503 The North-Western Crusade

Meng Qi changed the subject before Jiang Zhiwei could ask any further, "Ah, yes. My search has yielded relevant clues regarding Carefree Valley. The results of my search have shown me an approximate location in the land of Bomi in the region of the Immensity Sea. I will be extending my search there. The quest would be hard and perilous, for the land of Bomi is an infamous sanctuary for foul play as well as powerful evildoers. Therefore, it's a journey for only Zhiwei and I."

The quest north would be too perilous to tread safely for Ruan Yushu and Qi Yanzheng's current skills and power. More so, because of the treacherous and uncertain terrain of the northern wastelands. Additionally, Meng Qi would hate to disrupt the plans of his companions to train in private and further their skills.

"Carefree Valley?" asked Zhao Heng, befuddled. He had no knowledge of the string of tasks of the Zhenwu conundrum, nor did he have the opportunity to join the others in the adventure.

Meng Qi truthfully told Zhao Heng about the mystery of the fall of Zhenwu. Zhao Heng smiled weakly. "Well. Still, I would be hard-pressed to join you on such an adventure..."

The name of Zhenwu was more than enough to kindle the interest and curiosity of anyone who had heard his tale. Even if Zhao Heng understood it, he could hardly slip out of the palace and the watchful guard of the Political Affairs Hall to venture north to Carefree Valley with his scarcely enough strength to partake in such an endeavor.

Ruan Yushu and Qi Zhengyan nodded in unison with tacit understanding. Their training would be their most pressing issue; to keep up with their companions instead of becoming dead weight.

Jiang Zhiwei examined her choices before her agreement. Finally, she concurred, "So be it then. Let's decide on a time to meet. We can meet in the land of Bomi following our departure from the Samsara realm."

"In four months?" Meng Qi suggested.

"That should be fine. Three month's time should be adequate for me to hone my skills. I should be able to make it to Bomi in the final month," said Jiang Zhiwei without dispute.

There was still a surplus of time since her last exchange with the Dominator of the Samsara. Still, none but her companions were aware of that fact. Her immediate departure from the Sword Washing Pavilion to the Immensity Sea without some time for training would have solicited unwanted suspicion and skepticism!

The two secretive guilds have been under strict scrutiny since the emergence of Heaven Sovereign of the Myths, namely the Xuan Tian Sect, which had indivisible entanglements with the Myths. They would never have escaped into the shadows if they hadn't had anyone with powers of the Dharmakaya in their midst during the advent of Heavenly Sovereign!

Debates and discussions ensued until the meeting concluded. Ruan Yushu exchanged for around six months, with 1,095 Karma points left. The remainder she would conserve for possible future need of magical artifacts.

Meng Qi exchanged for three months of time, lowering his sum to 1,645 Karma points. He chose a Weapons-Refining Instructions device after a meticulous study of the list. A Beryl Stone of Thunder and a Seal of Thunder was also redeemed for the purpose of his weapon's refinement, which had cost him 1,600 Karma points.

Crackling sparkles of green electric bolts encircled the newly-refined Heaven Inflicted Pain. Emerald green bolts danced around its blade with euphoria, replacing the electric bolts which were once silver in hue.

"The Heaven Inflicted Pain," presented the Dominator once again, "A Precious Weapon of the moderate class. With a blade furnished from Sky Thunder Gold and its handle of Thunder Wood. The saber has been infused with the powers of a Beryl Stone of Thunder and a Seal of Thunder. Hefty in weight, the sturdy blade of the saber was reformed with a keenness and stoutness that dwarfs the weapons of its foes and cleaves all that incur its wrath. Bolts of lightning from the skies above resembling the Judgement of Heaven can be summoned forth to smite at its foes. In its sternest wrath, the saber alters even the climate of the surroundings for more than ten Li. By sheer will, dark clouds will swirl and stir overhead with the rumblings of thunder amidst the gathering black mass. Lightning will flash menacingly, crackling and glaring from above! The aura of its blade can assume the form of lightning dragons to wreak havoc on its foes and strike fear into their hearts with a force that could breach even the Heavens above. Many wonders are in store for its wielder who commands its allegiance. The blade now bears the value of 3,100 Karma points."

...

Meng Qi's figure began to emerge from thin air in the silent courtyard of the Su family manor. Obscured by a veil of darkness in the absence of light, he would have been mistaken for a common man without thorough observation.

