Yu Di and Vimala ran all the way to the end of the tunnel. It was dark, damp, and getting harder to breathe.

  “We’re almost there,” Vimala said. She took the lead as Yu Di was as clueless as they come.

  “Is this the way to the caravanserais?” Yu Di asked.

  “No, we can’t go there directly from here. But it will lead us out into the streets.”

  “How many exits are there from these tunnels?”

  Before Vimala could answer, an explosion from the previous chamber shook the tunnels. Yu Di estimated it to be at least at the second realm in terms of power. Those mortals holding the doors might as well have ran with them. Another two dead.

  The tunnel’s ceiling showered them with dirt when a second explosion rocked the chambers. This place was going to go down if they unleashed any more of those blasts.

  Yu Di formed a weak shield above them to hopefully keep the tunnel up. He didn’t know how it was constructed. If it was done poorly, it could collapse even without a third blast.

  Vimala took a hard right that led toward a stone alcove. This alcove led into another set of dirt tunnels. She was bent over, taking deep gasping breaths.

  She was human after all.

  Yu Di forced the air into his lungs using a Qi technique in order to not collapse onto the ground. It saturated his lungs with refined air that not only kept his body running, but filled his core.

  “Just a few few more tunnels and we’ll make it up into the marketplace,” Vimala said. “There should be a lot of people there.”

  Yu Di took out a broad flying sword that could fit two people. “We’re flying there.” He hopped on and extended his hand to Vimala.

  Vimala looked wary at the sword. “Is it going to crash again?”

  “Not as long as I don’t rise up into the sky. The barrier the Shah put up shouldn’t affect us underground.”

  “Isn’t he gone? Shouldn’t his barrier be gone too?”

  Yu Di just remembered what Abbot Lokenatha said. He did say that the Shah retreated.

  Yu Di closed his eyes and reached out with his senses, pushing out with his Qi. He hit the barrier really quickly.

  “No, his barrier is still up so that must mean he’s still in the city,” Yu Di said. “I’m not sure what’s going on up there, but we have to leave these tunnels before—”

  The third blast came, shifting the entire tunnel behind them. Many of the lamps on the walls went dark.

  “Get on now!” Yu Di poured his Qi into the sword to lift it slightly up into the air. He told himself over and over that this was for self defense and to get out before the tunnel killed him.

  Vimala got on and grabbed hold of Yu Di’s robes.

  Yu Di pushed as hard as he could onto the sword. It was one of his more mundane flying swords, but it took the least effort to move. He didn’t have much Qi left for any of his more elaborate flying artifacts that would have shielded them in the event of the tunnel collapsing.

  A fifth and sixth explosion came right behind them, destabilizing the entire tunnel system. Yu Di had to weave around falling clumps of dirt. They were reaching a fork up ahead.

  “Which way?” Yu Di asked.

  “Go left,” Vimala said.

  Yu Di reached out with his senses. There were indeed a lot of people that way, but they were all cultivators in the second realm. He steered his sword right instead.

  “You missed it,” Vimala said. “Go back. This goes to the barracks.”

  “Good,” Yu Di said. “With all the soldiers out looking for us and any foreigners, then it should be empty of people. The safest place is usually the most dangerous.”

  Another explosion came from behind, its force knocking out all the lamps in the tunnels.

  Yu Di squinted hard in the dark as he flew faster and faster. He felt a presence behind him that was catching up to them. They had a nicer flying artifact than his and possibly more Qi to power it. He had a middle aged former Goddess weighing him down.

  “Hold on,” Yu Di yelled.

  Vimala grabbed onto Yu Di’s waist this time.

  Yu Di made a dead stop right in front of another wall of dirt. There was no way he had enough Qi to fly all the way to the barracks. He pulled a drilling artifact from his storage ring. This was the perfect place to drill as he sensed no one above them.

  “Close your eyes.” Yu Di pointed the drill up and activated it with his Qi. The flying sword dipped from the loss of Qi until Yu Di corrected it. Dirt kept falling down over them.

  “Hurry, I hear them,” Vimala said.

  Yu Di rolled his eyes. If she could hear them, he obviously could as well. He pushed his flying sword up as hard as he could while the drill activated. In seconds, they pushed through hardwood floors out into a building. He flew the sword up over the lip.

  Unauthorized tale usage: if you spot this story on Amazon, report the violation.

  All power faded from his flying sword, pitching them forward. Yu Di fell face first against the floor. Vimala fell right after on top of him.

  With the remaining Qi in his body, he pulled a wooden table across the floor and covered the hole. Hopefully it can fool their pursuers. Although with his luck, Yu Di very much doubted it.

  “Get up, we gotta move,” Yu Di said.

  Vimala not only got up, she hauled Yu Di to his feet. It continued to surprise him how strong this woman was.

  “I can walk, but I have no idea where we are.” Yu Di tried to look outside a window, but there were none close by. The closest one was a good distance away, letting in just enough light to illuminate the room.

  A smaller explosion shook the ground below them like an earthquake. By Yu Di’s calculations, it only felt small as they were above ground and farther away. Three more explosions followed, getting weaker and farther away.

  “This looks like someone’s home,” Vimala said. She pointed at a small statue of the Goddess standing within a shrine. Its immaculate sheen told them more about their owner than anything else in the room.

  “We should go before the owner comes to check what’s going on.” Yu Di stored his flying sword away in his storage ring. There was only one exit near the windows.

  Before they took two steps, a crossbow bolt slammed into the floor right in front of them.

  “That is the only warning. Who are you people?” A man dressed in a white silk robe pointed a crossbow at the pair.

  Three other men flanked him with similar crossbows pointed at them. There were four others coming from elsewhere in the building.

