Chapter 49
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After leaving the bloody city, Liang Chen found himself seeing a strange sight. He was seeing the inside of his own body, but it was slightly different from how he usually saw the inside of his own body when he checked his Ascended Tower. He could see his own veins, his blood, his bones, even the electricity that flowed through his body and sent signals to his brain was laid bare before him.
Other than the normal electricity that flowed in everyone's bodies, Liang Chen also saw three other streams flow through his body, moving through his veins. One stream was a dazzling golden in color, crackling with lightning, the second stream was emerald green, a faint mist lingering around it as it moved.
Liang Chen could easily guess that these two streams were his lightning and poison element, but when it came to the third stream, Liang Chen had no idea what it might be. The third stream was the largest of the three, almost twice as large as his lightning and poison element. It was almost completely translucent, a faint gray in color.
Liang Chen felt like he could interact with these three streams, so he probed them with his mind. The gray stream didn't listen to him at all, not even responding, seemingly asleep. The golden stream, however, slowly reacted to his probing, leaving his veins and moving into his flesh and bones.
Liang Chen thought that since the golden stream was his lightning element, there was no problem with introducing it into his flesh and bones. But the moment the stream left his veins, he could feel horrendous pain overtaking his body, threatening to tear him out of the strange state he was in. More than just feeling painful, it felt wrong, as if he had made a mistake. He quickly recalled the golden stream, swiftly inspecting the area where it had made contact with his flesh.
To his surprise, the flesh that had made contact with the stream had grown a tiny bit stronger. It was nearly unnoticeable, but it had unmistakably grown stronger. Liang Chen thought that it was similar to the technique he had come up with after being forced to flee from Green Rivers city, the technique where he used his own lightning to toughen up his body.
But upon closer inspection, it seemed that it wasn't completely correct. The technique he himself had come up with only toughened up his body, but looking at that tiny piece of affected flesh, it had not only grown tougher but also stronger and more flexible. It was clear that what had just happened was much more thorough than his old technique, much more useful.
But when he thought back to how it felt like he had done it wrong, as well as the horrendous pain that it brought, Liang Chen felt that now wasn't the time to attempt it again, he needed to first figure out what he had done wrong.
The last stream he probed with his mind was the emerald stream. Just like he did with his golden stream, he didn't give it any proper orders, he just touched it ever so slightly with his mind. And just like the previous one, this stream also moved on its own. But rather than move into his flesh and blood, the emerald stream flowed to his chest, to an empty spot next to his heart.
Just as Liang Chen was wondering what it was going to do, a small piece of the emerald stream vanished. And as that small piece vanished, Liang Chen's vision cracked and shattered like glass, a feeling that he had done something horrendously wrong flooding his body. A pain unlike any he had ever felt before assaulted his mind. Far worse than any physical pain he had ever felt before, this pain felt like it threatened to drive his mind into madness and insanity.
The pain vanished quickly, after only half a second. But to Liang Chen, it felt like he had suffered hours of torture. His vision started to slowly repair itself, the shattered pieces reconnecting. Once his vision was no longer cracked, and he was certain that there wouldn't be another bout of that nightmarish pain, he let out a mental sigh of relief, his thoughts moving. Could it be that the emerald stream had accidentally come into contact with his soul, the very essence of his being? There was no one that could answer that question for Liang Chen, so he could only put the question aside.
As Liang Chen returned to inspecting the inside of his body, learning how it worked, he suddenly felt something touch him. It felt like something soft was repeatedly touching his cheek, gently poking it. While he was trying to figure out what it was he felt, faint voices suddenly reached his ears.
"Didn't I tell you to stop poking him while he is unconscious?"
The voice sounded distant, but Liang Chen was able to tell that it belonged to Yan Ying. His cheek continued to be poked, so Liang Chen tried to force his body to move and wake up. As he did so, another voice rang out, this one much closer.
"But he just spasmed, so I thought he might be waking up!"
The voice belonged to Yan Ling, and as it sounded out, the speed at which his cheek was poked increased, so it was likely she who was responsible for the sensation. Liang Chen continued to try and force himself awake, Yan Ling giggling slightly as she continued to poke his unconscious body.
"And besides, his cheeks feel so tingly, like there are tiny bolts of lightning running through it. It's surprisingly comfortable."
After feeling his cheek get poked for a little over a minute, Liang Chen was finally able to force his body to move, immediately leaving the strange state he had been in and opening his eyes. He saw an unfamiliar wooden roof above him as he opened his eyes, he also saw Yan Ling sitting right next to him, her finger still touching his cheek as he woke up. She quickly pulled back her finger, acting like nothing had happened as she called out to Yan Ying.
"See, I told you that he might be waking up! Little Freak's already up!"
At first, Yan Ying thought that she was just joking, but then he actually saw Liang Chen sit. While Yan Ying was walking over to him, Liang Chen took the chance to inspect the room he was currently in. The room was a few meters in width and length, contained two normal-sized beds, two large closets, a single round table, four chairs, as well as two small tables placed next to the two beds. Yan Ying placed a chair next to the bed Liang Chen sat on, handing him a cup filled with a deep green liquid that released a strong herbal scent and some faint steam.
"You woke up quite a bit faster than we thought you would, it seems we underestimated your body. How do you feel?"
