Murim Recurve

Re'Kha sensed the blank space around her become denser and denser, rendering her perception of the area useless. It was soon turning sharp, the same as what she witnessed when sensing an Elemental Qi Essence.

To avoid the scouts from sensing her entire body and learning of her condition, she shrouded herself with Metal Qi using the Metal Qi Essence. The only part of her body bereft of it was her feet that were submerged within the water. It allowed the scouts to constantly sense her presence, thereby knowing that she wasn't under the control of the Kalhas.

This was what she desired the most. If they noticed that she was controlled by the Kalhas, their approach would become different. But, if they saw that she was still alive and was in a weakened state, they would act accordingly.

A Harmoniser's inclination could be determined by their Pranic Avatar. Those that possessed a Nerou were scouts, considering all the advantages they possessed in this field. Only an idiot would embark on a field disjointed from their advantages. No Clan would allow such stupidity to exist.

And, this fact alone gave Re'Kha valuable information. The fact that her pursuers sent scouts and hadn't dispatched an assassin unit spoke volumes of their needs. They probably needed her either to be alive or in an intact condition. As her Clan didn't possess either of them, Re'Kha was assured they weren't allies.

Moreover, considering the actions they committed before, even if they had set free the individuals that completed the tasks, it proved that they weren't a group of individuals that were tasked with saving people.

'There is a good chance they were nurtured by the Burmat Re Clan. If not, then they must be one of their rival Clans hoping to capture me and threaten Burmat Re'Shi. Anything can be possible.' Re'Kha thought, shaking her head as she focused back on the task at hand.

The Metal Qi filled the interior of the Aeki while Re'Kha left some breathing space. As it was shielded by the body of the Aeki, with the entrances blocked by the Metal Qi, it would be able to resist the Fear Qi of the Kalhas for a certain duration.

To increase the duration, Re'Kha made the Metal Qi seep into the Aeki, turning it a notch heavier immediately. Re'Kha held a cloth strip in her hands. It was the one that was tied to the granary's entrance. Its other end was inserted through the hole Re'Kha had created at the bottom of the Aeki's sides.

As it was completely underwater, she didn't have to worry about getting affected through that for the time being. She had also made another hole on the backside, through which a cloth strip connecting to the granary's entrance was inserted through. It was meant to close it.

The Metal Qi spread through the two cloth strips, blocking the entrance from any other elemental Qi. The scouts were still able to sense her presence thanks to the numerous tiny holes she had poked in the Aeki—through which water circulated.

'I would still be affected to a fair extent from these holes.' Re'Kha thought, patting her clothes, 'I'm counting on you to absorb the Fear Qi.'

There wasn't much air within the Aeki, so Re'Kha had to hurry. Moreover, the scouts were approaching her position. Re'Kha lifted the Aeki for a moment, replenishing the air within before placing it back, tugging at the cloth strip to open the granary's entrance.

The entrance opened with a rumble, stopping when the opening was as wide as her little finger's length. Many Kalha squeezed in through the gap. There wasn't any Water Qi in the air thanks to the previous exchange. Moreover, there were faint traces of Fear Qi, so the Kalha were more willing to enter this time.

Re'Kha didn't know how many Kalhas had entered in the short duration she had kept the entrance open. She didn't dare to check their quantity, pulling the cloth strip on the other side to close it shut.

There was pin-drop silence in the granary, with the Kalhas that had entered turning silent immediately. They just floated in one place silently, absorbing the Fear Qi in the air. Until they expended it completely, they probably wouldn't move or make any sounds. This gave Re'Kha crucial time to take a breather.

The faint Fear Qi travelling to her through the water was easily absorbed by the cloth banner, keeping her mental state at an optimal level. The Fear Qi prevented the Kalhas from making a scene, which was precisely what she was gunning for when she killed the final batch of Kalhas before, despite the tremendous risk it posed.

'Now, all I need to do is wait and retaliate.' Re'Kha kept up with her act of fear, trembling silently while making it seem her body was weak. She made use of all her knowledge to pull off the perfect scene of a helpless woman that had lost all hope but still wished to live.

The scouts entered the settlement through the west gate, their pace slow but steady. Their ears were completely blocked to prevent hearing any sounds while their noses were filled with a lot of herbs and filters, trying to reduce the potency of the Kalhas' odour as much as possible.

They had their eyes shut, depending on the Water Qi perception of themselves and their respective Pranic Avatars to move. The leader was the first to summon his Pranic Avatar, with the rest told to wait.

Normally, by blocking and dampening their senses to such an extent, communication would be impossible, but the scouts moved in sync, with not one of their steps uncertain or feeling out of place.

The leader raised his right leg, landing it on the floor using his heels first, bringing his toes down after a small delay, causing a ripple to form in the water that moved forward. The ripple had three crests, with the one at the forward being twice the one at the back.

The moment he did that, his disciple walking to his back placed his right foot within the water and moved it horizontally, creating a larger, single-crest ripple. It was a mode of communication they had established using the environment at play.