Page 78 of The Wind Dancer
“Deactivate.”
I obeyed the voice, and felt the power drain away. It was as if an invisible armor had been taken off my shoulders, leaving behind a pleasant heaviness.
The voice continued.
“The purpose of a dragonblood’s existence is to protect reality from the Distortion. It is recommended that you begin training with a senior dragonblood.”
I carefully listened to the voice.
“Remember: Unstable use of the essence damages the soul. Some abilities require glyphs. You must obtain them. Or die trying to become stronger. Welcome to the world of Defenders of Reality. The Sanctuary’s power is running out. We recommend leaving the Sanctuary to preserve it and restore the essence. A spirit guide will show you a safe way out...”
The floor vibrated beneath me, and a new passage opened at the far end of the hall. A symbol that hadn’t been there before was flickering above it.
It was triangular and silver, resembling dragon wings wrapped around an arrow. As soon as I focused my vision on it, information immediately popped up — the Path Glyph opened the possibility to use paths through the spirit world.
And just a second later, a stream of sparkling mist spilled out of the glyph. It condensed into a humanoid figure with a cloud instead of legs.
“Follow me.”
I stepped into the tunnel, and the misty spirit slid forward, hovering just above the floor. The light from its body softly illuminated the smooth walls, making them look like moonlight on water. I followed it, feeling something slowly change inside me. I could feel my heart and the ghostly essence scale synchronizing.
I walked down this strange path, but as soon as I took a few more than a dozen steps, the spirit disappeared. It just... disappeared into thin air, as if he had never existed.
“Hey!” I blurted out.
There was no response. What the hell was going on here? Where was the spirit guide?
Just as the frustration over the confusion began rising in me, I realized that I was no longer in the strange tunnel, but in underground catacombs.
Everything that had happened in the last few minutes, or hours, or maybe even days, blurred into a tangled mess. Iwas standing in a tunnel with stone walls illuminated by faintly glowing lichens. I really wanted to talk to my mentor, to hear him tell me which path was the right one... But he was gone.
The anger rose toward those who took away the person I was closest to in the whole world. The man who had raised me, whose death I swore to avenge.
And the strangest thing was, that this steadied me. I accepted that I had been changed. That I wasn’t just a Shadow anymore. I had become something else.
I just had to figure out what that was exactly.
What did it mean to be a dragonblood? Why did all this happen to me? Whyme?
And then a name popped into my head. The one the ancient voice granted me.
Tian Fengbao. I said it out loud and the sound resonated with my body. I knew it was my name just as much as the one my mentor had given me.
I took a step forward. Then another one. The stone under my feet was dry and cool, but there was a burning flame in my chest. It was the essence. And the thirst for knowledge and understanding.
I might’ve just gained power I never would’ve even dreamed of, but I was still who I always was: a survivor. It’s just that survival had become much more difficult. After all, if someone found out that I was one of the descendants of Heaven, they would try to kill me. I could only rely on myself and my daggers. So I needed to get stronger.
I was one of them now... One of the dragonblood. It struck awe in me to even think those words. To a commoner, the dragonblood were as unreachable as the sky, and now I was one of them. And they had rules that I knew nothing about. I had to adjust to the fact that, to everyone else, I was a dragonblood of Water. And this choice might save my life... or end it. I couldn’t dwell on it now, not while I knew so little.
I was alive. That was enough.
My first task was to get out of here and find Mei Lin.
CHAPTER 22
The worst thing about catacombs was their complete lack of landmarks. You had no idea where you were or where you were going. I didn’t even have a clue about which part of Cloud City I was currently under. Everything looked the same: stone passages, uneven arches, dampness, rust, and rot. A thin layer of dust on the floor would kick up and cover any tracks.
I was walking aimlessly. I would stop and listen, hoping to catch the sound of street hubbub, dripping water, or at least screams... Anything that would at least hint at the right direction. But all I could hear was my own breathing and the scraping of boots on stone.