The tea was incredibly bitter, but it filled his body with a comfortable warmth, so it clearly wasn't normal tea. Liang Chen held the cup with his left hand, clenching his right a few times before answering, giving a slight bow of his head.
"Strangely good. Thank you for taking care of me."
As he clenched his fist, Liang Chen had paid close attention to the tip of his little finger. When that golden stream left his veins and entered his body, it was the little finger on his right hand that it had entered, so he wanted to make sure that what he had seen wasn't just an illusion. And after closely examining his little finger, he came to the conclusion that it hadn't been an illusion, the tip of his little finger having grown a tiny bit stronger. Yan Ying stopped Liang Chen before he could finish his bow, shrugging his shoulders.
"Don't sweat it, you're one of us after all."
Seeming to have noticed the chatting in the room, a few more people quickly entered it. Liang Chen recognized Zhu Chun and the others, but there were three people that he had never seen before, two men and one woman. Yan Ying followed Liang Chen's gaze, and upon noticing that he was looking at the newcomers, he swiftly introduced them.
"You were out for about five days, so the rest of our people have arrived. This is Xie Bo, this is Jiang Hong, and this is Zhang Tujie."
Xie Bo was a somewhat short and slim fellow who had brown eyes and short black hair that was slicked backward. His eyes were a bit narrowed and sharp, and strangely enough, he didn't have any eyebrows. Jiang Hong was rather tall and muscular, had crimson eyes and was completely bald, three rows of three brown dots covering his scalp. Zhang Tujie had a more normal height and seemed to be somewhat flat and skinny, she had brown eyes and golden hair that was tied up into two pigtails.
Liang Chen found her choice of hairstyle rather odd, but he was not one to judge something like that, so he didn't give voice to his thoughts. He introduced himself to the three newcomers and then turned to Yan Ying.
"Did anything happen while I was out?"
He had made such a grand spectacle when he killed Liu Daning, one of the city rulers, so he would find it strange if the city moved on as normal. The one who responded to his question was Yan Ling, who let out a light giggle.
"Nihihi, the city's currently experiencing quite the uproar. People are trying quite hard to figure out exactly who it was that massacred Liu Daning and all his men, not even leaving behind any body parts."
Liang Chen had expected something like this, so he wasn't too surprised at the answer. He once again bowed his head slightly, apologizing to Yan Ying for the trouble he had caused them.
"I'm sorry, I stirred up trouble, despite you telling us not to."
Yan Ying stretched out his arm, rapping Liang Chen on the head with his knuckles. After rapping him on the head, he forced Liang Chen to sit up straight, a stream of Qi preventing him from bowing again.
"Don't be. Ling'er told me what happened. As long as you follow your heart and have no regrets, you have nothing to be sorry for."
Yan Ying wore a casual smile, and Liang Chen could tell that Yan Ying truly meant what he said. For a split second, Liang Chen could not help but admit that this pair of brother and sister were truly rather similar, despite one of them being adopted. He wanted to bow his head once more, but Yan Ying's Qi prevented that.
"Thank you."
Since they wouldn't accept his apologies, then he could only give them his thanks instead. The casual smile on Yan Ying's face grew a bit wider as he gave a slight nod of his head. He glanced at his own men and then looked Liang Chen's body up and down, looking at him with a questioning gaze.
"That's more like it, a thanks is always better than an apology. You said you felt strangely good, does that mean we can head towards the inner parts in two days?"
The rest of his men had arrived, so they were only waiting for Liang Chen to wake up before they decided when to enter the central area of the hidden realm. Liang Chen's body felt better than ever, so he gave a quick nod of his head.
"Shouldn't be any problem."
The smile on Yan Ying's face quickly grew excited, soon they would be able to explore the previously unexplored inner reaches of the hidden realm. He stood up and left the room with his men, finishing up the last of their preparations. The only ones left in the room now were Liang Chen and Yan Ling, who continued to look Liang Chen's body up and down. Eventually, Liang Chen felt slightly embarrassed under her continued stare, so he couldn't help but comment.
"Are you going to keep staring at me like that for the next two days?"
Yan Ling stretched out her hand after hearing his comment, poking at his chest a few times before she commented in a slightly amazed voice.
"Just curious how this body is able to heal so quickly. The more I learn about you, the better the name Little Freak fits you."
She knew about the extent of Liang Chen's injuries. It should be impossible for him to heal them all within just five days, even with the medicine they had used. For him to not only have those freakishly strong elements but even such an exaggerated healing ability, the name Little Freak was perfect for him. Liang Chen was already used to Yan Ling's strange form of praise, so he only gave a light shake of his head.
"I'll just assume you consider that to be a form of praise, so I'll pretend to be flattered."
Even if her words were a bit sharp at times, and were borderline insults at other times, Liang Chen could tell that she didn't mean anything bad when she said them, she truly thought of them as praise. Seeing his nonchalance, Yan Ling clicked her tongue slightly.
"Tch, just you wait till we get to the headquarters of the clan, then you'll see how many people are dying to receive my praise!"
She was the sweetheart of the clan, every disciple and even some of the elders would be ecstatic if she were to praise them like this, yet this Little Freak always only shrugged his shoulders.
