It took us another hour before we arrived in front of yet another closed chamber. Acquiring the next Piece of Information gave the group a sense of achievement and comradery, and also more confidence in winning this test.
However, I knew for a fact that this wasn't going to be easy. So far, we're freely moving about in the lowest floor, but we'll eventually have to move up ahead to the upper floor where the rest of the cultivators are in. And once we're faced up against Prisoners we'll be like sitting ducks, it's a game of patience and opportunity. There is no time limit but that doesn't mean we get to move about lazily about this.
"Let's spread out," I said.
"Didn't you say that we needed to be grouped up, also what's the point of spreading up, if we find the doors, we'll be unable to unlock them, none of us know how to unlock these," a cultivator said.
"You don't need to," I said as I sat down, and pulled several talismans.
Once the talismans were in front of me, I began writing on them, adding layers over layers of inscriptions.
It took several minutes before I was done, and then looked up to the gawking spectators, "What?"
"I've never seen someone inscribing that fast, what the heck are you?" one of them spoke.
"Just a professional, anyway, each of you takes one of these," I said as I handed the papers to them.
"If you find a door, use this on it, it'll open it, get the Piece of Information and let's group back at the entrance to the second floor," I said.
"Entrance to the second floor? Where is that, we've been moving for a while and haven't come close to it," one of them said.
'Oh, their divine sense isn't as big as mine. No wonder they didn't sense it.'
"It's approximately a couple thousand feet in this direction," I said pointing.
"Right then, let's spread out," one of them said.
"Just a warning, don't think of doing something unnecessary," I said smiling.
It was a clear threat to all of them.
The group swallowed hard and nodded at me then they all spread out.
I was left alone with Huang Yu.
"I didn't get a talisman-like them," she said.
"Oh, because I'm not planning on sending you on a wild goose chase," I said.
"Wait, you mean…"
"Yes, there are no more clues left on this floor, there have always been only two, the rest are all on the second floor. I sent them away so we'll get to explore the upper floor alone. In case any one of them goes to the second floor and gets their hands on a talisman it will be hard to take it back from him, and I don't want to kill anymore. Also, without their skills and abilities they're useless against the prisoners," I said.
"But the rules clearly said that you can't use your abilities against the Guards, so even you, you can't use your poison," she said.
"Yes, I can't, but this guy can," I said as I summoned X.
X manifested in front of us, like a white holy paladin in his new armored self.
"Whoa, that's a new puppet?" she wondered.
"Nope, the same one just got a few upgrades. Anyway, X lead us up, we'll be counting on you," I said.
"Yes, Lord," X spoke back which sent a shiver down Huang Yu's back.
"…It can speak," she said.
"Not it, his name is X," I said, anyway let's go.
X led the way and since it was pretty far to get to the entrance, I carried Huang Yu in a princess carry and the two of us bolted forward.
She stiffened up at first and said, "I forgot that you can use your Qi," she said.
"I can't use Qi," I said smiling back making her wonder even more.
"You're pretty mysterious," she said.
"Not really, I'm an open book", I smiled back as we increased our speed.
Soon we arrived at the entrance to the second floor, and just as I walked up I heard someone speaking.
"Cultivator Wei Lei has successfully cleared the trial."
"Damn, he already made it out, I wanted to catch him…" I muttered.
"He really did get us that time," she said.
"Don't worry, there is still a third Test, I'll get my payback then," I said.
"Payback? Not revenge?" she asked.
I placed her slowly on her feet and said, "I'm not some egocentric narcissistic snobbish son of a bitch who kills out of spite, I won't kill for the least offense, but I'll kill for two things, betrayal, and an attempt at my life. Still, if I'm crossed, I'll make sure that whoever crossed me will dread the life they have, and fear the days to come," I said.
"That's… kinda hot," she said mumbling.
I frowned but acted as if I didn't hear it.
'Shen Bao, you're too old for this, get your act together, and get the test done, you have a reason for joining the Heavenly Academy, romance can wait,' I sighed and moved forward.
It's strange to be honest. I've lived a long life, and seemed to have realized for a long time that being in the company of a woman is a good thing but not something of necessity, I've been married, not out of love. But out of need and reason.
My wife was the daughter of a powerful person, and I used her influence to become the City Lord of Lucid Springs.
Now that I look back at it, it was such a banal thing to do. But it helped me in my journey.
And after growing older, I grew too detached from romantic feelings and was hardly ever exited.
But now, the more I cultivate, the stronger my libido is growing. And it's getting frustrating, it's like I'm aging backwards. I dread the day that I'll cultivate long enough to have the libido and hormones of a teenager.
Not to mention, due to my constitution… I am poison, the mere act of kissing can poison my companion. Shit. Why am I thinking about this, Shen Bao, get your shit together.
I shook my head and walked up behind X to the upper floor.
It took a long, a damn long while to get to the second floor, the stairs seemed endless. But once we got there, the scenery changed.
The lights were brighter on this side, and I could sense more things using my divine sense.
The walls that were thick and blocked divine sense at the bottom floor seemed thinner, and there were several…vacant spots through the walls.
A surge of Divine sense rushed towards where I was standing and I immediately realized that we've been spotted.
"Shit, they're coming," I said. And pulled Huang Yu by the hand towards the nearest wall.
"What are we going to do?" she asked as we were moving after X.
"We can't afford to fight back now, I don't fully understand the layout of this place, let's hide here," I said.
She looked at me strangely and said, "Hide where? That's a wall," she said.
I began tapping the wall randomly until one of the bricks on it budged. I applied more pressure and the whole wall spun pulling us inside it. And into a long tunnel.
The whole wall then began shuddering and the mechanism that was on it locked it shut form spinning again.
The three of us were now inside the tunnel, and X immediately used Qi to have his eyes shine bright like lamps to show us the way. Though we could easily see in the dark due to divine sense it's best not to use it here.
I looked down and managed to see the formation that was applied to the wall and understood how this thing functions.
"This is a rotating wall, once enabled it'll take you in and will lock for an incense stick worth of time. The Guards outside can't follow us, but we can't stay here since they'll probably know that they can just wait and enter after us," I said.
"Right, then let's head out," she said as she pointed forward.
"Wait, before we go let me do something," I said as I placed a talisman on the wall itself.
"What's that?" she asked.
"It's a warning system," I replied.
The two of us moved hastily, while I made sure to keep a lookout for any traps or ambush of any sort. The possibility of another Guard being inside this hidden tunnel is small, but not none existent.
We headed out for a long while until we arrived at a dead end.
This was the other side of the tunnel and apparently, it would lead to another part of the prison that we can explore.
"Shen Bao," Huang Yu said before I enabled the rotating wall, "Don't, there are people on the other side," she said.
Though the cultivators on the other side won't be able to locate me if they used their divine sense from outside, me doing so from inside will reveal me, so how did she realize that there are people on the other side.
She then pulled a small needle that seemed to be vibrating.
"This is a Life Signature Needle, from the name, it's able to scan and locate life signatures. It vibrated thrice, meaning that three cultivators are on the other side," she said.
"It seems that we've been exposed then, the other cultivators have already found this secret passage and now we're trapped inside," I muttered.
Suddenly my head snapped to where we came from, "The talisman broke. They entered…" I said.