Chapter 211 - Entering the Forest
Chapter 211: Entering the Forest
In the past, Chen Jingzhai would never have thought about the relationship between different sects or clans.
However, after learning all the secrets from Fuyunzi in the Cloud Palace, he quickly realized that the relationship between the sects was closer than he thought.
They were all hidden branches that stood back up in the Dark Age.
Not only that, the masters or celestial beings of each clan were close friends as well.
Chen Jingzhai did have his reason to attack the disciples at Donglai County.
However, he had submitted to using threats during an expedition in an abandoned residence.
He went too far for doing that, and it wasn’t something a cultivator from a reputable celestial clan should do.
Technically, it wasn’t a huge matter since fights during an expedition were normal.
However, he was a Master-Uncle, and it seemed as if he was abusing his authority.
Chen Jingzhai felt awkward after hearing Miao Yun say that.
“So, you are saying that only disciples from both of our clans will be participating?” Sage Lu Tao asked.
“That is the case, but I’ve also invited disciples from the Elixir Twilight Clan.” Miao Yun smiled.
“They are willing to come?” Chen Jingzhai exclaimed.
“Celestial Maiden Han of the Elixir Twilight Clan is a good friend of mine.” Miao Yun nodded. “She’s a Golden Core Sage, so she can make the decision. Since she has already agreed to join us, she won’t go back on her words.”
“But isn’t that bad?” Sage Ji Shuanghua frowned. “We are supposed to travel through the Woods Ocean Ancient Path as a group. The risk will be much higher if we are separated.”
“There’s nothing I can do about it.” Miao Yun shook her head.
“Don’t worry about it,” Chen Jingzhai said confidently. “We’ll be fine even if there are three clans traveling together. The inheritance of a Spirit Plane cultivator is not for show.”
“Oh?” Miao Yun looked at the young man. “I’ve also heard that you managed to kill a lord in the Eastern Ocean? Looks like you are very confident now. Don’t tell me you can still use that ace of yours again?”
Chen Jingzhai smiled but did not reply to her.
However, she was right that he was confident.
Even if he didn’t have White Jade, Golden Flame, Lord Hailong, and the three spirit deities, he could still easily cut down a demonic monster since he had now mastered the sword’s will.
Miao Yun looked at him as if she was studying him but didn’t force him to answer her question.
She was even dumbfounded when she heard that Chen Jingzhai had slain Lord Yu.
However, she was convinced when she also heard that the young man was able to achieve the feat with the help of a deep-sea gigantic beast. In the end, no matter how powerful Chen Jingzhai was, he was still a Foundation Establishment Plane cultivator.
Yet, witnessing how confident Chen Jingzhai was, she couldn’t help but wonder if Chen Jingzhai was still hiding another ace up his sleeve, one that could even threaten a lord. She couldn’t ask him about it, so all she could do was take a guess.
None of the cultivators let their guards down as they chatted. Chen Jingzhai even used his divine to sense if there was any danger approaching while other Foundation Establishment Plane cultivators used probing bugs to do the same thing.
The puppets from the Luo Sheng Sword School had taken over the Pulao Kingdom by storm and became a hit product, especially the probing bugs, which were a favorite among cultivators. Disciples of celestial clans always carried one with them, especially when they were out on a journey.
Although they were traveling in a huge party, they couldn’t let their guards down as anything could happen inside the ancient path, even when they were still at the entrance.
They didn’t have to wait long for the cultivators from the Elixir Twilight Clan to arrive.
There were five of them as well. After a quick scan, Chen Jingzhai did not spot any disciples that had participated in the expedition to Lord Ning’s residence and let out a relieved sigh as he was saved from feeling awkward.
With a quick introduction from Miao Yun, Chen Jingzhai was able to get acquainted with three Golden Core Sages from the Elixir Twilight Clan.
“We’ve heard a lot about you, but you don’t seem as powerful as the rumors,” Sage Xu scoffed.
“You should save that for the monsters in the ancient path.” Chen Jingzhai ignored the disrespect the sage had shown. “Are you still resenting me because of what happened in the Eastern Ocean? People have already heard of how weak your disciples were. Do you want them to hear about how much of a sore loser you guys are too?”
“What did you say?” Celestial Maiden Zhao scolded.
“Calm yourself down, junior sister.” Celestial Maiden Han looked at Chen Jingzhai. “Master-Uncle is right. We shouldn’t stir up troubles if we don’t have the skills to back it up. We are going to be traveling partners while going through the ancient path as well.”
