293: Out of Control

Out of Control

"He was right here a moment ago!" One of the younger disciples hurried over. "How did he—"1

"Don't step any closer," I warned, stopping him before he got to where I was standing. "There is a space transporting spell hidden somewhere over here. I've seen similar ones at other places before. It triggers as soon as a person steps onto it, and it's capable of bringing its targets quite far away." I stomped on where the spell was on the ground, prodding it a little to feel its power flow. "Though it appears … that the portal is now closed after he went through it."

Color drained from that young disciple's face. "You mean Lin Zhe has been whisked away to someplace we don't know? And we can't follow him there either?" he gasped. "Did that devil do this? What does she want?"

She wanted to force my move, of course. Though now wasn't the time to tell everyone all those details. I turned to Wen Shiyin, hoping that her tracker might be able to give us some information as to where the portal led, but she was already shaking her head before the question left my mouth.

"I can't detect anything," she said. "Either they're too far away, or there are some strong obstacles or shielding spells blocking their spiritual power from me. As powerful as my new artifact is, there's still a limit to how much it can do."

I wasn't surprised by that response. In fact, if this portal was anything like the one at Misty Mountains, which had moved me multiple levels down that cave from the surface of the ground, I wouldn't be shocked if those layers of earth were enough to block the spiritual power from Wen Shiyin's tracker. Maybe the best way to find Lin Zhe now would be for me to try and follow the spell myself.

My eyes darted toward Bai Ye. Just as I was about to discuss the plan with him, a cold laugh rang from somewhere in the air above us. "I hope you all liked my little surprise gift," a familiar voice said.

It's her … My head snapped in the direction where the voice came from, though I couldn't see her. As if she had used some invisibility spell, the only thing I could feel was a faint ripple of spiritual power around us, too vague to locate her precise whereabouts with.

"That's the devil!" A series of shings resounded as the disciples each drew their sword, searching for her presence. "Show yourself, devil! What have you done to Lin Zhe?"

The laughter grew, echoing eerily in the quiet woods, making it sound like her voice was coming from all directions surrounding us. "Don't worry, I treat my guests well. He's safe with me … depending on what the rest of you do next, of course."

Everyone clenched their swords. "What do you want?" Qi Lian asked, stepping up to the front. "All you've been doing since we arrived is run away from us. I've never met an opponent as cowardly as you are."

The sword spirit chuckled. "Prodding me won't work. I don't want to waste more effort bargaining anymore, so I'll say this one last time: give me my swords, and I can be generous enough to let all of this go. You'll have your friend back, and this village will remain unharmed. But defy me … and you'll taste the bitter consequences."

Qi Lian frowned. "Your swords?" He turned to me in puzzlement. "What is she talking about?"

There was no point hiding the fact any longer. "She is the spirit of these demonic swords," I raised Twin Stars and said. "That's why my errand from earlier led us to her in the first place. She needs these swords for her power to reach its full capacity, and I think we all know what she'll do with that power once she has it."

The faces of the disciples in front of me darkened. "We can't let her have the swords!" one of them exclaimed. "If she's already done so much evil without them, the situation will get truly out of control if she gains more power!"

Another disciple, however, hesitated. "But Lin Zhe—"

"You can wave your friend goodbye if you don't hand me Twin Stars," the sword spirit snapped. "Or … should I show you what would happen to this village first?"

The spiritual power around us started fluctuating. She must be beginning to summon the spell she drew in the snow. At least Bai Ye and I had modified it so that it was harmless to the villagers now, but I still wondered if …

"I traced Lin Zhe!" Wen Shiyin's voice suddenly cut off my thought. "The devil must have a shielding spell set up for where the portal led to, but it's weakening now that she's summoning a different ritual." She turned to me. "I'll follow my tracker, please help the others take care of the ritual she's activating over the village."

"Wen Shiyin!" I exclaimed hastily, even forgetting to use the correct title for once. "Don't go by yourself! This sword spirit is stronger than you think—"

But before I could finish my sentence, she had already gotten onto her flying sword. Using a spell, she moved so fast that I didn't get a chance to even follow her before she completely vanished.

This was bad … I cursed internally. The situation just spiraled out of control way too fast. There were few ways to defeat a sword spirit without their own swords, and those ways were beyond the ability of a mortal disciple. Wen Shiyin could get herself in great danger if she chose to confront the sword spirit. How come I didn't know for all this time that she had such an impulsive side?

My eyes landed on the spot where Lin Zhe disappeared from earlier. The only way to save them now … would be for me to reactivate that portal and follow them.

pqdm.com