Building An Empire Starting From The Labor Camp In Exile-Chapter 57: Crimson creatures

When Atrox opened his eyes, he found himself in a world of sand and a crimson moon. The ground was made of red, shifting, hot sand, and the clouds were like clotted blood.

The moon wasn’t a moon but an eye that looked down on everyone and everything. Atrox stood up slowly and looked around, at first his head felt heavy and he took his time to process things.

He saw sand stretching as far as the eye could see, dunes of red sands, dotted around were short red trees that were on fire.

"Where am I?" he asked aloud, as if expecting an answer. He looked down at his hand and saw that the black hole inside the purple circle was now filled with the image of the red moon that looked uncannily like an eye.

"Is this the power that Kren talked about?" Atrox wondered, but he felt nothing different inside him. His core didn’t react to anything, and the Mark Order felt the same. Normal and ordinary. "But it’s not the same. I now have a red moon inside it."

The only thing Atrox could do was look around, and so he began to explore. As soon as he took his first step, his Mark Order finally reacted, yanking his hand upright to the left. Atrox got the feeling it was directing him.

He looked down at it and then at the endless sands that surrounded him. And knew what to do.

He began to walk where it guided him. The sand was hot enough to melt the flesh from his body, but Atrox felt none of that, walking as if he were strolling on ice. The short trees he had seen earlier were indeed burning, surrounded by red fire. He felt the heat against his skin and knew it should have turned him to ashes, but it felt like nothing more than warm air.

Finally, he reached his destination. It was like a cathedral but with no roof. The walls and pillars were made of red stone and fire, and the energy surrounding it was hostile and chaotic, like air made of lava.

The more Atrox observed the structure, the stranger he felt. A chaotic, destructive energy surrounded this strange world, but the moon made everything milder, smoother—like silk around a sword.

"It’s as if they complement each other," Atrox said aloud.

Immediately, his words triggered something, and he finally saw them. In front of the building were three creatures that had been there all along, but his words seemed to make them aware of him.

They stood frozen and crouched, then slowly opened their eyes—glowing crimson orbs. Atrox froze when he saw them, but not out of fear. He held no fear of these creatures. What he felt was awe.

One of them was a hound—a monstrous dog as tall as he was, with fangs of black and fur of crimson fire. Its claws were solidified lava, and its eyes were a deep purple.

The second was like the undead werewolf he had seen earlier, but this one was very much alive, with thick, shaggy fur of jet black and a barrel chest. 𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝐰𝚎𝕓𝐧𝚘𝘃𝗲𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝕞

The last was a creature so pale its skin resembled spoiled milk, the only color being its deep red eyes. It wore a cloak over a gaunt body that seemed more bone than flesh.

Their eyes met, and he saw no hostility in them. As one, the creatures lowered their heads and bowed. When they raised their heads, their eyes were filled with a single message.

Fight.

They would fight him. Only when steel met steel, flesh met flesh, bone clashed against bone, and magic collided with magic would they truly know each other’s measure.

Atrox grinned. "I don’t know what’s going on here, but I’m ready to fight."

He lifted his right hand, and a sword of solid essence appeared, long and thin with edges that shimmered white-hot. A shield materialized in his left hand.

He bowed to them in return, and they stared at each other for a long time. The wind stilled, and even the flickering fire burning on the trees froze. The familiar gaze of the moon settled on him, as if all were listening, watching, waiting for what was about to happen.

The hound moved first. She flickered like flames, and the distance between them vanished. Her claws of fire swung down, and her fangs snapped at his head. Atrox raised his shield to deflect her, but her strength sent him flying backward.

He dismissed his weapons and rolled with the fall, coming upright with a blasted arc of essence that hit her full in the face. It was like pouring water on a rock.

Atrox gritted his teeth in frustration as he backed away. ’My essence is simply lacking in quality to match hers!’

The hound let him retreat and returned to her place with the others.

Atrox blinked in surprise. "What’s that all about?"

’I thought they were going to fight me to the death or something...’

The werewolf moved next. With a single leap, it was in front of Atrox, moving so fast he could only blink. He smelled the musky fur, but that was all before the creature drew back its fist and punched with a force that caused a sonic boom.

Atrox tried to raise his hands to block, but he was too late.

The punch landed squarely, breaking through the essence shield he had summoned as if it wasn’t there.

"Ahhhhhhhhhh! Shit!" His hands broke with a sharp crunch. Pain laced through his body, making it throb. His eyes watered. He scrambled to his feet, preparing for a follow-up attack, but the werewolf was already back in its place.

’Wait... is that a smirk on his lips?!’ Atrox groaned, small whimpers escaping his lips as he stifled more screams. His hands dangled uselessly in front of him, and he silently vowed to get revenge on these creatures for the pain they had inflicted.

And then the last one made its move.