The ground buckled, sending a shockwave of dirt, stone, and terrified beastmen rippling outward like a stone thrown into a pond.
Xin Yi didn't even have time to scream. One moment she was standing, and the next, a heavy, warm weight slammed into her back, tackling her face-first into the dirt.
"Stay down!" a deep voice growled in her ear.
Sha Chen.
He curled around her, his large frame shielding her completely as debris rained down around them, rocks, shattered wood, and what sounded suspiciously like a very expensive piece of celestial furniture crashing into the earth.
The world shook for a solid ten seconds.
Then...silence.
Complete, ringing silence.
Slowly, the heavy weight lifted off her. Xin Yi coughed, waving her hand to disperse the cloud of dust that now tasted like ozone and...wait, was that lavender?
"Is everyone dead?" she rasped, pushing herself up on her elbows.
