MAZE - The Endless Quest

Qing Yulan looked back at the road, her eyes full of worry. It was hard to say if they would move fast enough, and even harder to believe they would escape their pursuer. But there wasn’t much she could do. Her mission was to bring back Yu Yuwei. No matter the cost. Those were the words Elden Huo said to her.

It was only due to bad luck that they encountered some from the Ironwood Fortress Sect. And an even worse luck made that person be one of the promising young masters on the way to the Sky Sword meeting. Cultivators like him brought shame to their name. People who would oppress the weak for no other reason than they could.

To make matters worse, Yu Yuwei had caught his eye in the worst way possible. That despicable man who was in the Nascent Soul Realm only cared about making others play with what was in his pants. Both Qing Yulan and Yu Yuwei would rather die than to perform such an act.

Their only saving grace was the fact that a merchant was leaving Jade Sky city and, even better, he wasn’t going directly to Heaven’s Edge Summit, but to the Moonlit Harbor instead. The young master from the Ironwood Fortress Sect had no reason to follow them here.

But Qing Yulan’s hopes were shattered once she glanced out of the cart. A figure dashed through the air, approaching at a staggering speed. The brown robes with orange trim signaling their origin. The Ironwood Fortress Sect. Somehow, the young master caught their trail. Somehow, he was able to chase them all the way here, even days after they had left.

The figure landed like a meteor, a wave of dirt moving rapidly through the ground until it reached the cart, stopping just under the wheels, stopping it from moving. The Qi required for such an attack should be staggering, and the control that followed was so precise that it wouldn’t surprise Qing Yulan if this person was in the Void Projection Realm, or even In the Heavenly Ascension Realm.

Maybe she would be dealing with one of the seniors from the Ironwood Fortress, but that wasn’t the case. Walking with a grin towards the cart was Feng Tianhong, grandson of the third elder of his sect. The same young master that had his sight on Yu Yuwei.

His brown robes flowed with each step, the orange trimming almost glowing under the sun, or maybe that was an effect of his very own power.

Qing Yulan knew she couldn’t let him take Yu Yuwei, she would fight, even if it was pointless, to protect their honor. With luck, she would be dead instead of just crippled when he made it past her. But what happened next was far from what she expected.

A groan and a huff came from the forest to her right. At first, Qing Yulan thought this was supposed to be the Misty Eye Jungle. A place known for its various animals and nurturing mist. However, they had crossed the threshold of that jungle a couple hundred meters ago. Now, this was the Forest of Lost Souls. The one place in the entire spiral that no one, not even the strongest elders, dare to cross. There were tales of monsters so ancient and so powerful sleeping on those hills that even someone in the Eternal Void Realm would have nightmares thinking about it.

Yet, two people walked off the forest, talking and complaining like this was nothing. One of them had a beautiful black skin, with her even darker hair raising from her head like a cloud. She wore an unusual set of clothes, tight on the top and loose in the bottom and mostly black, clearly made to show her figure, with streaks of white making her seem slimmer.

The other was blond, wearing a small shirt that kept her arms mostly exposed, and some long, fitted pants that were just as strange as her companions. Yet, that wasn’t the oddest thing about her. This woman, this… person, if she could be called that, had a snake like tail and light purple scales covering most of her body.

“I still don’t get it why Nimbus couldn’t have just taken us out of there,” the black skinned woman groaned.

“The trees were too close together, you saw how he could barely move,” the…Snake? Woman replied.

‘What kind of cultivation could change your body in such a way?’ Qing Yulan asked herself.

“Couldn’t we have just pushed them aside? Or even taken one down?” the woman in black asked.

The one with a tail turned at her with a confused expression, “You didn’t notice that mana? Everything there was so tangled up in each other. If we tried that I don’t know what would’ve happened. The entire forest might have exploded.”

The black skinned woman stared at the snake lady, “No I didn’t. Why didn’t you say something.”

“But I did,” there was a pause, “In my head.”

The woman wearing all black sighed, “Sweetie. I get that’s how you talk with your court, but you really need to share those things with the rest of us mortals that can’t communicate telepathically.”

‘Were they talking about destroying the Forest of Lost Souls? Was such a thing possible? And was the black woman a mortal? I can’t feel their cultivation,’ Qing Yulan’s thoughts stopped as she noticed Feng Tianhong approaching the newcomers.

“Who dares stand in my path!?” the man howled.

The two women looked at him before their eyes went wide in confusion. They looked back at each other, ignoring the young master completely.

“Lena… is that a cultivating Orc?” the snake woman asked.

“I think it is,” the black woman glanced back at Feng Tianhong, “You know, I always imagined that since their fangs are that big, they would’ve been careful with them. Like brush properly instead of letting it turn all yellow like that.”

“C’mon Lena. It’s clear that they don’t have that much technology here. Personal hygiene might not be a priority for these people. Even if it looks nasty,” the snake lady shrugged.

Qing Yulan held in a gasp, ‘They are disparaging the pride of the Ironwood Fortress! Their students spend years cultivating their Qi on their tusks to use it during combat. The concentration of energy causes it to change color to that pale brown.’

