Chapter 380: Cangzhou

Zhou Chen, the Saint Heir of Canglan Mountain in the Celestial Profound Sacred Land, was a prodigy at the Seventh Layer of the Earth Profound Realm—a genius among geniuses within the Sacred Land.

Yet, a genius like him was killed in a single encounter with Shen Daoxing.

"???"

Lv Yunsheng and Dongfang Wan'Er's eyes widened, and they stared at each other in a stunned daze.

Before they came to the Jiuli Mountain Range, intelligence from the Celestial Profound Sacred Land indicated that Shen Daoxing's cultivation was only at the Ninth Layer of the Spirit Transformation Realm. Although his methods were superb and he had once killed Yuwen Wuji—who was at the First Layer of the Earth Profound Realm—that only put his strength on par with the early-stage Earth Profound Realm. No matter how quickly or terrifyingly his power grew, it should have been impossible for him to gain strength rivaling a late-stage Earth Profound Realm expert in just a dozen or so days.

That was why the Celestial Profound Sacred Land had felt confident sending Zhou Chen and Dongfang Wan'Er to hunt down Shen Daoxing.

Yet the reality was that Zhou Chen, with his late-stage, Seventh-Layer Earth Profound Realm strength, hadn't even been able to put up a fight against Shen Daoxing.

What the Celestial Profound Sacred Land didn't know, however, was that with Shen Daoxing's current power, he wouldn't fear even an expert at the Ninth Layer of the Earth Profound Realm.

Unfortunately, the disciples from the Celestial Profound Sacred Land who had witnessed Shen Daoxing in action back in Tianze were all dead.

And all of Tianze had vanished as well.

No one knew Shen Daoxing's true strength.

But while Lv Yunsheng and Dongfang Wan'Er were astonished, the others—Chu Guifeng, Ma Wan, Tao Ying, and the rest—showed no surprise at all.

They had just survived all sorts of life-and-death crises with Shen Daoxing in the Red Land Demon Realm and were perfectly clear on his capabilities. Although this Saint Heir of the Celestial Profound Sacred Land, Zhou Chen, was a genius, he was still far too inferior when compared to Shen Daoxing.

"Shen? When did you get so terrifyingly strong?"

Lv Yunsheng was stunned, looking at Shen Daoxing in disbelief as he asked for confirmation.

Shen Daoxing just gave a faint, mysterious smile and didn't answer.

Nearby, Dongfang Wan'Er dazedly walked forward and suddenly said:

"Shen Daoxing, you shouldn't have killed him. Zhou Chen was the Canglan Mountain Master's most beloved Direct Disciple. Barring any surprises, he was to be the next Mountain Master of Canglan Mountain, and the Mountain Master held him in extremely high regard. Not long ago, Zhou Chen sent a message to the Mountain Master, who is now rushing here from the Ancient Battlefield. At a Celestial Balance Realm expert's speed, he'll be here very soon. By killing Zhou Chen, you have undoubtedly enraged him completely."

"That's right! Shen, you shouldn't have killed Zhou Chen."

Lv Yunsheng nodded in agreement beside her.

'Zhou Chen's master! The Mountain Master of Canglan Mountain, one of the Seven Great Sacred Mountains!'

'He's an existence even more formidable than Elder Yuan Hua, a peerless expert of the Celestial Balance Realm, which is above the Refining Dust Realm.'

'Among the Seven Great Sacred Mountains, he's the Mountain Master most skilled in the art of slaughter. He has guarded the Ancient Battlefield for several hundred years and possesses vast combat experience. His Profound Fire Divine Techniques are second to none.'

'Back in the day, the first Patriarch of the Tao Family, Tao Yu, a Celestial Balance Realm expert who once dominated the entire Great Yan Empire, died at his hands.'

'With the Canglan Mountain Master taking action personally, how could Shen Daoxing possibly stand a chance, no matter how much of a genius he is?'

But just then, a streak of light shot across the sky. A moment later, a paper crane folded from a talisman flew over. It was a message from the Celestial Profound Sacred Land.

Lv Yunsheng quickly reached out to catch it. As he read the message, his expression suddenly turned strange.

Seeing this, Dongfang Wan'Er slowly asked, "What's wrong?"

Lv Yunsheng paused. "The Canglan Mountain Master just died! He died on his way to the Jiuli Mountain Range."

Dongfang Wan'Er: "..."

Hearing this, Shen Daoxing raised an eyebrow. He recalled Mola's parting words and understood. He then slowly turned to face the Demon Mountain in the Red Land Demon Realm and bowed respectfully.

"Let's go."

Shen Daoxing said coolly, wasting no more time and preparing to depart.

But he had just taken a single step when he found Dongfang Wan'Er blocking his path.

Shen Daoxing paused. "You're going to stop me, too?"

Dongfang Wan'Er shook her head. "I know I can't stop you, nor can I bring you back to the Celestial Profound Sacred Land. I just want to know... will you come to the Celestial Profound Sacred Land for revenge in the future?"

Shen Daoxing looked up at Dongfang Wan'Er and said coolly, "I won't attack unless I'm attacked. But if anyone attacks me, I will surely retaliate."

Dongfang Wan'Er fell silent, seemingly thinking for a long, long time. Finally, with a heavy sigh, she stepped aside and left with Lv Yunsheng and Tao Sheng.

As she was leaving, Dongfang Wan'Er suddenly turned her head back to look at Tao Ying. "Yingying, aren't you coming with us?"

Tao Ying paused, then turned to look at Shen Daoxing and bowed respectfully. "Young Master Shen, please allow me to return first to rescue the rest of my people. Once I have saved my entire clan and removed the curse upon them, I will lead my kinsmen to find you."

Shen Daoxing nodded without saying much.

Tao Ying then turned abruptly, gave Shen Daoxing one last, reluctant look, and left with Dongfang Wan'Er and the others.

Shen Daoxing and his group continued on their way. Qian Gui directed the Merchants to pull the cargo carts, while Chu Guifeng took out a map of the Jiuli Mountain Range and led the way at the front.

Once they left the central region of the Red Land Demon Realm, the danger would decrease significantly. Besides, with Shen Daoxing present, as well as Chi Yi, an overlord of the Jiuli Mountain Range, what oblivious demonic beast would dare provoke them? Thus, the rest of their journey was incredibly smooth.

...

The sky was clear and cloudless. At the border of the Jiuli Mountain Range in Cangzhou, rolling mountains stretched out layer upon layer. Towering ancient trees and dense thickets covered the entire landscape, creating a scene of verdant, vibrant life.

Suddenly, a patch of shrubs at the foot of one of the mountains was pushed aside, and Shen Daoxing emerged with his group, including Chu Guifeng, Ma Wan, and Qian Gui.

As they looked out at the vast, boundless plain, the view before them opened up.

Shen Daoxing and his party had finally walked out of the Jiuli Mountain Range. The territory here was already within Cangzhou.

The moment they stepped out of the Jiuli Mountain Range, Shen Daoxing suddenly sensed something. He turned to look behind him. Abruptly, he felt an incredibly strange and bone-chilling aura rush toward him from the depths of the Jiuli Mountain Range, and he couldn't help but shudder.

Looking back at the others, Shen Daoxing saw that they were all joyful; no one else seemed to have noticed anything amiss.

'Don't look back.'

At that moment, Elder Blood Dragon's voice slowly resounded in Shen Daoxing's mind.

Shen Daoxing nodded and abruptly caught up with the others.

Then, a primordial aura slowly rose from within Shen Daoxing's body, forming what seemed to be a thin barrier over his skin, isolating him from that probing, bone-chilling presence.