The jingle of camel bells echoed as the caravan trudged through the boundless desert. Gazing into the distance, nothing but barren wasteland met the eye, interrupted only by sparse patches of tenacious greenery.
At noon, the sun blazed overhead, the heat making people dizzy. Even those who had opened their acupoints felt their bodies burning and their mouths dry. For the ordinary people leading the camels, it was unbearable. They had to take shelter behind some weathered rocks.
As the sound of gulping water echoed, many regained their strength and started chatting idly.
“The Evil Blade is dead. I’m afraid we’ll need to change our banner,” sighed the leader of the caravan.
They had paid a hefty sum to secure the “protection” of the Evil Blade, ensuring safe passage without fear of large-scale bandit attacks. As for minor threats, their hired guards were more than capable of handling them. Yet, no one anticipated the sudden twist—Ze Luojun was slain right within the Grand Preceptor’s residence!
Therefore, seizing the brief window before the news spread across the vast desert, they hastily set off shortly after the blockade in Hala was lifted. This journey might necessitate a change of their “banner.”
Another leader of the caravan said nonchalantly, “What’s there to fear? Even though the Evil Blade is dead, the Crying Elder still lives! He will surely appoint someone to take over the Evil Ridge. Our banner will still be of use!”
The first speaker felt slightly reassured and sighed, “The Mad Blade truly lives up to his legendary reputation. After a twenty-day pursuit across thousands of miles, he managed to kill the Evil Blade inside the Grand Preceptor’s residence—the safest place in all of Hanhai. The top-ranked on the List of the Strongest Through the Ages is indeed worthy of his title. Perhaps in a few years, he will ascend to the Earth Rankings…”
“Indeed, who would have thought that after making a breakthrough, Mad Blade would silently attack Vastsea without stabilizing his cultivation? Ze Luojun probably didn’t anticipate this either!”
“Didn’t we just hear about Kuang Dao’s breakthrough a few days ago? Yet he was already battling Xie Dao over ten thousand miles away in the Divine Capital. It feels like a dream.”
“Perhaps those who have survived four heavenly calamities truly possess such might…”
The incident stirred up quite a commotion. Except for the guards keeping watch for bandits, everyone in the caravan joined in the heated discussion, speaking with great fervor as if they had witnessed it firsthand. They described Kuang Dao descending from the heavens like a deity, suddenly appearing before Ze Luojun and striking when he least expected it!
However, one person did not join the discussion. Sitting beneath a weathered rock, expression indifferent, yet secretly pleased, was Meng Qi disguised as a desert traveler.
At the moment, he had a sword hanging at his waist, exuding a cold aura, with ordinary features that bore no resemblance to Mad Blade whatsoever.
He couldn’t use the identity of Mad Blade to kill the “Eight Wilderness Subduing Sword,” nor would he employ “Yuanshi Tianzun,” since “Su Meng” had just surfaced in the Vast Sea.
He glanced up at the sun, estimating his current location, and realized he was already near Bomi.
As the chatter continued, several desert travelers turned their heads toward the weathered rock. Just as they caught sight of a figure, sunlight shone brightly, casting golden rays.
Squinting, they looked again. The person leaning against the weathered rock was gone, leaving only empty space bathed in sunlight.
Using the sunlight to escape, Meng Qi traveled several hundred miles deeper into the vast desert. He found a secluded, weathered area and hid within a crevice. Listening to the underground river flowing nearby, he took out the “spoils” from this journey.
Previously, Meng Qi had stayed in Halle partly to create a “hiding in plain sight” effect, throwing off the Crying Elder’s pursuit. Additionally, after being struck by Ze Luojun’s “Yin Yang Evil Eye,” his Primordial Spirit was injured, with Yin energy seeping into his bones. His wounds were severe, necessitating rest and recovery. It took him over twenty days to fully recuperate.
If not for his cultivation of the Two Heads and Four Arms technique, which allowed an extra head to absorb the disaster, even with the powerful defense of the Eight and Nine Techniques, facing Ze Luojun’s ultimate evil arts would have left him seriously wounded and unable to escape detection!
Because he had stayed in Halle and was worried that something inside Ze Luojun’s black bag might allow the Crying Elder to detect it, Meng Qi had suppressed the urge to check it until now.
