Chapter 156: The Yellow Sand River
What is good about him?
Why are you asking this?
Ming Yue suddenly felt confused. Was she shocked by the fact that Qi Bei and Yao Rao had a romantic relationship? Or was she really searching for answers?
Undeniably, whenever Ming Yue thought about the way Qi Bei and Yao Rao looked at each other, an uncomfortable feeling would arise involuntarily in her heart. Perhaps it was because, in any case, Qi Bei was her nominal fiancé, so she subconsciously had a hint of possessiveness.
When she saw the flirtatious relationship between the lofty Yao Rao and Qi Bei, she felt like something that belonged to her had been taken away. On the other hand, she was puzzled and didn’t understand her own feelings, nor did she understand why Yao Rao would like Qi Bei. So she wanted to find answers.
However, if emotions could be analyzed rationally, they wouldn’t be called emotions.
Yao Rao looked at Ming Yue’s dazed expression, smiled, and thought that perhaps this princess did have some feelings for the young man. Otherwise, with her cold and proud personality, she wouldn’t be so distressed. But that was enough for now. Yao Rao was not a generous woman; helping Ming Yue was mostly because of Qi Bei’s sake, and also because her talent was indeed quite good.
Yao Rao flew up and headed towards the top of the Heavenly Mountain.
However, when she inadvertently glanced downward, she saw Feng Tian coming out of a courtyard halfway up the mountain.
If she remembered correctly, this courtyard was where Elder Fuxin usually resided.
“Hmm, the aura on him…” Yao Rao’s thoughts paused for a moment as she swept her gaze over Feng Tian. How could he have the aura of Elder Fuxin?
After Feng Tian’s figure disappeared from sight, a puzzled Yao Rao landed in the courtyard and gently pushed open the door.
In the main hall, there hung a portrait of Fuxin, and beneath it was his memorial tablet. The atmosphere here was serene and peaceful, with absolutely no presence of any negative energy. After scanning the surroundings and finding nothing unusual, Yao Rao withdrew.
However, she did not notice that after she left, a middle-aged man dressed in a blue robe with a long beard appeared like a ghostly figure. Wasn’t his appearance was quite similar to the image of Elder Fuxin?
….
Crossing over the Soul Severing Mountain, gradually, signs of human activity appeared. Occasionally, they would come across small villages with a few houses. However, the vegetation became sparse, and the black soil transformed into yellow sand.
It was at this point that Qi Bei suddenly realized that everything he had heard about crossing the Soul Severing Mountain and Yellow Sand River had led him to believe that the Yellow Sand River was a large river tainted with yellow sand. He hadn’t expected it to be a desert spanning thousands of square miles.
“Chief Judge, do you think there might be an ambush by that old guy in the Yellow Sand River?” Qi Bei asked Yan Shengyi, who was beside him.
“Perhaps. He won’t let us go so easily, but…” Yan Shengyi furrowed her brows slightly as she still puzzled over what happened a few days ago in the Soul Severing Mountain. It was clearly a situation where they were supposed to die, so how was it resolved? Her gaze swept over Qi Bei again, and she couldn’t help but feel on instinct that this lecherous man with big beard was involved.
“But what?” Qi Bei asked.
“But if a divine intervention really broke the situation, they might have already found that old guy so he wouldn’t bother with us anymore,” Yan Shengyi said.
“That would be for the best. I can’t afford to be tossed around with my little life,” Qi Bei laughed, his beard trembling.
Yan Shengyi gazed into the distant rolling yellow smoke, a hint of strangeness in her eyes.
“What’s wrong?” Qi Bei asked.
“It’s nothing,” Yan Shengyi said lightly.
“Then let’s go. It’s just a few thousand miles of desert, no big deal,” Qi Bei said. Given their strength, it shouldn’t be a problem for them to cross it.
Yan Shengyi didn’t speak but had already flown ahead.
The yellow sand stretched endlessly, and the sun’s rays beat down, creating scorching heatwaves. For ordinary people, standing barefoot on the sand would result in their flesh and skin being seared. But for mages and warriors who had reached the senior level, this kind of heat had almost no effect.
However, although the world was vast and the population was large, more than 90 percent of them were ordinary people. Those who had reached senior level could already dominate a region. Having one or two senior level mages and warriors in a merchant convoy that frequently traveled through the Yellow Sand River was considered quite good.
Therefore, for many people, crossing the Yellow Sand River was tantamount to crossing a land of death.
The most terrifying aspect of the Yellow Sand River region was not the fierce and savage magic beasts that inhabited it, but the sandstorms and quicksand. The energy eruptions between heaven and earth were capable of tearing apart even Earth-ranked experts.
For this reason, whether it was merchant caravans or adventurers crossing the Yellow Sand River, their greatest fear was encountering sandstorms and quicksand. Unlike other deserts, the quicksand in the Yellow Sand River had a unique characteristic. Once one fell into it, they would be pulled into it by a massive energy force, and many powerful experts couldn’t escape its grasp.
“Why didn’t anyone tell me that we can’t fly over this damn Yellow Sand River?” Qi Bei said. Once they flew up, strange energies would disrupt the flow of energy within their bodies.
