Minglong

Chapter 165 Walking the Dragon (Seeking monthly votes or 2)

The seventh day of the fourth month in the fifth year of Jingning.

Weizhou Sanchagang.

Like the frosty moonlight spilling across the hills, a procession of over twenty people traveled south along the official road. Their guards and servants gathered around the carriage, listening to the clear, sorrowful voice emanating from within:

"My hair stands on end in fury! Leaning against the railing..."

"Gugujiji..."

"Raise your eyes! Let out a long roar to the sky..."

"Chi chi chi chi..."

……

The carriage was lit, and a plump, middle-aged official, gripping the window with one hand, gazed at the receding Central Plains, tears streaming down his face, and couldn't help but say:
"Alright, alright, Father is being transferred to Ruizhou, not exiled to Lingnan..."

"Ruizhou is Lingnan, and Lingnan is Ruizhou!"

A fifteen or sixteen-year-old boy in white, teasing a little black bird, sighed deeply.

“Old Deng, you know, this official job is a nightmare. After more than ten years, I haven’t climbed any higher, and I’ve even fallen down! The capital is full of beauties, and I finally made it to adulthood, but I haven’t been able to find a wife. What am I going to do when I go to Lingnan? They’re all witches and witches there…”

The middle-aged official rolled down the carriage window, picked up a small wine cup, and took a sip:
"There are advantages to being a vixen. With my son's looks and physique, he's destined to be surrounded by beauties wherever he goes, isn't that right, Bird Deng?"

"Gooji!"

The young man seemed a little smug:
"That's true. Don't worry, a son is raised for a thousand days and used for one. I've already learned a lot. Although I'm not an expert in anything, I can do a lot. If I were to meet a princess or a fairy, they would definitely be dazzled by me. Then, my son and I could ride on that high branch and make a comeback..."

The middle-aged official teased, "You're all talk. You only saw the back of Fairy Nangong when you were seven or eight years old, and you still think about her to this day. Yesterday, I passed through Danzhou and asked you to go to Zihui Mountain to pay your respects, but you were too embarrassed to go..."

The young man waved his hand: "That's a venerable elder from the mountain peak. What could a little brat like me do there? I'll go when my martial arts are fully developed..."

"Sigh, I could have just taught you the same thing from elementary school, but you had to insist on saying something like 'crushing the local natives.' If you had focused on martial arts and Taoist cultivation, you'd be a direct descendant of the Purple Mountain Sect at the very least..."

The middle-aged official, having said this, lowered his voice and said:
"Speaking of which, Imperial Physician Lin of the Imperial Medical Academy is looking for a son-in-law who will live with him. The girl is a few years older than you, but she is extremely wealthy and exceptionally beautiful..."

The young man frowned:
"With immense wealth and unparalleled beauty, how could she not get married? I'm a grown man, how could I possibly marry into her family..."

……

During this casual conversation, the carriage suddenly jolted, and outside came the neighing of a spirited horse and the shouts of servants:
"what is that?"

"Monster...monster..."

"Run!"

The young man lifted the curtain, only to see billowing black mist rising from the dim forest, rapidly approaching the carriage. In an instant, it engulfed a guard who went to investigate, followed by screams and flashes of blood.
"what--"

The middle-aged official's expression changed drastically, but he didn't seem too surprised by the demon's attack. He grabbed his official sword and rushed out of the carriage with the young man.
"You're after Dad, get out of here!"

The young man had lived in the family of a county magistrate since childhood, studying and honing his skills. He rarely left the capital and had never seen the overwhelming ghostly fog or the flying limbs and splattering blood.
After a brief moment of shock, the young man regained his senses, grabbed the black bird, leaped onto his white horse, and pulled back the middle-aged official who was trying to rush forward to stop the monster:
"Run! How many times can you hold them off..."

The guards offered almost no resistance and were swallowed by the black mist, turning into pieces. One could hear the thunderous footsteps of ferocious beasts and the strange, excited, bloodthirsty roars, like tigers howling in the forest.

"Roar--!"

The middle-aged official turned pale, gritted his teeth, and still drew his sword and leaped onto the white horse.

"drive--"

Hoof-tapping hoof-tapping...

The young man rode his horse at full speed through the forest, anxiously asking:
Why is this monster coming at us?

The middle-aged official, sword in hand, watched as the ghostly mist swiftly slaughtered his servants and said urgently:
"On the day the palace was haunted, I had a stomachache and was taking a dump in the mountains when I saw He Man and He Hai sneaking around with someone from behind the mountain. I wasn't sure if it was the Crown Prince, and I was afraid the He family would kill me, so I didn't dare to say anything..."

