“Does this happen often?” Ning Shan said as they travelled further within a bleak corridor, only a dim light covering them from the level above.

  The bustling mercantile street had been replaced with peace and quiet, almost as if they had entered another world entirely, despite the fact that they weren't alone. Other hunters, dressed in full battle gear, were coming and going alongside them, some showing battle scars or even carrying the gear of their dead comrades. Of course, no corpses were to be seen, yet their expressions as they removed their masks only told tales of the grim reality.

  “Deaths, you mean?” Sera replied, giving the other hunter teams a wide berth as she hid behind Ning Shan. “If anything, the Shaft is even more dangerous than the surface. At least, some believe so.”

  “Is that why your team chose to search that city instead?”

  "That's certainly part of it," she replied. "However, it's mostly because the boss... my former boss got some good information about a vein worth harvesting. While I was skeptical—what do you know—we found it, so it was reliable information, even though they all perished for it."

  “Any ideas where that information came from?”

  "Who knows?" she shrugged. "Despite being a bastard, the guy had connections. It may have been a leak from the government or simply came from within the Depths. There's no way to know at this point."

  “The Depths... It was mentioned before. Is that where you came from?”

  Sera hesitated. Ning Shan could feel her tense unconsciously, almost as if her body itself rejected the notion. Still, he didn’t press her further.

  "I..." she finally said, yet her voice trembled ever so slightly. Despite her mask, Ning Shan could see her eyes grow cloudy, almost as if she was lost in a web of memories she couldn't extirpate herself from. "Is it important?"

  “Not really,” Ning Shan shrugged. “As long as it isn’t an immediate concern.”

  "It's not," she replied, sighing with relief. "There used to be entrances to the Shaft in the Depths, but they are now blocked off. We shouldn't encounter them unless they climbed out of there."

  “What are the Depths, anyway?”

  “A garbage dump. At least, that’s what the people up top call it,” she said, pointing upwards. “Practically speaking, it refers to the lowest five layers of the Cradle. They scarcely interact with the other layers..."

  She abruptly stopped, only for her demeanour to completely change, almost as if relief had washed over her.

  "We've reached the entrance," she added.

  What Ning Shan saw wasn't what he expected. He was told the Shaft was a gateway to another dimension where a giant labyrinth resided, yet what stood in front of him was merely a rock wall spanning the height of a mountain, with simply a slight gap in the stone, almost as if someone had poorly chiselled a tunnel into the rock.

  Still, something seemed amiss. He activated his peculiar sight, only to see a tempest of red particles collide with the void before him and disappear beyond the boundary. In fact, beyond the darkness of this entrance was nothing but blackness, as if everything seemed to be. Without Sera's assurance, he would have believed this to be a trap meant to get rid of him, rendering his existence null.

  As he observed the boundary, a mass of flesh seemed to emerge from the darkness. Surprised, Ning Shan reacted fast, retrieving the rod floating around his core, holding it tight in his hand, and preparing to unleash the deadly blade from within, only to relax soon after.

  As the flesh emerged, its features became much more defined until a burly, half-naked man could be gleaned from it as the darkness receded. Resting on his shoulder was a massive sword, standing the same height as Ning Shan. Unlike this world's weapon, the blade was rudimentary at best, made of something resembling steel, but for some reason, Ning Shan couldn't help but feel a familiar energy swirling within.

  Is that an artifact? He thought, eyes widening at the sight.

  Looking closer, he even recognized the familiar markings used to direct the flow of qi within the weapon, conferring their abilities and strength. However, just as soon as the weapon emerged from the boundary, the familiar energy seemed to disappear completely, almost as if it was trapped within, unable to manifest itself into the outside world.

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  Looking closer, Ning Shan saw a layer of red dust covering the blade, leaving no traces untouched. Still, occasionally, he could see a small pulse emerge from the weapon, only to be pushed back by the waves of dust until it disappeared completely, unable to show its true might.

  Two other individuals followed the man, though both wore much more clothing, obscuring much of their features. However, from their body proportion, Ning Shan could deduce them both to be female.

  One's weapon was a massive bow strapped to her back, making her look small in contrast despite being anything but. In fact, she stood almost two metres tall, dwarfing most of the other hunters present, though the burly man was easily taller than her.

  The bow itself was plain, if not crude, yet the power Ning Shan could glean from it was anything but. Even the simple string keeping the bow together seemed strong enough to hold the world were a sufficient anchor to be present. Ning Shan could barely conceive of the force needed to launch a single arrow, yet what concerned him more was that the woman seemed to have none. He couldn't help but wonder what this bow was made to launch.

  The other woman was much more petite; yet again, her weapon surprised Ning Shan. On her back was a large shield over two-thirds her size. Furthermore, she wore thick metallic armour. Unlike the crude weapons of her companions, her armour seemed extremely high-tech, even hidden beneath her cheap garbs.

