Wen Leyang’s fist and the ugly youth’s sheathed Tang sword clashed in a fanciless fashion and caused a dull explosion.
The duo let out a strange scream. Wen Leyang felt as if the sky, ground, odd rocks, huge trees and other things around him were smashing into his body, almost crushing his flesh and bones. The ugly youth felt a coldness and heat traveling within him, as though a current formed by the Earth core’s magma and the ice from the North Pole were running up the long sword and into his blood vessels.
After that one blow, the two youths acted as if they had just had eighteen jugs of hard liquor. Their faces were flushed red and their eyes were unfocused. They both staggered and turned around in two circles before slumping on the ground simultaneously.
After they sat down they immediately jumped back up. Wen Leyang’s arms and feet were convulsing and his body was shaking. The Faulty Punch was activating the power of the Life and Death Poison, steadily eliminating the Heaven and Earth Force which had invaded his body.
The ugly youth was like a madman. He wielded his sword with both hands and struck the ground in a frenzy. The force of the Life and Death Poison was eked out of his scabbard. The golden brown ground immediately became a peculiar mottled color of black and white. It wasn’t grey, black was black and white was white. The colors were distinct but were intertwined at the same time.
After a brief moment, the duo straightened their backs and their eyes regained their liveliness.
The ugly youth was no longer wearing his uninterested expression and was now excited and in high spirits. His lifted his sparse and messy brow, “Haha, so you’re the one who had injured the rock?” As he said that he picked up his still sheathed sword with both hands and looked enraptured as he howled, “Again!”
The scabbard spun and struck again!
The longsword scraped a ripple in the air. Everything in its immediate surrounding became fierce and the icy manner, dense and enchanting was attached to the sword which was howling in the air. In only a moment’s effort, the ugly youth had become one with his surroundings. He was no longer brandishing his sword but was brandishing heaven, earth, odd rocks, and huge trees. The vigorous howl of the strike rushed towards Wen Leyang.
The jade knife Guo Huan’s voice was like a wooden stake as it rigidly embedded itself into Wen Leyang’s eardrums, “This kid uses his sword to enter the force, he’s doing good for his age! But wait till he masters how to hide the force with his sword, that would be a small achievement!”
Wen Leyang was now facing off not against a single person but a mini version of the world! Although the huge trees and odd rocks did not budge from their positions, they emanated a force as powerful as the sword. Under the direction of the ugly youth, they attacked Wen Leyang from every direction.
Wen Leyang did not have the luxury of conversing with Guo Huan. His clenched his fists and let out a cry as the Life and Death Poison surged within him. He unleashed the Faulty Punch and retaliated like a strange, angry bird. Every shake was like quicksilver spilling over the earth, raining combos of hundreds of hits with every hit releasing almost his full power. The mini world’s force was rushing like a blade but when it came into contact with Wen Leyang’s body, it immediately became like a snowflake which had floated onto the stove, dissipating without a trace.
The ugly youth’s sword style allowed him to be one with his surroundings. The ugly youth was the heaven, the earth, and everything while Wen Leyang’s Faulty Punch detaches himself from the world. The heaven is the heaven, the earth is the earth, and he was he. The two youths were similar in age but the lost knowledge that they displayed was like ice versus fire and completely the opposite of one another.
Bushuo, Buzuo, Chi Maojiu, Luo Wanggen and the others could not even make out the shapes of the duo clearly. What they could see was a total blur twisting and turning quickly in front of their eyes. Maddening blasts and sharp shrieks were mixed into a mess. They wanted to help but had no means of doing it.
Wen Leyang and the ugly youth were intensely focused on their battle. Both of them gritted their teeth with their left eyes pulsating in pain while their right eyes showed excitement. The both of them had the same sensation, like two dolls who were choking each other. The fight went as such – You pinch my stomach while I bite your shoulder; I’ll be in more pain when you pinch harder but when I’m in more pain I’ll use more force. No one was willing to let go of the other first.
After a long fight, the duo let out a shout simultaneously. Wen Leyang planted a foot in the ugly youth’s belly while the latter’s scabbard made an odd turn in mid-air, bypassing Wen Leyang’s arms which were protecting his head and struck mercilessly onto his back. The duo fell heavily with their faces to the ground, finally leaving the fray for a moment.
Although they had faceplanted at the same time, Wen Leyang had more to lose in comparison… Wen Leyang was more sturdily built than his opponent. If both their faces were deformed then the ugly youth was on the winning end.
