Chapter 371 - It's Him

The rustling of leaves on the large tree followed Xiao Chen’s voice. Then came a stifling murderous aura sweeping the place. A young man in red stepped out from behind the tree with a steel folding fan in hand. His facial features were well-defined. It was the man Xiao Chen met at the tavern yesterday.

“Ah, so you discovered me long ago.” The man smiled. He unfolded his fan and strolled over, ignoring Xiao Chen’s Absolute Domain.

“In the Battle of Tianyuan City, one man slaughtered countless Orthodox cultivators. I’ve long heard of your name, Brother Xiao. Now that we’ve met, I see that you deserve your God of Murder title.” The man smiled. His gaze landed on the twenty or so disciples from the Order of the Divine Fire.

The disciples nearly had a mental breakdown after hearing that it was Xiao Chen. Xiao Chen smiled and said, without turning to look at the man in red, “The man who kills one man in ten steps and leaves no trace for a thousand miles. Half a year ago, the same man exterminated the Cool Breeze Sect, Heavenly Blossom Sect, and Hall of Loyalty by himself. Your God of Blood title is very apt as well, if I do say so myself.”

The man in red threw his back in laughter. “I, Seven Killings, am truly honored that you know a Bloodied Fiend Sect nobody like me, Brother Xiao.”

“S-Seven Killings!” The others were stunned to learn that the man in red was Seven Killings, the Bloodied Fiend Sect powerhouse that had been gaining infamy in recent months. The disciples from the Order of the Divine Fire exchanged looks, all looking as pale as ash. They were destined to die today, but even so, they wished Xiao Chen would do the killing. That way, their corpses would at least be intact.

“Is that so…” Xiao Chen finally turned around and their eyes once again met. Seven Killings stopped smiling and slowly closed his folding fan.

They continued to stare at each other until the tension in the air resembled the mood in the tavern yesterday. The ten or so disciples of the Order and the twenty or so Devil’s Practice cultivators were both terrified.

To them, one was the God of Murder who betrayed the Orthodox Path and the other was the God of Blood that even devils were afraid of. If nothing else, they were sure that these two were anything but allies. Everyone understood their reason to be here: the extraordinary treasure. If these two start fighting, there would likely be no survivors among them.

The tension stretched on as they engaged in a silent war with their eyes. The air was almost still. It wasn’t until a sudden gust of wind swept that Seven Killings finally smiled and once again unfolded his fan. “Did you come to the Miasma Mountain Range for the extraordinary treasure, Brother Xiao?”

Xiao Chen replied emotionlessly, “I’ve heard that the Venerable Bloodied Devil from the Bloodied Fiend Sect is enlightened about the abstrusity of the world around us. I’m but a weak lone ranger. A nobody like me wouldn’t dare to covet a treasure that is already yours, Brother Seven Killings.”

Seven Killings raised his head and laughed. “You jest, Brother Xiao. How can a nobody earn the aid of the Spirit Silence Room? And Perfected Immortal Danyang from the Order of the Divine Fire has come too. It’d be more accurate to call it his treasure, wouldn’t it…” He trailed off, looking at the disciples from the Order with a gaze that made them feel like they plunged into a sea of ice.

“Farewell.” Xiao Chen didn’t want to waste his breath on this man. His goal wasn’t the extraordinary treasure anyway. He flicked his sleeves and removed the Absolute Domain, allowing the rest to move again. But no one did. When the disciples saw him leaving, one said in a trembling voice, “Xiao Chen, kill us!”

Xiao Chen ignored him. When he was about fifty feet away, he heard Seven Killings’ voice coming from behind him. “I hope we won’t be enemies.”

“Then, please stop tailing me,” Xiao Chen replied and made his exit. When he was two hundred feet away, heart-rending screeches pierced his ears.

Seven Killings retrieved his folding fan with a cold smile. When it came to power, he believed that he wasn’t inferior to Xiao Chen. He had quite a high status in the Bloodied Fiend Sect too. The only reason he feared Xiao Chen was the mysterious organization capable of rivaling the Administration of Heaven—the Spirit Silence Room.

The twenty or so Devil’s Practice cultivators in black stared at the mangled corpses scattered all over the floor of the woods, frightened out of their wits. One of them said, his voice trembling, “L-Lord Seven Killings, can we… leave now?”

