pjbooks Chapter 180 Wilderness 1
Chapter 180 Wilderness 1
Xuanze slowly landed in front of an ancient and grand city gate, which was the largest exit on the outer edge of the wilderness, beyond which lay the mysterious and unpredictable wilderness region.
Extending beyond the gate was an endless city wall, its weapons gleaming brightly due to the beast tide, like lurking ferocious beasts.
On either side of the main gate are two enormous city towers, covering a considerable area. Inside live the elders sent by the sect to guard the wilderness. Everything here was prepared by the Guiyuan Sect, and all the items were of the highest quality. Compared to the guards I saw on the outskirts when I was young, the elders here are only Mahayana cultivators.
The people in charge of inspecting the departure were disciples of the Guiyuan Sect who had come with a mission. These disciples were not considered resident disciples. Every year, the sect would issue high rewards to recruit disciples, and the time would be about one to three months. After all, not all disciples were willing to stay in the desolate wilderness for a long time.
Staying for only one to three months will grant you abundant cultivation resources, making it an excellent task for disciples.
The city gates were opened early in the morning, and outside, one could vaguely see menacing monsters lingering a hundred miles from the city gates, yet they dared not approach any closer.
Besides the early arrivals of Immortal Lord Qingyang and his disciples, Immortal Lord Qianli and his disciples, and Elder Tiexian of the Wuji Sect, there was a tall man standing beside him. Just like his master, he was all muscle and extremely tall. Cheng Jiu estimated that he was over two meters tall. Tall and strong, he was quite conspicuous among the group of immortals.
She had never seen him before; she remembered that Elder Tiexian did not seem to bring any disciples to the Mahayana ceremony.
Then there's the charming and beautiful Aunt Su-won, who wore a pale yellow dress that added to her extraordinary elegance.
Finally, there's Lu Yan Daojun, who not only exudes a refined air but also possesses a remarkably youthful appearance. As expected of the legendary figure who dared to compete with Qian Li Xianjun for a man, he is a dashing and spirited young man, brimming with righteousness, and quite eye-catching.
"Junior Sister Jiu." Seeing the Cheng brothers coming to greet her, Gong Yu spread out her hands: "This was given to us by Senior Sister Ying."
Looking at the ginseng doll in his hand, Cheng Jiu was somewhat surprised. Since leaving Jinyao City, the ginseng doll had been raised by Yingyue, and Yingyue had raised it for the longest time. The ginseng doll was also a good match for Yingyue, so everyone had accepted it. What's going on now?
"Senior Sister Ying said that the demon race treats it better than it stays by her side, so she wants us to take it along on our trip to the demon race," Gongcheng explained.
After all, given the ginseng doll's abilities, its status among the demon race would certainly be higher. Cheng Jiu understood somewhat upon hearing this. It was Nabu who made Yingyue feel compassion for this silly doll. Rather than keeping her by her side to use, she wanted to release it back into the wider world to live.
"Then let's do it this way." After learning the reason, Cheng Jiu said with a mix of sigh and nostalgia.
"My brother and I think this is fine too." Compared to the first time they met, the ginseng doll in Gong Yu's hand was noticeably smaller and less lively. This was normal because the ginseng doll was maintained and supported by the Heavenly Dao that Nabu had become during their first meeting.
Now that small world has collapsed, the ginseng doll did indeed suffer a loss of its essence.
Originally, the ginseng doll should have ceased to exist as the small world collapsed, since the formation of the small world had a common cause with Nabu. However, Nabu and Agana ultimately gave this little guy a chance to live, and it's already the best that he survived.
Gong Yu put it away, and the sect leader and Qingxu Immortal Lord and the others in front also finished saying goodbye.
"I wish you a safe journey and a safe arrival."
The sect leader addressed the team earnestly.
"Don't worry, nothing will happen!" Immortal Lord Qingyang replied.
"Attack!" As the sect leader uttered those two simple words, the weapons on the city wall flashed with spiritual light and attacked the gathered demonic beasts in front. Countless sword rains fell, scattering the spirit beasts in all directions.
The group set off and disappeared into the vast wilderness until they could no longer see each other.
This time, he brought five junior disciples with him. Walking alongside several powerful figures, the five inevitably became close, as being around such powerful figures was quite stressful.
At this moment, the tall man next to Elder Tiexian felt a little awkward. After all, Cheng Jiu and the other three knew each other and were very close. It was inevitable that the small group would be somewhat exclusive.
Finally, Li Weixin broke the deadlock: "Brother, let me introduce myself. I am Li Weixin, a disciple of Immortal Lord Qianli."
"Gongcheng, this is my younger brother, Gong Yu. Our master is Immortal Lord Qingyang." Gongcheng held his brother's hand, his tone quite friendly and intimate, greatly easing the other's embarrassment.
