Everybody knew that the King of Foreign Lands was exceptionally intelligent and powerful. No one had imagined that Wang Chong would have a master!
“Heheh, Senior, my respects.”
The first to react was Zhangchou Jianqiong. With a smile, Zhangchou Jianqiong calmly bowed.
After all, he had a close relationship with Wang Chong, and the existence of the Demonic Emperor Old Man was no secret to him.
Wang Chong was the number one meritorious official of the Great Tang, and the feats he had achieved were difficult to match. It would not be excessive to say that he had saved the Great Tang again and again.
And this old man was Wang Chong’s master, so he naturally deserved all their respect.
Moreover, in terms of age, the Demonic Emperor Old Man and the Wushang Village Chief were both much older than Zhangchou Jianqiong, Zhang Shougui, and Wang Zhongsi.
“Paying respects to Senior!”
Ozmish Khagan, Yeon Gaesomun, and the others quickly responded, bowing with reverential looks on their faces.
Since this was the King of Foreign Lands’ master, it was no wonder he was able to penetrate through the blizzard to reach this distant land.
“Master, what’s the situation?”
Ignoring them, Wang Chong walked up to the Demonic Emperor Old Man and the Wushang Village Chief.
The Demonic Emperor Old Man and the Wushang Village Chief had not taken part in the war of the northeast. This was partially because Genesis Supreme was so powerful that they wouldn’t be much help even if they went over. In addition, Wang Chong had finished planning, and he was certain that he could defeat An Lushan.
However, it was also because Wang Chong had held a discussion with the Demonic Emperor Old Man and the Wushang Village Chief before the war.
An Lushan’s rebellion in the northeast really did need to be put down, but this extremely frigid weather sweeping through the world was the source of everything and was the more urgent problem.
If they didn’t find a way to handle it, they would only be treating the symptoms. Even if Wang Chong won the war of the northeast, in the end, it would be as substantial as a moon in the water.
Thus, before the war, the Demonic Emperor Old Man and the Wushang Village Chief had set off to the extreme north to investigate the truth of the Great Ice Age, at the same time seeking a method to stop it.
Both the Demonic Emperor Old Man and the Wushang Village Chief were peak experts, making them capable of venturing into the extreme north without being affected by the cold.
“We basically know where the cold wave is originating from!” the Demonic Emperor Old Man coldly said, his first words leaving everyone shocked.
“The storm is gathering at the ocean at the ends of the extreme north. In addition, I and the Wushang Village Chief have discovered extremely powerful pulses of energy. From the look of it, there is at least one Grotto Heaven realm expert presiding.
“This is an extremely important matter, so after pondering it, we decided that it would be very difficult for the two of us to deal with it.
“In order to avoid alarming the snake, we decided to beat a temporary retreat and send you that letter.”
This meeting naturally wasn’t a coincidence. There had been some communication beforehand.
Moreover, the two of them had spent nearly a month here and had gathered a great deal of information.
“Master, Village Chief, thank you for your work. I must continue to trouble you for this cold wave,” Wang Chong respectfully said. “No matter what, we must resolve this matter!”
“Mm.”
The Demonic Emperor Old Man and the Wushang Village Chief nodded.
The two of them had seen the effects of the cold wave on the world. The longer this was delayed, the more dangerous it would be to the world, perhaps even the end of civilization.
Moreover, with each passing day, more of the common folk back in the Central Plains would die in the cold. This matter could no longer be delayed.
“Chong-er, the Celestial God Organization is extremely strong. Though you have killed two Supremes, the organization remains strong, and there is no telling how many hidden experts they have. We must be cautious,” the Wushang Village Chief gravely said.
It was precisely because they knew how powerful their foe was that they understood how dangerous this matter was. This had also played a role in their decision to serve as scouts for Wang Chong.
The two of them were rather old and didn’t care that much about death, whereas Wang Chong was the hero of the realm, the focus of their faith and belief. Nothing could be allowed to happen to him.
“Mm.”
Wang Chong nodded, a flicker of emotion in his heart.
The group quickly set off with the Demonic Emperor Old Man and Wushang Village Chief, pushing through the blizzard toward that ocean at the ends of the earth.
Past the arctic forests and another ten days northward, amidst an intensifying blizzard, Wang Chong’s group finally reached their objective.
Even though he had lived a lifetime and had memories from another world, this was Wang Chong’s first time here.
Whoosh!
Cold winds howled, sweeping across the world like mighty waves, blasting the land with large flakes of snow. Turbulent streams of air crisscrossed this polar white world, and one could even see large tornadoes of snow connecting the heavens and earth.
These snow tornadoes were several dozen kilometers high, and their diameter was around ten-some kilometers. They constantly howled as they spun and tore through the earth.
This momentum was akin to a massive stampede. In front of these snow tornadoes, every living being seemed puny and insignificant.
The power contained in those snow tornadoes far exceeded the Grotto Heaven realm!
This was the power of nature. No martial artist could match it.
Hundreds of these snow tornadoes howled across the polar regions, crashing into each other and combining into even larger snow tornadoes.
And while the polar world was actually flat, it was covered in mountains of hard ice of various sizes.
