Chapter 121: Claw Valley city.
Yan Ling and Liang Chen swiftly made their way closer to the pillar-shaped mountains, and while they did meet a few more patrols of armored guards as they got closer to the mountains, their disguises made it so that they weren't stopped or attacked. As they got closer to the mountains, they also started occasionally seeing a few non-guards, citizens out taking a walk.
Some of these citizens were people from the White Orchid race, giving the two of them their first look at their appearance. They looked rather similar to humans but still had a few distinctions that set them apart from normal humans. Their eyes were rather narrow and were tilted vertically rather than horizontally, their wheat-colored skin was covered in white markings that looked like vines covered in leaves, and they had an extra mouth located just below their throat, this one filled with teeth that were quite a bit sharper than normal ones.
Two days after killing Fan Jia and the five other patrolling guards, Liang Chen and Yan Ling reached Claw Valley city. The reason it was called Claw Valley city was clearly because of how the valley it was located in looked, like a five-pronged claw. The five fingers of the claw were each at least several tens of kilometers in length and ten kilometers in width, the palm part of the claw was also incredibly large, at least a few tens of kilometers in width and length.
Coupled with the three tall pillar-shaped mountains located at the side of the valley it made for quite a marvelous sight, as if an actual claw had once been buried here at the foot of the mountains.
But as they inspected the valleys closer, the two of them noticed signs that these valleys weren't created by nature or by some wayward attack, these valleys had been dug out on purpose. There were marks along the walls of the valleys that showed the valleys had been made using a mixture of manual labor with shovels and having people use the law of earth to lift pieces of the earth. They had no idea how long it took to create these valleys, but it clearly took a great deal of work.
The cities within the valleys were also a sight to behold. Each of the five valleys that made up the claws contained a city which filled up the entire claw, all the cities connecting together into a single large city that filled the entire palm part of the claw. There were large and wide sets of stairs carved into the valley walls at certain points, allowing people to walk from the city up to the prairie. There was also a place at the rear of the palm part where the valley wall had been carved into an upward slanting road that could be used by merchants bringing wares to the city.
The architecture of the city was also a rather interesting sight, mainly because Liang Chen and Yan Ling had never seen anything like it. All the buildings were made from the same stone as the valley itself, and it looked like the valley itself had been carved out to create these buildings. Looking at some of the buildings that were located closest to the valley wall that they were standing on, it seemed like that truly was the case, that the valley had been carved to create these buildings.
There were markings on some of the walls that made it clear that these buildings had been meticulously created as the entire valley was being created, someone using the law of earth or the law of stone to form the buildings and then continued to create the valley.
It was an amazing sight to behold, but since they knew that the inhabitants of this city saw humans as no more than livestock to rear, Liang Chen and Yan Ling were unable to enjoy the sight. The two locked gazes for a short moment before nodding their heads, heading down the stairs that led into the part of the city located in the palm part of the claw-shaped valley.
The streets of the city were teeming with people from the three races that ruled this planet, it wasn't very different from the cities on Liang Chen's own home planet. They could see streetside peddlers hawking their wares, children running through the streets and alleys as they played together, housewives gathering together to chat or buy groceries, it was so normal that it was eerie.
Liang Chen and Yan Ling had expected them to be more savage and brutal, they were a race that ate humans and treated them like animals after all. But they weren't brutal or savage, they were just normal people trying to maintain a living. The two of them spotted a blue-haired woman from the White Orchid race who wore armor similar to the one that Fan Jia and his men had worn, so they walked up to her and stopped her.
"Excuse me. We are nomads looking to head to Ten Thousand Hearts city, could you tell us when the next Tripartite Ship is heading out? Also, from where will it leave?"
The woman turned around after being stopped, looking Liang Chen and Yan Ling up and down. They had both disguised them as people from the Undead race, and as long as they had the Heaven Altering Masks, not even people far stronger than them would be able to see through their disguise, so they weren't worried about the gaze of this woman. After a short moment, the woman gave a nod of her head and pointed further into the city with a smile.