Wen Leyang’s party finally made their move. Wen Xiaoyi was at the vanguard, pinning the ugly youth with her blunderbuss, “Don’t move!”
The ugly youth sat upright with much effort. He carelessly swatted the blunderbuss to one side, “Quit fooling around.” He shivered as both his hands hugged his belly while his face turned green. He couldn’t stand up.
Wen Leyang’s condition was almost similar. He was sitting on the ground with gritted teeth wanting to rub his back with his hand but couldn’t do it no matter how hard he tried. He could only puff his chest with all his might while sucking in cold breaths through the seams of his teeth.
The ugly youth held his belly to ease himself for a long time. He suddenly burst into laughter. As his belly shook it felt as if countless knives were stabbing him from the inside. His carefree laughter was mixed with uncountable pain.
Wen Leyang silently thought that his opponent was crazy but he too couldn’t help but laugh. His whole body was wracked with pain and his back felt like it wanted to crack open. But the euphoric happiness that spilled out from the seams of his bones shamelessly surged outwards. Ever since he had mastered the Faulty Punch, every single enemy his had faced was terribly dangerous. They were either equipped with powerful magic tools or were highly skilled in their art. This was the first time he had felt such satisfaction from a fight.
The battle to the death just now was more like a joust between two brothers whose powers were on par. The fight was extraordinarily fierce and both sides were exhausted after the match but neither could defeat the other.
After the ugly youth had finished laughing, he jubilantly raised an eyebrow and said to Wen Leyang, “I must’ve made a mistake, you are no mere mortal! This is great, this is great!”
Wen Leyang could not understand which part of this was great. He saw that Wen Xiaoyi’s blunderbuss was effectively pinning his opponent and felt more relieved. He replied honestly, “I think I’ve lost, your sword hasn’t even left its scabbard.”
Unexpectedly, the ugly youth carelessly shook his head, “You didn’t lose. This sword of mine could never leave its scabbard!” He pulled out the Tang sword as he was saying this.
Everyone exclaimed, startled. There was no blade inside the scabbard. Instead, a thin wooden plank had been connected to the long hilt. There were dense rows of runes engraved on the plank and it could never be used to slice someone.
The ugly youth continued smiling as he explained, “I use it to summon the force, it’s a magic tool. It can’t cause any harm by itself.”
Wen Leyang was incredulous, “You’re telling us this, aren’t you afraid that…”
The ugly youth laughed, “Afraid that you guys will hurt me? Why would you guys do that?”
Wen Buzuo had a vile smile, “You were the one looking for trouble, it’s only natural that we kill you.”
The ugly youth was indifferent, “I heard someone entering the area and I had this irresistible urge to come out and test my strength. Then again, if I were serious, to run away now is only a matter of a talisman. You guys want to hurt me, hehe.” He shook his head as he scanned the faces of the crowd before finally pointing a finger at the blunderbuss, “With this?”
Wen Leyang knows that he was speaking the truth. While they were fighting, the others couldn’t interfere with the level of skill they had. It’s just like a fight between two wolves, it’s useless if the other wolf was leading a litter of rabbits. But when he saw that the youth had pointed at the blunderbuss with a face full of scorn, he couldn’t stifle his laugh. In fact, everybody laughed, especially Wen Xiaoyi who was smiling like a flower, stunningly beautiful.
The ugly youth saw that they were laughing with bad intentions and his face immediately registered shock, “Don’t tell me you have others like him?” He pointed at Wen Leyang.
The ugly youth’s gaze shifted between Wen Buzuo and Wen Xiaoyi. He was anxious that they were like Wen Leyang, a mortal on the outside, but had the prowess to face off an able opponent from the cultivators of the true path.
Wen Leyang coughed twice and managed to stand up with the brothers Bushuo and Buzuo supporting him. The Life and Death Poison was flowing merrily and started healing his body quickly, “You came to test your strength?”
The ugly youth’s wounds also seemed to heal quickly. His complexion was already much better, “I was training here. When I heard the Gold-Consuming Lair’s skyward howl, I knew that someone had come so I rushed here to test my strength.” As he was saying this he pointed at Wen Leyang’s fist, “What force do you have there in your punches? They were poisonous and merciless. They weren’t sneaky like a venomous snake but was tough and powerful, rigid and heavy like a mountain. Amazing! My sword’s force couldn’t stop you.”
Wen Bushuo was a martial arts dummy. On what was an extremely rare occasion, he was the first to ask, “Sword’s force?”
