Dungeons of the Divine (Blue Phoenix Book 2) (42 page)

Having seen the situation play itself out through the memory stone caused Hui Yue to have some mixed feelings. Xu Piao and Xie Lan fought against the other King experts, however, neither of them used their strongest attacks nor had they used up all their Wu Wei and spiritual energy.

Hui Yue was uncertain if Xu Piao and Xie Lan participated in the battle fully knowing what was going to happen. But he quickly decided that it did not matter if it was intentional or not.

His plan was to leave the beautiful capital of the Thousand River’s Cave as soon as possible, and he had no qualms about bringing the two King ranked experts with him. Knowing how much Zhou Long valued Hui Yue back in the Demon Dwelling Cave, the white-haired young man was quite certain that the assassins would decrease now that only he was left.

As to why they wanted to get rid of his friends, Hui Yue had no idea; however, his beautiful blue eyes had long since turned deep blue as anger was raging inside. His friends were incredibly important and knowing that they were currently prisoners caused rage to flare like a inferno inside of the young man.

Packing his things quickly, Hui Yue knocked on Xu Piao’s door and soon an “Enter,” could be heard through the door. Following the creaking sounds, the young man stepped inside the room.

“I am going to leave tonight,” He informed them, giving them the choice of following him or staying behind in the capital. Both of the King ranked experts nodded. Xie Lan stayed within the room to heal Xu Piao previously and she had finished just moments before Hui Yue arrived at their door.

Without waiting to see them nod their heads in reply, Hui Yue had already turned around and walked away, not paying any more attention to the two King ranked experts who were supposed to be his friends.

Walking away Hui Yue knew that it was not a good idea to take his anger out on the two of them. Within the room two somber looks were present on the King ranked experts faces.

“I guess he saw through us.” Xu Piao sighed deeply, “But although we planned on letting them get taken we really did change our mind halfway through.” He continued, trying to justify his actions to himself.

“I really did not want to allow for our friends to be taken away. We need to speak with him.” He stopped, his eyes determined as he looked at the door frame which Hui Yue had walked through moments before.

Seeing her boss that frantic about a friendship, Xie Lan could not help but sigh deeply. Although she had taken Wang Ju Long as a disciple, there was only one person who truly mattered to her and that was Xu Piao. To see him so upset about a friendship was something which made her depressed and at a loss for what to do.

“Will he forgive you if you tell him everything?” Xie Lan asked curiously. She had always hated lying so telling the truth was the only thing which she could come up with.

Hearing her words, Xu Piao nodded his head. Telling the truth was not a bad idea. If anything it was a way to clear the air between the two, to forgive and forget. At least this was what Xu Piao hoped.

The Guild Master was not the only one who was worried, Hui Yue was a bit uncomfortable as well. He trusted Xu Piao, and even still he trusted with some stuff. Having seen the recording it was true that their last ditch effort had been quite severe and that he was likely to have continued had he not taken such a serious injury.

After some time, both of the men stopped their train of thought and instead got ready to set out towards the next cave.

Three people gathered at the exit of the courtyard and they looked at each other awkwardly , but after bit Hui Yue heaved a heavy sigh after which a small smile appeared on his face.

“I’m sorry for pushing my problems on you,” He said with a sigh, “I know you have some connection to Zhou Long.” Having said that, the two King ranked experts glanced at each other both of them somewhat relieved that they did not have to start the conversation themselves.

“We were hired by Zhou Long to send information back to him every time we reached a cave. He also told us to look after you and ensure that you come to no harm, but if we managed to get rid of your friends then we would get an even bigger bonus.”

“At first we planned on doing just that, but we have been together for so long.” He sighed as he looked apologetic, “When I saw your friends actually being taken away I finally decided where my allegiance lay.”

As Hui Yue listened he could not help but feel like the man in front of him was honest. However considering their history trusting one another would be hard. Looking at him once more, Hui Yue decided that it did not matter whether or not he was honest. In the end Zhou Long ordered them to protect him so they would follow him either way.

Coming to this conclusion, Hui Yue nodded as he went towards a boat. Unlike last time, the boat he rented was not a boat which was small and sleek, made for travelling within the city, instead, it was a large ship which sailed on the thousand rivers of the Thousand River’s Cave.

The reason he chose to ride a boat rather than walking, was due to the fact that he wanted to cultivate as much as possible while he was within the dense atmosphere of this particular cave.

