Chapter 20: Start of the Hunt

Chapter 20: Start of the Hunt

20

Start of the Hunt

I

Well, hes pleasant enough, Hao Zhen said, breaking the silence.

That got Tian Jin and Duo Lan to finally take their attention away from Du Qing. They gave Hao Zhen strange looks.

We already knew hed be trying something during the hunt, Hao Zhen said, holding up his hands. His not-so-subtle threat just now wasnt much of a surprise.

If anything, Hao Zhen was actually feeling rather pleased, because the way Du Qing had behaved just now pretty much confirmed that he, like most villains in cultivation novels, wasnt particularly bright, not to mention impulsive. Otherwise, Du Qing wouldnt have dropped almost all pretense when there were other people around. In other words, Du Qing had just behaved like an arrogant young masterthe most basic type of cultivation novel antagonists. That didnt mean Du Qing wasnt dangerous. Still, a stupid enemy was much less threatening than an intelligent one.

And, more importantly, predictable.

Most likely, whatever Du Qing had in store for them, was something that Tian Jin would be able to handle on his own. That was the usual modus operandi of arrogant young masters: never throw something at the protagonist they wouldnt be able to handle. Arrogant young masters didnt do so intentionally, of course. They just had a tendency to grossly underestimate the protagonist over and over again. Because of that, the knowledge that Du Qing behaved like one gave Hao Zhen a certain measure of comfort.

That didnt mean Hao Zhen wasnt anxious anymore, however. After all, there was no guarantee that events would keep following the plot of cultivation novels. Moreover, even if cultivation novel protagonists usually came out unscathedif not strongerwhen arrogant young masters made a move against them, side characters very often lost their lives in such situations, and as far as Hao Zhen could tell, a side character was precisely what he was.

Right, Tian Jin said, nodding his head. He still appeared rather tense, but he was no longer as cold as before. Nothings changed.

Duo Lan, on the other hand, remained silent, a tight-lipped smile on her face, murder in her eyes.

Seeing her state, Hao Zhen couldnt help but shrink a little away from her. For the time being, he reckoned that itd be better to leave her aloneat least until she had cooled down a little.

A few minutes later, after a couple more disciples had arrived, most of them coming from the direction of the Outer Court, the female prime elder who had spoken before clapped her hands, getting everyones attention. We shall be departing now, she announced as she stood up, the elders behind her following suit. Then, looking down from above at the disciples in the square, she commanded, Sit.

Hao Zhen blinked, taken aback by the sudden command, before he noticed that the disciples around himTian Jin and Duo Lan includedwere lowering themselves to the ground, sitting down on the stone tiles of the square. Although Hao Zhen still didnt know what was happening, he hastily followed suit, unceremoniously plumping down.

Once there wasnt a single disciple left standing, the elders atop the magical cloud raised their arms, and from their sleeves, red mist started pouring out. It rolled down into the square, gathering above the stone floor. Moments later, Hao Zhen felt himself being pushed up, something comfortable replacing the hard, solid feeling of the stone under him.

Looking down, he realized that red mist had gathered underneath him, forming a thin layer that spanned the entire square. This layer was quickly expanding upwards, gaining volume, and in the span of a few seconds, everyone in the square was now sitting on top of a gigantic red magical cloud.

Half of the inner elders jumped down from their magical cloud, landing on the one the disciples were on before sitting down, the nearby disciples quickly edging away to give them space.

The two magical clouds then started rising into the air. The ascent wasnt nearly as fast as the last two times Hao Zhen had ridden a magical cloud, but still fast enough for him to feel the temperature quickly dropping, the two mountains beside him almost a blur as they rose higher and higher.

Once they were above the peaks of the mountains, the two magical clouds started delving deeper into the mountain range, leaving the Blazing Light Sect behind. Flying just beneath the clouds, Hao Zhen gazed down at the mountain range lying underneath. It was already his third time seeing it from above, but it was still an impressive sight: multiple cloud-wreathed peaks all around them, stretching in all directions for miles and miles.

