THE MARTIAL KING, VOLUME 8 - Season 20 Episode 9

The group of people could only continue pushing forward in the darkness, fumbling their way around with their senses instead of their eyes.

Although the interior of this black ball was completely empty and void, it still served a true purpose. Holy Jay had created it with the intentions of observing certain specific creatures.

Because they could only utilize their sensory perception, they naturally wouldn’t be able to sense anything other than their own group of people.

As soon as a person’s figure appeared before the group though, everyone suddenly became vigilant and aware at the same time. Out of shock and surprise, hundreds of senses continued to scan Zen’s body in all its length.

“It’s me,” Zen stated loud enough for the group to hear.

“Zen?” Kaydan’s voice questioned, his tone full of astonishment. “Wasn’t he always a part of the group? How did he suddenly get up to the front?”

“Huh?” A confused expression appeared on Laquisha’s face. Hadn’t Zen stayed by her side the entire time? How could this have happened? Why were this fellow’s actions so strange? She half-expectantly reached a hand out by her side, only to realize she had no target. She didn’t touch anyone, and no one grabbed her hand in return. Obviously, Zen had disappeared without her knowing.

“Why did you walk to the front?” Kaydan asked.

“I just needed a break, I’m confused and don’t know what’s going on,” Zen made up a clumsy excuse. He wasn’t afraid of being exposed here, though. Anything could happen in the dark and even if he couldn’t truly explain himself, the rest of them wouldn’t be capable of doing so either.

“Oh,” replied Kaydan. Although Kaydan was somewhat puzzled, he didn’t linger over this small detail. Right now, his mission was to lead everyone out of this black sphere.

Many warriors continued to feel concern and began to whisper their worry within their hearts.

It didn’t make any sense. If Zen really did take a break from walking, wouldn’t he be at the back of the group? To the contrary though, he had appeared at the front. This could only mean one thing: They were walking in circles.

Quite a number of warriors had already speculated that they had been going around in circles prior to this exact moment. Now though, they had finally found some sort of corroboration.

Plop!

In an instant, a few of the warriors immediately sat down. “It’s no use,” someone stated. “We’re just going in circles. I doubt if we’ll ever be able to leave this place!”

“You’re right!” someone else agreed. “How can the inner space of this sphere be so big? From what I see, there’s no exit at all…”

…

Most of the complaining individuals were in fact the warriors from other races, or again, warriors from the divine land. On the other hand, the warriors from the three great races kept their silence.

When Zen returned to the group, he didn’t appear panicked at all.

While he had been talking with Holy Jay, it was only natural for these warriors to have no way out of the black sphere. For the master of the Divine Refinement Forbidden Land, this was a small trick that could be completed simply with just his mind.

“Continue walking,” Kaydan said, without trace of emotion. He didn’t show any signs of giving up.

The instant he finished his sentence, Kaydan slipped of everyone’s sensory map. No one could detect him anymore!

A few of the warriors reacted quickly to this, their heart beats suddenly picking up speed. Since Kaydan was their leader, it was only natural that their perception had been locked on him. Once Kaydan had disappeared, most of the warriors got up and began rushing in the same direction.

It didn’t take long before those same warriors had completely disappeared as well!

Zen smiled to himself. Holy Jay must have opened the exit door for them. He casually walked in the same direction as the rest of the warriors.

When Zen equally arrived at the black sphere’s exit, he suddenly felt as though the omnipresent darkness had disappeared. A blinding light now entered his eyes. It was clear to him that they had already left the vast black ball.

Just as he stepped out of the darkness, Zen was immersed in a rapid, falling motion. He quickly realized he was falling down.

With his sudden chaotic energy circulation, Zen was barely capable of maintaining or controlling his body.

It was as Kaydan had said. The nine black balls were connected to each other in the interior world. Although they had just stepped out of the first black sphere, they had now appeared in a foreign environment.

Only once Zen’s pupils had readjusted to the difference in light did he actually get a clear look at his new surroundings. Zen didn’t even have a chance to take in the environment before he felt a powerful, worrisome force rushing toward him from below.

Rumble!

A pillar of magma shot straight up into the sky, only inches away from scathing Zen’s body.

Although Zen himself wasn’t afraid of the high temperature magma, he knew his strength had yet to recover fully. If the force contained within the column of magma shot upwards and struck him, Zen would most definitely be in big trouble.

Beneath their feet were numerous volcanoes. These volcanoes were quite lively, and the magma within them was constantly at a rolling boil. Every ten seconds or so, these volcanoes would erupt, and the magma spewed from them would turn into a pillar of magma that shot up to the sky at a perfect angle!

