Library of Heaven's Path - Chapter 348: Guardian Beast

"I won't take your medicinal herb for free. How about this then!"

Just as Prince Fei Xuan was dismayed over the daylight robbery, the young man before him spoke. "Just like with Emperor Tianxue, I'll offer you a free treatment!"

Even though Zhang Xuan was determined to grab the Spirit Beast Grass, which was equivalent to two pieces of spirit stones, he didn't think that it was appropriate for him to take it for free.

Placing his hands behind his back, he walked around Prince Fei Xuan and said, "When I was treating you, I realized that there are some blockages in your meridians, resulting in your zhenqi being unable to flow smoothly. While your body seems fine on the surface, it is actually a little weak! If I'm not wrong, do you find it hard to wake up early and difficult to sleep at night recently?"

"I..."

Prince Fei Xuan was seriously contemplating whether he should snatch the Spirit Beast Grass back when he heard Zhang Xuan's words. His body trembled and his face paled, "You... You... How did you know?"

He had indeed been facing such a problem recently.

The blockages in his meridian prevented his zhenqi from flowing smoothly. On top of that, the lack of quality sleep made him constantly grumpy and frustrated.

If not for the case, he would have attempted to use the spirit stone to attempt a breakthrough to Half-Zongshi realm already. He wouldn't have to keep it with him all this time, eventually resulting in him losing it to the fellow before him...

However, these were things that he had never told anyone before. Even Envoy Ran Mu beside him knew nothing about it, so how could this Liu laoshi know of it?

Did he really notice something?

"I am a physician, and I’ve checked on your physical condition while treating you a moment ago. Naturally, I would know it!" Zhang Xuan nodded.

"Guild leader... I beseech you to help me!"

With a pale face, Prince Fei Xuan clasped his fist respectfully. The arrogance from before had disappeared completely at this instant.

This illness had prevented him from concentrating, thus resulting in the stagnation of his cultivation. The Spirit Beast Grass was valuable, but if he could have his condition treated in exchange, it would be well worth the cost.

"Un. Actually, the problem is simple. Your talent is not bad, but under normal circumstances, it shouldn't have been possible for you to reach Tongxuan realm pinnacle at your age. If I'm not mistaken, in order to raise your cultivation, you utilized some unique methods, right? I will tell you upfront that it’s precisely those methods that left you with a trauma, thus inducing such symptoms!"

Zhang Xuan said.

Prince Fei Xuan's body shuddered.

The other party was right.

His talent could only be considered as above average.

The royal family was a cold and brutal place. Without sufficient strength, he would meet with all kinds of trouble and danger. For the sake of his survival, he could only look for ways to raise his cultivation swiftly. Thus, he used a secret art, which involved the consumption of some unique medicinal herbs, to stimulate his acupoints and trigger his potential.

Even though he managed to improve swiftly, it had left traumas in his body.

Could it be that... his recent physical condition was a result of this?

"Exactly. I will prepare a prescription for you. If you follow it strictly, your trauma should be solved completely within a month. By then, it should be possible for you to attempt the breakthrough for Half-Zongshi realm!"

Smiling, Zhang Xuan walked to a nearby table, took out brush and paper from his storage ring, wrote a prescription, and passed it over.

"Thank you, Guild Leader Liu!"

Grabbing the prescription, Prince Fei Xuan's face flushed in agitation.

He had been tortured by this condition for quite a while, causing him to be lethargic, absentminded, and irritable. This was precisely the reason why he was unable to hold himself back as soon as he felt provoked by Zhang Xuan, resulting in the lack the restraint that he, as a prince, should possess.

If he could treat his condition and advance to Half-Zongshi realm, then this prescription was truly something too valuable to him.

Putting aside a spirit stone and a stalk of Spirit Beast Grass, even if he had to give in his entire fortune, he would be willing to do so!

This was because... Kunqian Kingdom hadn’t chosen a crown prince yet. If he could reach Half-Zongshi, there was an extremely high chance that the seat would be his!

Waving casually, Zhang Xuan turned to Mo Tianxue and said, "Your Majesty, please bring the patient here. I still have some things to attend afterward!"

Just like the others, Mo Tianxue was also in a state of shock. After hearing those words, he quickly recovered and stood up, "Guild Leader Liu, the condition of this patient is slightly unique, so I will have to trouble you to proceed over to meet him..."

"You want me to go over? Sure, lead the way!"

Zhang Xuan nodded.

"Prince Fei Xuan and Envoy Ran Mu, you two should rest at the embassy for now..."

Mo Tianxue turned to the duo and clasped his fist.

"We will be taking our leave!"

The duo knew that it was an important matter of Tianwu Kingdom, and that they didn't want too many people to learn about it. Thus, they turned around and left as well. A eunuch hurried up to them and escorted them out.

"Guild Leader Liu, this way please!"

After the duo had left, Mo Tianxue started leading the way.

Zhang Xuan followed closely behind him, but he had barely taken a few steps before a faint aroma drifted to his nose. After which, a telepathic voice sounded.

"Zhang Xuan, Zhang shi! You sure have deceived me well..."

"Cough cough!" Zhang Xuan was taken aback. "Princess Mo Yu, you must be mistaken. I am Liu Cheng, not Zhang shi!"

"If you don't want to admit to it, so be it. I wanted to tell you about an interesting matter but since you're behaving in such a manner, let's forget about it then!"

Seeing how the other party refused to admit to it, Mo Yu harrumphed.

What she wanted to tell Zhang Xuan was the duel between Zhao Ya and Mu Xueqing. However, since this fellow was unwilling to admit to the matter, she couldn't be bothered either.

In any case, they are both your students. Whether they fight or not is none of my business!

Seeing the lady turn her head and walking away in displeasure, Zhang Xuan shook his head.

It seemed like he would have to pay careful attention being when being around those who were familiar with him. Otherwise, there was a good chance he would give his identity away.

He had been together with Mo Yu for quite a period of time, and not to mention, there was the matter with the Viridescent Eagle as well. As such, he wasn't too surprised to know that the other party had managed to figure his identity out.

"Princess Mo Yu, this is a test from the Master Teacher Pavilion so I hope that you won't leak this out!"

Knowing that the other party was already certain of his identity, Zhang Xuan felt that it was impossible to keep it hidden anymore. Thus, he replied to Mo Yu's words.

"Don't worry. I am not the type to gossip about such stuff!" Seeing Zhang Xuan admit to the matter, Mo Yu smiled. "Since you've admitted to it, I won't hide the matter from you then. Come and find me tomorrow noon, I'll bring you to see a good show!"

"Tomorrow noon? What good show?"

Zhang Xuan was perplexed.

"You'll know once you're there!"

Mo Yu grinned.

Seeing the confusion on his face, it was clear that Zhang Xuan didn't know about Zhao Ya and Mu Xueqing's duel. It would be fun to see his reaction when she brings him there tomorrow.

Honestly speaking, she was curious to see how he would react to the sight of two of his students fighting one another for his honor...

This fellow had always infuriated her, so she wanted to make use of this opportunity to get back at him.

Of course, to do so, she had to stop this fellow from returning to the academy first. Otherwise, given the many mouths there, it was extremely probable that he would find out about it in advance. If so, it wouldn't be fun anymore...

Thus, she started scheming her plan as she walked beside Zhang Xuan.

"We're here!"

Just as Zhang Xuan was about to ask matter it was that warranted her to behave so secretively, Mo Tianxue's voice sounded.

Lifting his head, Zhang Xuan realized that they were at the entrance of a vast courtyard.

The courtyard wasn't exceptionally big, but for some reason, he was unable to see the other end of the courtyard. It was as if something had sealed off the area, concealing whatever that was inside.

"Could this be... a formation?" Zhang Xuan thought.

Only a formation could possess the ability to hide the interior of a courtyard from those standing outside.

"The one who requires Guild Leader Liu's treatment isn't a human but our kingdom's... guardian beast!" Seemingly sensing the other party's bewilderment, Mo Tianxue explained.

"Guardian beast?"

