AGM 230 - White Deer Institute
The land size of the Grand Xia Empire was so large that it could be considered almost boundless. It had innumerable territories and countless cities that were divided into nine vast regions, separately known as the Nine Continents.
The Nine Continents were respectively known as: Green Continent, Azure Continent, Spirit Continent, Ginkou Continent, War Continent, Wind Continent, Demon Continent, Yan Continent and the Moon Continent.
Of these Nine Continents, four of them; Green Continent, Spirit Continent, Yan Continent and Demon Continent were situated at the four extreme corners of the Grand Xia Empire, with the Green Continent being the nearest to Chu.
As for the Ginkou Continent, Moon Continent and War Continent, they were in a triangle alliance, and their locations were considered at the heart of the Grand Xia Empire.
The Moon Continent was also known as the most prosperous continent of all. Over at the Moon Continent, experts were as common as clouds, and the strongest of the strong were all gathered there.
The Pill Emperor Hall was one of the transcendent powers residing in the Moon Continent. It had witnessed countless eras of history and its position and status had never wavered, regardless of whatever storms rocked the Grand Xia Empire. Among all the transcendent powers in Chu, the Pill Emperor Hall was ranked as the fifth strongest.
Maybe in terms of raw power, the Pill Emperor Hall did not have the qualifications to be ranked fifth. But because of its uniqueness, during chaotic clashes of power between the transcendent powers, nobody had ever been willing to act against the Pill Emperor Hall before.
The Pill Emperor Hall occupied the central region in the Moon Continent. Over there, were several ancient-looking pavilions and buildings that projected a majestic and celestial air. People passing by would inevitably shift their gazes over, as expressions of envy and admiration could be seen reflected on their features.
Occasionally, there would be young male and female cultivators exiting the Pill Emperor Hall. Their faces were all full of pride, emanating a faint hint of arrogance that indicated their feelings of superiority over others.
Within the Pill Emperor Hall, in the middle of their majestic buildings, there was a towering sky-high platform. At this moment, a lonely looking silhouette stood there, gazing at the horizon.
This silhouette was clad in white, with an ice-cold temperament. Her empire-toppling features were so enchanting that it caused people to be breathless. Her bearing was extraordinary, giving people a sense of holiness, as though she was a divinity and merely looking at her would be a blasphemy.
However, in the depths of her eyes, no hints of happiness could be found. Only a faint sadness and extreme loneliness could be seen within.
“Junior Sister, Master asked you to go over. She will impart on you the Moon Qi Technique, allowing you to use your own Qi to nourish pills during concoction.” At this moment, a youthful figure stood at a place not far away from the towering platform, calling out to her.
“Understood,” the peerless beauty replied coldly, her tone containing traces of unwelcome and rejection, pushing people to a distance of a thousand miles away.
Behind her, Jing Yu’s feelings became extremely complicated upon hearing the tone of her voice. In the depths of his eyes, hints of admiration and longing could be seen, yet, after a period of interaction with this supreme beauty, he had gradually learned to mask it.
Ever since this junior sister of his had awoken from unconsciousness, her demeanor had grown frostier and frostier by the day. Even her temperament had undergone a huge change compared to the time when Jing Yu had first seen her. After their Master’s guidance, it was as though she had gained enlightenment, unconsciously projecting an air of holiness, so pure and saint-like that even looking at her felt like a blasphemous act.
He had already understood that the girl before him, was no longer someone he was qualified to woo after.
Was she still thinking of him? Maybe her memories and love for him would fade away and dim with the passing of time. After all, they were no longer existences belonging to the same world.
Over this period of time, there were many representatives from various transcendent powers that all hinted to Luo He their intention to propose a marriage engagement with her. Each of the names mentioned by the representatives were all names of grand characters that could shake the Grand Xia Empire.
After informing her, Jing Yu silently departed.
The beautiful young woman continued to stand there, unmoving, as a gentle gust of wind fluttered her robes. Her eyes were so beautiful, yet also filled with a heart-wrenching loneliness.
…………..
The Moon Continent was extremely vast, and the population of each of the cities it governed was at a size about ten times larger compared to that of Chu.
At the eastern city of the Moon Continent, there was an unending flow of humanity moving about in the streets. Among the hustle and bustle of the city, stood three silhouettes contemplating their surroundings with ardent curiosity and anticipation.
The person in the centre of the trio had a snowy puppy in his arms. Even the snowy puppy was glancing around with excitement as though it couldn’t wait to scamper about for new experiences.
“Wow this place feels so prosperous. The Royal Capital of Chu feels like trash compared to here. There’s no way to compare both places.” A fatty standing on the group’s left side had his eyes narrowed, as he scrutinised the crowd for beauties.
“Indeed, our Chu Country cannot be compared to here.” The muscular young man on the right nodded in agreement. Although he had deep feelings for Chu, he had no choice but to admit it. The disparity between here and Chu was too great.
“Hey Boss, the beauties here all look so delicious. Their quality is much higher compared to our beauties in Chu.” The fatty excitedly tugged on the arm of the person standing in the centre. “Look at that hot babe in that jade green skirt. She’s got long slender legs and a busty chest to match. What a perfect specimen tsk tsk, I wouldn’t mind my lifespan being shortened if only I could be friends with her.”
