[Vol. 1] Chapter 28 - All Tied Up Like Dumplings
Xiaolan had gave up and let Lin Feiyu join. Maybe the more, the merrier? As long as I get some good luck.
As it turned out, when misfortune rained on her, it poured nonstop.
The path to the shrine is halfway down the mountains, way past the servant quarters and outer walls, closer to the foothills.
But it was completely blocked by a group of bandits.
Xiaolan grimaced.
What did I do in my past life? Commit sloth?
The supposed guards they brought along either died or ran off. So much for "protection." Well, aside from Lin Feiyu, who got left behind.
The trio stood frozen like lambs being herded by a pack of wolves. Lin Feiyu stood with her fists raised, while Xiashi trembled, held tightly in Xiaolan's protective embrace.
"How lucky we are to have caught pretty, gorgeous ladies~" a disgusting bandit cackled. He was dressed better than all the lackeys around him. Probably the leader, especially since he reeked of musk.
Lin Feiyu glared menacingly, her hand instinctively reaching for the sword she'd left behind in her haste. Her eyes narrowed as she caught a flicker of suspicious dark energy in her periphery.
Xiaolan shuddered, tightly embracing Xiashi as if she could absorb the fairy beauty's luck. To everyone else, it looked like she was protecting Xiashi, but the truth was the complete opposite.
Xiashi was stunned by Xiaolan's firm hold, as if she might dissipate into thin air at any second. Her gaze was fixed on Xiaolan's dark brown eyes, which shone like honey in the sunlight.
Getting robbed as soon as we leave the Lin estate? What kind of luck is this? This is unfair! I'm still a newbie!
Xiaolan cursed internally, regretting her decision to walk to the temple with the other two. Her original plan had simply been to spend more time with Xiashi under the guise of praying.
As the bandits encircled them, Xiaolan chose arrogance.
"How dare you! We're members of the Lin family! If you don't want to die, leave now!" she threatened.
"..." Lin Feiyu stared at her like one would at an idiot. What are you doing?! Her stunt had just sabotaged any chance of escape.
"The Lin family? Then you're all fat money bags!" The bandit leader cackled with extra arrogance, licking his lips. He had a bulbous nose, a wild mess of hair, and reeked of stench.
Lin Feiyu quickly counted the bandits—twenty in total. Tch. She guided her qi to her arm muscles, a familiar form, but without a sword to use as a conduit, it settled in her fists.
"Get them! We'll be rich!"
"Charge!"
Xiaolan panicked and flailed her arms. The pendant tassels on her waist jiggled, reacting to some unseen energy.
Xiashi, now released from Xiaolan's hold, neatly slapped a bandit across the face with her slender hand.
Lin Feiyu's fist connected with a bandit's jaw, while her free hand slammed into another's dantian.
"Xiaolan! Quit dawdling and start fighting!" she yelled, then forcefully pushed out her qi, shoving the bandits back.
"Bastard! Now I'll use my ultimate move!" the bandit leader yelled, lunging forward.
Lin Feiyu expected a fist, but instead, the leader threw a cloud of powder into their faces, paralyzing them instantly.
Finally, Lin Feiyu was certain of their vile intentions.
"Shameless, using despicable tactics on me!" she yelled, her voice filled with dramatic indignation. "I'm an alpha, not an omega! You will never have my body nor my heart!"
Xiaolan was frothing at the mouth. Was that intelligence-erasing powder they gave you?! she screamed internally. The bandit leader isn't after your virtue, he's after the money!
Soon, all three were tied up like dumplings deep inside a cave, a temporary lair of sorts.
Lin Feiyu was steeped in fear, convinced the bandits were gay.
Xiaolan had lost all will to live.
And Xiashi could only look on, deeply concerned for the two idiots she was stranded with.
Xiaolan was sulking. Not only was her looting canceled, but her plans to befriend Xiashi were ruined too. Zero progress on gathering information either.
Sensing the gloom, Xiashi shook her head with determination. "Don't give up. We can find something sharp to cut the ropes!"
Xiaolan's admiration for Xiashi grew even more.
That's right! Being tied up and hopeless with our qi sealed by weakening powder didn't mean it was over yet!
Since it was a cave, it was super dim. There was a chance they'd find some stalagmites. And there they were. Stuck in a cage with bars, one stalagmite was reachable and nearby.
Xiashi grunted. So did Lin Feiyu. They ground and ground their ropes against the stalagmite. "Keep going! The ropes will snap soon!" Xiashi whispered urgently.
Xiaolan, however, was on watch duty. She'd volunteered to keep an eye on the bandits but was too busy watching the live-action romcom playing out before her.
