Chapter 102 - Cultivators Creed (2/2)
Looking towards the east of the tower, even without using her divine sense, she could tell that powerful Shinsoo fluctuations the likes of which she had rarely felt before emanated from the middle of the black robed army.
”There is at least a Core Development Realm expert over there, there's no mistaking it. Wait, actually there should be more than ten!”
For an assault on an entire sect, even the mighty Blue Fire Sect could not do without intense firepower. Numbers alone were useless in the face of strong cultivators. From what she knew of the Dark Sky Starry Sect, even without counting the reserve power, the Ghosts, the number of Core Development cultivators was at least five.
If the Sky Earth Sect was even stronger than the Dark Sky Starry Sect, then it could be expected of them to have between five and ten strong cultivators. They alone would be enough to drive off any army, unless they were matched.
”I can't go any further east or I would have to stop walking in order to remain undetected,” Shin Sumi thought. She had never wanted to go east in the first place, ”this fallen wall will do.”
In front of her, only a few steps away, laid a portion of wall so massive that it could have flattened a few houses as it fell. The stones still held together miraculously as the pan of wall was in a seemingly unstable incline against the tower.
Above the highest stones of said wall was a large opening of the same shape in the tower's second or third floor.
”How nice, they made me a way in!”
Because at this point the technique was still fairly new to her, she knew she could not use any other technique relying on Shinsoo at the same time.
”Now where should I go? Maybe -uh?”
Shin Sumi stopped behind the open wall of the tower as she felt a very familiar divine sense invade her mind.
From within the space inside the leaf pattern on her wrist, Nuan was signaling her something. In only an instant, Shin Sumi understood and relaxed a bit, just in time for a slight breeze to pick up around her.
That was her current time limit for the Invisible Crane of Oblivion. As the technique dispersed and Shin Sumi's presence was made clear to any focused observer, she started running decidedly towards the inside of the tower.
Even with her Liquid Realm third step divine sense, she could tell that there was a lot of activity inside the tower. Some groups of black robes were busy opening doors and stealing treasures. Many soldiers from the two sects were still fighting each other, inevitably ending with the cultivators from the Blue Fire Sect taking the surviving opposition prisoners.
With the messy battles and movement all around, Shin Sumi was confident that her divine sense and aura wouldn't stick out, even to a Core Development Elder supervising the assault. She was just another presence amongst hundreds.
”This level has been almost entirely cleared out already, I need to go higher.”
As she made her way inside the tower, relying on her divine sense and a quickly drawn hiding formation to avoid crossing paths with other people, Shin Sumi's heart beat furiously in her c.h.e.s.t.
On the fourth level of the tower, which had not yet been cleared by the black robes, Shin Sumi stumbled upon three disciples from the Blue Fire Sect. In the confusing mix of divine senses that was the ongoing battle, Shin Sumi had not realized they were on the same path as her.
Without thinking, she stopped for half a step as the disciples started running towards her. Her hand was already on her bag of holding, ready to summon the Void Sword at her will but she stopped herself.
Instead of bringing out her weapon, she stomped the ground in front of her, building tension in her t.h.i.g.hs and calves.
”Summer Breeze Wind Step!”
The first step took her past the first attacker as his sword was swiping at the afterimage she had just left. The second step left a second afterimage which startled the second black robed disciple as his fist only met empty air before exploding with Shinsoo.
”This technique is incredible,” Shin Sumi marvelled at how easily she had avoided two attacks, even in the cramped space that was the stone corridor, ”with a sword, I could even have cut them down as I flew by!”
Shin Sumi took a third step, intending on getting past the third disciple whose hands were raised, surely as he was invoking his own attack.
SLAM!
Right after the burst of power in her legs, Shin Sumi's face turned red, distorted by pain. She only slightly registered her broken shoulder and upper arm as her eyes were instantly drawn to the air above her, where a pink-ish barrier had appeared, blocking the path between where she was a moment ago and the third disciple.
The man who had erected the barrier smiled ferociously, his hands now falling down onto the guard of the sword at his hip.
”Don't get up,” Shin Sumi thought to herself, ”that's perfect, if I'm beat, they will take me prisoner, right?”
She m.o.a.n.e.d in pain, her eyelids seemingly heavy as her head was surely roaring with the pain of having slammed into a wall at high speed.
Under her helpless expression and act, Shin Sumi's muscles tensed up imperceptibly as she was ready to pounce at the man. According to her calculations, the man would probably choose to chain her and have her taken away like the other war prisoners but she knew exactly what the grin on his face was, and the l.u.s.t in his eyes wasn't even disguised as he eyed her up and down.
”Take her with the others, Bao Du. Zhai Ji, stop smiling like an idiot and come with me, there might be others hiding close-by.”
The man who had stopped Shin Sumi, Zhai Ji, wasn't smiling anymore. A look of rage was directed towards the first man, then to Shin Sumi. The next instant his foot blurred towards her, Shin Sumi's stomach twisting inward and she coughed a mouthful of blood, her eyes reddened by the pain brought by the kick, for real this time.
Her stomach was reeling in pain. Shin Sumi had been ready to escape but she had gravely forgotten to shield herself in Shinsoo, as all of her energy was concentrated on her legs and arms to push herself away.
More than just the kick, what had hurt her the most was the forced dissipation of all her Shinsoo due to the shock.
As she laid there, her shoulder crushed and her belly wrecked, her Shinsoo in turmoil, she couldn't think straight and barely registered the sensation on her other arm, the one under her pressed against her bag of holding.
Of three consecutive green flashes, hidden by her body, Shin Sumi only felt Nuan do something but didn't know what.
She didn't have time to think properly though, as Bao Du, the soldier left behind, spoke in a low voice, his palm turned towards her.
”Blue Fire Holy Restraints!”
Shin Sumi's arms suddenly straightened along her body, forcing a short scream out of her mouth as her shoulder twisted right where the bone was broken. She tried circulating Shinsoo, only to find that the magical restreints had made it completely impossible to gather more than a sliver of it outside her dantian.
Unable to break through the restraints or use a movement skill to escape, Shin Sumi had no choice but to use that tiny bit of Shinsoo to alleviate the pain on her shoulder.
Her belly would hurt for a while longer, but she knew her organs had not ruptured and it would heal over time, however she needed to make sure her shoulder was tended to.
With a disinterested look in his eyes, Bao Du grabbed her by the collar of her robe, forcing her off the ground with one hand.
”I'll be taking that,” he said as he swiftly removed her bag of holding from her waist, ”now walk forward.”
Shin Sumi gritted her teeth and complied. She had managed to get herself caught and brought along the survivors of the Sky Earth Sect as a war prisoner, but it felt like a hollow victory.
In her cunning plan, she had never expected to actually get caught, only letting herself be caught. Even more devastating than her broken bones and twisted stomach, she had not thought about her bag of holding, containing all of her weapons, techniques and treasures.
Her bag of holding had contained it all, Copper Bell, Void Sword, jade compass, identification jade, Sky Deception,... All of her possessions. Except Nuan.