Though it was the same world, it felt like they had stepped into a completely new world.
“Incredible. This is the polar world?” the Khitan King muttered in shock from within Wang Chong’s barrier.
The Khitans had originally lived in snowy forests with icicles hanging everywhere. Hunting in these forests and fighting while naked with tigers and wolves was a part of everyday life to the Khitans.
But comparing that world to this one was like comparing night and day.
It wasn’t just him. Everyone else was stunned by this strange world.
This was also Wang Chong’s first time seeing it. Everything here gave off an extremely dangerous feeling: violent, brutal, primitive… If they hadn’t come here on their own two feet, they would have doubted that any of this was real.
But a moment later, Wang Chong came to his senses, his attention drawn to something else within the snow tornadoes.
Besides icy energy that could devastate the world, Wang Chong sensed a familiar energy within the snow tornadoes.
The energy of another world!
Wang Chong’s eyes flashed with a harsh light.
This was an aura of death and decay. When the calamity had descended, Wang Chong had led his army against the otherworldly invaders for a decisive battle. While Wang Chong had not defeated them, he had been able to sense the energy of the world from which the otherworldly invaders had originated.
“This is the place!”
A thought flashed through Wang Chong’s mind. He knew that his judgment had been correct. This cold wave truly was the work of the Celestial God Organization.
“We were only able to get up to here. It was too difficult to press any farther!” the Wushang Village Chief said.
When the two of them had first arrived, this violent and cold energy was omnipresent. He and the Demonic Emperor Old Man had had to us
e all their energy to push through it, but in those circumstances, their Stellar Energy was rapidly consumed. In the end, they had been compelled to retreat.
If even the Demonic Emperor Old Man and Wushang Village Chief were like this, there was no need to think about what would happen to the others.
But now that they had arrived again, the two of them felt something completely different.
The polar lands were still the polar lands, and those destructive snow tornadoes still swept through the earth, bringing the temperature as low as -80°. But whether it was the Wushang Village Chief, the Demonic Emperor Old Man, or the other experts, none of them felt like they were exerting themselves.
Wang Chong’s barrier was able to completely block out the cold energy.
Not only that, the Wushang Village Chief could tell that Wang Chong’s silver barrier was harmonized with this world of ice and snow, as if it was a part of this polar world. All the icy energy would come to a stop upon reaching the silver barrier, allowing the group to consume barely any Stellar Energy at all.
As for Wang Chong, though he had been using this barrier the entire time, he was not using too much energy. On the contrary, the Demonic Emperor Old Man could tell that Wang Chong was somehow absorbing energy from this icy world.
On the journey here, Wang Chong had grown slightly stronger.
“Mm.”
Wang Chong nodded at the Wushang Village Chief’s words.
If this cold wave really is the work of the Celestial God Organization, then all of the cold wave’s energy originates from the world of the otherworldly invaders. Such a large operation must require an enormous teleportation gate.
To maintain such a massive spacetime teleportation gate and constantly send cold wave energy to the world of humans, at least a Supreme has to be present, and it might not be only one.
It seems that we’re getting close to their base, Wang Chong said to himself.
His eyes slowly swept the area, and he quickly spotted some clues.
“It’s over there!” Wang Chong suddenly called out.
These words instantly had everyone’s attention.
Swoosh!
A moment later, Wang Chong shot forward like a meteor, dragging everyone with him as he rapidly moved toward a certain point.
Rumble!
After crossing a distance of several dozen li, they heard a great rumble. An enormous vortex of dark lightning clouds had gathered above the polar world. Lightning blazed and crackled within as bolt after bolt crashed down from the center of the vortex.
Chapter 2266 - Primordial Beast, the Hou!
Chapter 2266: Primordial Beast, the Hou!
Translated by: Hypersheep325
Edited by: Michyrr
“Everyone, be careful. This place isn’t far from their base.”
Clang! Within the silver barrier, Yeon Gaesomun grabbed several of his black sabers.
While Yeon Gaesomun was weaker than Wang Chong, he had been born in the complex environment of the Goguryeo Empire, and he had grown up amidst blood and fire.
His entire life consisted of war, scheming, and fighting.
These various experiences had given Yeon Gaesomun a very sharp intuition for danger.
Long before danger had descended, he would sense something. It was this intuition that had allowed him to survive that terrifying explosion in the steel fortress.
When that giant lightning vortex appeared in their vision, Yeon Gaesomun had immediately felt his heart begin to rapidly thump, that familiar sense of danger emerge in his mind.
Moreover, judging by the energy pulses coming from that lightning vortex, this place wasn’t very far from their objective.
Yeon Gaesomun had barely spoken when resounding laughter erupted from the vortex, accompanied by a boom of thunder.
“Hahaha, a pack of reckless ants dares to intrude on the land of gods and devils!
“Since you seek death, I will fulfill your wish!”
The voice was so deafeningly loud that it drowned out the howling winds around them.
Everyone paled.
“We’ve been discovered!”
The Demonic Emperor Old Man’s face sank, his body tensing as he prepared for battle.
