Prime Originator

"Wingrat? What's a Wingrat?" A crewmate overheard Supreme Elder Haldir's words and asked.

"Exactly what it sounds like. It is a rat with—Err, maybe not exactly. It's a rat with impressive leaping strength that it can almost be seen as flying." Princess Faelyn answered for in the Supreme Elder's stead.

The crewmate was taken aback.

"What kind of fat rat is that?" He asked.

However, he shook his head after a moment and said, "No, that is not important. Rats usually follow in large groups like a plague. If that was a rat, then beneath those mountains of corpses are…"

"The carcasses of numerous Wingrats, most likely."

"Right."

Shortly after, the Wingrat disappeared into the darkness of the city below; its screeching cries could be heard amidst the growls of other creatures or things as they were thrown into a violent struggle.

However, a few breathes later that; the ground became silent once more.

The crew felt a chill in their hearts.

"I thought there were no living beings down below. Where did all those growling come from?"

"The buildings? They were hiding in the buildings!"

Princess Faelyn creased her brows and said, "Those growling isn't the kind of noises a normal human would make when they are fighting beasts, right?"

The entire crew immediately frowned.

That was definitely not what normal humans would sound like. However, it did not change the fact that what they heard also sounded like the voices of humans.

What the f*ck was going on?

"Are we still descending, Sir Marquis Haldir?" The captain asked behind the wheel. Faced with the unknown danger, he could not help but doublecheck with the Elven Supreme Elder.

"Descend!"

Supreme Elder Haldir spoke one word.

"However, do not make a full descent. Everyone will stay on the ship. It is enough for me, alone to go investigate." He added.

No one argued with the Supreme Elder.

None of them were combat orientated, nor were they high-level Awakeners. They have only made some minor accomplishments in the Body Tempering Realm. Neither of them was above the 4th Layer of Body Tempering Realm.

"As you wish, Marquis Haldir." The captain nodded.

Shortly after, the captain began barking orders at the crew, and the group got busy throughout the airship. Gears were turned, propelling speeds were reduced, and the levitation device's power was lowered.

The airship soon started to descend at a slow but steady rate.

"That's enough. This height will do." Supreme Elder Haldir jumped off the airship at an altitude of 100ft above the Great Wall.

The Supreme Elder landed with a heavy thud on the Great Wall.

Moments later, it was like a hornet's nest being stirred as fragments of small objects, and random pebbles on the wall began to clatter from the distinct vibrations of nearby movements.

The movements soon turned into rumbles as a few towering mountains of bodies collapsed, and numerous Wingrats poured out from the crevices and cracks in between the scorched bodies.

"Rats! This place is still swarming with rats!" A crewmate cried out at the appearance of Wingrats pouring from underneath in droves.

"Be careful, Marquis Haldir!"

"No, YOU be careful. Worry about yourselves!" The Supreme Elder barked back while reaching his hand into his leather pouch of magic seeds.

The captain immediately realized the dangerous situation they were in and immediately thundered at the crew, "Quickly get to work! Take up back up!"

The numerous black Wingrats shortly squeaked madly, rushing up the mountain of scorched bodies and threw themselves at the Supreme Elder fearlessly with red eyes.

At the same time, Haldir had infused his power into the magic seeds and tossed them out! They grew into countless thorny vines and lashed out at the Wingrats in a frenzy.

The Wingrats were not strong!

Their greatest strengths were not their defense! It was their speed and numbers! Nevertheless, they were not faster than the vines whips protecting the Supreme Elder!

Dozens of Wingrats were shredded into pieces within half a breath's time. In the next half, the numbers spiked to the hundreds. And by the end of the second breath, it had already soared to thousands!

Despite being killed en masse, the Wingrats were not deterred! They continue to throw themselves at the Supreme Elder and get slaughtered in large numbers!

They were frenzied, they were berserk—like they are being influenced by something to behave as such beyond their control!

In a matter of several breaths, the kill count had already soared into the tens of thousands!

Even so, the Wingrats did not show any signs of reducing. Instead, it continued to increase. Their numbers can only be described with one word—Terrifying!

