Chương 15: Rift

As Vasser narrated her experience, the image of the rift became clearer in Kayzen's head. It was in essence a place that belonged to another dimension. This was undoubtedly the first time when life beyond Erde was discovered. The implications behind this were too great. Everything on Erde was created by the seven. If there existed another dimension or dimensions, then did it mean that there were more progenitors? Why were the rifts formed? What do the creatures in the rift want?

According to Vasser, there already was an answer to the last question: Records.

"In short, this is both a place of great opportunity and grave danger." Kayzen summarized which earned a nod from Vasser. Still, she had more to share.

"For us it's more of an opportunity. The ones in true danger are those who are failing to adapt. Every time the attack on rift fails, the alien creatures will grow stronger. After a certain time the rift will become a true passage and connect the dimensions, creating a zone with overlapping space." The threat of such a region would far surpass that of hazard and hollow-grade ether nodes.

"What are the benefits of clearing the rift?" Kayzen asked since knowing Vasser, she wouldn't be so enthusiastic about something that didn't bring glory.

"That's the best part, nobody knows! You should know more than me about the value of knowledge gained from other dimensions. In less than a week there were reports of various relics, artifacts, and other valuable materials. And these are just the supplementary things. The main rewards are related to records." Hearing this, Kayzen's eyes also lit up. Indeed, if the aliens could get stronger by defeating those from Erde, then the same should be true for the other way around.

Vasser couldn't help but brag more after seeing that he was getting more interested.

"I've only been to one rift, accompanied by Xins and led by a Nexus. It had different zones where we could only move on after defeating the enemies. There are also some special areas where we could recuperate, or get some rewards by participating in strange events. In short, what we could get is invaluable. With my own eyes I saw the Nexus modify his records." Kayzen opened his lips after a bit of contemplation, "I'm guessing the rifts aren't natural then, at least not completely.

Perhaps the seven and other beings of similar power have a hand in it. What they aim to achieve from this arrangement is up to guess, but I'm sure all of the powerful people in Erde would be focused on clearing these rifts." Both of them were coming from families with long lineages. They were all too familiar with how those in power acted. At the moment it was hard to say who had a better advantage between those who had just started on their path like Kayzen or those who were already at the middle and upper levels.

The former would get to select between numerous paths to walk upon and have a clearer idea of their strength and weaknesses, as for the latter, by clearing more rifts they could solidify their foundation and get even stronger. The sun had already started to descend while the two talked about various things. The topics ranged from the state of Erde to the taste of Mrs. Anna's pastry. As the saying went, time passed in the blink of an eye when you enjoyed someone's company. …

Crackle Kayzen inserted another branch into the bonfire. After a good night's rest he had woken up before dawn, courtesy to his grumbling stomach. He took another bite from the guava and focused back on the book in hand. After learning about the rift yesterday he was all the more eager to gain knowledge. The golden rimmed book in his hand had the title of "Sage Arwin's Principles of Alchemy." While the mass-produced edition didn't come with real gold rims, it still had a sky-high price.

"You're up early." As Kayzen turned his head to look at the tent, he was greeted with the sight of Vasser yawning and fixing her hair. She tilted her head, "Is there something?"

"No, just admiring the sight."

"Tch tch…being cheesy this early in the morning," She sat down beside him and bit down on the fruit. Contrary to her words, her fidgeting toes didn't hide her mood.

"Should we get going?" Kayzen closed the book and placed it in his backpack after Vasser gave a nod. After becoming a shaper or warden, they didn't have many biological needs since their digestive systems had evolved. Upon reaching higher ranks one wouldn't even need to eat. The duo stuffed down the remaining guavas and cleared the site. The tent Kayzen bought had proved handy since it had more than enough space to accommodate two people and his lab equipment.

By the time the sun peeked its head from the clouds, they were ready for the journey.

"Let me scout first," Kayzen walked ahead and pressed his palm on the ground. Since he had absorbed the angelica's memories, it was easy for him to use its root network and scout further than his normal range. This was the final use the plant had for him. Unauthorized use of content: if you find this story on Amazon, report the violation.

"Have you recovered completely?"

"Better than ever." Kayzen lifted his sleeves and indeed, there was no trace of the burn marks. They chatted along the way and crossed another kilometer. The vegetation got sparser while the towering mountains loomed closer. Kayzen frowned after he scouted once again, "Do you feel it?"

"Yeah, the flow of ether is getting chaotic. We're close," Vasser took the lead this time and prepared for battle. Fortunately, they didn't come across anything. As they moved in the rift's direction the disturbance became even more prominent. Howling winds surged out of nowhere while the sky above was rumbling without clouds. After going past another range of trees, the pair of crimson and sapphire eyes were drawn to the three-story wide portal.

Despite being over a hundred meters away they felt their skin prickle with Ether currents.

"Looks like we have company." Kayzen looked at the group standing in front of the portal. Judging by their looks it was apparent what they were here for.

