Chapter Eleven: Whispers and Shadows
The forest clearing, once a stage for a swift, brutal battle, now lay silent, littered with the cooling remains of the fallen beasts. Hours after the expedition had moved on, the shadows themselves seemed to coalesce—twenty black-hooded figures materialized amidst the carnage.
"So, they've already passed through here," said a cold voice from the front of the group.
"Why are we taking a group so big for such an easy job, Boss?" asked another person, his voice sounding younger.
"Easy, you say?" the leader asked mysteriously.
"Yeah. Just ten Gold ranks and a bunch of nobodies," the seemingly young one said.
"So, I see. You're new. Do you know who these 'nobodies' are?" the leader asked.
"The recently promoted Heavenly Dragon Family. They only have one Gold rank," answered the young man.
"Han Shen, educate the new recruit about those so-called nobodies," he ordered.
"Kid, you know of the Heavenly Dragon Family, so you know what happened to them ten years ago, right?" Han Shen's raspy voice explained, and the recruit nodded. "We were the shadows that fell upon them. A contract. The one who hired us was... thorough in their desires. We had twenty Black Gold experts, with two at the peak of the rank. It was supposed to be a slaughter, from what the contractor told us—only nine Gold rank and five Black Gold experts on their side. Let me tell you: those five Black Gold experts from the Sacred Family were the weak link of the group. I've never fought such beasts in human skin."
Just as he finished, a sound echoed through the clearing.
Crack.
The noise attracted the group's attention. It was a Snow Wind Direwolf, a big one for its cultivation level at the peak of the Silver rank.
"Oh? An alpha. That's interesting," the boss said. The group was preparing to fight when he raised his hand.
The wolf looked at the leading man, and then it turned and fled in the opposite direction.
"What an interesting thing," he said, watching the beast go before saying to his group, "Let's follow the wolf. And I'll tell you this: we're lucky they don't have a Gold rank from that family with them. This makes our job easier."
And move they did.
Hours later, the expedition pressed deeper into the mountains. Long Feng faced his next challenge: an Elder-Bark Ape.
"This beast is strong!" the Heavenly Dragon Family Elder complained. His spear lay discarded on the ground, and he was using his arms, now coated with the Adamantine Blade skill.
Another punch slammed down from the giant Elder-Bark Ape. With his bladed arms, Long Feng parried the attack, the impact echoing with a sharp clang of metal on stone. He used the momentum to dodge the other two of the beast's four arms. The force brought him close to his spear. He snatched the weapon and threw it at the ape's head. It was a good feint, forcing the creature to use its upper arms for defense, covering its eyes. Long Feng seized the opening, lunging forward with his metal-coated arm to slash a deep gash across its body.
The fight didn't end there. It took a few more desperate parries for him to finally tire the creature enough through its blood loss, before he ended the battle by slashing its head off. He was tired, sweating like never before. Luckily, his technique was versatile enough to defend, or else the nine-foot, four-armed ape would have been too much to take on by himself.
"How was the technique, Uncle?" Long Qingxiao was the first to approach.
"Versatile. It doesn't take much of my Soul Force, but I can't let the fight drag on. And I'm sure my arm is stronger than before," he reported.
Long Qingxiao nodded. He was sure that the old techniques were incomplete in more ways than one.
"Fighting a 4-star Silver rank Elder-Bark Ape isn't easy, even for a 1-star Gold rank. You took it on two star-ranks below. It's getting ridiculous," commented Ye Chen humorously.
"We need to have an advantage since we can't fuse with just any Demon Beast, right?" Long Feng answered in the same tone.
"Patriarch, this ape has a Demon Spirit," a Bronze rank cultivator called out.
"Finally!" commented someone from Ye Chen's party. It was Zu Hao, a man who had abdicated his family's noble rank to join the Snow Wind Family as a retainer. It was a common path for those seeking better resources or a fresh start.
"You guys don't want it?" Ye Chen asked for certainty.
"We can't use it," the expedition leader commented dryly.
"I know. But you could have sold it for a better price than you will to me. Your loss is my gain," Ye Chen smiled.
The Patriarch rolled his eyes. "Let's move. We're heading for the Mountain Pass."
Everyone nodded. They didn't care much about the rumors of it being more dangerous than the forest; the important thing was that it would shorten their travel by days.