Boom, boom, boom, boom…

The sound of volcanic eruptions never ceased, here.

All of the warriors skillfully and carefully avoided the columns of magma that were shooting up into the sky. Most of the people’s reactions were very timely; after all, there was still a gap between the pillars of magma, and the time of eruption wasn’t the same.

Of course though, not everyone could be saved. A few of the warriors were much more unfortunate. Immediately upon exiting the black sphere, three warriors from other races as well as a Harmony warrior were enveloped by a thick, burning pillar of ferociously hot magma.

And with that, those four individuals had completely and forever disappeared. Even their corpses were never to be found.

“Wow! We are blessed with good luck!” Kaydan laughed loudly.

And Kaydan wasn’t alone to express his joy. Even Chapman and Tilton seemed to be in a better mood.

“This is the land of ancestral magma! After passing through this area, we will reach our destination!” Chapman roared. He then led the group to flee.

“We’re here?” Zen asked, slightly surprised.

He had originally expected this exploration to be lengthy and take time. There was no way he had thought they’d reach their destination so quickly.

But as soon as this thought crossed his mind, the answer equally flashed within his mind. Zen understood that this had nothing to do with good or bad luck but because of Holy Jay. As for what Holy Jay was going to do next, Zen could only wait quietly in anticipation.

There were many craters in this area, and the volcanoes below were arranged in a row. Whether it was a volcano’s size or their appearance, they all looked just about the exact same.

It was as if once the first volcano had erupted, the others had no choice but to follow suit.

Clearly, only someone as powerful as Holy Jay could create such a marvelous scene. Of course, this must have been done deliberately!

The pillars of magma shot upward, one after the other, and exploded high in the sky. Then, they turned into volcanic ash, blotting out the sky with darkness before scattering down, forming a wondrous sight that covered the earth.

No one was in the mood to enjoy such scenery, though. Instead, they fled through the magma pillars like butterflies fleeing through a storm. Kaydan, Chapman and Tilton intentionally slowed down instead though, approaching Zen.

The three of them were well aware that Zen’s strength had been weakened and his overall power greatly reduced. It was only natural for them to slow down in order to pay special attention to him and most of all, protect him.

Thankfully, although the magma pillars’ power was astonishing, Zen was having a streak of luck. As he traveled forward, a few magma pillars would occasionally explode by Zen’s side, and aside from being rather scary, they caused him no harm.

That said though, many others weren’t half as lucky.

In fact, nearly all of the warriors present were more or less affected by these magma pillars. Once they shot up into the sky, they scattered down like flowers sent from the heavens, turning into countless drops of magma that were almost too difficult to dodge. Although this magma rain wasn’t fatal, having it fall onto one’s body was far from pleasant.

Even the two ladies from Han Clan who were protected by the twenty world lords on their journey still couldn’t avoid the magma rain. This was especially true for Aleyna, whose purple robe now had several burn holes in it.

Four hours later, the group had finally crossed through the magma area. Together, the group let out an enormous sigh of relief. Once they looked at one another though, they quickly noticed how miserable they all looked.

That was when the warriors’ eyes began to fall on Zen. Their miserable expressions began to change into confused ones.

Zen was still wearing the same ordinary cyan robe. It seemed as though not a single part of his body had been damaged. He hadn’t even been affected by the pillars of magma at all!

Although Kaydan, Tilton, and Chapman had been wandering around Zen, the three leaders had also been more or less affected. Because Zen appeared perfectly safe and sound, everyone suddenly felt that this occurrence was rather strange. Even luck wasn’t good enough to explain this one.

A wry trace of a smile revealed itself on Zen’s face. This could only naturally be Holy Jay’s arrangement. Sure, he had agreed to help him, but there was no need to be obvious about it, right?

Fortunately, the warriors present didn’t suspect anything. They only thought that Zen’s luck was too good to be true. After taking a small break, the warriors continued on their way.

After passing through the magma area, a black cliff appeared in front of them. The side of the cliff was square and smooth like a mirror. Right in the middle of the square cliff was a round hole.

“We are here! Come with me!”

Kaydan shouted, taking the lead and heading straight for the circular hole.

Seeing how positive Kaydan was, Zen’s curiosity was suddenly piqued. Just what exactly did they want him to take for them?. Or rather what would make them believe it was possible for them to leave the Divine Refinement Forbidden Land?. Had he remembered this earlier, he would have asked Holy Jay.