"Aye, the next Tripartite Ship will arrive at the city center in 11 days, it should arrive around noon. It'll stay here for about a day and then leave, heading back to the Ten Thousand Hearts city in a somewhat roundabout way, picking up more passengers. But I wouldn't suggest going with it. There might be riches in those cities, but the arenas are just too dangerous, it's far better to just stay here where it's safe."
She shrugged her shoulders and shook her head slightly as she finished talking, clearly not recommending people head to the three main cities. After all, what good were riches if you were dead? Liang Chen and Yan Ling locked gazes for a short moment after hearing that they would have to stay here for 11 days. Yan Ling gave a slight nod of her head, so Liang Chen turned back to the woman and asked another question.
"I see, so it won't arrive for another 11 days. In that case, could you tell me which inn is closest to the place where the Tripartite Ship stops?"
After killing Fan Jia and the other guards, Liang Chen and Yan Ling had acquired everything they were carrying, including all the money they carried. They used a type of currency Liang Chen had never seen before, one focused around pea-sized crystal orbs of different colors, with the orbs of deeper color being worth more. They had asked one of the people they had met outside the valley about the currency, using the excuse that they were nomads who weren't used to using the money. The woman once again nodded her head, giving them detailed directions.
"If you follow this road for about seven or eight kilometers, you'll reach the star-shaped center of this city, the Starheart Plaza. Just ignore all the peddlers hawking their wares, they usually don't have anything good at this time of the day. You'll want to head to the right side of the plaza and find the place called Linji's rest, you can't miss it, just find the giant purple flower that hangs above the inn. They are a bit pricy, but their good food makes up for it. The Tripartite Ship will stop about a kilometer away from the inn, so it is one of the closest ones."
Liang Chen and Yan Ling didn't even dare think about what this 'good food' might be, thanking the woman for the information and then heading down the road she had directed them towards. They followed the road until they reached the center of the city, which was indeed shaped like a giant star that spanned at least ten kilometers in width and length, taking up a good part of the palm part of the valley.
It didn't take the two of them long to find Linji's rest, a four-story-tall building that had a three-meter-tall purple rose growing up from the roof. They entered the building, which had a surprisingly simple interior. An ascending staircase took up most of the right side of the entrance, while the left side only held a door that led into a different room. Between the door and the staircase was a wooden counter, a young girl from the Fiendgod race standing behind the counter. She was reading some thin book, not paying much attention to the room.
Her face gave away the fact that she was a young girl, but the Fiendgod race was naturally tall, so she was a little taller than Liang Chen, almost two meters in height. The two of them walked up to the counter and stated their business.
"Hello, we would like a room for the next 11 days, do you have anything available? We don't need any food, we just want a room."
The girl jumped slightly after being addressed, hurriedly closing the book and pushing it away. She nervously cleared her throat when she saw Liang Chen and Yan Ling but then quickly did her best to hide her nervousness.
"Hel... Hi! Yes, we have a few rooms available. All our rooms cost the same, so if you want one for 11 days it'll cost 145 Yellow Gibbings. Ah, no, wait, you didn't want food, so it'll be 120 Yellow Gibbings."
The girl tried to stealthily clench her hands a few times to hide her nervousness, but it clearly showed that she was not used to working this position and having to talk to others. Since Liang Chen and Yan Ling didn't know much about the currency here, they were unable to tell if the price was high or low, they simply took out 120 of the yellow orbs from their interspatial ring and handed them to the girl.
The girl gave them a quick count and then placed them in a wooden box, nodding her head and taking a metal key out from a different wooden box. She handed the key to Liang Chen, directing him up the staircase to the right.
"Here's your key. You just have to take this staircase up for two floors and then follow the hallway to the very end, your room will be the one at the right, the one marked with the number 18. Please enjoy your stay... and please... try to be quiet at night... the walls are not perfectly soundproof."