“The Yellow Sand River was originally a true river thousands of years ago. However, several gods fought here, resulting in changes to the terrain. There has been a peculiar energy field enveloping the area, making flying impossible,” Yan Shengyi explained.
“I see. So, doesn’t that mean this place could be the burial ground for the lost divine artifacts of those gods?” Qi Bei’s eyes sparkled.
“Have you seen any adventurers coming here to explore for treasures?” Yan Shengyi asked.
“Not so far,” Qi Bei shrugged. It was strange.
The two continued to venture deep into the desert. With their speed, they quickly covered hundreds of miles without any incidents. However, they became even more cautious. Who knew if that old guy from the Netherworld had set any traps here?
After walking for several hundred miles, the sky had completely turned dark. The night in the desert was exceptionally beautiful. Looking up, one could see endless shining stars.
Qi Bei and Yan Shengyi stopped their journey and set up camp in the desert.
“Let’s eat something together. I’m starving after not eating all day,” Qi Bei said to Yan Shengyi.
“You go ahead. I need to cultivate,” Yan Shengyi said before entering the tent.
Qi Bei raised his brow. Since Yan Shengyi emerged from the netherworld summoning array, she had maintained a considerable distance from him, as if she thought he would devour her if they got too close.
Qi Bei also entered the tent, sat cross-legged, and began to cultivate. The energy of the Divine Dragon Art surged through his limbs and bones, circulating in a continuous loop. The dragon shadow that had condensed in his dantian seemed to have become more solid.
A faint golden mist emanated from Qi Bei’s body and was then drawn back in through his pores. Vaguely, he suddenly felt a slight tremor in his consciousness, as if something was calling out to him.
And as his consciousness was being pulled further and further away by the calling voice, it grew more distant.
However, just then, the dark longsword on Qi Bei’s body suddenly emitted a pitch-black light, and the abrupt vibration instantly pulled back his consciousness.
Qi Bei abruptly opened his eyes, and the golden mist that had enveloped his body was completely drawn back into him.
“That sound…” Qi Bei felt a sense of fear. His released consciousness had a distance limit, but just now, it seemed to extend infinitely. It was almost losing contact with his main body. Once the contact with his main body was lost, his consciousness wouldn’t be able to return, and he would become like a lifeless corpse.
Qi Bei looked at the black longsword beside him. If it hadn’t suddenly vibrated and pulled back his consciousness, the consequences would have been unimaginable.
“Thanks,” Qi Bei muttered, holding up the black longsword and gently stroking its blade with his other hand. For some reason, he felt that this awakened black longsword truly possessed a soul.
The black longsword trembled slightly, as if responding to him.
Qi Bei’s cultivation was interrupted, and he no longer had the mood to continue. He lifted the tent curtain and walked out.
As soon as he stepped out, Qi Bei saw a graceful figure standing on top of a sand dune in the distance. The night wind made her clothes flutter as if they were about to be blown away.
“Don’t come closer,” Qi Bei had just arrived behind Yan Shengyi when he heard her speak.
Qi Bei smiled, his steps didn’t stop as he approached Yan Shengyi’s side. Turning his head to look at her, he caught a glimpse of a faint trace of melancholy in her eyes that had just disappeared.
Qi Bei felt somewhat puzzled. Did she also have this kind of emotion?
“Chief Judge, weren’t you going to cultivate?” Qi Bei asked with a smile, pretending not to have seen the flicker of emotion in her eyes.
Yan Shengyi shook her head and turned to descend the sand dune.
“Hey, Chief Judge, if there’s something bothering you, you can talk about it,” Qi Bei said from behind.
“It’s almost dawn, we should set off,” Yan Shengyi said lightly.
The two packed up the tent and were about to continue their journey.
Suddenly, a massive sandstorm rose in the distance, obscuring the sky and advancing with great speed towards the two of them.
“A sandstorm! Can’t believe we’re so unlucky,” Qi Bei shouted, his face showing no signs of panic.
But when Qi Bei looked at Yan Shengyi, he noticed a faint expression of fear in her eyes. It didn’t make sense. When she was facing the overwhelming netherworld beasts earlier, she remained calm despite knowing it was a death sentence. Why would she be afraid of a sandstorm?
“Why are you standing there? Run!” When Qi Bei felt the violently raging energy approaching, his expression changed slightly. No wonder they say that even an Earth-ranked powerhouse could be torn to pieces by the sandstorms of the Yellow Sand River. It was true.
Qi Bei grabbed Yan Shengyi, who seemed somewhat dazed, and frantically rushed backward.
However, the sandstorm approached at an astonishing speed. In the blink of an eye, they were already at the edge of the sandstorm. If they didn’t move quickly, they would be enveloped in it soon.
At this moment, Yan Shengyi finally snapped out of it. She suddenly broke free from Qi Bei’s grasp and turned around, charging toward the sandstorm.
“Are you crazy?!” Qi Bei yelled, intending to turn back and pull Yan Shengyi back.
But just then, Qi Bei’s foot sank as if stepping into quicksand, and he was pulled down. At the same time, a tremendous force came from deep within, and Qi Bei found himself with only his head exposed outside the yellow sand.
Quicksand!
Both the terrifying sandstorm and quicksand, the deadliest combination in the Yellow Sand River, happened to strike Qi Bei at the same time.