Dungeons of the Divine (Blue Phoenix Book 2) (8 page)

Dashing after Sha Yun, Hui Yue ended up yelling some quick commands, “Deng Wu, now would be a good time for you to gain some bestial soul shadows.”

Having called out to the black-haired young man, Hui Yue focused on the road in front of him, his eyes narrowed and a slight sigh escaped his lips as he increased his speed, trying to catch up with Sha Yun.

Soul shadows were able to be made from anything living, whether it be humans, beasts, or plants. To refine a soul shadow one had to be a necromancer, however all kind of Metal affinity cultivators were capable of refining and using the energy within a soul shadow inscription.

There were many laws which forbid necromancers from creating soul shadows of humans. Only the very worst criminals got sentences to become a soul shadow and they were usually kept alive until a necromancer appeared who would buy their souls.

Within the entire Taiyang Kingdom only three such criminals could be found by the time Deng Wu took his first steps on the path of a necromancer.

The royal family had one necromancer whose job it was to create soul shadow inscriptions; Deng Wu had spent his life savings along with some money Hui Yue had lent him to purchase the hundreds of years old stockpile of soul shadows that had accumulated over the years.

The reason that many laws had been added about necromancers was due to the soul’s reincarnation. When something died its soul would be able to cross through the rift of the heavens and the earth and arrive within the Netherworld. There they would wander around, waiting for their memories to disintegrate before they once again would be reborn.

Everyone who died would be measured and weighted. The lives of thieves were likely to become a flower or a beast, the likes of a generous person was likely to be born into a wonderful family.

Everything was decided by the King of the Netherworld. He was the one who allowed for these souls to journey into his world. He did, however, have one rule and that was ironclad.

Souls which were not just died had no right to enter his world. This included souls which had been caught by the soul shadow inscription, forcing them to dissipate into the essence of the heavens and the earth upon destruction.

There were no rules about beast soul shadows, and Hui Yue felt little pity towards them. Pity was something which would likely turn into trouble later on. As long as Deng Wu treated his soul shadows with care, he was likely to keep them forever.

While rushing towards the beasts, Hui Yue heard the first agonizing howls and within seconds reached the area where Sha Yun was standing, her silvery eyes gleaming with a merciless look. She summoned multiple Earthen Spears, one after the other, and each and every single one of them shot out impaling the wolves which were running about.

Deng Wu looked at the area and stood to the side where he found one piece of parchment after another before he bit his thumb and used his blood to scribble one inscription after another.

Hui Yue pointed to Wang Ju Long and her oversized poppy. The two instantly stood next to Deng Wu, protecting the young man as his entire focus was on the dying wolves.

Seeing that the two others were safe, Hui Yue joined the fray as he drew Black Blood and rushed at the first wolf which came into sight. Seeing it advancing towards him, the baleful aura burst out from within, and a red gleam appeared in his eyes, as he struck forward with decisiveness. He buried the dagger deep within the eye of the wolf, not allowing it even the slightest moment to react.

Hui Yue had long since activated Velocity Flow and his constant change in speed made it impossible to determine when or where he would appear next.

One wolf after another fell under the hand of Hui Yue and Sha Yun, while Wang Ju Long dealt with the few which appeared next to Deng Wu and herself.

Every time a wolf died, a blood red seal was seen appearing on its body. After which a tremor would run through its body before the seal floated through the air rushing towards Deng Wu, where it would settle down on clear pages of parchment.

The wolves had at first been thrown into disarray due to the unexpected and sudden attack. The leading male of the pack quickly howled and after a few moments the wolves who were still were alive all lined up next to the male.

During these first few moments a vast quantity of wolves died, but in spite of that around a hundred wolves were now moving in formation; they formed a line preparing to pounce at the young cultivators who were slaughtering their kin.

Hui Yue’s eyes locked onto the leading male wolf’s and vigilance could be seen within both of them, as neither wished to make the first move.

Seeing that the wolves pulled back, Wang Ju Long moved forward leaving the guarding of Deng Wu to her poppy flower.

Wang Ju Long’s combat ability was definitely above average and her assistance would greatly help them. She allowed for her Qi to rush through her body activating Qi Lightning.

Wind picked up within the tunnel and a worried expression appeared on the leading wolf’s face. Barking out loud, orders were obviously given as all wolves advanced at once causing tremors to run through the entire tunnel.

Hui Yue had Black Blood within one hand and a red flame within the other. Flicking his finger the flame grew in size as Hui Yue fed it his spiritual energy and slowly divided the large flame into multiple smaller Fire Orbs.

This entire procedure took less time than it takes to blink an eye, as all it required was but a thought, and by the time the wolves arrived next to Hui Yue the young man had a massive fire burning behind his head. This fire was constantly gulping down the spiritual energy it was fed by Hui Yue and smaller orbs of fire kept being produced by the massive flame.

