by Mars Gravity
The shopkeeper’s words caused Yun Che to nod his head and say gratefully, “Got it, thank you for the reminder.”
“Also, although your profound strength is not weak, the strength and numbers of the profound beasts in the Wasteland of Death far exceed your imagination. In the surrounding fifty kilometers, it is all Nascent Profound Beasts and True Profound Beasts. Beyond the fifty kilometers, Spirit Profound Beasts will also appear frequently. The further you travel, the higher the strength of the profound beast. Although this distribution of profound beasts is distinct, it is definitely not absolute; within fifty kilometers, Spirit Profound beasts will often appear as well. Therefore, my advice for you is to not go beyond twenty five kilometers. Training is meant for you to improve yourself, so you must not throw your life into the equation. Sigh, there are so many practitioners who overestimated their capabilities and have never returned from the Wasteland of Death.”
“Rest assured, I’ll try my best.”
Yun Che thanked the shopkeeper, left the guest house, and walked towards the Wasteland. All the way, he attracted many looks from others —— because of the colossal sword strapped to his back. As the emperor amongst thousands of weapons, swords were used by a large number of practitioners, and those who traveled with their swords strapped to their backs were not few either. However, there truly were not many who carried such a large sword.
Half an hour later, Yun Che officially entered the area of the Wasteland of Death.
Wasteland, a land that was left to grow wild. Here, the desolate sound of the wind held sinister, eerie hints. The continuous howls that came from profound beasts in the distance made one’s heart palpitate. From afar, the entire wasteland was overrun with dry withered grass; rocks lined the rugged terrain, and the boundary could not be seen with just a look. The silhouettes of practitioners gathering into groups could be faintly seen. There were very few who came alone like Yun Che; at least, in the area within his line of sight, there was only him alone.
In front of him, a wave of ice auroras floated and Little Fairy’s immortal-like body floated down from above to land in front of Yun Che, and she asked coldly, “You want to remain here for the next half a year?”
“Right!” Yun Che nodded: “There is no training place better than this. I also want to know how deep I can venture into this place of death that causes everyone’s expressions to change the moment it is mentioned.”
He looked at Little Fairy and suddenly said: “Little Fairy, are you not willing to follow me in?”
“Indeed, I don’t wish to set foot into this sort of place. But since I’ve agreed to protect you for three months, I’ll definitely do it. I won’t go so far as to let you, a junior, lose faith in me.”
Her soft, clear and cold voice fell, and Little Fairy was already afloat. In the blink of an eye, she had disappeared from Yun Che’s line of sight.
“Junior…..” Yun Che rubbed the corner of his mouth, speechless.
“This young brother, are you alone?”
Behind Yun Che, a somewhat apprehensive voice came. Yun Che turned around and saw a small group of a dozen or so people looking at him. The one who spoke was precisely the one who was leading them. These ten or so people were very young; the oldest was only twenty four or five years old. Their profound strength ranged from the late stages of the Nascent Profound Realm to the initial stages of the True Profound Realm. There faces revealed simultaneous expressions of excitement and nervousness. It was obvious this was their first time entering the Wasteland of Death.
Seeing Yun Che turn around, the person who had shouted said: “If you’re on your own, why not join us? When there are many together, be it facing profound beasts or evil men, we can rely on each other. It will be much safer. If we get any precious drops, it will also be split equally with absolutely no bias.”
The reason they were inviting Yun Che so extensively was obviously because Yun Che’s profound strength was at the fourth level of the True Profound Realm. Yun Che turned back around and said indifferently, “There’s no need.”
At that, he began to walk forward on his own, moving towards the depths of the wasteland.
“Tch, he actually dares to enter the Wasteland of Death all by himself, no wonder so many die in there every year.” Within the group, a youth with a longsword strapped to his back spoke lowly.
“He looks to be at most seventeen or eighteen years old, but has actually attained the fourth level of the True Profound Realm. He should be someone from some large sect, eh?”