"Oh! Ohh!!" she squealed, eyes sparkling with excitement. "Lin Feiyu, focus and go harder! Xiashi, show more initiative!"
A fan's excitement reached its peak, so fanatical she didn't even notice she was drawing qi from her waist tassel. Snap! The ropes fell away.
"..." Both Lin Feiyu and Xiashi stared at her.
Lin Feiyu glared. "Xiaolan, aren't you a cultivator too? What were you doing this whole time?"
"Hey, I got hit by the powder too! I don't know where that qi came from!" Xiaolan defended herself.
Free from the ropes, the three were still caged like birds. With the powder's effects fading fastest from her, Xiaolan now had to bend the iron bars.
Xiashi whispered, "Push on both sides gently..." her voice a dangerous caress in Xiaolan's ear.
Lin Feiyu warned, "Pipe down. You'll alert the bandits."
What do I do? I transmigrated too early, I'm still in the tutorial stage, and I have no idea how this cultivation thing works! Xiaolan cried internally. What now?!
Gripping the iron bar, she concentrated. Can I do what I just did? Just focus until my strength makes a miracle happen? She pulled more qi from her waist tassel, draining its luster further.
THUNK!
A loud sound echoed as the iron bars tore loose.
CLANK!
"What's going on?!"
"The hell was that sound just now?"
The loud clank of the iron bars hitting the stone floor had not gone unnoticed. From deeper in the cave system, shouts of alarm immediately echoed back.
"The money bags! They're escaping!" a bandit yelled.
Lin Feiyu whirled on Xiaolan, her expression furious. "You idiot! You drew their attention!"
"I didn't mean to!" Xiaolan panicked, her eyes wide as the sound of rushing footsteps grew louder.
"Let's just get out of here," Xiashi immediately said, her voice calm but urgent.
The three turned to run, a plan that lasted only a second. Two heavy thuds sounded behind Xiaolan as both Xiashi and Lin Feiyu collapsed to the ground.
"Ugh, that damn powder..." Lin Feiyu groaned, struggling to push herself up on shaking arms. She had been standing in front when the powder hit, taking the brunt of it for the two of them.
"I... twisted my ankle..." Xiashi whimpered from where she'd fallen, wincing from the ache.
If there was hell on earth, it'd be this. A scum among scum would leave the two and escape, but the very thought left a bitter taste in Xiaolan's mouth. She couldn't abandon them.
"They're getting away!!"
"After them!"
The thunder of many footsteps converged on their location at once, bandits shouting as they ran.
"Let go of me!!" Lin Feiyu grunted as Xiaolan desperately slung her weight over her shoulder.
"I'm saving your life! Stop struggling!" she yelled back, her arms aching as she tried to heave a limping Xiashi up with her other arm.
"Then get your hands off my butt!" Lin Feiyu complained, her voice filled with outrage.
"You're worried about that at a time like this?!" Xiaolan panted heavily, finally managing to stand with the two of them draped over her shoulders like ungrateful sacks of rice.
Then, a deafening blast from behind sent the three flying forward, slamming them into a solid wall of rock. The path was a dead end. As they struggled on the floor in a daze, Lin Feiyu grunted, looking up to see the looming bandit leader standing over Xiaolan.
Immediately, she forced her qi through her blocked pathways. Her Alpha constitution, built for resilience and brute force, tore through the weakening poison faster than the others could manage. She threw her body in front of hers as a shield.
"Impossible! The poison effects should last another hour!" the bandit leader grunted, his face contorting in disbelief.
Lin Feiyu growled, her voice raw with fury. "I went through all this shit because of you!" She unleashed a punch that sent the first charging bandit flying.
"Tied up like a rice dumpling, and I even got groped by that woman... because of you!!!" she roared, fiercely exhausting her qi with every blow.
In a final, explosive release of power, Lin Feiyu's fist slammed into the ground. Her arm acted as the sword she didn't have, and the very floor of the cave system tore apart under the force.
Xiaolan watched with keen interest, while Xiashi, still massaging her aching ankle, remained wary. Xiashi looked down and her eyes widened. "It's... it's splitting."
"Hm? Yeah, the sound is ear-splitting," Xiaolan nodded, thinking the show was better than any movie. All she was missing was popcorn and a drink.
"The ground beneath you is splitting!" Xiashi clarified, but her warning came a heartbeat too late.
With a final, groaning crack, the floor gave way. The three of them tumbled down into the newly opened hole, plummeting into a darkness that revealed the cave ran far deeper than any of them had ever expected.