Chapter 181: He Changed! (Part One)
Chapter 181: He Changed! (Part One)
Time passed in a flash, and another month was gone!
One man and one dog had wandered within the Hundred Thousand Mountains for a full month. During this period, Tang Jinbiao had originally intended to hunt Demon Beasts. However, the Hundred Thousand Mountains seemed like a land of death; not a single trace of Demon Beasts could be found. Only occasionally could one see Cultivators patrolling as they flew high overhead.
Of course, this further confirmed the information he had learned: the Demon Beasts in the Hundred Thousand Mountains had already been driven deep into the hinterlands by the human Cultivators.
“Ah Huang, you go ahead and scout first. According to my map, there seems to be a Divine Wind Academy base up ahead. If there’s any situation, report back immediately!”
Raising his head to gaze far into the distance, Tang Jinbiao’s slightly narrowed eyes could faintly make out threads of Spiritual Energy wafting in the air a few tens of li away.
Tang Jinbiao recognized the nature of that Spiritual Energy at a glance: it was generated by Restrictions or Formations. Combined with information in his possession, he naturally understood that ahead must be a base of the Divine Wind Academy.
The various major powers from Suzhou who had come to encircle and suppress the Demon Beasts in the Hundred Thousand Mountains had certainly established more than one base. This particular location wasn’t a vital stronghold, merely a rear supply depot. Therefore, it wasn’t considered confidential. The strongest Cultivators stationed there were merely two or three Instructors from the Divine Wind Academy, their Cultivation Level equivalent only to that of Nascent Soul Cultivators.
Naturally, even Cultivators equivalent to the Nascent Soul stage were far beyond what the current Tang Jinbiao could provoke. However, Tang Jinbiao had no intention of provoking them anyway. He merely wanted to understand the current situation within the Hundred Thousand Mountains. After all, he was still a student of the Divine Wind Academy.
As for the more formidable combat forces, they were positioned much deeper into the mountains. It was said that the various major powers had now driven the Demon Beasts of the Hundred Thousand Mountains into a remaining activity radius of just three thousand li. Moreover, as time passed, this area might shrink even further.
Hearing Tang Jinbiao order it to scout the path, the Azure Dragon in the form of the Big Yellow Dog rolled its eyes, unclear what scheme it was hatching.
“Hmph, you better not try any tricks. Otherwise, before anything happens to me, I swear I will slay you first! You know very well I have the capability to do it!”
Seeing the cunning glint in the Azure Dragon’s eyes, Tang Jinbiao seemed to sense something and snorted coldly as he spoke.
“Understood!”
Seeming to realize its scheming thoughts had been seen through by Tang Jinbiao, the Azure Dragon, though reluctant, transformed into a yellow streak of light and shot towards that direction.
In the blink of an eye, the Azure Dragon vanished from Tang Jinbiao’s sight.
“It seems this Azure Dragon really isn’t a good thing!”
Looking towards the direction where the Azure Dragon disappeared, a flash of ruthlessness appeared in Tang Jinbiao’s eyes.
Over this past month, the Azure Dragon had schemed against him not just once. Fortunately, Tang Jinbiao had been on his guard from the start, preventing the Azure Dragon from succeeding.
Tang Jinbiao naturally wanted to slay the Azure Dragon. However, considering its terrifying combat power and extraordinary knowledge, he had chosen to keep it by his side instead.
These past days, whenever he had the chance, Tang Jinbiao would use the Azure Dragon as a sparring partner, constantly honing his skills and advancing his Cultivation Level. While there hadn’t been any earth-shattering transformations, he had still made considerable progress.
To Tang Jinbiao now, the Azure Dragon was like a sharp blade: wielded well, it could defeat formidable enemies; wielded poorly, the next one it might pierce could be himself.
Naturally, the Tang Jinbiao of today was a completely different person compared to the one a month ago. Ever since meeting Huang Biaozi in that World of Destruction and receiving instruction in the Way of Deception from him, Tang Jinbiao had undergone a total transformation.
“The first step on the Way of Deception, huh? Hmph, if there truly is a Divine Wind Academy base ahead, then perhaps I can go have a look. Might as well pick up some Spirit Stones and Elixirs along the way…”
Watching the direction where the Azure Dragon had vanished, Tang Jinbiao began to formulate plans in his heart.
…
The Azure Dragon was gone a full half hour before it returned.
…
Whoosh!