“So what if he’s from a large sect! In this Wasteland of Death, will the profound beasts and evil men who will kill him care about where he was born? The more he’s born to a large family in some large sect, the more likely he’ll be carrying large quantities of profound coins, medicine, precious weapons and the like, so the more likely he’ll catch the attention of those evil men….. I bet he won’t last till sunset.”
“Alright, there’s no need to mind others’ business. We’ve already made all the necessary preparations; after we gather twenty people, we’ll set out.”
As Yun Che progressed forward, he met three groups in succession that wanted to invite him into their adventuring groups; one of which was even a small-scale mercenary troop, yet he rejected them all.
Moving ahead one and a half kilometers, everything was still at a dead calm. After one and a half kilometers, Yun Che, who was still walking, suddenly stopped in his tracks as his gaze shifted to the right. At this time, behind the black boulder on his right, which was as tall as two people in height, a grey shadow rushed out, accompanied by a brutal howl. It threw itself at him, as its ghastly sharp claws emitted a cold light.
Astonishingly, it was only a low-leveled profound beast — Wild Wolf.
“You’re seeking death!”
Yun Che stood unmoving in his original spot. As the Wild Wolf came pouncing at him, he stretched out his right arm abruptly, sweeping the palm of his hand at the Wild Wolf’s head. With only the sound of a single “snap”, the Wild Wolf’s neck was crushed instantly. After being sent flying far with a slap in the midst of blood-curdling shrieks, its entire body twitched violently, and then stilled.
Behind the black boulder, another Wild Wolf that was about to hurl towards him seemed to be intimidated as it took a step back in fear and all the hairs on its body stood up like needles. Immediately, it raised its head high in wolf song, craning its neck in a prolonged howl. Instantly, howls came from all around and not long after, around ten Wild Wolves came rushing from all directions, pouncing straight at Yun Che.
Yun Che’s expression did not change. Rather, he allowed these Wild Wolves to come hurtling towards him. After which, his limbs swung out simultaneously as phoenix fire danced in the breeze. Whenever these Wild Wolves came into contact with his fist, foot or Phoenix Flame, they all perished in an instant. For a moment, wolf carcasses flew in all directions, and waves of bitter cries resounded continuously. Within a few breaths of time, a dozen or so wolves fell disorderly around Yun Che, becoming all sorts of warped, shattered wolf carcasses.
“Too weak, it’s impossible to get any experience from this sort of place. I’m only wasting my time.”
Yun Che clapped the back of his hand. Staring at the shady forest ahead, he quickened his steps and rushed into the depths of the Wasteland of Death.
Chapter 171: Ironback Blue Wolf
In the surrounding fifteen kilometers, there were basically only Nascent Profound Beasts. After Yun Che ventured fifteen kilometers in, scattered or grouped up True Profound Beasts began appearing in his line of sight. The terrain also grew uneven as all sorts of dead trees and low mounds became increasingly dense.
Just as the rumors said, the profound beasts here were extremely frenzied in nature. If they saw a human, they would pounce and assault that person as if they were enemies who could never co-exist under the same sky. All those that he met initially were low-level True Profound Beasts, and they were not Yun Che’s targets, so
during his travel, he avoided those he could avoid, and disposed of those he could not avoid. In this way, he progressed forward without much danger and surprise. As he was passing through a small expanse of a withered dark wood forest, sounds of fighting and human voices suddenly came from ahead, accompanied by the enraged howls of profound beasts.
“Junior Brother Ding, quickly block off its escape route, don’t let it escape!”
“It won’t hold up for much longer! Don’t start taking it easy!”
“Junior Sister Mu, quickly retreat. It’s about to go berserk, and it’ll hurt you!”
Yun Che walked out of the black forest, and not far away, four people were currently besieging a profound beast. The profound beast’s build was comparatively large, and its entire body was covered in armored scales. A single sharp horn protruded from its head, and judging by its imposing air, it should be a high-level True Profound Beast.
The four people who were jointly attacking it were all very young. There were three males and one female; the oldest appeared to be around twenty three years old and around the ninth level of the True Profound Realm. The other two males also appeared to be a little older than twenty years old and their profound strengths were both at the fifth level of the True Profound Realm. The young lady who was referred to as “Junior Sister Mu” was of a similar age to Yun Che and appeared to be only seventeen or eighteen years old. Her profound strength was also the weakest, having just entered the True Profound Realm.
