Thanks to the abundant travel expenses that Yu Yifeng provided, Xiao Chen was able to pick a luxurious and comfortable carriage at a horse carriage company. This way, he wouldn"t be jolted around throughout the journey. He shared the ride with six other people—two Foundation Building Realm cultivators and four Qi Refining Realm cultivators. Every now and then, these people would sneak admiring glances at Murong Xian"er but they suppressed their desire after sensing Xiao Chen"s imposing aura.
The most popular conversation fodder throughout the journey was none other than Xiao Chen"s deeds in the recent past. From the first sign of his budding talent at the Immortals League Compet.i.tion, to the havoc he wrecked at the imperial palace of Zhou State, to the punch he landed on a peak Core Forming Realm cultivator at the Widespread Wintriness Sect, to the hacking of the Nascent Soul Realm cultivator, and to the recent beheading of a gargantuan dragon and killing of a Nascent Soul Realm cultivator. The way they talked about him nearly painted a mythical layer on him. The conversation soon turned to them guessing his ident.i.ty and background.
Xiao Chen had long gotten used to these rumors and was able to remain calm in front of them. However, Murong Xian"er was so close to interrupting them each time they discussed untrue events. Naturally, Xiao Chen was able to stop her in time.
The carriage journeyed westward for nearly 10 days. The weather was gradually turning cold, with the occasional pouring of rain. Noticing how thin Murong Xian"er"s clothes were, Xiao Chen became worried that she would catch a cold. When they arrived at a small town, he bought a few sets of female clothing. He also noticed that it was true that there were cultivators tailing him along the way but he feigned ignorance. His current cultivation might not be enough for him to dominate the world but it allowed him to feel no fear of anyone.
Shishi Town was a small town located on the fringe of the East Continent, overlooking the west in the middle and the Changyin Mountain Range that bordered two continents on the east. Its residents numbered nearly 10,000, with the rest being merchants traveling between the two continents.
When Xiao Chen walked past an armed escort agency, he found a crowd gathered in front of the lion statues. It seemed like these people were about to depart. A burly man walked over to him with a smile. "Are you heading to the Middle Continent? Our Humen Armed Escort Agency is a reputable company with a long history. We guarantee that we"ll take you safely through the Changyin Mountain Range and will only accept payment when you arrive. Coincidentally, the head of our armed escort agency, Hun Jianglong, will be personally escorting the carriages today. Will you two join us?"
Xiao Chen sensed that this man"s cultivation was in the second or third level of the Foundation Building Realm. To be fair, he didn"t much care for this but he knew that Xian"er enjoyed having more people around. Noticing her excitement, he said, "We"ll be in your care, then."
"Hehe! I"m called Thunderbolt (Pili Huo) but just call me Old Huo. Please come this way!" The beefy man happily invited them to the front of the armed escort agency.
More than one hundred people joined this trip. Besides the nearly twenty armed escorts and several a.s.sistants, the rest were ordinary merchants. There were 13 horse carriages in total, none of which was as luxurious and comfortable as their previous one. The leader of the trip, Hun Jianglong, rode an impressive unicorn. His cultivation was in the seventh or eighth level of the Foundation Building Realm.
His subordinates weren"t skilled either, with most in the peak of the Qi Refining Realm and a few at the beginning of the Foundation Building Realm. These escorts didn"t belong to the cultivation sects. Their purpose wasn"t immortality but survival.
Following the escort"s a.s.sistant crying the agency"s slogan, the 13 horse carriages set off and traveled out of the small town with grandeur. They journeyed for more than twenty miles under fair weather until the sky gradually dimmed and became enveloped in what seemed to be a persistent fog. Even the sun disappeared among the sea of clouds.
The abrupt change in weather confused Xiao Chen. It didn"t seem like a sign of rainfall. The burly man from earlier, Thunderbolt, shared his carriage and seemed accustomed to this. He smiled and said, "It must be your first time going to the Middle Continent. Our armed escort agency has been operating for more than 20 years and has never experienced fair weather in the Changyin Mountain Range. Don"t worry. It"s not a problem."
