"To challenge the Chains of Han Mountain!"
Su Ming did not turn his head back. Instead, he lifted his right fist once again and punched the bell, causing the 19th chime to ring in the air!
The moment the bell chime resounded, ripples reverberated through the air, gravel rolled down the mountains, and the Alpine Dark Turtle in the sky let out a sharp howl once again.
"19 times! Just how many times is he going to sound the bell? What is his limit?"
"Does he still want to challenge the Chains of Han Mountain? If he gets hurt when he rings the bell, then he’ll definitely die when he challenges the Chains!"
"This person is running rampant! Look, Lake of Colors Tribe has already sent someone here, but he still made the 19th chime when he answered!"
Sounds of discussions whirled up like a typhoon. As the sounds reverberated through the air, the old man from Lake of Colors Tribe cast a deep look towards Su Ming before he took out a plate from his bosom and threw it to him.
"By the orders of the tribe leader, we have acknowledged your right to challenge the Chains of Han Mountain. Lake of Colors Tribe awaits your arrival!"
When he saw Su Ming accepting the plate, the old man turned around and turning into a long arc that charged towards Lake of Colors Tribe to report back.
The people who had been silent in the three tribes found themselves unable to remain silent any longer. Right after Lake of Colors Tribe, a long arc also whistled into the air from the mountain belonging to Tranquil East Tribe. The person inside the arc was the Chief of War!
He came personally, and as he closed in on Han Mountain, the crowd gathered around the area immediately looked up.
"Tranquil East Tribe’s Chief of War!"
"He came personally!"
"Of course he would. This is the person who sounded the bell 19 times!"
As Tranquil East’s Chief of War approached, he did not stand in midair. He descended and stood 100 feet away from Su Ming. He looked at him and light flickered in his eyes. After a long while, he wrapped his fist in his palm towards Su Ming.
"By the orders of my Elder, we acknowledge your right to challenge the Chains of Han Mountain. Tranquil East Tribe awaits your arrival!"
As he spoke, Tranquil East’s Chief of War brought out a plate and handed it to Su Ming respectfully. Once he did so, he gave Su Ming a profound look before he turned around and charged back.
He recognized this person before him, it was Mo Su!
However, he did not want to offend this person, especially since he sensed that there was a startling similarity in the presence between the current Mo Su and Si Ma Xin. A thought emerged in his head, and it made him even more reluctant to offend him.
"There’s only Puqiang left from the three tribes!"
"By right, Puqiang Tribe should be sending someone here by now."
"It’s a pity that once Puqiang sends someone here, this mysterious challenger might stop ringing the bell and we still won’t be able to see the third beast on Han Mountain Bell."
Su Ming stood by the bell and did not sound it again. He could feel that the rebound from the bell was becoming stronger. The 20th chime would definitely not be easy. Once he sounded the bell, that rebound would affect him.
The time it takes to burn an incense stick pa.s.sed by in the blink of an eye. During that time, more people gathered around the area. Eventually, most of those who could not enter the third layer cl.u.s.tered outside.
Their gazes gathered on Su Ming and did not move for a long time. It was as if they wanted to see through the bamboo hat and the black robes to get a clear look of his face, and to see just who he was!
"He sounded the bell 19 times. If he is successful in challenging the Chains of Han Mountain, then this person’s fame will definitely be as bright as the sun at noon. He might even be able to enter Freezing Sky Clan!"
"There’s no need for that. He’s already famous!"
"It’s odd though, why hasn’t Puqiang Tribe sent anyone here?"
The sounds of discussions buzzed in the air. Many people cast their gazes towards the black fog shrouded mountain belonging to Puqiang Tribe.
Su Ming frowned slightly. He had waited for the time it takes to burn an incense stick, but Puqiang Tribe still remained silent.
‘I don’t have much contact with Puqiang Tribe, and I don’t really understand this tribe, but I can feel that this tribe is very mysterious…’
Su Ming lifted his head and looked at the mountain belonging to Puqiang Tribe. The fog in the mountain was very thick and filled with the air of death.
They waited for a little while longer, and gradually, the crowd realized that something was wrong. They looked towards Puqiang Mountain. Even the leaders of Lake of Colors Tribe and Tranquil East Tribe cast their gazes towards Puqiang.
‘They’re imposing their might using the situation!’
A freezing look appeared in Su Ming’s eyes as he stared at Puqiang Mountain. He had a vague inkling of Puqiang Tribe’s goal. They wanted to use this chance by not giving him the plate to show off the tribe’s mysteriousness and power.
The more Puqiang remained silent, the more they would catch the people’s attention. They would not refuse him the plate, but they would make Su Ming wait longer to elevate their own status.
"Puqiang Tribe has gone overboard," Yan Luan averted her gaze from Puqiang Mountain and said calmly.
The same words were spoken by Tranquil East Tribe’s Elder.
At that moment, the black fog surrounding the mountain of Puqiang Tribe tumbled, and someone walked out from within. That person wore a black robe. He had an obstinate look on his face as he charged towards Han Mountain City, then he stood in the air above Han Mountain and lowered his head to cast a glance at Su Ming standing beside the bell below him.
"The Elder is still in isolation. Please wait for a little while longer."
Once he spoke, the crowd immediately fell silent and cast their gazes towards Su Ming.
Su Ming did not speak. His face, which was hidden under the bamboo hat and the black robes, caused them to be unable to see his dark demeanor, but they could still feel a chilling air gathering around Su Ming.
"Isolation? If that’s the case, then I’ll just have to wake him up."