The girl struggled a bit with getting out her last sentence, stopping quite a bit as she nodded her head at the two of them several times. Understanding what the girl was getting at, Yan Ling couldn't help but blush slightly, casting a somewhat bashful sideways glance at Liang Chen. Seeing that he didn't react to what the girl was implying with her words, Yan Ling's bashful expression turned into a slight glare. Liang Chen found it best for his own safety to not say anything right now, accepting key and swiftly fleeing up the stairs.
The room they had received was surprisingly nice, actually consisting of three smaller rooms. There was one bedroom, one living room, and one bathroom that even contained a bathtub. The bedroom contained a single double-bed, two closets for clothing, and a single nightstand. The living room contained two couches separated by a table, a small corner serving as a kitchen, a few square windows, and a few cupboards where one could store things.
Liang Chen and Yan Ling sat down on one of the couches, taking out some food and drinks from their interspatial ring. Luckily, they had quite a lot of ingredients stored up, so they would not have any problems with food for the foreseeable future. After taking a bit of time to eat and drink, Liang Chen spoke up, telling Yan Ling what he was planning in a hushed voice.
"Once night falls I'll probably head out to find out where they are rearing the humans."
Knowing that there were humans here who were treated like animals, reared to be food, Liang Chen felt sick to his stomach. He wasn't sure what he could do for them, but he wanted to at least see if there was anything he could do. Yan Ling finished up a cup of sweetened wine, nodding her head.
"Alright, but I'll be joining you."
Her tone of voice left no room for argument, her joining him on his nightly escapade already an established fact. But Liang Chen still furrowed his brow and at least pretended to protest.
"Of course, what sort of nightly scouting mission would be complete without a loud firecracker at my side? It'll be perfect for alerting them of my location when I want to cause a ruckus."
Yan Ling was caught completely off-guard by his statement, and unable to hold herself back, ended up letting out a subdued giggle. But just like Liang Chen had to pretend to protest, she had to at least pretend to be teased, raising her fist and waving it in front of her face. Sadly, she was still giggling, so there was no way Liang Chen could take her seriously.
"Nihihi, you trying to get yourself beat?"
The two continued to chat and waste away the time until the sun set, darkness and silence falling on the city around them. Just as Liang Chen decided that it was time to head out, Yan Ling pulled something out of her interspatial ring, a pair of gray robes Liang Chen hadn't seen in a while. Seeing the robes, Liang Chen couldn't help but feel some nostalgia.
These gray robes were given to them by Yan Ying while they were still in the Mystic's Hidden Realm, just before they entered Four Clouds city, their effect was to obscure the face of the one that wore them. It was in this Four Clouds city that Liang Chen had ended up killing Liu Daning and his men, flooding the palace where they lived with blood.
He had knocked himself unconscious back then, so Yan Ling had picked him up and fled the scene, in the process taking off their robes and switching into other less conspicuous ones. He hadn't seen the robes since then, guessing that Yan Ling had thrown them away. But now it seemed like she had been taking care of them ever since, waiting for a chance to use them. The two donned the gray robes and left the room using the windows, disappearing into the dark city.
The two were rather adept at moving without being seen or heard, Yan Ling using her law of wind to make their bodies so light that their footsteps didn't make any sound. The city was mostly empty this late at night, with only some guards patrolling the streets. The two of them ambushed one of these guards, Liang Chen using his Fragile Heart poison to force the male from the Undead race to answer their questions, to tell them where the humans were being kept, as well as how they were reared.
The humans were being reared in a rather unexpected place, within the three pillar-shaped mountains. All three mountains were apparently completely hollow, the humans living within cities built inside the mountains. After receiving all the answers they were looking for, Liang Chen flooded the mind of the guard with some poison he had mixed with his Anima Essence, wiping out every memory he had made in the last hour.