From how they addressed one another, they should be from the same sect. Their age also matched their cultivation of profound strength. The sect they belong to must also be quite powerful; it should at least be famous in a particular region, else they wouldn’t dare to rush into such a deep place with just four people.
As that young lady’s profound strength was the weakest, she was protected by the other three, stood in the back, and would only join the attack occasionally under the safest circumstances. The surrounded single-horned beast had thick flesh, coarse skin, and the protection of armored scales. Even so, it couldn’t endure against the combined attack of four profound practitioners of the True Profound Realm, not to mention that one of them was a strong being of the True Profound Realm’s ninth level. Its body was already covered in blood and scars, and its counterattacks were growing weaker. Finally, it directly gave up retaliating and struggled in an attempt to escape.
“Hmph, trying to run!? Take my Wind Cloud Sword Strike!”
With an explosive roar, the eldest young man shouted and vaulted into the air; the long sword in his hands released a ferocious wave of sword force, and sent the single-horned beast which was trying to escape flopping onto the ground with its limbs facing upwards. After he landed, he rushed forward again as if an arrow released from its bowstring; his longsword ruthlessly pierced forward, and pierced through the single-horned beast’s throat in a straight line.
The single-horned beast gave a sorrowful roar; after its body spasmed for a while, there were no longer any signs of movement.
“Wow! Senior Brother Sun, you’re too amazing! Even such a ferocious beast was defeated by just two or three of your attacks.” The name of the young lady who was referred to as “Junior Sister Mu” was Mu Xiaoling. As she looked at the fallen single-horned beast, her eyes sparkled and her face was filled with admiration.
The one who had stabbed the single-horned beast to death was named Sun Zhou. He was the oldest among the four, and was also the one with the highest cultivation. Upon hearing Mu Xiaoling’s words, he laughed and said, “Junior Sister is over-praising me. It’s not that I’m strong, it’s that this profound beast was too weak. Junior Sister’s talent is much greater than mine. When you’re my age, you’ll definitely be able to vanquish this single-horned beast much faster than I did.”
His words sounded modest, but hints of smugness flashed through his eyes. He instructed the other two: “Junior Brother Ding, Junior Brother Han, extract its profound core.”
Junior Brother Ding and Junior Brother Han quickly moved forward and cut open the carcass of the single-horned beast. Not long after, they extracted the profound core with much experience.
“Mn, including this profound core, our mission this time will be completed with another thirteen True Profound Beast’s profound cores. I believe this time, we’re bound to be the first group to finish this mission. Master will definitely praise us greatly.” Taking the profound core, Sun Zhou spoke with a face filled with pride.
The two junior brothers immediately went up and cajoled, “This was all because Senior Brother Sun is brave and powerful. Otherwise, even with three more days of time, we wouldn’t be able to finish the task. We’re really too lucky to be grouped with Senior Brother Sun.”
Senior Brother Sun nodded, and said with an expression full of pride, “Not at all, not at all, this was the fruit of our combined efforts. Both junior brothers are still young; your future accomplishments definitely won’t pale in comparison to mine….Oh?”
At this moment, Sun Zhou suddenly saw Yun Che, who was walking out of the withered dark wood forest towards them. He originally only saw a single silhouette that had even come forth alone, so his heart immediately grew vigilant…… because whoever dared to come here alone, was either an expert or an idiot. But after realizing Yun Che’s age and scouting out his profound strength, he laughed disdainfully, and said in a low voice, “It is yet another reckless fool.”
Just after his low sneer, Junior Brother Ding suddenly gave a low gasp from beside him, pointed at Yun Che, and said agitatedly, “Senior Brother Sun, quick….. Quick, look at his right hand! It’s a purple….. A purple spatial ring!”
In the midst of his cry, Sun Zhou’s gaze fell on Yun Che’s right hand, then stared unwaveringly at the purple spot of light on his finger; he was unable to tear his eyes off of it for a long while as his gaze revealed a deep sense of greed.