"Indeed. Our Tianwu Kingdom doesn't have any powerful old ancestor so we depend heavily on our guardian beast to guard our territory and deter aggressors."

Mo Tianxue explained.

"However, along with the passing of time, our guardian beast has been growing older, and its strength and stamina is on the decline! Just some time ago, it fell severely ill and it doesn't seem like it has long to live. Thus... I thought of troubling Guild Leader Liu to diagnose it to see whether there is a cure for it or not. If not, I am hoping that you would be able to extend its lifespan, at least until Mo Yu matures!"

Zhang Xuan nodded.

If a kingdom wanted to grow peacefully, there must be a sufficiently powerful guardian present in the country to deter aggressors.

It was just like Old Ancestor Shen Hong with Tianxuan Kingdom. Without his presence serving as a deterrence, it was highly likely that other kingdoms may invade Tianxuan Kingdom to annex it.

As it was entirely impossible to avoid wars and conflicts, the Master Teacher Pavilion would usually stay out of such affairs. Unless it had really close ties with the kingdom that compelled it into action, otherwise, for most cases, it would maintain its neutrality.

After all, even if the kingdom were to switch hands, no one would dare to lay their hands on the continent's most powerful occupation.

In other words, no matter how many kingdoms were destroyed, the influence of the Master Teacher Pavilion wouldn't be rattled at all.

"This formation..."

Zhang Xuan stared at the formation doubtfully.

Since it was where the guardian beast lived, why did they set up a formation here?

"The guardian beast is already old, and due to its severe illness, it has been on a rampage recently, hurting several people. Left with no choice, I could only invite the experts of the Formation Master Guild to set this formation to confine it. Given its strength, if it were to run wild in the palace, no one would be able to stop it!"

Mo Tianxue smiled bitterly.

Hearing the other party's explanation, Zhang Xuan came to a realization.

No matter whether one was a human or a savage beast, one couldn’t possibly wait idly for one’s death as an illness slowly ground away on one’s lifespan. At the very least, one would wish to struggle a little, even if it would be futile, in hope of earning some additional time.

However, if the guardian beast were to really struggle for its life, it would spell a calamity for Tianwu Kingdom. Thus, the emperor chose to confine it using a formation so as to avoid needless trouble.

"Guild Leader Liu, I have already invited a grandmaster of the Formation Master Guild over to bring us in. Otherwise, if we were to walk in by ourselves while the formation is still active, we might get lost..."

Mo Tianxue said.

In order to prevent the guardian beast from escaping, the formation had to be active at all moment. However, due to the complexity of the formation, even Mo Tianxue, the emperor of the kingdom, didn't know the way in. Only a grandmaster of the Formation Master Guild was able to tread through the formation freely. noveltranslationweb.blogspot.com

"Un!" Zhang Xuan nodded.

He didn't know a thing about formations. Even though he had collected a significant number of books on the subject in the Master Teacher Pavilion, he hadn't had the time to browse through them yet. Thus, his understanding of formation was still stuck at the level of knowing its name.

"Since the formation is active, will the Library of Heaven's Path be able to see its flaws?"

Standing on the spot, a thought suddenly appeared in Zhang Xuan's mind.

The Library of Heaven's Path could see the flaws in a cultivator and his battle technique once he executed a technique.

The same also applied when observing an apothecary in the midst of forging pills. The Library of Heaven's Path could compile the flaws in his pill forging technique and determine whether the pill could be successfully forged or not.

It was also able to tell the problem when a formation master was setting up a formation.

In other words, the Library of Heaven's Path could see the flaws of any ongoing actions.

Since this formation was currently in operation, it should be able to be considered as an ‘ongoing action’ as well. Zhang Xuan was suddenly curious to see if he could see the flaws in it through the Library of Heaven’s path.

"Flaws!"

With a thought, Zhang Xuan hurriedly dived into the Library of Heaven's Path.

Weng!

The library jolted and a book appeared.

"It works..."

Zhang Xuan's eyes lit up, and he hurriedly browsed through the book.

Library of Heaven's Path - Chapter 347: Grandmaster Physician?

"Your Highness..."

Seeing that the Viridescent Eagle was crushing on the prince, and that the prince was spurting mouthful and mouthful of blood such that his face had already turned pale and it seemed as though he would die at any moment, he bellowed and charged forward.

"Release Your Highness!"

With reddened eyes, Envoy Mu charged toward Liu laoshi and stretched out his hand, preparing to strike the latter.

The Viridescent Eagle seemed to be extremely obedient to this fellow, so he deemed it likely that the savage beast was operating under his commands.

"Envoy, what are you doing?"

Seeing the other party making a move against Liu laoshi, Mo Tianxue bellowed from the throne.

Sou!

A gray-robed man suddenly appeared from nowhere and faced the envoy’s offense with a palm of his own.

Peng!

The two palms clashed together, and the duo took a step back each.

The gray-robed man was a Zongshi realm pinnacle expert as well.

A member of the royal family's Shadow Squad!

After blocking Envoy Mu's assault, the gray-robed man's body blurred and he disappeared in the hall once more, as though his appearance was just an illusion.

"This..."

Envoy Mu's eyebrows twitched.

As a Zongshi realm pinnacle expert, he didn't think very highly of the Tianwu royal palace. He thought that he would be able to escape easily even if the emperor meant them harm given his strength. But from the looks of it now, his thoughts were truly laughable.

This seemingly peaceful hall was actually filled with many experts of the gray-robed man's caliber lurking in the shadows.

"It is due to my overzealousness to save His Highness that I acted so rashly. Please pardon me, Emperor Tianxue..."

Adjusting his breathing, Envoy Mu suppressed the raging zhenqi within him and apologized.

"Don't worry, your prince is fine..."

Mo Tianxue waved his hands casually.

Envoy Ran Mu turned around and saw that the Viridescent Eagle had released its talon from Prince Fei Xuan. With a pale face and a trembling body, the latter slowly pushed himself up.

While he was severely injured, it didn't hurt his vitals so there wasn't any threat on his life.

"Your Highness..."

Envoy Ran Mu hurried forward to support the other party, but the latter simply shook him off.

"You cheated. It was supposed to be a fair duel but you got your savage beast to assault me..." Prince Fei Xuan gritted his teeth as he glared at the young man before him. If he could, he would have crushed him into mere lumps of meat at this very moment.

This was way too much.

It was supposed to be a fair duel, and they even made a wager on it. Yet, the other party secretly ordered his savage beast to assault him. How could there be such a shameless person in the world?

"This..."

Zhang Xuan scratched his head indignantly.

Upon realizing that Zhang Xuan didn't intend to beat it, the Viridescent Eagle was extremely frustrated. Thus, when it saw that someone was laying his hands on its master, all of its pent-up frustration immediately burst forth. In truth... Zhang Xuan didn't order the Viridescent Eagle to do anything at all!

"You..."

Seeing the other party's indignant look, Prince Fei Xuan felt so maddened that his wounds nearly aggravated.

I am the one who was beaten up! What in the world are you feeling indignant for?

Can you at least know some sense of shame?

He was about to explode from anger when he heard the young man speaking apologetically, "It is this Viridescent Eagle's recklessness that it unintentionally offended you. How about this, I'll get it to leave now so that we can conduct a fair duel. I promise you that this fellow won't cause any more trouble!"

Hearing those words, Prince Fei Xuan spurted another mouthful of blood.

This wasn't a problem of whether the Viridescent Eagle would cause any more trouble or not. I am already severely injured. Just the blood that I have vomited throughout the entire duration probably added up to a few liters. And yet, you still want to fight with me?"

More importantly... You still dare to use the word 'fair'.

You, in perfect health, against me, a severely injured person. How can you dare to spout the word 'fair'?

"The prince is severely injured so let's forget about the duel!"

Seeing how the prince was about to die from rage even before fighting with the other party, Envoy Ran Mu's face darkened.

If not for his fear of the powerful guards hidden in the royal court, he would have charged forward to tear this Liu laoshi into countless shreds already.

"Forget about the duel? How can we?"