"Hurry up!"

Knowing he was doomed, the young man spurred his horse onward in a frenzy. But the shadowy figure behind him, having killed his servants, caught up almost instantly, like a tiger or wolf biting a horse's tail. He desperately tried to stab the horse with his dagger to accelerate, but the pursuer only got closer.

ding ding ding...

The sound of metal clashing came from behind, and occasionally a burst of energy would whistle past the horse's side. After several such incidents, the spirited horse beneath him let out a painful neigh and fell to the ground.

Before falling, the white-clad youth grabbed the Heavenly Mace. He crashed into the mud, feeling dizzy and disoriented. Before he could even get up, he was grabbed around the waist and thrown forward.

But after lunging forward for only a few feet, a sound came from behind:
puff--

A cool sensation came from my chest, but no pain yet, and time seemed to slow down in the whole world.

As the young man fell, he glanced at his chest and saw a section of the spearhead protruding from his chest, blood quickly staining his white clothes...

chap——

The spear was quickly withdrawn, spurting out a jet of blood.

The figure leaning against him also broke free, pushing him forward, then turned back, sword in hand, and roared like a lion:

"drink--!"

The young man fell to the ground, then scrambled to his feet, using his Heavenly Mace as a crutch. Turning around, he saw a middle-aged man in official robes, his left hand gripping the spear shaft piercing his chest, raising his sword to slash forward, frantically urging him on:

"Run! Run!"

The figure holding the gun was a man in black wearing a cloak, his muscles bulging like a giant's. Blood flowed from the gun into his right hand, and his eyes under the cloak looked at the young man with a mocking gaze, seemingly not minding that his prey took the first two steps.

"call……"

Blood gushed from the young man's chest and back. He turned around, carrying the Thirty-Six-Section Heavenly Mace. His handsome features were now contorted into a ferocious demon. He staggered forward, the blood gushing from his chest and back gradually staining the Thirty-Six-Section Mace red.

"Chi chi chi——"

The little black bird flew down, grabbed the young man's collar, and tried to pull him back.

But the young man's eyes held a resentment and murderous intent strong enough to intimidate even ghosts and gods, and he strode forward, letting out a trapped beast's roar:
"drink--"

puff~
The cloaked man in black simply drew his gun and thrust it forward, piercing the young man's chest and abdomen. He slid backward, blood flowing from the gun into his arm.

"This murderous intent... he's a promising candidate for the demonic path. It's a pity the orders are to eliminate him completely... eh?"

As they were talking, the young man stopped his retreat, leaned forward, and forcefully passed through the spearhead with his chest and abdomen, lunging forward along the shaft to smash a mace into the cloaked man's head.

thump—

Black Hawk, as if possessed, lunged at the man in black's face.
But the cloaked figure didn't react at all. He simply swept the black eagle aside and methodically absorbed the blood energy of the young man, his eyes looking at him as if he were looking at a fanged ant.

thump—

thump—

The young man, with a spear piercing his chest, wielded the Heavenly Mace with all his might, smashing it against the figure's head, but it was all like throwing an egg against a rock.

The man in black with the gun initially didn't care, but halfway through, his eyes flickered, and he raised his hand to grab the Heavenly Mace that was being thrown at him.

Looking up, one could see that this weapon seemed to have seen blood for the first time in sixteen years, with blood slowly seeping into the two characters "Tian Gang" on the mace, but there was no flow of energy or other abnormalities.

"It looks like a special magical artifact. This is quite an unexpected bonus..."

The man in black pulled back, trying to snatch the Heavenly Mace for a closer look.

But the Heavenly Mace of the Round-Tailed Beast seems to be welded to the young man's right hand.

Looking up, the young man so close to her had a murderous intent swirling in his left eye, like a ferocious beast on the verge of death.

His right eye was unusual; it felt no pain whatsoever, as if a deity from the heavens was peering out at the world through that pupil.

The cloaked gunslinger met that eye, and it was like a grain of sand facing a god or demon; his body froze instantly, and he didn't move an inch.

Meanwhile, on the other side of the pupil.

Beneath a mountain range whose peaks pierce the sky and whose ridges stretch across the vast ocean.

A giant crystal sphere floats in the abyss, which seems to be a void, displaying scenes of light and shadow.

The abyss was silent, devoid of any visible scenery, save for two large eyes staring at the crystal ball, their gazes like those of a mountaintop succubus just awakened, who even yawned.

