The Cangwu Realm was an ancient Secret Territory that was rumored to have been discovered by the Four Great Clans around ten thousand years ago. The realm contained numerous gems and valuable techniques that were left from ancient times. These valuable objects in the Cangwu Realm were also the reason why the Four Great Clans were able to remain in power all these years.
When Gu Lingzhi arrived, the Qin and Tianfeng clans had already reached. As they saw Rong Yuan arriving with the Gu Clan, their expressions changed to varying degrees. However, they still plastered on a smile as they greeted him.
"Your Highness, I never thought that you would come as well. Your presence brings light to our humble Cangwu Realm!" Tianfeng Yi greeted politely. Behind him stood Tianfeng Wei, resentment written all over her face. From her slightly rounded body and the servant lady attending to her, it was obvious that she had gotten pregnant.
Rong Yuan"s eyes swept over how Tianfeng Wei looked pregnant and his lips curved up slightly as he said simply, "The entire Tianfeng Clan is so hardworking. Even those that are pregnant are attending this event, I am very impressed."
The subtle meaning behind his words caused Tianfeng Yi"s face to turn even darker.
Although the Cangwu Realm was shared among the Four Great Clans, the resources in it were, however, not split evenly. The resources belonged to whoever found it. Hence, the opening of the Cangwu Realm once every ten years, presented not just an opportunity but also posed a danger.
No one outside the realm was able to know what was going on in it. If one was strong enough and managed to do things cleanly, one could very well turn the realm into a hunting ground of talented people from other clans. Therefore, with every opening of the Cangwu Realm, the Four Great Clans had come to a mutual understanding that there would always be numerous talented people being killed.
The Third Prince was clearly taunting Tianfeng Yi for putting his pregnant daughter in harm"s way, taking a jibe at how greedy he was.
Tianfeng Wei scoffed as the glare that she gave the Third Prince was one that lacked the love and admiration that she once had for him. It was filled with menace, "Aren"t you the same? You"re sending your fiancée into the realm. Aren"t you afraid that you"ll have to select a third fiancée?"
"I"m not afraid." Although the Third Prince gave a satisfied smile, the tone he used made those who heard him s.h.i.+ver.
"If anything happens to Lingzhi, I will hold all Four Great Clans accountable."
What a threat!
Just that one sentence, made anyone who was harbouring any evil thoughts think twice. This made Tianfeng Wei even more enraged.
Why should Gu Lingzhi be the one that receives the Third Prince"s love, to the point where he even said things that would offend all four clans? On the other hand, why did she have to marry the person that set her up?
Ignoring the reactions he received, Rong Yuan ruffled Gu Lingzhi"s hair as he used a soothing tone to say, "Do whatever you want, if anyone tries to make things difficult for you, you can just tell me and I will deal with them for you."
"…" Couldn"t they just follow the rules?
For this event, there were many people that followed Gu Rong from the Gu Clan. Other than Gu Lingzhi, Gu Chengze and Gu Lingyue who were of higher Martial Student ranks, there were also a few Martial Pract.i.tioners.
Before they came here, Gu Rong had already instructed them to grab as many chances as they could in the Cangwu Realm. If possible, they should kill a few important Martial Artists from the other clans while they were in there. Similarly, the three other clans had told their clan members to do the same.
With what the Third Prince said, wasn"t it forcing the three other clans to hold back and not be able to attack Gu Lingzhi?
Tianfeng Wei"s eyes turned bloodshot in anger as she believed that if not for Lang Jingchen ganging up with the Third Prince, she might still have had a chance to receive the Third Prince"s love. As a result, her resentment for Lang Jingchen grew even more.
With the arrival of the Beicheng Clan, the four clans were gathered and the opening of the Cangwu Realm was about to happen.
With a call to begin, over a thousand people from the four clans started heading towards the Thousand Mountains Range where the Cangwu Realm was located. This was also the intersection of the Four Great Clans.
The Thousand Mountains Range was named as such due to it having over a thousand peaks in the entire mountain range. Each peak extended into the clouds and looked like a thousand sword blades piercing from the ground. The Cangwu Realm was located on the highest peak in the Thousand Mountains Range.
It took over four hours for everyone to reach the entrance of the Cangwu Realm. The entrance was like a mirror image of the mountains. Gu Lingzhi"s eyes were filled with surprise as she looked at the towering clouds in front of her. She could not see the peak of the mountains in the mirror. The mountains were like a blade that joined the heavens and earth. It was no wonder that the ancient powers had chosen a place like this to build the realm.
But how were they to enter?
Very quickly, Gu Lingzhi got her answer. The leader of each of the Four Great Clans each took out a jade pendant and placed it on four different areas on the mountain. Following that, they then activated their spiritual energy and stimulated the power within the jade pendant. Soon, the mountain range in front of them moved like a wave. All of a sudden, a three-person wide path appeared between the majestic and motionless mountains. The leaders of the four clans said simultaneously, "The path will only remain open for 15 minutes, everyone hurry in."
Gu Lingzhi started to move to enter but was held back by Rong Yuan. Looking back, she looked into his eyes filled with worry, "Be careful when you are in there."
