The sun crept over Crestmoore's rooftops, painting the sky in hues of amber and violet. I stood outside The Iron Bloom, my cursed 30-kilogram weight from N'Nazmuz grinding my joints, stamina leaking like a cracked barrel. My repaired Pyroclast Dual Swords—Ember's Fang and Blaze's Claw—hung at my hips, their Fire Qi humming faintly. The Starforged Tunic and Shadowveil Cloak draped over me, boosting my reflexes despite the curse's drag. Varkoth, my Peak Scholar Darkness Basilisk Emperor, coiled as a Shadowveil bracer on my wrist, his silent hisses urging action. Stinky, my Peak Novice Earth beetle, was tucked in a Beast Ring, safe but useless for now. Bera, Tira, and Lila had been missing for 11 days in the Ice Dungeon, and the guilt of letting them go alone gnawed at me worse than the curse.
I'd rallied a team at the Mercenary Sect hall, a motley crew of 14 cultivators:
Zephyr, now Beginner Grand Master Darkness, his shadow-claws sharper than ever;
Vira, the curvy blonde merchant with Middle Master Water Qi;
Gorzka, the green-skinned orc sparking Beginner Grand Master Lightning;
Grom, a stout dwarf with Peak Expert Earth Qi;
Sylph, a nimble halfling wielding Beginner Master Wind;
Aric, a hotheaded human with Middle Expert Fire;
Kael, a Night Elf with Beginner Scholar Star Qi;
and seven others, a mix of Fire, Water, and Earth cultivators, all itching for glory.
Elder Korn, Peak Scholar Wood, joined with three of his Beast Tamer Guild students—two Middle Experts (Wood and Earth) and one Beginner Scholar (Water). Their vines and tremors were handy, but I wasn't counting on them outshining my blades.
As we checked gear, two massive shapes loomed from the morning mist. My jaw dropped—Rocky, the Zenoite Krovar, and Vuk, the Silver Wolf, beasts I'd contracted in Opeka to guard the village. They were bigger, their auras pulsing stronger, each two sublevels up from their old Beginner Master ranks, now Middle Master Earth and Ice, respectively.
"Rocky? Vuk? What the hells?" I said, gripping Ember's Fang.
Rocky's gravelly hide glinted. "Goran sent us. Heard your girls got lost in that dungeon. He's disappointed, elf—says you let them wander off."
Vuk's icy breath swirled. "We're stronger now, thanks to his training. Here to drag your sorry arse through this."
Goran's jab stung, but I smirked. "Fine, you overgrown pets. Stick close and don't eat my loot." The team chuckled, tension easing. I promised an equal split of whatever we scavenged, and their eyes lit up—greed's a great motivator.
Pp
We marched to the Ice Dungeon, Valthorne's forests whispering danger. The entrance was a jagged maw of frost and stone, swallowing light. "Eyes sharp, blades sharper," I said, stepping in. The air turned frigid, walls glistening with ice. My tunic's Star Qi flickered, cutting the curse's drag just enough to keep me nimble.
Trouble hit fast. A pack of Middle Expert Ice Wolves lunged from a side tunnel, their blue eyes glowing like cursed gems. "Form up!" I barked. Gorzka's lightning fried one, Vira's water whips snared another, and Sylph's wind gusts scattered their formation. I swung Ember's Fang, the curse slowing my arc, but its Fire Qi seared a wolf's flank. Rocky and Vuk tore through the rest, claws and fangs shredding. I scavenged pelts and Ice Qi fangs, tossing them into my spatial ring. "First haul—split it later," I said, winking. The team nodded, morale high.
Deeper in, we faced a swarm of Beginner Scholar Frost Spiders, their icy legs clicking. Aric's fireballs melted two, but a spider's frost web caught his arm, freezing it. I hacked it free with Blaze's Claw, cursing the weight dragging me. Korn's vines crushed three, but a spider speared one of his students, the Middle Expert Wood cultivator, through the chest. He dropped, blood freezing. "Keep moving!" I growled, looting spider silk and an Ice Qi core. Thirteen left.
Next came a Beginner Master Glacial Serpent, its scales shimmering like frozen glass. Kael's starlight bolts dazed it, but its tail whipped Grom's leg, cracking bone. Vuk's jaws clamped its neck, and my Heaven Splitter finished it. I grabbed its scales and a frost fang, promising, "Equal shares, you lot." Grom limped, but we pushed on, the dungeon's chill sinking deeper.
After hours, we hit a shimmering Ice Qi barrier, its surface pulsing. A stone tablet stood nearby, carved with High Elven runes: "Only the bearer of the First's mark may pass." The team poked at it, clueless. My split-leaf amulet, tucked in my ring, pulsed faintly—I knew it was the key but kept my trap shut. No need to flaunt my High Elven literacy and look like a pompous git. I traced a rune, channeling a bit of curse-fueled strength. The barrier flickered and dissolved.
Vira blinked. "How'd you do that, Killy?"
"Lucky poke," I lied, shrugging. "Let's go."
We crossed into a darker tunnel, ice thicker, shadows writhing. My gut twisted—Bera, Tira, and Lila were close, but so was death. I scavenged more silk and cores, promising the team a fair cut. Their nods kept us tight, but I knew the dungeon wasn't done chewing us up.
We found a small cavern to rest, frost biting our skin. I handed out energy potions, checking wounds. Korn's remaining students patched Grom, while Zephyr scouted ahead. "We're not done," I said, voice steady. "My girls are in there, and we're pulling them out."