Void Insects

A chill suddenly ran down her neck. Li involuntarily took a step forward, but reason still firmly suppressed her restless emotions.

"You recognize them? They shouldn't belong to this world."

This pair of Sunstones had been inseparable from her since Valoran. Logically speaking, no one from another plane could possibly know of them—not even a creator god could peer into the mysteries of other dimensions.

Unless... this purple-robed merchant was also from Valoran?

A cold sneer surfaced from the shadows.

"They are indeed Yimelo Stones, though this is my first time seeing the genuine articles." The merchant shrugged. "The maker forged very few Sunstones in his lifetime. Most were destroyed or scattered during the wars. These are peerless treasures."

He described the origins of the Sunstones like a learned sage. Only paired gemstones could unleash their great power; once separated, they were no different from ordinary stones.

Li's ears twitched slightly, revealing her intention to keep listening.

"How should I address you?"

"Just call me the Prophet. Malzahar. A pleasure to meet you, member of the League of Heroes."

"Malzahar? You... are from Valoran?"

"Indeed. I once served the Shurima Empire as well."

"Shurima? That ancient kingdom that was annihilated? How did you cross the planes to come here?"

Under the night sky, Malzahar lazily spread his palms. "How strange. I took a nap, and suddenly I was somewhere else." He gathered his wide sleeves. "Enough idle chatter. It is time to fulfill my promise of divination. Getting to the bottom of things is rather boring, after all. My fortune-telling skills are still quite respectable."

"As you wish."

"This way, please."

The diviner rose from his crude stall, his robes fluttering as he slipped into the shadows behind it. Li drew her cloak tighter around her shoulders, her nine snow-white fox tails faintly visible beneath the fabric. This former resident of Valoran had stirred some interest in her.

They passed through the heavy curtains of the caravan. Beast-hide tapestries cast mottled shadows beneath the candlelight. Malzahar lifted a gilded teapot. "Would you like some? Authentic Valoran Cloudmist Tea." Amber tea swirled within the porcelain cups.

Li accepted the teacup, her crimson lips lightly touching its rim. The bitterness of oak mingled with the cloying sweetness of honey on her tongue. The strange flavor was unexpectedly soothing.

"You need not be so reserved here." Malzahar pointed at her cloak. "Relax a little."

The fox girl's ear tips trembled. At last, she released her slender fingers from the cloak. As the fabric slipped away, her nine fluffy fox tails spilled across the ground like moonlight. Amid her waist-length violet hair, a pair of fox ears quivered softly with her emotions. Beneath her gilded beastlike eyes, three demonic markings spread from her jade-like cheeks. Her red-and-white immortal robes wrapped around her graceful figure, making her seem like the mistress of Qingqiu stepped out of legend; every smile and frown carried bone-deep allure.

Unfortunately, such breathtaking beauty was merely a painting to Malzahar. Since losing certain abilities, even the most beautiful body had become no more than passing clouds to him.

"May I examine the Sunstones?"

Li's fingers tightened over the gems, her knuckles turning faintly white.

"They seem to be important keepsakes." Malzahar shrugged indifferently. "Don't worry. Selling stolen goods would tarnish the Prophet's name."

"Where... did they come from?"

The fox girl hesitantly handed over the treasures. Malzahar held the stones toward the candlelight, and sunset-like radiance suddenly burst from within the crystals.

"Wonderful! Such natural compatibility is truly rare in this world."

Li stood still as a statue, her violet eyes fixed unblinking on this diviner who had once served Shurima. Her nine tails curled into a snowy vortex behind her, while a faint scent of jasmine filled the caravan.

[The Legend of the Millennium Divine Stones]

"Ancient records state that a craftsman named Yimelo searched specifically for spirit stones that had absorbed a thousand years of solar essence, carving them into intricate forms. It is said that gathering a matched pair of such stones could unleash terrifying power. That craftsman also made many corresponding devices capable of releasing all the sun's power contained within the spirit stones."

Malzahar lightly shook the two golden stones before Li's eyes and continued:

"Like the mysteries you left behind in the past, these two stones may also be missing components. Once fully assembled, they may take on an entirely new form. No one can predict what awaits at the end of your pursuit. If you can find the other pieces, you may make an unexpected discovery."