At first glance, the most conspicuous spoils were Xie Luojun’s sinister blade—a slender, ominous-looking sword. Listening carefully, one could hear mournful wails emanating from within. However, struck by the righteous and yang energy of the sun and heavenly lightning, its malevolent aura was weakened, leaving it damaged.
After examining the Evil Blade for a while, Meng Qi placed it into his Jiezi Ring and took out the black bag, opening it.
Instantly, radiant and auspicious light mixed with eerie, dark Qi poured out. If not for Meng Qi activating the true fire of the sun beforehand, bathing the area in golden brilliance to suppress the disturbance, the phenomenon might have been visible from far away.
“This bag seems like a half-formed spatial item…” Meng Qi observed thoughtfully, noting that the items inside exceeded his expectations.
His sharp eyes quickly spotted two particularly powerful or strange objects among the colorful treasures.
One was a dark green, almost black stone, within which a face emerged—filled with hatred, grotesque, and twisted. Countless intricate patterns covered its surface, seemingly depicting the underworld. The other was a string of prayer beads, crafted from a peculiar brown wood. There were nine in total. Seven had lost their faintly glowing Buddhist radiance, appearing dim and murky. The remaining two—one emitted a soft golden glaze-like hue, while the other was deep brown with faint starlight shimmering through.
“These are two secret treasures,” Meng Qi, no longer the naive youth of old, recognized instantly.
In his world, the secret treasures, though not as miraculous as those in *Investiture of the Gods*, were mostly forged by splitting Qi for defensive or offensive purposes. After careful examination, Meng Qi preliminarily discerned the functions of these two treasures. The Dark Ghost Stone was likely crafted using one of the “Eighteen Ghostly Strikes,” combined with Yin spirits and rare treasures, serving an offensive role. Judging by its aura, it was at least on par with the fourth level of the Outer Scenery realm—surpassing the first Heavenly Ladder.
“Good thing I launched a surprise attack, giving Ze Luojun no chance to recover. If he had managed to use this treasure, it would have been me fleeing for my life…” Meng Qi was quite satisfied with his strategy.
The prayer beads contained Buddhist Qi, which held no mystery for Meng Qi, who possessed the Ruyi Divine Palm. He was almost certain that the nine beads were nine separate secret treasures. He speculated that they had once belonged to a high-ranking Buddhist monk before falling into Ze Luojun’s hands. Seven of them had already been used, leaving only two: the “Dharma Protector Glazed Light” and the highly coveted “Heart-Reading Insight.” Various mystical techniques required crossing the first heavenly ladder to master. Otherwise, burdened with the four heavenly calamities, Meng Qi wouldn’t have been able to possess them. Instead, he relied on the Sun and Stars within his Dharma Form to conceal his presence and evade detection.
“Judging by the aura, these two prayer beads don’t exceed the third level of the Outer Scenery cultivation stage…” Meng Qi grinned broadly, showing no trace of disappointment. After all, Ze Luojun, a seasoned bandit leader who had roamed the vast desert for years, had left him a veritable treasure trove.
Armed with these two treasures, Meng Qi felt much more assured about his impending journey to Carefree Valley.
Besides them, the remaining items were no ordinary treasures—Sun God Stones glowing with golden light, Meteorite Cores, Earth Wu Soil, Yellow Sand Essence, Tai Bai True Gold, and Ghostly Yin Iron—all rare and precious materials capable of aiding cultivation. Especially the Sun God Stone and Earth Wu Soil, when refined into true Qi, could help Meng Qi achieve minor perfection in techniques like the Solar Buddha Sword Art, the Immovable Golden Lotus, and the Jade Void Pure Origin Slash, significantly reducing the time required.
Meng Qi estimated that these treasures alone were worth at least ten thousand merit points, sufficient to sustain his cultivation progress even as the cosmic energies diminished due to the Four Heavenly Tribulations.
“Truly a seasoned bandit lord of the vast sea…” Meng Qi felt tears of joy welling up, almost tempted to praise Ze Luojun as a generous benefactor.
Choosing to seek revenge first had indeed been the right decision!
