Chapter 433: Enemies Approach
When the Metal-type totem tattoo reached its zenith, the ancient character for “metal” appeared! 1
The character was branded onto Meng Hao’s chest, right over his heart. In fact, his heartbeat caused it to undulate. It let out a golden glow similar to that emitted by his Gold Core. In this instant, his Cultivation base suddenly exploded up. He was still in the great circle of the Gold Core, but his true battle prowess had now climbed up until it was truly analogous to the Nascent Soul stage.
When it came to the path of concocting a Five-Colored Nascent Soul, if you considered it to have five stages, then as of now, Meng Hao had completed two!
He took a deep breath as he looked up. The crumbling world of gold was now gone. He was back in the Crow Divinity Holy Land. Everything around him was colorful again; however, the entire place was now showing signs of collapse.
Rumbling sounds echoed out in the air, and the seven volcanoes were beginning to break apart. The powerful neo-demons that still existed in the area were roaring and out of control. The shocked members of the five great Tribes were now doing everything they could to flee.
Meng Hao’s sudden appearance didn’t attract any attention. All of the Cultivators present were flying at top speed toward the exit.
Meng Hao joined the crowds, his eyes glittering. Booms echoed out constantly as the land began to crumble and the mountains began to fall. Suddenly, lava erupted out from the seven volcanoes and black smoke filled the sky. Everything around was now choked with dust. The ground quaked and the neo-demons roared.
Meng Hao flew at top speed along with the crowd. The Crow Divinity Holy Land seemed on the verge of complete destruction. When he reached the exit, his body grew blurry, and then he was outside of the great golden doors.
The members of the five great Tribes all wore looks of astonishment. The Crow Scout Tribe Greatfather caught sight of Meng Hao. Sighing inwardly, he flew over.
Rumbling sounds could now be heard from within the golden glow as the great doors shattered into small pieces. At the same time, the golden light winked out.
The members of the five great Tribes were all crying out in alarm. This sudden turn of events had completely shocked them. They were pale-faced and panic-stricken.
“The Holy Land…. The Holy Land collapsed!”
“The Holy Land is gone! Our Crow Divinity Holy Land has fallen. Could it be some inauspicious portent!?”
The Greatfathers and Priests of the Five Tribes had grim expressions on their faces, and their hearts were filled with uneasy feelings. The Crow Scout Tribe Greatfather’s expression fell, and he ceased his approach toward Meng Hao and instead went to confer with the other Greatfathers and Priests.
Meng Hao floated in mid-air, staring thoughtfully at the fading golden glow. He thought of the Crow Divinity Holy Land concealed within the mountain range. He also thought of the Golden Crow and the great tree, and after a long moment, he sighed.
As he sighed, the voice of the parrot suddenly sounded out next to him as the man-form Outlander beast appeared.
“Dammit. That Ji Clan guy tried to wipe out my memories again. Lord Fifth won’t stand for it!! I’m going to screw the Heavens of Ji! Screw the Heavens!” From his tone of voice it seemed like this had become his new purpose in life.
Meng Hao turned to look at the big man and frowned. “Who exactly are you? The parrot, the meat jelly or the Outlander Beast?”
“Obviously I’m Lord Fifth, b*tch!” said the man, a conceited expression appearing on his face. “Listen, Meng Hao, I’m issuing you a staunch warning. From now on, you’re not allowed to call Outtie the ‘Outlander Beast.’ She’s become my beloved concubine. From now on you have to call her Lady Fifth!”
Seeing the look on the big man’s face, Meng Hao glared at him and said, “Screw off!”
“You, you, you… I can’t believe you dare to disrespect Lord Fifth!! Even worse, you disrespect Lord Fifth’s beloved concubine, your Lady Fifth! Don’t tell me… don’t tell me you want to steal Lady Fifth away from Lord Fifth!” Having suddenly reached this conclusion, the parrot was furious.
Even as the parrot’s ire was provoked, the Greatfathers and Priests of the five great Tribes split apart, their expressions serious. They made their way back toward their respective Tribes, followed by the other Tribe members.
The Crow Scout Tribe Greatfather and Sky Priest approached Meng Hao, bitter smiles on their faces.
It was the Greatfather who spoke first. “The Crow Divinity Holy Land has collapsed and the protection of the Ancestor has disappeared. Such an event is impossible to cover up. It won’t be long now before other Tribes in the region find out.”
The Sky Priest then continued, “There are large and powerful Tribes that have had their eyes on us for a while, but were frightened off by the Holy Land. They will certainly be itching to cause trouble. For us five Tribes, this is a huge catastrophe. If we can’t hold out against them, our Tribes will be completely wiped out.
“You two are the most powerful vassals in the Crow Scout Tribe. At this moment of crisis for our Tribe, I truly hope that you will be kind enough to provide assistance. The Crow Scout Tribe will definitely provide liberal compensation.”
With that, the two of them clasped hands and bowed to Meng Hao and the man-form Outlander Beast.
Meng Hao said nothing in response. Instead, he transformed into a beam of light and followed the other Crow Scout Tribe members as they returned to their Tribe. After reaching the rear mountain district, he entered his courtyard.
As soon as he did, he slapped his bag of the Cosmos, causing Big Hairy and the rest of his neo-demon horde to fly out. Then he looked down into the bag at the collection of other neo-demons inside.
They included the black crows, the group of fierce mosquitos, the crimson crocodile and the enormous lizard, all the other neo-demons he had acquired in the Crow Divinity Holy Land.
Meng Hao’s expression was the same as ever as he examined them.
