OLD-WORLD EXTRA

Chapter 116: Poisonous Planet

Chapter 116: Poisonous Planet

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The boundaries of the portal were nebulous, as if it existed in a space between spaces, defying the laws of conventional reality.

And as Emir approached closer, he could feel the faint tugs of gravitational forces emanating from the portal.

A subtle reminder of the power that coursed through it.

Within the depths of the swirling vortexes, he glimpsed fleeting images of a distant landscape, a preview of what awaited on the other side.

'Alright....'

'Let's see what Silent has in store for me.'

Readying himself, he stepped forward, and the portal swallowed him whole.

He traveled more than 1,000 light years in an instant as his feet reached the other side of the portal.

While Emir cast his gaze upon his new surroundings, he was captivated by the surreal sight that unfolded before him.

The entire landscape, from the billowing clouds that stretched across the sky to the very ground beneath his feet, was bathed in a hue of deep and vibrant purple.

The clouds, like wisps of amethyst, danced across the heavens, their forms casting shifting shadows on the land below.

The sunlight that filtered through the lavender mist, created a soft glow.

In the distance, mountains rose from the violet horizon, their peaks piercing the heavens.

The mountains' rugged forms, tinged with hues of lilac and indigo, seemed to guard the secrets of this realm.

Emir found himself immersed in a landscape so extraordinary and alien that it defied the very notion of Earth.

He simply couldn't believe what he was seeing.

'This has to be outside the solar system, there's no way any of our planets look like this...'

Emir soon snapped himself out of that thought and walked on, his senses on high alert, while The navigated the area he found himself in.

But while walking, he felt different for some reason; his steps were subtly wonky, and

uneven.

It was almost unnoticeable to the average man, but that he was not....

And then Emir finally realized:

"Gravity.... I almost forgot about that."

He theorized it to be similar to that of Earth, as he easily adjusted to it, his strength output in the environment neither increasing nor decreasing.

Shrugging his shoulders, he accepted that as fact and moved on, his gaze wondering.

There were no lush jungles or towering trees, no signs of the abundant life to which he was accustomed.

Instead, as far as his eyes could see, there lay an expanse of rugged terrain, dominated by colossal rock formations that seemed to stretch endlessly.

The jagged rocks, weathered by eons of time, formed a labyrinth of natural sculptures.

They stood as ancient sentinels, guardians of this world.

"Augh!"

Emir's captivated gaze suddenly paused as his breath hitched and a coughing fit replaced his calm demeanor.

It was apparent that the air he breathed was devoid of oxygen, a realization that would have posed a dire threat to ordinary beings.

"Hoooooh...."

But Emir, as a celestial with the same degree of mutation as a Seraphim, had long transcended the need for such sustenance.

Through his early mutation, he attained an extraordinary adaptation that allowed him to exist independently of oxygen, defying the constraints of biological limitations.

After calm returned to his face, he stopped for a moment, wanting to make sure of a few things.

[Hey Lyra, can you hear me?]

He asked, wondering if the connection between them was still intact.

And like he expected, no reply came, so he didn't bother with that any longer and looked up.

"Silent, what do you want me to do here? This planet is just dead."

Emir knew that Marcus was watching him.

And a second later, a soft voice echoed in his mind:

[Check-check, you hear me, sonny?]

"Yeah, so why did you send me here?"

[Quite impatient, aren't you, young man? Listen up... This upcoming trial would test your adaptability, something quite important for a celestial.]

[Your wit and strength have already been proven, so now let's see if you have this as well.]

"No questions?" Emir asked.

Silent chuckled.

[Yes, you must go in this blind, knowing about the events that would unfold would ruin the trial after all...]

"I know that Lyra mentioned this already, but you must know that I really love people testing me. I seriously like it a lot, so thank you for this."

A moment of silence occurred until it was broken by wild laughter from both parties.

Moments later, when they finally calmed down, Silent spoke:

[Well, I like you boy, I'll give you a freebie after this.]

[Although I can't say what the information is exactly, I can tell you that it's regarding the one

who orchestrated this guillotine hovering over your head.]

