Chapter 1510: Colder

As they continued south, the storm grew increasingly furious. Lightning struck more frequently around them and the wind howled against their bodies with tremendous force, enough to shake the surrounding clouds apart.

Worst of all, the black rifts leading into the Chaos Realm began appearing with greater frequency, tearing open across the storm as though something within the darkness was desperately trying to stop the four Dragonborn from advancing.

But the storm’s efforts achieved very little.

The four Dragonborn did not slow down. Instead, they accelerated faster, forcing their way through the violent winds and clouds while maintaining their course toward the south.

But the constant interference still feels annoying to them especially when another rift opened directly along their path and released another wave of monstrous creatures.

"They just don’t stop. I’m starting to think this thing particularly hates us!" Eccar commented as dozens of enormous earth spears erupted around him and impaled several monsters at once.

The creatures fell into the storm beneath them.

"It certainly looks that way," Sylven replied. "I’m beginning to think the storm knows we’re here and is deliberately targeting us."

Erend and Aesa remained silent for a while because they had both reached the same conclusion.

"But if that’s true, doesn’t that mean something is controlling this storm?" Erend finally asked.

The thought immediately changed the atmosphere between them.

Eccar glanced toward the countless rifts opening throughout the darkness. "If that’s true, then whoever is controlling it must be somewhere on the other side of the Chaos Realm, right?"

Erend pondered the possibility while another flash of lightning illuminated his face. "Yeah. But we can’t enter the Chaos Realm right now."

Eccar clicked his tongue in frustration. "You’re right. This fucking thing is annoying. If I ever meet whoever’s responsible, I’m killing them immediately."

Aesa gave him a brief glance but said nothing.

They continued their journey instead.

Crimson flames, golden-brown earth, blue-white ice, and brilliant green Magic repeatedly erupted throughout the storm, illuminating the darkness as the four Dragonborn carved their way southward. To them, the battle was just little more than an irritating obstacle on the road.

They had no idea that several airships had already noticed them from a great distance.

The sight of them moving was impossible to overlook. Strange flashes of Magic continued appearing inside the massive storm while four figures moved through it at incredible speed. From afar, they looked like four extraordinary forces cutting through the darkness itself.

The airship crews immediately recorded what they witnessed.

None of them knew who the four figures were or what they were doing inside the anomaly, but they understood that whatever was happening within that storm was something worth remembering.

—

The four Dragonborn eventually lost track of how much time had passed. Gradually, the storm began to weaken.

The winds that had constantly pushed against them became gentler. The lightning grew less frequent, and the countless black rifts stopped appearing around them. The enormous clouds slowly separated, allowing faint traces of clear sky to appear ahead.

Erend noticed the change first.

"The storm is ending," Erend said.

They continued forward.

A few moments later, the four Dragonborn finally emerged from the storm. The darkness suddenly became peaceful.

Behind them, the enormous storm continued raging across the sky, but ahead lay a clear night filled with countless stars. The moon hung above the distant horizon, casting pale light across the floating islands below.

For several seconds, none of them spoke.

After spending so long inside the violent anomaly, the quiet sky almost felt unreal.

"Finally. Some peace." Eccar said and then exhaled deeply.

Sylven looked toward the stars. "We’re out of it now."

The air around them had also changed.

A colder wind swept across their bodies, carrying a sharp chill that did not exist in the regions before.

Aesa looked toward the southern horizon.

"We’re getting close to the colder regions," she said.

Erend nodded. "Okay. We should stop for tonight."

They searched for a suitable floating island and eventually found one with enough flat ground to establish a temporary camp.

The four Dragonborn descended onto the island and began preparing for the night.

Eccar gathered dry branches while Sylven searched for suitable plants and materials. Aesa prepared a simple area for them to rest with the equipment prepared by Caelion while Erend pulled out the map Caelion had given them.

A small fire soon burned between them, its warmth cutting through the cold southern air.

Erend unfolded the map across the ground. The others gathered around him.

They had traveled much farther south than they had expected, and the surrounding islands were beginning to change.

"Let’s see where we are now," Erend said.

Their journey had already taken them deep into the southern regions. The warm glow of the flames illuminated the detailed markings Caelion had prepared for them, showing the network of floating islands, known settlements, dangerous territories, and several routes extending toward the southern regions.

He placed one finger on their current position.

"According to the map, we’re here," Erend said.

Eccar leaned closer while Aesa and Sylven examined the surrounding markings. Their current position was already far beyond the territories they had crossed earlier, placing them within the colder southern region of Elyndor.

Erend then moved his finger farther south. "And this is where the last reports of the Sky Tyrant came from."

A marked area on the map stood several days away from their current position. Several smaller symbols surrounded it, indicating unexplored terrain and dangerous regions.

Sylven narrowed his eyes. "So that’s our destination."

"One of them, yes," Erend replied. "According to Caelion’s documents, there were several locations where traces of the Sky Tyrant were reportedly discovered. We should check them one by one."

Eccar reached for the documents they had brought with them and opened the first section.

"Let’s see what the first location we need to check was," Eccar said.

They read through the records carefully, comparing the written descriptions with the markings on the map.

After several moments, Eccar looked at the map. "The closest one is the cave,"

Erend nodded and studied the map again. "Okay. That’s where we’ll start."

—