"I have also heard of the exploits of Young Lord Chiyan. As for where his mysterious, bizarre, and unfathomable divine abilities come from, I dare not make presumptuous speculations. However..." The old man's tone shifted. "However...
Let's set aside for now whether he is or isn't the true successor of Lord Chixiao. Whether this person is even the real Young Lord Chiyan is still an unknown."
"Ever since news suddenly spread three months ago that Young Lord Chiyan had died and come back to life, there have always been people doubting its authenticity. After all, for someone who was utterly annihilated to return from death is simply too bizarre, too inconceivable."
"That's exactly why I wanted to test his authenticity just now," Anning said. "But you stopped me. And now he's run off somewhere... I don't know where."
"This..." The old man shook his head and sighed helplessly.
At that moment, Wang Dashan, who had been silent all along, suddenly spoke up. "Senior Xin, as a junior, I shouldn't interrupt, but...
If you had just said the Young Master was fake, I would have had to step forward and say a few words."
Anning asked, "Da Shan, you were once a disciple of Yunxia Sect too, right? I seem to recall you saying Young Lord Chiyan once helped you. Tell us, was that person just now real or fake?"
"The Young Master is definitely the real Young Lord Chiyan."
"Da Shan, how can you be so sure he's the real Young Lord Chiyan?"
The old man said, "If my memory serves, back in your Yunxia Sect days, you only had contact with Young Lord Chiyan a few times at most."
"Exactly because I only met the Young Master a few times, and he recognized me the moment we met just now, he must be the real one. If someone was impersonating him, they couldn't possibly remember me."
Senior Xin remained silent, but a man beside him sneered dismissively. "If a fraud is impersonating Young Lord Chiyan, they would naturally know everything about him inside out. Recognizing you is nothing strange!"
"But... I... but..." Wang Dashan, clumsy with words, didn't know how to respond for a moment. Suddenly, he remembered something. "And there's Old Master Huode! A while back, when I went to visit Old Master Huode, he also said the Young Master wasn't dead."
That man spoke again. "Huode is just a minor elder from a tiny Yunxia Sect, his cultivation barely at the Golden Core stage, not even as good as yours. What could he possibly discern?"
"But..." Hearing the other insult Old Master Huode like this, anger rose in Wang Dashan's heart, his face flushing red, his speech becoming stammered. "Old Master Huode is... is not... would not lie to me..."
"What a joke!"
The man was about to reprimand him further when Senior Xin beside him intervened to stop him. Turning to Anning, he said, "Miss, regarding the matter of whether Young Lord Chiyan is real or fake, we can discuss it later. Right now, we should hurry to the Green Pool. We've already delayed long enough on the road. If we're any later, I'm afraid it will be too late."
At the mention of the Green Pool, a dazzling gleam instantly flashed in Anning's bright eyes. She slapped her forehead sharply. "Right, right, right! Damn it, how could I forget something so important! Let's hurry to the Green Pool, or else all the treasures will be snatched up by others!"
"Wait!" Senior Xin's voice called out.
Anning asked, "Senior Xin, what now?"
"Ahead lies the depths of the marsh. I fear specters and demons may appear. We must be doubly cautious. Although the Black Crow Ancestral Patriarch is not here, his underlings are all specters and demons who have cultivated for many years. We must be prudent."
"The Black Crow Ancestral Patriarch..." Hearing this name, even though Anning had been bold since childhood, she couldn't help but feel a creeping sense of horror.
Almost everyone in the Great Northwest frontier region knew of the Black Crow Ancestral Patriarch's reputation.
He was an ancient evil demon who dominated the Great Northwest frontier. Even in the ancient era, he was one of the overlords who shook the Great Northwest with his might.
Back then, the Black Crow Secret Realm in the Great Northwest borderlands was the Black Crow Ancestral Patriarch's territory. His underlings—specters, demons, and monsters—were countless, making him a truly formidable giant in the Great Northwest.
Unfortunately, his fate was ill.
