creature, only what you need to get. In order to get this device to work properly, I’ll need a few of these scales, maybe half a dozen or so. Once you collect the ingredients, get out of there otherwise a long stay could become a permanent one.”
Kazuki flew further and further north. By the time it took for an incense stick to burn, Kazuki had covered a few thousand miles.
Pretty soon he had made it to the Asadiah ocean. Down at the shore, where waves of water would usually meet the sand, instead, small waves of chipped ice, crashed into the beach and left shattered chunks of broken ice all over the place. Kazuki didn’t stop to gawk and kept flying overhead. The further he flew north, the more ice he found frozen atop the ocean. At first, it was merely the surface of the water that was frozen. but as he traveled, the state of the ice grew deeper and deeper, colder and colder and denser like solid rock.
(According to the old man, I need to find the coldest part and then dive under this ice and find the deepest and darkest place as well. Only then could I even begin to find a trace of this Motozu creature thing.)
As Kazuki flew through the air, he was surprised to find a force of wind crashing into him as he flew. The speed of the wind was at least 200 miles per hour. This alone would not through Kazuki from his course but what followed with it was a penetrating coldness that dug into one’s bones. Kazuki soon found the cold wind to be too much and he became stunned. He could use the element of water now, thanks to Danny’s mage core being absorbed by his which in turn gave him some immunity to the colds touch but even with this slight advantage, it meant basically nothing to this icy wind.
It was hard for him to believe that with his enhanced body and tough flesh, along with the element of water and ki, even with all of that, he was still feeling the cold. Kazuki was forced to use his flames to warm his body as he went. With it, the sharp stinging cold became a summer breeze and he felt relieved.
As he flew along, Kazuki would toss a rock down below, smashing it into the ice. Using his sense of hearing, he was able to sense dozens of miles downward. Images flashed through his head as he began to see with his ears.
(To think this skill I picked up in the trench is still so useful.)
Kazuki didn’t like to recall the trench too much. Besides meeting king Oren, everything else in the trench was a bad memory. One he didn’t wish to relive but in the end, he couldn’t deny that he had gained a lot from the dark shit hole. Using his ears in such a way that it was almost as if he was seeing with his very own eyes, this was one such gain and he took full advantage of it.
Flying for thousands of miles, Kazuki continued to toss out rock after rock and listen to the depths of sound down below. Every time he did, he would get images in his head of odd underwater terrain. Caves, underwater valleys, deep-sea mountains, and dormant volcanoes here and there. What surprised Kazuki the most was not the geographical sights but instead the crazy vast ecosystem of creatures and plants.
Underwater forest, filled with seagrass and coral reefs stretching as far as Kazuki could sense and beyond. Fish the size of ants to fish bigger than buildings. All unique, yet all part of the same environment.
Kazuki had no time to take in all the sights or rather he just wanted to get this over with. He wanted to find the Motozu or whatever and get the scales and dip.
(If this creature is as powerful as Sid says it is, it should be at least near the 5th stage. It should be a late Sky beast then. Its power is probably slightly better than mine. I should still be able to deal with it though. At that stage, its intelligence should be greater than a normal human’s and I should be able to easily communicate with it. If I can simply talk with it, things should go smoothly. For a few of its scales, I can offer it a trade. I’ll get the scales and then I’m out of here.)
As Kazuki continued to fly, he threw out another rock.
*Kouuuwwwww*
An odd hollow sound rang out in his ear.
(Down below this piece of ice, it’s several times deeper than what my perception allows. For the noise to ring out hollow though, it means there is a large hole beneath me. The fact that I can sense any creatures near it as well, even though just a moment ago they were everywhere, does this not mean the other creatures no to stay away from here?)
Kazuki marked that spot before flying around for a few more hours. Every place he flew by was brimming with life. Every place except that hole.
In the end, that place was near the center of all the ice and it was the coldest area. Not only that but Kazuki couldn’t perceive the full extent of that hole nor what was in it.
Kazuki flew back to that precise spot and landed on the ice.
(If this legendary creature actually exists, this is the only place I can think where it could be. Though I haven’t searched the whole ocean, this spot seems legit. The only thing I don’t get is how anyone ever discovered this creature in the first place. Sid said he heard the story from the old man he got the scale from but how the hell did this old man know? This place is literally in the middle of the ocean. There’s no way that random old man traveled all the way out here and discovered this creature, right?)
Kazuki didn’t know who he was even asking at this point. He half expected a response from Zetrazz but after their little confrontation, Zetrazz and the dark energy within his compass had remained quiet and still.
(He seemed so fired up about it earlier but if I mention that, he might just break my body.)
Kazuki’s body trembled. Not from the wind but from the thought of a mood-swinging Zetrazz.
“Forget it, let’s just get this over with.”
The ring on Kazuki’s finger lit up as he willed his magic forth. A small blue flame hovered above his finger. Pressing his finger against the ice at his feet, his magic pulsed within him and came rushing forth. The flame was like a thin knife. The moment, Kazuki sent a surge of energy into it, the flame grew over two miles long in an instant.
Drawing a circle as thick as a barrel in the ground, Kazuki carved two miles worth of ice out of the ground in an instant. His ring flashed once more and a pillar of ice two miles long disappeared beneath his feet and was stored within his storage ring.
A long tunnel from the surface stretched miles downward.
At this moment a voice spoke in Kazuki’s mind.
(Mortal, why did you cut the ice? You wanted to find this creature as quickly as possible, with your strength it’s possible to shatter all of this ice with a single punch. Why do this unnecessary thing?)
Kazuki found several insults he wanted to throw at this titan but knew Zetrazz’s temperament now. Instead, he swallowed the gut of curses and spoke calmly.
(I could break all the ice in an instant just like you said but I learned something when dealing with you. Powerful beings don’t like to have large disturbances in or around their lair. If I just break everything, whatever’s inside might find it disrespectful. I want to get this done through a peaceful talk and that can’t happen if we get off on the wrong foot, right?)
The dark energy went still for a moment before going wild.
(True but your way is boring. If this creature is near your strength, then that would be the perfect match. The entertainment that it will bring me, let’s see it!)
The dark energy spiraled outward and drilled down into the tunnel before Kazuki had any time to react. The very next instant, cracks spread throughout the ice ad stretched onward for several miles, before all at once, the ice broke apart like a shocked maiden dropping a glass plate on the floor.
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