Seven Killings gave them an icy glance. “Considering we’re on the same side, I’ll spare you this time. Go back and tell your Elders that the extraordinary treasure belongs to the Bloodied Fiend Sect! Whoever dares to covet it…”

“Y-Yes!” They didn’t even wait for him to finish. As if granted clemency, they ran out of the woods without looking back.

Seven Killings turned his head and stared in the direction that Xiao Chen disappeared in. The dark clouds there seemed to have worsened…

In recent years, the Orthodox sects had been putting up a great front of unity while backstabbing each other in the dark. The same could be said for the Devil’s Practice. Their collective fight against the Orthodox Path several years ago made them look more united, but both sides still fighting among themselves to reign supreme. All of them gradually began to scheme against each other. All wanted to be the one to dominate the world.

The Four Major Devil’s Sects—Bloodied Fiend Sect, Fort Raksasa, Dark Shadow Hall, Corpse Refinery Sect—looked calm on the surface but were all up to no good. In particular, the Corpse Refinery Sect had been going through a massive expansion after secluding themselves for three hundred years. There was no doubt that Ye Wuxin had the ambition of annexing the three other factions.

Seven Killings took a deep breath. Fort Raksasa had the support of its Empress, the Dark Shadow Hall had the mysterious Feng you, and the Corpse Refinery Sect possessed an unrivaled Divine Corpse. Meanwhile, the Venerable Bloodied Devil from his sect had been cultivating in seclusion for almost a century. It wasn’t until two years ago that the Bloodied Mad Swordsman finally returned, but as a deranged idiot.

This made him feel helpless. Aspirations were useless without power. When could he finally dominate the world? At the Battle of Tianyuan City, Xiao Chen used his zither, an ancient Divine Tool, to level the Immortals’ League. If his sect possessed a treasure that was just as powerful, they wouldn’t need to fear the three sects. Thus, he was determined to get the extraordinary treasure of the Miasma Mountain Range.

In recent days, he had been cooking up various schemes to incite battles between the Orthodox Path and Devil’s Practice to exhaust their powers. His biggest concern had been Danyang Zi from the Order of the Divine Fire, who was about to achieve the Apotheosis Realm. Little did he expect that Xiao Chen would escape the Demon Repressing Tower and come to the Miasma Mountain Range! This uncertain factor had ruined his entire plan, making him feel threatened.

Meanwhile, on the other side of the Miasma Mountain Range, a complaining voice resounded. “Meow! I’m about to burst a vein from anger! Little Xian’er lied to me, saying that some kind of extraordinary treasure is going to show up. But I don’t see anything after running around and even got chased by a bunch of lunatic mosquitos! D*mn it! Once my magic powers recover, I swear I’ll level this place!”

“You food-thieving cat, all you do at the Jade Qing Sect is eat and drink! Look at how fat you’ve gotten! No wonder you can’t even outrun some mosquitos.”

“Enough arguing, Junior Brothers and Sisters. Do you feel ill anywhere after crossing the forest of poisonous miasma?”

The one who spoke this time was a white-robed young man holding a red Immortal’s Sword. He wore a small frown. His eyes were as limpid and bright as moonlight. It was Yu Yifeng. His cultivation had skyrocketed in the past year and he was now in the true mid-stage of the Nascent Soul Realm. Behind him were Mu Shaoai, Qingyu, Zhou Li, and Luo Shangyan—who had been frowning the entire time.

Luo Shangyan spent the past year putting her all into cultivating. The speed of her progress was astonishing as well. She was now in the true beginner-stage of the Nascent Soul Realm. However, no one had seen her smile even once in the past year.

“I don’t feel too good! Yu Shiyi, how do you plan on compensating me?” Zhiluan hovered next to Luo Shangyan and started kicking up a fuss. A dozen or so red packets were plastered on his head, making him look rather comical.

Qingyu placed a hand over her mouth and burst into laughter. “You deserved it! Who’s the one who said he isn’t afraid of vicious ants because he has Divine Skills for protection?”

“D*mned girl!” Zhiluan was so furious that his entire face reddened. Before this, Yu Yifeng had proposed that they smear a layer of medicated water on their skin to ward off mosquitoes. However, he thought himself above it and declared that he was an envoy that the Jade Emperor personally dispatched to the Human World, had Divine Skills for protection, and wasn’t afraid of some venomous insects… Well, the outcome was clear.