During the next several hours of travel, the group fought many beasts, though most were only threatening to the Bronze ranks. Long Qingxiao insisted that they fight. It sacrificed a lot of their time, but combat experience was something the group desperately needed.
As night began to creep in, they knew they had to stop. It was impossible to see long distances, even with the enhanced eyesight cultivation provided. They could move better with Long Qingxiao's scouting ability, but the sound of beasts everywhere made them stop and make the best of the little light they still had.
Long Qingxiao divided the group into three: two would look for wood, and the last, composed of half of Ye Chen's group and the Bronze ranks, would set up camp. The Patriarch had gone north, accompanied by Long Hai and Long Shan.
"What did you discover?" he asked both of them.
"Their group isn't happy with you, Patriarch," warned Long Shan.
Long Qingxiao raised his eyebrows. "Your stunt to slow our travel wasn't appreciated. They know you're training our forces," the man completed.
Long Qingxiao nodded. "I saw a chance and I took it. Our family has been away from the front lines for far too long—my fault, I admit, but a necessary choice."
They both nodded, and Long Hai started, "There are other things. From what I could gather, Ye Chen is the one responsible for the group. His brother gave the mission to him."
So, he's testing his little brother, the leader thought.
Long Hai proceeded, "Most of the group are retainers, with three exceptions having the surname Ye. This is my speculation, but I believe they're here to protect Ye Chen."
"One of those men was the one who made those jokes at the beginning of the trip," added Long Shan.
So that's why their cultivation feels strange. But why try to provoke me? To test my leadership, or Ye Chen's? he thought, before saying, "Let's go back. We have enough wood."
When they returned, the camp was already set. As darkness fell, the expedition party sat close to the fire, but in two distinct groups. The exceptions were Ye Chen and Zu Hao, who sat with the Heavenly Dragon members.
"Why did you accept your brother's mission?" Long Qingxiao asked curiously.
Ye Chen looked at his leading partner. "My brother thinks himself clever, putting his men in my group. He said this mission would be solely mine, but he still sent his people to 'protect' me. I know he cares, but he still thinks I'm irresponsible." He paused. "I took his request to show him I can take care of myself and be of help to the family. He became obsessed with responsibility after his wife's death. My niece now lives in the shadow of the boy he adopted, and he can't see how it burdens her. I hope to shoulder some of that burden," he confessed, "so he has the freedom to truly see his own family again."
A moment of silence passed before Long Qingxiao sighed. "I understand your brother. Leadership is a heavy burden, and when it is accompanied by loss, it is even heavier. The fear of losing those close to you can paralyze you." He paused. "But I can assure you, if he didn't think you were capable, he wouldn't have sent you. You have a great brother, Lord Ye Chen."
Before Ye Chen could reply, Long Qingxiao stood and announced to the whole party, "I apologize for delaying our journey with my plans. It was a decision I had to make. Because of this, I will take the night vigil. As you've seen, my sensing prowess has a fantastic track record. You can sleep comfortably tonight." He then sat, to appreciative nods from the Gold ranks.
Seeing this, Ye Chen also stood up. "I will also take the night vigil. My demon spirit is a Phantom Bat, so you can sleep soundly. Leader Long and I will discuss the turns." He then sat at Long Qingxiao's side. "But leadership can be a more comfortable burden if it is shared, Patriarch Long."
Long Qingxiao nodded. "You will take the first turn then."
After some more unimportant conversation, the party retired to their respective tents, and a quiet night fell. The only strange thing was the Snow Wind Direwolf from before, which Long Qingxiao noticed was watching the camp from a distance. But as the wolf did nothing, neither did the Heavenly Dragon Patriarch.
The rays of the morning sun weren't even showing when the group was afoot again, following the path to the Mountain Pass in cautious silence. Walking through the place was even stranger than everything they had encountered. The silence was wearing; it felt like something was hanging over their heads.
"DOWN!" screamed Ye Chen, and the group was fast enough to obey, evading a volley of strange projectiles that shot in their direction.
"What is that?!" someone inquired.
"Feathers?" Long Tao took one in his hands. "No. They're scales. Metallic scales."
The group didn't have time to speculate.
"IT'S COMING! PREPARE FOR BATTLE!" Ye Chen announced.
"Where is it?" asked Long Qingxiao.
"Above. The echoes in this place make it hard to sense," Ye Chen reported.
His assessment was proven true a moment later, as a beast dove from behind one of the stone peaks. It was a blur of motion, and its target was Long Qingxiao. He quickly used his hammer to block the attack but was thrown back from the group by the force of the impact.
