Chapter 56: Realizations and Transmissions

A/N: Hey everyone! Hope you've had a good start to the week. Here's another chapter. Also Happy Thanksgiving to any Canadian readers.

Chapter 56: 

I rested in our hideout for a good couple of minutes. It wasn’t the most comfortable of places, being just a small, smooth stone room underground with three people inside. But it still felt far safer than being out in the open, easy for the people likely pursuing us to just run into. And after everything we’d been through, I needed a moment to just relax. Even if that was made rather hard by the throbbing pain in my right hand. 

Most of my injuries were pretty much fine now, but the crystal stabbed into my right hand was still a problem. Unfortunately, with no more healing pills left, I didn’t really have any way of dealing with it. I could’ve just tried to tear it out and bandage it, relying just on my high vitality stat to get me through. But that seemed too dangerous, and I didn’t want to risk the chance that I could just bleed out. So all I could do was bear with it and try to ignore it while I rested.

Of course, given our situation, I couldn’t relax for long. I did a lot to hide our trail and mislead anyone following us. But it was hardly foolproof, especially since I didn’t know what techniques cultivators might have to track us down. I also didn’t know what level of cultivators there might be chasing us.

Which meant that I had to assume we were still in danger. And that we needed to find a way to get help fast. Xing Yaling was still passed out, so she would be of no help right now… Well… actually, there might be one way she could help. 

She was clearly a powerful cultivator from a big sect. Perhaps she had something in her spatial bag that could help? Something she didn’t get a chance to bring up.

“Hey, Pan Song,” I said, getting his attention as I stood and walked over to where I’d laid Xing Yaling down. “I know you said you aren’t very familiar with spatial pouches, but is there any reason why I can’t open hers up to see if there’s anything we can use to help her or us?”

“That… might be dangerous,” Pan Song said as I was kneeling to take her pouch.

I froze at his words and turned to him. “Dangerous?”

“Spatial pouches are expensive,” Pan Song explained. “Very much so, from what I understand. Even in the city, only elites have them. I believe I’ve heard that there are usually protections in place to keep others out of it. It’s likely possible to break in, but I don’t know how that might be done, and it could damage it. And that’s just for a normal one. For a spatial pouch of an inner sect member of the Soaring Cloud Sect? I’m not sure if I’d dare to take the chance.”

I sighed. “Alright then… Guess we’ll just have to hope that last pill was enough to wake her. Until then, how much time do you need to set up that amplification formation?”

Pan Song thought about it for a moment, rubbing his chin and taking out his sound transmission talisman. He stared at it for another moment before he answered. “Half an hour? It shouldn’t take too long, as it's not a very complex thing. But I’ve never done anything like this before.”

“Alright,” I said, nodding before looking around at the room I made. It was a bit small, as I’d been wanting to save my Qi. “Do you need me to make more room down here?”

Pan Song looked around for a moment and nodded. He pointed at one of the walls. “Perhaps extending that side a dozen feet or so should be enough.

Nodding at that, I got to work, activating Reinforced Burrow Creation as I touched the wall. The smooth stone of our underground hideout started to flow like liquid, receding back until there was an extra dozen feet of room for him.

“Thank you,” Pan Song said as he moved into the cleared space and got to work.

As he did so, I felt like I should be doing something too. Part of me wanted to dig another hole out of our hideout, in case we were found, so we weren’t stuck with only one way out. But my Qi was getting way too low. From the fight, to our escape, and using Earth Wader, then creating this tunnel, I had barely less than a quarter of my reserves left.

That meant that, really, the only thing I could do at the moment was wait around for my reserves to fill up. Although I suppose trying to cultivate would help as well. While my spirit beast core replenished my Qi automatically a lot faster than a normal cultivator, that didn’t mean that actively cultivating didn’t help now that I knew I could do it without causing something bad to happen inside my meridians.

The only other thing I might be able to do at the moment was go out and hunt down a spirit beast. Despite my messed-up hand, an early Rank 1 spirit beast should still be manageable. I could drain them for Qi to fill up both my main and extra reserves. 

The problem with that idea was creating noise and possibly drawing in anyone else in the area towards us. We also weren’t even sure where we were. We just knew that we weren’t in the Great Southern Forest, and we were to the south of the trial ground—which we also didn’t really know the location of. If there weren’t any spirit beasts around this place, I might end up wasting time I could have spent cultivating, trying to find something to drain.

