The ten minutes of preparation felt both too long and too short. Yan Kai checked his equipment one final time, ensuring everything in his storage ring was organized and accessible. Piercing Heaven felt reassuringly solid in his hands. His spiritual energy circulated smoothly through his meridians despite the chaotic environment.
Around him, other disciples made their own preparations. Chen Wu was adjusting his armor straps and testing his sword's weight. Liang Shu knelt on the ground drawing formation patterns in the dirt, creating portable arrays that could be activated quickly if needed. Jiang Mei stood very still with her eyes closed, extending her detection abilities to scan the ruins for any spiritual energy signatures.
"I'm sensing something," Jiang Mei said suddenly. Her eyes remained closed and her brow furrowed in concentration. "Deep underground. Very deep. There's a source of spiritual energy that feels different from anything I've encountered before. It's not hostile exactly, but it's definitely not natural either."
Elder Feng walked over to her immediately. "Can you determine what kind of energy it is? Elemental? Formation-based? Corrupted?"
"None of those exactly. It feels old. Ancient. Like it's been there so long that it's become part of the mountain itself." Jiang Mei opened her eyes and looked troubled. "And there's something else. I'm picking up very faint traces of human spiritual energy scattered throughout the ruins. Not strong enough to be living people, more like residual impressions left behind."
"The missing expedition," Wu Chen said. He had been standing near the edge of the group, staring at the dark entrance with an intensity that suggested he was imagining his brother walking through it.
"Possibly. But the impressions are strange. They don't follow any logical path. It's like the energy signatures are scattered randomly rather than following where people would naturally walk." Jiang Mei shook her head. "I can't make sense of it."
Elder Tian stepped forward to address the entire group. "Listen carefully. We're entering unknown territory that has already claimed fifty-eight lives. Some basic rules. First, no one separates from the main group for any reason. Second, if you see, hear, or sense anything unusual, report it immediately no matter how insignificant it seems. Third, conserve your spiritual energy. We don't know how long we'll be underground or what we might face."
He paused to let his words sink in. "Fourth, and most important. If I or any other elder orders an immediate retreat, you obey without question or hesitation. Speed will matter more than understanding. Clear?"
A chorus of affirmations came from the assembled disciples. Yan Kai noticed that even the most confident cultivators looked nervous now. The oppressive silence of the ruins was affecting everyone's mood.
"Formation positions," Elder Feng commanded. "Elders at cardinal points. Defensive specialists in the outer ring. Combat specialists in the middle ring. Support and detection specialists at the center. Move."
The group reorganized itself efficiently. Yan Kai found himself in the middle ring alongside Bai Huang, several Crimson Dawn disciples, and other cultivators specialized in direct combat. The formation was designed to protect the more vulnerable members while keeping the strongest fighters positioned to respond to threats from any direction.
Elder Feng created a large ball of light that floated above the group, illuminating their surroundings with steady white radiance. The other elders added their own light sources until the entire formation was bathed in brightness. The darkness beyond their lights seemed to press against the illumination, reluctant to retreat.
They entered the doorway. The transition from outside to inside was jarring. The temperature dropped immediately, going from cool mountain air to cold dampness that seemed to seep into bones. The walls were smooth and featureless, made from black stone that absorbed light rather than reflecting it. The corridor was wide enough for their formation to maintain proper spacing, which suggested it had been built for large groups to traverse.
Their footsteps echoed strangely, the sounds bouncing off walls in ways that didn't quite make acoustic sense. Yan Kai found himself unconsciously adjusting his grip on Piercing Heaven, ready to react at any moment.
"The architectural style is pre-Collapse," Elder Han from the Silver Moon Sect observed. He was their scholar and historian, an elderly man whose expertise lay in ancient knowledge rather than combat. "These construction techniques haven't been used in over three thousand years. The precision of the stonework is remarkable. Every surface is perfectly flat and every corner is exactly ninety degrees."
"What kind of place was this?" Shui Ling asked. The Flowing River healer walked near the formation's center, her hands glowing faintly with healing energy ready to activate at a moment's notice.
"Impossible to say without more context. Pre-Collapse civilizations built many types of structures. Cultivation academies, research facilities, defensive fortifications, even entire underground cities." Elder Han ran his hand along the wall as they walked. "But this level of precision suggests it was important. Ordinary buildings didn't receive this much care in construction."
The corridor descended gradually, taking them deeper into the mountain. Side passages appeared occasionally, branching off into darkness that their lights couldn't fully penetrate. Elder Feng marked each intersection with a glowing formation symbol that would help them navigate back if needed.
They had been walking for approximately thirty minutes when Hei Jun, who was scouting ahead with his Shadow Wind sect abilities, suddenly held up a hand signaling everyone to stop.