"PATRIARCH!" his group shouted, but they had no time to react.
The creature came again, this time aiming for Ye Chen. He was protected by one of his brother's men, a powerful guard whose cultivation was revealed to be at the 2-star Black Gold rank. The guard's counter-attack threw the beast back, giving the group a clear look at it. It was a huge, draconic creature, a Steel-Spine Wyvern.
"It's a Steel-Spine Wyvern!" screamed the guard who had taken the hit. It was a man named Ye Feng. He was tall with a physique more imposing than even Ye Zong's—short black hair, hazel eyes. "Its metallic scales will be trouble. Form a perimeter! Silver and Bronze ranks in the middle!" He then looked to Long Min. "Girl, you get in the middle! Your healing powers will be fundamental!"
"Thank you, Ye Feng!" Ye Chen said.
"Too soon to thank me, Young Master. The beast is a 4-star Gold rank. Even I will have trouble if we don't pin it down," he said as the group formed the perimeter he had ordered.
Long Qingxiao easily shrugged off the attack, but from afar, he was observing. He was thankful for the order Ye Feng gave. He could have just killed the beast, but he had a nagging feeling he should still keep his strength hidden. That wolf was stalking them for a reason.
I will take this opportunity and 'break through' to the Gold rank, he thought. A battle to the death feels more natural. But I need an opportunity. He walked back toward the wyvern. The camouflage ability of his Demon Spirit was useful to hide his cultivation, but it also meant he couldn't fuse with it in a fight without being exposed.
"HERE IT COMES AGAIN!" screamed Ye Feng. The Wyvern first shot its scales, forcing the group to defend, and then used the opening to strike, catching an elder named Ye Lao and throwing him in Qingxiao's direction.
"YE LAO!" Ye Feng shouted, but it was too late.
The wyvern was already above the unconscious man, prepared to end his life. But right on time, Long Qingxiao put himself between the two. His soul force erupted with the aura of a 1-star Gold rank, and his body was covered in a strong soul energy that looked like ancient, moss-covered bark. This was the Gold rank skill of his cultivation technique, Barkskin Armor.
"Take the man! I'll take advantage of my breakthrough and fight the beast!" he shouted, then swung his hammer at a very furious Steel-Spine Wyvern.
The creature lost its rationality, its prey denied, and came to close combat with the Heavenly Dragon Patriarch. Its clawed wings tried to sweep him, but Long Qingxiao parried with his hammer or let his armor defend him.
Let's hope they don't notice the armor being this powerful on its first use, he thought and proceeded to smash the wyvern with his hammer, the powerful contact shattering its scales.
But the battle was far from over. The wyvern counterattacked, shooting its scales at Long Qingxiao.
I need to end this, he thought after the armor easily handled the attack. He jumped to attack again, this time aiming for the head. He faked an attack at its torso, and when the creature prepared to take the hit, he changed the trajectory of his swing, flicking his arms and bringing the hammer from bottom to top in a powerful uppercut to its head.
It was stunned. It was enough time to give him an opportunity for a second and third attack that ended its life. The first of the two, he aimed for its hind legs, bringing it crashing down, and the last he brought down on top of its head, ending its life.
The group looked at the fight, flabbergasted. But they weren't the only ones looking at the battle. Above them, in one of the crevices, was the group of black-hooded men.
"He is really strong," commented one of the group members.
"Yes. Those beasts are hard to kill, and now he's at the Gold rank," commented Han Shen. "At least he's just a 1-star one," he added in relief.
"Oh? You think so?" the boss asked with a mysterious smile.
"You mean he isn't?" asked the young recruit.
"Didn't you notice his breakthrough being a little too convenient? Sure, it was a life-and-death situation, but he was waiting for it. He made a calculated move," the boss explained. "We will move to the capital of the Black Gold Empire first."
"Isn't it better if we just end it here?" asked another one of the group.
"Mu Ling, how many groups have made this expedition?" the boss asked.
"Few have tried," the woman, Mu Ling, answered. "And those that did claimed to have picked the ruins clean."
"Patience," the boss explained. "Our contract is for their lives, but they're clearly hunting a greater prize. Why settle for only half the reward? Let them exhaust themselves unearthing this treasure. We will be waiting to claim our full payment—the prize they find, and the bounty on their heads. Move out!"
And move they did, without any more complaints.