“Cheng Jiu, my master is Immortal Lord Qingxu.” Cheng Jiu followed closely behind.
Sensing the friendly signals from the group and hearing their introductions, the tall man was somewhat flustered: "Shangguan Song, my master is Elder Tiexian."
"Senior Brother Shangguan!" the four exclaimed in unison.
"Junior Brother Li, Junior Brothers Gong and Cheng." After introducing themselves, the atmosphere among the five people immediately eased.
Although the tall man was a bit shy, he was actually quite easy to get along with. The main reason was that Cheng Jiu and the others were also quite curious about him. After all, although they were all disciples of the Mahayana Immortal Lord, their situations were still different.
The four's master was previously only a Tribulation-Transcending Venerable Lord, and only recently became a Mahayana Immortal Lord.
Mahayana Immortal Lords rarely accept disciples, especially veteran Mahayana Immortal Lords like Elder Tiexian, who have basically stopped accepting disciples. For Shangguan Song to be accepted as a disciple by the other party, there must be something extraordinary about him.
Actually, no. According to Shangguan Song, before Elder Tiexian embarked on the path of immortality, he had a younger brother who, unlike Elder Tiexian who was exceptionally talented, had no aptitude for cultivation.
However, the two brothers, born of the same mother, had a very good relationship. Elder Tiexian also doted on his younger brother, who was a descendant of the other brother. By their generation, their relationship with Elder Tiexian had become quite distant, and they only vaguely heard that there was an ancestor in the Wuji Sect.
Shangguan Song had always admired this ancestor, and after being tested and found to have golden aptitude, he resolutely joined the Wuji Sect.
During the apprenticeship ceremony, Elder Tiexian happened to hear that one of his younger brother's descendants had joined the Wuji Sect and was exceptionally talented. He was overjoyed and made an exception to accept Shangguan Song as his last disciple.
After speaking, Shangguan Song looked at the four junior brothers in front of him. The junior sister scratched her head awkwardly and said, "I am just a bit lucky, but I can't compare to you junior brothers and sisters."
"What do you mean? If Senior Brother Shangguan's talent wasn't good, Elder Tiexian probably wouldn't have accepted him! Did someone say something to you, Senior Brother Shangguan?" Cheng Jiu retorted. Even if there were connections behind it, Shangguan Song still had the talent and ability.
Shangguan Song pursed his lips awkwardly: "No."
"Be a real man, be honest!" Li Weixin saw through his insincerity and patted him on the back: "You're so tall, it's a waste. Be more frank!"
“Their masters are no match for mine.” Shangguan Song had wanted to say this for a long time, but saying it would make him seem petty. Those guys kept saying that if he weren’t related to Elder Tiexian by blood, Elder Tiexian would definitely look down on him.
At first, he disdained to argue with the other party and didn't care, but after being talked about for a long time, he couldn't help but doubt himself.
Therefore, he could only work hard to cultivate and defeat all those people, using his strength to show them that he truly deserved his title.
"That's more like it. Those people are just typical sour grapes." Cheng Jiu was somewhat relieved that at least the masters they had in their year were all good, and they even had friends like her. No one would say anything sour to her.
As they walked, only the five of them remained on the wasteland. They had no idea when the immortal lords had left.
Some people were still a little confused, even though they clearly remembered following their master and the others closely.
Although they were moving quite fast and chatting occasionally along the way, none of them were without body training, so their speed was not slow.
"Master, where are they?" Cheng Jiu looked around at the empty surroundings, completely bewildered.
"It was just here!" Gong Yu looked around.
"They must have run ahead, let's hurry and catch up!" Li Weixin looked ahead and was about to run, but Gongcheng grabbed him in time.
"Don't wander off! This is a wasteland swamp. If you take the wrong path and get stuck, we won't be able to pull you out!" Gongcheng warned, surveying the surroundings.
The Wasteland Swamp is a huge buffer zone between the wasteland and the dense forest. It looks flat and open, but it is actually known as the Death Swamp. If you step into the swamp by mistake, it is difficult to climb out. Even weaker people will turn into bones in no time if they fall into the swamp.
However, it is relatively safer than the swamp in the dense forest. No monsters will suddenly jump out of the swamp to attack you; only monster plants will emerge. And the growth of monster plants is very obvious, so you can completely avoid where they grow.
The group had been following their masters' footsteps, so they hadn't gotten stuck in the swamp all the way to the middle.
Now it's clear that it depends on their own abilities.
"Are you really willing to abandon your disciples like this?" Elder Su Yuan asked the old men beside her with a mocking tone.
"Chatting in the dangerous wilderness without any sense of crisis, hiding under our wings, they simply cannot develop a sense of crisis to hone their skills."
