Emperor Stone
Emperor Stone
"Should we proceed?"
"No," Ye Jiao shook her head. She could faintly sense the movements of Eon Energy to one side. "I've already determined the direction of our journey."
"Alright."
They returned back. This time, Wang Jun no longer asked any question to Ye Jiao. He stayed quiet, prim, and proper just like a soldier. By the time they returned back, they could see that Lin Cai had already replaced Qin Zheng. She waved her hand.
"That was a short trip."
"We were only going to the first intersection," Ye Jiao replied while Wang Jun sat down and started to absorb Eon Energy. He might not use much, but it was still important to recover his Eon Energy.
"Is that so? Did you find any Eon Energy movement?"
"Yes. It's heading in one direction."
It took some time before everyone finished. They headed to the direction that Ye Jiao picked while Qin Zheng studied the map they had. It was heading down, and the seven of them continued to walk. As they walked, they realized that the amount of dust had increased around them.
"Are you sure that we're going in the right direction?" Lin Cai controlled her voice with Eon Energy to make sure that it stayed around them and didn't echo. They wouldn't want anyone to know that they were there.
"It seems as if no one has passed this area for years," Lu Wan touched the wall. At that moment, his hand was already filled with black dust. In addition, there was less lantern around them, so they had to rely on their other senses and Eon Energy movements to find the way.
It was tiring.
"Yes, it's here," Ye Jiao replied. "Probably, there's another route that's heading down, and they rarely use this one."
"Maybe."
They stopped when they entered a large area. There were several tunnels' entrances on the side, all heading in several directions.
"Let's rest and have some meals."
"Ok."
Mu Xin took out several fruits and dried meat that they bought before. All seven of them ate in silence before practicing Eon Energy a bit. They needed to make sure that they were in prime condition during their journey in this place. It would be dangerous for them otherwise.
"Let's continue."
All of them knew that it would be better to not speak because they needed to use Eon Energy when speaking to avoid the voice reaching other unwanted locations. Time passed swiftly. They stopped once more to eat before they finally reached the end of the map.
"There's supposed to be a wall in this place," Qin Zheng pointed to the large cave in front of them. The cave was heading down, so they needed to be careful when they stepped on the stairs.
Lin Cai frowned. Her gaze was directed straight to one direction. "There's an awful smell of metals coming from that direction."
She has already gotten used to the rotten and unpleasant smells after spending hours in this dark labyrinth. However, that particular metal from the direction she looked at has an extra awful smell.
"Should we…mmf?" Lu Wan was unable to continue because Qi Huan suddenly covered his mouth with his hand.
Qin Zheng and Ye Jiao also stepped back to the tunnel while the others hurriedly stepped back. Each of them was careful to not make any voice as they looked at the direction of the front. Two people walked with their hands on the back of their heads, looking as relaxed as possible.
"How many times should we patrol in this damned cave?"
"Just be patient. It's almost over, and when it is, we can get out and act like lost travelers," his friend reassured.
The first man sneered. "Lost travelers. It'd be good if we didn't die to keep that thing alive first."
"It'll be fine."
"What do you…"
Their voice echoed into the distance, and they were unable to listen anymore. Lin Cai's brows furrowed when she saw that they were heading towards the tunnel with the most awful smell. If only it was possible, she didn't want to enter that place at all. It was already more than enough that she was tortured because she had to travel in this dark and annoying labyrinth.
Unfortunately, Qin Zheng's order just plunged her into despair.
"Let's follow them."
They slowly got out of the cave and walked in that specific tunnel. Their sense was still watching their surroundings in fear that there might be someone who was around the place and might catch them. After all, they still didn't know the number of their enemies.
The smell finally disturbed everyone else, not just Lin Cai. They could feel the awful smell along with the smell of blood.
"Why is there the smell of blood here?"
Qin Zheng stopped at the intersection. There were several boulders in that area as it was clear that the place was not taken care of well. He pointed to one of the boulders. "Hide there first."
The six of them followed after Qin Zheng's instruction and sat down there. Mu Xin frowned slightly at the touch of dust underneath her. There was so much dust in that place, making her feel uncomfortable. Lin Cai also nearly cursed. She hated dust!
If only they were not in the mission, she would use her Eon Energy to sweep the entire area.
"The Eon Energy movements are clear now," Qi Huan said as he crouched down. "Whatever is in that place, it has an awful smell and absorbs an insane amount of Eon Energy every second."
"What do you think it'll be."
"I have a guess," Qin Zheng replied. "But, I need to scout there to find out whether it's true or not."
Lin Cai shook her head. "I can't stand the smell. Can I just stay here?"
"Let's separate to observe this place," Qi Huan suggested. "I'll head to the first tunnel near our entrance, Mu Xin and Wang Jun to the second tunnel, Lu Wan and Lin Cai stay here, you two will head to the last tunnel because that's the place that has the smell of blood."
"Got it."
"Be careful, everyone."
They quickly moved from their location to the direction of the tunnels. It would be better if they had the map, but beggars couldn't choose. They have to make do with what they have and scouted the area to find out the layout of the place.
Ye Jiao and Qin Zheng quickly arrived by the tunnel. They walked carefully as they used their sense to the fullest. After a few minutes of walking, they could see a dim light from the front. It was not a normal light as the shade alone was red.
"Be careful."
The two of them reached the place. They could see that there was a large cave in front of them, but the ground was several meters under them. In the middle of the cave, there was a black reddish stone with a weird shape but similar to that of a large egg. Lots of dust covered the ground as they moved in the direction of the large stone.
Qin Zheng sucked a breath. "As I thought, it's an Emperor Stone."
"Emperor Stone?"