Xiao Chen nodded. If his previous a.s.sumption was correct, then the Five Continents were an ancient formation. That meant that he couldn"t use conventional reasoning to make sense of the terrain of the Five Continents. It was normal to experience strange phenomenon in nature.
Murong Xian"er appeared greatly intrigued. She asked, "No sign of the sun over 20 years? Why is it so strange?"
The friendly and outgoing Thunderbolt laughed and replied, "Young lady, this place hasn"t seen the sun for nearly a millennium, never mind 20 years. However, the fauna here doesn"t wilt. Legend has it that after a high-level immortal died in a battle, he left his Spiritual Power here to protect the tens of thousands living beings here. That"s why you don"t have to worry. If you don"t break the taboo here, not even demons and monsters will dare to block your way!"
Xiao Chen pondered over this quietly. "No sun all year round? Could this be Cloud-gathering Formation?" Suddenly, Thunderbolt broke out into laughter. "Young lady, you don"t believe me, do you? Didn"t an evil demon resurrect in the East Continent recently? Strong as he was, he was still killed by Warrior Xiao. That"s to say, there exists a strange and wonderful law that maintains the balance of the world. The moment an excessive power comes into existence, a bane for that power will surely appear as well."
Xiao Chen nodded to himself, finding Thunderbolt"s final sentence to be very reasonable. There was naturally a power in this world that restrained or even confined all living things to maintain a strange but wonderful balance. No one was allowed to break this power. This power ought to be the undecipherable Heavenly Law.
Heaven used Yin and Yang as well as the Five Phases of Philosophy to give life to all living things, and yet cultivators deciphered Heavenly Mysteries, stole the Qi of Yin and Yang, seized the authority of Nature, and refined an everlasting life. That was why the journey of a cultivator was said to be an act of defiance of the natural order. Did this mean that people who ascended to heaven and became immortals have truly achieved the so-called defiance of the natural order? No. They were still restricted by the invisible Heavenly Law. Was this the reason for the death of the immortals and demons more than a millennium ago?
Suddenly, a major realization dawned on Xiao Chen. He came to understand many things that he didn"t in his past life. He saw the futility of life and death. In the past, he became the Immortal King of a region but was still restricted by the Heavenly Law. The Heavenly Law was the true master of the world, binding all living things. No one, be it a high-level immortal from the ancient times or a divine demon from the Archean Eon, was able to break the rule of the Heavenly Law.
What was the purpose of his rebirth after more than a thousand years? Was it simply for him to find his master? Perhaps his master had more profound ideas in mind in exhausting all methods to resurrect him. From now on, he shouldn"t allow this to make him feel dispirited. Even if he couldn"t find his master, he should still explore the secrets more than a thousand years ago. That way, he wouldn"t disappoint his master"s efforts.
Despite the gloomy weather outside, this understanding vastly improved Xiao Chen"s mood. The half-day journey of the entourage of armed escorts was peaceful so far. With the escort"s a.s.sistants crying out the slogan of Humen Armed Escort Agency, the nearby robbers and bandits left them alone out of respect.
When it was almost twilight, Xiao Chen heard shushing sounds outside and the carriage drew to a stop. Thanks to his occupational habit, Thunderbolt was the first to rush out of the carriage and saw a dozen or so silhouettes appearing out of the woods lined along the path. These people were all masked and dressed in black.
Immediately, Thunderbolt stepped forward and saluted the people with a smile. "It"s not easy to be the person-in-charge. I humbly ask that you do us a favor."
The leader of the masked men sneered. "Do you a favor? Who the heck are you? Scram!" Toward the end of his sentence, he flicked his sleeve and produced a surging force. The force slammed into Thunderbolt, sending him flying several feet away while coughing up blood.
