Volume 1, Chapter 132 – Escort

Only a few days had passed since the end of the martial meet, yet Shi Lan had already gone from the seventh stage of the Innate Realm to stepping into the Earth Fiend Realm.

If Shi Lan hadn’t spoken up first, and if her appearance and clothing hadn’t been exactly the same, Shen Tianlan wouldn’t even have dared be sure this was the same person.

In just a few days, she had crossed three realms in succession, and one of them was even the Earth Fiend Realm, that massive barrier that had worn down the efforts of countless martial artists.

This kind of speed was something that not only had Shen Tianlan never heard of, he had never even imagined it.

An Earth Fiend Realm martial artist, if they so wished, could raise a seventh-grade power at any time and dominate a region. One person alone could be called a mighty overlord, one person alone could be the foundation of a martial clan.

“Brother Shen, I appreciate the thought. But if you travel with us, we may run into quite a bit of trouble. You should head back.”

Shi Lan shook her head, gave the reins a light tug, and urged the flood-dragon horse under her forward, riding past the tea shed.

Now, when it came to those martial artists who might make a move, Shi Lan was actually somewhat expectant. She had just broken through and wasn’t very clear on how far her current strength had risen.

If a few Earth Fiend Realm martial artists were to deliver themselves to her door, she could use them to get a more concrete measure of her own strength.

“You don’t need to be so polite, young lady. I’m already here, it wouldn’t sit right with me to just turn back. I’ll at least see you a stretch of the way, so our acquaintance won’t be for nothing. As for trouble…” Shen Tianlan smiled slightly and said in a clear voice,

“Within ten thousand li in any direction, for Sky Thunder Hall, there is no such thing as trouble.”

Shen Tianlan’s voice wasn’t quiet, and his words naturally reached the ears of those tails behind Shi Lan’s group. There was no question it was a warning.

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Shen Tianlan’s appearance threw quite a few people’s plans into disarray. After all, Sky Thunder Hall’s open deterrent power was still terrifying. If someone injured Lei Wuji’s closed-door disciple and that old relic lost his mind over it, very few people could afford the consequences.

“As you please.”

Shi Lan did not look back. She drew her riding whip and urged the flood-dragon horse to pick up speed.

When they set out, in order to move faster, Shi Lan had tossed all the wagons and supplies to Gu Rentong. The tens of thousands of low-grade spirit crystals were also exchanged for several hundred mid-grade ones and distributed to Wang Ning and the others. As for luggage, they only brought some demonic beast meat to fill their stomachs.

So the group traveled light, swift as if riding the wind. In the blink of an eye they were just a black line, vanishing at the end of the road.

Shen Tianlan glanced in the direction of Ancient Phoenix City, then turned into a streak of blue lightning and followed after Shi Lan’s group, neither too close nor too far.

……

Not long after Shi Lan and the others left, the tea shed was packed with people. They clustered in groups of three or five, each whispering among themselves.

“Shen Tianlan suddenly stepping in must be by Lei Wuji’s instruction. This is Sky Thunder Hall making a statement that they’re going to protect this Shi Lan to the end.”

“Not necessarily. What Shen Tianlan just said was only that he’d send them out of Sky Thunder Hall’s sphere of influence. There’s still room for things to change.”

“That’s true, but Shi Lan’s strength doesn’t match the reports. According to those who took part in the martial meet, her cultivation was only at the seventh stage of the Innate Realm. But the aura on her now is clearly that of the Earth Fiend Realm.”

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“Maybe she hid her cultivation during the matches, or maybe the rumors were wrong.”

“When I first heard the rumors, I didn’t really believe them. A seventh-stage Innate Realm cultivation standing toe to toe with a ninth-stage Innate, and that ninth-stage is even a natural Thunder Spirit Body like Shen Tianlan. How is that possible?”

“No wonder Shen Tianlan conceded of his own accord. Maybe Shi Lan was already at the Earth Fiend Realm.”

“What matters most now is how we’re supposed to take things from her. We can’t even kill her!”