Two days quickly passed, with no one in the group leaving the house during the two days, quietly preparing for the upcoming challenge. Dawn of the second day, they all left the house and quietly left the city. This city was the last stop before the unexplored area, so they only had to walk past the mountain that the city was built on to reach the unexplored area.
They quickly passed through the forest that was located at the sides of the mountain, reaching the edge of the unexplored area. Liang Chen was rather surprised to see that the unexplored area was actually incredibly simple. It was just one massive meadow, a single wide path snaking through the meadow, stretching into eternity. When he strained his eyes, he could see that there seemed to be signs placed along the side of the road at certain places, but since they were so far away, he was unable to read what was written on them.
He was also surprised to see that they weren't the only ones who had arrived at the edge of the unexplored area. There were four other groups already there, with Liang Chen recognizing three of them.
The first group belonged to the gray and black haired Li Delan and his Ghost Soul sect. His group had grown a bit larger since Liang Chen had last seen them, he even recognized one of the new faces. It was Zhao Daiyun, the female who had tried to force him to give up the Elemental Lotus and return the energy he had absorbed. It seemed like she had somehow managed to escape before the bolts of lightning struck.
The second group belonged to rainbow-haired Guo Huashi and her Moon Dragon sect. Her group had also grown slightly since last time, so it seemed like they had met up with the remainders of their people.
The third group belonged to the amber-eyed and brown-haired Xuan Bao and his Fiendgod sect. Just like the two other groups, his group had grown slightly, calling over everyone for this final expedition. Liang Chen also saw Tian Shentu, the male youth that had joined Zhao Daiyun and tried to force him to hand over the Elemental Lotus.
The last group was one that Liang Chen hadn't encountered before, but he recognized their robes, as well as one of its members. The people in the group wore the black robes embroidered with the insignia of the Nightshield sect, a round shield facing a dark mountain. The one person that Liang Chen recognized in the group was the man he had encountered in the first city he entered here, the one who sold him information about Qing Lan Yong.
Liang Chen's eyes were glued to the people of the Nightshield sect, his heart thundering in his chest as he forced himself to stay calm. He knew that most of these people were the servants of Qing Lan Yong, they were his people, people directly tied to him. He quickly looked away from the group to force himself to stay calm and not look suspicious, but Yan Ling still managed to notice his agitated state. Yan Ying, on the other hand, was completely focused on one of the new members of Li Delan's group, a man with ruffled, unruly black hair and deep silver eyes who was not clad in the robes of the Ghost Soul sect.
"You seem to have picked up someone new? I am amazed that someone was willing to join you ghouls."
Had Li Delan picked up just anyone, Yan Ying wouldn't have bothered saying anything. But the problem was that this man had reached the Wandering Immortal stage of the Soaring Immortal realm, the same cultivation level as Yan Ying. He was even slightly stronger than Li Delan, so why would he be willing to join him? Li Delan's lips curled into a cold, almost taunting sneer upon seeing Yan Ying's expression.
"What, are you the only one allowed to pick up new members in this hidden realm?"
Li Delan's eyes landed on Liang Chen after he finished his sentence. He had seen the might that Liang Chen was somehow able to produce, and it amazed him quite a bit. Yan Ying let out a cold snort, not bothering to say anything else, his eyes landing on the path in front of them. From start to finish, he had not even acknowledged the existence of the Nightshield sect group, neither had the people from the Nightshield sect glanced at Yan Ying.
There seemed to be an unspoken agreement between these five groups, as shortly after Yan Ying and his group arrived, they simultaneously headed towards the path ahead of them. Liang Chen felt his heart thump as they stepped closer to the path, as if it was calling to him. They all set foot on the path simultaneously, and then they all suddenly vanished into thin air.
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After leaving the bloody city, Liang Chen found himself seeing a strange sight. He was seeing the inside of his own body, but it was slightly different from how he usually saw the inside of his own body when he checked his Ascended Tower. He could see his own veins, his blood, his bones, even the electricity that flowed through his body and sent signals to his brain was laid bare before him.
Other than the normal electricity that flowed in everyone's bodies, Liang Chen also saw three other streams flow through his body, moving through his veins. One stream was a dazzling golden in color, crackling with lightning, the second stream was emerald green, a faint mist lingering around it as it moved.
Liang Chen could easily guess that these two streams were his lightning and poison element, but when it came to the third stream, Liang Chen had no idea what it might be. The third stream was the largest of the three, almost twice as large as his lightning and poison element. It was almost completely translucent, a faint gray in color.
Liang Chen felt like he could interact with these three streams, so he probed them with his mind. The gray stream didn't listen to him at all, not even responding, seemingly asleep. The golden stream, however, slowly reacted to his probing, leaving his veins and moving into his flesh and bones.
Liang Chen thought that since the golden stream was his lightning element, there was no problem with introducing it into his flesh and bones. But the moment the stream left his veins, he could feel horrendous pain overtaking his body, threatening to tear him out of the strange state he was in. More than just feeling painful, it felt wrong, as if he had made a mistake. He quickly recalled the golden stream, swiftly inspecting the area where it had made contact with his flesh.
To his surprise, the flesh that had made contact with the stream had grown a tiny bit stronger. It was nearly unnoticeable, but it had unmistakably grown stronger. Liang Chen thought that it was similar to the technique he had come up with after being forced to flee from Green Rivers city, the technique where he used his own lightning to toughen up his body.