  From what he saw, her whole body seemed covered in mechanical parts, aiding her movements. However, unlike the mechanical limbs he noticed on many citizens, hers seemed much more intricate, allowing for more precise movements. Despite it all, they appeared quite bulky, making Ning Shan unsure whether this was her limbs or a superficial armour. Nevertheless, she walked with nary a sound, almost as if she was but a breeze in the night.

  All three wore masks covering their faces, yet unlike Sera's, theirs seemed much more secure, allowing a greater field of view. Furthermore, as soon as they exited the passage, their masks retracted automatically, allowing them to breathe the Cradle's fresh air.

  Still, something concerned Ning Shan, and he couldn't help but turn toward her. He saw her gaze lowered, and she was looking at the ground. In fact, most of the other hunters did the same, even shivering a little as they refused to look at the trio directly.

  Playing along, Ning Shan let the trio pass unobstructed. While there were not many hunters around, the passage was still narrow. However, as soon as the trio appeared, they all parted ways, allowing them to pass through the middle as if a kingly procession.

  None of the three showed even the slightest reaction as if this was but expected, ignoring all others without a word, almost as if they were nonexistent. Still, just as the petite woman passed next to Ning Shan, she stopped momentarily, gazing at him.

  While he could have ignored her, Ning Shan felt compelled to return the gaze, smiling a little, only for her to frown. Even her two companions turned around, somehow intrigued by the small woman's actions.

  Ning Shan couldn't help but be interested in her eyes. They were a deep green, the colour of nature which this world sorely lacked. Maybe nostalgia prompted him to look even deeper, yet the woman couldn't help but become interested in the man before him. However, as soon as she looked into his deep black eyes, such fleeting interest disappeared utterly. She scoffed and turned around, ignoring him, almost as if the memory of this encounter had already faded from her mind.

  Less than a moment later, all three had already faded into the darkness, and the world began to turn again, with several nearby hunters seeking to pass the threshold.

  "What was that?" Ning Shan asked softly, only to realize Sera was still shaken from the events. Only when his hand fell on her shoulder did she finally snap out of it.

  “Do you know who those three are?” he added, his interest piqued.

  "I... don't know," she replied, her voice shaking slightly. "One thing's for sure, they are at least Green-Class Hunters. There's no way a Red-Class like me can know their names, much less dig up that information. If anything, I'm sure it's locked up tight by the government. After all, most Yellow-Class and up are affiliated with the government. Not many of them remain independent."

  "Is that so?" Ning Shan muttered, replaying the scene.

  Somehow, he couldn't free the image from his mind. The woman was attractive, her features well proportioned, but not enough to leave such a lasting image in his mind. After all, which peerless beauty hadn't tried to court him in his previous world?

  No, what he couldn't get out of his mind were her eyes. They were filled with such depths, such power. Somehow, they reminded him of himself, which couldn't help but make him chuckle at how narcissistic it all sounded. Still, that colour had something attractive to it. He hadn't felt the same as he looked into Sera's deep red eyes. After all, despite her differing features, she wasn't unattractive herself.

  Still, this wasn't the time to ponder such things. Having arrived at the boundary, Ning Shan now stood before the precipice. Somehow, he felt apprehension as he looked into the deep darkness. While light was scarce everywhere, it seemed even more so here. Yet, his curiosity soon overpowered it all.

  He took a step forward and felt the world change. His surroundings grew utterly silent; even Sera had disappeared. He stood alone within the vastness of space, with neither up nor down, left or right. Even time seemed to have disappeared, while only he remained, his existence a fact that couldn’t be rebutted.

  He floated there as everything became meaningless. His thoughts began to wander, free and unfettered, with no destination in sight. Still, the moment was fleeting. What felt like a lifetime was but a moment in reality as the world began to spin once again, bringing him out of his stupor. However, it was then that something went wrong.

  Just as he thought to emerge from the other side, a break resounded around him, almost as if reality shattered, but more like a glass vase had been smashed on the hard stone floor. The sound jolted him awake, just in time to raise his hands to soften the impact.

  Ning Shan's body was propelled forward, ejected from the boundary onto the hard stone floor. Using his outstretched hands as cushioning, he began to roll on the ground, quickly losing speed, but abruptly stopped as his back collided with a nearby wall.

  Disoriented, Ning Shan tried to rise, only to find himself unsteady. His mind reeled from the uncanny experience, still swimming in the dark void without care, only for grim reality to strike him like a battering ram.

  He was alone.

  He remembered Sera being next to him as he took that step. He even felt her small hand holding tightly to the sleeve of his leather vest, yet she was nowhere to be seen. Even as he scanned his surroundings, there were no signs of any living being—none except for a single thing.

  Not far away, illuminated by the glow of fluorescent rocks, stood a large metal rod deeply encased in the stone. It was almost as if it had been thrust with inhumane strength yet hadn't fractured the stone itself. It was eerie, to say the least.

  This can’t NOT be a trap...Ning Shan thought, yet he approached the rod nevertheless.

  Rise of a Planeswalker, as well as 25 chapters of my new series Advent of Sorcery.

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