It had been eight hours since landing in the realm. After combing the outskirts with no trace of the others, Fan Yumei decided to head deeper into the ruined city, exploring the lost, forgotten world around her.
As she neared the city center, she spotted a leaning, half-buried skyscraper. Signaling Maxius, she changed direction and picked up speed, cloud-stepping—running through the air toward the top of the building for a better vantage point.
Fan Yumei crouched atop a fractured, jade-veined pillar. Old Thief—her bracelet—hummed annoyingly against her wrist.
Now half-grown, Maxius was too large to perch on her shoulder; he settled comfortably in her lap instead, his midnight feathers catching stray motes of light as he rested perfectly still.
"Ugh. Twenty pulses in twenty minutes," he muttered disdainfully, flexing his talons as he settled. "What a thick face that old thief has."
Fan Yumei rolled her eyes. "Old Thief's been active again. It's been greedy all morning." She tapped the obsidian band teasingly.
The bracelet shook violently as if to curse her.
"Hey, brat! You dare not answer me, girl!? See if your gramps—this Old One—has something to say! Respect your elders and give me twenty-five percent!" it splattered demands.
Fan Yumei slapped the bracelet. "Ooww! Insolent bastar—" she was slapped again.
"..." Old Thief wisely played dead as she shook the bracelet roughly, handling it with unnecessary force.
"Oh, what is it? Even if you sense something rare, you still have the face to demand twenty-five percent? Haha! Dream on! You think you can renege on your debt? Wishful thinking." She narrowed her eyes mercilessly at the bracelet.
The bracelet shook harder this time.
Maxius hopped up and pointed a wing at the ruins below. "Hear that? Work and rewards don't come for free. Greedy little parasite—you get nothing!" He shook his feathers proudly. "I thought I was the menace. But you, Old Thief, are stealing the show."
"Hhpm."
Fan Yumei turned her head, ignoring them both while pulling out her map. She glanced at the Rift-map scroll—still blank. No mark from Mystic. Nor Lufei. No sign of the team.
She pulled out her Riftwalk Communicator and threw the signal disk into the air, trying once again to reach anyone.
Still nothing.
Sigh.
Maxius noticed her frustration and leaned over the map, head tilted sideways. "Anything yet? Any movement or changes on the map?" His wings flapped agitatedly.
"Nothing yet. Just open, empty, unfilled grid space—except for our area. We must still be too far from one another." Fan Yumei sighed again, closing the map and tucking it away.
"Mhm. We'll hear something back soon," Maxius said softly, rubbing against her arm. She absently petted his head, playing with his feathers.
A faint clink echoed ahead.
Fan Yumei immediately signaled Maxius with a low, sharp whistle and leapt down, landing silently on cracked tile beams, keeping to cover. Maxius folded his wings and stalked beside her, merging into the shadows, hidden.
They passed toppled statues and broken buildings, strange shards of fractal crystal jutting like broken teeth—pulsing with dense Qi. Huge clusters crowded the area. Fan Yumei's heart skipped beats the closer they got. Something was calling out to her.
Old Thief vibrated violently as they neared the largest crystal cluster.
"Hey! Knock it off. I sense something calling me up ahead. Is it the treasure you sensed?" She slapped the greedy bracelet but didn't slow her pace.
The bracelet pulsed once in confirmation.
How dare this ignorant child question my treasure-seeking skills… hmmph.
"Maxius," Fan Yumei called, then whistled three times quickly, signaling a covering flank. She noticed shattered cracks on the ground and around the crystals.
Before she could redirect to avoid the fragile flooring—a shockwave slammed into her.
"Ooufmpff!"
She was thrown back mid-leap, vision blinking with black spots. She bit her tongue and felt Maxius use his body to stop her from being tossed further. Still, she coughed up blood.
Quickly regaining focus, she cast a Cloud Step platform beneath her feet, regaining control. But then—
A surge of pulsing Qi energy burst out, shattering crystals—knocking her off the conjured cloud. The floor beneath her disappeared.
She fell.
"Oh shit biscuits!" she screamed, feeling the drop and surprised as the world slipped out from under her.
"Master?!" Maxius shouted in alarm and dove after her, wings slicing the wind.
Fan Yumei flailed mid-fall, adjusting her body. She finally cast a Cloud Cushion, stopping her descent and bouncing upon contact.
Oh fudge biscuits stuck up the asshole — did she think she wasn't going to make it?
Her heart thundered. She patted her head, then her body—everything still intact—and collapsed on the cloud beneath her.
"Hahahahaha!" she laughed crazily in relief. "Uhoo!" she breathed harshly, voice shaking. "I cheated death again!" She weakly pumped her fist in the air.
Really, she thought it was the end when the floor disappeared. Though a bit injured, it wasn't anything dangerous—just superficial surface wounds.
Maxius hurried over, dropping onto her chest and nearly crushing her with his full weight. "Are you okay, Master?!" He hopped around, checking for injuries.
"I'm alive!" she cheered, laughing gleefully.
"Oh no, I think she hit her head," Maxius cried out, tears falling instantly.
"Um… Master, you didn't hit your head, did you?" Maxius wiped his tears in panic, wings flailing and causing sudden gusts.
"No, I'm fine Maxius, chill. Give me some breathing space, kiddo," she chuckled, patting his wing softly after her brief manic episode passed. Maxius gave way.
She sat up, surveying her new surroundings.
Three platforms floated nearby, and a cave plugged with crystals—though there was a gap large enough to crawl through. One platform held a half-buried chest carved with runic seals and surrounded by scattered items.
The second platform had a large black ball of alloy or rock—she wasn't exactly sure, but it didn't feel simple.
The last platform held what looked like storage cubes and a garden with a glowing palladium.
Old Thief throbbed violently, pulling toward the cave.
A fire rune silently appeared near her bracelet.
Old Thief shut up instantly, playing dead again.
Umpf. Damn child. I won't say anything because I'm tired of arguing with a child; it's below me, Old Kan Wu cursed silently in his heart.
Grinning, she murmured disdainfully, "Boring! So brave, huh? Guess not? Hm. Just keep pretending to be dead." She glanced at it a few times, looking for a reaction but grew bored when there was none.
Maxius chuckled softly, clearly enjoying the artifact's misfortune.
"Let's have some fun and explore those platforms before heading into the cave. Then we have to find an area to set up camp. We still need to secure the campsite before nightfall, which should hit in a few hours. We have a three-day regroup period," she said, curiosity piqued.
With a determined smile, she patted Maxius, ready to seize whatever adventure lay ahead. She stabilized her core and soul bond then signaled Maxius.
"Got it!" Maxius took flight, entering universal support formation.