This was clearly no weakling. Although they had been extremely secretive on this journey to the north, if their foe was at Genesis Supreme’s level, they would always be found no matter how well they were concealed.
To only be discovered upon reaching the heart of the polar lands was already very good!
“Don’t panic. Their actual body isn’t here. This is just long-distance voice transmission.”
Wang Chong’s bright eyes peered into the depths of the lightning vortex and saw his foe.
As a Grotto Heaven realm expert, Wang Chong could peer through space.
His foe had only left behind a ball of energy in the vortex. His actual body was not present.
“Wang Chong, it would be one thing if you didn’t come, but since you’re here, don’t think about leaving alive. Do you take me for Genesis Supreme?” That resounding voice spoke once more. It appeared that Wang Chong’s voice had allowed him to immediately identify Wang Chong.
“Ignore him. His actual body can’t be far. Let’s hurry and advance.”
Wang Chong immediately shot forward, advancing with the rest.
But before they could get far, a savage and frightening roar that was brimming with a desire to kill and brutalize came from the distance.
Roooar!
Wang Chong’s eyes flew open as he came to a stop.
Boom!
The earth shuddered as the giant snow tornadoes began to converge on the group, seemingly pulled by an invisible force.
Bang!
In a flash of light, an enormous silver being jumped out from a snow tornado and crashed in front of them like a meteor.
This was a bizarre, four-footed creature that was the height of seven or eight adult men. Beneath its thick silver fur, one could see that its body was bursting with muscle.
Its two hindlegs were rather short, but its forelegs were thick and muscular like those of an ape, two pillars rammed into the earth.
Most bizarre of all was that there were two rabbit-like ears, each six feet long, growing from its head.
Despite this, nothing could conceal its vicious and savage nature.
The moment this bizarre creature hit the ground, it crouched down and took on an aggressive posture.
Its crimson maw was covered in sharp and intersecting fangs, and as it growled, saliva rained down from the teeth.
The saliva didn’t even freeze when it touched the ground. On the contrary, there was a soft hiss as holes were dissolved through the thick ice.
It was clear that this creature’s bodily fluids contained a powerful toxin.
“What monster is this?”
Everyone in the silver barrier was alarmed by this monster that had leaped out of the snow tornado.
Each of them could tell that this silver monster was packed with explosive power.
“It’s a Hou!” the Wushang Village Chief suddenly said as he stared at the strange monster.
(TN: The Hou is a mythical beast that is said to live in the far north. It has been described as appearing like a dog and also like a rabbit. It is apparently capable of defeating and eating dragons.)
“Our Wushang Village has ancient texts that describe this monster, but this beast should have gone extinct in ancient times. I did not think that some of them still lived.”
There were many well-preserved ancient records in Wushang Village that were not available in the outside world. The Wushang Village Chief didn’t know where these records had come from, only that they had been passed down through the generations, long before he had been born.
This monster was identical to the Hou that had been drawn in one of those ancient books.
“Village Chief, are you certain?” Wang Chong said without turning his head.
The Wus
hang Village Chief nodded.
“I’ll deal with it.” The Khitan King pulled out two sabers and immediately began to charge at the monster.
The Khitans hunted for a living and found honor in it. Rather than frightening him, this monster had only succeeded in stimulating the Khitan King’s desire to fight.
If he could kill this monster and bring it back to his tribe, he would be showered with glory and honor.
Moreover, as a Great General expert, the Khitan King was confident that he could kill this monster.
“Wait!”
Just when the Khitan King was about to charge out, Wang Chong extended his hand and stopped him, a cold glint in his eyes.
Roooar!
More bestial roars came from the surrounding snow tornadoes.
Thudthudthud!
As the Khitan King stared in shock, a second, third, fourth… more and more Hou jumped out of the surrounding snow tornadoes.
A few moments later, they were surrounded by hundreds of enormous Hou.
“How could there be this many?” the Khitan King couldn’t help but yell, his heart cold. The others were much the same.
The Hou probably weren’t that strong, and each of them could probably take on one. But hundreds of Hou had suddenly appeared, and this was not something that anyone could take on.
Moreover, they had emerged from the snow tornadoes, so one could tell at a glance that these were Ice Element creatures that were adapted to this frigid weather.
This was their home court, and fighting them here placed the humans at a disadvantage.
At this time, that resounding voice came out of the thunderclouds once more. “This is simply the appetizer I’ve prepared for you. Let’s see if you can break through before we talk about the rest!”
Boom! Boom! Boom! More and more Hou jumped out of the snow tornadoes.
These ancient beasts bellowed, their crimson eyes locking onto the group in the silver barrier. Without hesitation, they lunged.
“Go!”
Wang Chong’s eyes flashed as he led the group in a charge against these primordial beasts.
“Kill!”
All of them knew that their true test in this polar expedition had come.
Ozmish Khagan, Tiechi Bileli, the Khitan King, the Xi Queen, Yeon Gaesomun, the martial artists, and even Zhangchou Jianqiong, Wang Zhongsi, and Zhang Shougui pulled out their weapons and charged at the monsters together with Wang Chong.
The Human Emperor c1-2382 Page 1361