WINDS OF TAINIA

Marshall had been assigned to Calla Akeya's unit, which was composed of five Four Season Contest winners.

They were headed to the Tainia stronghold to activate the emergency mechanism. Inside the stronghold was a castle, and inside the castle was a chamber of condensed spiritual energy. That was all Marshall knew about it.

The stronghold itself was situated on the northern border, right by the river flowing between Sky Oriels and Jilu, called by the same name as the stronghold.

On the way, Calla Akeya gave the disciples repetitive warnings of possible demonic presence to keep them alert.

However, the stars must have aligned favorably because they reached the river without running into any crimson-clawed friends.

Tainia river was gushing and rushing behind the large stone structure. Wind was tearing at everyone's hair, the breeze falling and rising in intensity. Gray clouds hurried along, forcefully stirred around by the gales.

"It's windy," Marshall verbalized the obvious, and another forceful gust of wind smacked a few of his curls into his mouth.

"Pfft! Pheh!" he spat them out with a frown.

Lai Rylan snorted at the sight. "You hungry already? Eating your own hair?"

Marshall brushed his hair away, shooting a challenging glance at his friend.

"Say that again and I'll yank your hair out of that bun so you know how it feels."

Calla Akeya interrupted them. "Focus, please. We are in the middle of a serious mission. Do not let your guard down."

The two zipped their mouths and followed her to the gate, along with Calla Kai and Lou Yumei.

She took out a chain of keys and selected the rustiest one. As Calla Akeya brought it close to the lock, a strange pattern glimmered across the gate, repelling her hand like an anti-magnet.

Marshall leaned in, studying the unfamiliar pattern. "You might need to remove the seal first."

"A seal...?" Calla Kai murmured, joining the huddled figures.

The two siblings exchanged concerned glances.

"There were not supposed to be any seals," Calla Akeya stated.

Lai Rylan and Lou Yumei were keeping watch close by, while the other three stared at the unwelcome discovery.

Marshall tried to touch it, but the spiritual light pulsated with a warning. The pattern was in the shape of a flower, one he wasn't familiar with.

"Do you know how to remove it?" he asked Calla Akeya.

She shook her head in denial with a tense expression. "It is not a seal of Sky Oriels. I do not know who could have placed it."

Calla Akeya went to get Lou Yumei, bringing her to the gate. Lou Yumei cast a nervous glance at the seal, then back at the unit leader. Her purple robes billowed unsurely in the wind.

"Are you familiar with this seal?" Calla Akeya inquired.

"This seal...?" Lou Yumei repeated, her gaze flitting between everyone present.

Marshall glanced at her. "Have you never seen this type of a seal before?"

Lou Sect's specialties were arts, ancient tools and seals. If Lou Yumei couldn't recognize the type of seal on the gate, the mission was doomed.

"Please, take a closer look," Calla Akeya urged.

Lou Yumei nodded and took a step closer, scrutinizing the glowing flower. "It's a Ribbon Orchid seal. These are incredibly rare. Only few people know how to place such seals."

Calla Akeya's firm stare met her nervous eyes. "Can you remove it?"

Lou Yumei averted her gaze and glanced down regretfully. "Only the person who placed the seal can remove it."

"Then is there a way to break it?" Marshall questioned.

"No!" Lou Yumei exclaimed, then quickly composed herself. "No... If you break it, the consequences could be fatal."

Calla Akeya watched her contemplatively. "Can you tell us everything you know about it?"

Lou Yumei nodded, taking a deep breath before explaining.

"The Ribbon Orchid seal responds to specific frequencies. Upon placing the seal, the issuer has to play or sing a melody to lock it. To remove it, the same melody has to be repeated."

Marshall hummed in thought.

"Are there any songs about the Tainia river?" he asked loud enough for Lai Rylan to hear as well.

"Not that I know of!" Lai Rylan yelled back over the wind, left alone to watch out for any demons.

Calla Akeya thought for a moment, then said, "I know only one."

She cleared her throat and sang a few lines. The seal didn't budge, its glow indifferent. No reaction to the song whatsoever. The disciples stared at each other, scratching their heads.

However, they didn't get to think for too long. An odd rumbling sound came from down the river, outweighing the slams of waves crashing against each other.

"What is that sound?! Do you hear th—" Calla Kai exclaimed.

"Shh!" Lai Rylan cut him short.

Everyone froze to listen. The five disciples stood stiller than a lake on a windless day, carefully looking around.

The sound resembled the stomping of hooves or charging of an army… Perhaps both. By then, everyone had reached the same realization.

Calla Kai unleashed a wave of panic.

"What to do? What do we do?! We have to get into the stronghold, but we can't! Where do we go?! There's nothing but trees around!"

He grimaced, covering his ears to escape the threatening sound of the approaching demon army.

Marshall and Lai Rylan were already gripping a wooden bow and the red hilt of a spiritual sword, facing the direction of the sound.

Calla Akeya nudged her brother, removing his hands from his ears, then encouragingly tapped the sheathed sword by his side.

"Prepare your weapon. Do not act like you have lost the battle before it has even begun."

Then she drew her own sword with a resonant zing.

"They're fast!" Lou Yumei noted, her daggers ready to swing.

A swarm of red, fleshy bodies emerged from behind the trees, making their way towards the stronghold. Accompanying them was a mixed group of midnight blue and pale-colored robes.

It seemed that guards from Jilu were working alongside another unit from Sky Oriels.

Marshall's eyes caught a glimpse of a frosty blade slicing through the crowd, driving the demons closer to the river. Cheimon flared with blinding light as the snow deity swiped four creatures into the water.

"Push the demons into the river!" a command rang out from one of the Jilu Sect's guards.