Chapter 128 - 106: "Everyone, we have succeeded.
Chapter 128: Chapter 106: "Everyone, we have succeeded.
"No..."
After a long silence, the man in the green robe spoke hoarsely, "This only means that some power in Jiangbei advanced by leaps and bounds during the rainy season, growing strong enough to kill a Ghost King. And the strength this power has displayed is utterly terrifying."
"Then are we still going to Jiangbei?"
"We’re going. We’ll go visit this power, find out if it has any connection to the person I need to kill, sound them out, and then make a decision."
"Whatever you say. Besides, the Sheep Race has its Death Banner out to protect you, so that power surely won’t dare to make a move against you."
"..."
The man in the green robe glanced down at the woman leaning against him. ’A power capable of killing a Ghost King isn’t likely to be scared of the Sheep Race’s Death Banner,’ he thought. ’Only someone who understands a Ghost King’s true strength can realize just how terrifying a power that can kill one must be.’
...
"Are we still going back to Medicine King Valley?"
Upstairs in the teahouse, the man with the feminine face looked back at the old man standing behind him. "Well now, someone in Jiangbei has gone and killed a Ghost King. Since when did Jiangbei have a power that fierce?"
"We’re not going back. The plan stands. We leave for Jiangbei tomorrow."
The old man shook his head. "The early rainy season is a crisis for the common folk, but it’s an opportunity for a power with potential. The Valley Master has given us our primary mission for this trip to Jiangbei: to befriend this rising power."
"And, if possible, establish a stable supply channel for Elixirs."
"A power capable of killing Ghost Objects must be a major faction with at least a thousand people. Their demand for Elixirs, both in grade and quantity, will be very high. We have to beat the Pill Sect to it and secure this contract."
"Even if we can’t make a deal, we must still befriend them."
"Furthermore, Medicine King Valley will send a generous gift by express tomorrow morning for us to take on our visit."
"They’re really something else."
The young man let out a soft sigh. "There are hardly any powers in Jiangnan that can take down a Ghost King, yet one just pops up in Jiangbei and kills one. It really feels like Jiangbei is on the rise."
...
Soon, day broke.
Many people hadn’t slept well that night. Everyone knew that a power stationed on Nameless Mountain in the Jiangbei Wilderness had killed the Ghost King, but no one knew its name.
The moment he stepped into Jiangbei’s territory, the man in the green robe, sitting in the Sheep Race’s commerce association carriage, looked at the Jiangbei Ghost Map in his hand. An image was now visible on it. His gaze subconsciously shifted toward the Jiangbei Wilderness, but all the Ghost Fires there had been extinguished.
Not a single Ghost Fire was in sight.
The fire at the Jiangbei Chen Family’s Station 37 was also out.
Only a single Ghost Fire remained lit, at the location of Nameless Mountain.
He sighed softly and shook his head, saying nothing. ’With the early arrival of the rainy season, the stations in the Wilderness were doomed,’ he thought. ’Looks like that young man’s luck wasn’t very good, certainly not as good as mine. All the more reason for me to cherish this opportunity and kill everyone who deserves to die.’
But...
His brow furrowed slightly. ’When I crossed the Jiangbei Wilderness before the rainy season, I don’t recall there being a lit Ghost Fire on Nameless Mountain...’
They traveled without rest, and before nightfall, they arrived at Jiangbei City, the city closest to the Jiangbei Wilderness.
The man glanced at the bustling pedestrians inside the city gate, a flash of surprise in his eyes. ’Jiangbei City actually survived the rainy season?’
The rainy season was over.
Representatives from various powers had arrived in Jiangbei City. Though their purposes differed, they all happened to be planning to leave the city the next morning. Their destination: Nameless Mountain at the northern end of the Jiangbei Wilderness, to pay a visit to the unknown power there.
...
"We made it through."
On the City Wall, the Wild Wolf Gang Leader stood gazing out at the bustling traffic. He chuckled. "And it looks especially lively this year. The rainy season just ended, and so many merchant caravans are already coming to Jiangbei City. It’s a good omen."
"The two celestial phenomena last night were quite a sight."
"Though I don’t know what they were."
"But it was probably something auspicious, a very lucky omen. This year is going to be a peaceful one."
"It’s just that we lost so much..."
A trusted subordinate behind him whispered, "The gang’s resources are almost completely drained, while the other two major powers didn’t lift a finger."
"..."
