Desolate Era (Book 6 - Book 10)

“Yes,” the three-eyed, black-furred hound said respectfully.

“These Marquisates have grown too accustomed to ruling over the territory which has been enfeoffed to them. They all grow restless, and every so often, they need to be given a drubbing,” the silver-haired, black-robed elder said in a cold voice. “It seems yet another group of people shall die in the Northmont clan of Stillwater Commandery. Go!”

“Yes.” The body of the black-furred, three-eyed hound flickered, and then it disappeared without a trace.

Only now did the silver-haired, black-robed elder ride his flying cloud downwards at a leisurely pace. Soon, he arrived at the mountain peak which contained the teleportation array. Atop the peak was Ning, Northson, and the rest of the Immortal practitioners, all of whom had been waiting for quite some time.

Whoosh! The silver-haired, black-robed elder landed. Instantly, the surrounding area fell silent. Those ten plainly dressed elders all looked towards him respectfully as well.

“All of you, listen clearly,” the silver-haired, black-robed elder said. “Those of you who wish to join the Raindragon Guard; your testing grounds shall be the wild marshes of the Gaol Mountains! This place is one of the most famous, most dangerous locations of Stillwater Commandery. What you need to do is to survive in the wild marshes of the Gaol Mountains for three months, and bring back the head of a Wanxiang-level monster.”

“If you survive three months and bring back the head of a Wanxiang-level monster, you will join our Raindragon Guard. If you die in the wild marshes or come back without the corpse or head of a Wanxiang-level monster, then you will have failed. Understood?”

The silver-robed elder swept them with a gaze. The hundred Immortal cultivators all nodded, not hesitating in the slightest. There were many who participated in the Raindragon Guard trials, and this mission they had been assigned could be considered an ordinary one. Since they dared to come…they naturally had some degree of self-confidence.

“Excellent.” The silver-haired, black-robed elder nodded. “Since that’s the case, then all of you can head out now. I hope that in three months time, I’ll be able to see you return with the head of a monster. Remember; don’t underestimate those monsters. You wish to kill them, but they also wish to kill you. The hatred that has built up between us over countless years means that they won’t show you any mercy at all.

The hundred Immortal cultivators all agreed. Even the youngest amongst them, Mu Northson, had a look of resolve in his eyes.

“All of you, come in. Don’t go beyond the limits of the teleportation base.”

The ten plainly dressed elders began to make the arrangements. Ning’s group all moved into the teleportation array. The entire teleportation array was enormous, capable of transporting thousands of individuals.

“Senior apprentice-brother Ji Ning, my master instructed me…that after we go to the wild marshes of the Gaol Mountains, we must be wary of not only the monsters, but also of other Immortal cultivators,” Northson sent mentally.

“They all know that we are disciples of the Black-White College. The disciples of the Black-White College are incomparably few in number, and each of us carry priceless treasures on us. Thus, sometimes there will be group attacks launched against us disciples of the Black-White College. We are not yet Raindragon Guards…there are no laws against fighting amongst potential recruits.”

Laughing, Ning glanced at Northson. Indeed, human hearts were hard to fathom. In his previous life, he had lived during the era of the information explosion…Ning had definitely learned far more things than most of the people who lived in this comparatively closed, barbarian world.

Despite that, Ning still said, “I know. Junior apprentice-brother, you must be careful as well.”

“Right. If we two disciples join forces, hmph…if one comes, we’ll kill one. If ten come, we’ll kill ten!” Northson sent back.

Suddenly…

The entire surrounding teleportation formation lit up. The blurry gray light on the surface of the tower began to brighten, covering the entire teleportation formation. Someone looking in from the outside would no longer be able to see Ning and the other hundred Immortal cultivators within.

Swish!

The white light emanating from the peak of the tower suddenly increased in luminosity a thousandfold. Its brilliance made it appear to be a second Golden Crow within the skies.

After the bright light turned dim, the blurry gray light returned to normal as well. Ning and the hundred Immortal cultivators within the formation had already disappeared. By now, they had already arrived at the wild marshes of the Gaol Mountains.





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Book 8, Chapter 12 - Entrance


Ning felt a ripple pass through the area around him. When he had been teleported from Serpentwing Lake to the underwater estate, it had been a similar feeling.

“Eh?” Everything before him suddenly grew clear. Mu Northson was standing next to him, and other Immortal cultivators were around them as well. “We made it?” Northson stared, wide-eyed, at the surrounding area. “That really was fast.”

Ning carefully weighed the surroundings as well. They were currently in a teleportation array that was three hundred meters tall; clearly, it was a size smaller than the one by the Crimson Dragon Mountains. Off in the distance…there were wild marshes, mountains, lakes, and wilderness all about them, as far as the eye cold see.

“Two million kilometers in the blink of an eye.” Ning had known what was going to happen, but after experiencing it for himself, he couldn’t help but sigh in amazement. “I heard that some Immortals can instantly teleport a million kilometers. I wonder how long it will be before I have that ability.”

“All of you, come out.” “Hurry up.” Two ancient voices rang out, and two plainly dressed elders outside the teleportation array waved towards them. Only now did the Immortal practitioners walk out from the teleportation array.

“All of you, listen closely,” one of the white-haired, slightly-pudgy elders barked. “These are the wild marshes of the Gaol Mountains. As far as you should be concerned, the only safe spot in the entirety of the wild marshes is this spot, right here! There are always Raindragon Guards stationed here, and a grand formation has been laid down which no one dares to trespass through.”

Ning and Northson all looked over carefully. They, too, had discovered that this teleportation formation was built atop a mountain peak, which was ringed with Immortal cavern estates. Most likely, quite a few people were stationed here.

“There are a few other things to remind you of,” the fat elder said. “The first is that for three months, you are not permitted to come here. If you come here to avoid danger, you will have failed.”

“The second is that while you are adventuring in the wild marshes of the Gaol Mountains, you must be extremely careful; do not stay in any single place for too long, such as for a month or longer. You must know that there are far more monsters here in the wild marshes than there are humans, and they are far more familiar with the Gaol Mountains than you are. If you stay in one place for too long…you will make it easy for the monsters to join forces against you and attack you en-masse. However, staying in one place to rest for a day or two every so often is fine.”

Ning and the others were listening carefully. This was all potentially life-saving advice.