This was a technique Liang Chen was not adept with, as it actually required him to erase not only part of the target's mind but also part of their soul. He wasn't adept enough to wipe out specific memories like this, so he could only erase everything the man remembered from the last hour, leaving the man unconscious in a small alley where he was hard to see.
They then left the valley and traveled to the three towering mountains, following the path the man had been forced to tell them about. The path took them about five kilometers up the mountain and ended when they reached a cave that was a few tens of meters in width and height. They entered the cave and followed it for about half a kilometer before they reached the end, arriving on a small outcropping that revealed the hollow inside of the mountain.
The mountain was about 20 kilometers wide, with about the inner 18 kilometers being hollow and turned into a city. There was a large array carved into the top of the mountain, the array creating a right like that emulated the sun. The architecture of this city was different from the city in the valley, the buildings in this city were all made from wood, the buildings were also slightly smaller in size. From their vantage point a few kilometers above the city, the two of them were able to see the entire city, as well as what was going on in it.
Liang Chen had expected something different when he first heard that they were rearing humans like cattle, he certainly didn't expect the scene in front of him. There were no people from the other races within the city, there were only humans moving around within it. They weren't chained up or kept in small cages, they were free to move around in the city as they pleased. The city even had merchants and various shops that the people could use, it was just like a normal city.
And just like any normal city, it had its fair share of scum. As they were watching, three teenage children assaulted an older man who was making his way past the small alley they were hiding in. They dragged him into the alley and hit him on the head with large rocks, quickly killing him. They searched his corpse for anything valuable and then fled the scene, leaving him to rot in the alley.
But he didn't get the chance to rot away, as three people from the White Orchid race suddenly entered the city using a hidden underground entrance, popping up not far from the alley. They quickly scurried into the valley and picked up the man's corpse, carrying it to the underground entrance and then closing it behind them, both they and the corpse vanishing from the city.
This was how they reared humans, this was what the guard they had interrogated earlier told them. They didn't do much with the humans, they simply gave them a large place to live and then let them live freely, allowing them to 'follow their natural instincts to kill and ruin'. They only ever interfered in the city of a person was about to break into the Heaven's Gate realm, swiftly entering the city and killing the person. Other than this, they allowed the people to live and breed as they wished, only picking up the corpses of the people that were killed and using them for food. Most of the people in this city probably didn't even know that they were being treated like livestock.
Liang Chen and Yan Ling continued to overlook the city for a bit before leaving, following a different path and checking out the cities in the two other mountains. Each city was the same, a lawless area where people simply did as they pleased. In a way, Liang Chen found it very similar to the Mystic's Hidden Realm, where lives were as cheap as grass. As they were overlooking the third city, Yan Ling pat Liang Chen on the shoulder and spoke up in a gentle and comforting voice.
"Little Freak, you can tell me about your thoughts and worries, holding them in for too long will only poison you. Besides, you're not alone, I'm right here."
She could tell that Liang Chen was thinking about something, he had been ever since they saw the state of the first city. She had also already experienced that he had the bad habit of keeping his worries to himself, doing his best to solve them alone. But he wasn't alone, not anymore. She was there, she could help him bear those worries. Liang Chen turned his head slightly, his expression growing a bit bitter.
"I was just thinking, I can now somewhat understand why the heavens are indifferent."
It was an admittance that Liang Chen never thought he would utter, that he was starting to understand the heavens that he kept cursing. Yan Ling didn't say anything, she simply waited for Liang Chen to continue talking. Liang Chen turned his gaze back onto the city, his expression still bitter as he spoke.
"When I heard that they were being reared like animals, I wanted to save all these people. I wanted to do what the heavens did not do, saving these people and punishing the people in Claw Valley city who placed them here. But is that really the right thing to do? If I save these people, I will unleash people just as bad as Qing Lan Yong, just as bad as the people I have killed in the past for being evil. And if I punish the people in Claw Valley city, won't I end up killing many innocent people, like the children and those who have nothing to do with this? Who is it right to save, who is it right to punish? Is it wrong to even think about saving any of them?"