"Movement ahead," he whispered, his voice barely audible. "Something large. Not human."
The formation tightened, cultivators readying weapons and techniques. Yan Kai channeled spiritual energy through his body, preparing for combat. His heart rate increased but his breathing remained controlled. Fear was natural. Panic was deadly.
A creature emerged from the darkness ahead. It was roughly humanoid in shape but clearly not human. Its body was made from the same black stone as the walls, as if it had been carved from the ruins themselves. It stood eight feet tall with arms that hung nearly to the ground. Where a face should have been, there was only a smooth surface with no features.
"Stone guardian," Elder Han identified. "Ancient defense constructs. They were common in important pre-Collapse facilities. Usually they only attack intruders, but they should have deactivated centuries ago when their power sources ran out."
The stone guardian tilted its featureless head as if studying the group. Then it raised one arm and pointed directly at the formation. More specifically, it pointed at the center where the weaker disciples stood.
"Defensive positions!" Elder Feng shouted.
The guardian charged. Despite its size, it moved with frightening speed. Its footsteps shook the ground as it closed the distance. Bai Huang stepped forward to intercept, his body glowing with the golden light of his defensive cultivation technique.
The collision when the guardian's fist met Bai Huang's blocking arms produced a sound like thunder. The impact sent shockwaves through the corridor that knocked several disciples off their feet. Bai Huang was pushed backward ten feet but held his ground, his arms crossed in front of his chest to absorb the blow.
"It's strong!" Bai Huang called out. "Peak Core Formation realm equivalent!"
Yan Kai moved in from the side, thrusting Piercing Heaven toward the guardian's torso. The spear struck true, but the stone body was incredibly dense. His spearhead penetrated only an inch before stopping. It was like trying to pierce solid mountain bedrock.
The guardian's other arm swung toward him in a backhand strike. Yan Kai pulled his spear free and jumped backward, the massive stone fist missing his head by inches. The wind from the strike made his hair whip around his face.
Other disciples joined the battle. Liu Wei from the Crimson Dawn Sect attacked with sword techniques that created arcs of cutting energy. A Golden Lotus disciple fired beams of concentrated light that scorched the guardian's surface. Chen Wu charged in with his broad sword, delivering heavy overhead strikes that chipped small pieces from the stone body.
The guardian fought without any apparent strategy or intelligence. It simply attacked whoever was closest with devastating but predictable movements. The real danger came from its incredible durability and strength. Every blocked strike sent defenders sliding backward. Every landed hit barely scratched its surface.
"Aim for the joints!" Liang Shu called out. She had been observing the fight while preparing a formation. "The stone is thinner where the limbs connect to the body!"
Yan Kai adjusted his tactics immediately. Instead of targeting the torso, he focused on the guardian's right shoulder joint. He moved in a circle around the construct, forcing it to turn and track him. When its attention was fully on him, Bai Huang charged from behind and grabbed its arms, locking them in place with his superior strength.
"Now!" Bai Huang roared, straining to hold the guardian immobile.
Yan Kai dashed forward and thrust Piercing Heaven with all his strength and spiritual energy focused into the spearhead. The weapon punched through the thinner stone at the shoulder joint and severed whatever internal mechanisms connected the arm to the body. The guardian's right arm fell to the ground with a heavy crash.
The construct thrashed violently, trying to break free from Bai Huang's hold. Chen Wu took advantage of the opening and brought his broad sword down on the left shoulder joint with a technique that compressed all his spiritual energy into a single point. The blade cut through, and the second arm separated from the body.
Without arms, the guardian was far less dangerous. The elders could have destroyed it easily, but they held back and allowed the disciples to finish the battle. This was good training and confidence building for the younger cultivators.
Liang Shu activated the formation she had been preparing. Arrays of binding energy appeared on the ground beneath the guardian, wrapping around its legs and pulling it down. Once it was immobilized, multiple disciples attacked the head and torso simultaneously. After two minutes of concentrated assault, the guardian crumbled into pieces of ordinary stone.
"Well done," Elder Feng said. "Good coordination and adaptation. But remember, that was likely one of the weaker guardians. Deeper facilities often have stronger defenses."
They rested briefly while healers checked everyone for injuries. Bai Huang had some bruising on his arms but nothing serious. Yan Kai's shoulders ached from the force of his strikes against the stone body. Several other disciples nursed minor cuts and impacts.
"The guardian being active is significant," Elder Han observed, examining the stone fragments. "It means some power source is still functioning after three thousand years. That suggests this facility is far more important than a simple outpost or minor research center."
"Or it means something woke the defenses recently," Elder Tian added grimly. "Around the same time our expedition disappeared."