During his three months of solitary meditation through hermetic training, Meng Qi had grasped the gist of mastery of the Exterior Scenery quarter of his Eight Nine Mastery technique, having learned the five shifting method to proficiency. He had also learned the basiscs of the Virtual Purity Sabersmanship, Vairocana Swordplay, and Void-Stamping Footwork. He could now summon upon himself additional limbs and heads: four arms and two heads in all. Although he had yet to fully comprehend the skill of the Law Phenomenon conjuration. He took what he could from the Heaven-Equaling and Ocean Stirring Staff techniques, deciding that the staff was not a weapon that became of his skills or fancy.

He took a deep breath, feeling the energies diffusing deeply within him. He sensed the blazing heat of the Grand Sun and the forces of the cosmic stars overlap upon himself, pervading his body and soul and becoming one with his genuine Qi.

"It appears that exotic ingredients would be essential in my training to renew my pace. The breathing technique itself has finite efficacy..." Meng Qi reflected, expelling a breath of murky fumes through his mouth.

He had to keep pace to achieve his aspirations of scaling a Fold of Heaven each year!

Meng Qi spun and walked outside. He beckoned to a servant passing by. He left his instructions with the servant. "Speak to the Master. Inform him that I will go through hermetic training. No one is to disturb my solitary meditations for three months. There shall be no need for sustenance. I have my Ration-Forfending Elixirs."

"Yes, Second Young Master," replied the servant, his head nodding quickly.

Meng Qi's decision to train would hardly confuse the servants of the household. They wouldn't doubt that the Second Young Master would elect to train in solitude to further his depth and powers following his recent break through.

He closed the doors of his room and locked the windows. He began to sit cross-legged and pretended to meditate. Late into the night he waited. With a shake of his torso, he turned into a rodent and clambered up the beams and pillars, leaving the room via a crevice on the wall and slipped out of the Su Clan Residence.

Once outside, he shapeshifted into his normal form of a young man clad in green. He left the capital briskly just as the sun reared its fiery head over the mountaintops, speeding straight toward the nearest entry to the domain of the Immortals.

At his entry into the Azure Heaven, an unknown figure approached him. On his face was a mask that Meng Qi did not recognize. His brown robes cloaked the person of moderate height and girth as he drifted towards Meng Qi.

"I am known as Yun Zhongzi. Please accept my gratitude for your assistance before." At first, he was taken aback by the Heavenly Primogenitor mask before he recollected himself promptly with a chuckle.

"This is the mask of Yun Zhongzi, I see... It is no wonder that I didn't know of it..." Meng Qi wondered with realization as he replied, "The Space Ring of your creation is a work of wonder indeed."

There had not been any legends of Yun Zhongzi in the main world, hence the absence of his mask from the operas of the present dimension.

Thin and fair were the features of the visage upon the mask of Yun Zhongzi. His long beard and faintly bulging forehead bore an uncanny resemblance to an ancient practitioner of Qi energies.

He exchanged a few words with Meng Qi before he drifted back to Azure Palace.

Meng Qi kicked in mid-air and rose swiftly as if borne by the wind, flying close to his companion.

Cool breezes of wind streamed by as he flew, the passing gust sweeping his body with a cool and soothing sensation. Beneath his feet, twinkling lights, azure and emerald, danced and weaved jubilantly. Beautiful white plumes floated idly, graced by the divine fowls waltzing in the air. Meng Qi could not help but feel ecstatic by the mirth and tranquility around him.

"You have a Reincarnation Charm waiting for you at the Immortal-Tracking Alley," Yun Zhongzi reminded him.

"Ha, and you believe that this would slip my mind?" Meng Qi scoffed to himself. His shrewdness towards valuables of wealth and value ought not be belittled!

"Master Yun Zhongzi, I have an inquiry of which I require your counsel." Meng Qi asked.

"What is it?" asked Yun Zhongzi as he chuckled.

"I have a mission that will bring me to the realm of the Apotheosized World. Does the Immortals guild know of any tales or news that would be of benefit in my endeavor?" Meng Qi asked, adopting a tone more befitting of his persona.

"The Apotheosized World..." Yun Zhongzi murmured uneasily as if the inquiry had drawn unto him a distant memory of the past.

He paused briefly. Then he said, "We of the Immortals can be hailed as one of the foremost principals in the understanding of the inner workings within the Apotheosized World, as far as Samsara travelers are concerned.

Meng Qi received the news with elation, but he remained expressionless, revealing nothing of his emotion, "What would it cost me for the trade for information of this realm then?"