Hearing that the other party intended to cancel the duel, Zhang Xuan panicked.

What kind of joke was this? That was two spirit stones! Wouldn't he be a fool if he were to allow this opportunity slip by him?

"It's just some minor injuries. Give me a moment, I'll treat him now..."

As he said so, he stepped forward.

"What are you trying to do?"

Envoy Ran Mu stared at him warily.

"Don't worry, I'm just going to treat him. These are just minor injuries so it won’t take long to heal them!" Zhang Xuan nodded seriously.

"Treat him?

Envoy Ran Mu was doubtful at Zhang Xuan's words.

The corners of Prince Fei Xuan's mouth twitched as well.

It can't be that this fellow wants to deal me the final blow upon seeing how the Viridescent Eagle failed to get rid of me...

"Prince Fei Xuan and Envoy Ran Mu, there's no need to panic! Liu laoshi is the new guild leader of the Physician Guild. I can vouch for his medical skill. If he says that he is able to treat Prince Fei Xuan, he'll surely be able to do so!"

Seeing the wariness on the duo's face, Mo Tianxue smiled.

"Guild leader of the Physician Guild?" The duo was taken aback.

"Indeed! He's a grandmaster physician who had solved nineteen questions on the Wall of Dilemma in a single sitting. Since he was able to solve those difficult questions easily, your injuries shouldn't be a problem at all!" Mo Tianxue explained.

"This..."

Prince Fei Xuan and Envoy Ran Mu glanced at one another.

"There's really no need to worry, those are just minor injuries!"

Walking up, Zhang Xuan reached out to support Prince Fei Xuan.

"Envoy, there's no need to worry. Since Guild Leader Liu has said such words, Prince Fei Xuan is in good hands." Mo Tianxue stroked his beard and consoled.

No matter what, Liu laoshi was a grandmaster physician who had solved nineteen questions on the Wall of Dilemma. Mo Tianxue didn't think that this kind of superficial wound could stumble him.

"Alright then..."

Hearing the confidence in the other party's tone, Envoy Ran Mu hesitated for a moment before stepping aside.

It wasn't because he trusted Liu laoshi. What he trusted was that the Physician Guild would care for its reputation, and that Tianwu Kingdom wouldn't dare to turn against Kunqian Kingdom.

"Even though Your Highness's injuries didn't reach his vitals, it is still quite severe. I will look forward to seeing Guild Leader Liu's skills then..."

Harrumphing, Envoy Mu stared intently at Guild Leader Liu, curious to see how the other party would treat these injuries. However, before he could finish his words, the actions of the other party left his eyes widened, and he almost spewed a mouthful of blood. Vulgarities burst forth from his mouth, "The heck! What are you trying to do?"

The young man in front of him had lifted his palm, and 'pah!', struck Prince Fei Xuan's nape.

Before Prince Fei Xuan could react, he had already fainted.

"..." Mo Tianxue was stunned as well.

The ability of this Guild Leader Liu far surpassed that of the previous guild leader, Mu Hong, so Mo Tianxue gauged the other party's medical skills to be on par with a 4-star or even 5-star physician. He thought that the other party would be able to treat Prince Fei Xuan easily, and he was looking forward to seeing his medical skills as well. Yet... the other party ended up knocking Prince Fei Xuan out with a palm strike instead.

Could it be that... he wasn't satisfied with the beating the Viridescent Eagle gave him?

"Hold it right there..."

Envoy Ran Mu immediately erupted. He swiftly rushed forward, but before he could do anything, a figure appeared before him. It was Princess Mo Yu.

"Envoy, please calm down. Let Guild Leader Liu finish his work first..."

If Mo Yu was still doubtful before, upon seeing Liu laoshi knocking out Prince Fei Xuan with a single strike, she was now very certain that the latter had to be Zhang Xuan.

Back then, when he treated the Great Herb King, he also knocked the other party out first.

Since the princess had already said so, Envoy Ran Mu suppressed his rage. Calming himself down, he turned to look at Liu laoshi and he was taken aback by the sight before him.

The 'culprit' who knocked out the prince was holding dozens of silver needles between his fingers, and which a light shake, all of them pierced into Prince Fei Xuan's acupoints.

Then, with a slight movement of his hand, he retrieved all of the silver needles and tapped the prince's glabella with his forefinger.

Hu!

The unconscious Prince Fei Xuan abruptly opened his eyes and his body jolted. His entire face warped and he bellowed frenziedly.

"Liu rascal, what are you up to! If you are a man, you should face me fairly. What do you mean by conducting such sneak attacks..."

Roaring loudly, his voice echoed throughout the hall. He didn't bear any semblance to an injured patient at all.

"Your Highness..."

Envoy Ran Mu blinked in disbelief, "Your injuries..."

"Injuries?"

Prince Fei Xuan froze. He also realized that something was amiss. Trying to drive his zhenqi, he immediately felt overwhelming strength surging through him. This was a sign of a perfectly healthy body.

It was as if he had never been injured before.

"This... This..."

This time, Prince Fei Xuan was truly astounded.

It was just a few moment ago that he was still spewing mouthful after mouthful of blood. Yet, at this moment, he was as good as new... Did he really just recover that quickly?

"With just a few needles, he managed to heal His Highness's injuries?"

Envoy Ran Mu was also in a state of disbelief.

It was only at this moment that he finally understood why Emperor Tianxue valued this lad so highly even though he only possessed a cultivation of Tongxuan realm primary stage.

Just his medical skill in itself was sufficient to make any kingdom go insane for him.

"Un, it's just some minor injuries!" Zhang Xuan shook his hands casually. "Now that you've recovered, we should continue with our duel."

It was due to the huge disparity between the other party's cultivation and his true cultivation that he was able to treat him so easily. If the other party's cultivation was equal or higher than him, it would be much more troublesome than this.

"This..."

Prince Fei Xuan was taken aback for a moment before he replied, "I am in awe of Guild Leader Liu’s astounding medical skills. I humbly apologize for my inability to notice your capability. If I have offended you before, I hope that you can forgive me! As for the matter regarding the duel, I have been a little too rash. Thus, I hope that you can just let the matter go!"

As a prince, he might be proud but he was no fool. He was extremely dissatisfied with this fellow, but given how the other party was able to treat his wounds so easily and swiftly, his medical skill was definitely at an astounding level.

Even if he couldn't get on good terms with the other party, it would be best not to offend him.

Otherwise, even Kunqian Kingdom wouldn't be able to protect him.

"Let the matter go?"

Zhang Xuan was stunned. "How can I just let the matter go..."

That's two spirit stones! If they don't duel, Zhang Xuan couldn't possibly steal from him, right?

"I didn't know that Liu laoshi is an outstanding physician, as well as the guild leader of the Physician Guild. If I knew earlier, I wouldn’t have proposed this duel and would have admitted defeat straight..."

Prince Fei Xuan quickly added.

He finally understood why Emperor Tianxue was so lenient with the Liu laoshi. This young man was truly someone that he couldn’t afford to offend.

Physicians may not possess the rallying ability on par with that of a master teacher, but one would do well not to underestimate them. In any case, as a mere prince, it would be wise for him to avoid treading on Liu laoshi's toes.

But before he could finish his words, he heard the young man before him lament, "What? You're admitting defeat straight? I do feel a little embarrassed taking this Spirit Beast Grass without competing for it..."

"..."

Prince Fei Xuan was stupefied.

Those were only pleasantries to resolve the situation, how can you take them for real?

As the guild leader of the Physician Guild, a grandmaster physician, can you at least have some sense of shame?

Panicking, Prince Fei Xuan opened his mouth to explain, but the young man before him had already taken the jade box from his hand and kept it inside his storage ring. After which, he looked at him sheepishly and said, "I'll take the medicinal herb then. Your Highness sure is generous to admit defeat so frankly. I do feel a little guilty winning the bet just like that!"

What a joke! The reason for his trip here was to procure spirit stones. Since this medicinal herb could be traded for two spirit stones, how could he let it escape from him?

"Generous? Guilty?"

The corners of Prince Fei Xuan's mouth twitched.

