Stranger Danger

“Spit! Spit! Spit!”

At a desert, Ye Qing crawled out of a patch of sand while spitting out the sand inside his mouth. He looked dazed and confused.

It was because of Li Hentian’s finger flick and the golden light currently stuck inside his head.

After Li Hentian had flicked him in the forehead, he had somehow crashed out of the Death Sea and fell from the sky. The next thing he knew, he had landed head first on sand.

With his strength, it shouldn’t have been too big of a problem for him to arrest himself or, at the very least, achieve a less awkward landing. However, Li Hentian’s finger flick hadn’t just blasted him out of the Demonbearer Abode and the Death Sea, but also stole his attention and his breath away. It was because it contained the greatest power he had ever seen in his life. If Li Hentian wanted to, he could’ve annihilated him in one finger.

The skill behind the “simple” gesture was also the greatest he had ever seen. Considering the power behind the finger flick, it would not be surprising if his head had exploded upon contact. In reality, he was just a little dizzy. There wasn’t even a red bump on his forehead. It was unbelievable.

Onto the next subject, the golden light Li Hentian had shoved into his head was none other than the “Three Origin Hammers”. He hadn’t received its techniques though. No, what he received was pure fist intent.

To be exact, the “Three Origin Hammers” had no techniques. It was all fist intent, one that was higher than the heavens and wider than the sea; rivaled by no one and defeated by none; capable of suppressing all things, break yin and yang, and annihilating even the cycle of reincarnation.

The fist intent of the “Three Origin Hammers” was immense and tyrannical as a matter of course. If Li Hentian hadn’t applied some restrictions to it beforehand, Ye Qing’s mind and soul might have disintegrated into nothing as soon as they made contact with it.

Even so, the “Three Origin Hammers’” fist intent was so potent that it disoriented him terribly. Right now, every inch of his headspace was filled with the fist intent, making him feel like someone had forced a mountain into his brain. His head felt heavy, full, swollen, and confused. It was extremely uncomfortable to put it mildly.

After sitting on the sand for heavens-know-how long, Ye Qing finally shook his head and became somewhat conscious of his surroundings.

Right now, space was shaking and distorting violently. Like a broken mirror, Countless cracks and holes were appearing on its surface, and the aura and energies leaking out of them could only be described as intimidating. The Death Sea was flowing into the cracks and shriveling at a visible rate.

In just a matter of moments, the seemingly infinite Death Sea had vanished completely. The holes and cracks then mended itself until it was as if nothing had ever happened. All that was left was a sky blue, boundless sky: quiet, tranquil, and beautiful.

“I guess it’s finally over.” Ye Qing sighed while looking up at the calm sky.

This had been a most perilous journey. More than once, he had nearly lost his life and passed onto the afterlife. In the end though, he did survive to see another day, and his gains were handsome to say the least.

Out of all of them, his two most noteworthy gains were:

One, breaking his bottleneck and becoming a Grandmaster, and even obtaining a wisp of Profound Yellow Mother Qi from the Profound Yellow Mother Qi Tribulation. The foundation of the future of his martial path was cemented thanks to it.

Two, obtaining the “Three Origins Hammers”. It was the art that Li Hentian had created after boiling down every martial art he learned into just one art, and he had personally witnessed its power with his own two eyes. It was absolutely one of the greatest fist arts in the world, and it would surely improve his combat strength dramatically.

Either one of these opportunities was something that could transform a person’s lives forever. To obtain both of them? He truly was blessed. It was a kind of luck he didn’t even dare to dream of obtaining such boons prior to entering the Death Sea.

It was all fate.

“It really was.”

Ye Qing lay down on the sand with his hands behind his head and stared blankly at the passing clouds for a bit, letting out a silly chuckle from time to time.

Giggle chose this moment to climb out of the Dragon Nursing Nest. Seemingly noticing Ye Qing’s good mood, it lay beside him in the same manner and giggled happily.

“Young master!”

“Joyless!”

About an incense stick later, several people appeared on the horizon and saw him lying leisurely on top of a sand dune. They immediately ran over to him and called out to him excitedly.

They were none other than Shangguan Hongjin, Pedant Earth, Mrs. Basket and Mountain Tunneling King.