Yun Zhongzi's voice shifted to his former tone as he replied with a laugh, "Strange is the dimension of the Apotheosized World, for not even one with the skills and powers of the Primogenitor Lingbao would be able to penetrate its borders without the aid of a Reincarnation Charm. Treacherous and mysterious secrets lurk within the realm where not even he dare brazenly intrude to hunt for treasure or valuables. He has intended to first establish an outpost of the Immortals to enhance our presence there. Thus, we are reluctant to divulge any information to anyone who has yet to become full members of our guild, not even at the enticement of Karma points. However, we would be pleased to furnish full members with every shred of information we have on the realm at no charge."

"In all honesty, I am here this time to tender my request to enroll as a full member of the guild, my friend," Meng Qi continued plainly.

Yun Zhongzi descended upon the entrance of Azure Palace. "Very well," he said cheerfully, "And where would you like to conduct the trial?"

"The site of my trial is mine to choose?" Meng Qi asked incredulously.

"None have been afforded such privilege save for you, my friend," Yun Zhongzi answered with a giggle, "We would have had you directly instated with the honors of a full member if it were not for the conditions of the guild's rules and regulations."

"Your outstanding capacity of enduring the four folds of the Judgement of Heavens, and the mastery of the Buddha's Palm technique, are rare feats," he added unpretentiously. "Very rare indeed."

Meng Qi fought his swelling conceit to maintain an air of modesty as the compliments filled him with pride. Feigning somber, he spoke, "At the Immensity Sea then, if I may."

It would have spared him the immense inconvenience of traveling to and fro if he could complete the assessment and explore the region for any traces of Carefree Valley.

Yun Zhongzi nodded gently. He drifted into Azure Palace, searching for information for Meng Qi. He returned after a while and said to Meng Qi, "Seek out Yang Zhenchan, the Devil-Slaying Sword. Your objective is to assassinate him within a year. He was once a disciple of Huamei Heights, a student under the tutelage of Master Lu. Many years had passed since he attained the cultivation of the Exterior Scenery. However, there has been a lapse during his attempt to unseal the Hidden Latch which led to his continuous want of success to leap past the First Celestial Ladder. Time passed for him with dread and disappointment as he watched younger fellow disciples pass him by, outdoing him in their achievements. The letdown dealt a heavy blow to him. So heavy that in his disillusionment he strayed from the path of Righteousness. He resorted to forbidden methods commonly employed by those of the Devil Path, and has caused the deaths of many innocent people."

"His atrocities were discovered and exposed. He fled Huamei Heights in fear of justice which would be dispensed by his mentors and disciples of his former school. He absconded into the region of the Immensity Sea and took up refuge in the land of Bomi. It has been nine winters since the day of his fateful flight."

"Nine years is no short time. He may have broken through the barriers of the First Celestial Ladder already, no?" Meng Qi frowned.

Meng Qi would have greater confidence in subduing any quarry beneath the First Celestial Ladder, providing that they were not rare prodigies with capabilities equal to that of Gu Xiaosang or Wang Siyuan.

More than a year had slipped by since Gu Xiaosang, Wang Siyuan and a number of their equals had grasped the attainment of the Exterior. It was hardly imaginable for them not to have reached the Second Fold of Heaven of the Exterior Scenery. Their gifted talent and pedigree would have placed them above most warriors of the Exterior within the Third Fold of Heaven.

Nevertheless, confidence was brimming in Meng Qi. Through thick and thin he had endured thus far to have reached the heights at which he now stood. Nothing seemed impossible to him now!

There would come a day when he would turn the tables!

Yun Zhongzi chuckled at Meng Qi's hesitance. "Fear not," he said, "Yang Zhenchan was first discovered in his heinous barbarity because he had suffered a seizure. An anomaly occurred in the channeling of his Qi energies and caused the breakdown, which robbed him of the bulk of his might. He remains but a shadow of his former superiority."

Yun Zhongzi was implying that the Yang Zhenchan today hardly posed a threat in the face of Meng Qi's current capabilities. The task would not have been assigned to him otherwise.

Meng Qi heaved a sigh of relief as he motioned his consent to the mission. Knowingly he stayed silent, having already surmised the identity of the member who would be evaluating his performance.

Meng Qi arrived at the Immortal-Tracking Alley thereafter and collected his Reincarnation Charm. He abandoned his earlier notion of using it after moments of deliberation. It would be wise for him to keep the charm as a final option during his exploration of the unknown in Carefree Valley. He might also have later need of the charm to return to the realm of the Nine Villages.