[Hopefully, this would serve as enough motivation for you to try your best.]

Emir's eyes widened in surprise, but he shook his head right after.

"And here I thought that the experiments only began after your death...."

"Well, that certainly gets me going, I'll be sure not to disappoint you."

[You won't, and just know that you can only contact me when I initiate the connection.]

Now that Silent was gone, Emir focused back on the environment.

Nothing had changed much from the moment he came here, so he began thinking of what the

trial may be.

'This planet, whatever it's called, is solely purple, which might mean something....'

'He said, adaptability, so maybe an environmental hazard.'

'Poison maybe?'

'But I'm fine.'

'Breathing this planet's air gave me no problems.'

'Or is it a thing that happens at specific times of the day?'

'....That might be it.'

Emir then began planning on how to tackle this upcoming issue.

And his mind immediately went to creating a shelter, or searching for and hiding in it until he

identified this planet's hazards.

'A cave it is.'

Landing on a decision, Emir's steps quickened as he ran towards the towering mountains in

the distance, moving at a blindingly fast speed.

He passed by many purple-colored rock formations, and he didn't fail to notice that some of them contained scars, indicating that a battle took place in the area.

'So monsters too....'

'Well, just hiding in a cave would've made this too easy.' He snickered.

While on the way towards the mountains, he spotted three massive figures a large distance

away, appearing to be chasing him.

He sighed as he murmured: "Haaaah... seriously? You won't even give me a grace period?"

Emir's feet never stopped moving, and he didn't even appear exhausted at the speed he was

going at.

His mind, however, was overloaded.

Especially so compared to his relaxed countenance.

He thought of plans, taking into account all his possible future actions and unknown things

coming his way.

And as he neared the mountains, he stopped to catch his breath for a moment.

Emir wanted to kill those monsters as they were closing in on him despite the massive boost

to his speed.

This to him, combined with other conclusions he made, indicated their level to be around

Fiend rank.

A maximum of two cores, something that he could handle, leading to his decision to confront

them before going further.

Since his destination was littered with rocks at every turn.

Which would have made it impossible to know where the monsters were.

Emir propped up his Aetherstorm launcher and lay prone on the ground, the butt of the gun

sticking to his shoulder as he eyed the monsters through his scope.

He zoomed in on them, enabling him to identify his adversaries.

All three monsters looked to be of the same kind, a Noxspire.

Massive serpent-like creatures with jet-black scales and glowing eyes. Their bodies were adorned with tattoo-like patterns and vibrant colors of purple.

And they possessed long, sinuous bodies, coiling and slithering with speed. 'Nothing too surprising, those species of monsters survive and thrive on poisonous planets.'

'Best way to kill these three is to make sure they're dead before they reach me,' he added as he

prepared the Aether in his body.

"Aether Blast."

His chant resulted in his weapon to whirr once more, and a massive beam of light traveled a

few kilometers in seconds until it reached the leftmost monster, hitting its eyes and exiting

its head a moment later.

The monster let out a cry of pain and slumped down.

But the ones beside it didn't flinch and kept rushing at Emir, knowing that giving him a

chance to strike again would end up in their deaths.

Having utilized only half of his Aether reserves in the preceding assault, he found himself

compelled to once more utter the incantation:

"Aether blast."

In an explosive display, the air quaked with a resounding boom as the second monstrosity

succumbed to its death.

Its colossal head was violently severed from its lifeless form, spiraling through the air in a grotesque arc, a bloody testament to his power.

Emir then directed his focus towards quickly replenishing his waning Aether reserves as he

was nearly depleted.

Employing his Aether core, he harnessed neutral Aether, adeptly converting it into his

Weaver's Veil aspect.

And as the tension mounted, Emir took a step forward, the sound of his unsheathed daggers

cutting through the air.

One blade held firmly in each hand, he assumed a poised stance, his body subtly shifting into

perfect alignment.

Emir held his breath as he activated the force shield embedded within his augmented suit,

isolating himself from the surrounding air and creating an invisible barrier separating him from the world.

Fully prepared, he fixed his gaze on the colossal monstrosity that loomed before him, its presence casting a daunting shadow.