"Nothing but pretty words."

Li's gaze remained locked on the former Shuriman. For some reason, unease rose within her, and the feeling only grew stronger as time passed.

"..."

After a brief silence, Malzahar suddenly chuckled.

"Thirty percent truth, seventy percent fabrication. A diviner's answers must always leave no loopholes."

"Meaningless nonsense."

Li looked somewhat displeased as she took back the Sunstones. These mystical claims were truly impossible to distinguish between truth and falsehood.

"Very well. As a Prophet, I should show some real skill. Shall I divine your romantic prospects? My accuracy rate has remained above ninety-nine percent so far."

"No need."

"Are you sure?"

Seeing Li hesitate in silence, a deck of tarot cards suddenly appeared in Malzahar's hand. Drawn by mysterious power, seventy-eight cards fluttered like butterflies and floated before Li.

"Please choose one at random. The secrets of your love life lie within."

"...All right."

Despite her unease, the young woman could not hide her curiosity about romance. She closed her eyes, drew a card, and handed it to the Prophet.

"Well?"

"Excellent romantic fortune."

Malzahar appeared confident as he examined the card. His attainments in divination were indeed considerable.

"It foretells that you will form a bond with your superior—the black-haired, red-eyed visitor from another world, a man proficient in countless arts. However..." The Prophet's tone abruptly shifted. "You must beware of the many rivals surrounding him."

Such an ambiguous prophecy did not even mention a specific name, leaving Li disappointed as she pressed her lips together.

So divination could not predict the course of love at all. "Since there is nothing else, I shall take my leave." "Wait. You cannot leave yet."

Li suddenly felt her entire body go numb. Her limbs seemed bound by invisible chains, completely unable to move.

Magical elements drifted through the air, yet some mysterious force suppressed them, making them impossible to draw upon.

Malzahar slowly rose. His icy gaze met Li's confused eyes, startling her nine snow-white fox tails into puffing up at once. "Don't waste your effort. The tea was mixed with God-Level paralytic herbs specially made in the Voidland. It can even bring down demigods." "Voidland?"

"Allow me to introduce myself again. I am the guide of the Void, the white-robed Prophet of the Void—Malzahar." His purple cloak dissipated like smoke, revealing a body completely corrupted by the Void.

Void energy that devoured all things coiled around him, radiating an aura that made every living creature nauseous.

Disaster Level: Dragon—Void Prophet Malzahar!

At the birth of the universe, a piercing shriek announced the arrival of the Void.

This existence beyond dimensions represented eternal nothingness.

It was an insatiable hunger. After lying dormant through endless ages, it would eventually carry out the final reckoning of all things at the command of the Watchers.

Even the slightest contamination of a mortal body would reveal visions of eternity and inflict agony powerful enough to shatter an iron will.

The Voidworld gave birth to countless creations. Most retained only basic consciousness, for their sole bestowed mission was to bring ultimate annihilation to the universe.

The Void was evolving, transforming, and the rate at which its creatures mutated was terrifying. "Mountains and rivers will decay, vast seas will dry up, and the heavens will collapse... the great calamity is near." "Only the Void is the universe's ultimate destination!"

"Submit to the Void, or be annihilated by it!"

"We transcend the river of time. Do not defy the torrent of fate." "Lost souls, throw yourselves into the Void's eternal embrace!"

Malzahar spread his arms in a frenzy, his hoarse voice making its proclamation.

This prophet who had once served the Shurima dynasty had long since sacrificed all his life in pursuit of the unity of all things.

Yet glorious Shurima had failed to achieve it, and other kingdoms were even more deluded. Even the lofty gods were powerless to do so.

When Malzahar glimpsed the dark origin deep within the Void, he came to worship it as the universe's ultimate truth!

He became a shepherd of the lost, endlessly luring the strong to merge with Void energy, or releasing Void creatures across the cosmos to devour this world.

Once a powerful being merged with Void energy, it would transform into an even more horrifying Void monster.

And Li was the first prey chosen by the Void Prophet—Malzahar.

