Chapter 210: Marked

It was far deep underground, thousands of miles away from any living being. Covered by the dirt soils of the planet, a room existed here. Nobody would ever even think there could be someone living so far here, much less a room here.

Qi did permeate so far underground on this planet, but it was obviously lesser than the outside world. It was essentially useless for any cultivators or even Mage to travel so far down.

But against all expectations, there was a room inhabiting thousands of miles deep underground. 

And the room was surprisingly spacious and well lit. Inside this room, a bright orange glow illuminated the space.

The cause for this radiant orange shine was a medium-size orange crystal that was in a distinctly unique shape. The glowing orange crystal was directly modeled after the Legendary God Beast, Vermillion Bird.

Just from how clearly detail the design was, anybody would be able to get drawn into the majesties this Divine Bird would naturally exude. 

From the crystal Vermillion Bird eyes, luminous orange rays of lights spewed out of there like shimmering sun rays.

Next to the Vermillion Bird Crystal were two people that can make anybody's head turns. 

Although, these two figures would have entirely different reasons for gathering attention on themselves. 

One of the figures wasn't anything special looking on the surface.

It was a simple middle-aged-looking woman who kept up a dignified appearance. She didn't have an overwhelming beauty, but she did carry a confident unbreakable stride on her face that nobody would reasonably mess with.

But though her general appearance wasn't unique, what the woman wore was definitely extraordinary. This woman was actually wearing a bright orange robe that had the God Beast Vermillion Bird inscribed on it!

Just from this clothing alone would this woman commands respect to most places she would go to. Nobody would dare to even think about underestimating because of her average looks.

There was only a specific set of people that could wear such an extraordinary outfit like this. 

This woman is from the Divine Vermillion Bird Sect!

Furthermore, she's also a highly influential Elder of the Sect! It wouldn't be a mistake to say this Vermillion Bird Elder could make people kneel in her presence. 

But such a dignified person was now in a compromising position.

Currently, the Vermillion Bird Elder had both of her hands holding on to the Vermillion Bird Crystal. Her eyes were closed tight as tiny beads of sweat slowly pooled down on her face.

The cause of so much stress on the proud Vermillion Bird Elder was because of the only other figure in this room.

And this figure was holding on to the Vermillion Bird Elder's shoulder without a care in the world.

Despite being in the presence of a monstrous powerhouse, this figure didn't care at all about the Vermillion Bird Elder status or prowess.

In fact, the Vermillion Bird Elder body was ever so slightly shaking as this figure had their hands on her. 

Although the Elder desperately tried to suppress the innate fear this figure naturally exudes, it obviously wasn't enough. Anybody would be able to see the naked fear twitching on her face.

The figure that is making the mighty Divine Vermillion Bird Elder quake in her own territory was a nightmarish-looking woman. 

On this woman's face, fresh bloodstains painted all over as if she just got out of a tremendous battle.

Yet, there was no sign of her sustaining battle damage or any scars. The only scars this woman had was ancient, dealt to her a long time ago. 

The woman had one long old dirt grain shirt that went just a bit past her knees, covering her skinny, frail body. The white shirt, similar to the woman's face, was painted with bright, fresh bloodstains. 

However, despite all these chilling features encompassing her image, these weren't even her most terrifying features.

Her most frightening feature was two bright glowing eyes that shined even brighter than the Vermillion Bird crystal light. These piercing yellow gleaming eyes could peer right into anyone's souls, grasping them with primal fear.

Of course, this was precisely the yellow-eyed woman that had followed Darcel and Aniela to this Mortal Planet. 

And currently, the yellow-eyed woman wasn't so lost like she usually is. After so much time of aimlessly wandering, aimlessly killing, she was finally close to her goal, her desperate goal of finding Darcel and Aniela.

Despite being so close to what's she been frantically pining for, the yellow-eyed woman's face remained chilling impassive. 

She was staring directly into the Vermillion Bird crystal, completely uncaring at how much she was terrorizing the Vermillion Bird Elder.

The room had been an eerie, suffocating silence for days on days. 

The Vermillion Bird Elder was nearly about to snap over in suffocating fear. She just felt like at any random time, this yellow-eyed woman would randomly change her mind, and her life would be over.

This is genuinely the most frightening experience the Vermilion Bird Elder had ever gone through in her incredibly long life. 

The Vermillion Bird Elder could even say that nothing can ever compare to this chilling situation after this is over.

The Vermilion Bird Elder can count on one hand about those who can make her feel genuine terror. However, none of those people hold a candlelight to this indifferent-looking, yellow-eyed woman. 

Massive swirls of chaos continuously erupted in the Vermilion Bird Elder's mind. And yet, she forcefully pushes through, desperately trying to keep somewhat of a strong face.

But as the days slowly passed, the stress was getting to the Elder. 

Her mouth broke into twitch. She felt like her knees were jelly and her hand touching the Vermilion Bird crystal finally began to quiver.

The Vermilion Bird Elder still couldn't believe this situation. 