But upon closer inspection, it seemed that it wasn't completely correct. The technique he himself had come up with only toughened up his body, but looking at that tiny piece of affected flesh, it had not only grown tougher but also stronger and more flexible. It was clear that what had just happened was much more thorough than his old technique, much more useful.
But when he thought back to how it felt like he had done it wrong, as well as the horrendous pain that it brought, Liang Chen felt that now wasn't the time to attempt it again, he needed to first figure out what he had done wrong.
The last stream he probed with his mind was the emerald stream. Just like he did with his golden stream, he didn't give it any proper orders, he just touched it ever so slightly with his mind. And just like the previous one, this stream also moved on its own. But rather than move into his flesh and blood, the emerald stream flowed to his chest, to an empty spot next to his heart.
Just as Liang Chen was wondering what it was going to do, a small piece of the emerald stream vanished. And as that small piece vanished, Liang Chen's vision cracked and shattered like glass, a feeling that he had done something horrendously wrong flooding his body. A pain unlike any he had ever felt before assaulted his mind. Far worse than any physical pain he had ever felt before, this pain felt like it threatened to drive his mind into madness and insanity.
The pain vanished quickly, after only half a second. But to Liang Chen, it felt like he had suffered hours of torture. His vision started to slowly repair itself, the shattered pieces reconnecting. Once his vision was no longer cracked, and he was certain that there wouldn't be another bout of that nightmarish pain, he let out a mental sigh of relief, his thoughts moving. Could it be that the emerald stream had accidentally come into contact with his soul, the very essence of his being? There was no one that could answer that question for Liang Chen, so he could only put the question aside.
As Liang Chen returned to inspecting the inside of his body, learning how it worked, he suddenly felt something touch him. It felt like something soft was repeatedly touching his cheek, gently poking it. While he was trying to figure out what it was he felt, faint voices suddenly reached his ears.
"Didn't I tell you to stop poking him while he is unconscious?"
The voice sounded distant, but Liang Chen was able to tell that it belonged to Yan Ying. His cheek continued to be poked, so Liang Chen tried to force his body to move and wake up. As he did so, another voice rang out, this one much closer.
"But he just spasmed, so I thought he might be waking up!"
The voice belonged to Yan Ling, and as it sounded out, the speed at which his cheek was poked increased, so it was likely she who was responsible for the sensation. Liang Chen continued to try and force himself awake, Yan Ling giggling slightly as she continued to poke his unconscious body.
"And besides, his cheeks feel so tingly, like there are tiny bolts of lightning running through it. It's surprisingly comfortable."
After feeling his cheek get poked for a little over a minute, Liang Chen was finally able to force his body to move, immediately leaving the strange state he had been in and opening his eyes. He saw an unfamiliar wooden roof above him as he opened his eyes, he also saw Yan Ling sitting right next to him, her finger still touching his cheek as he woke up. She quickly pulled back her finger, acting like nothing had happened as she called out to Yan Ying.
"See, I told you that he might be waking up! Little Freak's already up!"
At first, Yan Ying thought that she was just joking, but then he actually saw Liang Chen sit. While Yan Ying was walking over to him, Liang Chen took the chance to inspect the room he was currently in. The room was a few meters in width and length, contained two normal-sized beds, two large closets, a single round table, four chairs, as well as two small tables placed next to the two beds. Yan Ying placed a chair next to the bed Liang Chen sat on, handing him a cup filled with a deep green liquid that released a strong herbal scent and some faint steam.
"You woke up quite a bit faster than we thought you would, it seems we underestimated your body. How do you feel?"
The tea was incredibly bitter, but it filled his body with a comfortable warmth, so it clearly wasn't normal tea. Liang Chen held the cup with his left hand, clenching his right a few times before answering, giving a slight bow of his head.
"Strangely good. Thank you for taking care of me."
As he clenched his fist, Liang Chen had paid close attention to the tip of his little finger. When that golden stream left his veins and entered his body, it was the little finger on his right hand that it had entered, so he wanted to make sure that what he had seen wasn't just an illusion. And after closely examining his little finger, he came to the conclusion that it hadn't been an illusion, the tip of his little finger having grown a tiny bit stronger. Yan Ying stopped Liang Chen before he could finish his bow, shrugging his shoulders.
"Don't sweat it, you're one of us after all."
Seeming to have noticed the chatting in the room, a few more people quickly entered it. Liang Chen recognized Zhu Chun and the others, but there were three people that he had never seen before, two men and one woman. Yan Ying followed Liang Chen's gaze, and upon noticing that he was looking at the newcomers, he swiftly introduced them.
"You were out for about five days, so the rest of our people have arrived. This is Xie Bo, this is Jiang Hong, and this is Zhang Tujie."
Xie Bo was a somewhat short and slim fellow who had brown eyes and short black hair that was slicked backward. His eyes were a bit narrowed and sharp, and strangely enough, he didn't have any eyebrows. Jiang Hong was rather tall and muscular, had crimson eyes and was completely bald, three rows of three brown dots covering his scalp. Zhang Tujie had a more normal height and seemed to be somewhat flat and skinny, she had brown eyes and golden hair that was tied up into two pigtails.
