Defiance of the Fall

Chapter 46: The Hunt for the Herald

AsZac stood at the edge of the valley he was shocked by the density of cosmic energy. The amount in the air was already quite a bit higher in the mountains compared to down on the ground, but in this secluded vale it was a whole tier higher still.

The density made his suspicion that the Herald hid in the valley much stronger. He was sure that the Monkey King would prefer the increased amount of cosmic energy if even the monkey captains were able to use skills and maybe even cultivate.

The amount of cosmic energy made Zac worried that there might actually be demons here as well. While he had observed their activities for a few days he didnʼt really see any demons enter the mountains further than the cave, but that didn’t mean that there weren’t cultivator demon’s stationed here.

He refrained from entering the valley at the moment, as he still wanted to thin the herd of monkeys in the mountains first. A large enough roar from the valley might be able to call for reinforcements from all four peaks after all.

The fight against the pack with the monkey captain was a bit shaky, but it was mostly due to his mistakes. The monkeys on the peaks were slightly stronger compared to the ones he had fought earlier, but not to the point that they could stop his onslaught. He only needed to kill the leader and then it was carnage as usual.

There was one more pack he needed to kill on the mountain peak he had climbed. It didn’t have any captain, but the monkeys in general were slightly bigger even compared to the last pack.

Zac entered the fray after having restored his energy and made short work of the pack. He made the interesting discovery that none of the monkeys dared to enter the valley, even when they were fleeing for their lives. Perhaps the valley was the private residence of the Herald, and they had strict orders not to enter.

Or perhaps something even scarier than Zac lived in the depths of the valley. He supposed he would find out later.

Zac kept his momentum going moving toward the next peak. He didn’t try any fancy tactics anymore, he only tried to knock out the leaders of the following packs by throwing a boulder at them. He didn’t even bother with the throwing knives, as they had trouble penetrating their stone armor. No matter whether the throw succeeded or not he simply charged straight into the throng of stone monkeys, swinging away.

At midday he reached the third peak, having mostly cleared out the two earlier ones apart from a few who managed to escape. This peak was the easternmost, and also the one closest to demon activity. The cave that the demons found so interesting was located not too far away from the foot of the mountain.

Zac was unsure whether he dared to start a battle here, as it might attract the demons below. While the distance was quite great between his location and the cave, he was afraid the sound would carry all the way down. The monkeys got quite loud and agitated during the fights after all. He decided to find a hiding spot with good vantage before deciding anything further. As he was somewhat ahead of schedule, he decided to wait for roughly an hour to gauge any activity in the area.

Weirdly enough there was no monkey pack close to the entrance of the valley. Instead, the monkeys were stationed on the outer side of the mountain peak. This differed from the other two peaks so far, and Zac wanted to figure out why. He soon found his answer, as he was surprised to see a monkey captain hurl a large rock at a demon war party that approached the peak or the valley.

It hit one of them, and with a wail he was flung away from the impact. The demons screamed at the group of monkeys angrily, waving their weapons. But the monkeys were a stoic wall that wouldn’t let them pass. After another minute of posturing, the demons could only turn and leave the mountain.

Zac was confused as he slunk back to the inner side of the mountain. Weren’t the monkeys the pets of the demons, like the other demon beasts? How did they dare deny the demons access to the mountains?

Zac started to get nervous that the monkeys actually weren’t the fourth monster race, but rather some native beast. The System did say it merged Earth with other planets due for integration, and they might be from another one. That would mean that there actually wasn’t a Monkey Herald, but instead two Heralds he couldn’t find.

He felt that shouldn’t be right though. Everything pointed toward them being a part of the demonic invasion. Perhaps the monkeys had a higher standing, and could actually boot the lower demons from their territory.

He knew he wouldn’t get any real answer from just mulling it over, and continued on toward the fourth peak. The weird power dynamic between the monkeys and demons actually helped him out in the end, both removing the threat of demons in the mountains and not having to battle any monkeys that close to the demon activity.

He arrived at the fourth peak and after an intense melee finally finished killing all the packs close to the valley. As it only was evening still he decided to head into the valley after all. Initially he planned to wait until next morning, but due to the inner side of the third peak being free from monkeys he saved a few hours of work.

