章 177: Sun Haixie.
Time slowly passed within the cave where Yan Ling focused on her recuperation and Yumao focused on his cultivation, Liang Chen making sure to constantly keep his law of time active for them. Lan Yun jumped down from Yan Ling's lap and quickly waddled over to Liang Chen, grabbing onto his back and unsteadily trying to climb up to his shoulders, occasionally letting out a cute gasp from exerting herself.
Liang Chen quickly twisted his right arm behind him to support Lan Yun from below, pushing her up enough that he could grab her over his shoulder with his left arm. He raised her up and placed her on his shoulders, making a shushing gesture with one hand while placing her hands on top of his head using his other hand.
"Sshh, try not to wake up Maman yet, she shouldn't need too much longer."
Lan Yun showed her understanding by softly patting Liang Chen on the head, swaying from side to side while patiently waiting for Yan Ling to finish. Liang Chen took this chance to teach Lan Yun a few things, using a mixture of poisonous powder and lightning to form different animals or images, teaching Lan Yun various things about them in a hushed tone, nine days quickly passing.
"These two are known as cats and dogs, this small one is a cat and this large one is a dog. Cats prefer to be scratched on the cheeks, but dogs prefer to be scratched on the lower end of their back and just above their ears. I never had any of them when I was younger, but there were quite a few strays living in my old city, so I got to play with them quite a lot. I'll try to show you them when we get back, I know a good place where lots of them used to gather at night."
Lan Yun's eyes sparkled as she stretched out her hands to play with the floating images, so Liang Chen flicked his finger and had the images spring around like living animals. This type of fine control wasn't his forte so he considered this a good chance to practice it, at the same time also making sure that Lan Yun didn't fall while reaching for the images. The poison and lightning he used to create them were of the weakest variety he had at his disposal, they wouldn't be able to harm her even if she were to catch them.
A low hissing sound caught their attention just as Liang Chen was about to let Lan Yun catch the images, both of them turning their heads to look at Yumao. The threads of black energy that were weaving in and out of his body were all starting to get sucked towards his head, gathering at the sides of his head. In less than half a minute, all the threads had gathered at the side of his head and formed two jagged horns that pointed forward, one at each side of his head.
Coupled with the black feathers covering his back and his two black wings, along with his six and a half meter length, he made for quite an imposing sight now. Yumao opened his eyes once the horns formed, an intense energy momentarily welling up from inside his body. Sensing the energy, which held the faint scent of death, Liang Chen guessed that Yumao's strength had settled somewhere around the late stage of the Soaring Immortal realm, actually jumping a sub-realm over him.
Yumao quickly restrained the energy that was welling up when he saw that Yan Ling was still recuperating, peace quickly returning to the cave. Yumao's gaze landed on Liang Chen, a happy light flashing in his eyes as he shrunk down to his normal size and curled up on top of Liang Chen's head, letting out several subdued hisses. Liang Chen smiled and stretched out his arm to pat Yumao on the head, Lan Yun mimicking his actions.
"Not bad, you've even gone and jumped right over me in one fell swoop. Looking at that burst of energy just now, did you end up snatching up the law of death from the corpse?"
One of the main reasons they had to kill Qian Liao was the body parts of the mutated Nethersky Wyrm Emperor he had in him, they would be perfect for Yumao to increase his strength. Of course, if Qian Liao never ended up coming after them, they wouldn't have any reason to go after him, at that time they would just have to give up on the body parts.
Yumao rapidly nodded his head several times, his lower jaw smacking into the top of Liang Chen's head, a cold stream of energy flowing into him as Yumao proved his words. It was the expected result, but Liang Chen still couldn't help but break out into a smile, his pats turning into a soft stroke running down Yumao's spine.
"One day we'll find out just what sort of being you really are, just you wait."
Liang Chen still remembered something Qian Liao had said while he was fighting Yan Ling, it was when he saw the pitch-black domain that Yumao had set up just as Qian Liao was about to kill Yan Ling. He called the domain the Nethergod's Grasp, an exceedingly grand name that Liang Chen would not have associated with a Demonic beast he received as a reward for a single trial.
Yumao let out a few low hisses, closing his eyes as he enjoyed Liang Chen's soft and gentle strokes down his back. Lan Yun started to poke the side of Liang Chen's head in complaint so he was forced to place her down on his lap and gently stroke the top of her head, the three of them quietly passing the days while waiting for Yan Ling to finish.