"We'll always be there to look after them, and if they really encounter any life-threatening situations, we can provide timely assistance. This is a rare opportunity; we can't let them be so lazy and irresponsible."
The masters unanimously decided to let these disciples undergo individual training to toughen them up.
Moreover, the wasteland swamp known as the Death Swamp is far more complex than the rumors suggest.
"Oh my god, help!" Although he was prepared, Li Weixin still accidentally stepped into the mud and got stuck in the wet mud. The mud was slippery and made it impossible to stand. At this moment, it was a great test of his body control.
Gongcheng Gongyu, who was walking in front of him, promptly grabbed his hands.
"Senior Brother Li, don't move!"
"Stay calm, Senior Brother Li!"
"I'm working on it!"
Cheng Jiu and Shangguan Song also came over to help. It's no wonder that Gong Cheng Gong Yu couldn't hold him back, because even though it wasn't a swampy area, the ground here was very soft and wet, making it difficult for them to get any leverage, and Li Weixin couldn't get any either.
Moreover, one cannot use spiritual power to increase the force, because the more spiritual power one uses, the deeper one will sink. Li Weixin had just been submerged to the toes, but now half of her leg was stuck.
"I'll handle this! Junior Brother Gongcheng! Junior Brother Gongyu! Get out of the way!" Shangguan Song grabbed Li Weixin's hands and shouted. The two of them stepped back decisively. Shangguan Song's strong legs did not move. He used his waist and abdomen to lift Li Weixin into the air and crashed onto the soft, wet grass.
"Thanks, brother!" Li Weixin said loudly, looking a little disheveled as he got up from the grass.
"You're welcome!" Shangguan Song scratched his head sheepishly and smiled shyly. "I heard my master say before that this area is very unique. In addition to the swamp area, there is also a semi-swamp area, which is the area where Junior Brother Li just got stuck. My master said that when walking in the semi-swamp area, you have to pay attention to where you land. If the weight is uneven, it is easy to get stuck like Junior Brother Li. So be careful!"
"Understood, Senior Brother, thank you, Senior Brother Shangguan."
“Let’s continue on our way. Predators come out of the wasteland swamps at night, which is very dangerous. If we stay here, we’ll have to stand on these swamps and fight them.”
Shangguan Song continued.
Everyone became serious. Battles also depend on timing, location, and the people involved. Compared to those predators, they were completely unfamiliar with this situation.
It's nighttime again, and our eyesight is definitely not as good as the monsters that live here. If a battle breaks out, we will not only have to face powerful enemies, but we also have to be careful not to get caught in the swamp and become a dead soul here.
As expected of the Death Swamp, it's fraught with danger at every turn!
It was probably because their master and his companions had passed by earlier and cleared out the monsters along the way. After walking quite a distance, they finally saw groups of herbivorous monsters gradually appearing in their field of vision, migrating around them. Occasionally, strange carnivorous monsters would attack and hunt them.
In the eyes of these predators, the five of them were like sweet and soft little cakes, and compared to the herbivorous monsters in their packs, these five lonely humans looked even more appealing.
A huge mouth burst out from the grass ahead. The creature was extremely good at hiding. If it weren't for the constant sense of crisis in Cheng Jiu's mind, they probably wouldn't have even noticed it walking right into the mouth.
The enormous mouth slammed shut, and the five people managed to escape in time, avoiding becoming the prey.
A gigantic head emerged from the ground, spewing out icy blasts from its mouth like scattering ice bullets; if hit, they would surely leave a gaping hole in one's body.
"A mutated Nascent Soul stage Earth Crocodile!" Cheng Jiu recognized the huge creature, which resembled a monster, and dodged its attack in time.
The heavy ice packs fell onto the soft, damp ground, leaving behind small craters.
The group's vigilance and sense of crisis reached their peak. If you were to ask what kind of monsters they least wanted to encounter in the wasteland swamp, the Earth Crocodile would definitely be in the top ten.
Its innate and exceptional earth-遁 (earth-遁 is a skill that allows it to escape through the earth) ability, which makes it invincible in the wasteland swamp. The soft, wet swamp is its best protection. Moreover, it is extremely fast at earth-遁, and it is also extremely vengeful and afraid of death. If the opponent tries to escape, if the opponent is not strong enough, it cannot stop them at all. After the opponent escapes, it will turn around and continue to attack until the opponent leaves the wasteland swamp or is swallowed by it.
This extremely disgusting monster is also quite powerful. Its enormous jaws can kill any human or beast weaker than itself. Its armor is also extremely flexible, making it difficult to break through its defenses. Therefore, it is quite troublesome to deal with.
This Earth Crocodile, in particular, has mutated to possess ice attributes in addition to its earth attribute, making it even more troublesome.