Both Chen Wei and Ling Yu were surprised when they saw the maze slowly disappearing, the walls shifting back into a straight corridor.
"YAY!" They both jumped and cheered in excitement.
Of course, they believed it was Chen Wei's doing. Xuan Tian sighed for the nth time. I should have just left them here.
"What did I tell you?" Ling Yu slapped Chen Wei's back, grinning.
Chen Wei smiled sheepishly. "I can't believe I did it. I guess I really am an Immortal now."
The two happy fourteen-year-olds chatted as they walked forward—until they hit the barrier.
"Ouch!" they both exclaimed in unison, rubbing their heads.
Oh no! I actually forgot the barrier! Xuan Tian cursed inwardly. He shot a glare at Ling Yu, as if blaming her for his carelessness.
"What's this?" Ling Yu pressed her palm against the invisible force. "An invisible wall?"
Chen Wei also reached out. "I can't get through."
Ling Yu knocked on the barrier a few times.
What she didn't realize was that each time the barrier was touched, it sent ripples outward. The more she knocked, the more ripples spread.
Xuan Tian noticed too late.
Footsteps echoed in the distance.
"Hurry! Someone's trying to escape!"
Chen Wei froze, terror written all over his face. Ling Yu frantically looked around for a place to hide. Nothing. If they were caught, they would be locked back in a cage—or worse, tortured.
At the critical moment, strong hands grabbed them from behind, muffling their gasps.
Xuan Tian moved in silence, grabbing them both from behind. In one swift motion, he clamped a hand over each of their mouths and shoved them back against the wall. With one hand still holding them in place, he sent a pulse of spirit energy into the wall ornament and rotated it back.
In an instant, Ling Yu and Chen Wei began to vanish from sight—as the maze reappeared, the walls shifting back into their confounding layout once more.
Ling Yu looked up at her savior, and her eyes widened. Under Xuan Tian's hand, her mouth moved. Xuan Tian glared down at her, his expression clearly saying, Shhhhhhh.
He turned his focus back to the barriers. Within two breaths, a group of warriors rushed in.
They stopped abruptly, eyes scanning the area. The maze was intact.
"We should go in and check. We can't afford any mishaps. Tonight is the night. We can't let any of them escape again. Lady Xianren will kill us," one of them said.
The others nodded in agreement. They deactivated the maze and continued toward the dungeon.
Ling Yu and Chen Wei's eyes widened at the same time as realization struck—they were missing from their cages!
Chen Wei turned to Xuan Tian, sheer terror on his face. Ling Yu, on the other hand, was frantically trying to communicate with her eyes.
Xuan Tian glanced between them and shook his head.
What does that mean?! Ling Yu screamed internally. She closed her eyes, bracing herself for the inevitable shouting when the warriors noticed they were gone.
But no shouting came.
Ling Yu peeked up at Xuan Tian in surprise. The corner of his mouth lifted ever so slightly.
The warriors, finding nothing out of place, returned to their positions.
"What made the barrier ripple? Something must have touched it," one of them said, frowning.
"But no one is missing."
The warriors exchanged uneasy glances. They could not afford another mistake—one dead comrade was proof enough of the consequences of failure.
Xuan Tian made a subtle gesture for Ling Yu and Chen Wei to remain silent. Then, with a flick of his fingers, two mice scurried out from the dungeon, their soft chittering breaking the tension.
All the warriors turned to the sound.
"Oh, must have been them!" one of them said, visibly relieved. "This barrier is amazing. It can even detect something as small and weak as mice!"
Reassured, the warriors reactivated the maze and left.
The three escapees waited until they could no longer hear any sound from the warriors.
Xuan Tian blinked and relaxed, his grip loosening. He took two slow steps back, his gaze fixed on Ling Yu and Chen Wei.
"Escort?" Ling Yu whispered, her voice laced with curiosity. "What are you doing here? Were you captured as well? How come I didn't see you?"
Chen Wei stood frozen, staring in stunned silence.
Xuan Tian held up his hand and whispered back, "This is not the place. We need to leave."
Ling Yu tilted her chin toward the barrier. "With that there, we're not going anywhere."
