Chapter 229: Obsession Dissipation
Translator: Dragon Boat Translation Editor: Dragon Boat Translation
Having waited anxiously inside Apricot Fen City actually seemed a bit too passive. Given the formidable strength of the Dragon Suppressing Elephant, the situation within that cave appeared to be far from simple.
The outcome of whether Xu Wangliang’s group could obtain the subsequent techniques remained uncertain.
“Understood!”
Upon hearing that Chen Fei was going to Mount Guanzhou that day, Ling Hanjun didn’t dare to voice any objections. At this point, he was at the mercy of others, and Ling Hanjun had no right to negotiate.
Half an hour later, Chen Fei and Ling Hanjun, riding two horses, left Apricot Fen City and headed towards the location of Mount Guanzhou in Pingyin County.
The speed of the horses couldn’t compare to Chen Fei’s current pace, but they were more energy-efficient.
Although Chen Fei’s cultivation had been suppressed by Ling Hanjun, he was still much stronger than an ordinary person, making riding a horse easy for him.
When Chen Fei had run from Pingyin County to Apricot Fen City, it had taken him a full five days. Riding back on a horse would naturally be much faster.
Of course, for the sake of safety, they had avoided that eerie mountain village. Nonetheless, they had arrived at the foot of Mount Guanzhou two days later.
Throughout the two-day journey, they had encountered almost no signs of human presence. Pingyin County had been remote to begin with, and after being occupied by the strange, it had become even more desolate.
Upon reaching the foot of Mount Guanzhou, there had actually been more traces of human activity. After all, it had been a transportation hub. Instead of going to Pingyin County, one could also pass through the foot of Mount Guanzhou to reach other places.
“You two, stop right there and hand over everything you have on you!”
Several arrows had suddenly shot towards Chen Fei, but he had easily brushed them aside.
From concealed spots among the rocks on the side of the road, a dozen figures had emerged, each holding bows and arrows, aiming down at Chen Fei and Ling Hanjun.
However, when they had seen Chen Fei casually deflect the arrows with his bare hands, these bandits had been suddenly startled.
“Capture them and ask about the situation nearby.”
Chen Fei had glanced at those dozen or so individuals. While they had looked somewhat robust, their cultivation levels had mostly been average, with only a few in the Skin Tempering realm. The leader had been in the Body Tempering realm.
This level of cultivation wouldn’t have been able to stop a larger merchant convoy. They had probably been stationed there to keep watch. Seeing only Chen Fei and Ling Hanjun, they had immediately sprung into action.
“Yes!
Feeling the seal on his cultivation slightly lifted, Ling Hanjun grinned, his figure flashed, and he charged toward the bandits.
In just a moment, cries for mercy and begging for forgiveness had echoed from the bandits’ side.
Chen Fei had remained expressionless. These bandits had all spilled blood with their own hands. He had felt no sympathy for them. Letting Ling Hanjun, a former bandit leader, deal with them had been quite fitting.
After a moment, Ling Hanjun had returned to Chen Fei’s side, holding two people in his hands.
Ling Hanjun had considered attempting to escape just then, but the memory of Chen Fei capturing him a couple of days ago had made him abandon that thought.
Ling Hanjun could have already imagined the consequences if he had escaped and then been recaptured.
“Oh, great one, spare our lives, spare our lives! We were blind and offended you. We hoped you could forgive us, spare us insignificant ones.”
The two bandits had knelt on the ground, desperately pleading, their faces wet with tears.
“About ten days ago, a few experts in the Visceral Tempering realm came here. Did you know about this?” Chen Fei had looked at the two bandits and inquired.
“All, experts in the Visceral Tempering realm?”
The two bandits were momentarily stunned. Experts in the Visceral Tempering realm were rarely encountered and were usually only found in large merchant caravans. When encountering such caravans, the mountain bandits on Mount Guanzhou would all hide away and behave obediently, not daring to cross even half a step.
“Has anything strange happened in the mountains recently?”
Seeing the expressions of the two, Chen Fei knew that they had absolutely no knowledge about Xu Wangliang’s group. But that was understandable. Practitioners in the Visceral Tempering realm could hide their presence so effectively that even cultivators in the Bone Tempering Realm, which was inferior to their level, couldn’t detect them.
“Yes, yes, yes! Towards the southern part of the mountain, there has been fog lately. A few of our brothers went in, but they haven’t come out again.” The bandit quickly answered.
“The southern part?”
Chen Fei looked up at Ling Hanjun. If Ling Hanjun’s description of the location was accurate, that cave was indeed situated to the south of Mount Guanzhou.
“How long ago did the fog start appearing?”
“It seems… it’s been around ten days.”
Chen Fei nodded, and then, riding his horse, continued forward. A moment later, Ling Hanjun caught up. He had already dealt with the two bandits.
After a short while, Chen Fei and Ling Hanjun arrived at a location at the foot of a mountain. Chen Fei looked up, and halfway up the mountain, a circle of mist was indeed shrouding the area.
The distance was a bit far, and Chen Fei couldn’t sense it clearly. However, after observing for a while, he realized that the mist was consistently centered in one spot. He understood that the mist was indeed caused by a formation.
“Elder, that cave is in that area.” Ling Hanjun whispered next to Chen Fei.
Chen Fei didn’t say anything. Before coming here, he had considered that there might be something in that cave. He just hadn’t anticipated that a formation would activate even before entering, concealing the surroundings.
“Come with me to another place first, and then well come back.”
