CH 17

Though it appeared merely as a black dot on the horizon, it was in fact a stampede of yao beasts. Not only did they blanket the ground, but innumerable flying beasts filled up the sky as they rushed and surged fiercely toward this place.

If someone were to look down at the spiritual ruins from on high at this very moment, they would find that the entire periphery of the hidden realm was experiencing the same catastrophe. The beasts were in a frenzy, all rushing toward the center of the secret realm. They blotted out the sun, and covered the earth, alarming the cultivators who were fleeing for their lives. This scene could have easily been mistaken for a depiction of hell. 

“Yao beasts are coming, quickly head to the center of the celestial mansion.” With no time to wait for a response, Gu Feng grabbed Su Mujin’s arm and joined the mass of fleeing cultivators.

Su Mujin’s eyebrows jumped, then he pulled his arm through Gu Feng’s grip so that he was holding Gu Feng’s hand, and grasped it tightly.

Gu Feng, “. . .”

Is it really necessary for two grown men to be so nauseatingly lovey dovey? Gu Feng’s other hand twitched, but he decided not to make a fuss as holding hands did indeed make them less likely to be separated. He could only concede that Su Mujin had made good use of this opportunity. 

Ling Yunxuan and the others also reacted promptly, each of them swiftly running alongside the other cultivators in the direction of the celestial mansion.

All too soon, some of the speedier beasts had already caught up with the cultivators. Those beasts didn’t have high cultivation levels, having only reached the refining qi period, and were fairly easy to deal with. The cultivators showed off their skills, and continued to rush forward while eliminating the beasts without breaking a sweat.

In this same manner, three days and three nights passed by. But even the mere shadow of a celestial building failed to appear. Fighting a battle of attrition, some among the foundation building period cultivators had already begun to be injured and killed.

Gu Feng’s heart was heavy. This is only the periphery, and people are already dying. If ahead . . . he didn’t have the chance to finish that thought before something even more terrible occurred.

In front of them appeared more beasts. Though their number was half as many as were behind them, their cultivation level had already reached the foundation building period.

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Gu Feng thought for a moment, then spoke to the surrounding cultivators in a loud voice, “Everyone take note — the yao beasts ahead have higher and higher cultivation. Foundation building cultivators should look for a place to hide and wait it out. It’s too dangerous for you to continue to move forward.” Whether they listened or not, Gu Feng couldn’t make the decision for them.

“Xiao Jin, hold tight to my hem, and save your strength. I’ll fight them off.” After speaking to the crowd, Gu Feng transmitted this message to Su Mujin, then let go of his hand. Activating the Spirit Devouring Celestial Technique, he was able to fight while he could absorb the cultivation of the surrounding beasts at the same time, which could help raise his own cultivation. But he didn’t allow Su Mujin to take part. If his physical strength was consumed in this struggle, what then when they encountered golden core level beasts? 

“I understand, Gege.” Su Mujin obediently held fast to the hem of Gu Feng’s robe.

Another six days and six nights passed. While Gu Feng continuously used the ‘Spirit Devouring Palm’ to harvest life, Xiao Chen and the others also deployed their magic powers. Because of their high cultivation level, they were in good health for the time being, but among those who were at the foundation building level and didn’t take the advice to hide themselves, a great many were injured or killed. The cultivation realm could be brutal.

During this time, Gu Feng didn’t conceal his cultivation, and it became apparent to the others that his cultivation level was at the late stage summit of golden core. They were battling a flood of beasts after all, so if he had said that he had gained new comprehension and broken through in the middle of battle, nobody would have found it unbelievable.

At last, they faced the golden core yao beasts, of which there were about a hundred. Behind those golden core beasts, the shadow of a giant complex could be seen in the distance. Surely they weren’t too far from Yan Jun’s dwelling. Gu Feng felt invigorated. 

“Gege, the yao beasts have already grown fierce. How about I join you and we fight back to back?” Su Mujin looked at Gu Feng’s exhausted face, and his voice was tinged with distress and tenderness.

“Okay . . .” Gu Feng smiled slightly. This person was truly devoted to him, and the feeling of always being cared for made Gu Feng feel happy.

The tender leaves of a new emotion began to sprout.

Gu Feng battled the yao beasts in front while paying attention to Su Mujin who used his wind blades to attack those behind. All of a sudden, he was overcome by emotion and let out a heartfelt sigh. This feeling of being able to entrust your back to someone was truly too good. 

Dealing with the golden core yao beasts was difficult and took forever. It had already been half a month and nobody had gotten much closer to the goal. But Gu Feng felt the qi within his body fluctuate a bit and had a disquieting premonition. After absorbing so much spiritual qi, it seemed like he might be about to break through?

Everyone knows that to break through to nascent soul period, you must undergo a heavenly tribulation. But now was not a great time for that. Gu Feng had no other option but to suppress his qi, and he could no longer use the ‘Spirit Devouring Palm’. Rather, he had to use other methods and try his utmost to bleed off his spiritual qi.

After another half month had passed, the crowd of cultivators could finally see the halls and pavilions. They had arrived at long last, but this place was not to be trifled with. Gu Yunxi, Mo Ran, and others appeared. Some who had listened to Gu Feng advise them to give up the journey had managed to survive, while those who didn’t take his advice would be eternally unable to return home . . .

Before their eyes stood four gigantic palaces, so tall they pierced the clouds, with each occupying one of the cardinal directions — north, east, south, and west. Within each of these palaces were innumerable smaller pavilions. Those small structures must have been where Yan Jun’s people lived. Most likely the Tianji disc should lie within one of those four palaces. 

