Path Of The Dragon (A Dark Fantasy Cultivation Wuxia Xianxia Progression Series)

Chapter 93 Whispers

"--my gosh! Jie! Thank goodness you're okay!" someone said as Jie was spat out back into the original room. It looked exactly as it had before with not a single brick out of place.

It took Jie a moment to realize it was Pan Tian who'd spoken with how strange their voices were underwater.

Ithilix, Xue, and Pan Tian were around her. They looked okay despite some torn clothing, fur, and a variety of burns. Nothing that a healing pill or two wouldn't fix. Jie let out a relieved sigh through her gills.

"Are you guys okay?" Jie asked.

"We're alright," Pan Tian said, "you worried us though. You were the last to arrive."

"I'll tell you about it when we get out of here," Jie said.

The plaque glowed red and four red orbs streaked off and into each of them. Jie flicked her tail as her scaly skin itched from the orb. Red energy bubbled up out of the floor and formed into seven chests.

"Woah," Pan Tian said, "there's no way I did well enough to justify this reward... how many did you kill, Jie?"

Jie heard whispering that carried through the water... in that same strange language... they seemed to come from every direction at once and maybe it was just because sound was back to normal... but she could swear it sounded like even more than before.

"I think we should get our treasure and get out. Now," Jie said.

Nobody argued and they each sped to the chests, threw open the lids, and stored the contents inside their storage rings. Then, Pan Tian led the way out with Jie close behind her, cycling her qi to replenish as much as she could before the next fight she was sure would be coming. They could worry about what treasures they'd gained after they got out of here.

They raced through the labyrinthine passages of the temple, heading right back the way they'd come. Jie's heart pounded as she thought of the sheer amount of that white flesh she'd seen earlier.

How am I supposed to fight? I'll kill my friends with how my qi is in this water! Jie thought.

They sped through the temple.

Patches of white flesh came off the ceiling, revealing the horrid creatures Jie had fought in the dark. Pan Tian's claws of light gleamed, and she slashed, sending arcs of bright white qi through the water that bisected these weak specimens. They continued swimming and a sense of helplessness grew in Jie's heart.

Some of the creatures raced out of a side passage behind them and Xue whirled to face them. His jaws opened wide as he exhaled a cloud of crackling dragon lightning qi that turned into a beam of brilliant plasma on contact with the water. His attack annihilated the creatures in an instant and they pressed on, leaving the gory remains of their attackers in their wake.

They made it to the entrance hall and Jie noted that there were none of those creatures in it anymore. She felt like an idiot for not being more suspicious of that pale flesh earlier. But it hadn't felt like any animal or plant she'd ever encountered, and it had been subdued in her spirit sense.

I really need to get Elder Shi to teach me how to detect things better with it... Jie thought.

They swam out of the temple and into the city and Jie's attention was immediately drawn to the enormous cloud of the pale creatures swimming in a gathering swarm like a shoal of fish. Except there had to be thousands... tens of thousands... perhaps even more as it was impossible to count the moving, swirling sphere of swarming monsters.

There were packs of the creatures everywhere, many of which swam over to join the enormous horde.

"My attacks aren't safe for you guys down here," Jie said, "I'll put myself between you and that huge cloud of them. Stay away from me or I'll accidentally kill you. Xue, you should guard them from the other side as me. Stay away from Pan Tian and Ithilix. Your attacks are like mine down here."