114 We are friends, aren’t we? (1/2)

Standing on lush green grass that is pulsating with magic, Jin is awestruck by what he's seeing around them. He inhales the wild minty scent mingled with the fragments of flowers in the air. Tall trees are shooting up. Long and thick branches with bold evergreen green foliages are spreading out under the ceiling. Snakelike vines wreathe around the trunks. As if caressed by the first rays of sunlight, colourful wildflowers unfold with fervour.

Splendid. He gasps. Throbbing with life and vivacity, this is earth magic.

Cold sweat trickles down on her forehead. Huang Qiuyan presses her hand on her chest, unable to open her eyes. The aberrant bundle of energy shatters into pieces, dissolving into the enchanted magic insider her. An intense whirlpool of energy rises from the fusion, ready to burst apart.

Her heart is slowing down. Xiao Chun Dan is shrieking madly in her head. She can't speak. In her mind, something wraps around her, pulling her back into the mist. Paralyzed, she can't stop it from taking her into obscurity.

Jin widens his eyes when he sees her body convulsing. He presses his palm against her forehead. Her skin is icy cold.

”Shit.” He lets out a curse. Her magic is growing at a tremendous rate. Not wasting another moment, he lifts her in his arms. First of all, he needs to get her out of this place. He's surrounded by wild bushes and trees that are nearly enveloping all the space except for the small region around Huang Qiuyan. The way to the door is blocked. This is bad.

At the same time, Fu Sheng and others are passing through the forest, being chased by a dozen of vampires zombies. They have no time to stop and deal with each one of them. Suddenly, he feels a sharp pang in his chest. He stops and whispers, ”Huang Qiuyan.”

Halting a little ahead of him, Sung Se-Yong shouts, ”What happened?”

Sung Na-Mi and others also stop. The crowd of vampire-zombie is nearing. Fu Sheng taps into the bond to check on Huang Qiuyan. His consciousness reaches out to her through the bond, but he meets a high wall around her. It's the same wall that she created around herself when her magic grew. Though breaking it and entering her mind is easy for him, it will cause inconceivable damage.

He realizes that the mind wall is infused with magic. Her consciousness is isolated from her. He can't sense any darkness around her. He can't sense any emotion either.  Then, he's far from her.

Fu Sheng wants to turn back and find her.

”Fu Sheng.” Sung Na-Mi yells at him with anxiety in her tone, ”They are almost here. We can't waste time here.”

A sense of foreboding surges through him. She's a low-level convert at the moment. As long as she doesn't get out of the castle, she should be fine. Nothing can harm her inside the castle. She must be alright. She has to be. His people will protect her.

Inside the castle, Jin bends down on his right knee, shielding Huang Qiuyan with his body. He raises his arm, redirecting the essence of darkness from his heart. The turbulent dark energy traverses through, warming up his channels, filling his surroundings. As the dark energy reaches his fingertips, he puts his index finger and thumb together. When he rubs his thumb over his index finger in a circular motion, he feels small vibrations originating from the point of contact between his thumb and finger. He instils more dark energy, causing the small vibrations to expand into enormous spherical waves that propagate towards the door, searing through everything in its way.