“You worthless vermin! I shall flog you myself for such offense!” Feng Tianhong growled, stomping towards the two women. With each of his steps, the ground trembled. But when getting closer, he stopped.

While Feng Tianhong talked, the two women continued their conversation. Almost as if he wasn’t even there.

“So this is a Wuxia dungeon?” the snake lady asked.

“Xianxia. Not Wuxia,” the black woman replied.

“What’s the difference?”

“But I am a magnanimous scholar,” Feng Tianhong glanced towards the one wearing all black, “I had some with a complexion similar to yours before, but you.”

Without even acknowledging what was just said, the black woman continued, “One is high fantasy, the other is low fantasy. Wuxia is like civilians or low-level people being noble. Xianxia is the one with the whole, defy the heavens motif.”

“I see. Man, I miss reading those stories. I know we kind of live one, but it was fun. I need to get some time to read when I have a chance,” the snake laid sighed.

“Well, we are at war. It’s understandable, but even before you didn’t stop all that often,” the black woman nodded, “Yeah, I agree with that, Sweetie. You do need to stop and smell the flowers. Especially now that you will live for much longer. If you keep going like you are, you will end up running out of steam and having to deal with a long life after it.”

Feng Tianhong was a bit flustered about not being addressed, but he continued, turning to the snake lady. His hand reached out to her shoulder, “It will be the first time I enjoy someone with the cultivation of a snake. I will give you the honor of warming my bed ton-“

Before he could finish speaking, the tail of the snake lady wrapped around Feng Tianhong’s leg. His initial reaction was of amusement, as if he had proven he was right. But that was only until the powerful tail wiped around, holding him upside down, that his face changed.

“I would say respect people’s personal space, but it doesn’t matter anyway,” the snake lady grumbled before her tail cracked like a whip, slamming Feng Tianhong on the ground. It moved to the other side, doing the same thing again. And again, and again, and again. All the while, she continued her conversation.

“I mean, part of what I did felt like a vacation. Like traveling with Alex. That was super fun. Even if we ended up cursed at the end.”

The black woman nodded, “That may be. But what are your plans for when the war is over?”

“First check if everyone is ok. My dad, the dwarves, Blue, Leo, and his uncle. Well, that’s probably going to be the second thing. I will have to deal with a bunch of bullshit related to the council. Either way, after that, I want to explore Deakoshara. Who knows what the old Naga left behind? I’m pretty sure Shane is going to have an aneurysm if I take too long to start.”

“I can’t help but notice the lack of ‘resting’ on those plans,” Helena frowned.

“I promise I’ll take things easy. Besides, Shane only needs one or two ruins to get off my back. Trust me, she is going to have a full day when she can go there,” the snake lady lifted Feng Tianhong from the ground, his face a bloody mess and one of his tusks had broken off completely.

“You… will… pay… for… this… The… Ironwood… Fortress…. Sect… Will-“ Feng Tianhong struggled to speak each word, blood flowing from his mouth.

“Oh shut up,” the snake lady tossed him to the side, sending the young master flying in the air. Following that, she manifested a Qi dagger in her hand and tossed at the Nascent Soul Realm cultivator.

The dagger hit its mark and exploded, destroying not just Feng Tianhong’s body, but even his clothes were gone without a trace.

‘They must be in the Immortal Soul Realm! No, even higher! That’s why I can’t see their cultivation. Divine Manifestation? No, Eternal Void?’ Qing Yulan’s eyes went wide, staring at the two women who looked like mortals in her eyes.

Still in her stupor, Qing Yulan watched as the snake lady turned around and waved her right hand a couple of times. All footsteps, all distortions and impact craters on the ground were quickly fixed. Even the rock under the cart, which was stopping it from moving, vanished with no trace that it was ever there.

‘That… Such a profound understanding of the earth. She must be in the Celestial Sovereign Realm, a step away from ascension!’ Qing Yulan screamed in her mind. Her heart pounding wildly. If she was right, these two would have no problems killing her and her entire sect. Especially once they discover Yu Yuwei was the reason for their encounter with the young master from the Ironwood Fortress Sect.

“You are not even getting the drop?” the black woman asked.

“I don’t want whatever he dropped. Even if it’s a good item, it’s not worth the greasiness,” the snake lady huffed as the two walked towards the cart.

Qing Yulan quickly came out and laid on her hands and knees, her forehead touching the floor, “This Qing Yulan thanks the masters for protecting us from Feng Tianhong. If I may be so bold, please take my life as payment. I only ask that you let the young lady continue her journey to the Heaven’s Edge Summit.”

The two women looked at each other, and the snake lady kneeled down by Qing Yulan.

“Yulan, right? We don’t need any payment. That guy was clearly a bad guy, and we only did what we had to do. We would only ask to accompany you on your travel to the Heaven’s Edge Summit, as that is also our destination. As I said, we require no payment, but if it will ease the burden on your heart, your company on this travel shall be the payment,” the snake lady reached one hand out to help Qing Yulan get up.

The black woman chuckled, “You say you hate that kind of thing, but you are becoming an expert on politics, Sweetie.”

“Not by choice,” the snake lady grumbled, and turned to Qing Yulan again, “My name is Quetzaveth Hera, you may call me Hera. And this is Dittro Helena, and you may call her Helena.”