Lu Na clenched her left fist and flicked it left. A stone wall rose up in front of Yang Deli and his army. It sealed them off within the courtyard they were just in.

  “We’ll settle this later,” Sun Ren said. She took out another dagger and dashed toward the exit. “Lu Na, cover our rear. I’ll make sure no other danger is in front of us. Elders, do your worst against them.”

  “Oh ho ho, who died and made her leader?” Elder Xu asked.

  The stone wall exploded outward as a green ibex with dark green stripes burst forward. Its horns locking onto their group.

  “It’s not time to argue, Ming. Let’s make sure these youngsters make it out alive.” Elder Hen rode atop his horse spirit and charged at the opening. “Go Fengma. Young Miss Lu, don’t let them swam us.”

  Lu Na flicked her hand left a couple of times in succession, raising the stone from the ground to create more walls in their way. Then she flicked her hand to the right and spirit walls formed around the earth walls.

  Senior Wong summoned her rooster and charged in with Elder Hen. With a narrow exit, the rebels could only have three or four soldiers fighting them at the same time.

  Elder Xu raised both of her arms up and a large green crane erupted from her body. It flew up high above the courtyards. With ever flap of its wings, it sent arrows raining down on the soldiers.

  Hen Li stood beside Lu Na. He had one of Sun Ren’s daggers in his hand. It looked so weird. A monk that was ready to hurt others.

  Lu Na raised up more walls. She made them thicker to prevent Yang Deli’s ibex from breaking through. Her wrist was burning.

  “Young Miss Lu, don’t forget to use the technique I showed you earlier,” Zi Xu said. “Be sure to send the spirit energy into your spirit realm.”

  Lu Na focused on her wrist, pulling the spirit energy from the null metal bracelet as Elder Xu taught her. Now instead of pushing it into the ground, she folded it and pushed it into her spirit realm. Now it was her chest heating up.

  “Don’t pull too much too fast. Do it slowly,” Zi Xu said.

  Lu Na slowed it down, but she felt like she was on fire. Her whole body was burning all over. She used her spirit vision to see that the dense spirit energy entering her spirit realm was going everywhere.

  “Now, use that spirit energy,” Zi Xu said.

  “How? How do I use it?”

  “You’ve never learned any summoner arts?”

  “No! Tell me what to do!”

  “Amituofo. Breathe Young Miss Lu.” Hen Li put a hand on Lu Na’s shoulder. “Focus on my voice. Cycle the spirit energy throughout your body. Think of it like a circle that goes through your entire body. Push it down to your feet, then pull it back up through your body and into your head. Then push it back into your spirit realm.”

  Lu Na closed her eyes and did as Hen Li instructed. It would have been easier if metal didn’t clang on metal all around her. After two cycles of doing that, the spirit energy calmed down. She opened her eyes to watch two of her walls collapse.

  “Oh no you don’t.” Lu Na clenched her left fist and punched forward. Tiger claws flew at three of the soldiers pushing out. They were the blackest tiger claws she’d ever produced. It reminded her of Sect Leader Wong’s technique when he used it at full power and with more experience. She felt the technique pulled spirit energy from her spirit realm.

  “Father?” Senior Wong looked around and frowned when she saw Lu Na.

  “Sorry, that was me.” Lu Na flicked her wrist left to repair the two stone wall that collapsed.”

  Sun Ren ran back over.

  “The path is clear to the exit, but I couldn’t scout the next area. It was too dark. We should go now.”

  Lu Na nodded. She focused on the image of the thickest, tallest wall she could imagine. She held onto her left fist with her right hand and dragged them both across the courtyard’s entrance. Again, she felt spirit energy pulling from her spirit realm. It was draining.

  A stone wall, thicker than city walls, rose from the ground and blocked the courtyard. It rose to the ceiling.

  Lu Na yelped. Her wrist was burning now. She had to take off the bracelet and held it in her left hand to keep the wall from collapsing.

  “I can’t hold that forever. We have to go now.”

  The group gathered together and shuffled toward the exit. It was another dark hallway into the next section.

  Lu Na shivered from the cold despite still feeling hot from the spirit energy cycling through her body and burning wrist. She had never felt this cold before despite spending some winters in the north with her family.

  Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.

  “This is why I couldn’t scout it. Not only is it dark, but the cold is giving me very scary vibes.” Sun Ren unsheathed her waist sword.

  “I’ll send a scout in there,” Elder Xu said. She summoned her sable spirit again.

  “Wait,” Zi Xu said.

  “There’s not much time. They’re already cracking my wall,” Lu Na said.

  “I just wanted to warn you that the next section will test your will. Remember the warlord that brought his army? All their ghosts are up ahead. Any human walking in there without any protection will go mad.”

  “So what do we do?”

  Zi Xu stood with his hands clasped behind him. He arched his back and stared off into the distance. He looked just like one of those hero paintings that Lu Na’s father had commissioned before.

  “Do you trust me?”

  “Yes, of course. Tell us what we need to do and hurry.”

  The wall broke at the bottom. Yang Deli’s ibex spirit shot out.

  “I’ll deal with this.” Senior Wong made a chopping motion with her left hand. Her metal rooster flapped both its wings at the ibex, sending metal feathers flying at it in a torrent.

  Lu Na put her bracelet back on and pulled the spirit energy from the null metal into her spirit realm. The process was getting easier, but the burning was becoming too intense. She flicked her wrist left to create some more walls. They weren’t as strong, but that was the best she could do.

  “Listen Lu Na, if you and your group wants to survive the next part, then you will have to hold hands, close your eyes, and allow me to guide you through. I’ll wait for you at the end of the hallway.” Zi Xu walked ahead at his slow pace.