Liang Chen found her choice of hairstyle rather odd, but he was not one to judge something like that, so he didn't give voice to his thoughts. He introduced himself to the three newcomers and then turned to Yan Ying.
"Did anything happen while I was out?"
He had made such a grand spectacle when he killed Liu Daning, one of the city rulers, so he would find it strange if the city moved on as normal. The one who responded to his question was Yan Ling, who let out a light giggle.
"Nihihi, the city's currently experiencing quite the uproar. People are trying quite hard to figure out exactly who it was that massacred Liu Daning and all his men, not even leaving behind any body parts."
Liang Chen had expected something like this, so he wasn't too surprised at the answer. He once again bowed his head slightly, apologizing to Yan Ying for the trouble he had caused them.
"I'm sorry, I stirred up trouble, despite you telling us not to."
Yan Ying stretched out his arm, rapping Liang Chen on the head with his knuckles. After rapping him on the head, he forced Liang Chen to sit up straight, a stream of Qi preventing him from bowing again.
"Don't be. Ling'er told me what happened. As long as you follow your heart and have no regrets, you have nothing to be sorry for."
Yan Ying wore a casual smile, and Liang Chen could tell that Yan Ying truly meant what he said. For a split second, Liang Chen could not help but admit that this pair of brother and sister were truly rather similar, despite one of them being adopted. He wanted to bow his head once more, but Yan Ying's Qi prevented that.
"Thank you."
Since they wouldn't accept his apologies, then he could only give them his thanks instead. The casual smile on Yan Ying's face grew a bit wider as he gave a slight nod of his head. He glanced at his own men and then looked Liang Chen's body up and down, looking at him with a questioning gaze.
"That's more like it, a thanks is always better than an apology. You said you felt strangely good, does that mean we can head towards the inner parts in two days?"
The rest of his men had arrived, so they were only waiting for Liang Chen to wake up before they decided when to enter the central area of the hidden realm. Liang Chen's body felt better than ever, so he gave a quick nod of his head.
"Shouldn't be any problem."
The smile on Yan Ying's face quickly grew excited, soon they would be able to explore the previously unexplored inner reaches of the hidden realm. He stood up and left the room with his men, finishing up the last of their preparations. The only ones left in the room now were Liang Chen and Yan Ling, who continued to look Liang Chen's body up and down. Eventually, Liang Chen felt slightly embarrassed under her continued stare, so he couldn't help but comment.
"Are you going to keep staring at me like that for the next two days?"
Yan Ling stretched out her hand after hearing his comment, poking at his chest a few times before she commented in a slightly amazed voice.
"Just curious how this body is able to heal so quickly. The more I learn about you, the better the name Little Freak fits you."
She knew about the extent of Liang Chen's injuries. It should be impossible for him to heal them all within just five days, even with the medicine they had used. For him to not only have those freakishly strong elements but even such an exaggerated healing ability, the name Little Freak was perfect for him. Liang Chen was already used to Yan Ling's strange form of praise, so he only gave a light shake of his head.
"I'll just assume you consider that to be a form of praise, so I'll pretend to be flattered."
Even if her words were a bit sharp at times, and were borderline insults at other times, Liang Chen could tell that she didn't mean anything bad when she said them, she truly thought of them as praise. Seeing his nonchalance, Yan Ling clicked her tongue slightly.
"Tch, just you wait till we get to the headquarters of the clan, then you'll see how many people are dying to receive my praise!"
She was the sweetheart of the clan, every disciple and even some of the elders would be ecstatic if she were to praise them like this, yet this Little Freak always only shrugged his shoulders.
Two days quickly passed, with no one in the group leaving the house during the two days, quietly preparing for the upcoming challenge. Dawn of the second day, they all left the house and quietly left the city. This city was the last stop before the unexplored area, so they only had to walk past the mountain that the city was built on to reach the unexplored area.
They quickly passed through the forest that was located at the sides of the mountain, reaching the edge of the unexplored area. Liang Chen was rather surprised to see that the unexplored area was actually incredibly simple. It was just one massive meadow, a single wide path snaking through the meadow, stretching into eternity. When he strained his eyes, he could see that there seemed to be signs placed along the side of the road at certain places, but since they were so far away, he was unable to read what was written on them.
He was also surprised to see that they weren't the only ones who had arrived at the edge of the unexplored area. There were four other groups already there, with Liang Chen recognizing three of them.
The first group belonged to the gray and black haired Li Delan and his Ghost Soul sect. His group had grown a bit larger since Liang Chen had last seen them, he even recognized one of the new faces. It was Zhao Daiyun, the female who had tried to force him to give up the Elemental Lotus and return the energy he had absorbed. It seemed like she had somehow managed to escape before the bolts of lightning struck.
The second group belonged to rainbow-haired Guo Huashi and her Moon Dragon sect. Her group had also grown slightly since last time, so it seemed like they had met up with the remainders of their people.
The third group belonged to the amber-eyed and brown-haired Xuan Bao and his Fiendgod sect. Just like the two other groups, his group had grown slightly, calling over everyone for this final expedition. Liang Chen also saw Tian Shentu, the male youth that had joined Zhao Daiyun and tried to force him to hand over the Elemental Lotus.