Su Ming’s hoa.r.s.e voice echoed in the air. This was the first time he spoke since he came to the place. The moment his words left his mouth, Su Ming swiftly lifted his right fist and punched the bell.
Dong!
The 20th chime!
The ancient bell trembled, and under that one punch from Su Ming, it swung to the back, and a strong sound that surpa.s.sed the volume of all the other previous chimes resounded in the air. The sound traveled in all directions, and the 21st chime followed soon with a sound that shook the sky and earth!
Su Ming lifted his head swiftly with shock in his eyes. The force of the rebound crashed into his body, and he staggered a few steps back. The bamboo hat shattered into pieces with a bang, but his black robes continued hiding his face, and the people still could not see it.
‘How could this be…?’
Su Ming felt shaken.
The two bell chimes fused together and spread out in the air above Han Mountain City like a roar. At the same moment the ripples rolled out horizontally, not only did the rain still, even the Alpine Dark Turtle in the sky trembled and howled as a strange glow appeared in its eyes.
The direction in which it howled… was Puqiang Mountain!
As it howled and the two chimes blended together, the two sounds turned into one that came out of thin air, a vague existence that did not seem to belong to the world and seemed to come from a distant place.
"Nine…"
That sound was like a bell chime, but also like the howl of the Dark Turtle. It sounded m.u.f.fled, but the moment it spread out, a shocking boom came from within the black fog of Puqiang Mountain.
The entire fog enveloping that mountain instantly burst apart when this sound resounded. It turned into countless black wisps that tumbled backwards, revealing most of Puqiang Mountain, which was usually hidden under the fog!
The sudden change shook the hearts of the crowd. Amidst their shock, they fell into dead silence. They did not know what had happened. They did not know why the bell chime this time would hold such astonis.h.i.+ng power.
The fused sound contained a power that dissipated half of the power protecting the mountain of Puqiang Tribe!
The entire area was in silence. The Puqiang tribe member in black robes in midair was dumbstruck. There was disbelief on his face, even a hint of fear.
Yan Luan widened her eyes on Lake of Colors Mountain. For the first time, she trembled. Her expressions changed rapidly and her breathing quickened as she stared at Han Mountain City.
"He… He activated Han Mountain Bell’s power!"
Han Fei Zi’s eyes were sparkling on the same mountain at the same time. She felt shaken when she felt that burst of power. Without any hesitation, her body swayed, and white clouds appeared under her feet after which she charged towards Han Mountain from Lake of Colors Mountain.
She wanted to see whether this person was the Mo Su she had been waiting for!
On the mountain of Tranquil East Tribe, the expression of Tranquil East’s Elder was originally calm, but at that moment, his pupils shrank. He stood up swiftly and stared at Han Mountain’s summit as he took in a sharp breath. A brilliant light appeared in his eyes.
‘I’ve always thought he was very similar to Sir Si Ma. Sir Si Ma managed to activate Han Mountain’s power in the past and obtained his serendipity. Mo Su also managed to do the same thing!
‘Han Mountain Bell, o Han Mountain Bell… you’ve been in Han Mountain for numerous years, and even Han Mountain’s ancestor had been unable to obtain your inheritance and your blessing. Many years pa.s.sed, and only Sir Si Ma had been able to obtain part of your inheritance that year. And now, this Mo Su…’
On Tranquil East Mountain, Han Cang Zi clenched her fists. A thrilled look appeared in her beautiful eyes. She knew that this time, she did not choose wrong!
On their mountain, Puqiang Tribe was also in a state of shock. Commotion erupted among the people in the mountain. As the protective mist dissipated, the Elder of Puqiang Tribe found himself unable to continue maintaining his cool. The skeletal old man in purple robes had an astonished look in his dull eyes.
"Give him the plate!"
Su Ming’s heart raced against his chest. He looked at the lightly swaying Han Mountain Bell before him and took a deep breath. The moment he hurled his fist forward and his punch landed on the bell, he could clearly feel that some of the Qi in his body was sucked into the bell in a mystifying manner.
He had only sounded the bell once, but two bell chimes resounded instead!
He also did not expect the two seemingly normal bell chimes would fuse together and burst forth with a force so powerful it dissipated the fog protecting the mountain of Puqiang Tribe!
This power was definitely not something an ordinary Awakened Berserker could do. An incredible and unthinkable amount of power would be needed to dissipate the power protecting the mountain of a middle-sized tribe in one go… Su Ming’s heart raced even faster.
‘This Han Mountain Bell… Could it be… could it be a priceless treasure?’
At that moment, when Han Mountain City was in a state of shock due to the bell chimes, there was a mountain s.h.i.+ning with the seven colors of the rainbow in a spot located far away from Han Mountain in the Land of South Morning. The seven colors constantly shone brilliantly no matter the time on the mountain.
The light from the seven colors had replaced the colors of the sky.
At the foot of the mountain was a pavilion. Black and white chess pieces spread on the stone table in the pavilion like the stars in the sky. A man and a girl sat inside and were both looking at the chessboard. The man wore a green robe. His face was as fair as jade, his eyes like stars, and he had an extraordinarily handsome face. There was also an indescribable air around him, making him seem lonely, but it was also like an air of serenity. There was a red line about the length of half a finger at the center of his brows.
He took a white piece and was just about to place it down when he suddenly frowned and looked towards the horizon in the distance.
"Big brother Si Ma, what’s wrong?"
The girl’s chin was resting on her hands. She lifted her hea, revealing a face that was not exceedingly beautiful but had something wild about it..
If Su Ming was there and saw the woman, he would definitely be so shocked he would seem like lightning had just struck his soul, and be filled… with disbelief!