Two Empyrean Zingers free fell through a tunnel, gliding from time to time as they accelerated towards the falling figure of Asaeya. Faint vapour cones formed over their body as a result of their speed meeting the air resistance.
One of the Empyrean Zingers, during its flight, took out a Prana Bomb and transformed it into a stamp using its Mystic Bone Art. Following that, it slammed the stamp into the tunnel walls, creating the impression of an arrow mark, followed by a number on it.
The arrow mark pointed in the direction the Empyrean Zingers were proceeding while the number displayed the instance of this checkpoint being added.
Close to the entrance of the tunnel was an arrow mark pointing deep into the tunnel while sporting the number '1.'
A kilometre down the tunnel, there was another arrow mark, sporting the number '2.' In this manner, even if the tunnels were to merge, based on the numbering pattern, the Empyrean Zingers could differentiate when a checkpoint was added.
Thanks to this, the Empyrean Zingers were able to keep pace with the lead runners despite the tunnels merging and diverging constantly.
"Kriek!"
"Kuak!"
"Ke-kee-kie!"
The Empyrean Zingers let out constant shrieks, keeping everyone informed of everything that was happening. From one Empyrean Zinger to another, the message was transmitted until it reached the ears of Inala.
As he free-fell through a tunnel, he listened to the information report and kept watch on the tunnel walls, noticing a checkpoint situated right before a node. Four tunnels intersected at this node, unable to be told apart as it was impossible to know which way was geographically up or down within the Guna Caves.
The entirety of the tunnel wall fell like the ground when stood upon, hence the issue.
Upon staring at the checkpoint, Inala inhaled a large volume of air in his lungs and exhaled sharply, causing an abrupt change in his direction. His falling motion swerved into a tunnel to the side as he continued to fall through it.
Left, right, up, down, every time he approached a node, Inala referred to the checkpoint nearby and made a turn accordingly. All tunnels looked the exact same, from their width to surface texture. It was mostly dark, with the source of detection being limited to sound, smell, and Prana sense.
Inala emitted Prana to form a sensory sphere around himself, expanding it to a radius of twenty metres, which was the same as the tunnel's diameter. Latched to his back was Gannala, controlling four Spirits Weapons in the shape of hands.
While they fell, peeking out from tiny windows along the tunnel walls were Shifting Ants. Upon passing by a window, one of Gannala's Spirit Weapons would catch a Shifting Ant as Prana would seep into it.
Prime Skill—Empyrean Extraction!
Prime Skill—Mind Slip!
"Dad, we're going down the right path. Asaeya fell through here exactly two minutes earlier. We're catching up to her." Gannala said as she accessed the memories of the Shifting Ant and focused on the parts with Asaeya.
"Good!" Inala replied briskly as he steadily increased his density through Internal Inertial Gravity. As his figure approached a gliding Empyrean Zinger, the latter grabbed him, spun a few times and then launched him like a slingshot.
One after another, the Empyrean Zingers along the way continued to launch him, allowing Inala to close in on Asaeya. Three hours of nonstop chase later, she finally came into view, positioned two kilometres away from him.
Inala glared at the Mystic Eater coiled around her hip, constantly acting like a whip as it latched onto the tunnel walls and used its elastic nature to launch Asaeya further deeper into the tunnel, preventing him from catching up to her.
"Fuooo!"
"Feee!"
"Faaa!"
Whistling sounds suddenly filled the tunnel and echoed, turning more and more abundant as waves of Prana slammed into Inala, detecting his strength and presence.
Immediately after, tiny holes opened all over the tunnel, numbering in the hundreds. Peeking from it was a Pranic Beast covered from head to toe in golden scales, resembling a pangolin. Its arms were thinner and serpentine in nature, lacking any bones.
Upon staring at them, Inala cursed his bad luck, "Bludders!"
Expert Iron Grade Pranic Beast—Bludder!
It was one of the three Pranic Beasts native to the Guna Caves and were infamous hunters, very annoying to deal with, especially in the environment of the Guna Caves.
A Bludder sensed Inala through its Prana and leapt out of its hole. Actuated by the gravity in the tunnel, it landed on the tunnel walls on all fours. But right after its feet made contact, it rolled forward, curling up into a perfect ball.
Following that…it spun, fast, faster, revving itself rapidly as like the wheels of a car, it rolled towards Inala, crossing a hundred metres in less than three seconds.
As it came within thirty metres, it leapt from the tunnel wall as suddenly, Prana condensed around its body, solidifying into sharp blades spanning a length of five metres each.
Primary Nature—Eddy Blade!
It was pretty much a spinning top with blades attached to it, capable of creating these blades anywhere on its body. The same was true for its rotation axis, capable of rotating at any angle with respect to its body.
There was a flash, following which Inala's arm got severed. The Bludder went past Inala and landed on the tunnel wall on the opposite side, retracting its Eddy Blades. It then spun around the walls of the tunnel, forming a helical pattern as it rushed towards Inala.
"It…hurts!" Gannala shouted as a gash trailed from her nose to her right eye, ending up cutting into the organ.
"Shit!" Inala stared at his Prana Bomb shield that had been cut through by the Bludder. At that speed, even the hardest of objects could be cut through, especially since at the moment of contact, the Eddy Blades would vibrate at high frequencies, further increasing the cutting power.
The Bludder expended almost a quarter of its Prana in one attack, which was why it was so powerful.
A Prana Hand flew through the Tunnel and travelled in a direction opposite to the Bludder's path, ending up colliding with each other half a revolution later.
Eddy Blades jutted out of the Bludder's body and severed through the Prana Hand. But instead of diverging to the sides after being cut into two, the two severed pieces flew on the same path.
All that changed was a perfect line in its centre that divided it into two pieces. After the first attack, Inala adjusted his power.
Right as the Eddy Blade severed the Prana Hand into two, he infused Prana into it and increased its weight, as a result adding to its momentum. Hence, all the Eddy Blade managed to do was make a cut, failing to diverge the two halves.
As a result, the two halves of the Prana Hand still remained stuck to each other and slammed dead centre into the Bludder, generating enough shock from the impact that the Bludder's internal organs burst in response.
"Serves you right!" Gannala shouted as Prana surged into her right eye and healed it in a matter of seconds, displaying the frightening recovery abilities of an Empyrean Tusk.
"Make your body denser!" Inala shouted and began to envelope multiple layers of Prana Bomb armour on his body and also made two Prana Bombs revolve around him as satellites.
He stared as more and more Bludders leapt into the tunnel and began to rotate at terrifying speeds, moving across the tunnels in a helical pattern as they approached him, "Shit!"