She is one of the most widely respected people in the whole Nine Provinces. Nobody on her level would even dare to look at her straight in the eyes.

Whether it was a high status in the sector her own monstrously unfathomable prowess, she could be called an untouchable existence by some. 

However, all that status, fame, and power meant absolutely nothing now.

In front of this yellow-eyed woman, this Vermillion Bird Elder who can look down on nearly all of the Nine Provinces was nothing but a mere insect. 

The Elder couldn't even sense the arrival of the yellow-eyed woman. She also couldn't sense any sign of power from her. 

Yet, the yellow-eyed woman had just one day appeared in front of her like a chilling ghost. The Elder couldn't react at all as the yellow-eyed woman's hands moved at the hands of light speed and had simply touched her shoulders.

From that one touch, all of her energy and aura was immediately suppressed! 

The yellow-eyed woman made it so the Vermillion Bird Elder could only use an amount of power she allowed. The Vermillion Bird Elder simply couldn't surge any power against her.

And the Vermillion Bird Elder wasn't just at the Emperor Origin realm. She was nearing the peak of the Emperor Origin realm! 

This was a monumental feat that took thousands of years! The Elder was reaching a height where there weren't many that could match her in the Nine Provinces.

Yet now, the Vermillion Bird Elder couldn't even think about resisting. Her whole life was practically in the hands of the yellow-eyed woman. 

And in some strange stroke of luck, the yellow-eyed woman didn't kill her.

She was only making her do this one task. Though when the yellow-eyed woman gave the Vermillion Bird Elder this task, the tone she spoke in left absolutely no room for failure. 

The Elder just knew if she failed this, she would experience a fate worse than death.

Finally, after mind-crushing days, the Vermillion Bird crystal begins to slightly dim. An ice-cold sensation streaked through the Vermilion Bird Elder's entire body. 

Her eyes twinkle as she was familiar with this sensation.

The Vermillion Bird Elder didn't have the courage to look back at the yellow-eyed woman. So she kept her gaze pointed at the Vermillion Bird crystal, gathering all of her courage to report her findings.

She took a small deep breath and told the yellow-eyed woman, "Miss-miss Demigod. The person you're looking for is in the region of extreme ice. It's the Icy Cloud Province. We-we have the means to quickly get there through our teleportation Mage."

Throughout her entire spiel, the Vermillion Bird Elder was surprised she only stuttered twice. She thought she would for sure trip up on her words more. 

But, not having to look at the yellow-eyed woman's terrifying impassive face did help immensely in simply talking.

The yellow-eyed woman trailed her eyes to the back of the Vermillion Bird Elder head, staring impassively at it. She, too, felt that extreme freezing sensation during this process. 

This process was peering into one's mental scape.

All the yellow-eyed woman needed to do was merely drop a single drop of her blood into the Vermillion Bird Crystal. And after all this time, she finally felt him—the boy she was chasing after all over.

This process had actually taken two repeated attempts seeing as the yellow-eyed woman had to control her blood powers. Her single drop of blood was far too powerful for the likes of the Vermillion Bird Elder.

But finally, after a long extended amount of time, the yellow-eyed woman has a clear, concrete direction.

And still, despite finding precisely what she's looking for, the yellow-eyed woman's face seemed incapable of expressing emotions.

As the yellow-eyed woman's mind recalls the sensation of Darcel's presence, she asked the Vermillion Bird Elder, "Because of diluted blood, this crystal should now be able to continually trace a vague semblance of his aura, right?"

The Vermillion Bird Elder still didn't have the courage to look back nor take her hands away from the Vermillion Bird crystal. 

But, the Elder still stiffly nodded her head. "Yes, now that you know how to use it, you will have no trouble tracking this person."

The possibility of denying this yellow-eyed woman was zero improbability. Even if she did try to lie, there's nothing she could do against the yellow-eyed woman. 

Although the Elder knows after this, her life will be chaos for a while.

'Still….dealing with troublesome problems or keeping my life…. it's the only option I have. Haah….just how can a being like this exist in our Mortal World….' The Vermillion Bird Elder sighed in her mind but kept her lips shut.

The yellow-eyed woman took a moment to plan out her next course of action. 

She quickly mulled it over before reaching a swift decision. "Alright then. This crystal can be helpful to me in the future, so I'll be taking it. And you will direct me to that teleportation Mage. Once we get there, you'll be my guide while we travel this….Icy Cloud Province."

A tremendous wave of relief washed over the Vermilion Bird Elder. Just a little bit more, and she'll finally be out of this nightmare! 

Even though the Elder will need to guide the yellow-eyed woman a bit more, she knew it wouldn't take a long time.

The Vermillion Bird Elder considered the Icy Cloud Province a minuscule region she could travel in a couple of days. Once there, she hopes she'll be free at last.

The Vermillion Bird Elder took her hands off the crystal, at last, asking without turning around, "Should we leave now?"

The yellow-eyed woman nodded. "Yes. I can't have anything unexpected happen to them."