The other armed escorts gasped. Thunderbolt was considered a great fighter in their armed escort agency but he didn"t even have the strength to block the attack earlier. Evidently, the leader of the masked men wasn"t an ordinary mountain bandit. They instantly felt a bad premonition. The nearly one hundred merchants behind them also became pale in the face. They were so frightened that they hid inside the carriage, terrified to step out.
A grim-faced Hun Jianglong got off his unicorn and walked to the front. "What are your names?" Before his voice could even fade, an indifferent voice came from behind him. "Don"t bother asking. They"re here for me."
Earlier, Murong Xian"er had followed Xiao Chen out of the carriage as well. When they walked past Thunderbolt, he said in a panic, "Please return to the carriage now, Brother Xiao. This has nothing to do with you."
Xiao Chen reached out and placed his hand on Thunderbolt"s shoulder, imbuing him with a burst of True Energy to mend his injuries. Thunderbolt"s expression changed. "You…" He never imagined that the person he had been protecting all this while would possess such rich True Energy.
Xiao Chen stepped forward and said frostily, "You"re finally showing your faces after tailing me for half a month." He was well aware that this was the border, where casualties were a non-factor. That was why these people chose to make their move now.
Initially, he didn"t want to cause a fuss and wanted to disappear among the armed escort entourage. But since his enemies had shown up at the door, he had no reason to pretend that they didn"t exist.
The leader of the masked men sneered. "Heh. Right back at you, Xiao Chen. You"re finally willing to show your face. I thought you"d continue hiding inside the Jade Qing Sect."
The others got a huge shock after hearing Xiao Chen"s name. The expression of Hun Jianglong, Thunderbolt, and the other escorts changed drastically. They never thought that he was the same Xiao Chen whose fame had risen exponentially recently.
Xiao Chen replied coolly, "Since you know my ident.i.ty, just state who sent you. If you tell me, I"ll let you live." Considering the mild killing aura these people were giving off, he deduced that these weren"t regular a.s.sa.s.sins.
The leader lifted his head and laughed. "How brazen! Let us live? If you"re willing to call me your grandfather, I"ll grant you an easy death!"
Xiao Chen sneered. "Didn"t you say you"d come down and kill me that night? You even had people leave signs in the rooms I"ve been staying in recently. Did you really think that I didn"t notice?"
The leader was mildly stunned. "Did he notice a long time ago?" He said coolly, "Spare me the nonsense! It"ll be your death anniversary on this day next year!" He flicked his sleeve and a gleaming object flew out from within.
The object was the size of an ink slab at first but by the time it reached Xiao Chen, it became as large as a lower millstone. It turned nonstop while radiating a cold and eerie glow. It was incredibly unpleasant to the eyes. Xiao Chen reached out and caught the object between his fingers with a clanging sound. So the object was a Life-exterminating Ring.
The leader immediately turned pale. He desperately cast spells and incantations but the magic treasure that he had refined for more than 10 years appeared stuck to Xiao Chen"s hand. No matter what he did, he was unable to summon it back.
"You overestimated yourself."
Xiao Chen looked at him frostily. Once again, he unsheathed his two frightening and cold swords. The other masked men dared not to react recklessly and listened as he said coldly, "I"ll ask you one final time. Who ordered you to a.s.sa.s.sinate me? Who are you people? Speak!" True Energy gathered at his fingertips. With a creaking sound, the Life-exterminating Ring shattered into countless fragments with ease.
Blood sprayed from the leader"s mouth. Cultivators would naturally suffer when their magic treasures were destroyed. He pointed to Xiao Chen as he trembled uncontrollably. Resentment filled his eyes. "You… You!"
In the Cultivation World, one ought to leave his opponent some leeway and not easily destroy his opponent"s magic treasure. However, these people were here to a.s.sa.s.sinate Xiao Chen. Why should he show them any courtesy?