Qin Wentian rolled his eyes immediately when he heard the words. This damn fatty never changed…
Only to see the beautiful girl the fatty was referring to suddenly glare in their direction as her brows furrowed in displeasure, her actions causing the fatty to cover his mouth with his hands before whispering, “Wow, why is her hearing so sharp...”
“Hey beautiful lady, I’m just praising that you are really beautiful and wish to be friends with you. I have no other intentions,” Fatty said with a straight face.
“You mean you still dare to have other intentions?” The countenance of the young woman turned unsightly. The gaze of this fatty was too damn shameless, staring at her in a lusty manner.
“Apologies, he’s bad with words,” Qin Wentian apologetically nodded to the young woman. The young woman shifted her gaze onto Qin Wentian and her frosty gaze melted somewhat upon noting his handsome countenance, along with the righteous air and extraordinary demeanor he projected. She grumbled, “I really hate the way this fatty is looking at me.”
At this exact moment, Fan Le’s gaze was glued to her chest and was spotted by her.
“Bastard.” The young woman grew red as she stomped her foot and left.
“Fatty, stop causing trouble.” Qin Wentian rolled his eyes. This fellow was too much of an asshole. He actually openly stared at her chest…
“Boss, I can’t help my eyes.” Fatty didn’t seem to feel any regrets. Instead he continued to grumble, “That lady was only at the second level of Yuanfu, how could she cause us any trouble...?”
“You…” Qin Wentian had almost forgotten that Fan Le had a gift to sense the cultivation levels of others. This fellow must have purposely chosen the earlier young woman to tease.
Currently, the demeanor of Qin Wentian had undergone a huge change compared to before. His exquisitely sculpted features no longer contained hints of a teen’s childishness, and his long, black hair had grown to the point where it draped over his shoulders. If one wasn’t familiar with this young man, or had not met him during this past half-year, they would be hard-pressed to recognise him.
“Let’s purchase a map first.” Qin Wentian walked into a business shop that specialised in selling maps, and came out with one detailing the Moon Continent. After which, they opened up the map, studying it as they continued walking. Their gazes all landed onto the central region of the Moon Continent. That area was an extremely vast land size occupied by a series of halls, pavilions and buildings.
Above it, were three big words inscribed on the map – Pill Emperor Hall.
“Hu…” Qin Wentian’s gaze turned towards the central region of the Moon Continent. The distance between this eastern city and the Pill Emperor Palace could be considered short, yet also not that short. With his current strength, even if he chose to go there, there was probably no way the guards would allow him to enter.
Not only that, he didn’t wish to attract the attention of the Hua Clan. With his current demeanor and appearance, even if he met Hua Xiaoyun again, he might not even be recognised by him. Also, within this vast region, he wouldn’t venture into the western city where the Hua Clan resided, how could it be so easy to meet people from the Hua Clan? Even if he was truly and extremely unlucky, he would have no choice but to depend on Qing`er and leave the Moon Continent for now.
Yet, he didn’t wish to leave. The reason for him coming to the Moon Continent today, was none other than Hua Xiaoyun.
“Hua Clan.” Qin Wentian stared at the western city outlined in the map as a bone-chilling light flashed in his eyes. He would definitely make Hua Xiaoyun pay for what he had done.
“Boss, where are we going?” Fan Le pulled the map as he inquired.
“This place.” Qin Wentian pointed to a space described on the map.
“White Deer Institute!” Surprise flashed upon Fan Le’s countenance. He was somewhat taken by surprise when Qin Wentian wanted to go to the Moon Continent. However, he understood Qin Wentian’s character. He would never give up until Hua Xiaoyun was dead.
Yet, Fan Le felt somewhat bewildered. Why did Qin Wentian’s reply seem as though he had long known where he wanted to go. It seemed that the reason behind coming to the Moon Continent wasn’t simply because of Hua Xiaoyun alone.
This should be the first time Qin Wentian came to the Moon Continent, how did he know what sort of place the White Deer Institute was?
“What sort of place is the White Deer Institute?” Fan Le asked.
“No idea,” Qin Wentian replied as he noted the path on the map. This time around, it was Fan Le’s turn to roll his eyes. No idea?
What does this reply even mean…?
“Enough, let’s move out.” Qin Wentian kept the map, as hints of a smile could be seen in his eyes.
He truly had no idea what sort of place the White Deer Institute was. But he knew that back then when Diyi passed him the Azure Emperor token, there was a map that appeared after his blood flowed into it.
And one of the places marked on the map, was none other than the White Deer Institute located within the Moon Continent.
This indicated that the Azure Emperor Palace’s ‘hidden’ Azure Faction had chosen the Moon Continent to be their hiding place throughout all these years. Yet in the course of these past few thousand years, no one knew how the ‘hidden’ Azure Faction was faring.
Maybe, other than the owner of the authority token, even those from the ‘hidden’ Azure Faction within the White Deer Institute had no clue where the other branches of their ‘hidden’ Azure Faction were located, or who their members were. After all, a few thousand years was a long time, all of them had already gotten used to their new identities.
The White Deer institute was going to be Qin Wentian’s first contact with the ‘hidden’ Azure Faction. Naturally, he had to be prudent!