He had seen shameless people, but it was his first time seeing someone completely devoid of his sense of shame.

You took my medicinal herb away on your own accord and said that I am generous... Generous your head!

Guilty? Why do I only see a bright smile on your face?

If not for the overwhelming facts before him, he could have never believed that this shameless fellow could be a highly-skilled grandmaster physician...

True Martial World - Chapter 1022: Night Fog

"Is that the divine tree?" Yi Yun had also heard of legends depicting the divine tree in the Azure Wood Great World but it was the first time he was seeing it today.

"Successor, are you sure that's the divine tree? Why would its roots appear here? There are no records of it in canon." Granny Yin muttered. She found it hard to accept that the sect's canon would suddenly lose its importance.

"It's the divine tree."

As the successor to the Azure Wood Manor, Yue Yingsha's life had an ethereal connection with the divine tree's aura. It gave her confidence that her intuition wasn't wrong.

"Let's go over and take a look."

The legends spoke of a great woman—the one in the Azure Wood Manor's portraits—who had planted the Azure Wood Great World's divine tree. It determined the providence of the world it resided in, but tens of millions of years ago, the world had begun its decline.

Although Yue Yingsha knew that it was impossible to halt the destruction of the Azure Wood Great World, she was determined to do something. She hoped that something fortuitous would come out of it if she approached the divine tree's root network which she had never encountered before.

Yi Yun nodded. The divine tree that had lived for hundreds of millions of years was a miracle of life. It exceeded the Dao Tree with the three thousand Great Dao he encountered back in the Pure Yang Sword Palace in every possible way.

The trio began approaching the tree's vast network of tree roots. The roots of the massive tree did not appear distant, but for some baffling reason, the trio was unable to close the gap despite their hike.

Despite the seemingly harmless environment, the trio did not attempt to fly in the Door to the 33 Skies since it was filled with all kinds of oddities. They had been especially cautious as they proceeded.

Unknowingly, the sky gradually darkened. Yi Yun looked up and saw twinkling stars hanging in the sky. A faint river of stars stretched across the sky in a splendid and resplendent manner.

This left Yi Yun baffled. The Azure Wood Great World was a sealed off world, so how could they see the massive arm of a galaxy? Could it be that the sky they were looking at was not the Azure Wood Great World's?

It was unknown when a night fog had slowly rolled in. However, the fog did not affect visibility because of its thinness. Granny Yin had subconsciously slowed down her footsteps as her intuition for possible danger had been honed from the years she had seen and lived through.

"Kid, let's slow down. I find something amiss," said Granny Yin. In the night fog, they were still able to see the starry galactic arm, but they could no longer see the mountainous behemoth in the distance. The divine tree's roots had already been hidden amidst the thin fog.

Yi Yun activated his energy vision but he failed to see anything strange. However, he had slowed down as well.

Suddenly, Yi Yun heard the sound of flowing water. It was faint and imperceptible.

Yi Yun was unsure about the source of the night fog that was enveloping them. It could have been a river or something else, but he found the fog extremely odd. Looking ahead, everything appeared indistinct due to the fog, but behind him, the fog was in no way thick. The path that they had taken was still crystal clear. noveltranslationweb.blogspot.com

"Why do I have this nagging feeling that we are lost…" said Yi Yun suddenly. Looking at the starry sky above them, they had been walking in one particular direction. The divine tree's roots should have been straight ahead of them, but the unrest in his heart was intensifying. Yet, he could not see anything through his energy vision.

Not seeing things should have been a good thing, but it was abnormal for there to be nothing.

Yue Yingsha was trying her best to recall the written canon of the Azure Wood Manor, but just as she wanted to say something, she suddenly felt a cold chill behind her back that made her hair stand.

Yue Yingsha turned her head abruptly as her expression changed drastically.

This gave Yi Yun a shock as he hurriedly turned his head. There was nothing in the vague and shadowy fog.

"What's wrong?"

From Yue Yingsha's pale expression, Yi Yun guessed that she had seen something a moment ago.

"An eye…I saw a pink-colored eye. It was the size of a bowl, and the eye was following us like a ghost. It has been observing us all this while, and it disappeared the moment I turned back."

Yue Yingsha secretly felt vexed. She too was a practitioner of martial arts. It was unbecoming of her to react in such a frightened manner. If it had been a dangerous attack, she might have been too frightened to even use half of her combat strength.

"An eye?" Yi Yun felt his heart skip a beat. He did not believe that Yue Yingsha had been mistaken. It was likely possible that such a thing truly existed in the fog. What was most strange was that his energy vision was unable to see anything.

The energy vision was not omnipotent. All it could do was give him a vision of energy. What if the object that was hiding in the dark did not have any energy fluctuations?

Such an existence that could approach him so silently gave Yi Yun the chills. He had to be cautious regardless of the case. The dangers which awaited him in the Door to the 33 Skies was unimaginable. He had crossed the Blood Desert with verve, but it was only because he could see the killing mechanism of the Blood Desert through his energy vision.

Due to Yue Yingsha's fear of being sneaked up from the back, she looked back after almost every step. As they proceeded forward, that faint sound of water turned clearer.

As they emerged out of the fog, they finally saw the source of the water sounds.

In front of the trio, there was a black river that extended itself into a col. There was a whirlpool in the col that seemed to flow deep underground.

The black river's waters were sticky and heavy, resembling black ink. The river wasn't wide, but it gave off a peculiar vibe.

And what absolutely terrified Yi Yun was the white bones he could vaguely see in the whirlpool. As the black river unloaded itself into the col, the bones bobbed up and down before succumbing to their fate of being swallowed by the whirlpool.

By the banks of the river, the lush grassland had gone as far as it could, but the grass had already turned black. Beneath the grass, there was a layer of white powder.

Yi Yun remembered everything that he had seen in the White Bone Ridge. It was bone ash that had been scattered along the banks of the lake, which had become fertilizer for the wormwood.

"It's dangerous! Let's leave quickly!"

Granny Yin suddenly yelled in a voice as jarring as a nightbird.

Without giving it any thought, Yi Yun fled with Granny Yin, who had a high cultivation level! Granny Yin held Yi Yun with one hand, and Yue Yingsha in the other, while running as fast as possible with her movement technique.

Yi Yun subconsciously looked back but saw the black wormwood by the lake dancing like snakes. The layer of soil had ruptured as bone ash stirred.

Yi Yun did not know what would have happened if he had stayed behind.

Granny Yin flew a distance of ten thousand feet in one breath. Suddenly, she saw a group of people in front.

Granny Yin was alarmed, but just as she wanted to retreat, she realized that the group of people were the Azure Wood Manor separatists. It included Seven Plume and the purple-robed elder.

These people had finally managed to leave the Blood Desert at a painful cost.

"Oh? It's you!"

A cold beam flashed in Seven Plume's eyes. He had suffered greatly in the Blood Desert and he was bent on getting his revenge.

True Martial World - Chapter 1021: Divine Tree

"Ka Ka Ka!"

Just as the group watched was in shocked horror, cracks suddenly covered the ice sculpture. Next, it shattered under the watchful eyes of the group, scattering to the ground as ice fragments.

These ice fragments were tiny like rice grains. When they scattered onto the red sand, they were quickly covered by the shifting sands before vanishing. It was as if the man with the mole had evaporated into thin air, with nothing left behind.

Upon seeing that scene, the Azure Wood Manor separatists felt a cold chill that struck deep into their hearts.

It was clearly not an ordinary form of frostbite, but a strange manifestation of laws. The ice had burst out from the body of the deceased.

"How could that have happened? We were clearly following…" Seven Plume turned to look at Yi Yun suddenly.

The Azure Wood Manor separatists, who were present, had been following in Yi Yun's footsteps. There was not even a single misstep on their part. Under such a situation, shouldn't they be completely fine like Yi Yun? Why did such turn of events happen?

Someone began to suspect that Yi Yun had used a sleight of hand to fool them.

"Punk, did you secretly do something?" questioned someone from the Azure Wood Manor in a threatening manner.