I sighed at that realization and decided to just err on the side of caution. I moved to sit with my back to one of the hideout’s walls. Closing my eyes, I focused on the breathing patterns needed to cultivate, along with the mantra that focused the mind. Having had practice before, things went a lot faster this time.

Soon Qi swirled around me and started flowing into my body. The Qi flowed through my meridians faster and faster before becoming a single strand. Then my core sucked in that strand, replenishing it slowly but faster than it would have by itself.

It was slightly relaxing, although part of me was still alert for any signs that we might have been found. Another part of me also couldn’t help but think back to the people we’d fought with Xing Yaling. The ones that had been camped out around the transport array.

There was… something familiar about them. Part of it was their clothing. Not all of them, but many of them had worn all dark clothes with black bandana face masks. Not exactly original, but it reminded me of…

The Black Wind Marauders!

My breathing stuttered at that, and I almost lost control of the Qi around me. I had to force myself to calm quickly and return to my meditative state to avoid any accidents. Once I managed that, I was able to continue down that line of thought.

Those might have been the remnants of the Black Wind Marauders. It could have been a coincidence, but thinking back on it, I had noticed a particular big-nosed man when we’d first teleported. I’d only gotten a glimpse, but the more I thought about it, the more I felt like I was right.

It had been the same big-nose bandit that I’d first seen when we’d been captured. The asshole who’d kicked me awake, and the same one who gleefully planned how to punish the other enslaved prisoners after a failed breakout attempt. The one who’d gleefully used sick, demonic techniques to drain the life out of a woman while the other prisoners were forced to watch.

Just the memory of that bastard and his people pissed me off. I had to relax my clenched left fist to avoid piercing my palm with my nails. Still, I hoped that he’d been one of those transformed beast-men Xing Yaling got rid of. Although it was hard to tell, given how their transformation changed their faces.

Yet, putting aside the hope that the bastard was dead, did this realization change anything? That the Black Wind Marauders were working with whatever mysterious group was trying to assassinate Xing Yaling? And likely other bandit groups too, as many of those people at the array hadn’t looked like Black Wind Marauders, but they certainly fit the appearance of bandits.

Thinking about it, I wasn’t sure. It might be something to let Sun Xia know about when we get back, just like everything else about Xing Yaling’s assassination attempt. But for now, it didn’t change anything.

Sure, it meant that the Black Wind himself might be involved in this, which meant a Foundation Establishment Cultivator is definitely involved. But given the fact that these people wanted to pick fights with the Soaring Cloud Sect, that was already something we could assume anyway. So, worrying about that more wouldn’t change anything.

With that in mind, I tried to just move past thinking about the Black Wind Marauders for now. Just focus on cultivating and resting, and hoped we would be given the time to try and contact our friends.

Thankfully, my hopes came true and nothing happened over the next while, and I was able to cultivate in peace. By the time Pan Song called my name, I’d recovered just a bit more than half of my main reserve. 

“You’re done?” I asked, opening my eyes and moving to stand. Despite sitting cross-legged for half an hour, my legs didn’t feel numb at all.

“Enough for my first test,” Pan Song said, nodding at the array he’d created in front of him. He was sitting on his knees, and there was a small circle of formation flags in front of him with the sound transmission talisman in the center. “This is as strong as I can make without some spirit stones or spirit beast cores to try and power it.”

I grimaced at that. I’d used up all the cores we’d gathered and all the core Xing Yaling had given me. If this didn’t work, then we’d have to go out hunting. Not great.

I knelt down to take a closer look, mainly out of curiosity. I couldn’t help but notice the intricate and dense amount of symbols on each flag. From the open ink pot by his side, it was clear that he must have just made these. He also had some spirit beast parts out, which, from what I understood about the array, he must have processed and imbued into the flags or the ink.

“Alright then,” I said, moving to sit on my knees as well. “So, who can we try to contact? I’m not actually sure how these talismans work.”

