Chapter 163: Wake Up

　　“Yes! We will refine a few more! I’m sure we can save Master Yunxiao by feeding him enough Snow Pills!”

　　Zhang Qingfan was fuming. The fact that he, as a fourth-tier alchemist, could do nothing when Yunxiao, who was like a teacher to him, was dying had completely angered him.

　　“Hold on!”

　　Just when the two of them walked out of the cavern and planned to continue to refine more pills, Xiao Qingwang cried out suddenly, “Look, what is going on with the array!”

　　They hurried back to the cavern and saw the array had activated by itself, and was slowly rotating in a way that was more perfect than when they controlled it previously. Soon, it was running at its full capacity.

　　“What…what’s going on?” Both men were startled and completely confused at first, but the look on their faces turned to surprise when they saw the array begin to crazily absorb the surrounding Primordial Qi, convert it into the purest life force, and forcibly pour into Yunxiao and Meng Wu’s bodies.

　　In the beginning, it was like a trickling stream, but then it turned into a rushing river, and before long, both Yunxiao and Meng Wu were completely drowned by the almost corporeal life force. The crowd guarded around the array were struck dumb; they had never seen so much life force, and when they inhaled it, they immediately felt their minds become clearer and their spirits freshened.

　　After it was activated, the array ran continuously for one day and one night. It was only when the rushing life force began to gradually fade away that the crowd could see the situation inside the array: Yunxiao sat there with a calm face while Meng Wu was still in a coma.

　　Although Zhang Qingfan’s Snow pill did not fully recover Yunxiao, it restored a wisp of his divine sense. And as Divine Realm Tablet was his intrinsic mystic artifact, although he had not yet fully refined it, he could still control an array in it effortlessly. So, after his wisp of divine sense restored, he used it to activate and control the array and began to heal his injuries.

　　“Young Master Yun! “”Yunxiao! “Master Yunxiao!”

　　The crowd cried out almost simultaneously, and everyone had an overjoyed look on their faces. After the moment of joy, however, Luo Yunshang frowned and asked worriedly, “Why is Meng Wu…”

　　Yunxiao glanced at them and said calmly, “Her three spiritual souls were shattered by Xingyang Kun. Unless a Soul Nourishing Wood is found, she won’t wake up, no matter how strong her vitality is.”

　　“I see. At least there is a way to save her.” Luo Yunshang was relieved to hear that, but what really worried her was Yunxiao’s overly calm look, which was a kind of indifference toward everything. How could a boy who was only fifteen years old have such a calmness about him, as if he had experienced many vicissitudes of life, and indifference toward everything?

　　“Are you all right, Young Master Yun?” Xiao Qingwang could feel the cold as well, and he asked worriedly.

　　“I’m fine.” Yunxiao glanced at the crowd. Suddenly, his pupils constricted slightly, and his eyes flashed with a glimmer of pain. He tried his best to ask in a calm voice, “Where is my grandpa and Uncle Chen?”

　　Everyone was shocked, and for a moment, no one knew how to answer.

　　Li Changfeng swallowed hard and said, “Your grandpa is out there with…he.”

　　Yunxiao seemed to lose his spirit in an instant. With the loneliness and sadness that could no longer be concealed in his eyes, he said softly, “I see. I’ll go and see them.”

　　After saying that, he vanished from the cavern. The crowd wanted to follow, but Luo Yunshang stopped them. She sighed and said, “Let him go! Chen Dasheng died to save him. You should know how miserable he is at this moment.”

　　The crowd fell silent. Xiao Qingwang’s eyes gleamed as he suddenly turned and walked toward the depths of the cavern and said coldly, “Go and meditate now, all of you! Soon there will be tougher battles. I don’t want to see any of you leave like him in the next battle.”

　　Although they felt pain in their hearts too, they all had experienced the slaughter on the battlefield, and had lost many of their brothers and sisters in the past. So, they could still accept it. Upon hearing that, they stood up and started toward the depths of the cavern with a trace of hatred on their faces.

　　After coming out of the cavern, Yunxiao saw Li Chunyang drinking wine alone in front of a new grave on a hilltop.

　　“You’ve woken up?” He asked in surprise when he saw Yunxiao walk over, and then he said with a wry smile, “Do you know what is the most painful thing in life?”

　　Yunxiao rested his eyes on the grave and shook his head.

　　“Haha!” Li Chunyang burst into laughter with tears running down his face. “The most painful thing in life is that you can’t get drunk! I have never been drunk since I became a Martial King.”

　　A lonely look came over Yunxiao’s calm face. He closed his eyes slightly and said, “I will brew a pot of wine that can make you drunk the next time.”

　　There was no sunrise or sunset in the Divine Realm Tablet, but a cold wind was felt blowing constantly.

　　…

　　Under Hong Bing’s orderly command, the aftermath within Yanwu was quickly settled. The large pit in the center of the city was filled and the list of missing persons compiled.

　　Yunxiao glanced at the list. Most of the casualties were common people, but because the city was too densely populated, they were also many members of Dubhe and Merak. He gave the list to Wu Zishi and said, “I want all the sacrificed common people to be properly settled. The compensation must be paid to their families in a timely manner, and for those who don’t have immediate family members, their compensation must be paid to their relatives. As for the members of Dubhe and Merak, they will receive a hundred times more compensation, and I want you to personally send the money to their families.”