The ugly youth held nothing back, “Using a sword to enter the force while borrowing the force to release a spell. Fighting against me is like fighting against everything. The art that I’m practicing is the sword force, using a sword to invoke the forces of heaven and earth.”
Wen Leyang nodded and applied his new knowledge immediately, “It’s good that you use your sword to enter the force, but if you master hiding the force with your sword, now that’s a small achievement.”
The ugly youth had been gladly showing off his ‘sword force’, but after he heard Wen Leyang’s words he exclaimed in astonishment. He looked at Wen Leyang with bulging eyes and only slowly opened his mouth with a lost and trembling voice after a long while, “Enter the force with the sword, I am heaven and earth… hide the force with the sword, heaven and earth is me!” He had chosen to hide and train here to elevate his cultivation and had only been thinking of entering the force and borrowing the force. Now, suddenly, he was hearing about hiding the force. It felt as if thunderclaps were sounding in his ears. It was clear to him that a new state was slowly appearing in the chaos. The day that he truly gets it and completely understands this force hiding, his prowess would increase tremendously!
After a long while, the ugly youth regained his senses. He stared at Wen Leyang and asked, “What comes after hiding the force?”
Wen Leyang was stunned and Guo Huan was making no sound now. He chuckled dryly, “I’ll tell you that after you mastered force hiding… erm, why are you here?”
The ugly youth was still deep in thought. He seemed to not have heard Wen Leyang’s question. Wen Xiaoyi grew impatient and poked him with her blunderbuss, “Oi!”
The ugly youth broke out of his trance, “Oh, oh. My name is Qin Zhui!”
Wen Xiaoyi laughed crisply, “We didn’t ask for your name!” She repeated Wen Leyang’s question to him.
Qin Zhui smiled as he blushed, “The land of the metal element is fearsome and stubborn. It’s the least easy to be invoked and used by other powers. That is why I’m training in the Gold-Consuming Lair. It’s the same logic as rowing your boat against the current. If I can borrow the force here, I’ll be a fish in the water out there.”
Wen Xiaoyi got tired of raising the blunderbuss, Wen Buzuo quickly substituted her and continued to ask Qin Zhui, “Which sect are you from?”
Qin Zhui shrugged, “I don’t belong to a sect, guess that makes me a rogue cultivator. My elderly master died early. I had stumbled upon this Gold-Consuming Lair two years ago and I entered here to train.”
Wen Leyang was slightly shocked, “You’re not a disciple of the One Word Palace?” He had heard the old rabbit demon mention that the elites of One Word Palace entered the sect by means of their skill in martial arts. The three heads, Xia, Ma, and Wei were famous for the spear, sword, and rod respectively. Qin Zhui’s cultivation was quite established and Wen Leyang had assumed that he was Second Brother Ma’s disciple.
When Qin Zhui heard the words ‘One Word Palace’, he wore a strange, incomprehensible expression which was neither hatred nor admiration. He shook his head while smiling, “No. The standards of the One Word Palace are too high, they won’t accept a rogue cultivator like me.” Although slightly sour, there was no blame nor harshness in his tone.
Wen Leyang was even more puzzled even now, “I know a few rogue cultivators, namely Shui Jing, Ji Fei, Red Grandaunt, and Giant Bull but their cultivation level are far below yours.”
Wen Leyang was mentioning the famous names among the rogue cultivators, especially Ji Fei and Shui Jing. Ever since their ‘honorable’ rescue mission on Mount Emei, they had become famous.
“My nemesis is the descendant of a well-known sect, they are very powerful…” Qin Zhui shook his head. He changed the subject, “Why are you guys here? To train? Looking for treasure? Quite a few people have come to this place recently.”
Wen Leyang frowned slightly, “What kind of people?”
Wen Buzuo questioned closely, “A few days ago, we heard the Gold-Consuming Lair’s skyward howl. Who had entered here?”
Qin Zhui was indignant, “I don’t know! These days the Gold-Consuming Lair’s skyward howl was more frequent than a cock’s crow. I was busy training and had only just finished yesterday. I missed everyone!” As if not meeting the people who had entered was a great loss to him but he smiled shortly after that, showing a sincere but extremely ugly smile and pointed at Wen Leyang, “At least I got to meet you guys today. Not bad, not bad!”
Wen Buzuo inquired, “Have you seen a large bronze Buddha statue?”