Fire Orbs came to light one after another, and were constantly being flung towards the wolves, leaving behind one charred carcasses after another in their wake.

Unfortunately, this only resulted in the wolves behind the leader to pour forth, a wave of deadly wolves constantly flooding towards them.

The wolves were upon them and Hui Yue could not afford to hold back, releasing the red mist completely. Suddenly every wolf around him grew slower, and Hui Yue’s speed and strength increased; he then took out the Qi dagger wielding it in the hand that finished making the fire orbs.

The soaring flame behind Hui Yue dyed his white hair red and the red mist gave the beautiful icy eyes a blood shot and menacing aura.

A cold chill ran through every wolf close by, but before they could react they had been injured and were soon to be killed by either a slash of the daggers, or a Fire Orb from the large flame.

One wolf after another died at the hand of Hui Yue and every single one of them were  sealed as soon as they had died, causing their souls to be reeled in by Deng Wu.

Sha Yun was busy with wolves of her own. Earthen Spears were erupting everywhere, constantly impaling the wolves with perfect aim while she, herself, was dancing through the wolves, her tail flashing here and there. Sometimes rolling around the wolves to strangle them, while other times using her strength to smash them.

Wang Ju Long was similarly holding her own against the wolves, which were attacking her unceasingly. Small scratches could be seen on her body as the wolves got slightly too close, yet none of these scratches were serious injuries and Hui Yue nodded with a stern expression on his face, none dared to approach him.

Looking at the wolves, Hui Yue let out a bestial growl before he once more used Velocity Flow to rush after the fleeing wolves. His growl was answered by a terrifying howl as the leading male rushed towards Hui Yue.

Looking at the wolf in front of him a vicious smile appeared on his face, the red gleam within his eyes grew larger and his canine teeth once more grew out, his entire being emitting an aura of savageness.

Howling out loud, every wolf within the cavern finally stopped their frantic attacks and moved back, Sha Yun and Wang Ju Long did the same, as all eyes within the tunnel were focused upon Hui Yue and the leading male wolf.

Even Deng Wu opened his eyes and stopped his incantation, creating one last soul shadow inscription, preparing for the loser of the battle in front of him.

Red steam was emitting out from beneath Hui Yue’s skin and the steam all moved towards the flame behind Hui Yue, where it caused the already large flame to rage with energy. The flame looked as though it was trying to break free of some invisible constraints which were binding it.

The speed at which Fire Orbs were spat out from the flame increased as the steam was consumed rapidly. Hui Yue’s red eyes were glued to the wolf in front of him.

Pacing around each other, both the wolf and Hui Yue waited for the other to take the initiative, but when neither did Hui Yue was no longer able to hold back and with a thunderous roar he sped towards the wolf. Velocity Flow activated and a complete copy appeared next to him, both ready to send the wolf’s soul straight to Deng Wu.

The wolf, however, had no intention of staying still and instead dodged. While dodging its claws were clad in a dark shadow, which grew according to the wolf’s wish and the shadows slashed Hui Yue’s left arm.

Seeing that his attack failed, Hui Yue stopped his dash and stood still a cold and indifferent look was cast towards the wounded arm before a layer of silvery light covered it. He used spiritual energy to stop the bleeding from troubling him in the future.

Seeing that his direct attack had backfired, Hui Yue growled slightly. His expression turning more and more like that of a wild beast, his skin turning more and more red.

A sneer appeared on Hui Yue’s face as he looked at the wolf which was no longer as confident as it had been earlier. Its face was filled with vigilance, but deep within those intelligent eyes was fear.

The aura shown by Hui Yue was so overpowering that it could not fight to the best of its ability. Howling the wolf made a mad dash towards Hui Yue, only to jump around him, aiming for the rest of its pack. Arriving next to the beautiful boy, a smile appeared on his lips as he swiftly stretched his arm, the dagger perfectly slashed the entire side of the wolf leader, yet not enough to kill it.

Limping and howling the wolf chased its pack away and vanished into the night itself. Hui Yue did nothing to stop them, instead manic laughter could be heard in the tunnel where he was still standing.

Hearing the laughter, shivers ran through the bodies of his friends and fear was appearing within their minds, as Hui Yue turned around, cocking his neck, looking at them with the most sinister eyes they had ever seen.

Hui Yue looked nothing like his usual appearance. His mouth was showing a big smile, revealing fangs the size of wild dogs, his eyes were devoid of all empathy and care with only pure killing intent visible. Blood was pouring from his arm, as the rest of his body was sprayed in blood from the final slash to the dead wolf.