After a long silence, the Wild Wolf Gang Leader said softly, "We won the hearts of the people. The Jiangbei Marketplace and many merchants have announced they will no longer supply the Pingtian Commerce Association; they’ll only work with us from now on. We stand to profit in the long run. We’ll just have to face the pressure from the Pingtian Commerce Association and the Jiangbei Chen Family."
"But the hardest days are behind us. No matter what happens now, things can only get better."
...
「The next day, at the crack of dawn.」
The Sheep Race’s commerce association raised its banner and departed from Jiangbei City, speeding across the Jiangbei Wilderness until they quickly reached Nameless Mountain.
They weren’t familiar with the terrain.
After circling the area, they finally spotted a canyon by the coast.
At the entrance to the canyon, a banner with the word "Mortal" was planted, and carved into the mountainside were the two words "Mortal Sect."
"Mortal Sect..."
The man in the green robe stood at the entrance to the canyon, his expression growing solemn as he gazed down the straight gorge. There were few people in the entire Jiangbei Wilderness whose cultivation was higher than his, and he could faintly smell the lingering scent of a Ghost King’s final, desperate moments in the air.
The Ghost King had died right here.
The sides of the canyon were riddled with brownish-green pits—the traces left behind by the onslaught of a Meat Worms’ Ghost Tide.
He could roughly imagine it.
How many crises this place must have endured during the rainy season.
He could faintly see heads bobbing in the canyon below, and weak voices drifted up to him.
"Set this up here. We’ll lay the groundwork for the marketplace first, and then I’ll go out and call for customers. Yes, yes, right here. Tie this horse over here."
"Young Master, a merchant caravan has arrived at the canyon entrance."
"Huh? We have visitors already? I haven’t even advertised yet! Come on, let’s go take a look."
The next moment.
He saw four figures vault onto their Skeleton Horses and gallop swiftly toward him.
Soon.
A young man leaped down from a Skeleton Horse and looked at him with some surprise as he spoke.
"Senior?"
"Didn’t you say you wouldn’t be passing through for another three months? Why are you here after only one? You said last time that you would truly help me in three months. Did you mean this group of people behind you..."
"This gift is far too generous."
"..."
Sitting in his carriage, the man in the green robe looked at the young man and suddenly burst out laughing. ’I really didn’t expect this kid to survive the rainy season,’ he thought. ’His luck is pretty good. He must have joined this power that rose up during the rainy season.’
Just then, a young woman’s head poked out of the carriage. "Old Demon," she asked, surprised, "is this a friend of yours?"
"We’ve met once."
The man in the green robe chuckled and hopped down from the carriage. "I’m surprised you managed to survive the rainy season. On this trip, I am representing the Jiangnan Gongyang Race. Would you please go back and announce that the Jiangnan Gongyang Race seeks an audience at the entrance of the valley?"
"Er... ahem."
Chen Fan stood where he was and gave a light cough into his fist.
Lame Monkey, standing behind him, stepped forward and announced hoarsely, his expression grave, "This is the territory of the Mortal Sect. Our Young Master is the Sect Leader of the Mortal Sect, and its sole authority."
"..."
The man in the green robe froze. After a long moment, he managed to force an awkward smile. He hastily wiped his hands on his clothes, then took a deep breath, cupped his fists, and bowed, his voice deep.
"It seems I was blind to the greatness before me."
"Greetings, Sect Leader of the Mortal Sect."
"Last night, upon observing the celestial phenomena, I learned that the Sect Leader of the Mortal Sect had slain a Ghost King and protected the people of Jiangbei. I have come today specifically to pay a visit. The carriages behind me carry a few humble gifts to show my admiration. They are but a small token."
"Oh, you shouldn’t have! Just coming is enough."
Chen Fan chuckled and waved for Zhou Mo and the others to accept the gifts, then led the way forward. "This way, please."
The man in the green robe’s lips moved as if to say something, but he remained silent. He fell into step beside Chen Fan, just a half-step behind. He was dying to ask a question.
’Before the rainy season, you were just the stationmaster of a small outpost in the Wilderness, persecuted by your family.
After the rainy season,
you’ve suddenly transformed into the Sect Leader of the Mortal Sect, someone capable of killing a Ghost King?’
Remembering the words he had spoken before, he now felt so awkward he wished a hole would open up and swallow him. If he’d known this kid would rise so fast, he wouldn’t have made such grand pronouncements.
As Chen Fan cheerfully made small talk, he was sizing up the Skeleton Horses in the Sheep Race’s caravan. ’They have Skeleton Horses too,’ he mused. ’I wonder how much they paid for them.’
’The Jiangnan Gongyang Race...
I wonder how powerful they are.
I’ve never heard of them.’