Misty Rain of the Old Times

Yu Dingbo did not know Chen Xuan, but he knew more or less about him.

As the leader of the Dongdaolou sect, a major martial arts school, with such status and strength, he is already qualified to access certain things. Moreover, he manages a sect and has to find ways to understand many situations. Otherwise, a slight oversight could affect the future of the sect and the fate of thousands of people.

Therefore, he naturally learned something about Chen Xuan's situation.

Who is Chen Xuan? He is the brother of the top scholar, the fiancé of Princess Fuyao, the prospective son-in-law of the current emperor, Yang Guo who once briefly appeared in the desert with the cultivation of a grandmaster, and Huang Xiaochao who is suspected of slaughtering the entire Wu family in the capital last year!
Faced with Chen Xuan, how could Yu Dingbo not feel uneasy and excited? He was just the head of a martial arts sect, and the difference in their status and strength was too great; they were not even on the same level.

There is no conclusive evidence as to whether Chen Xuan is Huang Xiaochao, and no one dares to confirm it. Those who know about it consider it a taboo topic, fearing it might bring trouble upon themselves. However, his identity as Yang Guo is undeniable, because Chen Xuan personally admitted it at the Tai Xuan Sect not long ago, in front of so many people, and it quickly spread. Yu Dingbo naturally received the news immediately.

But that's all; the two sides have no relationship whatsoever.

Last year at Zhang Lanlan's house, Chen Xuan did not sit at the same table with them, nor did they even exchange any words. At that time, Chen Xuan did not directly acknowledge Zhang Lanlan, so he naturally did not take it to heart.

After learning about Chen Xuan's situation, he felt a pang of regret, realizing he had missed an opportunity to make his acquaintance.

Even though Zhang Lanlan was Yu Dingbo's wife's adopted daughter, and Chen Xuan and Zhang Lanlan had gone through hardships together when they were young, and had this relationship, once it was missed, it was missed. At this moment, he dared not try to climb the social ladder, and he still had to keep a low profile.

Even Shi Qingguan, the commander of the Quanzhou Military Control Bureau, had to bow his head and cooperate. How much more so would Chen Xuan? The difference in their levels was too great.

Speaking of Chen Xuan and Zhang Lanlan's shared hardships as children, Yu Dingbo thought to himself, "So many years have passed, and Chen Xuan didn't acknowledge me last year. Perhaps he no longer cares."

As for confirming that the Chen Xuan in front of him was the Chen Xuan he knew, his demeanor couldn't be faked; his intuition told him so, there was no other reason.

What kind of demeanor does Chen Xuan possess? He appears no different from an ordinary person, except for his outstanding and dazzling appearance.

But with all these accolades surrounding him, he's viewed through a biased lens. People just think he's different from everyone else. Who can he complain to?
"Sect Leader Yu, you flatter me. You are still as radiant as ever after half a year. If there is nothing urgent, why don't we sit down and have a chat?" Chen Xuan greeted him with a smile.

Although Chen Xuan didn't necessarily dislike dealing with people from the martial arts world, Yu Dingbo was, after all, Zhang Lanlan's godfather, so he had to give him that much face and put himself in the position of a junior.

Yu Dingbo was very tempted by Chen Xuan's invitation, especially by his attitude, which made him feel proud. However, he was still self-aware and did not take advantage of the situation. As the leader of a sect, he had his own style and would not engage in such flattery.

So he made an excuse, saying, "I have other matters to attend to, so I won't disturb Young Master Chen's enjoyment any longer. Please eat and drink well, and let me know if you need anything. I'll help you as much as I can. I'll take my leave now."

With that, he cupped his hands in greeting, took two steps back, and left without giving Chen Xuan a chance to stop him. As for the purpose of his visit, he naturally wouldn't mention it again. One should be grateful if this gentleman didn't cause trouble. If he wanted to say something, everyone, regardless of status or strength, would have to bow down and listen to him.

As Yu Dingbo left, he wondered to himself, "When did Young Master Chen and the others arrive? Could it be that he secretly helped them get through last night's ordeal? Young Master Chen is a Grandmaster; he must have such abilities. Otherwise, given the danger last night, there would have been far more than just such casualties."

It must be said that with his level of cultivation, his senses were quite sharp, and he almost guessed the truth.

But Chen Xuan didn't admit it, nor did he dare to ask, lest he make a fool of himself and it become awkward if it turned out to be wrong.

Seeing him leave, Chen Xuan felt helpless and could only sit down and continue eating and drinking. He had originally wanted to ask Zhang Lanlan how she was doing lately.

"Does Master Yu know you?" Du Juan asked curiously.

Chen Xuan laughed and said, "I wouldn't say we know each other, we've only met once. You know Zhang Lanlan, right? I've mentioned before that he's Zhang Lanlan's godfather, so we're somewhat related. He's a very good person, clear about right and wrong, and his loyalty is impeccable."