Luckily, it was just as Liang Chen told Lan Yun earlier, Yan Ling wasn't far away from fully healing her injuries. They only had to wait another six days before the last mark of her wounds vanished, the healing capabilities of her law of water not even allowing any scars to remain behind. When Yan Ling opened her eyes and turned to look at them, she said the exact sentence that Liang Chen had expected her to say.
"Little Freak, I'm hungry~~"
The corners of Liang Chen's mouth curled up as a chuckle escaped him. He swiped his interspatial ring and took out some roasted meat and vegetables he had prepared ahead of time, handing them to Yan Ling alongside some cutlery. He also handed some larger pieces to Yumao and a few smaller cut pieces to Lan Yun, the four of them eating a quick meal together. Yan Ling at like she usually did, greedily devouring everything like a ravenous tornado, but she somehow still managed to speak while doing so.
"Alright, you said that you might have found a way for us to go home? You also said something about special circumstances during the battle against Qian Liao, I don't imagine you intend to keep it secret?"
For Liang Chen to have returned unharmed after killing Qian Liao, it was clear that just calling the circumstances special wasn't doing them justice, they were definitely incredibly grand. Liang Chen nodded his head, placing down his cutlery and telling Yan Ling about the conversation he had with Ye Zhong.
"... And that's about what happened after the battle. As for how we'll go home, now that we know the path it should be rather easy. After all, isn't there someone on this planet who will willingly hand over a way for us to leave this planet?"
Yan Ling digested what she had just been told about the Bloodwind Code, finally understanding all the gibberish that Qian Liao had been spouting during their battle. She tilted her head slightly when she heard Liang Chen's last sentence, but her lips curved up slightly as she connected the dots and understood who he was talking about.
"Ah, true true. But how willingly he'll hand over that way after knowing what we'll do with it is uncertain. Well, I'm certain you weren't planning on asking for it in the first place. Alright, let's head back immediately, I want to go home as quickly as possible. Or do you want to stay here a bit longer, maybe see if you can check out that massive tree?"
This had been the longest Yan Ling had ever been away from her family, she was incredibly homesick and just wanted to go home, telling her father and brother about all the things they had experienced here. Liang Chen raised his head, his gaze seemingly drifting through the ceiling of the cave and settling on the massive tree serving as the core of the Thunder Saint's Final Breath. He retracted his gaze after a few seconds, lightly shaking his head.
"No, even if we ignore the fact that we'll probably die before reaching the tree, there's something at the top of the tree that I'm guessing is going to be incredibly pissed if we were to get too close. I'll return here one day in the future, once I'm stronger. At that time I should be able to check out the tree, maybe even do something for the humans of this planet. But as we are now, there's nothing more we can do here."
Liang Chen had already sensed something atop the tree the moment he acquired the law of death, a lifeforce so vast it seemed to drown out and crush everything else. Liang Chen also hadn't forgotten about how humans were treated here on this planet, nothing more than livestock to be reared in secret. Even if he couldn't save them all, he at least wanted to give those he deemed good a chance to choose how they wanted to live their lives. If ignorance was what they chose, then he would not interfere with them.
Yan Ling nodded her head in understanding, the four of them quickly finishing their meal and putting away their cutlery. The four then left the cave, Liang Chen acting as a lightning rod so that they didn't have to endure the strong lightning that was ever-present in the area. It didn't take them long to reach the edge of the Thunder Saint's Final Breath, Yumao flying down from Liang Chen's head and growing to his full size.
The chariot they normally used required Spirit Stones to function at full capacity, and Spirit Stones was something they didn't really have right now. As such, they would leave the same way the had arrived, riding on Yumao's back. Now that he had grown even stronger, and seemingly also evolved a little, he would certainly also be faster than he was back then.
The three got on Yumao's back, Liang Chen in front and Yan Ling in the back, Lan Yun safely secured between the two of them. Yumao then flapped his wings and shot to the overcast sky like a black blur, barely visible to those gathered around the outskirts of Thunder Saints Final Breath. He soared higher and higher without pause, swiftly breaching the clouds and hovering above them, the brilliant rays of the sun illuminating the never-ending sea of clouds beneath them. Lan Yun's eyes and mouth opened wide as she leaned her entire body to the side to peer over Yumao's side, even Liang Chen and Yan Ling's lips curled up at the scene, it truly was a magnificent scenery.
