140 kilometers to the West of the Abandoned City of Noll.
An area near several active volcanos without much vegetation. There were small, brightly colored trees decorating the small valleys between these several dozen volcanos, swaying with the puff of occasional toxic gas that came out of the vents.
The only living creatures here were the beasts with poison and fire attributes that could live off of the lava and toxins. Even the air was barely fit for human consumption. Staying in a place like this for more than a couple of hours would even kill cultivators.
Right now there was a small group of seven people running through one of the valleys.
"Stay together! Don't make too much noise!" a blue-haired man with a strong physique yelled in a low voice. He was at the front, leading the group. On his left wrist was a small shield that was attached to his arm with a device. There was also a gold and black sword in the center of the shield, becoming one with it like a piece of the puzzle.
He was wearing grey robes with long vertical black lines on them, going from the shoulders all the way down to the feet. The robes were ripped and burnt from many places, making him look like a nobleman that had fallen on hard times.
The blue-haired man looked to be 25 at most and had a very sturdy build. Even the loose robes couldn't hide the bulging muscles and wide shoulders underneath.
Behind him were similarly dressed people, all younger than him. Because of similar facial features, it looked like they were from the same clan or family.
He jumped over a large puddle of bubbling green liquid and extended his hands towards his companions who were waiting in a line.
"Effie, quickly jump!"
Right behind him was a girl that seemed to be around 15-16 years of age. She had a bob cut with bangs covering her entire forehead. With a small face, wide watery eyes and a rosey complexion, even in her current situation where she looked like a homeless person running for her life, her beauty couldn't be hidden.
One look at her would liven up anyone's day.
'Effie' looked down at the puddle that was at least five meters wide. She could see a few small creatures bobbing up and down inside the slimy liquid.
"Elder brother, I won't make it," she shook her head warily. Her legs were going weak just thinking about what would happen if she failed. The acidic smell wafting off of the puddle's surface was enough to send shivers down her spine.
Not to mention that weird feeling she was getting that there was more to the puddle than just what they could see with their eyes.
It had only been a few hours since they landed here and all of their energies were suppressed.
The blue-haired man's expression turned somber as he saw her wobbling legs about to buckle any second. He looked at the person right behind Effie.
"Hoss, do it!" he shouted.
The person behind her was a youngster the same age as Effie. He had a longsword behind his back and a very tall and lean physique. He silently responded with a nod and before Effie could even turn around, she found herself flying through the air.
Effie's heart was in her throat as she looked down and saw a fishy maw staring at her from the puddle. She wanted to scream but there was no time. Her body fell straight into her elder brother's arms as he put her down. Her legs had lost all strength and she couldn't even stand anymore.
"B-Brother, there's something in the puddl-" she tried to warn him but it was already too late. Hoss had already tossed the second person flying through the air, who was another girl like her.
But as soon as the girl passed over the center of the puddle, a three-meter wide mouth with rows of circular teeth all around it shot out of the puddle and swallowed her whole. Before any of them could even react, it was gone once again.
"WHA-"
"Senior brother Rokh!" Hoss shouted towards the blue-haired man as the green liquid splashed everywhere.
Some of it fell on his body and within a couple of seconds dissolved every bit of flesh on his right leg, leaving a polished white bone in its place.
"Ahhhh!" several blood-curdling screams rang out. Although Hoss took the majority of the liquid, some of it did manage to fall on the people behind him. And every single place it touched was dissolved in an instant.
Other than the last person, all the others had injuries and burns on their bodies. One unfortunate girl even lost her left eye as a small drop fell on her face and dripped down into it.
Rokh was the only one to react in time. He pulled Effie and jumped back. A few drops did splash on his body but he swiftly cut of the flesh to reduce the damage.
"B-Brother!" he felt a tug on his robe and saw Effie pointed at the entrance to the small valley, where they had just come from. He turned to look towards it and his heart almost stopped.
There was a strange creature standing there. With arms as long as its legs, it was crawling on all four, looking at them with its three pairs of black beady eyes.
Its head, shoulders, and abdomen was covered in some sort of a brown metallic armor while the exposed arms and legs had a hard greyish, thorny carapace like those of crabs.
There was even a strange weapon on its back. It looked like a steampunk-themed rifle which was made from spare parts.
There were four fangs around its toothy maw and feelers around the nose that continuously moved in the air. On its feet were giant curved claws that looked like they could cut stone in half.
Seeing the party of humans it was chasing, the creature stood up on two legs and let out a strange, high pitched noise.
"Krreeeeekrrrr!"
Rokh's expression turned somber as soon as he heard the noise. He reached into his robe and took out a paper seal. It had an arrow on it that kept pointing towards the same direction, blinking constantly. He pulled Effie up to her feet and shoved the paper seal in her hands.
"Follow the arrow, no matter what do not stop until you reach them! Tell them we're not alone, the higher-ups don't know the outer tribes have sneaked in here as well. Tell them they are hunting us like dogs! GO!"
Effie who was already on the verge of crying now had tears streaming down her blemishless face.
"Brother you can't stay here!" she begged through her sobs.
Rokh patted her on the head with a smile, "I can't leave the others, they are my responsibility. Go now," he pushed her away and jumped back over the puddle.
Effie tears flowed like a broken damn for she knew what was going to happen. She had 'seen' it. But still she wanted to give them some hope.
"I will be back soon, you must wait for Effie to come back big brother," she yelled one last time and started running in the other direction as fast she possibly could.
Hoss who only had only one leg left used his sword as a crutch to stand up and lean against the rock wall.
"Senior brother, take the others and go after junior sister, I'll hold them back! There's no use in all of us dying here!"
Even though his body was wracked with pain and exhaustion, he still didn't just lay down and waited for his death.
"It is my duty, let me fulfill it please," he said while bitting down his lips to keep him from passing out from the intense pain.
Rokh patted him on the shoulder and looked at the others who were in similar conditions.
"Our clan might be declining but that does not mean we raise cowards. Each and every one of you has trained your entire lives for this. As long as Effie survives, there is hope," he said in a loud enough voice that even the unknown creature could hear.
The creature stood up on its hind legs, its lanky body reaching more than two meters in height.
"Krrruurrrraaak!" it shouted in response and three other creatures of similar size crawled up behind it, blocking the entire path.