"…I will," Gu Lingzhi nodded as a wave of warmth rushed over her.
"Rest a.s.sured, Your Highness. With me around, I won"t let anyone hurt her," Gu Chengze declared. He then remembered that Gu Lingzhi was now a Level Nine Martial Student and was stronger than him in terms of cultivation. He suddenly became embarra.s.sed as he pointed to the few Martial Pract.i.tioners behind him, "The leader specially hired them to protect Lingzhi so you can rest a.s.sured."
Hearing their names mentioned, the few Martial Pract.i.tioners slapped their chest and promised to protect Gu Lingzhi. Rong Yuan smiled at them and took a step back, "In that case, I will have to trouble you to keep a lookout for her."
"No worries, Your Highness, it is our duty to protect the First Mistress."
"That"s right, even if you did not mention it, we would have done our best to protect the First Mistress. Do not worry."
Numerous rea.s.surances could be heard as the Martial Pract.i.tioners looked to the Third Prince with admiration and respect. They would never have thought that the famed Third Prince could actually be such an amiable person. How did he achieve his nickname of War G.o.d? It was like an insult to him!
Gu Lingzhi saw how Rong Yuan easily bought people over with just a few sentences and really wished for them to see the cruel look he had on when he was fighting. They will then know how he got his reputation as the War G.o.d.
"Lingzhi, why aren"t you all going in?"
Over half of the partic.i.p.ants from the Four Great Clans had entered and only a few groups were left behind. It was therefore very easy to spot Gu Lingzhi"s group.
Gu Lingzhi did not reply but simply glanced at Gu Rong from the corners of her eyes. Upon bidding goodbye to the Third Prince, Gu Lingzhi headed to the entrance of the Cangwu Realm.
Before her feet even touched the ground, Gu Lingzhi felt a strong spiritual energy in the air that was about one third as thick as the spiritual energy in her Inheritance s.p.a.ce.
The reason why the spiritual energy was so thick in the Inheritance s.p.a.ce was because it contained a Spiritual Essence Spring within it. On the other hand, the Cangwu Realm was a few thousand square miles big, yet it was still able to maintain such a thick presence of spiritual energy in the air. It was no wonder that it was an ancient Secret Territory pa.s.sed down from the past.
As Gu Lingzhi surveyed her surroundings, Gu Chengze entered the Cangwu Realm along with the few Martial Pract.i.tioners.
Among the Martial Pract.i.tioners, a strong and st.u.r.dy looking guy who also had the highest cultivation level said, "First Mistress, the Red Half-moon is very useful in helping Martial Students ascend into a Martial Pract.i.tioner and I know where it can be found. It is somewhere in the northwest."
Gu Lingzhi acknowledged him. This st.u.r.dy looking young man was called Gu Hongyan. Ten years ago, he had come across a Red Half-moon herb that could help Martial Students in overcoming the bottleneck most of them faced when trying to advance into the Martial Pract.i.tioner rank. However, due to the nature of the Red Half-moon, if it was not consumed within two hours upon picking, it would lose all its powers. He had taken a mental note of its position to report back to the clan.
Initially, Gu Rong had intended for Gu Hongyan to bring Gu Linglong to pick this Red Half-moon herb but due to Gu Linglong"s disappearance, Gu Lingzhi was then able to know this. Gu Lingzhi could not help but sigh at her unexpected luck.
However, she did not immediately signal for Gu Hongyan to lead the way but stood at where she was, seeming to be waiting for something.
Before Gu Chengze could ask her anything, his handsome face suddenly turned a suspicious bright red in colour as he suddenly became shy.
Gu Lingzhi looked at where he was looking and saw Qin Xinran and Tianfeng Jin. Her mouth turned up into a smile.
It seems like even after a year, Gu Chengze still felt the same way towards Qin Xinran. It seems like his feelings even intensified. This was not good.
"Lady… Lady Qin, why are you here?" Gu Chengze stammered. Although he tried his best to appear calm and composed, his red ears and stiff body gave him away.
Qin Xinran pursed her lips and smiled looking extremely innocent and delicate, "Obviously we are here to wait for Lingzhi. In such a dangerous place, it is more fun to look around with friends."
"Eh, really? Haha, I think so too," Gu Chengze chuckled. He seemed to have lost his eloquent way of speaking out of nervousness. He started to resemble a dumbfounded child, causing those from the Gu Clan to be stunned.
Gu Lingzhi rubbed her forehead in pain as she could not bear to see Gu Chengze make a fool out of himself. She ordered Gu Hongyan to lead the way to the Red Half-moon. This gave Gu Chengze a chance to calm himself down. He started to feel upset with himself.
How could he embarra.s.s himself in front of Qin Xinran? Gu Chengze started to berate himself.
Before Gu Lingzhi returned to the capital city, he had collected information on Qin Xinran and knew about her nickname and reputation in the Royal School. However, unlike everyone else, upon knowing her true colours, he did not lose interest but liked her even more.
That small and pet.i.te figure could actually contain such a frightening strength and fierce personality. It was really… cute!