The Creatures that We Are

Liao Liao and Wandering Tune started. Although they didn’t know why One Stone had suddenly given the warning, survival instinct compelled them to squeeze their eyes shut without hesitation.

A second later, pinprick pain hit Liao Liao in the back of her head, quickly spreading to the rest of her body and turning her legs into jelly. She collapsed onto her knees.

Keeping her eyes shut, Liao Liao propped herself up with both hands on the ground, feeling the prickling pain lessen like it was melting, replaced by concrete images.

She “saw” a giant python coiled before her, its sheer size filling her vision like a tall mountain. Its giant grayish-green head approached her, the eyes two vortexes that seemed to be sucking her in. Crimson tongue flicked out every once in a while as eerie red humidity puffed out of its nostrils.

Liao Liao shuddered and tensed with undiluted instinctual fear from her bones. She wanted to scream, yet terror silenced her and kept her eyes shut. It was as if as long as she didn’t open her eyes, she would blend in with the thick darkness and avoid alerting the python, while the python would swallow her whole the moment she opened her eyes.

Thank heavens the terror and illusion faded after a few seconds.

Liao Liao regained control over her body and slowly opened her eyes. Qilin remained where he was, looking up at the head embedded in the stone pillar.

But the head of the cane in his grasp had been crushed, and his glasses had fallen to the ground at some point with the lenses all shattered.

What…did he do?

It was One Stone. With a grave look that Liao Liao felt, One Stone asked in concern, “You alright?”

“I, I’m alright,” Liao Liao said quietly. “What…did Guildmaster do?”

“His psychic power leaks out when he’s angry.” One Stone smiled bitterly. “Those who are too close to him could easily get hurt.”

But I’d never seen Qilin this furious.

One Stone didn’t voice that thought.

Wandering Tune didn’t fare much better. Face pale and covered in cold sweat, he slowly got to his feet and took a few involuntary steps back.

There was only one thought in his head at this moment: I must never get on this man’s bad side! I’d rather kill myself than die at his hands!

As soon as fear instilled the thought in him, he jumped again.

Qilin suddenly staggered and fell to the ground.

Wandering Tune gaped. Huh? What…

Liao Liao was stunned as well. Is he…blacking out from his anger?

“Guildmaster!” One Stone rushed up to him instantly. “You alright?”

It seemed that Qilin had only blacked out for two seconds before he opened his green eyes, his gaze even icier.

One Stone didn’t understand what was going on. She reached out to help Qilin up, but he seized her wrist with lightning quick reflex.

“Agh! Guildmaster…” One Stone’s look of worry crumbled, feeling a great pain shooting in her wrist. Her bones were going to break.

Qilin seemed to recover then. He stopped applying pressure and let go. “I’m fine.”

One Stone paused. “Then I’ll…help you up?”

“Thank you.”

Qilin’s breathing slowly recovered, and his voice became gentle again.

He allowed One Stone to help him get back to his feet. Liao Liao quickly went up to hand him his cane, the top part of which he had crushed. “Guildmaster, your cane.”

Qilin took it and nodded slightly.

After steadying himself, he took out another pair of glasses from his coat pocket and put them on. Finally, his fierce green eyes softened a little.

The other three felt the great pressure suddenly lifted, and they let out a silent sigh of relief.

Qilin turned away from Azure Dragon’s body and head. “One Stone, take Azure Dragon’s body back. Don’t bury him. Keep it well stored.”

“Yes, sir.” One Stone didn’t know what had happened to Vermilion Bird, so she readily accepted the order.

Staring ahead, Qilin continued, “Look around again, Liao Liao, and see if you can find any other body, be it one of ours or the enemies.”

“Yes, sir.” Liao Liao moved away and began to summon her army of insects.

After a few seconds of consideration, Qilin said, “Wandering Tune, you can sense spatial abnormality with your Portal, can’t you?”

“I can,” Wandering Tune said honestly. “If a space has been tampered with, I’ll know, but only within the forty-eight hours.”

“Look around if there are traces left from a fight with Time-Space Talents.”

“Yes, sir.” Wandering Tune turned and walked away.

Each of the three got on with their tasks. Qilin closed his eyes.

Holding his broken cane, he slowly clenched his other fist and took deep breaths, exploring the now more complicated and complex energy routes in his body and trying to understand and integrate them.

A few minutes later, the three members had completed their tasks.

One Stone extracted Azure Dragon’s head from the stone pillar and roughly sutured it back to the body, putting the cadaver into a special body bag—she had brought it anticipating there to be casualties.

Liao Liao had searched the ruin thoroughly again. She reported, “I’ve searched the place thoroughly, Guildmaster. There’s no other survivors or bodies around.”

Qilin nodded. “Good work.”

“Guildmaster!” Wandering Tune jogged up to them from their nine. “I spotted a lot of traces left by spatial Talents. There’s a particular hotspot.”

“Take me there.” Qilin turned on his heels and followed him.

The four of them reached the edge of the courtyard where stone pillars formed a forest, each etched with ancient patterns and mysterious symbols. They entered the stone forest.

Wandering Tune pointed at a stone pillar. “Here. I sense a dense burst of spatial energy.”

This could be where Elder Yan Liang had died.

Wandering Tune didn’t dare to say that. He was worried that he would anger Qilin again and got hit with friendly fire.

Qilin stared at it impassively.

After a while, he said, “Leave and wait for me at the hotel, all of you.”

One Stone paused, confused. There was no debating how powerful Qilin was, yes, but his Talent determined what he was capable of, and without Wandering Tune’s Portal, it wouldn’t be easy for him to get out of here.

Wandering Tune and Liao Liao had the same thoughts, but they didn’t ask about it.

“Alright. Be careful, Guildmaster.” One Stone kept her question to herself, too. She took Liao Liao and Wandering Tune away.

Qilin watched them go and waited for a few minutes before turning around. He spoke to the empty space, “We’re clear now, Uncle Yan. Come on out if you’re still alive.”

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