"Mmm~~ I slept so comfortably..."

"This little bug is a bit fierce. It looks like a martial arts prodigy. I wonder if, if I raise it properly, it can dig my sister out of this boring place..."

"But he's dying soon, and there's still a long way to go..."

……

The voice was like a god's whisper, echoing in the abyss.

Then the image on the crystal ball changed, rapidly shrinking to reveal the entire Sanchagang and Weizhou area.

Above the clouds, a tiny figure, like a grain of millet, could be seen riding the wind as it flew over Weizhou and sped northward.

"Oh my~ This little bug looks pretty powerful, to the left, to the left~..." The voice was like the whisper of an ancient god!

The figure inside the crystal ball was caught off guard and dodged a hundred feet to the side. Looking around at the sea of ​​clouds, it was quite bewildered. After a moment of hesitation, it tentatively flew to the left.

And inside the three-way intersection.

The man in black with the gun stared at the boy's strange right eye, which seemed to be facing a god or demon, and stood frozen in place.

The middle-aged official lay in a pool of blood, instinctively staring blankly at the young man who had been pierced by a spear.

The young man gripped the gun barrel, staring at the cloaked figure in front of him, his eyes filled with rage and a hint of confusion.

But just a moment later, the sound of wind breaking suddenly came from the sky:
call--

The sound grew louder as it approached. The middle-aged official looked up and saw a golden light piercing through the clouds and plummeting down, stopping a few feet away from the three of them!
The figure did not land, but hovered in the air, wearing golden armor and a mask on its face. Only its long, wine-red hair could be seen flowing behind it. After glancing around slightly, it raised its right hand in a clenched fist.

bang——

The cloaked gunslinger, stunned and speechless, hadn't even reacted when he and his gun exploded into a cloud of ashes, which were scattered by the wind and vanished without a trace.

Thump~
The young man lost his support and collapsed to his knees, blood gushing from his chest and back. He looked at the golden-armored deity, his eyes filled with indescribable shock.

"cough……"

The middle-aged official, his mouth and nose filled with blood, struggled to his feet and rushed to the young man's side.

"God, save my son's life! Save my son's life!"

Upon hearing the words, the young man looked down at his chest and saw that his robes were soaked with blood. He felt no pain, only an overwhelming sense of powerlessness, and collapsed to the ground.

The golden-armored deity, his long, wine-red hair flowing in the wind, his face obscured by a mask, gazed down at the father and son below:
"Why did you call me here?"

The young man thought for a moment, then tossed some of the Heavenly Mace in his hand outwards:

"Ahem... it should be this one. The vendor said it's an ancient divine weapon, a weapon used by the Human Emperor, which he gave to the Fairy Sister..."

The Heavenly Mace rolled several times before reaching the golden-armored deity.

The golden-armored deity slightly raised his right hand, and the long mace flew into his hand. He briefly examined the two characters 'Tian Gang', then gripped them with both hands and forcefully broke them.

As a result, the iron mace remained perfectly rigid, without bending in the slightest.

"Ha~"

The sound was clearly one of surprise.

The golden-armored deity sheathed his Heavenly Mace and tossed out a pill box with a flick of his wrist:
"I'm not a god, I only have one life-saving pill on me, you..."

The words were cut off abruptly before they could be finished.

The young man looked barely breathing, but he reacted quickly, grabbing the pill box, taking out the yellow pill, and stuffing it into the middle-aged official's mouth.

The middle-aged official, riddled with wounds in his chest and abdomen, was barely breathing. It was too late for him to vomit; his mouth was covered, and he could only struggle to utter:

"Ugh——!"

The pills melted instantly upon entering the mouth, and the bleeding from the wounds on the chest and abdomen stopped almost instantly, even showing signs of healing. The person then fell into a deep sleep.

"Hey?!"

The young man, seeing that Shang's wound had healed, was overjoyed. He hugged the official and collapsed to the ground, gazing at the celestial beings in the sky.

"Thank you. Thank you, Fairy Sister... for sending my father away... and this eagle too. The merchant said it's a Black-Winged Roc, very intelligent, and that it can eat dragons when it grows up... if dragons exist in this world..."

His voice grew weaker and weaker, and blood almost stained his entire body.

"Gurgle!"

Black Hawk sensed that his master's life was hanging by a thread, and frantically shook his head, trying to evoke even a shred of sympathy from the golden-armored god.

The golden-armored figure hovered in the air, watching the young man gradually lose his life force. After a long silence, the figure slowly landed and raised his right hand.

