Xie Zhaolin didn't answer right away. Her sharp gaze swept across the pool.
These Netherwater Blood Leeches were essentially ice-cold spirit plants. Their numbers had swelled, and they were more restless than usual, but their nature shouldn't have changed. They'd be instinctively drawn to cold power of the same kind, as long as it was purer than their own.
But if the cold was too overwhelming, it could just as easily trigger their wariness and rejection.
The key was balance.
She flipped her wrist, and cold gathered in her palm. A lotus bloomed quietly in her hand, its crystalline petals shimmering with pure, chilling aura.
The Nine Nether Ice Lotus.
It was the last one left from her breakthrough, kept until now, and it was finally useful. Precious as it was, it wasn't unmatched in grade. Its coldness was pure, but to leeches born in the extreme cold of this pool, it wasn't an unbeatable enemy force. If anything, it was more like a lure.
Jiu Jiu's eyes flickered with thought at the sight of the lotus, though her lips curled in excitement. "The Nine Nether Ice Lotus? Its cold aura's pure enough, maybe we could—"
Xie Zhaolin didn't reply. Instead, she carefully peeled off a petal about the size of a fingernail from the outer layer of the lotus.
The moment it separated, the chill thickened, sharp and biting.
She didn't drop it straight into the center where it would stir up all the leeches. Instead, she wrapped it in spiritual power and guided it slowly toward the edge of the pool, on their side but a little farther off.
The petal sank, and its pure aura spread out, like a drop of ink blooming in clear water.
The effect was instant.
The leeches that had been lurking and writhing along the pool's edge suddenly perked up. Their instincts drove them toward the source of that familiar cold, all swarming where the petal sank. Their tendrils whipped eagerly, though still tinged with caution. In that brief moment, the density of leeches near her and Jiu Jiu thinned, their attention pulled completely toward the petal.
And in that instant, she shot forward like an arrow.
Jiu Jiu reacted just as fast, moving almost in the same breath.
The two figures glided like smoke, slipping through the fleeting gap that had opened thanks to the lure.
Behind them, the leeches quickly realized the chill came from nothing more than a single petal, far too little to satisfy their agitation. And worse, the "prey's" aura had suddenly vanished from another direction. They thrashed in frustration, tendrils whipping toward the retreating figures, but it was too late.
The two women had already crossed the pool and landed safely on the far side.
Xie Zhaolin glanced one last time at the chaos behind, the leeches writhing madly but still bound to their waters, then turned away. She didn't even look at Jiu Jiu, striding straight into the stone passage that led deeper. Her face stayed calm, but ripples stirred in her heart.
During that split-second maneuver, she hadn't been wholly focused on the leeches. Part of her divine sense had been watching Jiu Jiu. From peeling the lotus petal, luring the beasts, to bursting forward in that tiny window, the entire sequence had lasted no more than two or three breaths.
Yet Jiu Jiu had grasped her intent immediately and moved in perfect sync. Her steps were swift, light, and unhesitant. The kind of seamless reaction and adaptability she showed wasn't something an ordinary Qi Refining cultivator could ever pull off.
More telling, when they darted through that gap, her aura stayed smooth and steady. No panic, no strain, her movements graceful and at ease.
"Qi Refining stage?"
Xie Zhaolin sneered inwardly. This girl hid deeper than she let on. Still, as long as she didn't stir up trouble herself, there was no need to expose her. Sometimes, an unknown companion was more useful than a burden you could read at a glance.
Jiu Jiu, oblivious that she'd just deepened the suspicion, scampered up with her same airheaded smile. She grinned and chirped, "Whew, that was close! Benefactor, you moved so fast, I almost couldn't keep up!" Her tone carried no sincerity, only playful teasing.
Xie Zhaolin ignored her.
One leading, one following, they pushed deeper down the winding tunnel.
The farther they went, the heavier the decay in the air grew. Bones began appearing along the walls, scattered in heaps. Some were human, some beast, some slumped against the stone with weapons or talisman fragments still clutched tight. The styles varied, clearly from different eras and invaders who had tried and failed here.
Many bones bore marks of teeth, or scars left by some corrosive force, whispering silently of their final struggles.
Jiu Jiu showed no fear. Instead, she looked intrigued, crouching here and there with a jade stick to poke at broken artifacts, clicking her tongue in curiosity.
"Look at this. That's a standard flying sword from Liuyun Sect, eight hundred years ago. And this one… oh, the bone's color suggests Corrupting Heart Poison. Tsk, tsk, this cave mansion of You Ji Shàngrén really does chew people up and spit out nothing but bones."
Xie Zhaolin ignored her chatter, only tightening her vigilance. Every pile of bones was a warning carved in silence. Yet as they continued, no fresh traps triggered. Only the remains thickened, covering the path.
Clearly, whatever had been set here long ago had already been exhausted by these so-called predecessors. After half a stick of incense, the tunnel came to an end. A howling wind echoed from ahead, carrying with it a sharp metallic screech, like countless blades grinding against each other.
Jiu Jiu's steps quickened again. She slipped to the tunnel mouth, peeked outside, then pulled back with a face that said "just as expected."
"Benefactor, the road ends here. There's a massive underground chasm, and across it lies the core of the cave mansion."
She pointed down. "What we need to cross is that so-called… Hundred Blades Soul-Locking Bridge."
Her tone sobered slightly. "It looks like a stone bridge, but You Ji Shàngrén laid down a vicious restriction on it.
The moment you step on, it triggers countless blade souls, condensed from metallic baleful qi and lingering wraiths. They're formless, intangible, and they target the Primordial Soul directly. There's no easy defense.
And the bridge itself becomes slick, sticky, like walking on blood mud. If your will wavers even slightly, you'll fall into illusions, slip, and plunge into the abyss. There's no coming back from that."
She turned her eyes to Xie Zhaolin, blinking mischievously. "This test is all about a cultivator's soul strength and willpower. Not much room for shortcuts. Benefactor, you… you can handle it, right?"
Her gaze gleamed with curiosity, eager to see how Xie Zhaolin would face a trial that went straight for the soul.