Meng Qi read through the list of available tasks of the guild after concluding his business. Finding nothing of interest, he left the domain of the Immortals and returned to the outskirts of Luoyang.

Meng Qi looked up into the sky. He breathed deeply as he took in the view of the sky hanging above. With long strides he walked through the wilderness into the distance, avoiding the highway, and picked only paths which were desolate and quiet.

The Vital Qi of Nature emanated from him as he walked, shielding his own aura. With renewed freshness, he pushed forth for an entire day without stopping. Night came upon the land as the sun retired. He rode with the wind and flew up into the skies, hiding amongst the fluff of clouds above.

Meng Qi traveled through day and night in this way. He flew in the skies under the cover of night and continued his trek on foot in the day. By walking in the day, he allowed himself to replenish his powers and fatigue.

Jade Gate Pass. At the gateway from the Western Regions of the Silk Road into the civilization of the Jin Empire, Meng Qi stood and beheld the desert landscape before him that extended endlessly into the horizon, majestic yet barren.

The sun sank into the West, leaving behind a blood-red sheet that spanned across skies above. With weariness upon his visage, Meng Qi whispered to himself,

"17 days..."

He had journeyed north with the quickest speed he could muster for 17 days and had finally arrived at Jade Gate Pass from Luoyang, many miles away.

Two days later, the menacing whinny of a seething sandstorm pummeled mercilessly at the huts of the Quicksand Town, as thick columns of yellow and brown dust borne by the wind blew wildly.

Qu Jiuniang remained in the refuge of her home, flicking at the beads of her abacus, counting the profit of her earnings in her room. Her eyes burned with intense fire. A fire fueled by her relentless fervor to amass more and more wealth, the very element that she worshipped with earnest devotion in life.

"Creak!" The raspy screech of the door being opened reverberated in her ears. Fully alarmed she channeled her powers for protection. A bluish tint enveloped her as she braced for the entry of her intruder!

"Who goes there!" she cried in alarm. Whom could it have been? The intruder had approached her room silently and unnoticed.

Seldom did anyone who arrived in Quicksand Town escape her notice when she had such an acute sense of detection!

A man in green emerged through the threshold of her door. Sweet and handsome was his visage, strong and steady was his bearing. He was hardly dowsed with sand and dirt but the weariness of his long trek from the south was unmistakable.

"Do you not recognize me, Jiuniang?" Meng Qi asked with a grin.

Her eyes narrowed to slits as she tried to make out her guest that had come uncalled for. Shock and surprise filled her when she recognized who it was. "You! Why are you here?"

It was but a mere twenty days since his breakthrough. Most would have thought that he should be in meditation and training, honing his freshly-acquired strength and powers.

A lengthy procedure that would have taken him three months to complete!

Never had she expected that Su Meng would appear before her! Word from her sources, aside from that of the Immortals, about Su Meng's leap in progress had reached her not more than three days ago.

This was simply unthinkable!

"It fills me with great relief to see you so surprised. I guess my worth is more than I thought," Meng Qi's mouth spread into a wide grin, showing rows of white teeth.

Ze Luoju would have readied himself for Meng Qi's impending arrival if Meng Qi had indeed chosen to train for three months before leaving the capital. There could have been endless of possibilities of Ze Luoju's concoction to welcome his nemesis; plans of flight to safety, plans of alerting Crying Elder and enlisting his help, or even plans of ambush and traps would await Meng Qi's arrival.

By his own vocation, Meng Qi had decided against appearing in the regions of the Immensity Sea after leaving from the Samsara realms. Questions would be raised and suspicion would have surfaced if he had appeared in the Western Regions when he was thousands of miles away only a day before. The timing of his deed has remained the element of surprise that troubled him so far. The deed might be forced to be committed as soon as his foot stepped within the boundaries of the land of Bomi, or, he might have a few days' observation and study of his quarry before his execution.

Hence his decision to expedite the three months of his training in the Samsara realm earlier!

And the reason for the nineteen days he had traveled. Through his entire journey from the south to Quicksand Town, he had stopped not even at the slumber of the sun or the rousing of the moon!

Surely Ze Luoju would not have expected his appearance to be of such haste or abrupt when Qu Jiuniang, who was a fellow Samsara Traveler had been severely shocked by his sudden appearance.

Meng Qi looked out the window. The hysterics of the sandstorm continued in the midst of the night's darkness, its incessant noise turned his melancholy mood to one of more gloom.

"Here I come, Ze Luoju!"

"I will head northwest to slay such evil!"