Desolate Era

by RWX

  “You are that child the woman was pregnant with?” Shui Yi stared. Good heavens. It was only twenty or so years. The child that woman was pregnant with had become this powerful? Could it be that the woman was pregnant with a reincarnated Immortal?

  “Hmph.” With but a thought, Ning sent the elemental ki surging from his body, forming into a glowing rune that appeared in front of him. It was the Heartburner Art. The shining runic seal instantly merged into Shui Yi’s body.

  “Enjoy this,” Ning said with cold emotionlessness. Shui Yi instantly let out an agonized scream. His flesh and his bones began to twist and distort, and his skin turned completely red. The agony was causing him to scream in pain.

  “Kill me, kill me!” Heartrending roars rang out from Shui Yi’s mouth, but Ning just watched him calmly. “KILL ME!” Shui Yi bellowed. “Make it clean and fast!”

  “Clean and fast? If I granted you your wish, who would come and grant me mine? Can you let my parents come back to life? Let my uncle come back to life?” Ning stared at him coldly. Shui Yi’s flesh was beginning to char, and his eyes had turned completely red. This was hell itself.

  “I curse you, I curse you. You’ll die a miserable death, a miserable death!” Utterly agonized, Shui Yi stared death at Ning, filled with a towering rage.

  Crackle, crackle, crackle…his body began to actually flicker with flames as it began to burn…

  Ning produced the incense burner magic treasure. “In you go!” A soul was directly absorbed into the incense burner, then was corroded and destroyed. Ning then waved his hand, collecting all of the magic treasures that remained in the surrounding area.

  Ning, previously incomparably icy, suddenly turned calm. Only, a very complicated look remained in his eyes. “Two are dead,” Ning said softly.

  “Ning, son, your father and your mother never would have imagined that two out of the three culprits would have died in your hands so quickly.” Uncle White stood there to one side, gently patting Ning on the shoulders. “If they knew, they would definitely feel very gratified.”

  “The last one, Dong Seven, remains. However, he’s at Snowdragon Mountain. That’s the headquarters of a school; even Loose Immortals would be cautious about charging into it. I have no chance at all, right now,” Ning said softly. “I’ll wait. I’ll let Dong Seven live for a bit longer, but when the time comes, I’ll destroy his soul as well!”

  Revenge. Naturally, he wouldn’t give them a chance at all. These enemies were all Immortal cultivators with extremely powerful souls. Generally speaking, after they died and went to the Netherworld Kingdom, they could cooperate and become ghost soldiers, and eventually train to become Ghost Immortals. Ning wouldn’t permit this to occur.

  “Let’s go. The others have been waiting quite a while,” Uncle White said. Ning turned his head and saw the distant Mu Northson and Little Qing. They clearly didn’t want to disturb Ning as he was taking revenge, and so simply had watched from far away.

  “Right. It’s time to go back.” Next, Ning released Shui Tianyi. They were no grudges between them; given Ning’s proud disposition, he wouldn’t stoop to massacring this man. However, with Shui Yi’s death, in the future, the entire Shui clan would definitely begin to decay.

  At the Crimson Dragon Mountains, the headquarters of the Raindragon Guard, not too far away from Stillwater City.

  Ning and Northson both handed in their missions. “With these ten karmic points, we’ll have a hundred years of leisure.” Northson looked towards Ning. “Senior apprentice-brother, where are you planning to go?”

  “I plan to go home,” Ning said. “I will probably stay permanently at Serpentwing Lake in my homeland, Swallow Mountain. I’ll occasionally go out and do some adventuring, but most of the time, I’ll be staying at Swallow Mountain.”

  That place was his home.

  That place had the people he was most familiar with.

  That place had the underwater estate which would be of great use to him.

  And similarly…it had been a long, long time since he had drifted about on a small boat on Serpentwing Lake, and enjoyed that feeling, that truly warm sensation, of being in the embrace of his father and his mother. He missed that sort of feeling.

  “Back to Serpentwing Lake?” Northson paused for a moment, then said, “Senior apprentice-brother, then I’ll part with you for a time. I want to focus on analyzing the Dao of Constructs…I am going to return to the school. My master has reached an extremely deep level of understanding regarding the Dao of Constructs, and being with her is of great help to me. In addition, Master is close to the end of her life; I want to spend some time with her.”

