Entering the Yinglong Guard (End of Book 8)

The dragon-headed warboat flew through the clouds and mist.

Ji Ning and Mu Northson wore expressions of pure joy as they worked to bind and refine the storage treasures they had acquired.

“Senior apprentice-brother, this Dragon Whale King’s wealth is far greater than the four Wanxiang Adepts we killed before,” Northson said excitedly. “All those ten-plus Wanxiang great demons we killed before… none of them together can match this single Dragon Whale King.”

“That’s only natural,” Ning said. “Dragon Whale King roamed the land for ten thousand years, escaping from Primal Daoists many times. And now he himself had reached the Primal level. He had just made his breakthrough. If he had continued cultivating at the Primal stage for a thousand years, his wealth would be even more astonishing. But if he had cultivated for a thousand years at that level… I probably wouldn’t even be able to resist him.”

Northson shook his head violently. “Even if he had cultivated for a thousand years as a Primal, that ancient Fiendgod would still have killed him! Senior apprentice-brother, you acted quickly. As soon as the Fiendgod left, you immediately collected the Dragon Whale King’s corpse. If that later Loose Immortal had discovered it, he would have taken it away without a second thought.”

Ning smiled.

He felt he had been quite clever himself.

Still…

The Dragon Whale King’s wealth was truly staggering. The magic treasures that had been in his Zifu and had fallen to the ground after his death numbered eight items: two Earth-ranked storage treasures, four Earth-ranked magic treasures, and two Heaven-ranked magic treasures. Just those two Heaven-ranked treasures alone were worth several thousand jin of Primordial Liquid!

Right now, the two of them were focused on binding and opening the storage artifacts.

“So many treasures.”

“What is this thing?”

“And another storage artifact. It should be from Dong Yi and Hong Rui. Keep going!”

“Here’s a bottle of Primordial Liquid. Mm… a bit over six hundred jin.”

“If I’m right, this should be Dong Yi’s personal protective treasure. He used it to escape from me in the past. Who would have thought he’d end up dying at the hands of the Dragon Whale King? And in the end, it falls into my hands…”

Ning and Northson brought out each treasure and appraised its value. Meanwhile, Qingqing, who was beside them, curiously picked up one item after another. As a great demon herself, and one who had only been cultivating for a short time, she didn’t have a good grasp of the value of many strange treasures. She could only join in their excitement.

“We’ve gone through everything,” Ning said, letting out a breath.

“That was incredibly satisfying,” Northson said, his eyes gleaming. He chuckled. “Senior apprentice-brother, I respect you more and more. That move of yours, pulling in the Dragon Whale King’s corpse… I truly bow in admiration.”

Ning smiled. “See if there’s anything you need?”

Northson looked carefully, then shook his head. “None of these people walked the path of puppetry. There’s really nothing I need in particular.”

“Nothing I specifically need either,” Ning said with a shake of his head.

Dong Yi’s protective treasure was impressive, but its power was limited. It couldn’t hold off a Primal Daoist for long. And Ning himself could escape from a Primal Daoist on his own merits, so he didn’t care for it. His own protective sword-qi treasure could block a Loose Immortal or Earth Immortal for an entire breath’s time.

“Let’s split the Primordial Liquid evenly,” Ning said. “We’ll sell all these treasures and oddities at Heavenly Treasures Mountain. Then we split the proceeds.”

“But you were the one who collected them,” Northson said, his eyes wide.

“Stop wasting words,” Ning scolded with a laugh. “I just picked them up while I could.”

“What about me? What about me?” Qingqing said from the side.

Ning glanced at her. “You’re a miser who finds treasures as easily as drinking water or eating a meal. Don’t fight with us poor cultivators over scraps.” The massive block of ten-thousand-year-cold ice that Qingqing had alone was worth over ten thousand jin of Primordial Liquid.

Qingqing immediately pouted. “Stingy!”

…

Time passed.

In the following days, Ning and the others went to the icy secret chamber within the cold-ice layer to train. It was indeed very secluded. After the three-month period was up, they began their return to the Yinglong Guard encampment.

“We’re here.”

The dragon-headed warboat flew through the clouds high in the sky. Ning stood at the railing, looking into the distance. Soon, they spotted a mountain peak… it was the Yinglong Guard encampment.

“Haha, we’re back! We’re going to become Yinglong Guards soon!” Northson cheered with delight.

The warboat dove down.

No one came to stop them this time. They flew directly to the mountain’s summit, landing in the empty area next to the teleportation array. There, Ning saw two elderly men in simple clothes sitting by the array—the familiar fat and skinny old men.

“Two more came back alive,” the fat old man said with a smile, his gaze then falling on the small snake coiled around Ning’s wrist. “A demon?”

“This is a spirit-beast I tamed in Mount Yujue Wasteland,” Ning said.

“Impressive, young man. Mount Yujue Wasteland is incredibly dangerous… yet you came back alive and even brought a spirit-beast with you,” the fat old man said with a sigh. “You two, go rest over there. There are still over thirty cultivators who haven’t arrived yet.”

Ning looked in surprise at the distant cultivators, some sitting, some standing and chatting idly. There were only sixteen people in the distance. Counting the two of them, that made eighteen.

“Senior, how do you know there are still over thirty people to come?” Ning asked curiously.

“Right! A hundred of us went out. How do you know how many died?” Northson asked in confusion.

