The first half of the climb went relatively smoothly. They both decided to rely on their physical strength and conserve as much qi as possible. By the time they had reached their camping spot for the night, they were sweat soaked and tired. It had been good exercise, though. Wu Chen felt a lightness in himself that had gone missing the last few days. Consequently, his excitement for his quest once again began to emerge.

Lu Yong couldn't be any more relieved to see it.

As they set out for the cave the next morning, Lu Yong heard a distinct screech in the distance. He called a halt to their climb with a raised hand.

Wu Chen stopped instantly and quietly asked, 'Ah Yong, was that call one of the Zhen?'

Lu Yong listened intently, but no further calls could be heard. He simply shook his head and decided to continue on. He did, however, start using his aura search more often. The trip so far had been too easy, and that cry in the distance was very familiar to one who had hunted Zhen feathers in the Southern Range.

They continued for a short time, and soon, the trees had thinned to mere stunted growth. Before them now were large boulders and rocks that lay strewn at the feet of sheer cliffs with nearly smooth faces that continued straight up into the cloud cover. The intimidating barricade of stone was only occasionally breached by brave saplings hanging by their desperate roots and thin outcroppings of dubious strength. It was a daunting obstacle with no shortcuts or obvious trails.

Lu Yong called a halt at the foot of the cliffs, and Wu Chen sat down gratefully on a short, flat topped boulder which had tumbled down in ages past. Although his breathing was slightly labored, his cheeks were once again a healthy color, and his eyes regained some of their original sparkle.

The young man took a pull from his waterskin and glanced at the cliff with obvious unease, 'My climbing skills aren't bad, Ah Yong, but to scale a cliff of such height...' Wu Chen shook his head as he once again took a small drink to wet his parched throat.

Lu Yong chuckled, 'Have you so little faith in my abilities, young ward?' He teased.

Wu Chen raised a brow and gave a half-grin to his handsome Guardian, 'I have absolute faith in your abilities, Ah Yong. It is my own skills which are lacking.'

The elder sat down next to his doubtful charge and leaned over to whisper softly, 'Then, should I carry you, Ah Chen?'

The young man blushed and narrowed his fox eyes at his Guardian, 'Shameless!' He muttered.

Lu Yong laughed lightly and began to walk along the edges of the cliff. After a short period of time, he stopped and placed his hand on the cliff face itself and closed his eyes. A soft chanting could be heard as his other hand began making careful seals at various intervals.

The hair on Wu Chen's body slowly rose in response to the power emanating from his Guardian. Gradually, the power built until the air fairly crackled around them. When it seemed that Wu Chen's body could no longer stand the pressure, Lu Yong slowly stepped away from the wall with his hand still held before him and the chanting and seal creation continuing. Finally, he placed his hands together and pushed out with a guttural shout.

The accumulated power gathered and flowed upward along the cliff face. As it flowed, steps made of thick ice began to appear and work their way up in a steady incline right to the top of the cliff. When the ice stairway had been completed, Lu Yong once again pressed his hands together and closed out the technique.

Wu Chen nodded, his smile radiant, as he looked at the glittering path to the top, 'As I said, I have absolute faith in your abilities, my Guardian.'

Lu Yong glanced at his ward and grinned, 'That is as it should be.' He said proudly.

The elder glanced at his sparkling creation and sighed, 'The day grows long, Ah Chen. We should get to the top of the cliff and set up camp there for the night.'

'En!' Agreed Wu Chen, who quickly began following Lu Yong up the narrow staircase.

As they climbed, Wu Chen's eyes continually searched for the cave entrance. He knew they must be getting close, but distance and height were difficult to measure on a mountain of such size.

When they eventually crested the top of the cliff, they realized that it was merely a flat break in the cliff about the size of a large balcony. It seemed they would have more climbing to do in the morning. Wu Chen stood at the foot of the newest sheer wall and grimaced, his eyes darting about in hopes of finding some kind of path that would lead to the cave they were searching for.

'Are we close, Ah Yong?' He asked softly, his eyes still wandering over the towering stone wall before him.

Lu Yong shrugged, 'I have only an imprint of the way. I feel that we are close, but I don't know the exact distance.'

An ear piercing screech sliced through the air around them, and both men quickly rushed to the cliff wall to put their backs against it as Lu Yong sent his aura out to search the area.

The cry of the bird had been close. Too close. Lu Yong's search showed him that there were five Zhen currently flying in their direction, although they were much higher in the sky than their current campsite. It was possible that the creatures had not detected them...yet.

He shared his information with Wu Chen and then Lu Yong sat in the lotus position and glanced up at his grim faced ward, 'I need to regenerate the qi I used on the staircase and my aura search, Ah Chen. Keep watch for me and remember not to use your qi. We may need your technique after all, and I do not wish to weaken you more than is necessary before that.'

'As you say, Ah Yong.' Wu Chen nodded, his eyes already on a steady search to vigilantly assess any nearby threats. His precious swords were held tightly, their sharp blades glinting with deadly intent in the light of the setting sun.

Knowing Wu Chen was on guard, Lu Yong wasted no time. He began circulating his qi. Once his qi was stable and flowed easily, he slowly began drawing in the qi from his surroundings. The pool was thin, but it was what they had to work with. He hoped that they could continue the night undetected and then deal with the threat come morning.

Another piercing cry was heard, closer this time, and an answering cry came from high above. Wu Chen strained to catch sight of the creatures and was finally able to detect movement just to the west of their location. His eyes tracked the movement until the last of the sunlight disappeared over the horizon.