“Each talisman can form a link with others,” Pan Song said, picking up the talisman. “How many links it can form depends on the craftsmanship. This is a simpler one, so it can only pair with three. I’ve paired it with a talisman that Young Miss Sun Xia said I could contact for emergencies. I think Miss Zhao Wei holds that talisman. I’ve also paired it with a talisman shared by Ming Lin and Shui Jianfeng. I will try theirs first. If we are lucky, perhaps they were sent out here on some kind of errand.”

“Okay,” I said, nodding. “Then let's test this. How close do they need to be for us to reach them?”

“The range for low-grade talismans like this is about 20 miles,” Pan Song said, his Qi glowing around the talisman for a moment before he placed it back in the circle. He then picked up a final formation flag and seemed to be channeling his Qi through it. “I believe I’ve extended the range by 5 times.”

So, 100 miles. That sounded like a lot at first. But when you take into account just how far things are in this world, and how fast cultivators like us can move, it becomes a lot less impressive. The chance that we’d actually reach anyone nearby was slim to none. After all, why would they even be out here in the first place?

But it's not like it hurt to try.

“Alright, then,” I said before a thought occurred to me. Could it hurt to try? “Is there any chance that someone else can pick up on our transmission and hear what we are saying? Or track us down?”

Pan Song paused and frowned. “It’s possible. But there would need to be a formation setup around the area we are in. Either that, or the spirit sense of an elder would need to be watching around us. Even then, if we keep things brief, it should be alright. An elder that could track us down so quickly from a single sound transmission would likely be able to track us down without it, I think.”

“Okay, well, keep it brief then,” I said after taking a moment to think about it. If Pan Song thought the risk was low, then I’d just have to trust him. Because as it stood, I didn’t have a better idea of how we were going to get to safety without help if my attempts to hide our tracks failed.

Pan Song nodded and got to work.

As he did, I couldn’t help but turn back to look at Xing Yaling. She was still unconscious, her head resting against the makeshift pillow I made out of my outer robes. Her breathing might have evened out a bit, but besides that, there wasn’t much change in her condition.

Damn. 

“Hello, can anyone hear me? Shui Jianfeng? Ming Lin?” Pan Song said, drawing my attention back to him. He was speaking at the talisman, which was now glowing faintly and floating inside the formation of flags.

I waited with bated breath for an answer, even though I knew nothing would likely come of it. We’d need to at least go out hunting and—

“P-p-pan S—ong?”

I jolted at the voice that came out of the talisman. It was stuttery and hard to hear. Not quite like static, but as if the voice was coming in very delayed in portions. But it was clearly a voice. And a recognizable one at that.

“Lin?” I asked, leaning forward, more than a little excited. “Is that you?”

“L-l-an? W—wha-t ar-e you tw—o doin—g out h-ere?”

I frowned at how delayed and distorted she was. It made it really hard to make out what she was saying. But I got the gist of it and hoped it wasn’t even worse on her end.

“You need to hurry,” Pan Song said, reminding me of the need to keep things quick.

I grimaced at that and tried to think of how to convey things as fast and succinctly as possible.

“No time to explain,” I said, quickly. I didn’t want to say anything that would let anyone listening in know that we are the ones who came out of the transport array. “We are nearby, somewhere within 100 miles. We can’t speak for long. Can you tell me where we are right now? And can we me—”

I stopped as the reality of the situation dawned on me. I honestly hadn’t thought we’d reach our friends like this. After all, what were the chances they would be out here? But now that they were, I realized just running to them for help would not necessarily be a good thing. 

After all, while they might have supplies on them, Lin and Jianfeng were just Early-Stage Qi-Gatherers. They were close to reaching Mid-stage, but against the kind of people after us, they would be of little help. Worse, they would become in danger as well.

“Actually, can you tell me who is with you?” I said. “This is really important.”

“And we are to your north,” Pan Song said to the talisman even as he added formation flags to his array and drew some symbols on the ground. When he finished, he leaned over to me and said quietly, “I think I’ve gotten rid of the distortion. But we need to end things soon just to be safe. Next time we contact them, I will try and gauge better how far away we are.”

Before I could reply, Lin’s voice came from the talisman. It was much clearer this time, thankfully. 

“We’re gathered at Pan Jong Village. We’re with Yun, the Young Miss, and Master Fang Hong, along with part of the Alchemist Guard, some mercenaries, and some clan forces from the city. Have you heard of the beast tide yet? They’ve surged from the Great Southern Forest, and all the major forces of the city have been mobilized south to help deal with it.”