Looking at his friends, it seemed as though Hui Yue was about to attack, when suddenly the young man collapsed onto his knees. His hands gripping his head as agonizing screams were heard throughout the tunnels. The red mist which was emitted from his body was suddenly mixed with a blue steam and ever so slowly the previous changes to his body were undone.

The struggle seemed to continue, only to cause the young man to suddenly collapse on the floor. Only then did the friends dare to get closer.

“We need to find a safe location,” Deng Wu said as he kept an alert eye on their surroundings.

Opening his eyes slowly, Hui Yue was greeted by the worried faces of his friends as they looked down on him.

The stench of blood filled the air around him as the walls and ceiling were dyed red, glistening in the light which shone from the light stone in Wang Ju Long’s hand.

Seeing all the blood, Hui Yue could deduce that he had not been out for very long as the blood still had not coagulated.

Slowly coming to, Hui Yue noticed that the final few moments seemed to have vanished from his memory. He felt confused when he realised that he no longer could remember what had transpired between him and the big wolf.

Looking around he only saw carcasses of small wolves, and he slowly started to recall the frenzy into which he had been submerged; suddenly he felt sick to his stomach as he remembered how he looked at his friends. How the killing intent from deep inside him was urging to kill them, to rip them to shreds and devour them.

Fortunately for him, the tranquil cloud had used that moment to break through, surround, and overpower the killing intent. The struggle caused Hui Yue’s mind to reel with contrasting emotions, eventually the strain was too much and he collapsed.

The two emotions were not able to fully take over Hui Yue’s body, and Lan Feng who had hidden himself brilliantly up until now, had used a few rays of golden light to restore everything to their right order.

Sitting up, Hui Yue had a splitting headache, but once again he found to his surprise that the wound on his arm were completely healed, and as a result the green pearl within his dantian cave was smaller in size than it had been before.

Hui Yue was quite certain that this pearl had not been acting during the fight, but rather activated when his body collapsed on the ground. The white-haired boy made a mental note to later spend some time to truly test the abilities of the green pearl.

Unlike the killing intent which grew stronger and stronger the more Hui Yue killed, the tranquil cloud grew in size with each increase to his cultivation base. Whereas, the green pearl seemed to stay the same no matter if it was fully charged or not.

Though it did get smaller every time it’s healing properties were used, but it would be restored to its original size just after a few days, ready to once more pour its energy into healing Hui Yue, should the need arrive.

Rising slightly with a throbbing head, Hui Yue smiled apologetically to his friends who returned the smile with big grins.

“I’m sorry,” He sighed, as he looked at the bodies of many wolves in the tunnel. With a tired hand he once more withdrew Black Blood before he went to the first corpse and with a meticulous hand he started dissecting the bodies.

Fur was removed and stored with the previously collected fur, beast cores stored with the other beast core as well. Meat was packed in neat paper bags, ready to be dried or smoked whenever they found a suitable place to camp.

Their bones were cleaned of meat and packed in another storage stone, ready for Hui Yue to use them in his first attempts of subtracting energy. Bones could be used to make some strong tools, and the marrow was exquisite and filled with essence of the heavens and the earth.

Seeing that Hui Yue started to once more clean the wolves his friends could not help but either shake their heads, or release a hollow laugh as they saw how thorough he was. Nothing was left behind, even the blood had been bottled up in small jade bottles.

The clean-up took much longer than it was supposed to, as Hui Yue refused to leave even one beast corpse behind. In his mind they were in a hostile environment and the most important thing was to ensure that they had enough provisions and items, should they need it later.

Hui Yue had been prepared for eventualities like these as he brought with him a large number of storage stones. He stored them within each other to avoid having to wear multiple rings on each finger, or a belt adorned with stones everywhere one looked.

The clean-up took hours, yet during this whole time no magical beast had dared to venture into the area of the young cultivators as the stench of magical beast blood was heavy enough to cause them all to stay away. This in turn caused Wang Ju Long and Sha Yun to sigh in relief, as neither was interested in waiting for Hui Yue to skin and dissect more beasts.

“What should we do now?” Wang Ju Long asked, as she looked into the darkness which dominated these tunnels, an annoyed expression adorned her beautiful face.

“Wait a moment I will scan the area,” Hui Yue started, but before he had the chance to sit down and truly start scanning Sha Yun had already finished. A glance was sent towards Hui Yue making it clear that she did not hold his scanning abilities in high regard after he went the wrong way during the first maze they were captured within.

Hui Yue had a sheepish smile on his face as he had no way to retort. He instead with great pleasure went through his storage rings, looking at the immense amount of items they had already gained while waiting for Sha Yun to finish scanning.

