Blackwind Tribe sat on the outskirts of Nine Serpent Mountain, ruled by a beast cultivator who had reached the Earthly Immortal Realm and made a living robbing wandering cultivators.
Jared frowned at the churning haze. “That mist is laced with beastial energy, it may hide illusionary realms. “Flaxseed nodded. “Beast cultivators love their parlor tricks!”
Since inheriting his ancestors‘ gifts, Flaxseed could feel beastial energy like heat off a forge. He gripped the dagger at his belt.
“Shall we skirt the forest?”
“A detour would only draw suspicion…” Jared shook his head.
He handed Flaxseed a pair of divine pills. “Swallow one. They’ll blunt the illusionary realms. We pretend we’re simple wanderers, learn what we can about Blackwind Tribe, and move on.”
Jared and Flaxseed popped a divine pill each before stepping into the Misty Forest. Cold, silvery fog clung to them like satin, cutting sight to an arm‘s length.
Whispers drifted at the edge of hearing as if countless unseen eyes watched. Flaxseed tightened his grip on the clan leader token, the white glow pushing the mist back just enough to steady his nerves.
“The beastial energy here is a jumble-more than one beast cultivator. Looks like Blackwind Tribe has collected quite a menagerie,” Flaxseed murmured.
Jared stretched his consciousness, yet the corrupted mist shoved it back, leaving barely thirty yards to work with. “Stay sharp. These illusions will tangle your senses. Trust only what your hands confirm.”
Half an hour later, they reached a fork.
A crooked stele leaned at the junction, the words “Blackwind Tribe” gouged in savage strokes that seemed to bleed malice.
“This way,” Jared said, pointing toward the left where the beastial energy thickened like swamp gas. They had barely turned when hoofbeats shattered the hush.
A dozen riders on black wolf demons burst through the fog, weapons gleaming and faces twisted with hunger.
The leader, a towering brute with a wolf demon’s head and a slab-sized axe, bellowed, “This road is mine and so is that tree. Pass only if you pay the toll!”
Flaxseed bristled, ready to strike, but Jared’s hand pressed still.
He tossed a thumb-sized spirit stone to the wolf demon demon. “We are weary travelers seeking nothing but shelter for the night. Consider this a courtesy…”
The wolf demon demon weighed the shard, sneered, and spat. “Pocket change? Empty your packs or taste my axe!”
Behind him, the pack howled and hammered steel against their shields.
A chlll flashed through Jared’s eyes, but kept his voice level. “We are wandering cultivators with little worth stealing. Show a little mercy…”
The wolf demon demon’s gaze snagged on the token clenched in Flaxseed’s fist. Greed flared. “Hand over that trinket and I might let you leave alive.”
Flaxseed’s knuckles whitened. “This is an heirloom. You will not touch it.”
“Refusing will only lead to punishment!” the brute roared and swung his axe at Flaxseed.
“Take everything! “The riders surged, steel ringing as they closed around the two men. Seeing this, Jared answered with action.
Spiritual energy flooded his veins, and a pale-gold shield blossomed, sealing himself and Flaxseed inside a gleaming dome.
He called forth the Dragonslayer Sword, scythes of golden light whipped through the fog and hurled the foremost raiders aside. Startled yet furious, the wolf demon demon hurled his axe at the shield with a howl that rattled the trees.
