Chapter 158: Worry and Danger

Chapter 158: Worry and Danger

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No one would ever accuse Lord Feng Shang of being a nervous man. Even as a baby, he possessed a calm temperament, rarely crying or making trouble for his parents. The birth of his overly emotional brother only further accentuated these qualities in him. Cautious, responsible Feng Shang and his foolish, rambunctious younger brother. That was how people viewed them.

Were he not an Emperor, thus wholly in control of every single cell in his body, Feng Shang would be sweating right now.

It comes as no surprise that his father is why he is so nervous. That has often been the case for as long as Feng Shang can remember. Of course, when he was a child, he feared small, inconsequential things like how his father would react to learning he had made a small crack on the statue of the First Ancestor during his training.

The stakes are higher now.

The first disciple to return from the Dead Plains was one of his. It was an underwhelming conclusion to a feud that had been brewing for many years, but it was one better than hed dared to hope. Feng Shang felt elated when his father ordered the disciple to be brought before him so that he may deliver the stone.

However, that was all that happened.

His father made no announcements and no choices. He and Feng Gui were left staring at him, waiting for several seconds before being dismissed from his presence. Feng Shang later questioned the disciple but could not gain any insight into his fathers actions.

Two of Feng Guis disciples arrived merely a day later. Just like before, his father ordered the disciples brought to him so that they may deliver the stone and nothing else.

It has been weeks since then, and the pattern has repeated without an end in sight. Their father seems to have no intention of declaring a winner, something that, unfortunately, isnt entirely unexpected. Things rarely go the way Feng Shang wants them to when dealing with his father. This is simply another one of those times.

But the stakes are higher now.

Having to wait here while his future and that of the entire Eternal Flame Clan is decided beyond his sight is maddening. However, what other alternatives are there? Feng Shang considered sending men out to the Dead Plains for merely five seconds before he felt his fathers gaze on him from two miles away.

Just seriously contemplating the choice was enough to create an ignition point for his father to sense. With their father out of seclusion, Feng Shang can do nothing. It doesnt matter that he is an Emperor. He can only wait in the compound until his father makes a choice using whatever arbitrary metric he has settled on this time.

Wait and hope his brother hasnt decided to kill his own son in pursuit of power.

His foolish, irresponsible, reckless brother.

His brother who has more illegitimate children than there are stars in the sky and cares for them as much as he cares for the ants crawling under the ground.

His brother who has always wanted the position of Patriarch and often loudly proclaimed he would stop at nothing to achieve it.

Then there is the matter of Xun Huwen. Just the name alone makes Feng Shangs face sour. He should have never listened to that suggestion. Putting aside that Xun Huwen could easily ruin the contest, sending someone like him to the Eye... They might as well be begging him to step into the true Dead Plains.