They continued deeper into the ruins. The corridor widened into a larger chamber with multiple doorways leading in different directions. Strange symbols covered the walls, glowing faintly with residual spiritual energy. In the center of the chamber stood a stone pedestal with a crystalline sphere resting on top.
Jiang Mei approached the sphere cautiously, extending her detection abilities. "This is a recording device. Pre-Collapse cultivators used them to store information. Like jade slips but more advanced."
"Can you activate it?" Elder Feng asked.
"Maybe. Let me try." Jiang Mei placed her hand on the sphere and carefully channeled spiritual energy into it. The crystal began to glow brighter, and suddenly a projection appeared in the air above the pedestal.
The projection showed a man dressed in robes of an ancient style. His expression was desperate, and his voice when he spoke was strained with fear and exhaustion. The language was archaic, but Elder Han could translate.
"Day forty-seven of the siege. The Void Touched have breached the third defensive layer. We've lost over half our personnel. The corruption spreads faster than we can contain it. Elder Wei has ordered the sealing of the lower levels. If anyone finds this recording, do not go deeper. The research was a mistake. We should never have tried to harness that power."
The projection flickered and distorted. "The seals will hold for perhaps ten thousand years. After that, if the Void Touched break free, they will spread across the surface world. You must not let that happen. You must—"
The recording cut off abruptly. The crystal went dark and cracked down the middle, releasing a small puff of dust. Whatever information it contained was now lost forever.
Silence filled the chamber as everyone processed what they had just witnessed. Yan Kai felt ice forming in his stomach. Void Touched. Corruption. Seals that might have failed after three thousand years instead of ten thousand.
"Well," Hei Jun said quietly. "That's not encouraging."
"Elder Feng," one of the Crimson Dawn disciples said nervously. "Perhaps we should reconsider. If there's something sealed down there that was dangerous enough to destroy an entire pre-Collapse facility—"
"Then it may have killed our missing people," Elder Feng interrupted. "And if these seals have failed, it may already be loose on the surface world. We need to know what we're dealing with."
"He's right," Elder Tian agreed. "Retreating without information serves no purpose. We proceed, but with extreme caution. Shadow Wind scouts at maximum range. Detection specialists scanning constantly. Combat specialists ready to engage at a moment's notice."
They chose the central doorway and continued descending. The air grew colder and damper. The walls showed signs of damage now, with cracks and scorch marks that suggested ancient battles. They passed rooms filled with broken equipment and shattered furniture. Everything was covered in thick dust that hadn't been disturbed in millennia.
Until they found the first body.
It lay in a side corridor, slumped against the wall. A Crimson Dawn Sect disciple, recognizable by the remnants of red robes. The body was perfectly preserved, showing no signs of decay despite having been here for over a month. The disciple's face was frozen in an expression of terror, mouth open in a silent scream.
Wu Chen rushed forward. "That's Jin Hua. He was friends with my brother. They joined the sect together." He knelt beside the body and checked for any signs of life, though it was clearly hopeless. "What could have done this? There's no visible wounds, no signs of struggle."
Elder Feng examined the body carefully. "His spiritual core is completely empty. Not damaged or destroyed, but drained. As if something extracted every drop of spiritual energy from his body."
"Can that kill someone?" Chen Wu asked.
"Usually no. A drained spiritual core is debilitating but not immediately fatal. However, if the draining process was violent enough or if it extracted not just spiritual energy but life force as well..." Elder Feng didn't finish the sentence. He didn't need to.
They found six more bodies over the next hour of exploration. All preserved perfectly. All showing the same terror-filled expressions. All completely drained of spiritual energy. None of them showed any external injuries.
"This doesn't make sense," Shui Ling said. Her healer's training allowed her to examine the bodies in detail. "Their physical condition is perfect. Hearts stopped suddenly but not from any disease or poison I can identify. It's like their souls simply left their bodies all at once."
"Or were taken," Elder Han said darkly.
The chambers grew larger and more elaborate as they descended. They found what appeared to be research laboratories with equipment that no one could identify. Living quarters designed for dozens of occupants. A massive library with stone tablets instead of jade slips, all of them crumbled to dust when touched.
And then they found the seal.
It was impossible to miss. A circular chamber over a hundred feet in diameter, with walls covered in layer upon layer of formation arrays. The arrays glowed with multiple colors, creating a dizzying pattern that hurt to look at directly. In the center of the chamber was a pit that descended into darkness so complete that even their lights couldn't penetrate it.
Giant chains made from some kind of spiritual metal stretched across the pit's opening, anchored to eight massive pillars arranged around the chamber's perimeter. The chains glowed with the same multi-colored light as the formation arrays, clearly part of the sealing mechanism.
Three of the eight chains were broken. The severed ends lay on the ground, still glowing but obviously non-functional. The remaining five chains looked intact but were showing visible cracks and stress fractures.
