Grim frowned. "So? How do we walk without making a ripple? I weigh three hundred pounds with this iron armor. I cannot float.""You do not need to float," Han Feng said. He reached out and placed his glowing silver hands on their chests. "You need to walk in the gaps.""The gaps?" Su Yan asked. "A heartbeat makes two sounds," Han Feng said. "Thump, thump. But what is in the middle of those sounds? Nothing. It is complete silence. It is a gap. Every movement in this forest has a gap. The wind blows hard, and then it stops for a second before it blows again. The tree sways left, stops for a micro-second, and then sways right."Han Feng’s silver eyes locked onto Grim. "We are going to move in those gaps. When the tree sways, we sway with it. When the wind blows, we step. When the wind stops, we freeze perfectly still. It is called the Ghost-Step. It is not magic. It is perfect harmony with the world around you.""Can a man in heavy iron armor do a Ghost-Step?" Grim asked. He sounded ver

They stood on the muddy bank of the glowing blue river. No one spoke. No one moved. They just stared at the giant footprint in the mud. It was big enough to swallow a whole village. The three sharp claw marks at the top of the print were as deep as trenches. Glowing blue water trickled into the dirt, filling the shape of the monster’s foot. Grim was the first to break the silence. He swallowed hard. The sound was loud in the quiet air. "We need to leave," Grim whispered. His rough, scarred face was pale. He held his heavy iron war hammer tightly in both hands. "If the thing that made this footprint comes back... my hammer will feel like a toothpick hitting a mountain."Su Yan nodded slowly. She could not take her eyes off the massive claws. "Yes. We must find a place to hide. The sky is getting darker."Han Feng looked up. Through the thick, giant leaves of the ancient trees, the angry red light of the Exordium’s fire was fading. Night was coming to this strange, alien forest. The

Han Feng forced his mind to focus. He pushed past the blinding pain. He reached deep into his own chest, past the cracked Golden Key, right to his internal metallic heart. He visualized a thick, heavy iron door. He visualized slamming it shut. He cut off his "Liquid Steel" state. He stopped listening to the forest. He stopped feeling the vibration of the glowing blue river. He blocked out the wind. He blocked out the sound of the giant trees. He trapped his own frequency entirely inside a thick wall of nothingness. Instantly, the violent shaking stopped. Han Feng slumped forward. He fell out of Grim’s arms and hit the muddy ground face-first. The bright, blinding light of the silver tracers slowly dimmed. They still glowed under his dark skin, but they were no longer boiling. The forest went quiet again, save for the rushing of the strange blue water. Su Yan crawled through the mud. She carefully turned Han Feng over on his back. His face was covered in wet dirt. His silver eyes

The giant golden eyes stared down from the black ceiling of the cave. They were as big as houses. They glowed with an ancient, heavy light. Han Feng, Su Yan, and Grim stood completely frozen. They did not dare to breathe. The air in the cave felt heavy, like a thick wool blanket pressing against their chests. "You smell like my stolen heart," the deep voice rumbled again. The sound shook the dirt on the floor. It vibrated inside Han Feng’s bones. Han Feng looked down at his own chest. The Golden Anchor Key was cracked, but deep inside, his silver-metallic heart was still beating. The founders of the Azure Cloud Sect had stolen the Stone Heart from this forest a thousand years ago. And now, Han Feng had brought it back. He was standing in front of the creature who owned it first. Grim slowly raised his iron war hammer. His thick arms were shaking. He stepped in front of Su Yan. "Do not raise your toy at me, little iron bug," the ancient voice said softly. The golden eyes blinked

Han Feng pushed himself up. He ignored his broken stone leg. He gathered a small amount of his internal silver power. His fists began to glow with a bright, blinding white light. He limped forward, stepping between Su Yan and the Houndsman. Han Feng threw a punch. He aimed a massive blast of kinetic vibration at the Houndsman’s chest. But Han Feng’s power relied on sound waves. When the silver energy left his glowing fist, it entered the Sound-Dampening Field. The black sphere on the ground instantly ate the attack. The bright silver light just fizzled out into nothing. The vibration died before it traveled two inches. Han Feng stared at his fist in horror. His weapon was completely useless. The silence field was eating his power. The Houndsman tilted his dog-mask slightly. It looked like he was mocking Han Feng. The Houndsman stepped forward. He moved incredibly fast. He brought the heavy handle of his purple whip down hard, hitting Han Feng directly on his broken rock knee. T