“There is a stone chamber not too far from here,” Sha Yun’s voice sounded while her eyes were still closed. Looking at the snake-woman Hui Yue noticed how her entire tail had turned to stone, while the skin on her stomach was slowly turning to stone as well.

“Sounds good,” Hui Yue said with a smile, yet Sha Yun was still not finished. “There are a few magical beasts on the way,” She said with a furrowed brow, “and the stone chamber seems to belong to a beast as well but he is not home. We should be able to defeat all of them from what I can sense.”

Having said that, Sha Yun opened her eyes and her body which had previously been turning to stone suddenly reversed.

A few moments after the four set out in the direction which Sha Yun indicated. At first the snake-woman insisted on just crashing through the walls, as it was a much quicker path, however Hui Yue instantly turned it down.

The reason they had entered the tunnels was to ambush the Dragon Corps when they arrived with Sun. If the tunnels were broken, then it was likely that they would not enter the city in Cave’s End, and even if they did they would definitely be on high alert.

Making their ways to the stone chamber was in no way a hard task, despite Hui Yue wishing to dissect and keep every beast they killed on the way. Wang Ju Long quickly convinced him to allow her oversized poppy flower to eat them causing it to grow in strength and size.

The stone chamber was much bigger than Hui Yue had first expected. The size alone was definitely no smaller than the courtyard they had previously occupied at the City Lord’s mansion at Cave’s End City, and Hui Yue quickly took a liking to the cave itself.

At one end was a small spring with water which flowed by an area which was filled with magical beast’s bones. These bones were all broken and the marrow had long since been sucked dry from them, cleaning them perfectly. Looking at the bones, Hui Yue thought for a short amount of time before a flame appeared above his fingers igniting the bones and reducing them to a small pile of ash, which he quickly threw outside the stone chamber.

The middle of the chamber had a small raised platform and Hui Yue could feel how the essence of the heavens and the earth was thicker near the platform.

Climbing on top of the platform, Hui Yue was stunned as he saw a small red flower which was at the center of the energy ripples which were emanating out.

The flower was clearly a divine flower, much like the one Hui Yue had gotten earlier, yet unlike the previous one, this one seemed much weaker. The stem was created by Qi together with the petals, but this one was not dripping small drops of spiritual energy into the outside world, instead it was gathering them within its pistil where a small lake of silvery liquid was apparent.

It seemed as though this silvery liquid would soon be devoured by the flower and upon doing so, it would allow for the flower to evolve. So that no longer would it only create silvery drops of spiritual energy, but also golden rays of Wu Wei.

Looking at the flower, Hui Yue could not help but contemplate whether or not he should pick it up and eat it, or if he should leave it to keep growing while they were living in their new residence.

‘Idiot!’ Lan Feng’s voice sounded from within the dantian cave. This was something which happened rarely nowadays, as the phoenix was focused on refining Wu Wei. Even if Hui Yue tried to converse with the bird, he would completely block out the younger boy.

‘I told you before that a flower will keep growing as long as there is essence from the heavens and the earth,’ The lecturing voice of Lan Feng drifted into Hui Yue’s mind making him faintly remember that the phoenix did indeed say something similar to that previously when they had gained the flower from the Deng family.

Plucking the flower, Hui Yue gently placed it within a jade case before placing it inside his storage stone. Even within his storage stone the flower would still finish its evolution.

Jumping down, Hui Yue told his friends about the harvest. They all decided on discussing it when the flower had successfully turned into a divine flower which could refine Wu Wei.

Hui Yue then started a fire, however this was not a spiritual energy fire. Instead he picked out wood from a storage ring and made a true campfire before he added certain herbs to the tree he was burning, allowing for the smoke to have a spiced scent. After doing that, he withdrew bag after bag of wolf meat which he sliced into long strip that he placed on top of the fire, allowing for the smoke to cook the meat.

Smoking the meat was something which took some time and it was also something which Hui Yue could in no way rush. While he was smoking the scent of meat could be smelled throughout the tunnels causing magical beast after magical beast to appear around the stone chamber.

These beasts were not apart of any packs and they were easily dealt with by Wang Ju Long and Deng Wu.

The two had decided to work together as they both benefitted from killing these beasts. Deng Wu managed to catch more beast soul shadows while Wang Ju Long ensured that her poppy ate the corpses.

The flower which had before been oversized compared to its original shape, had now grown from being as tall as the waist of Wang Ju Long to exceed her height. The vines were now a meter long and the roots no longer laid under the stone floor, instead they were slithering around on the ground as if they were snakes.

The roots and the vines were all covered by small red spikes. These seemed to contain the same kind of poison as the beautiful petals, making one wish to touch them, however one would be very stupid to casually touch a flower with such a mean demeanour. Even Hui Yue felt respect towards the poisonous plant.