The Dawn of the New World Chapter 1608

The psychic feedback brought Hao Xuan back to his senses, forcing him to take another look at himself.

'What the hell is going on?' he muttered inwardly while plopping down on a nearby sand mound out of frustration.

'Even 'Regis Officium' is barely able to contain these outbursts anymore and I need to be in control at all times. Things are hard enough as it is- I can't take any more risks.'

*Sigh*

Hao Xuan closed his eyes and crossed his legs while regulating his breathing.

He wanted to meditate while Ryuk looked around for some prospective creatures but it was so quiet and tranquil that he almost immediately slipped behind the veil.

His soul peacefully separated from his body and stepped into the Umbral Planes.

'Huh?'

Hao Xuan's consciousness took hold of his moon-like form as he examined his surroundings.

There was no ceiling overhead, only the empty night sky devoid of any and all celestial bodies. But the longer he looked at the sky the more vulnerable he felt, as if all his secrets were about to be laid bare for all to see.

So he turned his attention to the direction he had come from where some noises could be heard.

With a thought and some minor effort, his soul rose into the air and floated towards the back where he could see countless shadowy figures walking about in the maze.

These were obviously the 'impressions' of the people living within the city which was nothing out of the ordinary but just as he was about to turn back something caught his eye.

Some of the shadows were moving across the corners and edges of the buildings by themselves, and they were far too little to belong to a person.

Hao Xuan descended to get a better look at them but they froze when he got close.

He reached down and grabbed a handful of them. Each one was the size of a tennis ball and just as round but much fluffier. They easily melted into one another to the point you couldn't tell where one began and the other ended.

'What...are you?'

They obviously weren't organic creatures but somehow harbored an extremely minute amount of Chaos Energy inside them. It was so little that if he wasn't so overly sensitive and familiar with its presence there was no way anyone would ever know.

As Hao Xuan released a small burst of soul power several of the balls went rigid while a couple of them came to life.

Two pairs of eyes opened up on the otherwise pitch-black shadowy orbs as they bounced straight towards his face in, what should have been, a defense mechanism used to disorient any would-be predators.

But they were pushed away by the passive barrier created by the condensed soul power and instead struck the nearby wall before losing consciousness. This 'commotion' brought the other orbs to life as they began to surround him from all sides.

There were dozens of these small, spherical, hairy creatures with no other perceivable organs apart from the eyes, which were all focused on him.

Hao Xuan placed the three creatures down and stepped back with his hands raised, not knowing whether or not that would be seen as a surrender or another act of aggression.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to hurt your friends..."

One of the creatures bounced towards him with a rather apprehensive look in its eyes.

"Wait!"

Hao Xuan recalled and further compressed his soul power so it wouldn't 'attack' them for no reason.

His blinding figure took on a stone-like marble complexion which proved to be just safe enough for the creature as it rolled over his foot.

It was so weak that a soft breath could send it flying away.

After a minute or so of bouncing all over him, the creature deemed him 'harmless' and continued on their way.

He chose to trail behind their 'procession' as it slowly edged towards the front end of the city. Along the way, many other creatures joined their ranks, increasing their numbers to well over a hundred.

'Where are they all coming from?'

There seemed to be one or two hidden away in every other nook and cranny but it was not until they reached the end of the Beast Market that Hao Xuan saw how they came to be.

Two of the creatures separated from the main group and made their way towards one of the dead canine hybrid offshoots. One hopped into its shadow and after a few seconds, three of them came out.

The other creature did the same to the carcass of another canine beast but four of them came out from that one.

They naturally joined the procession moments later, leaving Hao Xuan scratching his head.

'I don't understand. That wasn't the beast's soul so what could they have multiplied from?'