Renting this boat put Hui Yue quite low on demon cores. But his plan was to travel through the unlit part of the tunnels to hone his skills after having cultivated on the boat; this would make the expense worth it. Although his body was bustling with energy, it was important to balance both the spiritual and the physical aspect of training otherwise the body would not be able to handle the energy which was contained within.

Xu Piao and Xie Lan boarded the boat with him.l According to plan, Hui Yue locked himself in one of the rooms and the entire trip was travelled in meditation. His insides would churn every time he thought about his friends who were currently considered criminals and his heart ached as he worried about how his three friends were getting treated.

Without allowing for himself to think too much about the dangers that his friends faced, he forced himself to focus on his training. Slowly he entered a deep and trancelike meditation.

During meditation Hui Yue could feel the elements surrounding him. Flames were blooming within his mind, the ground was shaking under his feet, the metal was firmly encasing his innermost being.

Feeling all three elemental energies around him, Hui Yue focused his entire being on merging with the elements and fusing them together.

During his month of meditation, Hui Yue managed to completely fuse Earth with Metal, however his attempts at fusing  the three elements seemed to be too much of a task right now.

Having fused Earth and Metal allowed Hui Yue to use the Metal to fortify any attack when Earth was used. It also allowed for him to fortify any Metal attack, but what excited him the most was when he summoned the elemental flame.

The elemental flame which Hui Yue summoned was yellow with a silver core. This yellow flame was inferior to the blue flame which Hui Yue could use by relying on Lan Feng, but unlike the blue flame this yellow flame was not only able to burn enemies.

The yellow flames increased Hui Yue’s control over Earth by a hundred percent, allowing him to control much more earth than before, along with allowing him to make attacks on a scale he was not previously able to sustain.

This was not only Earth, it also included the Metal. Allowing him to control a hundred percent more previously. Although currently he did not have any attacks which relied on the metal element, he still needed the element to refine materials.

The more in sync one was with aelement the harder it became to gain more understanding of that element. So although Hui Yue had the ability to use a hundred percent more Earth than previously, he was not able to sync completely with it, thus limiting his control.

Currently Hui Yue managed to sync almost seventy-five percent with the elements.. He was reaching the point where syncing more was becoming increasingly difficult and at the same time, increasingly dangerous.

All this was from only syncing two of his three elements, and the results made Hui Yue twice as strong as he had been before.

After having sat still, meditating for most of the month, Hui Yue finally opened his eyes. though he managed to increase his strength with Metal, the majority of its attacks required inscriptions. This was something which he did not have the time to create. Therefore he focused on improving his earthen element. A smile appeared on his face as he felt how the world was throbbing around him.

Anywhere he focused his attention he could feel the ground, feel the Earth and the Earth’s influence on the world. He could feel how strength was welling up within his body.

After leaving his room, he moved up, onto the deck, to the boat’s railing and looked at the river which was floating by. Looking at the direction which they were headed, Hui Yue could see the cave wall and the massive open gates which led to the tunnels. The tunnels which would take him to the next cave where his friends were waiting for him.

As soon as Hui Yue thought about his friends his blue eyes turned dark and killing intent roiled around his body as he felt impatient. At first his plan had been to travel through the unlit tunnels. To fighting against various beasts and stabilize and balance his cultivation base, but the more he thought, the more eager he became to just rush through the tunnels.

Every time he closed his eyes he saw the faces of his friends. The faces of them being either tortured or mistreated. Inside of him his flame of anger never died out, constantly flaring up and filling the young man with dread and worry.

Although he knew that right now the only thing he could do was endure. DespiteDispite knowing this enduring was something which ate away at him. The only thing which calmed him, somewhat, was the fact that Deng Wu was there. Deng Wu would protect both Wang Ju Long and Sha Yun.

Taking a deep breath and closing his eyes, while once more forcefully suppressing his anger, Hui Yue turned around and saw that both Xie Lan and Xu Piao were watching him with worried expressions on their faces.

Seeing their worry he was unaware whether he should laugh or cry. These two King ranked experts were as impossible to understand as the heavens above. Sometimes they seemed calm and trustworthy then they would suddenly turn untrustworthy, their betrayal caused the white-haired man’s world to be thrown into chaos. Because of this Hui Yue was still deciding whether he should trust these two King ranked experts, despite being fully aware of his need to bring them with him to have some sort of backing when it was needed.