The airship managed to return to an altitude of 600fts above the ground level and slipped out of immediate danger.

Although the Wingrats could scale this distance in a single leap, they were fixated on the target closest to them—the one in front of him.

None could slip past the Supreme Elder's defense. All that tried and continued to try were diced into numerous pieces.

In a short time, the Great Wall was littered with the severed parts of Wingrats, piling like small mountains while their blood splattered, spilled, and trickled down the walls like flowing rivers and pouring rain.

The pungent stench of blood soon pervaded the surrounding area and descended to the ground level like the cascading moonlight coming out at night.

Roar!

The smell immediately provoked a response from the city below in the sound of growling that grew increasingly larger in numbers very quickly!

Shortly after, their thundering footsteps could be heard as the earth rumbled and the buildings shook in tandem with their massive movements!

"What is going on now?!"

"Something is coming from the city!"

Princess Faelyn could only watch in silence with a worrisome expression while the crew exclaimed with shock and surprises at each and every change that took place below in a short time.

It only took moments before the owners of the growls and heavy footsteps were revealed to them as their figures could be barely seen pouring out of buildings in the city, en masse!

They were humans! But at the same time, they did not behave like humans! They had undergone drastic and eerie changes!

Their damaged skins were paled due to a lack of blood and looked like they had been scratched and clawed countlessly without a spot left unchecked.

However, the most distinguishing points were their red eyes that glowed demonically! They were under the same berserk state as the Wingrats!

After these demonic-like humans rushed out of hiding, they took a brief moment to gaze up towards the top of the wall.

Once they located the source of fresh blood and flesh, they immediately stampeded to the foot of the wall and piled up like mountains, climbing over each other blindly to reach the top!

Gulp!

A crew felt a bit dry in his throats while looking at this scene and immediately swallowed his saliva.

"What happened to these people? They are behaving the same way as the rats! However, their intelligence has degraded! They're not even using the stairs and lifts!"

"Holy crap, I don't even know what is going on anymore. Are we experiencing another Cataclysm?! But where is the solar flare that marks the beginning of the Cataclysm as recorded in history?!"

"More importantly, take a look at them! Are humans being affected like the beasts now!?"

"What does it look like to you!? Shit, what's going to happen to us?"

The crewmates panicked with fear.

At the same time, Faelyn's expression became more creased with worry.

The situation on the Western Frontier was already like this. What about the situation at her tribe, which was located deeper in the Wildlands without the protection of high walls?

Suddenly, the sound of something being shot erupted in the far northern parts of the Great Wall. In a short instance, an object whisked its way through the air at great speed, smashing into the rising mountain of berserk humans.

Boom!

The object exploded into a fiery blaze, blowing the bodies of berserk humans apart! The rising mountain collapsed instantly!

Their angry roars and rage could be heard and felt at the bottom of the Great Wall as they suffered a setback in reaching their goals.

Shortly after, they began forming a new human mountain to try again.

At the same time, the people on the airship shot their glances to the northern wall with surprise. Someone was helping them!

It was not hard to guess what this meant. There were still other people around! Sane people that is!

"Over here!"

A person from the north barked at them, urging them to come over.

"Supreme Elder!" Faelyn immediately called out.

"You all leave first! I will follow later!" Supreme Elder Haldir shouted while focusing wholeheartedly on his defense.

"But…"

"Leave!"

He thundered.

The Wingrats continued to assault him from the front, and the berserk humans quickly close in from behind.

Although everything was minced and diced to pieces by the thorny vines, the Supreme Elder could not move from his spot.

"Princess Faelyn?" In the sky, the captain asked, awaiting her answer.

Faelyn creased her brows while watching the Supreme Elder massacre the Wingrats below.

Although the Supreme Elder was pinned to his current spot and appeared to be in a seemingly precarious situation, he was not in any real danger. It was just that the Wingrat's onslaught gave him no chance to retreat.

"Let us go." She sighed.

After receiving Princess Faelyn's permission, the captain nodded and returned to take the helm, barking out instructions to the crew.

Shortly after, the stilled airship hovering in the sky began moving once more, swerving right and heading in the direction further north along the Great Wall.