The last group was one that Liang Chen hadn't encountered before, but he recognized their robes, as well as one of its members. The people in the group wore the black robes embroidered with the insignia of the Nightshield sect, a round shield facing a dark mountain. The one person that Liang Chen recognized in the group was the man he had encountered in the first city he entered here, the one who sold him information about Qing Lan Yong.
Liang Chen's eyes were glued to the people of the Nightshield sect, his heart thundering in his chest as he forced himself to stay calm. He knew that most of these people were the servants of Qing Lan Yong, they were his people, people directly tied to him. He quickly looked away from the group to force himself to stay calm and not look suspicious, but Yan Ling still managed to notice his agitated state. Yan Ying, on the other hand, was completely focused on one of the new members of Li Delan's group, a man with ruffled, unruly black hair and deep silver eyes who was not clad in the robes of the Ghost Soul sect.
"You seem to have picked up someone new? I am amazed that someone was willing to join you ghouls."
Had Li Delan picked up just anyone, Yan Ying wouldn't have bothered saying anything. But the problem was that this man had reached the Wandering Immortal stage of the Soaring Immortal realm, the same cultivation level as Yan Ying. He was even slightly stronger than Li Delan, so why would he be willing to join him? Li Delan's lips curled into a cold, almost taunting sneer upon seeing Yan Ying's expression.
"What, are you the only one allowed to pick up new members in this hidden realm?"
Li Delan's eyes landed on Liang Chen after he finished his sentence. He had seen the might that Liang Chen was somehow able to produce, and it amazed him quite a bit. Yan Ying let out a cold snort, not bothering to say anything else, his eyes landing on the path in front of them. From start to finish, he had not even acknowledged the existence of the Nightshield sect group, neither had the people from the Nightshield sect glanced at Yan Ying.
There seemed to be an unspoken agreement between these five groups, as shortly after Yan Ying and his group arrived, they simultaneously headed towards the path ahead of them. Liang Chen felt his heart thump as they stepped closer to the path, as if it was calling to him. They all set foot on the path simultaneously, and then they all suddenly vanished into thin air.
After leaving the bloody city, Liang Chen found himself seeing a strange sight. He was seeing the inside of his own body, but it was slightly different from how he usually saw the inside of his own body when he checked his Ascended Tower. He could see his own veins, his blood, his bones, even the electricity that flowed through his body and sent signals to his brain was laid bare before him.Other than the normal electricity that flowed in everyone's bodies, Liang Chen also saw three other streams flow through his body, moving through his veins. One stream was a dazzling golden in color, crackling with lightning, the second stream was emerald green, a faint mist lingering around it as it moved.Liang Chen could easily guess that these two streams were his lightning and poison element, but when it came to the third stream, Liang Chen had no idea what it might be. The third stream was the largest of the three, almost twice as large as his lightning and poison element. It was almost completely translucent, a faint gray in color.Liang Chen felt like he could interact with these three streams, so he probed them with his mind. The gray stream didn't listen to him at all, not even responding, seemingly asleep. The golden stream, however, slowly reacted to his probing, leaving his veins and moving into his flesh and bones.Liang Chen thought that since the golden stream was his lightning element, there was no problem with introducing it into his flesh and bones. But the moment the stream left his veins, he could feel horrendous pain overtaking his body, threatening to tear him out of the strange state he was in. More than just feeling painful, it felt wrong, as if he had made a mistake. He quickly recalled the golden stream, swiftly inspecting the area where it had made contact with his flesh.To his surprise, the flesh that had made contact with the stream had grown a tiny bit stronger. It was nearly unnoticeable, but it had unmistakably grown stronger. Liang Chen thought that it was similar to the technique he had come up with after being forced to flee from Green Rivers city, the technique where he used his own lightning to toughen up his body.But upon closer inspection, it seemed that it wasn't completely correct. The technique he himself had come up with only toughened up his body, but looking at that tiny piece of affected flesh, it had not only grown tougher but also stronger and more flexible. It was clear that what had just happened was much more thorough than his old technique, much more useful.But when he thought back to how it felt like he had done it wrong, as well as the horrendous pain that it brought, Liang Chen felt that now wasn't the time to attempt it again, he needed to first figure out what he had done wrong.The last stream he probed with his mind was the emerald stream. Just like he did with his golden stream, he didn't give it any proper orders, he just touched it ever so slightly with his mind. And just like the previous one, this stream also moved on its own. But rather than move into his flesh and blood, the emerald stream flowed to his chest, to an empty spot next to his heart.Just as Liang Chen was wondering what it was going to do, a small piece of the emerald stream vanished. And as that small piece vanished, Liang Chen's vision cracked and shattered like glass, a feeling that he had done something horrendously wrong flooding his body. A pain unlike any he had ever felt before assaulted his mind. Far worse than any physical pain he had ever felt before, this pain felt like it threatened to drive his mind into madness and insanity.The pain vanished quickly, after only half a second. But to Liang Chen, it felt like he had suffered hours of torture. His vision started to slowly repair itself, the shattered pieces reconnecting. Once his vision was no longer cracked, and he was certain that there wouldn't be another bout of that nightmarish pain, he let out a mental sigh of relief, his thoughts moving. Could it be that the emerald stream had accidentally