Volume 1, Chapter 302 – Sorrow

Because her appearance was far too eye-catching, Shi Lan used the Myriad Transformation Sacred Robe to disguise herself as an ordinary young female cultivator. Then she headed west all the way, making no effort to conceal her movements, streaking across the sky and trailing layer upon layer of sonic booms behind her.

Though she could not travel through the void, her speed was already no weaker than that of a Myriad Phenomena Realm martial artist. In the blink of an eye, she was already a thousand zhang away. Her soul perception spread outward as she searched for Bai Weiyang’s whereabouts.

Chengtian Domain was simply too vast. Searching for someone like this was no different from looking for a needle in the sea. Shi Lan understood that perfectly well, but she still wanted to try, if only to ease her heart.

…

North of Xianwu City, on a long street, noise filled the air.

“Hundred-year fine brew! Fair to young and old alike!”

“A complete set of Thunder-Pattern Tiger bones from the Heavenly Astral Realm, seeking one spiritual treasure!”

“Rakshasa Manor is opening its gates! Anyone under ten years old, male or female, may enter the sect!”

Although the place had only recently been baptized by war, in just a short time it had regained its prosperity. In fact, because of the great influx of people relocated here from the other eight domains, it was even more flourishing than before. Everywhere one looked, there was the rolling smoke and fire of the mortal world.

At the end of the long street stood a grand residence.

The entire estate was covered by a hazy formation, and it had remained intact through the previous fires of war.

Four guards stood before the gate. Judging by the blood and qi surging from their bodies, all of them were martial artists above the Earth Fiend Realm.

The Earth Fiend Realm was enough to make one a local tyrant, yet here they had become mere gate guards.

On the plaque above the entrance, someone had carved four great characters with mighty power.

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“Residence of Lord Yu Tianjun”

With magical power reinforcing it, that plaque would not rot even after ten thousand years.

Tianjun was a title unique to those in the Heaven-Man Realm. Any Heaven-Man who possessed such a title had a cultivation of at least the seventh stage of the Heaven-Man Realm and possessed divine abilities and secret arts far beyond ordinary people.

Within a side hall deep inside the estate, more than ten people sat scattered about. On the seat of honor sat a middle-aged man.

He wore a sapphire-blue brocade robe patterned with cloud motifs, with a jade belt of dragon and phoenix at his waist. His temples were thick with dark hair, and beneath his brows were a pair of deep-set eyes overflowing with divine light, with an eerie blue gleam flashing across his pupils from time to time.

Anyone who had stayed in Xianwu City for more than a short while would know him well enough. He was Yu Hong, the current head of the Yu family, bearing the title Heavenlord of Piercing Delusion.

“So, she has left the city?” Yu Hong swept a glance over the people below and asked indifferently.

“Indeed. She left the city today, and from the direction she’s taken, she’s headed straight for the frontier,” an old man below replied.

“Heavenlord, that woman holds no low status within the Demon-Suppressing Army, and she is tied to a Sovereign Weapon. If we act rashly, I’m afraid it may bring great disaster…” A young man sounded worried.

“Yu Hong, I think you’d best reconsider.”

At the side, a white-haired old man who appeared to be of very high seniority nodded slightly.

“If she truly had a means of self-preservation, she would not have needed to borrow a tiger’s skin for intimidation. My mind is made up.” Blue light flickered in Yu Hong’s eyes, his tone resolute.

“This time, Chengtian Domain has suffered grievous losses. The Sovereign will surely summon the Human Emperors to conduct a blood sacrifice and, with the aid of the Human Race Chronicle, travel to the underworld to recall some of humanity’s heroes. At that time, the Human Race Chronicle’s surveillance will disappear for a while.”

That day, Shi Lan had used a method to impersonate Wuxu, but Yu Hong’s Piercing Delusion Dharma Eye had seen through the truth. He had set his mind on her from that moment.

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“If that’s the case, then let this old man make the trip for you. My end is near anyway. Even if I expose myself and fall there, it would be no great pity.”

That white-haired elder stood up and prepared to leave.