Yumao flapped his wings once more, shooting toward the horizon at full speed, heading directly for Ten Thousand Hearts city. Just like Liang Chen assumed, he had really gotten much faster after devouring the corpse and increasing his strength. It took them a month and a half to reach the Thunder Saint's Final Breath, but only a little over half a month to once again reach the outskirts of Ten Thousand Hearts city. Part of the reason was that they didn't take as many breaks as last time, but the main reason was still Yumao's great increase in strength.
They landed a good distance away from the city, dismounting Yumao and moving the rest of the way on foot. They had Yumao and Lan Yun hide within their dantians, not using any disguises as they entered the city and rented a room in an inn using the funds of this planet that they had found on Qian Liao's corpse.
Their reason for not disguising themselves was very simple, they were purposefully showing themselves so that they could lure out their target and meet him in a place where they weren't restricted like they had been in the tower that time. Their efforts bore fruit after five days, Liang Chen opening his eyes and standing up from the chair that he had been sitting on.
"They've arrived. There's two of them this time, but the second one isn't that much stronger than him. She should be a superior he called down, but looking at how close their strengths are, the decline of the Sebettu must be more severe than he let on."
Liang Chen had spread his poison around the inn and the area around it the moment they arrived, keeping a constant watch on his surroundings. And now their target, Ren Ooyung, had entered the inn and was talking to the young Fiendgod girl that served as the innkeeper. But even if he hadn't detected them using his poison, the thumping of his bloodline would still alert him to their presence.
Liang Chen moved over to the center of the room they had rented, sitting down on a two-seater couch they had prepared ahead of time. Right in front of the couch was a two-meter long wooden table and another couch, a decent enough negotiation area. Yan Ling sat at his side and the two waited for Ren Ooyung and the other person to arrive.
The two arrived outside the room after only a single minute, not even bothering to knock before entering. The two people walked directly over to the other couch and sat down, the white-haired and crimson-eyed Ren Ooyung shrinking his neck slightly to diminish his presence. Liang Chen took this chance to inspect the woman that Ren Ooyung had brought along, looking her up and down.
She wasn't from the White Orchid race like Ren Ooyung, she was missing the characteristic second mouth. She had a slender yet muscular build, brown hair that was tied into a neat bun and eyes that were a strange grainy type of gray. The yellow robe she wore revealed her shoulders and nape, revealing six scars in the shape of x's carved into her skin. The scars on her nape were somewhat uneven so it seemed like she herself might have carved them. Ren Ooyung opened his mouth to talk, but the woman waved her hand and cut him off before he could get out a word.
"Don't bother. Greetings Crown Prince, I am Sun Haixie and I am one of the generals in charge of dealing with the parts of the Sebettu army that are spread out in the less important parts of this universe. I trust that you haven't just suddenly revealed yourself for nothing, what is it that you want?"
As she spoke Sun Haixie placed a blank Soul Oath on the table between them, gesturing for Liang Chen to write on it. Liang Chen raised an eyebrow in surprise when he saw her actions and heard her words, he wasn't actually expecting her to be this straightforward. He picked up the Soul Oath and wrote a few lines on it, sliding it back to Sun Haixie. She picked up the Soul Oath and read it over, placing it down again and sliding it back while speaking.
"I can agree to not lie and to not harm you unless you attack us, but it is impossible for me to not say anything about you to my superiors. I can say that you escaped my grasp and fled, or something along those lines, but it is impossible for me to report nothing at all."
Liang Chen nodded his head and picked up the Soul Oath again, changing the relevant line and then sliding it back. Sun Haixie picked it up and read it over again, nodding her head and then signing it. Liang Chen, Yan Ling, and Ren Ooyung also signed it, all of them bound by the Soul Oath.
The contents were very simple, neither of them were allowed to lie, neither of them were allowed to draw their weapons and attack the others unless attacked first, neither of them were allowed to track the others in any way in the future, neither of them were to tell others about what went down in the room, neither of them were to ask any questions about the others plans or goals, and Sun Haixie and any of her people were forbidden from telling anyone else about where Liang Chen went or what he did. Once the Soul Oath was signed, Sun Haixie gestured with her hand for Liang Chen to tell her what he wanted.
"I want something that will let us leave this planet and move from planet to planet. Seeing as you want to bring me to a completely different universe, you should have something like that, no? Of course, I'll want one that can't be tracked."