come into contact with his soul, the very essence of his being? There was no one that could answer that question for Liang Chen, so he could only put the question aside.As Liang Chen returned to inspecting the inside of his body, learning how it worked, he suddenly felt something touch him. It felt like something soft was repeatedly touching his cheek, gently poking it. While he was trying to figure out what it was he felt, faint voices suddenly reached his ears."Didn't I tell you to stop poking him while he is unconscious?"The voice sounded distant, but Liang Chen was able to tell that it belonged to Yan Ying. His cheek continued to be poked, so Liang Chen tried to force his body to move and wake up. As he did so, another voice rang out, this one much closer."But he just spasmed, so I thought he might be waking up!"The voice belonged to Yan Ling, and as it sounded out, the speed at which his cheek was poked increased, so it was likely she who was responsible for the sensation. Liang Chen continued to try and force himself awake, Yan Ling giggling slightly as she continued to poke his unconscious body."And besides, his cheeks feel so tingly, like there are tiny bolts of lightning running through it. It's surprisingly comfortable."After feeling his cheek get poked for a little over a minute, Liang Chen was finally able to force his body to move, immediately leaving the strange state he had been in and opening his eyes. He saw an unfamiliar wooden roof above him as he opened his eyes, he also saw Yan Ling sitting right next to him, her finger still touching his cheek as he woke up. She quickly pulled back her finger, acting like nothing had happened as she called out to Yan Ying."See, I told you that he might be waking up! Little Freak's already up!"At first, Yan Ying thought that she was just joking, but then he actually saw Liang Chen sit. While Yan Ying was walking over to him, Liang Chen took the chance to inspect the room he was currently in. The room was a few meters in width and length, contained two normal-sized beds, two large closets, a single round table, four chairs, as well as two small tables placed next to the two beds. Yan Ying placed a chair next to the bed Liang Chen sat on, handing him a cup filled with a deep green liquid that released a strong herbal scent and some faint steam."You woke up quite a bit faster than we thought you would, it seems we underestimated your body. How do you feel?"The tea was incredibly bitter, but it filled his body with a comfortable warmth, so it clearly wasn't normal tea. Liang Chen held the cup with his left hand, clenching his right a few times before answering, giving a slight bow of his head."Strangely good. Thank you for taking care of me."As he clenched his fist, Liang Chen had paid close attention to the tip of his little finger. When that golden stream left his veins and entered his body, it was the little finger on his right hand that it had entered, so he wanted to make sure that what he had seen wasn't just an illusion. And after closely examining his little finger, he came to the conclusion that it hadn't been an illusion, the tip of his little finger having grown a tiny bit stronger. Yan Ying stopped Liang Chen before he could finish his bow, shrugging his shoulders."Don't sweat it, you're one of us after all."Seeming to have noticed the chatting in the room, a few more people quickly entered it. Liang Chen recognized Zhu Chun and the others, but there were three people that he had never seen before, two men and one woman. Yan Ying followed Liang Chen's gaze, and upon noticing that he was looking at the newcomers, he swiftly introduced them."You were out for about five days, so the rest of our people have arrived. This is Xie Bo, this is Jiang Hong, and this is Zhang Tujie."Xie Bo was a somewhat short and slim fellow who had brown eyes and short black hair that was slicked backward. His eyes were a bit narrowed and sharp, and strangely enough, he didn't have any eyebrows. Jiang Hong was rather tall and muscular, had crimson eyes and was completely bald, three rows of three brown dots covering his scalp. Zhang Tujie had a more normal height and seemed to be somewhat flat and skinny, she had brown eyes and golden hair that was tied up into two pigtails.Liang Chen found her choice of hairstyle rather odd, but he was not one to judge something like that, so he didn't give voice to his thoughts. He introduced himself to the three newcomers and then turned to Yan Ying."Did anything happen while I was out?"He had made such a grand spectacle when he killed Liu Daning, one of the city rulers, so he would find it strange if the city moved on as normal. The one who responded to his question was Yan Ling, who let out a light giggle."Nihihi, the city's currently experiencing quite the uproar. People are trying quite hard to figure out exactly who it was that massacred Liu Daning and all his men, not even leaving behind any body parts."Liang Chen had expected something like this, so he wasn't too surprised at the answer. He once again bowed his head slightly, apologizing to Yan Ying for the trouble he had caused them."I'm sorry, I stirred up trouble, despite you telling us not to."Yan Ying stretched out his arm, rapping Liang Chen on the head with his knuckles. After rapping him on the head, he forced Liang Chen to sit up straight, a stream of Qi preventing him from bowing again."Don't be. Ling'er told me what happened. As long as you follow your heart and have no regrets, you have nothing to be sorry for."Yan Ying wore a casual smile, and Liang Chen could tell that Yan Ying truly meant what he said. For a split second, Liang Chen could not help but admit that this pair of brother and sister were truly rather similar, despite one of them being adopted. He wanted to bow his head once more, but Yan Ying's Qi prevented that."Thank you."Since they wouldn't accept his apologies, then he could only give them his thanks instead. The casual smile on Yan Ying's face grew a bit wider as he gave a slight nod of his head. He glanced at his own men and then looked Liang Chen's body up and down, looking at him with a questioning gaze."That's more like it, a thanks is always better than an apology. You said you felt strangely good, does that mean we can head towards the inner parts in two days?"The rest of his men had arrived, so they were only waiting for Liang Chen to wake up before they decided when to enter the central area of the hidden