He offended Lord Chixiao back then and was beaten half to death by him.
Afterward, he remained in seclusion to heal his wounds. It wasn't until the ancient era ended and the modern era began that this once-rampant Black Crow Ancestral Patriarch dared to emerge again. In recent years, relying on this marshland filled with evil aura, he has begun recruiting troops again. The specters and demons he has gathered have gradually regained momentum. Although not as domineering as in the ancient era, no one dares to provoke him now.
If they hadn't known the Black Crow Ancestral Patriarch was away and not here, they wouldn't have dared venture rashly into this marsh.
Night.
It was dark night, a lonely night.
The night in the Great Northwest frontier was already somewhat gloomy and overcast, and it was even more so in this muddy marsh. Especially since the marsh was filled with all sorts of evil auras, like clusters of eerie green will-o'-the-wisps that sent shivers down one's spine.
Gu Qingfeng wandered unhurriedly through the muddy marsh. The deeper he went, the denser the evil aura became, and quite a few specters and demons made appearances. After about half an hour, he arrived at a patch of deep, old forest. Here, the evil aura was not only dense but also extremely chaotic.
"You little rascal are quite the troublemaker! To actually run off to such a wretched place!"
Gu Qingfeng could sense the little fellow was within this deep, old forest. He sent out his divine sense to sweep the area and, sure enough, discovered the little fellow's traces.
The little fellow's situation was not good.
It looked utterly miserable, covered in filth, with disheveled, grimy fur.
At this moment, it was trapped within at least a dozen or more formations. The formations were all profound—some were restraint formations, others were attack formations. The restraint formations imprisoned the little turtle inside, unable to move or escape. The attack formations condensed and derived one mysterious method after another, continuously assaulting the little turtle.
The little fellow had retracted all its limbs and head into its shell. The expression on its face was extremely complex—anger, grievance, and fear—with tears glistening in the corners of its eyes.
Truth be told, this guy was truly a glutton.
Even in such a situation, the little turtle was still eating.
And what it was eating were spirit pills!
That's right!
Spirit pills! Who knows where it got them from, but it was eating them one after another. Was that all?
Of course not.
While eating the spirit pills, it was also taking sips of wine, all the while cursing and swearing. "You bunch of turtle spawn bastards, just you wait! Once I've eaten and drunk my fill and regained my strength, I'll tear every one of you apart alive!"
"Wahhh... I fuck your uncles!"
The little turtle wiped its tears, took another sip of wine, and continued cursing. "You'd better finish me off today! If you don't kill me, I swear I'll kill you... Wahhh... You bunch of old undying things, I fuck your ancestors! And you few stinking wenches, once I get out, I'll definitely have my way with you... Wah... Wah... Stinking wenches!"
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PS: Old readers familiar with me know that I'm a slow writer. When I wrote books before, I often had breaks in updates.
However, these past two years have been much better. Although I don't update much, at least I rarely have breaks anymore!
That I've persisted this long even surprises myself.
This is a good thing, and I dare guarantee it will only get better from here.
I'm a bit lazy by nature, the kind who, once I get lazy, finds it hard to become diligent again.
A while ago, I suddenly felt I shouldn't waste my time like this anymore.
Such a great life shouldn't be squandered!
I'm still young, I can't stay lazy anymore!
Otherwise, I won't even be able to find a wife in the future...
So...
Starting from September...
I will work hard, I will strive with determination!
I will turn over a new leaf!
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To motivate myself, I'll aim for the monthly votes ranking and recommendation ranking. Of course, making it to the top would be best, but if I don't, I won't force it. The goal is just to give myself a push!
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To encourage myself!
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Four chapters today!
Continuing tomorrow!
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! Here, I sincerely hope those of you with monthly votes can support your little brother one last time. Those without monthly votes, casting recommendation votes is fine too!
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! Donations are also welcome!
! I'm not picky!
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! In a word:
I beg of you!
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! Respectfully,
Jiu Heng!
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