"Does this cave really exist?"
Zhulan caught her breath and moved forward slowly.
They entered the cave, walking through a stone corridor whose walls still bore traces of forgotten architecture. The air was cool, heavy with moisture, and an oppressive silence weighed upon them.
Then a dull sound echoed.
The ground trembled beneath their feet.
chanisms suddenly activated, hidden gears within the rock began to move with tallic clicks.
A stone wall fell behind them, blocking the entrance.
Zhulan took a step back, her heart pounding. BaiShe, however, remained impassive, his gaze following the imperceptible movents of the walls around them. Slabs rose, partitions slid, transforming the simple corridor into a shifting labyrinth.
There was no imdiate escape.
Zhulan clenched her fists. Her body was not in a state to fight if another danger arose, and she knew she couldn’t keep up with BaiShe if he decided to move quickly.
He took a few steps forward, analyzing the walls with particular attention. Omnis tensed slightly as he activated his perception.
There were traps. Subtle attacks, almost invisible to the naked eye.
Thin blades shot out from the walls at regular intervals, trapped slabs triggered slicing Qi jets as soon as a foot touched them. Every corner of the labyrinth seed designed to thwart the instincts of intruders.
’Who could have built this chanism? There must really be that famous Golden Jade.’ BaiShe thought as he read the rhythm of the chanism, the underlying pattern governing the traps.
He moved forward without hesitation.
His foot landed precisely on a neutral slab, avoiding a trap that could have pierced him.
He took another step, slightly leaning his body to dodge a jet of energy that could have slashed his arm.
His movent was fluid, natural, as if he were dancing amidst the invisible blades.
Zhulan followed him closely.
But her already exhausted body didn’t react with the sa precision.
A blade shot out to her right.
She tried to dodge, but her reflex was too slow.
BaiShe pivoted sharply and grabbed her by the wrist, pulling her against him just before the blade grazed her shoulder.
She, still reeling from the blade that had brushed her skin, breathed heavily, her heart pounding wildly. BaiShe held her wrist firmly, but his grip softened and beca protective as he felt her body tremble against his. Their eyes t, and in that mont, ti seed to stand still.
"You could have died," he whispered, his voice heavy with gravity that contrasted with his indifferent face.
She lowered her eyes, ashad of her vulnerability, but BaiShe slid a hand under her chin, forcing her to look at him again. "Don’t look away," he said with unexpected tenderness. "I know you’re stronger than you think."
She felt warmth rise to her cheeks, and despite the lingering fear, a shy smile ford on her lips. "And you’re always there to catch ," she replied, her voice barely more than a whisper.
He looked at her for a mont, his expression neutral, before releasing his grip and continuing forward, calculating every movent.
Thanks to Omnis, he now knew the rhythm of the traps, he saw the architecture of the labyrinth gradually revealing itself before him.
The walls still moved, but he knew exactly where to step, where to pause for a fraction of a second before a trap activated, where to speed up to avoid a stone movent that would crush an unaware intruder.
Zhulan followed him as best she could, relying on her instinct to mimic his movents.
But every step demanded extre concentration.
Her vision blurred at tis.
BaiShe finally stopped at an intersection where several passages lay before them.
He closed his eyes for a mont, listening, the sound of the gears faintly resonating in the darkness, a language only he seed to understand.
When he was Linfer, he wasn’t soone who used his intellect much; he relied only on brute force and his power to dominate. But in this world, more than power, cunning, intrigue, and the versatility of his abilities were far more important for survival. So he had to learn patience, even though his true nature sotis tried to take over.
Then, he reopened his eyes and pointed to a passage.
It was the only one without visible traps.
Zhulan followed him without question.
They delved deeper into the labyrinth, the atmosphere growing heavier with each mont.
But BaiShe still moved with the sa confidence, leading their progress.
...
BaiShe and Zhulan had settled on a rock, sheltered in a small recess in the wall of an ancient ruin. The air was thick with the scent of damp stone and withered vegetation. The surrounding silence was disturbed only by the whisper of the wind and distant echoes of beasts roaming in the darkness.
Zhulan gazed at the vault, a subtle smile on her lips. After several days of surviving together, she had grown accustod to his presence. He, on the other hand, maintained a relaxed posture, but his gaze remained alert, ready to react to any danger. They had reached the Nascent Soul level, and food was now just a simple ritual. As long as they had Qi, they could endure indefinitely.
Finally, she broke the silence by turning her gaze toward him.
"Why did you co to the ruins?"
He took a few seconds before answering,
"It’s a test. A trial imposed by my sect, the Immortal Tao."
A mocking glint flashed in Zhulan’s eyes.
"Oh, the Immortal Tao? Then should I call you Young Master?"
He sketched a sidelong smile.
"Indeed, besides my sect, I co from an ancestral family after all."
She crossed her arms, feigning a serious air.
"Then, Young Master, should we resu our journey?"
BaiShe snorted, amused. After all they had been through together, he supposed a certain bond had ford between them.
"More seriously, why help ? I thought you were... different."
"Different? You an I have everything of a pretentious Young Master?"
She shrugged.
"That too, yes."
He shook his head before staring into the void before him.
"The Tao is just. Even if my lineage is blessed, I could have been arrogant and self-absorbed... and to be honest, I was."
His gaze fell on his bandaged left arm.
"This injury reminds to stay grounded, to achieve my goals without getting distracted by superfluous details. As for my help, let’s say I do it in mory of my martial little brother."
Zhulan tilted her head slightly.
"That injury looks... "
"Grim? Painful? Indeed. Without the Blind Monk’s help, I don’t know what I would have done."
She widened her eyes.
"You t the Blind Monk?"
"Yes, but briefly. We must hurry, mustn’t we?"
She nodded, without insisting.
"I hope if we et again, you’ll tell the whole story."
A smile ford on BaiShe’s lips.
"You can co to the estate—"
Before he could finish his sentence, a sharp sound echoed. A chanism triggered, releasing a rain of Qi arrows. Instinctively, they dodged, leaping to either side. But it was only a prelude to a greater danger: a moving wall shot out of the darkness, threatening to crush them.
With a sudden gesture, BaiShe grabbed Zhulan by the shoulder and threw her backward.
"BaiShe!"
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