The Azure Dragon remained in the form of the Big Yellow Dog. Although it yearned to transform back into its dragon form, it dared not without Tang Jinbiao’s permission; Huang Biaozi’s methods were something it remembered all too clearly.
“Huh?”
It was only a distance of about ten li, yet the Azure Dragon had taken a full half hour to go and return. Tang Jinbiao’s brows furrowed slightly, a sense of unease washing over him. He thought to himself, “Why did that Azure Dragon take so long to come back?”
“Master, your judgment is uncannily accurate; ahead was indeed a stronghold of Divine Wind Academy, and there was only one Nascent Soul Cultivator guarding it. If master wished…”
The big yellow dog transformed from Azure Dragon came before Tang Jinbiao, immediately lay down on the ground, panting heavily, with a submissive look on its face, flattering as it spoke.
“Hmm, good, since that’s the case, then follow me; let’s head up ahead to resupply for a bit!”
Tang Jinbiao gave Azure Dragon a deeply meaningful glance, then without saying another word, he rapidly ran toward that direction.
Although Tang Jinbiao’s Cultivation Level was still Third Stage Initial Body Refinement, his current strength had improved much compared to before; it had reached a bottleneck, and he only needed a specific opportunity to break through.
His speed was naturally much faster; in the blink of an eye, he disappeared into the dense forest.
“Hmph, kid, thinking you can command me? You’re still too green!”
After seeing Tang Jinbiao’s figure vanish, the big yellow dog transformed from Azure Dragon wore a human-like expression on its face, seemingly having set some trap there and waiting for Tang Jinbiao to fall into it.
A moment later, this Azure Dragon transformed into a yellow streak of light and followed in Tang Jinbiao’s direction.
……
In the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, he ran about a mile.
Tang Jinbiao, while running, kept alert to his surroundings and cast out his Divine Sense; although he could only probe about ten meters around him, it was better than nothing.
“Such a short distance—Azure Dragon couldn’t possibly be delayed that long; there must be some trickery involved!”
However, as he approached that Divine Wind Academy stronghold, Tang Jinbiao increasingly murmured to himself in his heart, and a feeling of incongruity began to surface.
Over the past month, through comprehending the outline left by Huang Biaozi, Tang Jinbiao clearly understood that unusual occurrences must have underlying deviousness.
Thinking this way, Tang Jinbiao’s eyes narrowed slightly, because his Divine Sense was not particularly strong, only able to sense things faintly and vaguely, but his Spirit Eyes were different; anything with Spiritual Energy, he could see through at a glance.
Swish, swish, swish!
Where Tang Jinbiao’s gaze swept, those trees became formless objects and could not block him at all; within a thirty-meter radius, anything with Spiritual Energy, except underground, was almost entirely swept over by his probing.
However, unfortunately, there were no other hidden Cultivators nearby, and no spiritual herbs or precious ores whatsoever.
“Could I be overthinking it?”
After finding the surroundings normal, Tang Jinbiao furrowed his brows slightly and muttered in his heart.
Since comprehending the Way of Deception, Tang Jinbiao’s intuition had become exceptionally sharp, or rather, it was his careful observation of everything around him.
“Hmph, making a fuss over nothing!”
After probing around and finding nothing abnormal, Tang Jinbiao snorted disdainfully and advanced again toward the stronghold’s direction.
Rustle, rustle, rustle!
But just at that moment, a place not far from Tang Jinbiao, about a hundred meters away, suddenly had movements in the thicket; that area was just outside his Spirit Eyes’ inspection range, so he hadn’t detected it earlier.
“What?”
Upon hearing the commotion from that direction, Tang Jinbiao immediately stopped, narrowed his eyes to look that way, but as he did, his heart slightly startled.
Rustle, rustle, rustle!
From that direction, a black shadow suddenly appeared; before Tang Jinbiao could clearly see its appearance, it darted into the dense forest and vanished, leaving only the swaying trees.
“Mid Core Formation Stage!”
Gazing at the vanished black shadow, Tang Jinbiao felt a slight pang of uneasy premonition in his heart.
After that figure vanished, Tang Jinbiao turned to look back the way he came. He saw that the big yellow dog which the Azure Dragon had transformed into had only just managed to catch up, utterly exhausted and panting heavily as it approached.
“Just as I thought!”
Seeing the deliberate show of fatigue from the Azure Dragon, a faint, cold smirk tugged at Tang Jinbiao’s lips.