Both fat and skinny old men laughed.

“Have you forgotten that when you first arrived at the Crimson Dragon Mountains, you each refined a token talisman?” the fat old man asked.

Ning and Northson immediately remembered. They had to refine that token to enter important areas of the Crimson Dragon Mountains; without it, they couldn’t go in.

“As soon as you die, the token becomes ownerless. Our Yinglong Guard will know immediately,” the fat old man said. “Right now, fifty-two tokens remain bound. The rest have become ownerless.”

Ning and Northson suddenly understood.

A simple little token… and it had such a trick hidden inside. The methods of the Yinglong Guard were indeed inescapable.

“Senior,” Northson said, “a few days ago, my senior apprentice-brother and I sent a group of ordinary mortals back to the encampment. They were mortals being raised as livestock by demons. Do you know how they are now?”

“Are they well?” Ning pressed.

The fat old man looked surprised. “You sent them back? Don’t worry, they are fine. The Yinglong Guard always treats our poor kin well. They were moved away long ago, so of course they are no longer in Mount Yujue Wasteland. Our Yinglong Guard has proper methods to settle such people.”

Ning nodded slightly.

Good.

He just wondered… what would become of that little boy called ‘Iron Child’ in the future.

“Let’s go.” Ning and his junior apprentice-brother Northson walked to one side. With a single finger pointing at a flat rock, sssshhh… a layer of frost condensed, covering the stone in ice. These stones had been flattened by generations of Yinglong Guard candidates resting here, but the wind and sun had left them dirty. This display of their powers drew the attention of many cultivators nearby.

Cold-sha?

Soon, some cultivators came over to chat with Ning and Northson. They made a few new friends.

…

One by one, the surviving cultivators returned from various parts of Mount Yujue Wasteland.

Donghe Feiyun, who had gotten to know Ning and Northson, also returned. But he came back with only one arm, and his aura was much heavier with killing intent. This caused whispers among many cultivators.

“What happened?” Northson sent mentally. “Donghe Feiyun used to be so talkative. Why is he so cold now? And why is he missing an arm? There are plenty of pills for regenerating lost limbs. Even a Wanxiang Adept can slowly regrow a lost arm by consuming more energy. Why hasn’t he treated it?”

Ning shook his head.

He could tell… that after this trial, Donghe Feiyun had changed completely.

Half a day passed, and a few more cultivators returned.

“Look, it’s Meng Liuqing,” Northson sent mentally to Ning. “Of the six cultivators who ambushed us, she’s the only one left alive.”

“Meng Liuqing?” Ning also looked at the female cultivator from the Meng clan.

Meng Liuqing descended from the sky. When she saw Ning and Northson, her expression shifted slightly. She immediately turned and walked to the other side…

“Meng Liuqing!”

A cold, sharp voice rang out.

Meng Liuqing turned her head. She saw a one-armed white-robed youth standing up, his entire body radiating killing intent. His eyes were icy. “The debt of my sister’s murder, Donghe Feiyun will repay it. Meng Liuqing… get ready to die! And the other five… I won’t let a single one off!” As a son of the Donghe clan, he dared to say this openly!

“The other five?” Meng Liuqing shook her head. “I don’t know about Dong Yi, but the other four—Beihe Zhou, Xu Manquan, Nong San, and Ji He—are all dead.”

Donghe Feiyun was stunned. “Dead?”

The surrounding cultivators looked at them.

Four Wanxiang Adepts dead? These cultivators grew curious… what had happened?

“They died at the hands of two fellow disciples of the Black-White College,” Meng Liuqing said, glancing at Ning and Northson in the distance. Since she had a grudge against them, she didn’t mind causing them a little trouble. She had even deliberately mentioned the names of Beihe Zhou and the others, knowing that their fellow disciples and friends would hear of it.

“You bitch!” Northson stood up and roared. “You six set a trap and ambushed us. Four died, and now you’re still trying to scheme against us? Listen well, bitch—don’t ever cross my path again. If I run into you, I’ll make sure you die.”

“That’s right,” Ning said coldly, looking at her.

They were at the Yinglong Guard encampment; no one dared to fight here.

Meng Liuqing shot them a cold glare. Since they were already enemies, what was there to fear?

“Daolords Ji Ning and Mu Northson,” Donghe Feiyun said, turning to face them and bowing deeply. “Those six didn’t go after great demons—they ambushed fellow cultivators instead. Their deaths at your hands were well deserved. If you ever need anything, just give the order. Donghe Feiyun will go through fire and water for you.”

“You’re too kind. We were ambushed and just dealt with them,” Ning and Northson said, quickly helping him up.

…

Soon, all the surviving cultivators had returned. The Hongye True Immortal also came back. But he had no idea that Ning and Northson had been inside the formation earlier. He had, however, heard the Dragon Whale King’s words about ‘blame Ji Ning,’ so he gave Ning a long, deep look.

“Fifty-two of you are alive. As long as you have brought back the corpse or head of a Wanxiang great demon, you are eligible to join the Yinglong Guard,” the skinny old man said. “Go. Enter the teleportation array and head to the Crimson Dragon Mountains.”

All fifty-two cultivators entered the array.

Soon, the array lit up.

Ning and the other fifty-one were teleported two million li away, to the Crimson Dragon Mountains.

(End of Book 8)