Call ~
Golden-red blood energy could be seen seeping from the five fingers of his right hand, forming a line that flowed into the young man's chest, and the Heavenly Mace was also stuck in the young man's side:
"I know why you called me here. Here's your stuff back. If you want revenge or to repay a debt of gratitude, head south after you recover."

As the young man's wounds gradually healed, a mixture of anger and surprise appeared in his eyes:
"Where...where am I going?"

“I don’t know either. Keep going south, don’t stop, until you reach the ends of the earth. If you die on the way, it means you are not destined for Him, and I will take care of your family. If you meet Him and come back alive, I will make you a king.”

After the golden-armored deity finished speaking, he slightly raised his left hand, and the unconscious middle-aged official floated up, hovering beside him, before riding the wind and gradually disappearing into the clouds.

The young man, leaning on his Heavenly Mace, rose, touched his chest, and then looked up at the celestial being in the sky:

"I'll definitely come back alive. Where will I find the fairy sister then?"

"Yanjing".

As soon as he finished speaking, the figure vanished into thin air, leaving only a pile of wreckage and a person and a bird in the forest.

The young man gazed at the night sky for a long time before turning his gaze away, looking around, and then walked to the little white horse that had fallen to the ground and was neighing.

The little white horse had a large hole cut in its waist and abdomen, its internal organs spilling out, and it was only breathing faintly.

The young man remained silent for a moment, then, after a brief hesitation, covered the horse's eyes with his blood-stained sleeve and raised his Heavenly Mace:

"Sleep well. I will kill the entire He family and avenge you and everyone else."

bang~
The mournful cries ceased, and the forest returned to silence.

The young man took the mace sheath from the side of the horse, clutched his chest, and walked south. The little black bird landed on his shoulder, and the man and the bird gradually disappeared into the depths of the mountains and forests.

And once they started walking, they went a long way.

It passes through Weizhou, Huzhou, Ningzhou, and Ruizhou.

With no money for the journey, the young man could only rely on his foundation as an eighth-rank martial artist to deal with the ninth-rank thugs and confiscate their illegal gains along the way, making his life quite difficult.

After passing through Zhennanguan and arriving in southern Xinjiang, life became a little better.

The southern border is teeming with evil spirits and heretics, whose methods are becoming increasingly sophisticated. As long as they are not eaten, they will eat whoever they catch. Both people and birds have grown a bit fatter.

However, after venturing deeper into the southern borderlands, the vast land was sparsely populated, and there were no fellow cultivators with whom he could confide. Monsters roamed everywhere and could devour people, so life became difficult again, and he became skin and bones.

The young man didn't know where he was going or who he was looking for; he simply headed south.

It was a year later when they finally crossed the endless mountains and rivers of southern Xinjiang, traversed the Fire Phoenix Plain, and arrived at the coast of the South China Sea.

Although he was only seventeen, he looked like a rough man in his thirties.

With nowhere else to go, the young man could only follow the coastline until he finally arrived at Phoenix Harbor.

Phoenix Harbor is the territory of the Witchcraft Cult, and the host is Sikong Tianyuan. Their main business is smuggling medicinal herbs to various countries via sea.

The young man pretended to be a laborer and, under the cover of night, without anyone watching, sailed alone in one of the bandits' small boats, which was loaded with goods, towards the South China Sea.

At the time, there were thugs chasing them, but once they were far from the coast and faced with the treacherous South China Sea, they gave up.

The young man sailed south with the help of a compass for no less than two months, without seeing a piece of land, an island, or a living person. In the end, he couldn't even see a single bird.

With food and water in dire straits, a return trip was impossible, and in their desperate moment, they were struck by a raging storm.

The storm battered the small boat down to a single broken plank, and when he awoke, he was lying alone at the ends of the earth.

He gave all the food to the little black eagle, hoping it could fly out of the endless ocean. He looked at the towering waves in the distance and the thunderclouds gathering again, feeling fear, helplessness, and despair, but no regret.

After all, he and his father should have died in Sanchalin, but they were blessed by heaven and survived.

He heeded the instructions and never stopped pursuing the power of revenge and gratitude until his death.

After enduring 30,000 miles of wind and frost, I still haven't met the person the immortals spoke of. I can only say that I lack the destiny to seek immortality and ask the Dao; this is my fate.

Boom——

The ship's planks were overturned by the towering waves and sank into the endless ocean.

The young man sank into the deep sea...

……

---

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(End of this chapter)