"Do I need to explain to you? Did I get you to follow me?" asked Yi Yun as he looked at the questioning Azure Wood Manor disciple, as though he was a retard. "Didn't the lot of you say that the path you divined happened to be identical to mine? Why are you questioning me now?"

With one sentence, Yi Yun had caught their tongues.

They were unable to say a word, no matter how shameless they were. To put it honestly, the death of their compatriot was of their own choice.

"If you like to follow me, go ahead and continue doing so." As Yi Yun said that, he ignored the group of people as he continued proceeding forward.

At that moment, the purple-robed elder said with a sigh, "The powers of nature in the Blood Desert is not static. We have already entered another region, so the laws will change as well. It might be fine when others take it, but trouble will befall us when we follow in those footsteps."

As the purple-robed elder spoke, Yi Yun had already opened up a distance of nearly a hundred paces. There were too many possible changes that could happen in a hundred paces. Furthermore, the Blood Desert was extremely odd. A mere hundred paces were enough to blur Yi Yun's figure from their point of view. There was also no way for them to discern the spot where Yi Yun's feet landed.

With Yi Yun about to leave, Seven Plume and company turned furious and anxious.

"Elder Dagu." Without any options left, all Seven Plume could do was look at Elder Dagu again.

"Why are you panicking!? Once I do another round of divination, we will definitely be able to leave the Blood Desert!" said Elder Dagu angrily.

When he cast his cold gaze at the people from the Immortal Rain Sect, Marquis Wu Yun's heart sank.

If they wanted to live, they had to follow the Azure Wood Manor separatists. However, it was needless to say that they would definitely be used as stepping stones.

…

Granny Yin, who was following Yue Yingsha closely, could not help but ask with a whisper, "Successor, are we really abandoning those people?"

Although she was displeased with them, they were still lost progeny of the Azure Wood Manor. It was unknown how many of them would die if they were abandoned.

Yue Yingsha turned her head to take a look. In just slightly more than a hundred paces, those people had turned into blurry figures.

She retracted her glance and said in an unfeeling manner, "Granny, these people are wicked monsters with diabolical designs. They are only doing it for themselves. It is unlikely that they have a sense of belonging towards the Azure Wood Manor. It's all thanks to Yi Yun if we can escape the Blood Desert."

Granny Yin had nothing in response. She knew that based on her attitude towards Yi Yun from before, it was already nice of Yi Yun to not add insult to injury. All she could do was release a lengthy sigh.

"Yi Yun, I never expected you to have such talent in array formations. How long have you been studying the arts of array formations?" Granny Yin asked out of curiosity.

Elder Dagu had flaunted his skills in array formations ostentatiously in such a confident manner, yet he was far inferior to Yi Yun.

It could only be a few decades even if Yi Yun had begun studying the arts of array formations when he was in his mother's womb. To warriors, such a period of time was analogous to a baby's childhood to mortals. It was just the beginning.

"I actually do not know much about array formations," said Yi Yun.

Doesn't he know array formations? Granny Yin was momentarily stupefied as she said, "Then…"

"I've never studied the arts of array formation. All I did was observe the forces of nature and the evolution of energy. From that, I recognized the patterns and figured out the underlying rules" Yi Yun explained with a light touch.

Granny Yin found it unbelievable when she heard Yi Yun's explanation. However, from the unperturbed state he was in, he did not look like he had lied. If Yi Yun was so sharp in sensing fluctuations in the forces of nature or energy, then his talent was outrageously shocking.

"If that's true, this child is truly talented. Unfortunately, he is not a disciple of my Azure Wood Manor," thought Granny Yin.

"Oh? We have walked out of the Blood Desert!?" Seeing the red sand come to an end, a pleasant surprise suffused on Yue Yingsha's beautiful face.

When they stepped across the demarcation formed by the red sand, Yue Yingsha felt spatial changes. The ground beneath her suddenly became a vast savannah that was brimming with life. The burning sun above their heads had vanished.

When she turned back to take a look, the Blood Desert behind her had vanished as well. It was as though it had never existed.

The Blood Desert was actually not large, but if one could not find the correct path, people would either be lost in it for the rest of their lives or quickly die in it.

"This is…"

Yi Yun cast his gaze afar. He could see a black mountain range in the distance that looked like a gigantic dragon crouching across the horizon. What was strange about it was the rich and brimming vitality that came from the long mountain range.

In addition, the mountain range contained life energy that was as tumultuous as the seas from his Purple Crystal's energy vision.

A mountain range with life force in it?

The Door to the 33 Skies was truly fascinating!

"This is probably…not a mountain range," said Yue Yingsha with her eyes closed. She had similarly felt the life force within the mountain range. Her expression was one of awe and reverence.

"Oh? Are there records of this in the canon as well?" asked Yi Yun as he glanced at Yue Yingsha.

"There are no records of this in the canon. All I can do is guess. Let's go closer." Yue Yingsha was uncertain as well. Together with Yi Yun, she traversed the grasslands that were lush with vegetation. They gradually drew closer to the mountain range and slowly, Yi Yun saw it clearly.

On the long mountain range, it was covered in old and strong winding timber. The wooden textures drooped down along the mountain range, as though they were flowing down the mountain like a river.

"This is…"

Yi Yun was astonished.

"The divine tree! It's the divine tree's roots… I can sense a familiar aura from it. It must be the divine tree at the core of the Azure Wood Great World!" said Yue Yingsha with a look of surprise on her face.

The Azure Wood Great World's divine tree was situated in the middle of the Azure Wood Great World and it determined the providence of the world. If not for the divine tree, the Azure Wood Great World would have long collapsed.

Yue Yingsha had the impression that the Door to the 33 Skies was in a completely different space from the Azure Wood Great World. However, the divine tree's roots had spanned across the confines and barriers of space, stretching into the Door to the 33 Skies!

True Martial World - Chapter 1020: Shameless

"This punk has chosen a different path and he is proceeding down it himself. It's simply courting death, so let's wait for him to vaporize!"

Many of the Azure Wood Manor separatists had seen Yi Yun walking into the Blood Desert. Moments ago, Yi Yun had been hiding behind them while watching them incur ridicule on themselves. They were already incredibly vexed about the situation, and now, it was finally Yi Yun's turn to traverse the land of death.

"A single misstep out of the thousand steps in the Blood Desert would result in an irredeemable outcome. That bit of skill he has is nothing but him courting death," said the purple-robed elder.

Mistakes could hardly be avoided when one attempted to divine the forces of nature; thus, the purple-robed elder refused to believe that Yi Yun had seen through the mysteries of the Blood Desert. Having nine lives was not even sufficient to cross the Blood Desert alone.

After taking a few steps, Yi Yun turned and said to Yue Yingsha, "Yue Yingsha, why don't you follow me?"

"I…" Yue Yingsha felt somewhat apologetic. How could she let Yi Yun probe the way in front while she followed safely behind?

"It's fine. The Blood Desert might appear endless, but it's actually not that big. It wouldn't take long to cross it."

As Yi Yun was saying that, he turned around and proceeded forward.

Wouldn't take long to cross it?

The way Yi Yun said it sounded way too relaxed.

The speed at which Yi Yun walked was at the speed of common mortals. But this was in stark contrast to the other disciples of the Azure Wood Manor, who walked at speeds that could rival a tortoise's because of the fear of stepping into a forbidden zone.

Under the watchful gazes of many people, Yi Yun proceeded to take ten steps followed by twenty steps. He did not encounter any danger as if he was walking in an ordinary desert.

How could it be… Did he really manage to find a path of salvation?

The Azure Wood Manor separatists found it incredulous.

"Maybe it's luck," insisted a young man who remained indignant. His gaze subconsciously turned towards the purple-robed elder.

However, he noticed that the purple-robed elder had an ugly expression on his face. The purple-robed elder knew very well that what Yi Yun was demonstrating was absolutely not something that could be explained away with luck. He had worked through all sorts of divinations, but two mistakes were made in over thirty steps. Now, Yi Yun had already walked for more than twenty steps without a problem. In addition to his accurate predictions from before, all of this led to the conclusion that Yi Yun had seen through the forces of nature embedded in the Blood Desert.