"I can leave anytime," Xuan Tian said smugly. Why does it feel like I'm trying to prove myself?
"I don't believe you," Ling Yu challenged, crossing her arms—completely forgetting that Xuan Tian had just saved their lives without breaking a sweat.
"Suit yourself. I'm leaving," Xuan Tian said, turning toward the barrier.
Both Ling Yu and Chen Wei held their breath, fully expecting him to hit the invisible wall like they had. Instead, they watched in shock as Xuan Tian crossed the barrier with ease.
No ripples. No resistance.
Ling Yu and Chen Wei exchanged bewildered looks.
"I can't believe he left us!" Ling Yu whispered angrily.
Stepping out of the barrier, Xuan Tian moved ahead to check for any sign of patrols. He had deliberately left those two behind—bringing them out without scouting first was a guaranteed headache. He just knew it, the same way he knew the sun would rise, the sky was blue, or that Ling Yu's presence had an inexplicable force—one that subconsciously dictated the world around her, pulling chaos in like a gravitational field he had yet to admit existed.
He could still hear Ling Yu's angry whisper from behind. He sighed yet again. And yet, you believed Chen Wei could destroy a wall.
After ensuring the coast was clear, Xuan Tian stepped back inside the barrier. Ling Yu and Chen Wei were still standing there, staring at each other, unsure of what to do next.
"You want to come out, or do you prefer staying here?" Xuan Tian asked, arching a brow.
Ling Yu just glared at him in silence.
Chen Wei, afraid that Xuan Tian would actually leave them behind, quickly said, "We're coming."
Xuan Tian nodded. "Grab my hand," he instructed, offering his left hand to Chen Wei. Then, looking at Ling Yu, he added, "And you, grab his hand."
Ling Yu pouted but complied, grabbing Chen Wei's hand. The three of them formed an awkward, hand-to-hand chain as Xuan Tian led them through the barrier.
Just outside the barrier, a set of stairs led up to the back area of Xue Qin Lou's first floor.
"Don't let go of my hand until I say so," Xuan Tian reminded them and started to ascend the stairs.
"Why?" Ling Yu immediately challenged him.
Xuan Tian stopped and turned back, leveling her with a look. "Because this way, no one can see us."
"But they can still hear us," he added.
"You're lying," Ling Yu huffed, still refusing to believe him, though she didn't let go of Chen Wei's hand.
"How can you make three of us invisible? Even a Mid Immortal can only make himself invisible," Ling Yu said matter-of-factly.
Xuan Tian continued leading them up the stairs. "And at what level of cultivation can an Immortal make others invisible too?"
Ling Yu fell silent, thinking.
"You don't know?" Xuan Tian prodded.
"Of course I know!" Ling Yu shot back confidently. "High Immortal!"
"And there's no way someone like you is a High Immortal!" she added without hesitation.
Xuan Tian stopped again, turned back, and stared at her. "Someone like me?"
Meanwhile, Chen Wei—poor, poor Chen Wei—was quite literally torn in the middle. On one side was his savior, the one who had freed him from hypnosis, the one who believed in him when he himself didn't—Miss Ling Yu. And on the other was this powerful Xianren, whose mere presence felt suffocating, a man he instinctively knew not to trifle with. Yet, Miss Ling Yu, his fearless, unwavering companion, dared to stand her ground against him, defying all logic. Chen Wei couldn't help but admire her for that. But right now, more than anything, he wished she would just keep her mouth shut.
Ling Yu locked eyes with Xuan Tian, feeling that silence might be the best option for once. But Ling Yu was not Ling Yu if she backed down so easily.
"Yes," she said, tilting her chin defiantly. "Someone like you, who doesn't look like a High Immortal."
Xuan Tian's eyes glinted dangerously. "What do I look like, then?"
Ling Yu inhaled, ready to fire back, when Chen Wei suddenly spoke up, his voice urgent. "Xianren, thank you for saving us."
Chen Wei tightened his grip on Xuan Tian's wrist, looking at him with a mixture of awe, fear, and pleading.
Xuan Tian glanced at him, then exhaled another long sigh. Without another word, he turned back and continued ascending the stairs in silence.