He couldn't help but wonder if this was why the heavens were indifferent, because choosing was sometimes simply too hard. Yan Ling tilted her head slightly as she looked at Liang Chen and then suddenly burst into a slight giggle.
"Nihihi, so that is what you were worrying about? Back in Four Clouds city, I said that even though you acted so mature, your thoughts were still surprisingly childish. Your thoughts are no longer as childish, but now they are far too arrogant."
Liang Chen couldn't help but be caught a bit off-guard by Yan Ling's statement. He was too arrogant with his thoughts? He continued to look at her, Yan Ling continuing to explain.
"Chen'er, you are not a god, it is not up to you to decide what is right and what is wrong. You can only decide what you want to do, not whether it is right or wrong. And once you have decided what you want to do, you do it even if it turns out to be wrong, because it is what you yourself chose. No one else chose it for you, it was you yourself who chose it, so no matter what the rest of the world says, it is the right choice for you. You aren't sure if it is right to save all these people? Then don't do it. Chen'er, I love your dedication to doing what the heavens choose not to, but that doesn't mean you have to save everyone, you have no obligation to do so."
She didn't call him Little Freak like she usually would, showing how serious she was being right now. She grabbed onto Liang Chen's arm and stretched it out for him, opening his palm and intertwining his fingers with hers, continuing to talk as she held his hand.
"You don't have to save everyone, nor can you, no one can save everyone. You can only save those who you can hold in your grasp, like me, right now. You are holding me, and I am holding you. You saving me, and I hope to do the same for you. Thinking that you should, or can, save everyone is just too arrogant. And arrogance doesn't suit you Chen'er, your carefree and slightly teasing demeanor suits you far better, it is absolutely lovely. So Chen'er, please don't talk about saving everyone, only save those you want to, those you can."
She didn't want to see Liang Chen take on the burden of saving everyone, didn't want to see him try to carry all that weight and then collapse under it. Liang Chen looked at her hand, looked at their intertwined fingers. He then turned to look at the city again, his voice a bit uncertain as he spoke up.
"Is that really fine? Is it really fine for me to be that selfish?"
Ever since his parents died, he had been thinking that he had to do what the heavens wouldn't do, that he had to kill evildoers and save those who were innocent. He had done his best to follow this belief, killing everyone he had considered evil, even if they hadn't crossed paths with him before. Yan Ling's face bloomed into a bright smile as she gave a nod of her head, immediately responding to his question.
"It is. To live is to do as one pleases. It's not selfish to do as you want and reject what you don't want, it is realistic. When you try to save everyone, you are living for them, not for yourself, living for someone you don't even know is too sad. And you, Chen'er, have long since earned the right to live as yourself, to do as you please. Even if you do end up being a bit selfish, no one will blame you, we will instead support you."
Liang Chen had suffered enough, she didn't want him to continue suffering because of a desire to save everyone that could be considered innocent. She didn't think that he deserved to continue suffering for someone else, he deserved to live happily, he had earned that right long ago. Liang Chen once again looked at their intertwined hands, his gaze then drifting over the city beneath them. After a few minutes, his gaze returned to normal as he sent Yan Ling a smile.
"Ling'er, thank you. You are right, saving everyone is impossible, no one should try to do that. I won't try to save everyone, I will just do what I can."
Liang Chen had already forgotten the words he had told himself several times. If the heavens have no wrath, I will become their wrath. He wasn't a savior or someone who brought salvation to others. He was Liang Chen, he was the Scourge King, the man who would bring endless wrath onto those he considered evil.
CREATORS' THOUGHTS 
ShiranuiShukumei
ShiranuiShukumei This chapter felt a bit strange to write, so I can't say I didn't have some problems with it. The words didn't seem to form together properly, turning the chapter into a disjointed mess filled with gibberish. If you spot any sentence that sound or feel strange, please let me know right away so I can fix it.
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