How did he do it?

In a blink of an eye, Yi Yun had already taken more than forty steps. The distance he had traveled had exceeded the progress the Azure Wood Manor had made. Although Yi Yun and the Azure Wood Manor had chosen two different paths, their direction was identical. Now, Yi Yun had already come to a spot ahead of the Azure Wood Manor separatists.

At that moment, those from the Azure Wood Manor who still refused to believe Yi Yun could no longer say a word. The facts were laid out in front of them. The path of salvation they had used Daoist arts to infer and forged by sacrificing lives was inferior to the path that Yi Yun had carved out casually.

"Elder Dagu, this…"

"I'm not blind. I'm seeing it!" said the purple-robed elder in a deep voice. He had suffered a huge blow when he realized that Yi Yun had surpassed him so simply.

"Elder Dagu, shall we change our paths and follow in Yi Yun's footsteps?"

Seven Plume suddenly made a suggestion. The spot they were in was only about a few dozen paces away from where Yi Yun was. If they tore through it and follow in his footsteps, wouldn't it lead to them crossing the Blood Desert?

"Well…alright…" said the purple-robed elder with a hesitant nod. Although it was an act of a wuss, it was indeed the safest and most effective method.

"Hold on! Bring us along! We can spare a few people to help you scout the path. Bring us along!"

A voice suddenly came from a short distance away. The person who had spoken was the Immortal Rain Sect's, Marquis Wu Yun.

These few Immortal Rain Sect disciples felt a deep sense of despair after witnessing their companions die. In the Blood Desert, they did not even dare flinch. Now, all they could do was rely on the people from the Azure Wood Manor so that they could leave the godforsaken land.

If they knew that the Door to the 33 Skies was fraught with such danger, they would not have come even if they were threatened by force. The expedition to the Azure Wood Great World was a disaster that had befallen them.

"Bring them along and get them to be the scouts," said Seven Plume. The purple-robed elder nodded and said, "Come over by yourselves. Being able to cross this distance will depend on your karma. If you are unable to cross it successfully, then it was fated that you perish here!"

…

"Yi Yun, those people intend to follow us," Yue Yingsha said frustratingly when she saw the scene behind her.

At that moment, Yi Yun was already leading the rest by more than fifty steps. As for the Azure Wood Manor separatists, together with the Immortal Rain Sect disciples, they had paid a significant price before they managed to reach the path Yi Yun had taken.

"Do you still have any sense of shame? Seven Plume, you were the one who forced Yi Yun to scout the way. Yi Yun refused and you disallowed him from following you. But now, Yi Yun has found a path of salvation, and you people are shamelessly following him. Your shamelessness has no bounds!" said Yue Yingsha from the front.

Seven Plume chuckled and said disdainfully, "Junior Sister Yingsha, you are too naive. The martial path has always been about unscrupulous schemes. What use does shame have? Can it improve your cultivation level?"

"Furthermore, how can you tell that we are deliberately following the two of you. It just happens that Elder Dagu has divined a path that is identical to yours in certain stretches. You might scorn us for following you, but why can't we scorn the two of you for blocking our paths in the front!?"

The more Seven Plume spoke, the more complacent he became. He was not afraid that Yi Yun would switch paths. Wherever Yi Yun went, they would follow his every step. Every step they took would be identical to the one Yi Yun took. He refused to believe that there would be any danger.

"That person is too shameless!"

Yue Yingsha never expected that such a shameless person existed in the world. She could have turned a blind eye about him following Yi Yun, but she never expected him to say something so shameless.

Yi Yun said, "What's the point of wrangling with such a person. Just let them follow."

Seven Plume gave a disdainful smile when he saw Yi Yun hold back his temper. This was the absolute repression that strength gave. He could deny Yi Yun from following them because they had the strength because they could destroy him if he followed.

But for Yi Yun, what could he do? All he could do was honestly swallow his pride and turn a blind eye towards their actions.

"Junior Brother Seven Plume, I wonder what mystic technique Yi Yun knows. It's surprising that he is completely unaffected by the Blood Desert. The Door to the 33 Skies is fraught with dangers, so he might still be of use in later areas." said a man with a large mole. A glimmer flashed in his eyes when he looked at Yi Yun. He was machinating something against Yi Yun in an attempt to exploit Yi Yun completely.

Seven Plume nodded and said, "I know what you are talking about. Although Yi Yun is somewhat unorthodox, his strength is his weakness. As long as we use this to our advantage, he would have to serve us."

"It's great that Junior Brother Seven Plume understands that," said the man with the mole as he nodded. Suddenly, the muscles on his face turned stiff. His expression froze completely as he came to a sudden stop. noveltranslationweb.blogspot.com

"Oh? Senior Brother, what's wrong with you?" Seven Plume was momentarily surprised. He stopped and looked at the man behind him. Although the Azure Wood Manor disciples had been following Yi Yun, Seven Plume did not lower his wariness.

The man with the mole did not respond at all. It was odd that he had remained motionless for about ten seconds.

If this had been the beginning when they had just stepped into the Blood Desert, Seven Plume would have opened up a distance from the man when he saw such a situation develop. But now, the situation the man was in was completely different from the few people who had vaporized. Those people had instantly melted, so it was impossible to stop for such a long period of time.

Just as Seven Plume hesitantly released his perception in order to investigate the situation, he saw a stunning scene.

Countless ice crystals slowly emerged out of the man's body. The ice crystals tore out of his skin, but not a single drop of blood flowed out because it had all frozen. Countless ice crystals began to bloom like peach blossoms, and soon, it covered every inch of the man's body.

The man did not notice it. In fact, there was no life in him despite him maintaining his standing pose. In just a few seconds, the man's body was covered in ice as he became an ice sculpture!

On the man's face, there was still that look of surprise and oddness. Through the refraction and distortion of the ice, it gave people the chills.

What!?

Seven Plume had just been beside the man. He broke out in cold sweat from fear. What was going on!?

True Martial World - Chapter 1019: Endless Succession of the Dead

"Elder Dagu, what's going on?"

Having watched the burly youth die tragically, many of the Azure Wood Manor separatists turned fearful. If they had been the ones probing the way forward, they would have ended with the same outcome. It was an outcome that truly left them without any remains.

The purple-robed elder's face twitched as the expression on his face turned grim. He gritted his teeth and said, "The Heaven and Earth array of the Blood Desert is profound, so having an occasional mistake in the path I figured out can hardly be avoided."

Hardly be avoided?

He had said the words 'hardly be avoided' so frivolously, but to the scout, it would mean the outcome of turning into a pool of blood before vaporizing.

"What about that punk named Yi Yun? Why was he able to predict the fatal outcome from that one step?" Rooster asked. Yi Yun's words from before had left him with a lingering fear.

"Hmph! It was only sheer luck. How can a junior with such a low cultivation be able to see through the Heaven and Earth forces that imbue the Blood Desert? He was only making irresponsible remarks. Who doesn't know how to declare command over life and death? All he had was good luck that stumbled upon the truth with a sentence of his!" said the purple-robed elder disdainfully. There were people in the group that thought so too. In the previous war of words, it was normal for Yi Yun to hurl maledictions at them. It was only a coincidence that he had hit the nail on the head.

"Then what about probing the path?" A young man asked.

Everyone exchanged looks. Who would dare to be the first on this path that had mistakes that could 'hardly be avoided'?

Furthermore, the strangest part of the Blood Desert was that these areas that spelled certain doom did not seem strange in any way before the warriors stepped onto them. Be it through their vision or perception, they appeared normal in every way possible. However, as long as someone took a step, their bodies would melt. It felt like there was a particular law that was inducing the forces within the warrior's body that resulted in them spontaneously combusting before melting away.

The purple-robed elder grunted and said, "It's just the Blood Desert and the distance of a thousand paces. Even if there are risks, it would also be limited. All of you want to reach the pinnacle of martial arts, but you are reeling back in fear because of a bit of danger? From now onwards, all of you are to take turns to scout in front. Everyone will take ten steps before switching to another person. Your lives will be determined by the Heavens!"