"A bunch of trash." Compared to Kayzen's somewhat curious gaze, Vasser held pure disdain as she looked at the group of soldiers and mercenaries. Unlike him, she had roamed the world for two years seeking glory. One glance was enough to judge what type of people they were. Just as Kayzen was about to say something, his eyes landed on a plain looking shrub. He had almost missed it due to its tubers looking like dirty logs.

"Something useful?" Vasser followed his gaze, but in her eyes most plants looked the same.

"I think it's bitter cassava. I'll go check it out."

"Suit yourself. I'll go talk with those idiots. Going into the rift as mortals…" Kayzen chuckled at the string of curses flowing from her mouth. He walked to the shrub and knelt down to place his nose closer to the ground and immediately jerked back; It smelled like bitter almonds. His guess was correct. These roots contained an enzyme which was released after they were broken. This was the key to releasing the hydrogen cyanide gas hidden inside.

Even without any records the gas had a lethal effect: Preventing the cells from absorbing oxygen. Kayzen put on the plague mask and plucked the roots one by one. There wasn't enough time to extract the gas with a rift right in front of them. Thus, he decided to store them for now and experiment later on. After gathering ten some roots he packed them up and walked towards the crowd. Despite the distance he could already hear the shouts of argument.

"Miss, please leave this area."

"You deaf, blind, or both? Don't you know what this means?" Vasser pointed at the object in her hand.

"I don't care. Rules are rules."

"This little--" Just as Vasser was about to flare up, a spectacle wearing man pulled back the arguing soldier. At the same time, Kayzen had also arrived.

"Pardon his ignorance, they were recently recruited and are unaware of the Order of Crusaders."

"Hmph, finally someone with a functioning head." Vasser huffed in annoyance and placed the golden wings emblem back into her pocket. As she had thought, these people were naïve, weak, and greedy. Umbra's favorite food. As if guessing what the woman in front of him was thinking, the spectacled man shook his head and pointed at his shoulder, "I'm Derrick, a vice captain from Ironheart town. We're here under the orders of Baron Huiyan. Are you here for the rift as well?"

"We are." Vasser replied as a matter of fact.

"We appreciate your help. Let's get going if you're prepared."

"Wait, don't tell me you're going with these riffraff? Although everyone and their mother has some ability now, I can tell from their posture that the only thing they've killed are chickens. Domesticated chickens." Upon hearing her words, the ones who were listening in on the conversation grew red from anger. Most didn't dare to defy the orders of Derrick, but as always, there were exceptions.

"Heh, a noble missy is looking down on us mercenaries. Don't you see, times are changing!" A bearded man walked over with flickering flames in his hand. Judging from the worshipping gaze from 30 or so mercenaries; it was apparent that he was their leader. Derrick glared sideways, "Get back, Ak'aar."

"Tch Tch, that's why you're still a vice captain." Before Derrick could say anything else, he was already pushed back by Vasser's gauntlets. She had long since realized that sometimes her arms were better at communication.

"Listen here dimwit, I'm saying this for your own good. The rift is a great place to grow, but take a look at yourselves. I bet most of you only have one shard. Rather than getting eaten by aliens, just focus on getting stronger outside, then enter."

"Ha! And leave the rift's rewards to you and that pretty boy? As expected from nobles."

"Alright, that's enough," Kayzen pressed his palm on the glowing gauntlet and addressed the others, "Keb sure has lowered his standards after the apocalypse. Let's set our personal opinions aside for now. Mr. Derrick, any particular reason why so many are attempting to clear the rift?" Kayzen asked the question because he was acquainted with Baron Huiyan. While greedy, the man wasn't so foolish as to send his people to die.

"Indeed, we heard from other towns that rifts can only be cleared with enough manpower." Derrick answered to clear up the conflict. Vasser sighed and dragged Kayzen before the rift. She couldn't stand anymore without punching someone. This was still the best outcome since Derrick had called others away to give them some personal space.

"Want to say something?" Kayzen asked and gave her the gourd of water to cool down.

"They'll die Kayzen, most of them. The so-called entry requirement is based on records. Judging from the size and color it's the lowest class rift with the upper limit of Xin or Warden. Not that they'll believe what we say."

"…are your ancestors related to my family?" Kayzen inspected a strand of her ash grey hair and took back the gourd.

"Don't focus on protecting everyone. That's not your path."

"Whatever, let's just head in. You ready?" Kayzen nodded and intertwined his fingers with hers. With another step, they entered the dark blue rift.

"Wait!"

"Foudre strike em!" The soldiers and mercenaries cursed and ran after them, but their words were lost in the whirlpool of ether. Kayzen and Vasser were no longer in the same space as them. The space trembled and everything seemed to stretch and shrink, their bodies were no exception. Their vision became a swirling mess as numerous scenes flashed by in the vortex. Only after dozens of seconds did the dizzying sensation end.

"Get ready," Vasser shouted and jumped at the front. There was no time to check the surroundings as a skinless fiend was already in front of them.