realm. Liang Chen's body felt better than ever, so he gave a quick nod of his head."Shouldn't be any problem."The smile on Yan Ying's face quickly grew excited, soon they would be able to explore the previously unexplored inner reaches of the hidden realm. He stood up and left the room with his men, finishing up the last of their preparations. The only ones left in the room now were Liang Chen and Yan Ling, who continued to look Liang Chen's body up and down. Eventually, Liang Chen felt slightly embarrassed under her continued stare, so he couldn't help but comment."Are you going to keep staring at me like that for the next two days?"Yan Ling stretched out her hand after hearing his comment, poking at his chest a few times before she commented in a slightly amazed voice."Just curious how this body is able to heal so quickly. The more I learn about you, the better the name Little Freak fits you."She knew about the extent of Liang Chen's injuries. It should be impossible for him to heal them all within just five days, even with the medicine they had used. For him to not only have those freakishly strong elements but even such an exaggerated healing ability, the name Little Freak was perfect for him. Liang Chen was already used to Yan Ling's strange form of praise, so he only gave a light shake of his head."I'll just assume you consider that to be a form of praise, so I'll pretend to be flattered."Even if her words were a bit sharp at times, and were borderline insults at other times, Liang Chen could tell that she didn't mean anything bad when she said them, she truly thought of them as praise. Seeing his nonchalance, Yan Ling clicked her tongue slightly."Tch, just you wait till we get to the headquarters of the clan, then you'll see how many people are dying to receive my praise!"She was the sweetheart of the clan, every disciple and even some of the elders would be ecstatic if she were to praise them like this, yet this Little Freak always only shrugged his shoulders.Two days quickly passed, with no one in the group leaving the house during the two days, quietly preparing for the upcoming challenge. Dawn of the second day, they all left the house and quietly left the city. This city was the last stop before the unexplored area, so they only had to walk past the mountain that the city was built on to reach the unexplored area.They quickly passed through the forest that was located at the sides of the mountain, reaching the edge of the unexplored area. Liang Chen was rather surprised to see that the unexplored area was actually incredibly simple. It was just one massive meadow, a single wide path snaking through the meadow, stretching into eternity. When he strained his eyes, he could see that there seemed to be signs placed along the side of the road at certain places, but since they were so far away, he was unable to read what was written on them.He was also surprised to see that they weren't the only ones who had arrived at the edge of the unexplored area. There were four other groups already there, with Liang Chen recognizing three of them.The first group belonged to the gray and black haired Li Delan and his Ghost Soul sect. His group had grown a bit larger since Liang Chen had last seen them, he even recognized one of the new faces. It was Zhao Daiyun, the female who had tried to force him to give up the Elemental Lotus and return the energy he had absorbed. It seemed like she had somehow managed to escape before the bolts of lightning struck.The second group belonged to rainbow-haired Guo Huashi and her Moon Dragon sect. Her group had also grown slightly since last time, so it seemed like they had met up with the remainders of their people.The third group belonged to the amber-eyed and brown-haired Xuan Bao and his Fiendgod sect. Just like the two other groups, his group had grown slightly, calling over everyone for this final expedition. Liang Chen also saw Tian Shentu, the male youth that had joined Zhao Daiyun and tried to force him to hand over the Elemental Lotus.The last group was one that Liang Chen hadn't encountered before, but he recognized their robes, as well as one of its members. The people in the group wore the black robes embroidered with the insignia of the Nightshield sect, a round shield facing a dark mountain. The one person that Liang Chen recognized in the group was the man he had encountered in the first city he entered here, the one who sold him information about Qing Lan Yong.Liang Chen's eyes were glued to the people of the Nightshield sect, his heart thundering in his chest as he forced himself to stay calm. He knew that most of these people were the servants of Qing Lan Yong, they were his people, people directly tied to him. He quickly looked away from the group to force himself to stay calm and not look suspicious, but Yan Ling still managed to notice his agitated state. Yan Ying, on the other hand, was completely focused on one of the new members of Li Delan's group, a man with ruffled, unruly black hair and deep silver eyes who was not clad in the robes of the Ghost Soul sect."You seem to have picked up someone new? I am amazed that someone was willing to join you ghouls."Had Li Delan picked up just anyone, Yan Ying wouldn't have bothered saying anything. But the problem was that this man had reached the Wandering Immortal stage of the Soaring Immortal realm, the same cultivation level as Yan Ying. He was even slightly stronger than Li Delan, so why would he be willing to join him? Li Delan's lips curled into a cold, almost taunting sneer upon seeing Yan Ying's expression."What, are you the only one allowed to pick up new members in this hidden realm?"Li Delan's eyes landed on Liang Chen after he finished his sentence. He had seen the might that Liang Chen was somehow able to produce, and it amazed him quite a bit. Yan Ying let out a cold snort, not bothering to say anything else, his eyes landing on the path in front of them. From start to finish, he had not even acknowledged the existence of the Nightshield sect group, neither had the people from the Nightshield sect glanced at Yan Ying.There seemed to be an unspoken agreement between these five groups, as shortly after Yan Ying and his group arrived, they simultaneously headed towards the path ahead of them. Liang Chen felt his heart thump as they stepped closer to the path, as if it was calling to him. They all set foot on the path simultaneously, and then they all suddenly vanished into thin air.