“Since you want to play games, I’ll play along with you. I’d better make you give up that hope sooner rather than later. Otherwise, in times of crisis, I wouldn’t dare lift your seal!”
In the blink of an eye, Tang Jinbiao judged that this was surely another ploy involving that Azure Dragon.
Such deliberately laid traps were nothing new; he had encountered seven or eight of them over the past month. Apart from almost being fooled the first time, the others had come to nothing.
Though Tang Jinbiao intended to exploit the Azure Dragon’s power, he genuinely wanted to win it over. After all, the Azure Dragon had once been a Demon Emperor – its cultivation level and breadth of knowledge were simply beyond Tang Jinbiao’s grasp.
Although Huang Biaozi was nominally Tang Jinbiao’s master, the man had only left him a manual on the Way of Deception and nothing else. Even if Huang Biaozi had offered personal guidance, Tang Jinbiao wouldn’t have trusted him.
Tang Jinbiao sought to truly win over the Azure Dragon, not through the Beast Taming Art left by Huang Biaozi to utterly control it, but through making the Azure Dragon accept him as the true master.
Anyone else harboring such a thought would be suicidal for certain. How wildly audacious it was for a mere Third-tier Body Refiner to imagine subduing a Demon Emperor as a subordinate! Yet, after obtaining Huang Biaozi’s manual on the Way of Deception, Tang Jinbiao possessed such confidence.
“Ah Huang, I noticed something over there. Wait for me here. I’ll be right back!”
Fueled by this conviction, Tang Jinbiao commanded the still-arriving Azure Dragon. Without waiting for any reaction, he swiftly pursued the direction where the shadowy figure had disappeared.
A moment later, the big yellow dog, which was the Azure Dragon in disguise, arrived at the spot where Tang Jinbiao had just stood.
“Heh heh, kid, I actually have to admire your guts. Knowing full well it’s a trap, yet still choosing to walk right into it. If it weren’t for Huang Biaozi and that bastard Tang Ni… I might genuinely enjoy working with you for a while!”
Staring in the direction of Tang Jinbiao’s disappearance, the big yellow dog’s canine features twisted into an unnervingly human-like sneer.
…
One hour later, closely trailing the shadowy figure, Tang Jinbiao had traveled far from the Divine Wind Academy outpost. He had covered nearly a hundred li, arriving at a deep, secluded valley within the Hundred Thousand Mountains.
The Hundred Thousand Mountains were an endless expanse of dense forest, featuring complex terrain encompassing mountains, lakes, cliffs, valleys, and even deserts—nearly every conceivable landform could be found here.
But this valley was different from any ordinary one. At its heart lay a massive pool, roughly ten zhang across.
Splash!
The shadowy figure Tang Jinbiao had been relentlessly pursuing abruptly plunged into the deep water.
“Something’s off… this isn’t right. This person isn’t an ordinary Mid Core Formation Stage cultivator!”
Yet, the longer Tang Jinbiao pursued, the more uneasy he grew. Now, standing within the valley, the feeling of foreboding intensified dramatically.
Outwardly, this valley appeared no different than any other. But to anyone paying close attention, an involuntary dread crept up along the spine, blanketing the place in a profoundly chilling and sinister aura.
This eerie coldness emanated specifically from the jade-green pool.
Although Tang Jinbiao possessed the Frost Silver Spear, which granted him a degree of resistance to cold, an involuntary shiver still wracked his body at this moment.
Moreover, throughout the chase, the fleeing figure’s speed had been deliberately inconsistent. Every time Tang Jinbiao drew near, it abruptly accelerated to widen the gap, only to slow down again shortly after, ensuring Tang Jinbiao never lost sight of it completely.
In fact, Tang Jinbiao couldn’t shake the disquieting sense that he wasn’t chasing the shadow… rather, the shadow was actively leading him to this specific location.
Swish… Swish…
Watching the rippling waves forming on the surface of the deep pool, Tang Jinbiao felt a jolt of alarm. A pang of regret hit him—pursuing that shadow here might have been a grave mistake.
“This place is strange. I need to leave!”
After scanning his surroundings with heightened vigilance, Tang Jinbiao’s sense of unease spiked. The thought of retreat took firm hold, and he immediately decided to abandon this place.
Boom!
But it was already too late. At that precise moment, a thunderous explosion erupted from the very center of the deep pool, hurling massive columns of water high into the air…