  “You heard the ghost, everyone let’s move,” Sun Ren ordered. “I’ll cover the rear with Wong Yoong. Be sure to protect Lu Na at all costs.”

  “Understood Young Miss Sun.” Elder Hen guided his horse spirit into the hallway first before following it.

  “Again, who put that brat in charge?” Elder Xu huffed but followed behind Elder Hen.

  Hen Li and Lu Na walked through the hallway side by side. The cold penetrated Lu Na’s hemp tunic. Despite being hot from siphoning the spirit energy into her spirit realm, the cold had an ethereal feel to it. It felt like it chilled her from the inside out while her heat was on the surface of the skin, burning and boiling. It didn’t help that it was dark in the hallway despite the sparks from behind.

  Lu Na tapped her bracelet to turn on the light ward. Her hand glowed white, surrounding her in light. She raised it above her head to push it through the hallway to the other side.

  A sea of red glowing eyes glared at Lu Na up ahead. It felt like the entire next section were pairs of angry eyes accusing her for their deaths. The cold seeped in deeper, almost as if fingers were raking their nails over her skin from head to toe.

  “Are you alright, Young Miss Lu?” Hen Li asked.

  “No. Did you see that?” Lu Na asked.

  “See what?”

  “The eyes.”

  Elder Hen and Elder Xu stopped right at the entrance to the next section.

  “I saw it too, Young Miss Lu. They’re angry ghosts. We mustn’t give in to them,” Elder Hen said.

  “Oh ho ho, Hen Shimin. You’re a funny one. You’re so close to death’s door that you could call them friends.” Elder Xu cackled. “If you died here, you could be their king with how angry you are. You hide it well while alive, but what would happen as a ghost?”

  “Don’t scare the kids like that,” Elder Hen said.

  “Elder Hen, is it true? Are you about to die?” Hen Li asked.

  Elder Hen turned toward Hen Li, his face in a frown. Even in the low light from Lu Na’s ward his wrinkles deepened.

  “Son, you don’t have to worry about that. As I’ve always taught you, focus on the mission and complete it at all costs. If it means that I die, then at least I get to see you one last time.”

  “Amituofo. I will pray for you.” Hen Li pushed his palms together and recited the heart sutra. He closed his eyes.

  Elder Hen sighed and turned back around. Elder Xu patted him on the shoulder and whispered something to him.

  Lu Na spent the little time they had cycling the spirit energy in her body. The burning was now overwhelming the chill of the ghosts. If she didn’t get rid of some of it soon, she’s going to explode.

  Senior Wong was the first to run through the tunnel. Her face had blood on it, but no visible cuts. Her rooster spirit had a dent in its body. She dismissed it with a wave of her left hand.

  “Where’s Sun Ren?” Lu Na asked.

  “She’s coming. She told me to run first,” Senior Wong said. She bent over, holding herself up by her thighs, and breathing hard. “These soldiers didn’t come to play. We have to go now before they get here.”

  “Not without Sun Ren.” Lu Na pushed passed Senior Wong but that was unnecessary.

  Sun Ren ran toward her, weaving left and right to avoid ice lances from spearing her through.

  Lu Na clenched her fist and flicked it right, creating a spirit wall right behind Sun Ren. Two ice lances struck the wall. Ten more followed, but they were all stuck in the spirit wall. Lu Na reinforced the spirit wall by pushing more of the spirit energy from within her spirit realm into it.

  That feeling felt both draining and relief. She wasn’t sure why that was the case, but the pressure lessened in her whole body. It must be because she didn’t have Nugua helping her regulate her spirit energy. Either way, she’d have to figure it out later.

  Sun Ren ran past Lu Na into the dark hallway.

  Lu Na let go of the spirit wall and watched as the torrent of ice lances collapse to the ground. She ran back into the hallway. She opened her hand and pushed with her palm facing toward the rebel army running toward her.

  Another stone wall raised from the ground, this time surrounded by a spirit wall. It should take them a little longer to break.

  Lu Na ran down the hallway after Sun Ren.

  “Is Zi Xu back yet?” Sun Ren asked. “That wall is not going to take long before they break it down.”

  “I’m right here.” Zi Xu appeared at the end of the hallway next to the Elders. “If you’re all ready, please join hands. There’s only one small problem. One of you will have to keep their eyes open and be subject to your worst nightmares as you walk through. They will use your guilt to eat at your mind.”

  “I’ll do it,” Sun Ren said.

  Both Elders and Senior Wong stayed silent.

  “Amituofo. I’ll do it. I’m the only one with the clear eyes. I can see where we’re being led and avoid the traps before we walk into anything.”

  “No, I’ll do it,” Lu Na said. “As much as I agree with you Hen Li, I don’t think your guilt would let you last long. I’m sure Zi Xu will make sure we all walk through without issues, right?”

  Zi Xu smiled.

  “But of course. My only desire is for you to finally release us from this misery. You are probably the only one in the last thousand years that has come close. Besides, it’d be fun to see you struggle with the last challenge anyway.”

  “Then it’s settled. Let’s go.” Lu Na held onto Hen Li’s hand on the left and Sun Ren’s hand on the right. Elder Hen held his son’s hand while Elder Xu and Senior Wong each had a hand on Lu Na’s shoulder.

  Zi Xu walked into Lu Na, possessing her.

  Lu Na felt the world fall away again. It felt like she was surrounded by clouds. She felt everything, but she couldn’t move.

  “Everyone, follow closely and don’t let go,” Zi Xu said with Lu Na’s voice.

  Everyone nodded and Lu Na felt their grips tighten. This was going to be an interesting experience for Lu Na. The feeling of powerlessness while also waiting for her worst nightmares. She wondered what they would be.

  It didn’t take long before she started screaming.