"If that thing were fully grown… how strong would it be?"
Xie Zhaolin couldn't stop a shiver from running down her spine. No wonder the man in gray had lured her over. He probably didn't dare face that monster head-on himself.
She shut her eyes for a moment, then with trembling fingers took out the remaining Shisha Spider Puppets from her storage ring. The moment they landed, they formed a vigilant circle around her.
"Finally… some guards…"
The taut strings in her mind loosened a little. With her thoughts calmer, she couldn't help cursing herself for panicking earlier. She still had puppets in her ring, yet all she'd thought about in the heat of danger was blowing up her artifacts, that stupid method of killing the enemy at the cost of crippling herself. She'd wasted several precious treasures for nothing.
Now that she thought back on it, her fingers trembled with heartache. It wouldn't ruin her foundation given her current wealth, but it was still a painful waste.
"I really lost my head…" She rubbed her temples. Puppets weren't easy to refine either, but at least the materials were easier to gather than artifacts.
On second thought, she felt a little grateful. If she'd lost every puppet, she wouldn't even have guards to rely on now, let alone any peace of mind while healing.
"Forget it, what's done is done." She shook her head and stopped dwelling on it, then turned to tend her wounds.
Just in case, she took out several array flags from her storage ring and handed them to the puppets to place around the area. She wasn't strong enough to arrange anything complicated right now, but a simple warning barrier was still within her ability.
The moment the last flag was planted and the barrier flared to life, she finally let out a long breath. The release left her body wracked with pain, darkness flickering at the edge of her vision.
"I can't pass out!" She bit her tongue hard enough to draw blood, forcing herself to stay conscious. If she fainted now, even with the puppets guarding her, it would still be far too dangerous.
Thankfully, as her strength slowly returned, the dizziness ebbed away. When she opened her eyes again, night had passed into day. Dew had soaked her robes, and the puppets still stood watch. Nothing had happened.
She tried moving her left arm and sucked in a sharp breath. The wound no longer bled, but even the smallest movement brought searing pain. Her right leg was worse. The puncture wound from the bone spike still oozed a faint dark green poison.
"Looks like it'll take days…" She let out a bitter laugh, then placed five Soul Nurturing Pearls before her. The treasures that nourished her beast souls were all dim now, the spirits within still clinging to life by a thread.
Shuang Ling's severed tail was still leaking black mist. Xue Xiao's snowy feathers had dulled to ashen gray. Dian Diao's sparks were so faint they were barely visible. But what tore her heart most were Teng She and Bing Jing. Both little ones were in the worst state, still unconscious.
She carefully fed a Soul Nurturing Pill to each beast. When she got to Teng She, the snake twitched. Its emerald eyes cracked open the tiniest slit, and it weakly rubbed against her finger.
"Good boy, rest well," she whispered, then took out the yinsha essence she'd kept in reserve and fed it to the worst wounded, Teng She and Bing Jing.
They'd hunted the prey that contained this essence, but couldn't consume it. She'd saved it away, and now it was finally useful. Watching Teng She and Bing Jing struggle to absorb the yinsha essence eased her heart. At least it meant they were on the mend.
She pushed herself to her feet, and at her thought the puppets gathered close. One crouched low, letting its legs support her wavering body. She drew a deep breath and scanned the area. This cliff top was far too exposed, not a place to linger.
"Head east."
She remembered a dense black pine forest to the east, shrouded in mist. That would be a good place to hide and recover. It didn't take long for the puppets to find a massive black pine. Its thick trunk and sprawling roots formed a natural shelter beneath.
Once they'd secured the area, she finally sat down and began cleansing the poison from her body.
Three days passed. At last, she forced out the final trace of toxin. She let out a long breath and opened her eyes, finding her right leg no longer tinged green. It wasn't healed, but her life wasn't in danger anymore. She tried circulating her qi. The sluggishness in her meridians had mostly cleared. She wasn't back at full strength, but she'd regained at least sixty to seventy percent of her combat power.
Satisfied she was stable, she checked on her beast souls.
Shuang Ling's tail had regrown, though the new fur was still short. Xue Xiao's feathers gleamed snow white again as it preened inside the pearl. Dian Diao's lightning shone bright, and when her sense swept in, it even playfully flicked out a spark. The best of all was Teng She and Bing Jing. The two had finally woken, weak but alive. That alone filled her with joy. With their conditions stabilizing, it was time to plan the next step.
She walked back to the cliff edge, gazing down into the abyss below. Her eyes flickered with conflict.
Should she give up on the Rebirth Flower?
The thought rose, but she crushed it mercilessly. Her fingers clenched her robes so tightly her knuckles turned white. Not only was the Rebirth Flower crucial to her cultivation, it was the very reason she'd risked her life so many times already. To abandon it now… she couldn't accept that.
She crouched, brushing her fingertips against the rock that covered the teleportation array. The cold stone cleared her mind.
That lizard was ferocious, yes, but it was gravely wounded. And the restrictions of the Blackwater Abyss barely suppressed cultivators at Foundation Establishment. If she waited until her cultivation advanced, those same restrictions would become shackles.
"Now's actually the best chance…" Her brows furrowed tight.
A breeze stirred, carrying a strange scent. She jerked her head up, eyes sharp, scanning the area.
The Shisha Spider Puppets snapped into formation, their spined legs raised high. Only when nothing happened did she turn her focus back to the array. The image of the lizard's claws smashing down flashed in her mind, those three gouges seared deep into the base.
The array still looked usable, but she didn't dare risk it. If it failed mid-teleport, she could be ripped apart by spatial turbulence.
Worse, that beast might be camped right there, waiting for her to walk straight into its jaws.
"I'll have to find another way down," she muttered, eyes sweeping the sheer cliff face.
For the next few days she searched endlessly, but every attempt ended in failure. Just as she sat deep in thought, a weak pulse came from Teng She's Soul Nurturing Pearl. She pulled it out at once. The little snake was tapping the inside with its tail.