The purple-robed elder issued the command. As the person in charge of studying the array to envisage a path, he naturally did not need to go up front.

There were a few Elders from the Azure Wood Manor separatists who did not plan on taking the lead either.

This was a privilege that their strength entailed. The juniors had no right to raise any objections.

A youth was chosen as he walked in front while trembling with fear. He was thin and frail-looking, as though he could not even withstand the blowing of the wind.

It was as if the purple-robed elder's envisaging had once again turned effective. After taking ten steps with bated breath, the junior managed to return unscathed.

Immediately following that, the next person was the lion-furred youth that had exchanged mockeries with Yi Yun.

The lion-furred youth lacked faith, but all he could do was grit his teeth and walk ahead. Every two or three steps, he would not forget to look back at Yi Yun.

Perhaps it was because he was too afraid of stepping into a forbidden zone because the lion-furred youth was grasping at every piece of information from his surroundings. It was as if he was trying to obtain clues from reading Yi Yun's every expression. Even though he was certain that Yi Yun's prophecy from before was a coincidence, he could not stop his wandering eyes.

This complicated and dilemmatic state of mind was something even the lion-furred youth could not explain himself.

When the lion-furred youth finished his ninth step with great difficulty, he subconsciously turned his head to glance at Yi Yun. This time, Yi Yun did not remain silent. He casually stretched his shoulders and said, "The courage of you people sending yourselves to your deaths in endless succession is truly admirable."

Oh!?

When the lion-furred youth heard that sentence, he felt all his fur stand. He was already overwhelmed with anxiety, yet Yi Yun was mocking him from the back. If not for him being in the Blood Desert, he truly wanted to head back and dice Yi Yun up.

"What's the meaning of that?" The lion-furred youth said savagely.

"Nothing. I'm just expressing my personal opinion." Yi Yun shrugged and did not speak another word. The Azure Wood Manor separatists intentions of him leading the way were equivalent to dooming him. Yi Yun obviously would not save people who wanted him dead.

"Hmph! Punk, don't smirk too soon. In a while, I'll watch you attempt to leave the Blood Desert. When you are walking alone, I'll want to see you vaporize after you are left gutless!"

As the lion-furred youth said that, he raised his foot hesitantly. However, he eventually gritted his teeth and landed his foot. It was the final step after all.

But that step...

"Phew–"

A nearly inaudible sound that resembled an invisible flame bursting out of the void was heard. The lion-furred youth felt an excruciating pain from his calf before he saw the flesh on his calf rapidly melting. Blood and bodily fluids were spewing out!

The melting surface was quickly spreading as it headed for his thigh!

"Ah!"

The lion-furred youth's eyes were blood-red as if they were cracking. With a loud bellow, all his muscles rippled with tremendous energy bursting out from his body!

"Sou!"

A golden beam of light flashed. The lion-furred youth's leg was immediately amputated across his thigh by a golden beam of light!

The lion-furred youth grimaced in pain as he fell backward. It was unknown when a large golden saber had appeared in his hand.

At that split second, the lion-furred youth had pulled out a golden saber and amputated his leg! If not for that, the corrosive force that melted flesh would have spread across his entire body in a blink of an eye. If that happened, his outcome would only be him being left fleshless while his bone melted.

"Senior Brother Domineering Saber!"

The disciples of the Azure Wood Manor separatists rushed over, but they did not dare come close to him.

Blood was spewing out of the lion-furred youth's left leg which he had amputated. He quickly tapped at a few acupuncture points to stop the bleeding before he managed to catch his breath.

At that moment, the leg that he had amputated had melted clean.

The lion-furred youth's face was pale as he sweated bullets. If he had been hesitant in any way, he would have perished.

…

"Yi Yun, are you able to foresee the dangerous zones?" Yue Yingsha was astonished as she turned her head to ask Yi Yun.

Yi Yun's alert the first time might have been a coincidence. As for the second time, Yi Yun did not directly alert them. All he said was a single sentence, but that sentence did not stop the lion-furred youth from encountering danger. With the two coincidences put together, Yue Yingsha already had her guesses.

"It's not something I can completely guarantee. All I can say that it's a type of feeling. Let's attempt to leave this place!" As Yi Yun spoke, he took a few steps through the Blood Desert. The path he chose was completely different from the one that the Azure Wood Manor separatists took.

Granny Yin was still in her original spot. She had not departed with the Azure Wood Manor separatists but it was obviously not because of Yi Yun. In fact, she treated Yi Yun as an enemy deep down. However, with Yue Yingsha staying behind, what else could Granny Yin do? All she could do was temporarily hold back.

Now, as Granny Yin watched Yi Yun walk through the Blood Desert, her eyelids twitched. That kid truly has the guts!

With the immense Heaven and Earth might in front of them, she had to rely on the Great Heavenly Compass, while the purple-robed elder had relied on his best thirty-six array flags, yet they did not dare claim to have seen through the profoundness within.

Even if Yi Yun's talent in array formations were heaven-defying and he had truly figured out something, how was he so certain that he did not make a mistake from his insight?

It was unknown how large the Blood Desert was. Even if the purple-robed elder's words of it being traversable with a thousand paces was true, it would be no trifling matter. Was it possible to not make a mistake for a thousand paces?

True Martial World - Chapter 1018: Array Cracking

In the vast Blood Desert, the Immortal Rain Sect and Azure Wood Manor disciples that were trapped within were like two lone boats lost in turbulent seas. They could capsize at any time.

In that moment of peril, Granny Yin took out the Great Heavenly Compass as she tried to divine the path out of the Blood Desert.

"Why did my disciple burn to death?"

The purple-robed elder was feeling agitated. At the final moment, it was he who had struck out with his palm, giving his disciple a quick death.

"I do not know either. Although there are some descriptions of the Blood Desert in canon, it only mentions of dangers in it. As for what the dangers are, the records aren't that detailed," said Granny Yin. She had a deep sense of worry hanging over her face. She had a feeling that over the hundreds of millions of years, the Door to the 33 Skies had experienced drastic changes after its disappearance. The canon the Azure Wood Manor had from years ago was no longer enough. It could even be possible that the Door to the 33 Skies was even more dangerous as the Azure Wood Great World was on the brink of destruction.

"Don't you have the Great Heavenly Compass?" asked someone from the Azure Wood Manor separatists.

"Although I have studied the Great Heavenly Compass for years, it cannot remedy my lack of talent. I only studied the dangerous zones that had detailed records in canon. I'm helpless against this Blood Desert even with the Great Heavenly Compass."

Granny Yin's words made everyone's heart sink. At that moment, the purple-robed elder stood forward as he took out a set of array flags from his interspatial ring.

The array flags' staffs were made of bones from Ancient Fey beasts, and the flags were made of Ancient Fey hide. Sealed within the flags were apparently living creatures that were writhing in pain.

One could tell that the purple-robed elder was feeling the pinch as he looked at those array flags. They were his most valuable array cracking treasure. The array flags had 'flag spirits' sealed in them. They would slowly deplete with every use and it would be completely useless once it was used too many times.

"Let me do it. Since there is an array formation in the Blood Desert, I'll use this trump card of mine that cracks arrays. It should be effective."

Granny Yin hesitated for a moment before letting the purple-robed elder study the situation. Now that they were in peril, every additional person meant an additional amount of strength. What would happen if the purple-robed elder managed to figure out something?

The purple blood elder stuck the array flags into Blood Desert's red sand. He began to combine his Daoist arts as he studied the Blood Desert's natural forces.

And at that moment, Yi Yun was also observing the Dao patterns around him that pervaded the Blood Desert. They were formed naturally from fragments of divine weapons that were destroyed in Blood Desert, carcasses of dead primordial creatures, or remnant laws.

Yi Yun realized that the spots where the people had burned to their deaths were not because they had stepped onto the Dao patterns, but because they had stepped onto the nodes between Dao patterns.