Chen Fei thought for a moment and decided not to take the risk of entering immediately. After all, this place wasn’t far from the village where the original Chen Fei had lived. He thought it might be a good idea to go there first and see if he could release the lingering attachments outside the cave’s aperture.
As for Ling Hanjun, Chen Fei intended to continue keeping him with him. Once they entered the cave later, Chen Fei would need Ling Hanjun to precisely point out the location where the beast hide had been found originally.
“Yes!”
Ling Hanjun didn’t dare to ask further questions and obediently followed behind Chen Fei. For now, Ling Hanjun’s only hope was to perform well enough that Chen Fei might spare his life in the end, and that was all.
Despite the rugged road and sometimes even no path at all, Chen Fei and Ling Hanjun arrived at the village after a little over two hours.
Ling Hanjun looked at the desolate village in front of him, feeling puzzled as he glanced at Chen Fei. He had no idea why Chen Fei had deliberately brought them here.
In the midst of the chaotic dynasty, even smaller county towns were often taken over by rebel forces, and villages like this were sometimes plundered by bandits as well. The fact that they had managed to survive was extremely rare.
Clearly, this village hadn’t escaped the fate of destruction either. Judging by the extent of the desolation, it had likely happened quite some time ago.
Chen Fei remained silent, dismounted, and tied the horses to a crooked-necked tree before taking steps into the village.
Ever since he had set eyes on the village, a strange sensation had been emanating from within Chen Fei’s body. This sensation was subtle, akin to fleeting thoughts, easy to overlook.
However, with his practice of the Thousand Origin Heart Locking Technique, Chen Fei easily grasped this feeling, as it was a response rooted in the original Chen Fei’s experiences here.
The original soul had long dissipated, so there shouldn’t have been any lingering attachments. Yet, much like the attachments outside the aperture, many things were hard to explain.
As Chen Fei walked through the village, collapsed courtyard walls, rotten beams, and shattered tiles all seemed to tell the stories of what had once transpired here.
The feeling emanating from within Chen Fei gradually intensified. However, after reaching a certain point, it began to dissipate continuously.
By the time Chen Fei reached the center of the village, the emotional aura from within him had completely vanished.
Throughout, Chen Fei’s expression remained calm. In this moment, he seemed more like someone fulfilling another’s final wishes.
Having traversed from the Blue Star to this world, the original soul’s sudden death had given Chen Fei the chance to continue living. If it weren’t for the aperture, Chen Fei wouldn’t have known that the original soul had such lingering attachments.
Standing still, Chen Fei slowly closed his eyes. His spiritual power surged, and he quickly located the position of the aperture. Gradually, Chen Fei’s spiritual power approached the aperture, and in the next moment, it enveloped the aperture.
The barrier that had blocked Chen Fei for a whole ten months vanished!
“Thank you!”
A thought flickered through Chen Fei’s mind as he fulfilled one of the original soul’s wishes. Although he couldn’t be said to have returned in glory, he had at least seen the final side of the village.
However, the outcome for this village wasn’t good.
This was the current state of the world, an almost inevitable outcome. Weakness had become an original sin. You didn’t intend to infringe upon others, but they were always scheming against you, coveting everything you had!
Ling Hanjun stood not far from Chen Fei, wondering if he had been mistaken. Just a moment ago, Ling Hanjun felt as if Chen Fei’s aura had undergone a slight change.
However, that feeling had vanished quickly, leaving Ling Hanjun perplexed.
Chen Fei opened his eyes, and a flash of light seemed to appear in them.
The lingering attachment outside the aperture had dissipated, and Chen Fei’s cultivation had long since reached the pinnacle of the Visceral Tempering realm. At this moment, he was ready to make a breakthrough to the Aperture Tempering realm.
However, the current circumstances were somewhat unsuitable.
To achieve a breakthrough to the Aperture Tempering realm, he needed to open his aperture. But this process was gradual, especially for the first aperture.
He had to find a safe place; otherwise, if he randomly attempted to break through and was disturbed halfway, the consequences could be disastrous.
Chen Fei furrowed his brows slightly, hesitating between finding a safe place to gradually advance his cultivation or immediately heading to Mount Guanzhou to enter the cave and search for clues about the Dragon Suppressing Elephant.
If it weren’t for Xu Wangliang’s group being there, Chen Fei might have chosen to break through first. But because of their presence, he was concerned that something might happen to the subsequent techniques of the Dragon Suppressing Elephant.
If he were to lose the subsequent techniques of the Dragon Suppressing Elephant because of this, it wouldn’t just be a matter of regret.
Stabilizing the body, stabilizing the mind, stabilizing the soul!
Chen Fei suspected that the subsequent techniques of the Dragon Suppressing Elephant might include methods of cultivation at a higher realm than the Aperture Tempering realm. If that were indeed the case, the value of the Dragon Suppressing Elephant would be immeasurable.
“Let’s head to Mount Guanzhou!”
After pondering for a moment, Chen Fei addressed Ling Hanjun.
Chen Fei decided to observe Mount Guanzhou again, this time from a closer distance, and then make a decision.
Ling Hanjun was left a bit bewildered by Chen Fei’s actions. They had just taken a look at a dilapidated village, and now they were rushing back to Mount Guanzhou. What was the plan?
An hour later, the mist on the mountainside of Mount Guanzhou was already visible from a distance. In just a moment, they would reach the base of the mountain.
Suddenly, Chen Fei’s head lifted, and he gazed toward the mountainside of Mount Guanzhou. A fluctuation surged from that direction, spreading over to their side..