Qin Zhui nodded, “He was here before me. Like me, he had come here to train at the fringes of the Gold-Consuming Lair. He was over there.” He pointed in that direction, “It’s quite far from here. Are you here to look for him? Too late, he has already left. I went to look for him after I completed my training, wanting to test my strength but discovered that he was gone.” While he was talking a trace of indignance showed itself again on his face. It looks like not finding the person he wanted to fight with was an upsetting affair for him.
Wen Leyang was slightly disappointed. If Qin Zhui did not see San Duan leave then he wouldn’t have seen the giant pangolin enter.
Wen Buzuo chuckled, also slightly disappointed, “If the demon monk San Duan did not leave, Qin Zhui won’t be a match for him even after dying three times.”
Qin Zhui pointed towards the deeper part of the Gold-Consuming Lair, “You guys want to go in? The fellas in there aren’t your ordinary bunch. If you want to train, here is enough.”
“The fellas inside? What do you mean?” Wen Leyang, Wen Buzuo, and Wen Xiaoyi all asked at almost the same time. The three of them had a tentative expression.
Qin Zhui shook his head, “I’m not sure. Shortly after I got here to train I got word from the inside. It told me not to go any further to not disturb their peace.”
Wen Leyang moved in closer, “What kind of people?”
Qin Zhui scratched his head, “I didn’t see them. They had sent letters with flying swords.”
Wen Buzuo laughed coldly and instigated, “They told you not to go and you obliged?”
Qin Zhui laughed in a matter-of-fact manner, “This place is sufficient for my training so why should I go any further?”
Wen Leyang inhaled and looked at his companions. Before this, he thought that the Gold-Consuming Lair was a hidden and fearsome place without a single soul. But their journey here had proved otherwise. There were those training at the entrance, a few people entering a few days ago, and there seemed to be some skilled obscure cultivators inside.
Wen Buzuo’s expression was gloomy. He spoke to Wen Leyang in a low voice, “They might not have been entering, maybe some of them were leaving!”
There were matching rocks on both sides of the river. In order to enter, one must hit the rock and the same goes for exiting. The sounding of the Gold-Consuming Lair’s skyward howl doesn’t necessarily signal someone entering, it might’ve been someone leaving.
Wen Leyang nodded and did not say another word but moved his body instead. He felt that the pain in his back had subsided and saluted Qin Zhui, “We’re heading off!”
Qin Zhui was shocked. He jumped to his feet as if he had been electrocuted. He extended his arms and barred their way, “You may not!”
Wen Buzuo was so shocked that he almost fired the blunderbuss. He glared and questioned, “Do you have a death wish?”
Qin Zhui ignored him, looking straight at Wen Leyang, “You may not leave unless you tell me what comes after hiding the force!”
Wen Leyang didn’t know whether to laugh or to cry. He had purely been winging it just now. Naturally, he had no idea what comes after hiding the force. The jade knife Guo Huan chuckled in his ear, “I won’t tell you!”
Wen Leyang repeated honestly, “I won’t tell you!”
“If you don’t tell me, who am I going to look for after you die in there?”
Wen Buzuo spat on the ground, “Enough blabbering!” He gestured towards the others. The group circled around Qin Zhui and made for the deeper part of the Gold-Consuming Lair.
Wen Leyang had an idea. He stopped and turned towards Qin Zhui while shouting, “If a giant pangolin demon comes out, help me bar his way. I’ll tell you after I come back out…” The Gold-Consuming Lair was too vast. Wen Leyang was worried that he might walk past the giant pangolin.
Qin Zhui shook his head, “What if you don’t make it? Tell me first, Qin Zhui is an honest person, I’ll definitely help you!”
Wen Leyang nodded immediately and said in a loud voice, “After entering the force comes hiding the force, after hiding the force comes zero force!” Of course, he had heard this from the jade knife Guo Huan.
Qin Zhui was stunned, his ugly face registered a loss. It seemed that he would never be able to understand it. But after a while, he raised his head and waved at Wen Leyang, “I’ll go and sit on the rock!” He turned and ran. He stopped after running a few steps, “I can only wait for you for a year. If you don’t come back after a year, I’ll have to leave this place. My nemesis is still waiting for me!”
Wen Leyang laughed. He turned and led his party on. Wen Buzuo was all complaints, “You little fool, why were you so honest and told him the answer so soon? What if he doesn’t keep his word?”
Wen Leyang chuckled, “If he keeps his word that would be the best. If he doesn’t we didn’t expect anyone to help us bar the exit anyway. The meeting with him was unplanned. If I could help him by lifting a finger, then I’ll help him.”