I perked up and exchanged an excited glance with Pan Song. While the beast tide thing sounded dangerous, the fact that Lin was with Sun Xia and Master Fang Hong was amazing news. If we managed to meet up with them, then we’d finally be safe.

“Are there any landmarks you can direct us to meet up?” I asked quickly. “We need help. Strong help if you can manage. And we need to end this transmission soon.”

“We can try to meet you at the Great Blossom Bridge,” Lin said after a moment. “The young miss and Master Fang Hong are meeting with important people right now. And the beasts are coming soon. But we might be able to send a force to meet you if you really need it. I will have to speak with the Young Miss. In the meantime, if you're to the north, you can just head south until you see the Yellow Serpent River. You’ll have to figure out if you're to the East or West, but if you can find somewhere high, you should be able to figure it out from the massive cracked boulder that’s next to the bridge. It can be seen from quite far away.”

“Alright, we’ll try to meet you there,” I said, thinking quickly about what else I needed to say before ending the transmission. “But only meet us there if you have someone as strong as Zhao Wei.” I would have preferred Master Fang Hong, but that was probably too much to ask. “Also, do you remember those nice people we met right after I first met you and Jianfeng? I think they're in the area too, along with more people like them. Just be on the lookout for a reunion.”

Pan Song grabbed the talisman once I stopped speaking. Apparently, he thought we couldn’t afford to wait for a reply, and the talisman dimmed in his hand.

I let out a breath and slumped in relief. While the beast tide thing didn’t sound good, and I was still worried about our pursuers or someone somehow overhearing the transmission, overall, things had gone very well. Despite all odds, our friends were in the area. And with powerful support too. Now we just had to meet up with them.

“So do you recognize the village or the bridge?” I asked Pan Song as he moved to put away his formations and talisman.

Pan Song shook his head. “My village was to the north east of Everlake, so I’ve not been in this area before. But if we head west and look for a river, we might be able to find it. If not, as we get closer, we can hopefully have an easier time speaking with the talisman.”

I nodded at that and moved to stand.

“What did you mean by friends in the area?” Pan Song asked once he’d packed everything away.

“Wh—oh, that?” I said, realizing that Pan Song wouldn’t have fully understood that. “I think I recognized some of the people who attacked us after transporting here. I think some of the mare the remnants of the Black Wind Marauders that captured us when I first arrived near Everlake. I think the rest of the attackers were bandits too, but I’m not sure.”

“That’s…” Pan Song said, trailing off with a frown. “Troubling.”

“Yeah,” I said, nodding. “But that’s probably something for Sun Xia and more important people to worry about. We just need to focus on getting ourselves to safety. Are you ready to leave?”

“Yes,” Pan Song said, moving to stand. “We should…”

I turned to look at him, confused as to what made him trail off. Seeing the wide-eyed look on his face, I turned to follow his gaze, only to freeze myself as well. Xing Yaling was starting to stir.

Her breathing was quickening, and ice was slowly expanding from under her. Her eyes fluttered before opening wide, and a torrent of cold air filled our hideout.

“Xing Yaling,” I said, shivering but trying to get her attention. “Please calm down! You’re safe for now! It’s me, Lan Li. We met at Sun Xia’s estate, and we helped you escape.”

Xing Yaling turned her head to look at me, staring at me with ice-blue eyes. The cold air seemed to pick up for just a second before it started to die down. I relax at the sight.

“How are you—” I started to say, only to freeze when I felt something ice cold touch my neck. The same thing must have happened to Pan Song, as I heard him gasp behind me.

Looking down as much as I could without moving my head, I saw a razor-sharp piece of ice floating against my throat. I would have gulped if I didn’t think even such a minor movement would end with me getting a bloody smile on my neck.

As Xing Yaling slowly moved to stand, her movement halting and weak, I couldn’t help but think that things were never simple for me. We should have been about to move out and go find our friends. But now I had to deal with whatever was happening here.

Just great. Hopefully, she wasn’t about to decide that we are better off dead for some reason. It seemed unreasonable, but then again, I didn’t really know Xing Yaling at all. I just had to hope she was a reasonable person.