  Ning could sense that this junior apprentice-brother of his truly viewed Daoist Jadefine with affection, almost like the affection a son felt for a mother. After all, his actual mother had long since passed away.

  “Alright.” Ning nodded. “Let’s split up for now. If you are free in the future, you can come to Serpentwing Lake of Swallow Mountain.”

  “Right. When the time comes, I’ll definitely go to visit you, senior apprentice-brother,” Northson said with a nod. And then, Northson rode his dragon-headed warship into the skies, flying straight towards Stillwater City.

  As for Ning, he just watched as his junior apprentice-brother left. Then, he turned to Little Qing and Uncle White. “Let’s go.” They walked towards the Crimson Dragon Mountain’s teleportation array. This place was rather far away from Swallow Mountain, and going through the array would be somewhat faster.

  Swallow Mountain. The mountains were the same mountains; the water was the same water. A ship was soaring through its skies, and aboard it was a fur-clad youth, a large, snowy white hound, and also a little azure snake, the latest addition to the party.

  “We’re back.” As Ning stared at the sight of his homeland, he revealed a hint of a smile on his face. “When I left, it was winter, and white snow covered the entire place. Upon my return…it is still the cold winter.”

  When he had left the Black-White College and joined the Raindragon Guard, it had been the middle of summer. However, after the trials at the wild marshes of the Gaol Mountains, the pursuit of criminal suspects, and the killing of Yu Dong and Shui Yi, it was already the middle of winter. The ground below was covered with silver-white decorations of snow. Swallow Mountain was a cold place to begin with, and in the winter, it was almost completely covered in snow. When Ning was born, the world was covered in snow as well.

  “Serpentwing Lake.” The Whitewater Hound suddenly spoke in the human tongue. “We’re here.” Ning, too, stared at the vast Serpentwing Lake. Although snow had built up on the banks of the lake, the waters of the seemingly endless lake continued to flow forth in waves. A lake of this size…even in the coldest of temperatures, it would very rarely be completely frozen over.

  “Serpentwing Lake.” Upon seeing the lake, Ning felt a surge of warmth. His mother’s ashes…his father’s ashes…they had all been sprinkled into the waters of this lake. The boat drifted downwards from the skies, landing in the middle of the lake.

  “Father. Mother.” Ning looked towards the lake, then revealed a smile. “I’m back. Of our three enemies, your son was only strong enough to kill two of them for now. One of them is awaiting his turn. He, too, will die.”

  “Uncle White. I’m going to sleep for a time,” Ning said. The Whitewater Hound nodded. Ning then lay down on the boat, feeling incomparably relaxed and comfortable. The boat drifted atop the surface of the lake. It felt so very wonderful, far more so than sleeping on a bed. The gentle rocking movements of the boat stop the waters of the lake…it felt like how, when he was an infant, his mother had constantly cradled him in her arms.

  The boat slowly rocked forward, a Whitewater Hound lying on one side of it, and with a little azure serpent wrapped around Ning’s wrist, snuggly nestled against him.

  Slowly, the boat floated towards the center, towards Brightheart Island.

  Sundown. Only now did the boat draw close t
o the shores of Brightheart Island. Ning could sense the auras of the many people living on the island, and he naturally rose to his feet. As he rose to his feet, he saw the distant snowbanks, and a white-robed woman standing within them, staring towards him, unable to disguise the tears within her eyes.

  “Autumn Leaf!” Ji Ning revealed a smile on his face. “I’m back.”

  * * *

  Book 9, Chapter 15 - The Rise of the Ji Clan

  “Young master.” Autumn Leaf’s eyes flashed with tears, but these were the tears of joy. Ning laughed as well. It had been so long since he had seen Autumn Leaf. Since he was a child, the closest to him had been his father, his mother, Uncle White, Spring Grass, and Autumn Leaf. His parents and Spring Grass had all passed away, leaving behind only Uncle White and Autumn Leaf. Ning knew that what he felt for Autumn Leaf wasn’t romantic love; it was a sort of familial love.

  “Four years. Autumn Leaf, you haven’t changed much at all. You should’ve broken through to become a Xiantian lifeform.” Ning walked over to her. Autumn Leaf hurriedly wiped her tears away, then said, “It was all thanks to the medicines that you left behind, young master; they helped me to break through to the Xiantian level.”