For the first time in a long time, Feng Shang feels nervous.

~~~

Liu Jin and Lu Mei move to Liu Jins room after Bei Hong and Bei Duyi have been stabilized. The doors have been sealed off with talismans to prevent anyone from eavesdropping.

You propose something dangerous.

I know, Liu Jin says. His frustration is easy to see in the creasing of his brow. I have been trying to figure out another way to find Feng Hao, but the Dead Plains are too big.

Even though Liu Jin has enough disciples at his command to organize a few search parties, there is no point in doing so. Even assuming Feng Zhi has hidden Feng Hao in the Eye, that still leaves far too much territory to cover. In the worst-case scenario, Liu Jin would just be sending people out to die.

You are the only one I can rely on for this.

Lu Mei humphs and crosses her arms. I am so relieved you think of me as a reliable Feng locator.

Liu Jin narrows his eyes. You have felt my feelings. You know that is not fair.

Still, it is not as if he doesnt understand Lu Meis frustration. Hed be worried if she wasnt at least a little apprehensive about what he has suggested.

The idea came to him after remembering what Elder Xun told them. All the users of the Eternal Flame are connected through the Eternal Flame, and Feng Hao

My tutors all say the same thing! They said it wont be long until I can c-use the Eternal Flame.

Feng Hao was about to be introduced to the Eternal Flame before this all began. There is a high chance he has already started tapping into it. If nothing else, Liu Jin can rely on Feng Haos staggering talent. And if not him, then Feng Zhi undoubtedly has it. Considering the situation, he might have even started instructing Feng Hao in its use.

Lu Meis gaze softens.

Fair enough. However, there is no guarantee you are right. Elder Xun could detect I held the Eternal Flame, but he was mere yards away from me during the trial. Meanwhile, Lord Feng Shang has no idea who I am. You, however, expect me to use the Eternal Flame Clan to track Feng Hao across hundreds of miles.

Lord Feng Shang wasnt trying to sense anything, Liu Jin argues back. Ill admit this is mostly conjecture, but please bear with me. People with the Eternal Flame can sense each other, provided they are skilled enough. However, this is not necessarily just a passive sense. Lord Feng Shang couldnt detect you because he never once tried to sense anything, and your connection to the Eternal Flame wasnt developed enough to call his attention. It is also why Feng Zhi seems to have no idea you hold the Eternal Flame as far as we know.

By that logic, Lord Feng Shang could find out the location of everyone with the Eternal Flame in the Crimson Cloud Empire if he cared to sense them.

That is not as impossible as you make it sound. Think about it. We know there are at least some Elders capable of using the Eternal Flame. The Feng Clan also has several branches all over the Empire. It would not surprise me if there were other Feng Clan members with the ability to use the Eternal Flame.

Lacking any such sense of propriety, Pan Qius reply comes by way of a fairly rude gesture with his hand.

There is no need for such childishness, Khong Hu says, his gaze now considerably cooler, a great feat considering he has been looking at him with all the patience of a disappointed instructor thus far. Do you really not understand Senior Brother Guos kindness? Had he wanted to, he could have left us behind several days ago.

On a purely intellectual level, Pan Qiu knows Khong Hu is right. Senior Brother Guo is so far beyond them that he can cover ten miles for everyone one of theirs. In fact, Pan Qiu is fairly sure he has done that on a couple of occasions.

Save for the few times they have had to avoid dangerous Spirit Beasts, Pan Qiu and Khong Hu have mostly run in straight lines. There was just one incident where they had felt the aura of Spirit Beast in the Heaven Realm in the distance and circled around it.

However, unlike them, Senior Brother Guo will often blur out of sight to look at the surrounding area. He will go left and right and back again, covering as much terrain as possible and leaving no stone unturned. Were it not for that, theyd have been left behind already.

It is as if hes looking for something.

It doesnt matter to Pan Qiu. Not really. If he stays near Senior Brother Guo, he will be safe. If he doesnt, he will die. It is that simple.

Senior Brother Guos Qi suddenly flares up. Khong Hu and Pan Qiu both have to raise their arms to protect themselves from the dust kicked off as he accelerates. Senior Brother Guo moves with such force that the ground breaks under his feet. He moves so swiftly and tirelessly it is hard to believe he is under the curse of the Earth Realm.

A second later, the reason for his acceleration became obvious.

The aura of a Spirit Beast in the Earth Realm rises up in the distance and can be felt clashing against Senior Brother Guo. The sounds of the battle ring across the plains with such force Pan Qiu feels them on the back of his teeth.

When Pan Qiu and Khong Hu reach Senior Brother Guo, it is all over. They find him standing over the body of some sort of draconic Spirit Beast. A whelp judging by its relatively small size. From head to tail, the beast is only about as long as four men.

Senior Brother Guos halberd flashes too quickly for them to see it. In an instant, he carves out two chunks of the dragons flesh and tosses them at the two.

Eat.

The two disciples stare at the offered meat for a couple of seconds. The order given to them is simple, and equally simple is realizing everything wrong with it.

Lacking a finely developed cowards instinct, Khong Hu is the one who says what Pan Qiu is thinking.

Senior Brother, Khong Hu says, his voice only quivering slightly, this is dragon meat.

It is all he says because it is all that needs to be said.

Dragonic species of Spirit Beasts are not like the others. Every part of a dragons body, be it flesh, blood, or marrow, is unbelievably hard to subdue. Cultivators in the Spirit Realm, and even a few in the Nascent Realm, would not usually not hesitate to taste the flesh of a Spirit Beast in the Earth Realm as the energy within would greatly boost their cultivation.

However, the flesh of a dragon is different. It will fight them every step of the way and resist their bodies attempts to absorb it. If they fail, it could cause them serious harm. Death, though highly unlikely, is not entirely out of the realm of possibility.

I am aware.

Of course, Senior Brother Guo already knows that.

Then why? Again, Khong Hu is the one who speaks, for once losing his ability to form complete sentences.

You two insist on following me. That is fine. However, the days pass, and I am not closer to my goal. If you wish to follow me, subdue the meat and gain power. If you cant do that, leave.

He doesnt say there is a high chance they will try and fail anyway. It is not the sort of thing that needs to be said. Faced with such a dilemma, it is natural for someone like Khong Hu to look conflicted.

Pan Qiu has already made up his mind.

He will only survive by remaining close to Senior Brother Guo. Uncertain survival is far better than certain death.

I have only one question, Senior Brother?

And yet, for some reason, Pan Qiu raises his hand and speaks up.

What do you want to know, junior?

Pan Qiu does not meet his eyes. He never has, and he knows that has probably lowered Senior Brother Guos opinion of him quite a bit, but he does not mind.

What exactly is it that Senior Brother is looking for?

If he is about to put his life in danger once more, Pan Qiu would rather know why. It cant be that Senior Brother Guo is looking for the temple. If that was the problem, the endless number of maps Khong Hu brought with him would have solved it already.

Pan Qiu feels Senior Brother Guos gaze on him for three full seconds. It is about as much time as it took him to kill a Spirit Beast in the Earth Realm, and that comparison only makes him more nervous.

At last, Senior Brother Guo speaks.

Lord Feng Gui has ordered me to secure Young Master Feng Hao.

~~~