For a moment, he lost sight of the swiftly moving creatures. Then, several cries rang from the birds' direction, the fearsome screeching echoing around the mountainside. It was obvious what had happened.

They had been spotted.

Wu Chen nudged Lu Yong with his foot, and the elder quickly closed out his circulation and stood close to his ward.

'They know we're here.' Wu Chen whispered.

Lu Yong nodded and swiftly began a seal to enclose them in a protective dome of ice. It wouldn't be as strong as a thoroughly prepared array, but it would hold until they knew what they were up against.

The dome was raised just in time. As soon as the last sheet of ice sealed them in, a loud thump sounded, and a hawk-sized ball of feathers smashed into the protective wall. It wobbled for a moment and then rejoined the flock of five now circling the dome. The cries of the Zhen were loud and angry, breaking the silence of the night with fierce fervor.

Wu Chen took a moment to study them. They were the size of a large hawk or a young eagle, but their movements were quick and agile. Their feathers, as a whole, were a dull brown that darkened to a burnished copper color on the ends and on the raised crest. Their breast feathers, however, were a deep purple color that gradually lightened to a soft grey at the base of their tails. Their beaks and talons were a dark copper tipped with black. They were quite pretty to look at, but deadly to fight.

'They move so fast, Ah Yong. If we drop the dome, they'll be on us before we could even swipe with a sword.'

Wu Chen shivered as he watched the birds' quick maneuvers and nearly instant turns. Even if he tried to use his lightning qi, their speed and agility would make it easy for them to dodge the deadly bolts.

'Since speed is their strength, perhaps what we need is a way to slow them down.' Lu Yong mumbled as he began a complicated seal.

Outside the dome, the figure of Lu Yong's ice dragon began to take form. Instinctively reacting to the threat, the birds attacked the swiftly forming dragon with beak, claw, and wings. Their constant attacks interfered with the formation, making it doubly difficult for Lu Yong to create.

Sweat trickled down Lu Yong's brow as he called upon more qi to complete the technique. Eventually, the dragon roared as it finally reached its full attack form despite the diving attacks of the Zhen.

Angry at the little pests, the dragon breathed a cloud of mist that overtook two of the Zhen. The creatures, who had taken the brunt of the cloud directly, wobbled in the air, and their movements slowed significantly. The three other Zhen continued their attacks, and Lu Yong had to constantly supply qi to the dragon to keep it stable.

The dragon's agility was not to be underestimated. It undulated through the sky, avoiding the worst of the Zhen's attacks. Then, it released another cloud of icy mist that covered another bird completely. The direct hit instantly killed it, and its frozen corpse plummeted in a hail of ice.

As the dragon and Zhen fought, Wu Chen's eyes darted between the fearsome battle in the air and his Guardian's grim face. He could see the strain Lu Yong was under and knew the dragon wouldn't be able to hold out much longer. The technique already required a large amount of qi. With the attacking Zhen, that usage was at least doubled.

Seeing no other recourse, Wu Chen slammed his hands together to focus his qi and began the Feng Lei seal he had promised himself not to use until he was at least Golden Core.

A soft blue glow gathered around Wu Chen's lithe form, and his hair began to whip around as if blown by fierce winds. Behind the young cultivator, a giant blue celestial bird began to form. Its wingspan was greater than the length of four men, and its height was at least that of three. As it took its final form, one could see that its entire body appeared to be made of starlight, and silent lightning flashes were seen sparking all along the edges of its twinkling 'feathers'.

The shimmering creature eyed the Zhen as they battled the dragon and with a single flap of its wings, it passed through the dome as though it were nothing and took to the sky with a battle cry that shook the very mountainside.

The Zhen instinctively knew they were helpless in the face of the king of birds and attempted to escape using their great speed. It did them no good. Feng Lei beat its wings, and the birds were sent plummeting to the ground. The pressure from those wingbeats having been too strong for their smaller wings to counteract.

With another commanding cry, Feng Lei swooped down and sent a stream of white lightning over the now flightless Zhen. As each poisonous bird was touched with that lightning, it exploded in a spray of blood and feathers that fell in a rain of fire and a cloud of oily smoke.

When the last bird was sent to its next life, Feng Lei circled the area, sending out raucous calls of royal commands to any lingering avian threats. Its calls were answered, and its demands would be followed.

No bird would be allowed to harm the one Feng Lei had chosen as its host.

Its task complete, Feng Lei returned to Wu Chen with a subtle shake of its head. The boy would pay for freeing it before he was ready, but at least he would survive to continue gathering power.

With a final cry of triumph, Feng Lei once again allowed itself to return to the tattoo on its host's back. As it dissolved, the blue glow surrounding Wu Chen slowly dissipated, and Wu Chen's hair fell in a tangled mess to his back.

Lu Yong had closed his dragon technique when the fenghuang made its appearance. He watched Wu Chen carefully noting the peaceful look on his face, his eyes occasionally darting up to take in the battle of the celestial bird. The power he felt emanating from the creature was immense! No wonder Wu Chen had been hesitant to use it before he was strong enough.

When the fenghuang returned to Wu Chen, Lu Yong ran up and barely caught him as he crumpled into an unconscious heap. He looked down at the sleeping man in his arms and kissed his pale forehead gently.

'You never fail to surprise me, Ah Chen. Rest now, love. You have earned it.' He whispered, his awe at having witnessed such a technique shaking him to the core.