The tunnel shuddered as the trio sprinted through the collapsing passage. Sparks of residual lightning flickered across the cracked stone walls, reminders that Kyros wasn't far behind.
Elena, how far does this passage go
Ethan called, stumbling slightly. The pain in his meridians was growing. He couldn't sense Qi. He was fighting with instinct alone.
She touched the stone, her fingers glowing faintly with silver resonance.
This tunnel predates the tomb, she murmured.
It's leading us somewhere older.
Vane, ahead of them, stopped abruptly,
Hold on.
He pointed ahead where the tunnel split into two. But the right passage was darker, filled with whispering mist that pulsed like a heartbeat.
The left goes toward the foothills,
He said.
But the right feels wrong.
Ethan leaned on the hilt of the Dragon Slayer Sword. Which is faster?
The left. But—
Then we go right.
Elena blinked. Why?
Ethan's eyes burned not with strength, but with determination. Kyros will expect us to flee toward safety. I'd rather face the unknown danger than get hunted down with my Qi sealed.
Vane stared at him, then nodded,
Crazy, But smart.
They stepped into the right tunnel. The mist swallowed them instantly.
As they moved deeper, ancient glyphs began to glow on the walls not from any modern sect. These were pre-cultivator era symbols, drawn in a spiraling pattern that formed a breathing rhythm.
What is this place? Elena whispered.
Then—a hum.
Low. Resonating through the air.
Ethan staggered.
Do you hear that?
Vane pressed his ear to the wall. No not hearing. Feeling.
A pulse moved through them a signal, a call.
And then they saw it.
The tunnel opened into a vast subterranean grove trees of silver leaves glowing with faint spiritual light, roots twisting into stone, and in the center...
A floating lotus pond, suspended midair, pulsing with golden mist.
Vane muttered.
That's not natural.
Elena's eyes widened,
That's a medicinal pond, but infused with dragon marrow essence.
Ethan took a step toward it then doubled over in pain.
His limbs shook violently. The sealed meridians in his body were reacting.
Elena what's happening?
She knelt beside him, placing her hand on his back.
Your Dragon Vein is responding. This pond it was grown to nourish cultivators with that bloodline. It's trying to cleanse your Qi channels.
But the pain
he gasped.
She looked at Vane.
He won't survive this without help.
Vane pulled out a needle kit,
Then let's help.
Acupuncture and resonance combined.
They worked fast.
Silver needles pierced pressure points. Elena's voice resonated, guiding the pain outward. The golden mist wrapped around Ethan like silk.
He screamed once.
Then silence.
Moments passed.
Ethan's breath steadied.
Then
boom!
A pulse erupted from his body. A faint glow spiraled through his skin.
Elena's eyes widened. His meridians are repairing themselves fast. He might recover in days instead of months.
Ethan slowly opened his eyes.
But before anyone could react, the pond darkened.
A deep growl echoed from beneath it.
Something awoke in the roots below something ancient, slumbering in the marrow pool.
Elena stood, trembling.
That's not a beast.
Vane backed away,
That's a spiritual guardian.
One that doesn't want us here.
The water in the floating pond split open revealing a scaled eye the size of a shield.