Although he wasn't familiar with Yu Dingbo, Chen Xuan still gave him full credit for his character. Putting aside everything else, Zhang Lanlan's father had saved Yu Dingbo's wife by chance back then, and the Zhang family took off afterward. Yu Dingbo and his wife would visit him in person every year. How bad could such a kind and righteous person be?

“Miss Zhang, Master has mentioned it many times,” the little maid nodded, then thought of something and chuckled to herself, “According to the development in the storybooks, Master and Miss Zhang had such experiences when they were young, there should be a touching story between them, but now it seems like they have forgotten each other in the world. Doesn’t Master think it’s a pity?”

"The only certainty in life is the uncertainty of life itself. An unexpected encounter in childhood can bind you for life. Such a thing is one in ten thousand. It just so happens to happen to me. To be free from suffering and live a peaceful life is the best outcome," Chen Xuan said with a shake of his head and a smile.

He then flicked the little girl on the forehead and said, "Zhang Lanlan is already married and has children. Roujia, don't talk nonsense, or it will damage her reputation."

"I'm sorry, sir, I misspoke," the little maid quickly admitted her mistake.

Chen Xuan smiled and said, "It's alright, just don't make jokes like that again."

Du Juan, watching the young girl from the side, exclaimed in astonishment, "To forget each other in the rivers and lakes—such simple words, yet they encompass so much. I never imagined that Sister Roujia would possess such literary talent!"

"No, I just overheard the master mention it by chance and it just slipped out. It wasn't anything literary," the little girl quickly waved her hand.

After eating and drinking his fill and tidying up a bit, Chen Xuan didn't plan to stay at the camp and explore the place with everyone. Instead, he prepared to act alone.

Chen Xuan wasn't particularly curious about this magical place. There was nothing he urgently needed or had anything to do here. He would just take a quick look and leave. He had already obtained the materials and needed to go back to study the formation. He wouldn't force himself to do anything if he didn't learn anything from wandering around.

As he prepared to leave the camp with the little girl and try to explore the boundaries of this place, he noticed someone waiting not far away. Chen Xuan nodded and said, "May I ask what advice you may have for me?"

The visitor was Shi Qingguan, the commander of the Quanzhou branch of the Imperial Guard. Yu Dingbo, who had left not long ago, informed him of Chen Xuan's arrival, and he rushed over without stopping, temporarily putting everything else aside.

Seeing Chen Xuan, he didn't dare to disturb him directly and hesitated, unsure of how to start a conversation. However, Chen Xuan took the initiative to speak.

Upon hearing this, Shi Qingguan quickly stepped forward with a mix of excitement and trepidation, preparing to kneel on one knee and say, "This humble servant, Shi Qingguan, greets Young Master Chen." Chen Xuan was just a commoner with no official position, but regardless of his cultivation level, he was a member of the imperial family. As a lackey of the court, Shi Qingguan addressed Chen Xuan as "this humble servant."

If this guy doesn't come here to say hello, he probably won't be able to work within the system anymore.

He gestured to stop him from kneeling, but Chen Xuan didn't care for such formalities. He said directly, "Lord Shi, there's no need for that. Is there something you need from me?"

"I dare not. I have only come to ask if Young Master Chen has given any instructions," Shi Qingguan quickly replied, unable to kneel down and not daring to insist.

Chen Xuan said speechlessly, "What instructions could I possibly give? Isn't things chaotic enough, Lord Shi? Do you need me to cause you more trouble?"

People in officialdom would go to pay their respects when they learned of the appearance of an important figure, but Chen Xuan was still unaware of the change in his status.

Shi Qingguan replied nervously, "Young Master Chen is too kind. This humble servant would not dare to disturb you. I will take my leave now. If you have any instructions, please do so. We will do our utmost. I will take my leave now."

He wisely left, no longer daring to continue his attempts to flatter, lest he make things worse. Since this person didn't make a high-profile appearance, it was better to avoid trouble.

Chen Xuan was both amused and exasperated. What was going on? It seemed like everyone was restless and couldn't eat or sleep without being told what was happening.

"Master is really amazing," the little girl suddenly exclaimed.

Under Chen Xuan's questioning gaze, she suddenly realized and said, "No matter where Master goes, people treat him with utmost respect. In the capital, at the Tai Xuan Sect, and here, isn't that impressive?"

"Come on, what am I? People are only afraid of my status and strength. People like Xiao Gao are truly powerful. They admire his knowledge from the bottom of their hearts. I am far from being as good as him. Let's go, let's take a look around first," Chen Xuan said, shaking his head. He didn't know the exact location of this magical place, so he randomly chose a direction and led them straight away from the camp, wanting to explore whether they could reach the border.