  “We’re travelers who happened upon your shrine,” Yu Di said, his hands raised into the air.

  The man squinted and walked closer to the pair. He looked closer at Vimala’s eyes and then toward the statue he had within the shrine. “Take off your mask.”

  Vimala complied, moving very slowly. She stared right at the man as she did so.

  “By the Goddess, you are the one they’re searching for,” the man said. He pointed the crossbow to the ground. “Are you alright? Are you hurt? Was this man holding you hostage?”

  Vimala had a brief moment of confusion as he looked to Yu Di but then shook her head. “This man is my servant. We have been on the run from the abbot and his men.”

  “On the run? He only wants to protect you and our city. This man must be coercing you somehow.” The man pointed his crossbow at Yu Di. He shoved the pointy end right in his face. “Tell me, what is your purpose? How are you going to harm our city?”

  “I swear, I’m not here to harm your city,” Yu Di said.

  The man spat on the ground right near Yu Di’s feet. “You lie. I can already tell from your accent that you’re one of those dirty foreign terrorists. Drop your mask or I will shoot you.”

  Yu Di swallowed. Normally a mortal weapon like a crossbow wouldn’t do anything to him, but as he was reminded from the short flight in the tunnels, his body wasn’t tempered enough yet with the dense Qi. This bolt could kill him.

  Yu Di breathed in and then breathed out the Qi that held the technique masking his face. He felt a small hitch in his lungs, as if something was corrupted. He’d have to look into that later.

  “You foreign terrorist scum.” The man elbowed Yu Di in the face, knocking him down to the ground.

  “Stop,” Vimala said. She reached for Yu Di but paused midway. The bolt was pointed at her face now.

  “Don’t you dare help him,” the man said.

  Vimala backed away.

  “Tell me why I shouldn’t kill you now?” the man asked.

  “Sir, that’s the man from the sky picture,” another man said. “He might be of some use to us.”

  The leader knelt down closer to Yu Di. He squinted really hard, looking at his face. “I don’t know. They all look alike to me.”

  “If he is the same person, then we might be able to negotiate with Abbot Lokenatha,” the other man said.

  “I have a better idea.” The leader got up from the floor. “Tie them up and toss them into a room for now. If what you say is true, then these two people might be our people’s salvation.”

  Yu Di was trying to wrap his head around what was going on as the head injury really shook him up. His hands and feet were tied and then they were pulled together. In the end, they carried him away like a trussed up pig.

  They only tied Vimala’s hands as she was allowed to walk on her own.

  They were walking deeper into the building where the simple walls of the previous room were replaced with reinforced metal. It looked like a bunker. What’s worse was that Yu Di could feel wards pressing down on him, sealing his cultivation powers. Even if he were to gain some Qi, he couldn’t break out. They had to do something fast to get out before they were sealed away for good.

  “I don’t know what you two want, but I can give you more than the abbot can,” Yu Di said.

  “We don’t trust you, terrorist scum,” the man said. “Our leader—”

  “Who is your leader? Maybe I have something that might be more valuable.”

  “His name is too important for the likes of you. You can call him Arsalan.”

  “As in the lion?” That was a stupid name.

  The man nodded.

  “What does Arsalan want? Weapons? Money? Artifacts? I have it all.”

  “What he wants, you can’t give him. The abbot is the only one. He is the closest to the Goddess and knows her secrets.”

  “Wait, I know someone closer than the abbot. That woman there, she’s the former Goddess that protected your city. She knows more about the secrets than the abbot.”

  Vimala glared at him.

  “Tell them everything or we’re going to die here,” Yu Di said.

  “No, only you will. They don’t have a kill order on me for my safe return. You’re using my secrets again, you terrorist scum.”

  Yu Di almost laughed when she said that. She had to have some idea what he was trying to do.

  The man punched Yu Di in the side. “Shut up. She’s right. We don’t have to keep you alive for the abbot.”

  Yu Di grunted. “What about you three then? Serving as underlings must not pay much. I can offer you anything and everything I have.” He waved his hand and a bar of silver appeared. “Take it. Think of it as my gift to you.”

  Yu Di dropped the bar of silver onto the ground. Neither of them stopped. Such dedication and loyalty.

  Yu Di took out a bar of gold. “Here, this might be worth more right? I just want to be friends.” He dropped the bar of gold. Again they didn’t stop.

  Vimala looked confused for a second. Then she tripped on the bar of gold, tumbling to the ground. Her robe lifted up, exposing her legs.

  That’s when all three stopped to stare.

  Yu Di twisted his body hard, forcing the two carrying him off balance. They all tumbled onto the ground. The next part was going to hurt.

  He took out a fire rock from his storage ring, ignited it, and then put it against his ropes. They caught on fire instantly with intense flames and heat. His ropes burned away, but so did much of his skin.

  Yu Di screamed before tearing the ropes apart. Some of his clothes caught on fire so he shed it in one fluid motion. The clothes hit the ground and the flames ignited the hardwood floors.

  One man grabbed him by the ankles while the other got up and approached him.

  Yu Di hated to do this, but he had no choice. He grabbed his burning clothes and threw it onto the man holding his ankles, igniting his clothes. The screams would haunt him for many nights.

  Next Yu Di took out his trident from his storage ring and stabbed the approaching man right in the chest. He kicked out as hard as he could, releasing his trident.

  When he turned around, Vimala had wrestled the escort to the ground. She looked horrified at the burning man, but steeled her face right after.

  Soon after, much of the room caught fire and the black smoke rose, threatening to choke them. That was the danger of using this particular fire rock. It was made to burn everything. Hopefully they could escape before it burned them.