  Ning didn’t feel the slightest bit surprised by the fact that Autumn Leaf had made a breakthrough, because as someone who had been selected to be his personal handmaiden, she was naturally quite talented. With the help of the medicines he had left behind for her, Autumn Leaf did indeed have a very high chance of becoming a Xiantian lifeform.

  “Have you been well, these past four years?” Ning asked.

  “I’ve been alright. Brightheart Island is the same as it always has been, while the Ji clan has been growing more and more powerful,” Autumn Leaf said. “After that battle, Snowdragon Mountain’s forces in the Swallow Mountain region grew much weaker. Although they sent three more Zifu Disciples to be stationed at the Swallow Mountain branch, after news spread that you joined the Black-White College, young master, the Swallow Mountain branch of Snowdragon Mountain no longer dared to cause trouble.”

  Ning nodded. In terms of power, since the Swallow Mountain branch of Snowdragon Mountain had the support of the main Snowdragon Mountain sect, it had far more experts and a much deeper base of strength than the Ji clan.

  However, Ning joined the Black-White College. When Northmont Baiwei had sent people to Swallow Mountain to collect and harvest the elemental ore mines, he had also sent messengers to inform the Ji clan that Ning had joined the Black-White College. Once this news spread, the Ji clan’s reputation instantly soared to unprecedented heights.

  Good heavens. The Black-White College! To the powers located in the Swallow Mountain region, the Black-White College was an incomparably massive behemoth that was far beyond their level. According to legend, every single person admitted to the Black-White College was a supreme, peerless, monstrous genius. Even Snowdragon Mountain, despite its grudge against Ji Ning, had to temporarily stay their hand and let go of their hate.

  “And Bluestone?” Ning asked. “Bluestone.” Autumn Leaf turned and called his name out, and a tall, muscular youth ran towards them from far away.

  Ning was shocked. What a tall, muscular fellow! The man was at least 1.9 meters tall, even taller than Ning himself. When Ning had left, Bluestone had been a mere youngster, but after four years…he’d actually grown so tall!

  “Big Brother.” Bluestone walked over. “Why were you hiding over there?” Ning laughed as he ‘reprimanded’ Bluestone. He had watched Bluestone grow up from his toddler years, and had long since come to view Bluestone as his own little brother.

  Bluestone chortled. “I wanted to let Big Sister Autumn Leaf and you, Big Brother, have a private meeting, alright?”

  Autumn Leaf instantly stared at him. As for Ning, he just laughed.

  “Big Brother, why do you have a snake around your arm?” Bluestone saw the little azure snake wrapped around Ning’s wrist.

  “Little Qing,” Ning called out. Whoosh; the little azure snake instantly transformed into mist, and then reformed into an azure-robed maiden. Even Autumn Leaf was shocked, and as for the nearby Bluestone, he actually jumped. “A monster! A Diremonster!”

  “I’m a Wanxiang Diremonster! A peak Wanxiang Diremonster!” Qingqing raised her head and spoke smugly.

  “A Wanxiang Diremonster?” Bluestone blinked. Although Ning had originally left behind some pills and treasures for him, in terms of talent, Bluestone was somewhat inferior to even Autumn Leaf. Although Autumn Leaf had already become a Xiantian lifeform, Bluestone remained unable to break through, and was still at the Houtian stage. However, he knew about the major levels of Immortal cultivators.

  “Peak Wanxiang? Our Patriarch of the Ji clan seems to only be a Zifu Disciple.” Bluestone looked towards the azure-robed maiden, unable to believe that this was someone who could easily crush the Patriarch of the Ji clan.

  Ning laughed. “Little Qing was originally an Azure Skysnake who lived in the Swallow Mountains. Afterwards, fate brought us together in the wild marshes of the Gaol Mountains, and so she accompanied me and became my spirit-beast.”

  “Your spirit-beast, Big Brother?” Bluestone let out a sigh of relief, then asked with curiosity, “Big Brother, are you at the peak Wanxiang level yet?” “Late Wanxiang level, a bit weaker than Little Qing,” Ning said.

  “Although Master’s only at the late Wanxiang level, I’m far from being his match.” Qingqing lowered her head and said, “Master…he’s a real monster, even more of a monster than me.”

