The Princess And The Lord

Zhao Li Xin scrutinized the ring. It was a gold ring with a red ruby on it. There was nothing special about it except for looking as pretty as its owner. Zhao Li Xin looked into the ring and saw a thin web that restricted entry. Zhao Li Xin smirked and broke the spatial ring like it was nothing. Everything inside the ring fell onto the ground neatly. 

Those who did not know Zhao Li Xin gasped. Only a high-leveled Armament master could do such a thing. They wondered if Zhao Li Xin was an Armament Master. Their level of fear of him increased to another level.

A weapon, a box of jewelry, and a few cases filled with gold and silver first fell from the ring. More treasure poured on the ground and a few people watched them with green eyes. It seemed the Heavenly Jade Pavilion was very rich since their young miss had amassed so much treasure in her ring. They could only imagine the sect master's wealth. 

Zhao Li Xin ignored the mountain of treasures as his eyes zeroed in on a small wooden box. He stepped on an expensive painting and delicate jade without care while the rest grieved at the destroyed valuables.

Zhao Li Xin opened the box and found a map drawn on an animal skin. It was a map of the ancient tomb. The map detailed the traps and secret passages as one headed to the forbidden area. He relaxed as he thought he could quickly find Lory with the map. "Let's go!"

"Milord, what about this woman?" Mong Ki used his sword to point at the bleeding Huang Ni Yang.

"Leave her for the Cimmerian wolves! It will be out truce offering," Zhao Li Xin kept the map inside his spatial ring and walked away without glancing at Huang Ni Yang.

"Yes, Milord!" Mong Ki sheathed his sword and followed his master.

The crowd released the breathe they were holding once Zhao Li Xin's figure disappeared from their sight. Huang Ni Yang begged them for help with her eyes but no one wanted to help her. She was the reason things had turned out the way they did. They lost many friends, brothers, and comrades in arms because of her selfishness. Their eyes were instead fixated on the mountain of treasure in front of them as greed set in. 

"Let's share it before the Cimmerian wolves return," One of them suggested.

"Yes, hurry. I don't mind getting anything," Another one agreed.

They rummaged through the treasure without bothering about Huang Ni Yang. She wanted to shout for them to stop but she was too exhausted to make a sound. She could only helplessly watch them as they grabbed her treasure like a bunch of bandits.

A long howling sound could be heard from a distance giving them a pause. It was a sign of the wolves coming back. They hastened their pace.

"Hurry! Let us leave this place!!" Someone warned the others. They all scurried away with their stolen goods.

Huang Ni Yang desperately tried to scream for help. Her face was stained with tears and mucus but she no longer cared. She gasped as she tried to talk and could only whine quietly, "Hel…help…me…"

She was left alone in her own pool of blood. She heard the wolves heading towards her. She could hear their heavy breathing and their paws stomping the ground. Huang Ni Yang whimpered in fear as she wished Zhao Li Xin had killed her instead. Why would he choose to torture her this was? WHY?

The loud cry of despair could be heard throughout the cave as the wolves attacked. The hairs at the back of her former comrades' necks rose at the eerie sound. They all knew what would happen but the truth still sent chills down to their spines.

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Lory kept trying to find clues to opening the door from the other side of the door once she got separated from Zhao Li Xin. She only placed her arms on her waist in defeat after an hour passed. 

Girsha tilted his little head as he watched the door [What now?]

[Well, I will do what my teacher once said, 'Stay put until they find you if you got separated from your friends]

[Weren't you five years old at that time?] 

[Hey…! I was six!] Lory corrected him.

Girsha shook his head helplessly as he wondered how that made it better. His princess could be unreliable at times.

The pebbles on her feet moved abruptly as they were in deep contemplation. Girsha and Lory tilted their heads in the same direction.

[Earthquake?] Lory pondered.

[Wait a minute…] Girsha looked around with suspicion.

