The Coiled Dragon’s Legacy

The forest remained eerily still, but Li Feng knew better than to assume the danger had passed. The battle with Jiang Ren had shaken him more than he cared to admit. The tablet, now secured in Zheng Wei's grip, pulsed faintly with an unseen power, its energy humming against the quiet tension of the night.

Zheng Wei's brow furrowed as he studied the inscriptions. "This tablet is more than just a guide. It's a key."

Mei Lian, still catching her breath, gave him a sidelong glance. "A key to what?"

Zheng Wei shook his head. "I'm not sure. But it's responding to something. It almost feels… alive."

Li Feng exhaled, scanning their surroundings. "We don't have time to solve riddles. We need to move before Jiang Ren returns with reinforcements."

No sooner had the words left his mouth than a low, guttural growl rumbled through the trees. The ground trembled beneath their feet, and the shadows thickened unnaturally. Mei Lian turned, her daggers poised. "Tell me that was just the wind."

Zheng Wei paled. "Something is waking up."

The trees groaned as their twisted branches swayed, forming unnatural patterns against the dark sky. From the mist, glowing eyes flickered—one pair at first, then a dozen more. Li Feng tightened his grip on his sword, his pulse quickening.

A monstrous shape took form, its skeletal frame wrapped in writhing black mist. A guardian spirit—twisted and corrupted by years of dormant rage.

"It's bound to the relic!" Zheng Wei shouted. "It won't let us leave with it!"

The creature let out a bone-chilling screech and lunged. Li Feng barely managed to sidestep as a clawed appendage tore through the space he had occupied seconds ago. The force of the attack sent dirt and leaves flying. Mei Lian rolled beneath the beast, slashing at its legs, but her blades passed through harmlessly.

Zheng Wei planted his staff and summoned a barrier, the shimmering wall of energy barely holding as the creature's misty tendrils lashed against it. "We can't fight it with normal attacks! We need to sever its connection to the relic!"

Li Feng clenched his jaw, eyes darting to the tablet in Zheng Wei's hands. If it was the key, then it was also the lock.

"Give me the tablet!" Li Feng ordered.

Zheng Wei hesitated for only a second before tossing it to him. The moment Li Feng's fingers closed around the stone, the Coiled Dragon Ring flared to life, flooding him with a searing wave of energy. His vision blurred, the world around him shifting into something otherworldly.

He saw flashes—memories of a past long buried. Warriors standing before the same beast, battling it with the same desperation. A final act of defiance before being consumed.

Li Feng snapped back to reality just as the guardian lunged again. This time, he didn't move to dodge. He raised the tablet, channeling the energy that coursed through him. The inscriptions glowed brighter, responding to his will.

"Be gone!" he commanded, his voice resonating with an unfamiliar power.

A pulse of blinding light erupted from the tablet, slamming into the guardian. The beast shrieked, its mist unraveling, its skeletal form crumbling into the ground. The night fell silent once more.

Li Feng staggered back, panting. Zheng Wei caught his arm, steadying him. "What… what was that?"

Li Feng stared at the fading glow of the relic. "A warning."

Mei Lian sheathed her daggers. "Then we'd better heed it."

The relic was theirs—but something told Li Feng this was only the beginning.