Yu Yifeng coughed once and handed him the bottle of medicated water. Then, he addressed the group. “Alright. We must now pinpoint the location of the extraordinary treasure as soon as possible. We can’t let those from the Devil’s Practice steal the opportunity. The consequences are unimaginable if it falls into their hands. Martial Uncle Mo Xuan came here last month, and it’d be best if we can join him.”

They already spent two days in the Miasma Mountain Range, a place where clear skies would suddenly be replaced with rain and vice versa. Miasma shrouded many places, making it rather orienting. Hearing that they could meet up with Moxuan Zi, one of the Seven Sons, boosted their morale. After trekking for a while, Mu Shaoai suddenly said, “We can’t let the treasure fall into the hands of the Devil’s sects. But what about the Thousand Feathers Sect, Divine Mist Sect, and Xianyong Sect?”

A momentary silence later, Yu Yifeng replied, “It’d be ideal it ends up with one of the Orthodox sects, but we should try our best to bring back the treasure anyhow.”

His implication was clear. Both the Devil’s Practice and Orthodox Path coveted this treasure. Not only would the treasure boost their prestige among other Orthodox sects, but they could also add another great treasure to strengthen their sect.

The Jade Qing Sect had been gaining fame in recent months. Naturally, they wanted to take it up a notch. On the other hand, the Divine Mist Sect had always proclaimed themselves the top sect but other sects had been showing signs of surpassing them. Pressure was mounting on them. Like the Bloodied Fiend Sect, they would do anything to obtain the treasure on this mountain range.

“And another thing. I heard the Corpse Refinery Sect has been occupying a place nearby. Martial Uncle Mo Xuan suspects that the disappearance of the thirty-one people has something to do with them. Everyone, please be careful,” Yu Yifeng added, and then continued to lead the way.

The group continued to trek for four hours. The towering trees in this forest had crisscrossing branches that made it difficult to fly on their swords. Flying also made them easily detectable, especially to those from the Devil’s Practice. Even if the mountain road was strenuous, they had no choice but to travel on foot.

After walking for a little more, the sky suddenly darkened and began to drizzle. Yu Yifeng put up a layer of Barrier and blocked the rain for them. However, the road ahead became even more difficult to walk on.

“Why don’t we find shelter from the rain first?”

“I agree! This Great Immortal is about to die from exhaustion!”

Zhiluan was terrified of the venomous insects crawling on the ground, for they seem to target him alone. Hence, he unfolded his wings and flew all the way. Before, he could still lay on Xiao Chen’s shoulders and doze off. Now, whose shoulders could he lay on?

“Wish that d*mned kid is here. Even though it’s pretty unlucky to follow him sometimes…”

His inadvertent complaint silenced everyone. They had no idea that Xiao Chen had escaped the tower. Even if he had escaped, there wasn’t a place for him in the Orthodox Path anymore…

It began to rain harder, so much that the tree leaves rustled loudly from the weight of the raindrops. Qinyu’s smile was gone. Every time she recalled the person who removed her Devil’s Carnage Qi without a care for himself, she would think of the person who slaughtered at Tianyuan City as well. She didn’t know which one was the real Xiao Chen.

Luo Shangyan looked downcast. She didn’t want to say anything, and in fact, she hadn’t spoken a word since the beginning of the trip. The rain picked up and a mist began to fill the air, making their surroundings turn hazy. She thought she saw a person wearing a woven raincoat in the distance, but when she blinked, the person was gone.

“Junior Sister Luo! It’s dangerous! Where are you going?”

Yu Yifeng cried out in surprise at Luo Shangyan suddenly running off without rhyme or reason. No one knew what was wrong with her, but they chased after her all the same.

“Junior Sister Luo, come back!” Yu Yifeng kept shouting, but Luo Shangyan didn’t seem to hear him. She acted as if she was possessed and kept running ahead.

Soon, she was completely drenched. Her hair clung to the sides of her face and drops of water slid down her chin. But those weren’t raindrops. They were tears.

Finally, after running for about 1,000 or 1,500 meters, all she saw was the mist. The person in the woven raincoat was nowhere to be seen. It was as if he had never existed.

When the rest of her group caught up to her, Yu Yifeng said in a panicked voice, “What are you doing, Junior Sister Luo?” He hastily put up a layer of Barrier above her head.

Luo Shangyan’s chest heaved up and down. As if she was speaking to herself, as if she was dreaming, she muttered, “It’s him. It’s him…”