The jade knife Guo Huan laughed, “Lifting a finger? This finger of yours was enough to let him contemplate for a lifetime! If that kid is honest then so be it. If he’s not, then Yin’s Error and Yang’s Mistake would go to the ends of the earth to kill him!”
Wen Buzuo grunted, “This speech of yours is truly heroic, magnificent indeed.”
Guo Huan was furious and cursed in a rage…
As usual, the two voodoo dolls led the way. Wen Buzuo returned the blunderbuss to Xiaoyi. The group abandoned the ‘Z’ formation and hastened their footsteps towards the deeper part of the Gold-Consuming Lair. The further they went, the stronger the smell of gold metal become. The odd rocks were still ragged, the huge trees were still askew, but their color had become a greenish-yellow copper tone. Compared to the texture inside the entrance, these were more like metal.
After walking for eight to nine kilometers, the landscape abruptly changed!
The Gold-Consuming Lair was devoid of life. The rocks and trees were in awkward positions and the atmosphere was peculiar but it was not messy. This place, however, was a complete tragedy. The nearby huge trees had been literally snapped, some of the notches were so neat that it was obvious they had been made by magic weapons. Some of them were jagged as if the tree had been broken by a giant beast’s paw. Towering monoliths had been reduced to rubble, covering the ground messily. It was clear that a catastrophe had taken place here not long ago.
Wen Xiaoyi and Chi Maojiu followed right beside Wen Leyang. The others spread out silently, investigating with serious faces.
Wen Buzuo was staring at a bunch of unordered huge rocks. After a moment, he started flipping the rock fragments.
Wen Bushuo extended his body and traveled amongst the remains of the huge trees and odd rocks.
The zombie seemed to be troubled. It was pacing back and forth amongst the ruins. He occasionally stopped and stomped his feet. Luo Wanggen followed beside him. He took out a notebook from his bag and started scribbling.
The objects in the Gold-Consuming Lair were very hard. Not even true cultivators or mortals would leave a trace after entering here. If it wasn’t for the fierce battle that had occurred here, even expert trackers like Bushuo and Buzuo cannot tell that someone had passed through here.
The group finally finished their investigation and ran back to Wen Leyang’s side. Wen Buzuo pointed at the pile of rocks that he had fumbled with, “These were originally one huge rock.”
Wen Xiaoyi rolled her eyes, “You don’t say!”
Wen Buzuo was close with Wen Xiaoyi. He smiled cheerfully and did not take offense, “But there were words on the rock! They were also in ancient writing, I can’t read them!”
Xiaoyi was curious. She pulled Wen Leyang along and rushed towards the rocks. She immediately gave Wen Buzuo a thumbs-up with a satisfied feeling, “Nice work!”
A huge rock the size of a hill had been broken up into palm-sized rubble. Initially, nothing could be made out of the mess but after Wen Buzuo’s fumbling, a perfect rock surface started to take shape on the ground. A few words had been elegantly written on the rock surface. Xiaoyi could only see the whole thing after Wen Leyang had jumped high up while carrying her on his back.
“Trespassers will die!” Xiaoyi softly read out the words engraved on the rock surface.
Wen Bushuo was carrying a bunch of objects which he threw onto the ground in a fit, “These things are not from here!”
The objects that he had collected were all shiny. Guo Huan chuckled and told Wen Leyang, “These are flying sword fragments. They are of the same color. Looks like they were all from the same sect.”
Luo Wanggen passed his notebook to Wen Leyang and explained in a low voice, “These are places stained with blood but had been cleaned up afterwards by someone. There were five who had been wounded.” He paused for a moment then added, “My zombie can tell whose blood it was and which drop came first and which drop comes next.”
On the notebook page was a drawing. From under the ‘trespassers will die’ huge rock, the path of the wounded was articulated in great detail. The endpoint of every trail was marked with a red cross.
Luo Wanggen seemingly smiled drily, “The traces of blood then disappeared after this spot.”
The jade knife laughed coldly, “That’s because the entire person had been obliterated by a powerful magic tool, completely destroying their soul and body!”
After gathering those few clues together, it was obvious that a fight had broken out between two people under the rock with the warning. One of them might’ve been the guard.
Wen Buzuo frowned and contemplated before saying, “Could it be Grand Master Chang Li? She might’ve encountered the guard as she chased the giant pangolin here.”
The jade knife Guo Huan’s voice was full of scorn, “And you call yourself a descendant disciple of little Chang Li. Is Chang Li the type of person to clean up after killing someone?”