As Meng Qi transferred the treasures and rare materials into his Jiezi Ring, he suddenly let out a soft exclamation. Two unremarkable items were hidden among them.
One was a token, neither metal nor stone, wood nor silk, inscribed with ancient seal script characters:
“Upon seeing this order, open it.”
The other was a brass key, its shape oddly familiar to Meng Qi.
“I’ve seen something like this before…” Meng Qi furrowed his brow in thought. Suddenly, he remembered. He retrieved a bunch of brass keys from his Jiezi Ring.
These were keys taken from An Guoxie, the notorious thief An Guo. Meng Qi and Gu Changqing suspected they belonged to the hidden treasures of this lone master thief. Unfortunately, aside from deducing the general location of an oasis kingdom based on the key’s shape, they had no other leads. As Meng Qi had been preoccupied, they had never pursued the search.
After carefully selecting a key from the bunch and placing it beside Ze Luojun’s key, Meng Qi noticed they were identical—both had a notch at the front, as if gnawed by a rat.
“Exactly the same, opening the same door…” Meng Qi found the key somewhat peculiar.
Ze Luojun had one, and An Guoxie had one too, suggesting the significance of the door they opened.
The other keys can be sold to Jiu Niang or used to gather information. I don’t have time to search for them anyway. They’re probably just ordinary gold and jewels, not worth any merit. But these two keys must be kept. After my trip to Carefree Valley, I’ll investigate which oasis kingdom uses keys of this shape…” Meng Qi quickly made a decision and put the items away.
…
Bomi was originally a vast oasis in the vast desert, home to a powerful kingdom.
But over a thousand years ago, crimson mists suddenly appeared overnight, completely engulfing Bomi. No one escaped. The kingdom vanished from the world. At the time, rumors spread across the Western Regions. Some said the royal family of Bomi discovered an ancient tomb and secretly excavated it, accidentally breaking through to the underworld, unleashing underworld energy and Yellow Spring waters. Others claimed a terrifying monster was sealed beneath Bomi, and someone unknowingly broke the seal, causing its power to leak out and split the earth…
Various theories circulated. Many experts at the Dharmakaya cultivation stage ventured in to investigate but returned empty-handed. The crimson mists could block spiritual senses, dull perception, and obscure divination. With deep canyons and fissures underground, the terrain was treacherous, teeming with zombies and demons. It became a refuge for the most dangerous criminals and fugitives seeking vengeance, transforming into the most perilous place in the Vast Sea—a true den of dragons and snakes.
Ahead, the red mist remained motionless, unaffected even by the gale, as if a monstrous entity were devouring both sand and wind.
Meng Qi gazed at the sinister red mist, took a deep breath, gripped the sword at his waist, and stepped forward.
The coldness seeped into his body through his nose and mouth. Instead of relieving the dry heat, it made breathing difficult and his pores feel blocked.
His eyes glowing with fire, his vision limited to twenty zhang, his ears twitching, hearing only nearby sounds. Looking up, the red mist obscured the sky, hiding the sun, moon, stars, and clouds. Meng Qi had already lost his sense of direction.
He walked slowly, waiting for the “mark”—the divine traces had provided detailed information about Bomi, including ways to contact certain insiders, in order to locate the Eight Desolates Subduing Sword and Yang Zhenshan.
After about half an hour, a howling wind blew, the red mist swayed, and a group emerged—some wearing black armor, others draped in white robes. Their eyes were dull, their skin withered, oozing pus and decay—undead!
Meng Qi held his breath and stilled himself, merely observing the direction they had come from.
Wailing like cries or horns, the group moved slowly and stiffly, eyes forward, making no sound other than the eerie wails. Even the clinking of armor plates was absent.
Wuwuwu! The group disappeared into the red mist on the other side, the chilling sense of dread vanishing instantly.
Meng Qi exhaled and turned toward the location where the dead group had emerged.
Apart from masters at the Dharmakaya stage, this was the only reliable method to determine directions in Bomi!
The patrol of ghostly soldiers, moving from east to west!
It was said these undead spirits were the people of the ancient Bomi kingdom.
Tai Sui Yellow Amulet Paper FuLu Taoist Love Talisman Traditional Chinese Spiritual Charm Attracting Love Protecting Marriage