Deadly wind twisters

As the figure behind them started scheming, everyone now looked haggard and bloody. This entire path they had crossed was not as easy as it seemed to be before. Some petals had been blown away in their direction a couple of times.

The courtyard, which was bathed in moonlight, had multiple pillars on all ends. In the middle were five statues erected there, each holding a different item in hand. The statues formed an enclosed circle, and in the middle was a large empty space. One held a long sword, the other held a jade flute, and another held a marble. The last two held a zither and a fan. This was all too confusing, but since they didn't see any reason moving towards it, they just ignored it.

Even if there were treasures there, they could not claim any since the winds were especially strong in the middle of the courtyard.

They had tried to find safer routes of crossing but ultimately failed each time. All paths seemed to lead to a dead end, and even if they had somehow decided to stay for a while, time did not allow for any of that. Moreover, the rations they had brought with them were now all but gone, so staying would only bring them closer to death. There was only one path, and that was forward through the edges. 

They no longer had the thought that this courtyard was someone else's garden. There was danger everywhere, and it did not seem like they would be able to completely cross the courtyard.

So how can such a place be a human residence?

Li Tian, who had been following at the back of the group, felt strange and looked to Wu Zhengyi. He didn't have a clear grasp of what was bothering, but it was only when he turned to his left to see a wind, which seemed to slowly creep up onto them. A dozen leaf petals flowers could be seen floating about it. It looked as if it was a member of their group left behind.

Looking at this, he frowned, but his thoughts were interrupted by a shout from the front. 

"Stay focused. Here comes two more!"

Everyone's faces stiffened when they saw the two nonentities twisting in a cylindrical manner like two small hurricanes. They each seemed to carry more leaves and petals than the winds they had passed before.

Bai Ming and Li Tian's hearts jumped to their throats, rendering them speechless for different reasons.

Bai Ming nearly cursed outloud, "Dogshi..."

What bull trial?

How can this be considered a trial?

Was this not a natural disaster?

At this moment, he couldn't care about whether his ruthless master would find out about his thoughts. He silently called out in his mind to that mysterious enigmatic Dao Gu. Unfortunately for him, no answer came. 

Cui Rong's weary eyes looked at these two twisters in their path and turned to look back only to see another small wind twister slowly following behind them as if to block their retreat.

The others also realised that they could not get past these two winds without losing their lives in the process. They all thought the same as Cui Rong and turned to retreat but then stopped shortly after seeing another wind blocking their path.

They looked to their left and right, and all they could see were the flowers and small hedge, which reached up to their waists. Moving through this hedge was a non-starter. If they jumped into these gardens and ended up being trapped by other winds, they would surely die without burial ground.

Zi Yan saw this and chuckled hoarsely. He didn't waste time and charged towards the two winds in the front. He was not an idiot. Even though the wind blocking their path in the back was weak, he knew without a doubt that even if they braved themselves through that weak wind, they would not have more strength to pass through this courtyard.

In such a state they would be stranded in the middle without any energy and anywhere to go to but if he were gamble try to pass through the tiny space in between the two wind twisters up ahead he might have a chance and if he succeeds, he wouldn't have to go through this once more.

The others could also understand his thoughts. Without a word, everyone moves ahead with quick strides. The two wind twisters were positioned on either side as if they were intending on a pincer attack, but in between was a small space weakly affected, which could hardly fit a person. However, everyone was determined to survive through this ordeal, it matter whether they could actually fit through.

In a short moment, Zi Yan had already reached the point where he felt a strong air blowing through him as if to force him to stop. Zi Yan grit his teeth and clenched his teeth, bearing the brunt of this wind. Slowly butt surely was making his way through. The others seeing this felt a bit more hopeful and pushed forward.

Shortly after, everyone was forcing themselves to move as best as they could through. None of them wished to die in this place where birds do not even shit. They had some tiny superfluous selfish thoughts.

The will to live fuelled them at this moment. It was the same for Bai Ming, who seemed to have a belly of grievances. His shouts and cries were of no use. That enigmatic Dao Gu had mysteriously disappeared. He couldn't even imagine that cruel master of his saving him at this moment, and even if he was saved, he knew that this master would most definitely leave the rest off the group to perish here. Their life and deaths were of no use that person.

He had already steeled himself that if such a thing were to occur, then he would kill himself.

What was the use of being the sole survivor when everyone else is dead?

Such a thought ran through his mind. However, he could not continue this thought as he heard a hardy cry from the front. It was Zi Yan, as he and everyone turned to look, they saw Zi Yan engulfed in what almost seemed like a storm.

A crimson liquid floated in the air around him. Apparently it was all his blood, and looking at the state of the wind twisters it seemed they had edged closer to one another making the gap in between shorter but Zi Yan was not one to give up so easily. Since he knew he was walking on a thin line, he kept moving forward.

The rest of the group didn't get much time to admire his bravery or determination before the fierce winds reached them. Muffled grunts could be heard everywhere. Bloody cuts appeared on everyone's body. In a very short moment, everyone was riddled with deep wounds. The leaf petals were especially terrifying. Although they had experienced this before, this time it was entirely different. They were facing the winds and petals from both ends. There was no escape from this.

The sound of clothes being ripped could also be heard. Although everyone felt their clothing slowly become weightless, they didn't have the luxury to pay attention to this. Whether they were naked or not did not matter. What mattered was that they crossed this courtyard.

"Uhh Ahhhhh..."

Zi Yan let out a loud roar as if he were a wounded beast. Even though he did not want to give up, he felt his body give out. He tried mustering some energy, but it all seemed useless in front of these winds and petals. Right now, he looked like he had turned into a big bushy hedgehog. Many sharp petals had dug their way into his flesh. Some had even reached to his bones.

Everyone seemed to be losing strength fast. They were losing a lot of blood with every passing second. Slowly, their movements turned still. Seconds turned into into minutes. In a short time, a small sea of blood had formed which was being carried by the wind just as the flowers.

Zi Yan no longer showed the figure of a human and looked to be more like a monster, but his mind remained clear as he tried everything he could. In fact, he was not the only one. Everyone was in this same state. The constant cutting of their skin and flesh was like an unending torture. The pain was everpresent and did not seem like it would disappear any time soon. It kept every one of them sane. Their thoughts all seemed to be one.

"Move damnit"

"Move...move"

"No move"

Their bodies seemed to not be paying attention to these thoughts and instructions. Their bodies could not even resist this wind and almost seemed like they would all get back back slowly. In that very moment, their bodies started getting pushed back. To them who had been fighting with all their might to live through this, this was a horrifying revelation.

Their efforts had been in vain, and it seemed they would all be buried in this dead place.