There were no other organizations in the Blazing Light Mountains. It belonged solely to the Blazing Light Sect. Hao Zhen couldnt help but wonder just how massive the world was, considering an organization of the lowest tier had this much territory. Tian Jin had mentioned that they were currently on an island, and as far as Hao Zhen could tell, the map in his spatial ring with the area around the sect only corresponded to a small fraction of the island, as there were only a handful or so of organizations listed on it, whereas according to Tian Jin, there were over a hundred of red-grade organizations in the island, not to mention organizations of higher grades.

If an island was already this massive, just how big would a continent be? In fact, were there even such a thing as continents here, or was this world entirely comprised of islands? At this moment, Hao Zhen realized how little he knew of the geography of this world. Considering how big the setting of cultivation novels tended to be, Hao Zhen wouldnt be surprised at all if this world was thousands, if not millions of times bigger than Earth, all gravity and laws of physics be damned.

He didnt even know if this world was a planet. Maybe it was some kind of disk or plane floating around in space. The possibilities werent endlessthere were only so many types of cultivation novel settingsbut there were certainly plenty of them.

There!

Standing a good distance away from them, surrounded by a small crowd, was Du Jian. Hao Zhen recognized some of the disciples near him. They were the lackeys that had been following him the last time they encountered each other.

The moment Hao Zhen caught sight of Du Jian, the other outer disciple turned in his direction, as if noticing his gaze. Du Jian didnt look at Hao Zhen, however, but at Tian Jin. Tian Jin, noticing what was happening, stared back.

Du Jian smiled. It wasnt a condescending smirk like his cousin had given them not too long ago, but a dark, sinister thing. Du Jian then turned away and said something to his group, and they started walking toward the forest together.

Well, Hao Zhen said, I guess we can also assume that whatever Du Qings planning, Du Jians involved.

Again, no surprise there.

I hope he is, Duo Lan, who had been quiet ever since their encounter with Du Qing, suddenly said. Hao Zhen glanced at her, surprised, and saw that she was wearing a smile just as sinister as Du Jiansif not more. I wonder how Du Qing would react if we handed him his cousins head.

Hao Zhen stilled, blinking at her. What the

By his side, Tian Jin similarly gave Duo Lan an odd look.

Maybe Duo Lans role wasnt that of a love interest, after all, Hao Zhen decided. Her being a rival now seemed more likely. Love interests in cultivation novels werent usually so passionately vindictive.

Well, Duo Lan said, clapping her hands, lets get going. She was suddenly back to acting like her usual self, her vindictive smile gone. Without waiting for them, she started marching toward the forest.

Hao Zhen and Tian Jin glanced at each other, and again Hao Zhen simply shrugged. He couldnt think of anything else to do. Tian Jin seemed to accept that, and they followed Duo Lan into the forest.

Now that he was actually paying attention to the forest, Hao Zhen froze for a moment. From above, he hadnt noticed anything unusual, but the trees were massiveseveral hundred feet tall, at the very last. They looked like pine trees, but he wasnt sure if pine could grow that tall. The forest itself looked like a tropical rainforest, with dense vegetation. Of course, Hao Zhen doubted that the term was used in this world. He didnt even know if this world had tropics or something equivalent to them, to begin with.

Breaking out of his daze, Hao Zhen resumed walking. However, once he reached the edge of the forest, he once again came to a stop. He stared at the massive, ancient trees in front of himat their deep brown bark and bright green leavesand it dawned upon him that this was his first real adventure since regaining his memories.

Hao Zhen felt his heart beating in his chest. The world never seemed so sharp, so painfully clear. He could very well be walking toward his death. In fact, he knew Du Qing would try something, so he was knowingly heading into a trap.

There was a chance that once he stepped inside the forest, hed never leave it. That hed find his grave among these tall, proud trees.

Hao Zhen? Tian Jin, who was a few steps ahead of him, past the tree line, looked back, giving him an inquiring look.

A little further behind Tian Jin, Duo Lan was also looking in his direction, head cocked to the side.

Hao Zhen took in a deep breath, the green, earthy scent of the forestthe crisp smell of life and naturefilling his lungs.

And with that, he stepped into the forest, the glare of the sun replaced by the cool shade of the canopy of trees above.

Live or die, this was the path he had chosen.

There was no turning back now.

The Glistening Stone Hunt had begun, and with it, the beginning of the rest of his life.