Although Hui Yue’s strength increased dramatically during this trip down the thousand rivers of the Thousand River Cave, he was still a long cry away from being capable of taking care of a King ranked expert on his own. The further he went into the caves, the more Kings he would encounter.

Seeing that Xu Piao was seriously injured Deng Wu instantly stopped fighting back. ”Stop!” He whispered to Wang Ju Long and Sha Yun, and both of them instantly stopping their struggles as they too had seen how their good friend was injured trying to protect them.

Following the group of Dragon Corps members, Deng Wu and the two girls were moved to the Dragon Corps’ main office where they were locked within a room. What the room was made from they had no idea, but it was remarkable. No matter how many times Sha Yun slammed her tail against the walls or used her merged abilities, she was unable to break through them. Although the walls trembled from the sheer power not even a crack was visible from her onslaught causing them to give up.

The three of them had had their hands tied and at the same time their storage stones were taken away. Although the Dragon Corps were unable to access the storage stones because they  had been bound to their owners by Qi, they did not dare leave them with the prisoners as it could provide them with the ability to flee.

Deng Wu was fuming with anger when his storage stones were removed as his entire fighting capability had been taken away. As an inscriber and a necromancer, the majority of his abilities relied on his scrolls with inscriptions. Although he was capable of infusing his spiritual energy and his Metal elemental flame from within, it was not enough for him to pose any threat to their captors.

Currently within their group, Sha Yun was the one who posed the highest threat towards their captors. Being a demon beast, as they called them here below ground, and at the same time having as high a rank as she had along with her skill in merging with Earth all caused the snake-woman to be a great threat. Someone that the Dragon Corps dared not underestimate.

During the fight within the restaurant, Sha Yun had been fierce and merciless just like the beast she was. She killed more than a  few low ranked members of the Dragon Corps. Looking at her now, her silvery eyes were filled with anger and indignation emitting a savage aura around her.

Wang Ju Long also had her storage stones taken away from her removing her small seeds and other items which would be useful for her, should another battle occur.

“Hey boss,” A voice sounded from outside the room. One of the younger members of the Dragon Corps delegation looked at the leader of their team, the King ranked captain.

“There  were two beauties amongst that group we caught today. Why don’t we let the men enjoy them a little during the trip back home to base?” He asked, his eyes shining with an unhidden desire, his voice tempting.

Looking at the obviously lecherous young man the captain did nothing but snort in contempt. “Li San, do you remember the King ranked experts that were together with these people?” The captain asked with an ice cold voice.

Frowning slightly the young man known as Li San thought back to the episode earlier that day when the man they injured badly brought forth a B ranked emblem. His face turned slightly pale, but he quickly regained his haughty expression.

“So what if he is a B ranker? Our team is B ranked as well and we are definitely more powerful than them. Our mission has far more King ranked experts than theirs, so we must be more important.”

Hearing that the captain could not help but sigh heavily. He knew very well that the strength of a mission could not be determined by the amount of high ranked people it had.

“The mission stated that there should be another person in their group,” The captain explained once more, “For now do not touch them. I need to know about their mission before we determine what to do with them. I forbid anyone from touching even a hair on their head.”

Having said that the captain moved away. He lived within the caves for a long time and he was far more experienced than a newcomer to the Dragon Corps such as Li San. The captain had long since understood that there was a difference between the two B ranked missions. Although his mission was important, it did not mean that the other was less important. Having taken some of their members captive even if he was ordered to do so could halt their important mission.

Sighing deeply, the captain sent a glance towards the door leading into the room where the prisoners were being held. His brows furrowed in discomfort.

At first he was informed by the Dragon Corps office to go to the restaurant and apprehend these three people, however, after arriving he noticed that there were also two King ranked experts present, something he did not expect. Even worse, one of these King ranked experts turned out to be a B ranker, someone who was undertaking a B ranked mission.

Retracting his gaze from the door the captain could not help but shake his head. Although he only followed orders he felt an uncomfortable feeling of restlessness. Having lived at the edge of the sword for years on end, the man understood that when a bad feeling such as this appeared, it was best for him to heed the warning. He instantly told himself that no matter what, these three prisoners were to be treated with the same level of safety and care as his previous prisoners. The prisoners who were the cause of him becoming a B ranker.