“Purple spatial ring? Is that better than our spatial ring?” Mu Xiaoling lifted the yellow spatial ring on her hand, and asked in puzzlement.
“Of course it’s better, and it’s much better!” Junior Brother Han said in a low agitated voice, “Our spatial ring only has a few cubic meters of storage space, whereas the purple spatial ring is said to have many hundreds of cubic meters of storage space, and its price is exceeds fifty million yellow profound coins! It’s absolutely not something our yellow spatial ring can hold a torch to. In my entire life, I’ve barely seen any purple spatial rings. This fellow must be some disciple of some large clan. Who knows how much good stuff is in his purple spatial ring.”
Senior Brother, should we….” Junior Brother Han said while his hand imitated a cutting motion.
Sun Zhou had long had this same idea the moment he saw the purple spatial ring. The person wearing the purple spatial ring was not only merely at the fourth level of the True Profound Realm, he was also travelling alone. It was practically as if the heavens had dropped a large fat sheep at their feet. If it was outside, he would cease to dare to have any weird thoughts, as the owner of a purple spatial ring would definitely have very large influence. However, in this Wasteland of Death, the number of people who died here every year due to plundering and pillaging were too many to count. Therefore, it could be said that killing him here did not put them at any risk at all.
That Sun Zhou was about to nod when Mu Xiaoling moved closer and said, fuming, “Junior Brother Han, how could you have such thoughts! We come from a prestigious sect, and we came to train, not to kill and pillage like bandits replete with vice! If you really dare to do this, I’ll definitely tell Master! If Master knows of this, he’ll definitely punish you ruthlessly. Who knows, he might even chase you out of the sect!”
Sun Zhou’s expression changed as he immediately nodded earnestly and said “What Junior Sister said is right; Junior Brother Han, how could you have such despicable thoughts! Of this matter, Junior Sister won’t agree to it and neither will I. If you really dare to conspire against him, I’ll be the firs
t one to block you.”
“Senior Brother Sun is still the most upstanding.” Mu Xiaoling said in adoration.
Junior Brother Han shrank back, and said in embarrassment, “Senior Brother, Junior Sister, don’t get angry, I….. I was only joking offhandedly, only joking.”
Upon receiving Mu Xiaoling’s praise, Sun Zhou’s back became a little more upright, and he snorted coldly, “We come from North River’s number one sect, the Profound Sword Faction, and upholding our sect’s reputation should be our foremost priority in doing anything. When we are journeying, not only should we not oppress the weak or be wicked, when we encounter the weak, we should also take the initiative to help. This young brother’s profound energy is only at the fourth level of the True Profound Realm, yet he came here all alone. It’s simply too dangerous. At this moment, we should step forward and help him instead.”
While they were speaking, Yun Che had already walked into their vicinity. Sun Zhou took two steps forward, and said with righteousness, “This young brother, this should be your first time in the Wasteland of Death, eh? Coming to this place alone is simply too dangerous, so why not join us? We’re all young, so we can communicate easily and take care of each other too.”
Yun Che shot a glance at him; seeing the greed hidden in the depths of his eyes, he then laughed coldly to himself as he laid down two words indifferently, “No need”. Then, without turning back, he continued forward.
“Tch, Senior Brother Sun only righteously reached out in consideration for his life, yet this fellow actually doesn’t know what’s good for him. Just wait for your death!” Upon seeing that Yun Che actually refused, Junior Brother Ding said in disdain.
Sun Zhou didn’t say anything. The muscles on his face twitched a little and he stared at Yun Che’s back, unwilling to give up…… With Mu Xiaoling here, he immediately gave up the thought of killing Yun Che and robbing him. He had prepared to pull Yun Che into the fray, then find a chance to pull Yun Che into traveling alone with him. After killing him, he would cover it up as a death caused by profound beasts, and he would successfully obtain the purple spatial ring. Little did he expect that this person would still reject him even though he had purposely revealed his profound strength, which was of the ninth level of the True Profound Realm, while he was speaking just now.