Chapter 445: Entering the Sunset Mountains
Walking through the marketplace, they bought many items and food; even Lao was inspired by Jo and purchased a few snacks which he ate, but his biggest focus was on the merchants who had pills for sale. Lao was always looking for medicinal pills that could help him with his elemental affinities. He also looked for herbs which he could give Hui Yue. This was so his father could craft more pills for him as well.
Everyone was interested in the marketplace, but the items for sale were almost exclusively things one would find in the mountains. Most of the items Hui Yue could get in Muchuan City as well; only it was cheaper here than in the capital.
Everywhere they went, they were treated with respect by merchants and mercenaries alike. The rumor of this poison woman had already spread throughout the city, and no one wanted to insult them. This was a small city, after all, there weren't many strong cultivators.
Finishing their shopping, Hui Yue and the others walked through the town seeing various stalls and buying things here and there. Though After leaving the marketplace, there were not many items which took their fancy.
"Let’s return home and relax." Hui Yue said smilingly, and the others nodded their heads.
Relaxing in this small city, no one dared to cause strife as soon as the rumor of Wang Ju Long's power spread. Thanks to this they did not encounter any disturbances and managed to fully rest during their short time in the small city.
In the early morning, the group gathered in front of the inn. Their eyes glistened with excitement, and their faces were unable to contain their smiles. It was finally time for them to set out, and as they looked at the world around them, they nodded to each other. No one said anything, but together they walked out of town headed straight for the Sunset Mountains. This was the massive mountain range and forest, full of many strong beasts, that bordered the city they were staying at.
In the outskirts of the forests, at the foot of the mountain range, they ran into many groups but none of them were silly enough to act against Hui Yue and his friends. Everyone in Hui Yue’s group had terribly domineering auras, and their group was in no way small, making all these other groups not even dare to look at them.
They also met many low ranked magical beasts, but just like the humans, these beasts did everything they could to avoid the group of experts. Even the relatively strong beasts avoided them due to their auras. The first many days of travel passed quickly with them no having to fight any beats.
At this point, the group had penetrated deep into the Sunset Mountain range, and the sounds of beasts were the only thing they could hear. These stronger beasts were even more alert than the weaker ones, and they would usually avoid a group this large as much as possible. Beasts that had lived this long were in no way stupid. Even when their group moved onto their turf, they would do what they could to avoid them. These beasts were the kings and queens of the forest, but they were after all just one creature. Hui Yue's group counted quite a few experts, so they would without a doubt be at a disadvantage if they wanted to fight them. Therefore they stayed away.
Hui Yue also made sure that while they were constantly moving forward, they were also very careful not to destroy any of the surrounding environments and they stayed away from the homes of the local king and queen beasts. He had no intention of causing them to feel endangered, and thus a mutual understanding appeared between Hui Yue and the beasts. As long as neither acted against the other, they would keep a neutral relationship, pretending that they did not see the other party.
"How far into this mountain range do we need to travel before reaching the Central Palace?" Hui Yue asked curiously on the fifth day of their travels. He could feel that they constantly went further and further up the mountain, but he had never been here before. Although he led the group, the one who truly decided their path was Deng Wu. He was most familiar within Sunset Mountains, and he had been to the Central Palace before.
"We are about halfway up the mountain. When we reach the top, we will have to walk west and then we should reach the Central Palace. Unfortunately, I think it will take about a week of walking until we arrive. Also, I fear that the closer to the Central Palace we get, the more dangerous it will become. Remember that the Dragon Corps has a road that leads to the Central Palace. They are likely to exit their underground world from time to time to gather materials, for training, or to carry out missions. If we run into the Dragon Corps, we cannot allow for them to know that we are going to the Central Palace. Although the palace is probably abandoned now, it is the home of An He, and the Dragon Corps is incredibly loyal to that a**hole." Deng Wu continued, and Hui Yue nodded his head.
The Dragon Corps had been following An He's orders before while harvesting Ancestral Worldpower from the various Laws of this world. It was clear that they were willing to do anything for the sake of their lord, and this could indeed cause them some problems.
Being quiet, the group continued their trip through the dense forest, and suddenly a light shone in front of them. A sense of danger descended upon the group, and they all gathered in formation behind Hui Yue.
Hui Yue stood up front with Cai Jie and Deng Wu on his sides. Behind him was Jo, Lao, Wang Ju Long and Sha Yun in a diamond-like formation with Lao at the far back.