“Are you alright, Joyless?” Shangguan Hongjin and Pedant Earth asked Ye Qing with concern.

Ye Qing rose to his feet and answered with a smile, “I am fine. Thank you for worrying about me.”

He too was relieved to find that everyone was safe and sound.

“What on earth happened in there, Joyless? Why did the Demonbearer Abode collapse out of seemingly nowhere?” Shangguan Hongjin asked after confirming that Ye Qing was indeed fine.

“We sensed several terrifying presences from the periphery. Was it a battle between champions that led to the collapse of the Demonbearer Abode?” Pedant Earth asked as well.

“You are correct.”

Ye Qing answered smilingly, “It was the battle between the Dark Overlord Li Hentian and Zongtian, one of the Six Ghosts and Gods of Fengdu, that led to its collapse!”

“E-excuse me? The Dark Overlord?”

“The Six Ghosts and Gods of Fengdu?”

The four warriors were stunned to hear this, of course. It was an understandable reaction. After all, these were true legends that usually only existed in myths!

“It’s like this…”

Ye Qing proceeded to summarize everything that happened in that chaotic, lawless place, though he did not mention Murong Xianxian, his relationship with her, or the fact that Li Hentian himself had gifted him his “Three Origins Hammer”. He portrayed himself as a bystander who had nothing to do with what was going on.

It was inevitable that his partially fake story had holes here and there, but since the four warriors were absorbed in the battle between Li Hentian and Zongtian, they did not notice a thing.

“Sigh. A shame. A shame! If only I could have met the Dark Overlord myself!” Shangguan Hongjin sighed regretfully after the long tale finally came to an end. Everyone else was more or less of the same opinion.

They would continue to chat for a bit before Shangguan Hongjin and Pedant Earth finally bade him goodbye.

After the duo were gone, Ye Qing waited for a bit longer but did not find the person he was waiting for. In the end, he let out a sigh and turned away, ordering, “Let’s go!”

He was waiting for Murong Xianxian not because he was plotting something, but simply because he wanted to thank her. If it wasn’t for her, he would not have obtained the “Three Origins Hammers”. In his opinion, he owed her a thanks at the very least. Unfortunately, it would seem that he would not be able to do so today.

It was fine though. Assuming that Murong Xianxian was fine, it was only a matter of time before they met again.

Unbeknownst to Ye Qing, he had just left the area when space twisted, and Murong Xianxian, Cui Qiuyuan and Qu Langhuan fell out of the sky.

After they landed, Murong Xianxian stared at the clear, blue sky above her head and did not say anything for a very, very long time.

Neither Cui Qiuyuan nor Qu Langhuan dared to disturb her.

A teatime later, Murong Xianxian finally jolted back to reality and composed herself. “Let’s go.”

Cui Qiuyuan chose his words carefully before asking, “Where should we go, miss?”

“Anywhere is fine. I would like to see what has become of the jianghu and wulin eight hundred years later.”

Murong Xianxian said slowly, “After that, I would like to visit the Li Hentian Palace. I won’t stand that menial, Yan Qingyan insulting the Dark Overlord’s good name[1].”

Qu Langhuan shuddered and turned a little white. She nodded. “As you command, miss!”

“Come!”

Murong Xianxian turned around and walked toward a certain direction. Cui Qiuyuan and Qu Langhuan exchanged a glance with each other before following her as well. They quickly disappeared into the desert.

……

Inside the Temple of Divination, a half-naked Li Longxian was practicing his fist. His vast vigor was like a furnace that warmed the courtyard and made it feel like spring.

Wen Shu was lying on a rocking chair, singing a small tune and sipping a gourd of wine. He looked extremely comfortable.

“Stop training already and come enjoy a cup of wine with me, Longxiang,” Wen Shu called out to the sweaty Li Longxian while enjoying another sip of wine.

Li Longxiang kept practicing his stances and punches despite Wen Shu’s offer. He did not even look back at the young man. “No can do. Senior uncle said that one should practice martial arts like they are treading on thin ice. They cannot grow lax or lazy even a little.”

1. Unfortunately, we won’t get to see this POV. Would’ve been nice. ☜

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