“If I can really absorb all of these neo-demons into my collection, then my status in the Western Desert as a Grand Dragoneer will be much more valid.” Having reached this conclusion, he slapped the bag, causing a black crow to fly out. Eyes glittering, he pointed his finger out.
Immediately, the Demonic Qi in the area congealed onto his finger, transforming into pressure that weighed down onto the black crow.
Time slipped by. Meng Hao sent some of his neo-demon horde outside to prevent anyone from interfering with his seclusion. A month passed.
During that month, everyone in the five Tribes of the Crow Divinity were all on edge. The strife and struggle that had existed previously between the Tribes had vanished. The Greatfathers and Priests had frequent talks behind closed doors. In the end, they chose to stand together and form an alliance.
At the same time, the vassals from the various Tribes came to the realization that the collapse of the Crow Divinity Holy Land was going to lead to all sorts of trouble. Gradually, they began to leave.
They were only vassals, not true Tribe members. Faced with imminent disaster, it was only natural that they would be unwilling to stay behind. In less than half a month, more than half of the vassals were gone.
However, the alliance between the five Tribes had restored some of the former grandeur of the Crow Divinity Tribe. Furthermore, although many vassals had departed, the Tribes still had many powerful experts, and their overall power actually increased. As for the leadership of the five great Tribes, including the Greatfather of the Crow Scout Tribe, their attention was now focused primarily on Meng Hao.
As a Grand Dragoneer, Meng Hao had already astonished them. A Grand Dragoneer might not personally be very strong, but the power he wielded in battle was very important.
To the Five Tribes, although Meng Hao was an injured Grand Dragoneer and didn’t have a large quantity of neo-demons, it didn’t really matter. If necessary, they could vastly increase the size of Meng Hao’s neo-demon horde, which could in turn win them a victory in battle.
As of now, the entire region behind the mountain now belonged to Meng Hao. Even Tribe members were prohibited from entering; the entire district had become like a restricted area. This applied to the Crow Scout Tribe as well as the other tribes in the alliance.
Because of Meng Hao’s standing, he didn’t need to take the initiative to ask for this. The five great Tribes took the initiative to offer it up willingly. Even more respectful of Meng Hao was Gu La. He had moved over to the Crow Scout Tribe, and now sat cross-legged outside of Meng Hao’s district behind the mountain. It was as if he was standing guard. The Wild Giant was there too, and it would occasionally let out shocking roars that shook Heaven and Earth.
As for the big man who was actually the parrot and the others, he stuck around at first, but after awhile ended up venturing out, to return only occasionally. After some time passed, the Wild Giant, who found it hard to stay in one place for a long time, would join Big Hairy and the others when they went out into the mountains.
Another half month passed, and Meng Hao was still in seclusion. It was at this point that a long beam of light flew through the air in the sky outside of the mountain range occupied by the Five Tribe Alliance.
Within this beam of light were 32 gigantic spiders. Each one was hundreds of meters long, and completely fierce in appearance. They were brightly colored, making it obvious that they were extremely poisonous. At first it looked like they were flying, but actually, an enormous web filled the sky wherever they went.
The web glowed with a mysterious light that made it stand out in contrast to the blue skies and white clouds. Seated cross-legged atop the 32 gigantic spiders was a group of people wearing identical robes, whose bodies were festooned with totem tattoos.
Behind the 32 spiders was a massive round, stony meteorite. A hole had been excavated in the middle of the gigantic rock, revealing an interior of crystal that looked like agate. It glowed with a violet light, and even seemed to have liquid circulating about inside.
Slouching there was a middle-aged man in a long white robe. He was surrounded by several coquettish women who were currently massaging his shoulders.
This man’s features were handsome, but he had a large black mark on his face that completely changed his appearance.
Lines of silk attached the gigantic meteorite to the 32 spiders, who were pulling it through the air. Behind them all, the sky was darkened with a vast quantity of spider neo-demons.
On the back of one of the giant spiders up ahead was a young man. Looking back at the agate meteorite, he clasped hands and bowed toward the white-robed man. In a loud voice, he said, “Your excellency Dragoneer, up ahead are the ruins of the Crow Divinity. It is currently occupied by the five lesser Tribes.”
“The old fogeys back in the Tribe are being too cautious,” said the man languidly, his expression proud and aloof. “These trifling Five Tribes only managed to gasp their way until now because of the protection of the Crow Divinity. The Priests figured out that the Crow Divinity is gone now, so what’s the point in mobilizing such a big force to destroy them!? And how come I got sent to probe them out!?
“Whatever. Since I’m here, I’ll handle things like I usually do. Before they die, I’ll offer them a little bit of hope, and then crush it! My Demonspiders love to eat the flesh of depressed humans. Spider Apprentice, bring forth the Crimson War Declaration!” It seemed that to this white-robed man, considering his identity, being dispatched to this place was somewhat of a humiliation.
The man’s voice echoed out to the Western Desert Cultivators who sat on top of the 32 giant spiders. When they heard the Crimson War Declaration mentioned, their vicious faces filled with the thirst for blood. They licked their lips.
The eyes of the youth who had spoken moments before turned red, and his lips twisted into a vicious smile. The Crimson War Declaration had only one purpose.
It meant that the entire Tribe, including Tribe members and vassals, would have three chances to fight. If they were defeated three times in a row, the result was a slaughter and the complete destruction of the entire Tribe!
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This chapter was sponsored by Edias Boaglio, Syed Ahmed, Chris Lee, Peter Johansson, Danny Zhu and LB
1. The ancient character for metal in China looked like this:
metal