"This is what remains of the seal," Elder Han said unnecessarily. Everyone could see the situation clearly. "Three anchors failed. Five remain. And those five are weakening."
"Is something still down there?" Jiang Mei asked. She stood as far from the pit as possible while still remaining with the group. "Can you sense anything?"
"I can sense everything and nothing," she replied, her voice shaking slightly. "There's so much spiritual energy coming from that pit that it's overwhelming my detection abilities. It's like trying to look at the sun. Too much light makes you blind."
A sound echoed from the depths. It might have been wind rushing through underground passages. Or it might have been breathing. Deep, slow, and patient breathing from something massive.
"We need to leave," Liang Shu said flatly. "Right now. Whatever is down there, we're not equipped to handle it."
"Agreed," Elder Feng said. "We've found the source of the disappearances. This is enough information to—"
A voice interrupted him. It came from everywhere and nowhere, seeming to vibrate through the stone itself rather than traveling through air. The voice was ancient and hungry, speaking in a language that somehow everyone understood despite having never heard it before.
"Visitors. How kind of you to come. I have been alone for so very long. Three thousand years of darkness and isolation. But you brought me such wonderful gifts. Fifty-eight fresh souls to sustain me while I waited for more."
The remaining five chains began to crack audibly, fractures spreading along their length like ice breaking on a frozen lake.
"The original expedition," Wu Chen said, horror filling his voice. "They're not missing. They're dead. All of them."
"Not dead," the voice corrected, almost cheerfully. "Consumed. Absorbed. Their energy now flows through me, extending my existence until the seals fail completely. Which, as you can see, will be very soon."
One of the five chains snapped completely. The sound was like thunder, and the entire chamber shook from the release of tension. Dust and small stones rained down from the ceiling.
"Four chains remain," the voice observed. "I wonder how many of you I'll need to consume to break the rest? All forty-seven disciples? Or perhaps just the eight elders? Their energy is so much richer."
Elder Tian's voice cut through the rising panic. "Retreat! Everyone move! Now!"
The formation dissolved as disciples turned and ran for the corridor they'd entered from. Yan Kai grabbed Chen Wu's arm and pulled him along as the younger disciple stood frozen in shock. Behind them, another chain snapped with that terrible thunderous sound.
Something emerged from the pit. Yan Kai caught only a glimpse as he ran—a shape made from living darkness, with too many limbs and eyes that glowed with stolen spiritual energy. The entity was enormous, easily fifty feet across, and still rising from the depths.
"Three chains!" the voice called after them, now tinged with laughter. "So close to freedom! Thank you for your contribution, little cultivators. Your fear tastes delicious!"
They ran through the corridors in a desperate sprint, abandoning all formation and discipline. The elders blasted through stone guardians that tried to block their path rather than fighting them properly. Disciples who tripped were hauled to their feet by their companions. No one was left behind.
The climb back to the surface felt endless. The entity didn't pursue them physically, but its voice followed them through the halls, alternating between laughter and promises of what it would do when the final chains broke.
They burst out of the entrance into late afternoon sunlight. The transition from underground darkness to open air was shocking. Yan Kai's lungs burned from running and his heart felt like it might explode from his chest. Around him, disciples collapsed to the ground, gasping and trembling.
Elder Feng immediately began drawing massive formation arrays in the ground around the ruins' entrance. "We seal this opening. Right now. All elders contribute your power."
The eight elders worked together, combining their spiritual energy into a formation that would have taken days for any individual to create. Within ten minutes, they had established a powerful barrier across the doorway, multiple layers of sealing energy that glowed bright enough to cast shadows in the daylight.
"Will that hold it?" Shui Ling asked shakily.
"Absolutely not," Elder Feng replied grimly. "When those last three chains break, that thing will come through our seal like it's made of paper. But it might slow it down for a few hours. Long enough for us to get far away and warn the other sects."
"What was it?" Chen Wu asked. "What kind of monster could survive for three thousand years sealed underground?"
Elder Han's face was pale and his hands were shaking. "A Void Touched. One of the entities that the pre-Collapse civilization was studying and trying to control. They exist in the spaces between realities, feeding on spiritual energy and life force. The ancient cultivators thought they could harness their power. Instead, the Void Touched corrupted everything they touched."
"And now one is about to break free," Yan Kai said quietly.
In the distance, from deep underground, they heard the sound of a fourth chain breaking.
"Not about to," Elder Tian corrected. "Already breaking free. We have perhaps a day before it emerges. Maybe less."
The rescue mission had become something far worse than anyone had anticipated. They had come seeking missing disciples. Instead, they had discovered a threat that could endanger the entire region.
And they were completely unprepared to stop it.