He took his first steps into the valley, vigilant against any hidden monkeys or other beasts. But after a few minutes of walking it seemed that the forest was deserted. It was odd, as the forest itself felt like a paradise on earth. The air was fresh enough that his cells felt invigorated just from breathing, and the foliage was lush and healthy. The earthy smell of the area calmed Zac’s heart, inviting him to sit down and relax.

However, not even critters were present, making the forest eerily silent except for the occasional rustle from the wind. This stillness felt quite jarring to Zac as his life had been accompanied by the sounds of the forest constantly since the world changed. From critters in the bushes to the calls of the birds. Even the deep roars of the barghest.

That all these sounds were gone didn’t feel natural, and his vigilance only increased, instead of having a soothing effect on him.

As he walked he noticed that he didn’t recognize most of the trees or plants in the valley. Now he wasn’t any botanist, he only knew of the staple flowers and trees. But he felt he should at least recognize some of the vegetation if it was from earth. There were a few trees he assumed were maples but the leaves were as large as his torso.

He didn’t know if the forest had mutated or evolved from the extremely dense cosmic energy in the area, or whether this forest came from another planet, but it felt like the old earth wasn’t able to produce a forest feeling so vibrant.

He was debating whether he should collect samples from the various flowers and herbs like the demon parties did, but soon decided against it. He had no immediate use for them, and the valley would still be here if he managed to kick out the demons.

He soon arrived close to the small lake he glimpsed from the mountain peak. With how pristine the rest of the forest was he had expected that the lake to have clear beautiful waters. While it didn’t look or smell stale, it also wasn’t clear.

The lake was a mysterious shimmering blue, and he could barely see a decimeter into the water before everything was obscured. The water itself seemed to be packed with cosmic energy, as though the lake consisted of liquefied Nexus Crystals.

His body almost instinctively reached down to drink a mouthful of the enticing water before hastily stopping himself. It seemed like such a good natural resource, but still, there were no animals or monsters around, which was very eerie. Perhaps there was something lurking in the depths, prowling on anything stupid enough to come too close to the shore.

He couldn’t let the water go to waste though, and tied a string to one of his magical canteens. He then threw the canteen into the water, and waited some time before dragging it out. It now contained the cosmic water, but he wouldn’t try it before he could feed it to some beasts and see its effects.

Feeling uncomfortable by the mysterious lake Zac continued onward toward the center of the valley. The mysteries of the azure pond would have to wait until another day.

He was almost at the core of the valley by now and slowed his pace. If the Herald was in this valley then it would stand to reason that he was somewhere in the center. Slightly nervous he gripped his axe for comfort, as memories of the struggle with the last herald still haunted him.

Not far ahead it seemed that the forest gave way to open fields, so Zac crouched down and slowly made his way to the edge of the forest. What met his eyes from his hidden vantage point shocked him.

It was a large field, filled with shrunken and desiccated fallen trees. There were signs of bushes and flowers having existed as well, but they too looked like they had been baked in an oven. The only thing still standing tall was a solitary tree in the center.

It wasn’t very large, only being roughly 5 meters tall, but it was spectacular. The trunk and branches had a crimson hue and a smooth exterior. The leaves weren’t red or green but a pristine white, making it look like crystals adorned the branches.

It was a spectacular sight, and Zac didn’t for a second think that this was a normal tree. It was something created with a lot of cosmic energy. The tree virtually hummed with power, making Zac wonder if it actually was alive.

Zac guessed that this tree was the reason for the desolation in the vicinity. The tree seemingly had absorbed the life or cosmic energy out of everything in its surroundings. Perhaps it even had killed all the animals in the forest as well, explaining why it was so quiet. It was a scary thought that the tree wasnʼt satisfied with the huge density of energy in the air, and needed to drain its surroundings to be satiated.

It took Zac a second to register that something else was next to the tree. A monkey, roughly two meters tall with a build somewhat slimmer compared to its brethren, sat cross-legged with closed eyes under the tree. What made it stand out apart from its build was its color. If the other monkeys in the mountain were made of anthracite rock, then this monkey was made of lava. Red shining streaks ran along every part of the monkey’s otherwise black body, emanating a heavy pressure.

It was the monkey king.