　　As for Chen Zhen, Yunxiao had sent him and Han Bai into the cavern and asked them to meditate there. He had once promised Chen Dasheng that he would help Chen Zhen become a Martial Lord in one year. Now that Chen Dasheng was dead, he had to fulfill the promise no matter what.

　　Wu Zishi bowed and hurried away. Meanwhile, Yunxiao turned to Jia Rong an asked, “How much have you borrowed?”

　　Jia Rong had returned just after the battle. He quickly stepped out of the rank and said, “Myriad Treasures Store lent us fifty thousand superior-grade Primordial Stones. Yin Zhaoyang said he is going to cultivate in seclusion, and most probably won’t show up for some time. Tianyuan Trading Company has lent us fifty thousand superior-grade Primordial Stones as well. Miss Ding Ling’er didn’t say anything except that they don’t have too many Primordial Stones available on hand right now, and can only lend us so much.”

　　Yunxiao snorted coldly. “That old codger Yin Zhaoyang is afraid I will pluck his hair again, so he hid himself. Hmph! He wants to curry favor with me, and yet he’s unwilling to invest. There’s no such good thing in the world! Send someone to tell him that if he doesn’t lend two hundred thousand superior-grade Primordial Stones to me, I will take it as if I never knew him! By that time, I will not entertain him even if he brings me two million or twenty million Primordial Stones!”

　　He was in a bad mood now. If it were at a normal time, he would just laugh it off, because the result was actually within his expectations. But, he was not so accommodating now. He thought he had done well with Yanwu’s defense and offense, but just a Martial Grandmaster was enough to wreak havoc in the city, and Chen Dasheng was even killed because of him.

　　“Ah? This…” Jia Rong was struck dumb, and beads of cold sweat began to drop down his forehead. Who would borrow money like that? He could already imagine the furious look on Yin Zhaoyang’s face when he would tell the latter that. The man was a Martial Grandmaster, and this demand was like a slap in his face.

　　But then, he suddenly recalled that a mighty Martial Grandmaster had just fallen over Yanwu, which he found extremely difficult to accept.

　　Right then, a servant came into the hall with a jade slip in his hand and said, “Just now someone gave me this and said it must be opened by the City Lord. The man vanished right in front of me after giving it to me.”

　　The servant was just a common mortal, and the so-called vanished man was most probably a warrior using a movement technique.

　　Yunxiao took the jade slip and sent his divine sense into it. With that, the information contained in it immediately emerged in his mind.

　　It was news from Tianyuan Trading Company. Surprisingly, they knew every detail of what had happened recently in Yanwu, and Ding Ling’er even included detailed information about the Xingyang family and the Supreme Palace, as if she knew what Yunxiao was thinking.

　　‘Hmph! It looks like this little girl doesn’t trust me. She is watching me so closely. But I can’t blame her, since she has invested so much in me,’ he thought to himself.

　　His original plan was to enter a secluded meditation, break through to the realm of Great Martial Masters, and then bring his men to attack the Xingyang family. But, after reading the news from Tianyuan Trading Company, he changed his plan slightly. He took out the invitation from Supreme Palace and gave it another look as he made up his mind. He turned to Hong Bing and said, “I’m going out. When Neng Feichen gets here, give these medicinal pills to him and bring him to the pill pagoda. I’ve already prepared three venues inside and created extremely harsh environments with arrays, which are more than enough to let the members of Dubhe, Megrez, and Merak cultivate at the same time. Teacher Luo Yunshang will be the leader of Dubhe for the time being. Tell her that when she comes out of her seclusion.”

　　After saying that, Yunxiao left Yanwu alone, heading in the direction of the Supreme Palace.

　　The area under Firecrow Empire’s jurisdiction was huge, but the land occupied by mortals was very small and mainly concentrated in major cities. Most of the land was occupied by mountain ranges that stretched endlessly. The Supreme Palace was situated in one such mountain range with excellent Primordial Qi. The sect did not have a long history, but it had risen rapidly, and it had become a famous power in Firecrow Empire in just a very short time.

　　To prevent Li Yi from recognizing him, Yunxiao had deliberately changed his appearance a little. No one could recognize him without looking at him carefully now.

　　“Slow down, brother! Are you going to the Supreme Palace to offer your congratulations?”

　　Yunxiao was walking leisurely in the mountain when a voice came from behind him. Soon, a man in white clothes came next to him with just a few leaps.

　　The man was a three-stars Martial Lord. He looked at Yunxiao in surprise as he smiled and asked, “Which sect are you from, brother? We can travel together.”

　　‘Travel together my ass! Supreme Palace is just a few steps up ahead, so why do we need to travel together?’ Yunxiao cursed in his head. But, he still put on a joyous look and said politely, “I’m Meng Bai from Dhyana Sect. May I know which sect are you from, brother?”

　　The man had a dubious look in his eyes when he heard that. He studied Yunxiao from top to bottom as he frowned and said, “You are here for the Supreme Palace’s celebration banquet?”