The journey continued, but the landscape began to change. The mountains that had once seemed so vast now gave way to dense forests, their twisted trees creating a canopy so thick that the light barely filtered through. The air grew heavier, and an unnatural stillness settled over everything.
Jiang Yan could feel it in his bones—the air had changed, as though they had crossed some unseen boundary. He could see it in the way Moria moved, her steps growing more cautious, more deliberate. Even Li Yuan had a tense look about him, as if expecting something to jump out from the shadows at any moment.
"What's ahead?" Jiang Yan asked, his voice low.
Moria didn't answer immediately. She simply continued walking, her golden eyes scanning their surroundings. "The path becomes more dangerous from here. The further we go, the stronger the forces working against us will become. There are factions that guard the relics we seek, and they won't be easy to get past."
Li Yuan seemed to bristle at her words. "So, we're not just looking for artifacts—we're walking into a battle."
Moria's smile was thin, her eyes glinting with a dangerous light. "In this world, everything is a battle, Li Yuan. You just have to choose whether or not you're ready to fight."
The tension between them was palpable, but Jiang Yan could sense the truth in her words. This journey was far from over, and every step forward only brought them closer to something much bigger—and far more dangerous—than they had anticipated.
As they moved deeper into the forest, the silence around them grew more oppressive, and the air thick with the weight of something ancient watching them from the shadows. Whatever lay ahead, they were walking into the heart of darkness.
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