[OH, CRAP!] The floor beneath Lory's feet started to crack. She took a step back but the crack kept spreading around her. She jumped away from cracks as it spread while she cursed. The floor crumbled down like a block of thin ice in the lake. The cracks speed double up at a high-speed.

[SHIT… SHIT… SHIT!] The more she cursed the faster Lory moved. She first hopped from side to side but started running like hell when the floor beneath her begun to crumble. The cracks were literally chasing her as they soon caught up to her.

Lory took a long jump before the floor behind her completely disappeared. Sadly, her legs were not long enough to make the jump but her quick reflexes enabled her to grab the solid floor ahead as the cracks came to a sudden stop.

Lory turned and looked down at the iron spikes that lay beneath the crumbled floor. There were many human bones pierced by iron spikes. It seemed like they were others who had fallen through the crumbling floor. Lory thanked her luck.

'That's awful ways to die', Lory thought as she pulled her body to the top. She slowly crawled on the solid floor to test its strength. She grunted heavily and lay face-first on the floor once she was sure it was sturdy enough to hold her.

[You okay?] Girsha pecked her head.

[It could have been worse…] Lory groaned.

[Yes. You could have turned into minced meat if you fell through...] Girsha was relieved she was okay. He gently kicked her head with his small but sturdy claws [Come on! We need to keep moving!]

Lory grunted loudly before she pushed herself off the floor. She checked herself for any wounds or broken bones as she stood. She was fine apart from a few scratches. She kept moving forward until she reached the end of the tunnel. Lory covered her eyes from dust with her hand as a gust of cold wind blew towards her. There was only darkness ahead. She got a stick, wrapped it with a cloth, and lit it with the fire crystals from her ring. She raised the torch to see her surroundings. 

A rooted tree was hanging from the ceiling and she was at the edge of a cliff. [do you see anything?]

She asked Girsha as he had better vision. Girsha flew down the cliff and circled it a few times before returning to her.

[There's an entrance below] Girsha said.

Lory threw her torch down the cliff to see how far the entrance was. The torch flickered before it died as it fell. The entrance was further than she thought. The thought of the workout she had to go through made Lory tired. Zhao Li Xin had pampered her and she had turned into a pig. She lazed around as she no longer worked. She now felt ashamed for being in such a predicament…

She took out a rope and knotted it on a big stone close to the cliff. She then secured the rope around her waist. Girsha watched the girl from the side as his mind went back to the past, to the days they would venture into secret dungeons together. The memories were bittersweet.

[Lory, is that rope alright for you?] Girsha suddenly asked.

[Of course, why?] She was prepared to climb down the cliff.

[Well, you know…lately, you have been eating too many sweets and you never exercise. So…you are a little…] Girsha made a wide gesture with his wings.

[Don't you dare use the 'F' word when referring to me!] Lory raised her index finger and warned him sternly.

[Meh…] Girsha rolled his eyes at her gesture. 

She tightly gripped the stone with one hand while her leg shifted to another foothold. She then used her other hand to feel the wall in search of another stone to grip. Her actions were careful as she moved.

Her fingers turned numb and her body was soaked with sweat fifteen minutes of descent. Her stamina was bad because she stopped exercising when she arrived in this world. She blamed herself for being lazy and made a note to start exercising if she left the tomb alive. She looked down and estimated she would reach her destination in another ten minutes. She took a deep breath and continued to descend.

She finally reached the ledge. There was a thin footbridge she needed to cross to reach the entrance. She had to be extra careful as a slip meant a dangerous fall to the bottom. She couldn't help but complain about her tough life. Lory crossed the bridge slowly and carefully. Her hands were spread out to balance her body as she walked. The wind from below made her stagger a few times but she managed to keep her balance until she reached the end of the bridge.

Lory fell on her knees while breathing heavily. She complained, [Damn, I miss flying…]

[You and me sister!] Girsha also sighed with relief when she crossed the bridge. Girsha hopped Zhao Li Xin would give the Huang siblings hell for leading to their current predicament.

Girsha's dream came true as Zhao Li Xin showed the siblings hell.