1423 Death's Tomb

"Supposed to??

" Hao Xuan questioned while inspecting it in detail.

"Yes, my master said I would meet a young man in desperate need of it, I am assuming he meant you. It contains all manner of knowledge regarding the abyss and its inner workings, ranging from all the different factions and characters that can be trusted to some hidden locations and details about each individual layer and how to navigate it with relative safety. He had journeyed through the abyss himself so most of it comes from his own experiences, I only added a few things here and there.

"

Hao Xuan opened the book to glance at the materials and the first page directly mentioned a race of beings native to the abyss.

They were reptilian in appearance with fat pudgy bodies that looked to be a mix between frogs and lizards. They had been around for a very long time and were considered to be one of the oldest species in existence.

With extremely long lifespans and powerful abilities, they were feared and respected wherever they went. Inherently gifted with handling finances, not only were they always rich but extremely intelligent as well.

It said in big bold letters at the end:

Can only be trusted as long as they have something to gain from the interaction. With a sufficient enough offering they will even turn on each other. They value future prospects more than immediate minimal gains. With a tempting enough promise they can be easily manipulated for one self

"Hmm...

"

Hao Xuan didn't expect the first thing he read to be about some random species but he didn't question it at the time since Baba Jezda had already reappeared.

Lord Yami snapped his fingers to pop the barrier before walking towards her.

"Come in, it's almost done,

" she said without missing a beat.

Hao Xuan entered first followed closely by Lord Yami. The inside of the hut was so messed up that it looked like a hurricane had passed through.

Everything was either broken or turned on its head. Claudia was sitting in front of the fireplace casting a healing spell on Grey's bloody form.

All of his legs were twisted around and broken in several places.

Hao Xuan's brow furrowed upon seeing the destruction,

"What happened? Did he get hurt during the fight?

"

Lord Yami shook his head,

"No, there was no one else here,

" before kneeling down to inspect Grey,

"These injuries...are these?!

" his eyes widened at the realization.

"They are,

" Baba Jezda confirmed while gesturing towards a simple wooden coffin not too far from them.

Lord Yami stumbled up to his feet in shock,

"By the Nine... it's real!

"

He walked over and gingerly ran his hands over its rough surface. It looked 'rough' to say the least, with worn-out wood planks being held together by some metallic linings.

He couldn't tear his eyes away from it which made Hao Xuan very curious.

"What is it?

" he asked while coming closer.

"Something that will be immensely helpful to you,

" Baba Jezda replied from the side.

"That still doesn't answer my question. What is this thing?

"

But before she could explain Lord Yami threw out the answer from sheer excitement.

"A treasure beyond your wildest imagination. This- This is the God of Death's final resting place, the Tomb of Hades himself!

"

Hao Xuan's eyes widened as he instinctually took a step back,

"Is...is he in there?!

"

"Of course not, don't be foolish,

" Baba Jezda berated while reigniting her smoking pipe,

"Right now it is nothing more than a piece of equipment. You will use this for the time being.

"

"ME?? For what?! And how did you even get this? Wouldn't something like this be guarded by Zeus himself if not his brothers?

"

She shook calmly shook her head,

"It was not theirs to begin with. If anyone has a claim to it then it is our house since- it matters not how I got it, only what you will do with it.

"

"And that is?

"

"This coffin is the only thing that can protect you while you go back through the river of time. So long as you stay inside you will be kept safe from the river's effects since no time passes within its bounds.

"

Hao Xuan's brow began to knit as the image became clearer.

"So you are going to put me in this coffin and throw it in the literal river of time HOPING that I end up where I need to??

"

"No,

" Baba Jezda replied confidently while pointing at Claudia with her pipe,

"She will go with you, remember?

"

".....

"

"And you will also use this to come back after everything is done,

" she added,

"Albeit it will be not the same way. You can sleep in the coffin and by the time you wake up 700 years will have gone by while you remain unaffected by the passage of time. At that point I will help you merge with your future self to cement your existence in the new world order.

"