“My thanks, Great-Uncle.”

Yu Hong did not try to keep him. He rose and bowed.

“I’ll arrange a few more people to go with you.”

“Why make it so troublesome? That little girl is only in the Heavenly Astral Realm. I can suppress her with the lift of a hand.”

The old man frowned. As a great cultivator at Great Perfection of the Nascent Soul Realm, he had more than enough confidence to take Shi Lan down in the snap of a finger.

“That girl may only be in the Heavenly Astral Realm, but ordinary Myriad Phenomena Realm martial artists may not be able to take her down. And after all, she has come into contact with a Sovereign Weapon. There may well be some life-saving method on her.”

Yu Hong shook his head slightly. If he had not been wary of drawing the attention of the Imperial Court, he would even have wanted to act personally.

“This matter is of great importance. Not the slightest flaw can be allowed.”

Yu Hong glanced over the others, selected a few, and sent out another Nascent Soul Realm cultivator along with four Myriad Phenomena Realm martial artists to go with the elder.

A spatial passage opened, and the group filed into it one after another, traversing toward the frontier.

Even a Myriad Phenomena Realm martial artist would have no choice but to perish before such a force. This was an inescapable killing trap.

…

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Though the killing trap was close at hand, Shi Lan sensed nothing and continued toward the frontier.

Along the way, Shi Lan saw countless corpses, white bones littering the wilds. The smell of blood drifted through the heavens and earth, and ruined giant cities sat upon the desolate land, speaking endless cold desolation.

A few days later, Shi Lan arrived at a bleak little city, and there she stopped.

The name on the city gate tower had already become blurred and illegible, but Shi Lan would never forget this city.

Twin Moon City…

Shi Lan lightly stroked the gravestone before the city gate, her heart filled with mixed emotions for a moment.

In just a few short years, she had gone through far too much. Twin Moon City held a very special meaning for her.

Boom—

A tremendous roar rose from the horizon. A Cloudvault Treasure Ship burst through the clouds and came to a halt above Twin Moon City, and a golden road spread downward from it.

A formation of a thousand cavalry came thundering forth and slowly descended to the ground.

At their head was a Centurion of the Demon-Suppressing Army, one Shi Lan did not recognize.

Shi Lan took out her Demon-Suppressing Token, identified herself, and asked a few questions, learning the purpose of this group’s visit.

They had come to recover the Demon-Suppressing Tokens, the Demon-Execution Platforms, and other items left behind outside, and also to retrieve the bodies of their fallen comrades.

“How will their remains be handled?”

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Watching several soldiers move aside the gravestone and take out the Demon-Execution Platform that had been pinned beneath it, Shi Lan could not help asking.

“Those from Chengtian Domain will be properly buried where they fell. The rest of our comrades will be sent back to their homelands.”

Those who died in the demon calamity could rarely be found with their bodies intact. Many times, only ashes could be sent back. Sometimes there were not even ashes, and only an empty tomb with clothes and a cap could be erected.

Sending back mutilated corpses would only deepen the grief of their family and friends.

The grave was opened, and the bodies were laid out again. Shi Lan once more saw Huangfu Yun.

A martial artist of the Innate Realm had already shed the mortal frame, so although a long time had passed, Huangfu Yun’s body had not decayed. It had only grown somewhat gaunt.

The remaining bones had all been buried together and could no longer be distinguished from one another. They could only be burned into ashes in a single blaze, then sealed together with one Demon-Suppressing Token after another in black boxes.

These Demon-Suppressing Tokens had already been sealed away, to remain so until someone dripped blood on them and activated them again.

From that Centurion’s words, Shi Lan learned that in the Central Heaven Domain, joining the Demon-Suppressing Army was not an easy thing.

Most of these Demon-Suppressing Tokens would be reactivated by the relatives and families of these fallen comrades. This, too, was another kind of inheritance.

Watching the scene before her, sorrow welled up again in Shi Lan’s heart. These comrades’ kin could only pour out their grief before a box of ashes.

They could not even be sure whether those ashes truly belonged to their loved ones.

That was simply too tragic.