The direction we left was towards the back of the camp. My subconscious thought was that since this was the entrance and exit, the back would be closer to the border, provided that there was a border in this area.

As they sped through the air, the little girl, who had been taught many lessons about feeling unwell, subconsciously closed her eyes, thinking to herself that everyone earned their respect through their own abilities, so why did the master think they were inferior to Young Master Gao?
In the camp, Shi Qingguan, who was constantly keeping a close eye on Chen Xuan and his group, was slightly stunned as he looked in the direction they left. They're gone already? He had prepared for everyone to cooperate with Chen Xuan's every move, but they left without saying a word.

In this way, the pressure from Chen Xuan was gone, but an opportunity to make friends with influential people was lost.

'As expected of a Grandmaster, we are walking on thin ice in such a dangerous place, but Young Master Chen can go wherever he wants without worrying about danger at all,' Shi Qingguan thought with great envy.

Having experienced the perilous events of last night, he made a decisive decision: he had to immediately send someone to report to the capital. There was a severe shortage of manpower. With the people here, let alone exploring and utilizing the resources of this place, it would be difficult to even protect themselves. If something like what happened last night happened again, their survival would be in serious question.

Moreover, with a continuous stream of people arriving, managing this small workforce is already a problem.

Currently, everyone is only banding together and following orders because they are facing the unknown. As time goes on and they become more familiar with the environment, they will be harder to manage. Furthermore, as the news spreads, won't all the major sects, both righteous and evil, be curious about this place? There are also many other forces from other countries. If we are not careful, something big could happen. Shi Qingguan alone is not enough to keep things under control.

He had already planned to report this to the capital and immediately sent people to make arrangements. Someone should arrive within a day at the earliest, but who would it be? The Commander-in-Chief of the Imperial Guard, or someone directly under the Ministry of War? Would it alarm His Majesty and warrant a personal decree?

Chen Xuan, who had already tried, stopped worrying about how high the sky was, figuring it was probably too high for him to reach. He was in no hurry to find the boundary with the little girl and the others, but their speed was not slow as they sped through the air.

The dense forest formed by giant trees hundreds of feet tall was vast and boundless. Chen Xuan occasionally used the treetops for support and traveled thousands of miles without seeing any sign of its boundary.

The dense forest below was teeming with countless dangerous creatures. Although he hadn't observed them closely, Chen Xuan sensed that there were countless beasts comparable to the Innate Realm of Martial Arts. He even felt a faint sense of danger in several places, which were definitely comparable to the Grandmaster Realm!
Not being overly curious, Chen Xuan selectively avoided the topic.

What kind of place is this? It's not only vast and boundless, but it also has so many powerful creatures.

"If the forest below were outside, I imagine we wouldn't see the city's perimeter being completely cleared of trees," Du Juan suddenly remarked, looking ahead.

The reason it's in front and not below is because her chest is so high that you can't see her toes when she looks down.

Chen Xuan was speechless and said, "On the way to the young master's house back then, Zhang Xiuniang said something similar, saying that the forests were cut down just for firewood. Why did Sister Juan also express a similar sentiment?"

"Last year, I left the Shadow Killing Sect and went to Yang County to try to live an ordinary life. After a while, although I didn't adapt well, I also came to understand the hardships of ordinary people. Firewood is the most important thing. Now, seeing this vast forest, I felt compelled to write this. I hope you will forgive my rudeness, sir," Du Juan said apologetically.

Shaking his head, Chen Xuan said, "If this dense forest were outside, I'm afraid very few people could survive."

"Why?" the little girl with her eyes closed suddenly asked.

Chen Xuan said, "Because there are too many dangerous creatures inside. Take the six-legged creatures we've seen, for example. In the thousands of miles of dense forest we've passed through, there are dozens of them on almost every tree. What attacks the camp is just a drop of water in the ocean. Just think about it, if such a terrifying dense forest were outside, would there still be room for people to survive?"

"Is it that terrifying?" the little girl exclaimed in surprise. With her shallow cultivation and Chen Xuan's protection, she had no idea how terrifying the place was.

During their conversation, they traveled tens of thousands of miles in a straight line, yet still saw no sign of the boundary!
This shocked Chen Xuan. It made no sense at all. Such a vast space, with an area that definitely exceeded the entire territory of the Jing Kingdom, and the key point was that it was underground. There was no 'sky collapsing'. How could this be reasonable?

"Master, look what that is!" Du Juan suddenly exclaimed, her heart pounding.

Chen Xuan, of course, was even more eager to discover what was ahead than she was, and had already stopped and stood atop a large tree.

Ahead of them and in the distance, a dark cloud blotted out the sun, surging like a tide, yet emitting a chilling buzzing sound… (End of Chapter)