  Autumn Leaf and Bluestone were both delighted and surprised. Autumn Leaf then looked at the Whitewater Hound behind Ning. “Uncle White, you…” “Uncle White is also at the late Wanxiang level,” Ning said.

  “This…this…” Autumn Leaf instantly realized how, despite only a few years having passed, her young master had improved at an utterly astonishing rate.

  The Whitewater Hound began to speak in the human tongue. “Monsters train much more slowly, and many monsters will take thousands of years to go from the Zifu level to the Wanxiang level, and tens of thousands of years to go from the Wanxiang level to the Primal level…although I reached the necessary level of insights long ago, in terms of accumulated elemental ki, I had needed to accumulate much more. Fortunately, Ning helped me, and thus I very quickly reached the Wanxiang level.”

  “Three Wanxiang experts.” Bluestone was full of delight and excitement. “The other powers of Swallow Mountain don’t even have a single Wanxiang Adept amongst their ranks, but our Ji clan has suddenly gained three. This is too…too…ahahaha, we’re going to be invincible!”

  “The young master’s formidable, but you aren’t. He gave you excellent techniques, excellent masters, and various treasures and spirit-pills…but you still have yet to become a Xiantian lifeform. When the young master was your age, he was able to effortlessly kill Zifu Disciples,” Autumn Leaf scolded.

  “How can I compare to Big Brother? In terms of cultivating, I can’t even compare to you, Big Sister Autumn Leaf,” Bluestone shook his head. Autumn Leaf scolded him angrily, “You don’t work hard, and you always make excuses for yourself.”

  Seeing this, Ning actually felt a strong, warm feeling surge into his heart. It was just like before; Autumn Leaf also treated Bluestone as she would her own little brother.

  Ji Ning had returned. The unparalleled genius, the disciple of Black-White College, Ji Ning. He had come back to Swallow Mountain. This news quickly stunned the entire Ji clan, and the members of the clan celebrated and danced for joy.

  Soon, the likes of Patriarch Ji Ninefire, Ji Young, Ji Redflower, and the others, including the most outstanding youths the Ji clan had produced in recent years…they all made their way to Brightheart Island of Serpentwing Lake!

  “This is a Wanxiang serpent monster?”

  “The Whitewater Hound has become a Wanxiang Diremonster as well?”

  The Patriarch and the others, upon arriving, were all astonished. They were
n’t too surprised by the fact that Ning had become a Wanxiang Adept, as Ji Ning had been able to easily slay the Wanxiang Adept, Xu Li, in the past. In addition, Ji Ning had entered the legendary Black-White College; in their hearts, for a monster like Ji Ning to improve so rapidly was perfectly normal. If he trained as slowly as they did, that would be quite surprising.

  “Patriarch,” Ning said, “Recently, I joined the Raindragon Guard.” The nearby Ninefire, Granny Shadow, Ji Truekeep, and Young all revealed looks of surprise on delight on their normally calm faces. They didn’t know that Ning had recently joined the Raindragon Guard; however, they weren’t at all surprised by the fact that he was strong enough to join them.

  “After joining the Raindragon Guard, I was granted the authority to designate a region of ten thousand kilometers to be protected by the Raindragon Guard! Even if I were to die in the future, this land would still be protected by the Raindragon Guard for a thousand years. The region I designated has the City of Ten Thousand Swords at the center, and the other four prefectural cities included within it as well.”

  “Here’s the talisman.” Ning took out a talisman, then said, “Only Zifu Disciples can bind it. After doing so, hang it above the gates of the Lord Prefect’s residence at the City of Ten Thousand Swords. When you do so, the entire city’s walls will have a vague outline of a Raindragon appear. Others will instantly know that this place is under the protection of the Raindragon Guard, and they won’t dare to invade.”

  Ninefire accepted the talisman with incomparable excitement. “This will be the foundation of our clan, the foundation of our clan! With this talisman, our clan’s base will be even more secure, and our Ji clan will definitely flourish and grow!” The nearby Truekeep and others were all filled with anticipation and eagerness as well.

  “Ji Ning, how long will you remain, this time?” Ninefire asked. “In the future,” Ning said, “I’ll permanently live here at Serpentwing Lake. I’ll occasionally go out and take on some missions for the Raindragon Guard, and also occasionally pay a visit to my master at the Black-White College of Stillwater City. The rest of the time, I should be here.”