The distribution of the Blood Desert's Dao patterns had its own regularity. Three or four energy nodes would produce powerful forces that could vaporize people! Then…what would happen if he avoided the energy nodes?

…

After a long while, the purple-robed elder with his tightly knitted brows heaved a sigh of relief. He wiped the tiny beads of sweat from his forehead as he said, "So that's it! It should be that."

The purple-robed elder was muttering to himself as though he had been enlightened.

He did not look relaxed, but he had clearly made progress.

"Did you figure out something?" A disciple from the Azure Wood Manor separatists said anxiously.

"The Blood Desert might look endless, but it is actually not that expansive. If we keep walking straight, there is no way to escape this zone. Flying would not work either as it would be equivalent to suicide. We can walk here. There's a path here that leads us out. It crosses through the Blood Desert and all that's needed is about a thousand steps."

"Just a thousand steps? It's actually that short?"

The purple-robed elder pointed out a path as the Azure Wood Manor disciples remained unconvinced. Many were fearful as no one dared to take a step.

The purple-robed elder knitted his eyebrows into a stern look as he said, "Why? Does no one believe me?"

"How can it be?" Rooster laughed dryly. He indeed was not confident of the purple-robed elder's claims. It was mainly because Blood Desert was just too odd. He found it unbelievable that about a thousand steps were all that was needed to escape the land of death.

Of course, he did not proclaim what was on his mind. Instead, he said, "Elder Dagu has impressive attainments when it comes to array formations. However, there is always some risk to pathfinding. We can't let us Azure Wood Manor separatists undertake all the risk while people enjoy the labors of others by simply following behind."

As Rooster spoke, he glanced at Yi Yun. He had long found Yi Yun an eyesore. Furthermore, they wanted to probe the inner depths of the Door to the 33 Skies, so how could they bring an outsider along? It was most appropriate to get him to be the pathfinder. It would only be a joy if he died. noveltranslationweb.blogspot.com

"What do you mean by that?" Yue Yingsha asked coldly as she stood in front of Yi Yun.

"Nothing. I'm just getting this young friend to walk in front. Our Elder Dagu has paid a nontrivial price in order to divine this path. Just one use of Elder Dagu's array flags would expend a portion of the flag spirits' energy. Do you know how great his loss was?"

"You want to follow us out at no cost? How can there be such a free ride in this world?"

Rooster's words were immediately echoed by the Azure Wood Manor separatists. The youth with his face covered in lion fur also stood forward and said, "That's right. All you need to do is be responsible for treading the path we found!"

Everyone looked at Yi Yun. Even Yue Yingsha's status was not useful based on the circumstances.

Although they had a request that depended on Yue Yingsha, the dangers they were facing in Blood Desert was tremendous. It was a problem if they could survive, so they obviously flung the thoughts of exploring the Door to the 33 Skies to the back of their minds.

"Punk, get over here and lead the way!" said Rooster in a queer manner. He believed that Yi Yun had no other choice.

Yi Yun flicked the red sand off his sleeves and said nonchalantly, "Did you just say that I will be following you out of the Blood Desert? You sure think highly of yourself. I wouldn't even be bothered to follow you even if you begged."

"What!?"

When Yi Yun said those words, it made all the Azure Wood Manor separatists stare angrily at him. They never expected him to speak so arrogantly!

"This little bastard is too arrogant. Senior Brother Seven Plume, I'll kill him!" A burly youth stood forward and was about to attack Yi Yun when he was stopped by Rooster. He knew very well that fighting in the Blood Desert was no different from committing suicide.

"You have guts." Seven Plume's eyes flashed a cold glimmer. "I want to see how you will walk out of the Blood Desert. Let's go!"

Since Yi Yun was quitting the group, the Azure Wood Manor separatists did not target Yi Yun any further. They were interested in seeing Yi Yun alone in the Blood Desert, looking pathetic with no one to help him. It was definitely going to be entertaining.

Someone from the Azure Wood Manor separatists was appointed as he followed the directions the purple-robed elder gave. Nothing happened to him after he took about eight steps.

"Awesome. Elder Dagu truly has the miracle of foresight. He is indeed able to divine the path to survival in this land of death." flattered someone.

"Haha!" Elder Dagu laughed as he stroked his beard while appearing rather satisfied.

"Yi Yun, are you really staying behind? With death on the line, don't try to act out of spite." Yue Yingsha turned anxious as she saw Yi Yun remain motionless while Elder Dagu was about to guide the Azure Wood Manor separatists away.

Yi Yun had saved her twice, so she could not leave him in the lurch. However, Yi Yun's feet were firmly planted in the ground. He had no intentions of leaving.

"Junior Sister Yingsha, if you don't leave now, you might not be able to leave anymore. Do you really plan on accompanying that punk to your death?" derided Rooster.

Yue Yingsha turned anxious. She could not shrug off Yi Yun as she gave Granny Yin a pleaful look. She hoped that Granny Yin was able to use the Great Heavenly Compass to divine a path, but clearly, Granny Yin lacked the confidence. Taking a step back, even if the Great Heavenly Compass found a path, it needed someone to test the ground. It was too dangerous to simply follow the results.

At that moment, Yi Yun said slowly, "Yue Yingsha, don't be worried. They won't be able to leave the Blood Desert. Soon, someone will die."

Yi Yun's words were not loud, but with the ears of warriors, they obviously heard him loud and clear.

What!?

The Azure Wood Manor separatists, who had walked a certain distance, looked back at Yi Yun angrily.

The burly youth that had walked more than ten steps forward revealed a murderous look. He was walking right in front, so if someone were to die, it would be him. Yi Yun's curse made him wish to smack Yi Yun to death!

"Little bastard, spout any more nonsense and I'll rip your mouth apart," admonished the burly youth.

"Why do we even care about him? He's just an ignorant punk. Does he think he has the right to evaluate Elder Dagu's divination?"

Another youth said as Elder Dagu stroked his beard. A cold look flashed in his eyes as he said, "This child is ignorant as he maligns the Heavenly Dao. This Blood Desert is a naturally formed force, and all I feel towards it is fearful reverence. All I understood was a trivial part of it, but for him to talk wildly, it's not only laughable but sad."

"Then go on ahead." Yi Yun spread out his hands, "Who can stop it if you want to die?"

"Die? I'll show you exactly what will happen!" The burly youth said with a sneer as he suddenly took a big step out.

He did not feel like anything had happened with his step, but before he had the chance to act complacent, he suddenly felt the loss of feeling in his feet.

He looked down and saw his entire feet beginning to melt like wax that was consumed by flames.

Blood began to drip like candle wax, and soon his bones were exposed.

"Ah Ah Ah Ah!"

The burly youth cried out tragically, but the melting quickly spread to his thighs. Following that, it reached his waist and began moving up his torso.

'"Puah!"

The burly youth's abdomen burst open violently like a burst water bag. His organs were reduced to bloody fluids as they spewed out.

The burly youth's expression was twisted as his expression was filled with horror.

He had his mouth open, but he could no longer say a word. He could only look at Yi Yun in despair before looking at the purple-robed elder.

"I…I…I…"

The final voice he issued came to a halt. His head had been devoured by invisible flames. Moments later, his eyes burned into their sockets, and all that was left was a skeleton.

"Splash!"

The bones that were covered in blood and bodily fluids quickly splashed to the red sand as melted bone before completely vanishing.

Every Azure Wood Manor disciple was horrified.

When the purple-robed elder saw this, his eyes widened for he could not accept the fact.

He had been complacent just a moment ago, but now, it looked like he had aged greatly.

He…he really died!?

Did he make a mistake in his calculations? His original calculation was for them to take about a thousand steps to cross the Blood Desert. But now, one of them had died with just over ten steps. If they carried down this path, everyone would be dead before they left the Blood Desert.

At that moment, many people were looking at Yi Yun, who had his arms were crossed while looking calm. It was as if what had happened had nothing to do with him.

Was it a coincidence that Yi Yun had managed to predict the death of the burly youth just moments ago? But wouldn't it be too much of a coincidence?