"Do not resist. Accept the Void's gift."

A dark core wrapped in Void energy condensed in Malzahar's palm, humming softly like a demon's whisper.

This crystal, gathered from the essence of the Void, could elevate the strong, while the weak would be pulverized the moment they touched it.

"I... will never submit!"

Li forced out the words through her struggle, every syllable exhausting all her strength.

She knew only a little about the legends of the Void, yet today was her first time facing such a terrifying existence. That suffocating energy was right before her, already making her insides churn.

"Those who defy it have only death."

"I... choose... your... death..."

"Stubborn fool!"

Malzahar snorted impatiently.

Since the paralytic had already taken effect, he might as well force the dark core into her body. Such rare herbs, capable of restraining demigods, existed in only two or three plants even within the Void Realm. He had to make full use of them, at the very least turning her into an elite Void minion.

"Crack—"

Sparks suddenly erupted inside the caravan.

The beast hides hanging on all four walls burst into flames, and waves of heat rolled through the air. To Malzahar, who had already merged with Void energy, such heat was no more than a gentle breeze.

"Another insect coming to die?"

"Whoosh—"

A spirit hairpin wreathed in flames pierced through the tent, aiming straight for Malzahar's brow. Yet this long-prepared killing strike was easily caught between his two fingers. With a slight exertion of force, the specially made spirit hairpin snapped in two.

When Malzahar looked up again, Li before him had turned into flying sparks and vanished into the Void.

"An illusion? A petty trick."

Void energy surged violently from his body. The burning caravan exploded with a thunderous crash, scraps of cloth fluttering like butterflies.

The illusion created by the Fire Charm Art crumbled before absolute power.

As the smoke and dust dispersed, a graceful young woman stood there, her beauty no less stunning than Li's.

Yan Lingji and Li

Her jet-black hair was pinned up with the Fire Spirit Hairpin, swaying beautifully in the night. Her deep blue eyes resembled moonlight reflected in a dark pool, filled with unfathomable charm as they shifted. Her knee-high boots stepped across the scorched earth, while garments embroidered with flame patterns fluttered around her, every fold concealing scorching heat.

"Feeling better?" The purple crystal at Yan Lingji's fingertips glimmered faintly.

Li stretched out her nine tails, azure magical power flowing through her meridians once more. "This can actually cure a demigod's poison?"

"Remi's assistance. The guild leader's treasured possession." Her red lips curled into a teasing smile. "Remember that you owe me one."

The nine-tailed fox girl gave a soft snort, though amusement flickered in her eyes.

As the two young women stood side by side, a dark-purple Void rift twisted and expanded behind them. Chaotic energy surged around Malzahar's robe, and hundreds of Primordial Voidling Insects poured from the rift, their shells scraping together with a tooth-aching sound.

"Submit, or be annihilated." The Void Prophet's voice carried multiple echoes.

The flames in Yan Lingji's palm suddenly leaped three feet higher, reflecting Li's magic in gorgeous purplish-red hues. The instant foxfire and spirit flames intertwined, the temperature across the battlefield soared. The Voidling Insects that had just crawled from the rift suddenly turned as one, their shells reflecting the image of the two young women standing back to back.

The swarm of Void insects tore through space and descended with piercing shrieks. Their dense jointed limbs moved rapidly as they pounced toward Li and Yan Lingji at astonishing speed. These biological weapons intended to tear the two female warriors to pieces.

Not every Void insect chose to attack the primary targets. Several more intelligent specimens turned their compound eyes toward the market civilians. In their eyes, all carbon-based lifeforms were merely moving masses of protein. Though the two women's energy was more tempting, it came with fatal risks, so these opportunists decisively chose to attack the civilians and create chaos.

"W-What are those monsters?!"

"Help! It's chewing on my arm!"

"Crunch, crunch—"

"Impossible... that big man was eaten clean in three seconds!"

"Run for your lives!"

Just a few alien insects triggered a complete collapse. Cleavers struck sparks against their shells, while firearms could not possibly lock onto targets moving thirty meters per second. Any human knocked down by them would become a pile of stark white bones within five seconds.