“Let’s just follow and see how it goes.”

The people in the tea shed quickly dispersed once more. Some gave up on the idea and headed home, while others were still unwilling to let it go and went off in the direction Shi Lan’s group had taken.

……

The heavy sound of hooves echoed in her ears. Shi Lan gripped the reins tightly, constantly paying attention to the movements in the surroundings.

The sun blazed bright in the sky, the weeds along the roadside were turning green, and the trees were beginning to bud. The harsh winter had passed.

They galloped nearly two thousand li, and it was calm and uneventful all the way. Even after night fell and the group stopped to rest, there wasn’t the slightest disturbance. Shi Lan couldn’t help feeling a bit disappointed.

Wang Ning and the others skillfully built a fire, set meat on the spit, and prepared to eat their fill. Their cultivations had not yet reached the Innate Realm, so they still needed to eat.

Since she was in a poor mood, Shi Lan didn’t have much appetite. She sat by the fire with Wu Lingkong, eyes closed as she cultivated, slowly absorbing the spiritual qi within the spirit marrow to nourish her internal organs, where the burning pain had already eased a great deal.

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Shen Tianlan came over and sat by the fire in front of Shi Lan. He didn’t say anything to disturb her cultivation. With a flip of his hand, he took out two crystal tokens, held them in his palm, closed his eyes, and sank into his own cultivation.

Wu Lingkong looked at the crystal tokens in Shen Tianlan’s hand with a hint of envy. High-grade spirit crystals were rare even in the Central Heaven Domain, and most people were unwilling to directly absorb them because it was far too extravagant.

Aside from being used for cultivation, high-grade spirit crystals had no shortage of other uses. Their primary role was as a power source for formations. The guardian arrays of many great powers all used them as their foundation.

By the time dawn was about to break, Shi Lan finally finished her cultivation. The burning pain in her internal organs had lessened once again.

She lightly clenched her hands a few times and let out a quiet sigh. Without a comparison, you never realized the difference. Without the Seven-Treasure Enlightening Jade Dew, this rate of recovery was really slow.

They put out the fire and packed up their belongings, and the group set out once more.

Just like that, in the midst of a peaceful journey, seven or eight days passed quickly. Shi Lan and the others had already traveled more than ten thousand li from Ancient Phoenix City.

When the morning sun rose yet again, Shi Lan swung herself into the saddle and said to Shen Tianlan,

“Brother Shen, let’s end it here. Many thanks for the journey so far. We can handle the rest on our own.”

All good things must come to an end. This place was already nearly three thousand li beyond Sky Thunder Hall’s sphere of influence. For Shen Tianlan to escort them any farther really wouldn’t be appropriate.

“In that case, I wish you a safe journey. If you have time in the future, come to Sky Thunder Hall. I’ll be sure to give you a proper welcome.”

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Shen Tianlan didn’t drag things out, and took his leave straightforwardly.

“This Shen Tianlan isn’t a bad person.” Watching the lightning fade into the horizon, Wu Lingkong spoke softly.

“He is. Shen Tianlan really is a good man.” Shi Lan nodded slightly, her gaze shifting toward a stretch of forest in the distance. Her palm felt a faint itch.

Now that Shen Tianlan was gone, those people who had been following them all this way would no longer be able to sit still.

“Less than ten thousand li more and we’ll be in the Sacred Martial Immortal Sect’s territory. We can relax a bit once we get there.”

Wu Lingkong took out the map. After glancing at it twice, he put it away and said, “Let’s hurry.”

Shi Lan nodded. The heavy sound of hooves rang out again and soon faded far away.

……

“Damn it, that Shen Tianlan finally left!”

“Hurry and catch up, wait for a chance to act. Any farther and it’ll be the Sacred Martial Immortal Sect’s turf. Those disciples of the Sacred Martial Immortal Sect all have their noses in the air and love meddling in other people’s business. If these Demon-Suppressing Army people end up together with them, then we’ll really be in trouble!”