A surge of power descended on them. A shockwave filled with pure energy, energy so pure that Hui Yue had never encountered it anything like it before.
Gripping his Sword of the Icy Tempest in one hand and one of the blood draining swords he had gotten from Cou Ling in the other, these two swords formed a cross in front of Hui Yue's head. With a shout, his own Wu Wei shot upwards meeting the descending energy head on.
His Wu Wei alone was not enough to block the incoming energy waves, but they were enough to slow it some and also cause it to lose some power. This, in turn, caused Hui Yue to be able to block the remainder of the power with his two swords.
"Stay in formation and slowly advance!" Hui Yue called out as he took a step forward. Another shockwave was heading for him and was once again blocked in the same manner.
From his Sword of the Icy Tempest, a snowstorm slowly appeared out of nowhere. Snow descended upon the tranquil forest while the blood draining sword in his other hand released a humming sound as its killing intent rose from within.
Stepping forward one step at a time, the snowstorm prison blocked the view of whoever was that was attacking them and protected them from the incoming attacks. Although more shockwaves started raining down on them, none of these shockwaves managed to land on either Hui Yue or his companions. The Snowstorm Prison had once more proved to be worthy of being an attack hidden from within the sword of the icy tempest.
Moving forward, the sound of their steps was concealed by the heavy atmosphere that the Snowstorm Prison brought with it, and they soon reached the person who had attacked them. The closer they came, the more attacks landed on their group, though every single attack was blocked by Hui Yue. He was using increasingly more Wu Wei as they got closer, but he still successfully managing to ensure that no one was hurt.
By his side, Deng Wu and Cai Jie were doing the exact same thing blocking the many ripples coming their way.
"Stop attacking!" Deng Wu suddenly called out. His voice filled with surprise but also excitement. His words caused Hui Yue to be confused, but listening to his words, he withdrew the Snowstorm Prison and now stood face to face with their attackers.
The moment he stopped his attack, his face was dumbstruck. Soon a smile appeared on his face as he understood why Deng Wu had called for him to stop his attack.
"Please stop attacking! We were the ones who rescued you!" Deng Wu called out, and his words caused the figures in front of them to be stunned before they too ceased attacking.
Although these people were shocked, they were not any less hostile. They glared at Hui Yue and his party, but although they were hostile none of them attacked.
Turmoil could be heard from the back as someone came closer and closer, and soon a small girl appeared. This small girl was someone they all remembered from the dungeons. She was incredibly beautiful; her skin was like porcelain and her large eyes were completely black. She was the Law of the clouds, and she had been subject to constant torment at the hands of the Dragon Corps. It was clear that she was one of the higher ranked laws in this group, and what she said was clearly the orders the others followed.
The moment that they saw Hui Yue and Deng Wu, the little girl's eyes widened a lot. Although they had not seen Hui Yue for more than a short moment, they had all seen Deng Wu. Due to his unusual appearance, it was quite hard to forget him. After all, there were not many blue-haired men.
"It's true!" She said with a shaking voice and a smile on her beautiful, petite face. "It is them, the ones who saved us!"
Hearing her words, the others who had also recognized Deng Wu, nodded their heads. Their faces were no longer hostile but filled with excitement.
Although many of the Laws were excited, the little girl seemed troubled.
"Although we are grateful for your help, we are living on our own here in the Sunset Mountains. We are quite far away so that humans never enter our area. For what reason have you all come here? If you need help, we will assist if we can as we owe you our lives." The little girl's words were filled with sincerity, but it was clear to both Hui Yue and his friends that although she was sincere, she clearly had no idea why they were here. If not for seeking their help, why would anyone enter the Sunset Mountains so deeply?
"We are not here to ask for your assistance..." Hui Yue said with a clear voice. "We came across your territory by coincidence. Our goal is to reach the Central Palace where we have some tasks to fulfill. We just happened to trespass. We apologize and hope that you Laws are capable of living peaceful lives now compared to before." Hui Yue sighed as he bowed slightly to the little girl.
Seeing his behavior, the girl was quite shocked, but she quickly pulled herself together and nodded her head. "In that case, we will not disturb you any further." She said as she turned around and made a few gestures with her hands. In front of Hui Yue and the others, all the Laws slowly vanished from sight, moving back into the protection of the Sunset Mountains.