Although there were treasures ahead, nobody made a move, as each of the four palaces was its own territory and had a defensive boundary. Of course, this was not the most important thing. More significantly, upon each of the four palace garrets perched a nascent soul level yao beast keeping guard. In order to enter the secret realm, none of the cultivators could be above the pinnacle of golden core, so the problem of breaking this battle formation of the yao beasts was the biggest conundrum they had faced up to this point.

“Ladies and Gentlemen, each of these palaces is guarded by a yao beast. If we attack individually, we’ll all be destroyed. But if we work together and attack a single beast at a time, we can all explore the pavilions one after another. What do you all think?” This speech came from a cultivator of the Hundred Flowers Palace, who had many disciples following along behind her. She was a central figure in the Hundred Flowers Palace, and her name was Die Wu. Her face was like a peach blossom, and she always smiled as she spoke. One glance and it was clear she was a person well used to schmoozing and socializing.

In Gu Feng’s impression, this woman secretly had an affair with Mo Ran in his past life. Gu Yunxi and Die Wu overtly or secretly, were love rivals and fought over Mo Ran endlessly. It could only be said that Mo Ran was good at flirting and many young women were happy to offer themselves up as tribute. But Gu Feng’s impression of Die Wu stopped at that point. There was more, but he couldn’t recall anything further. His head starting to ache, Gu Feng rubbed his forehead. Recently, his headaches were growing more and more frequent.

“Gege, are you . . . okay?” As he was always observing Gu Feng, Su Mujin immediately discovered Gu Feng’s abnormality. He moved Gu Feng’s hands aside, and with a gentle but firm pressure, he massaged Gu Feng’s temples. The two of them were more or less the same height, so with this posture it appeared that Su Mujin held Gu Feng encircled in his embrace. 

Enveloped in the scent of the person behind him, Gu Feng’s face started to heat up. Previously, he was fine being oblivious, but now that he knows, he feels that Su Mujin’s every gesture contains profound meaning. But at this moment, he couldn’t bear to push him away. Perhaps because his massage skills really do alleviate my headache?! Gu Feng was convinced that if he continued in this manner . . . he might be finished.

“This humble one agrees with Immortal Die Wu’s words and also thinks everyone acting together is for the best.” Mo Ran handsomely and suavely spoke. Gazing toward Die Wu, his eyes contained a hint of adoration.

Gu Feng glanced out of the corner of his eyes, to observe Gu Yunxi’s expression. Just as expected, Gu Yunxi’s face was indeed ghastly. Only, this ugly expression seemed to be directed at him. Could it be that her hatred of ‘me’ has already surpassed her love for Mo Ran?

“Gege, what are you thinking about?” Su Mujin suddenly drew closer and spoke softly beside Gu Feng’s ear. His distance was certainly perfectly ambiguous. He had exactly stopped at the point where it was unlikely to cause one to push him away but one could still indulge in fantasy a little. After speaking, he even exhaled a gentle breath upon Gu Feng’s ear. But his tone of speech truly had the appearance of an innocent question, and one could not find a single fault with it. 

“It’s nothing, you . . . next time if you need to whisper, you can just use voice transmission.” Gu Feng’s body was half numb, perhaps due to the secret hidden in his heart. He felt that ever since emerging from the peach grove, Su Mujin had become less and less reserved. His every movement was guileless yet carried a casual hint of seduction.

“Ok . . . I’ll listen to whatever Gege says.” Su Mujin pulled back a small distance, the corners of his mouth slightly curving into a sly grin. If one were to say that that day in the peach grove he merely had doubts, then these following days he had sounded out Gu Feng and determined it had not been an illusion, it really was Gege. In other words, Gege already knew what was in his heart and had not rejected him, nor turned distant. So then . . . could he take another step closer?

“I agree with you both that it’s safer to act together. But, not everyone is able to participate. What about those who don’t understand battle tactics?” After ferociously glaring at Gu Feng, Gu Yunxi looked away, her face indifferent as she opened her mouth.

She silently stood there, looking elegant and refined, like an otherworldly being unaffected by mundane affairs, as beautiful as Xuan Nu descended to earth. It wasn’t necessary for her to make any gestures to attract the adoration of her male fans, and Mo Ran was no exception. His gaze was heated and mixed with a hint of obsession as he stared at Gu Yunxi. 

Die Wu saw this and was irritated. Not to be outdone, she opened her mouth and said, “Okay, those of you who understand tactical deployments, please step forward. When the time comes, you will break the battle formation and nobody else shall scramble about. How does that sound to everyone?” Die Wu’s voice coquettishly turned up at the end.

But against the polished elegance of Gu Yunxi, everyone felt that Die Wu’s manner was a bit gauche. Even Mo Ran was slightly repulsed. Die Wu was still a useful beauty, however, and Mo Ran decided to to placatingly say, “The words of these two immortal beauties are reasonable. What do the rest of you ladies and gentlemen think?”

Truly insatiable, Mo Ran wants both the white moonlight and the cinnabar mole. Gu Feng rolled his eyes in ridicule.

“Gege can’t bear the sight of this toady who tries to have it both ways? Neither can I. If I like a person, my eyes will look at them alone and only they will reside in my heart. How about Gege?” Su Mujin remembered to use sound transmission this time, but the gentle look in his eyes and the sentimental tone of his voice could still drown a person.