“It’s good that we can come to the same decision.” Chen Jingzhai nodded. “What happened in the Eastern Ocean is in the past. People will laugh at you for being such a sore loser if you still hold a grudge against that. Also, I’m sure that you ladies are here to solve our differences and get through the ancient path safely, right?”
“Master-Uncle is right.” Miao Yun agreed. “Let’s leave this for later. We still have things to do. We can’t let them reach the other side before us.”
The cultivators from the Elixir Twilight Clan didn’t argue with Chen Jingzhai after that. The atmosphere wasn’t as awkward as it was before anymore. Instead, they had all shifted their attention to the Woods Ocean Ancient Path in front of them.
In the end, they were all adults and would know when to drop their hatred for each other.
Even the Soaring Clouds Clan was able to forget about the grudge they had towards Chen Jingzhai, so it would be weird if the Elixir Twilight Clan didn’t.
Miao Yun also mentioned something important. It was that the other party, which consisted of cultivators from the Mystic Evil Clan, the Will Celestial Clan, and the Serenity Hollow Clan, had the lead.
There wasn’t a fixed path in the Woods Ocean Ancient Path, but they had the same destination, which was heading south.
Since there were two groups trying to reach the destination, it was natural that they wanted to get there first.
In the end, battles between clans, no matter what the content was, would never cease to exist.
The party quickly came to an understanding without having the need to converse with each other.
Naturally, Chen Jingzhai was the lead for the Luo Sheng Sword School.
The Elixir Twilight Clan was led by Celestial Maiden Han while Miao Yun would lead the Soaring Clouds Clan.
And with Chen Jingzhai’s suggestion, the party would advance with the Golden Core Sages, taking the lead and guarding the Foundation Establishment Plane cultivators.
Chen Jingzhai would stay in the far back.
To convince them, he had to tell them that he had mastered the Reversed Formation.
The others didn’t have a problem with that after learning that they had a formation master that could use the Reversed Formation staying in the back of the party.
The Reversed Formation of the Daoxuan Peak was unique and practical.
Even the sages felt safe knowing that someone from their party could use it.
Without any delay, they quickly proceeded into the ancient path according to the formation that Chen Jingzhai had arranged.
The Southern Woods Ocean was extremely vast.
A little further south from the castle was a flat forest.
It was thick and the end was not visible.
The east of the forest was the ocean bordered by a tall cliff.
The west of the forest was the largest mountain with all sorts of demonic beasts and barbarians residing in it.
Only the forest looked calm and safe.
However, that was just the beginning.
Poisonous bugs and plants in the forest could kill a mortal without them knowing what happened.
Even a cultivator had to be extremely careful when they entered the forest.
Celestial Maiden Han and Miao Fa took the lead while the Foundation Establishment Plane disciples followed closely behind them.
On one side of the disciples were Miao Yun and Celestial Maiden Zhao, whereas Sage Xu and Sage Lu Tao traveled on the other side. Sage Ji Shuanghua and Chen Jingzhai were in the back of the group.
Everyone kept a 2 feet distance from each other. Their feet never touched the ground. They would either travel by jumping from branches to branches or flying in the air as the disciples were able to do flying without consuming too much energy.
They would have flown above the forest towards the exit if they could, but the beasts and barbarians inside the forest would snipe them down.
No matter how high they fly, the beasts inside the forest would still be able to spot them and attack them, even if they were using magic treasures to fly. No powerful demonic beasts of demon kings would let cultivators fly over their heads.
Unless one had reached the Spirit Plane, they would never challenge the forest by flying over it.
The sects of the Pulao Territory were hidden branches of celestial clans listed inside the Immortal Alliance. They were backed by celestial beings, which was why they could travel through the forest without worrying about being attacked by the demonic beasts.
However, they still had to worry about attacks from assassins sent by other hidden branches. That was why the elders of Pulao Kingdom’s royals died on the snow mountain.
Since prolonged usage of the divine mind was exhausting, even the Golden Core Sages had started to use the probing bugs.
These bugs were only the size of a mosquito but could move twice as fast. The energy consumption was low, and it had a wide detection range which made it very convenient to use.
The cultivators traveling in the front, the sides, and the back all used probing bugs to ensure that they wouldn’t be surprised by any sudden attack.
However, just not long after they entered the forest, they spotted a lot of beasts in hiding.
All of them were Grade 1 demonic beasts, which made sense since they had just entered the forest.
Yet, that didn’t mean they could let their guards down.