Seated within the room, all three heard the conversation between the captain and Li San. They were somewhat relieved to hear that they would be treated well; however, since they were still prisoners it was impossible for them to feel positive.

“It’ll be fine,” Deng Wu said as he looked at the two girls with a reassuring smile on his face, “Yue will come and find us. And for now it seems like no one will touch us.”

Hearing that, the worry within Sha Yun and Wang Ju Long’s eyes changed from scared to hopeful and from hopeful to determined. The two of them nodded their heads as they looked at Deng Wu with a smile.

“That’s true.” Sha Yun said with a glance to Wang Ju Long, “He will never leave us behind.”

The three of them had been quiet for a long period of time, cultivating while seated in the prison. None of them able to say whether one hour or four hours had passed by. Suddenly the door opened and an annoyed looking young man appeared in the doorway. His eyes shining with a sinister light and his lips curled into a sneer as he growled at the three prisoners, “Hurry up and walk!” He said loudly before he followed behind, guiding the three prisoners through the building and out the back where three carriages were prepared.

One of the carriages was completely closed off, looking as if it contained something incredibly important. The door had been barricaded and a large group of cultivators surrounded it, their eyes vigilant and their hands clenched around their spears.

“Stop staring!” The man behind them hissed as he lifted his spear in a threatening manner and led the three of them towards an open carriage. Unlike the previous one, this one had windows and the three of them quickly followed orders heading inside.

Inside the carriage, Deng Wu stopped momentarily as he found that it was full of soldiers, but he could not stop for long before he felt the sharp edge of a spear pushing him forward, making a scratch on his back.

His dark eyes darkened further and he quickly placed Wang Ju Long in a corner while he sat next to her with Sha Yun opposite of them. Sha Yun, although tied up by handcuffs still had her tail free, so if any of the soldiers were to try and take liberties with her, they would quickly regret it.

Although Deng Wu knew that violence was likely to worsen their situation, he also understood from the conversation previously that the captain did not wish for anything to happen to the three of them.

It did not take long after the three of them entered the carriage before it started moving forwards, leaving the back side of the Dragon Corp’s main office within the Thousand River’s Cave.

Sighing deeply and looking out the windows, Deng Wu could not help but quietly pray that Hui Yue would find them and that they would not travel too far ahead.

By the time Hui Yue noticed that his friends were missing the carriage had already left the city. The caravan of three carriages slowly made its way towards the tunnels, inching forward day by day.

….

A boat was docked right next to the entrance of the tunnels by a small harbor which appeared alongside a small city. They were in front of the massive entrance to the tunnels. Arriving at this point, Hui Yue could feel his insides churning as worry was the only thing he could comprehend.

He kept blaming himself for not having followed his friends out to eat and instead having been too focused on training. At the same time, Hui Yue was aware that he would not have been able to do anything against four King ranked experts because Lan Feng was unable to help him.

Without waiting for the two Kings, who Hui Yue knew were following behind him the young white-haired man instantly went through the city and paid the fee to enter the tunnels.

Although Hui Yue was getting low on demon cores, he still had enough to pay for his entrance fee. He started yet another journey into the dark tunnels connecting the caves.

All the tunnels were very similar to one another. The only thing which was visible was the lit up path. Sometimes packs of beasts would appear even in the lit areas, but the main thing one encountered while traveling this path was other humans.

At the start of the tunnels, right after entering, the first thing one would find was humans who were hunting for demon cores. These humans were all more or less mercenaries and when they entered the dark tunnels they attacked humans and beasts alike, anything which would provide them a profit.

As Hui Yue entered the tunnels his speed slowed down as he became more alert. Without speaking, Xu Piao and Xie Lan both appeared on either side of him their eyes staring vigilantly at their surroundings. They were prepared to protect the younger man should anyone decide to make him their target.

A faint smile was on Hui Yue’s lips as he realized how the two King ranked experts looked after him. They both had a worried look in their eyes, but right now, with his three friends captured by the Dragon Corps, Hui Yue had no time to worry about them. Whether or not these two were true friends was something he would not think about until after he regained his lost friends.

Sighing deeply, Hui Yue pinched the bridge of his nose as the face of Wang Ju Long appeared behind his closed eyelids, and an unexplainable longing caused him to hurt from the inside.

Closing his eyes for some time, Hui Yue took a few deep breaths and as he opened his eyes a new determination was visible; a determination that shone from his eyes as he picked up speed and started running through the tunnels in front of him.