Originally Liang Chen had planned to poison the two of them and forcing them to tell him whether or not they had such an item, handing it over if they did. But since Sun Haixie was so straightforward, he decided to change his plans a little. Of course, if they did end up rejecting him, he did have a way of poisoning them that, thanks to the specific wording of it, wouldn't breach the contract. Ren Ooyung opened his mouth to talk again, but Sun Haixie hit him on the head and cut him off once again, nodding her head while taking something out from her interspatial ring.
"Alright. This is what we call an Interplanar Cruiser, it can travel freely from planet to planet and even protect people in environments without air. You just need to insert your energy into this mast-like thing, doing so will allow you to control it as you wish. You can also fuel it using Spirit Stones, I suggest doing so for longer journeys. This rune right here on the bottom allows us to track the location of the ship, it's also the only such thing on the ship."
Sun Haixie scratched out the rune on the bottom of the Interplanar Cruiser, which looked like a palm-sized galleon, as she spoke. She put a bit of Qi into it after scratching out the rune, the ship growing to be two-meters long before shrinking again, showing that the ship could grow larger to suit their needs. She then handed the ship to Liang Chen, not looking the slightest bothered about it. Liang Chen accepted the ship, but he couldn't help but raise an eyebrow while looking deeply at Sun Haixie.
"You gave it to me quite easily, far more easily than I first expected. I can't help but be a bit worried."
He couldn't really ask Sun Haixie if she was planning anything shady, doing so would go against the Soul Oath, so he could only word it like this and hope that she would take the hint. Luckily, she seemed rather sensible, looking at Liang Chen with a calm gaze while explaining herself.
"I can assure you, there is no way for anyone to track that ship, nor is there any way for us to track you, I only wish to help you to the best of my ability. You must have guessed it already from seeing how close my strength is to his, you've probably also guessed it after hearing how highly we value your pure bloodline, but our race is declining, and fast. We'll need strong allies if we wish to avoid extinction, and you can be exactly one such ally. You don't want to come with us to the headquarters of the race because you feel that you have no connection to us so bringing you there by force would only produce adverse effects. But you said that you might head to us in the future, so you clearly haven't abandoned us completely. As such, I have decided that it is better to help you with your matters so that we can form a friendly relationship and eventually form a bond between us."
Sun Haixie was very practical about it. They needed allies, and allies were formed through good relations, not by forcing them to do as you wish. Of course, there was a chance that this wouldn't work, but Sun Haixie felt that she had to risk it for the sake of her race. Sun Haixie swiped her interspatial ring, taking out a ring-shaped piece of jade and placing it in front of Liang Chen.
"Here, consider it another sign of my desire to foster friendly relations with you. Don't worry, as we state in the Soul Oath, there is no way for us to track the ring."
Liang Chen cast a glance at the ring, stretching out his arm and touching it, inserting a bit of Qi while he was at it. The ring lit up with a dim light, a map gathering in the air above it, depicting the planet that they were currently on. Liang Chen controlled the map using his Qi, the map suddenly expanding and moving further away from the planet, revealing hundreds of other planets. While Liang Chen and Yan Ling were marveling at the map, which seemed to depict not only this but also the surrounding two galaxies, Sun Haixie took out another item from her interspatial ring, an apple-sized lump of gray crystal.
"This is what our race uses to communicate with each other, this one only contains my sign so it can only contact me and only be contacted by me. The only way for that to be changed is for you to personally hold it against someone else's crystal. And you need not worry, we also can't track this one. Should you require anything else, you can contact me using this and I will do my best to help you."
Sun Haixie stood up after placing the crystal on the table, pulling up Ren Ooyung and leaving the room. She knew their positions well, she did not have any grounds for making any demands of Liang Chen, doing so would likely only end up causing him to distance himself further from the Sebettu race. She had done her best, used all her preparations and sown all the seeds she could, now she could only hope that it would end up bearing fruit.
With Ren Ooyung and Sun Haixie leaving the room, Liang Chen tracked their movements and made sure that they actually left the inn. Sun Haixie didn't even turn to look back as she left the inn, her steps sure and steady as she moved towards the exit of the city. Looking at it, it seemed like she no longer had any reason to stay here after meeting Liang Chen. Liang Chen pulled back his senses, weighing the ship in his hands with a smile.
"I'll admit, I thought we would have to use a lot more force to get our hands on this. But well then, shall we head home?"
*End of Book 3: Bloody Emperors. I look forward to seeing you all in Book 4: The Weeping King shatters Dragon's Gate*
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