Towering mountain ranges, covered in white snow.
Hawks circled high in the sky over three thousand zhang, then suddenly dove downwards, streaking past a majestic hall stained red with blood.
Hundreds of cultivators, looking utterly wretched and wearing the Coiling Dragon Sect's brownish daoist robes, stood dejectedly in the open area before the Coiling Dragon Sect's main hall. Thousands of corpses lay scattered in disarray all around them.
These Coiling Dragon Sect disciples were all prisoners captured by the Kongshan Sect after the great battle concluded.
A young cultivator, his pure white daoist robes stained with blood and his eyes gloomy, slowly walked past these Coiling Dragon Sect prisoners. With each step he took, the scabbards of the black and white peak swords at his waist would clink together with a metallic sound.
"Senior Li."
A Qi Sea Realm Protector disciple from the Kongshan Sect's Yibai Peak, who was in charge of the escort team, bowed respectfully in Li Haowen's direction.
Li Haowen did not hold any official position on Yuanhua Mountain. Therefore, Kongshan Sect cultivators with less seniority and lower cultivation than him would often address him as "Senior."
"How many in total?"
"Reporting to Senior Li, there are one hundred and fifty-three Qi Circulation Realm cultivators, seventy-one Martial Spring Realm cultivators, and eight Qi Sea Realm cultivators. A total of two hundred and thirty-two prisoners are here, all of whom have had their cultivation sealed."
The Qi Sea Realm Protector disciple from Yibai Peak said.
Before Li Haowen could say anything more, a figure descended from the sky, landing behind him.
An elderly man wearing tattered Bagua Daoist robes, with disheveled hair, was none other than Kongyuan Mountain's True Dharma Elder, Yue Chi.
"Greetings, Elder Yue!"
The Kongshan Sect disciples present all respectfully addressed Yue Chi.
Li Haowen slowly turned around, also facing Yue Chi's direction, then slightly lowered his head in a bow.
"Elder Yue."
Yue Chi ignored the respectful greetings from the Kongshan Sect disciples present and walked towards the two hundred and twenty-four Coiling Dragon Sect disciples in the open area.
"You left so many alive?"
After a moment of silence, Yue Chi spoke in a serious tone, holding the Yibai Peak Qi Sea Realm Protector disciple in charge accountable.
"Uh, rep-reporting to Elder Yue..."
Cold sweat trickled down the forehead of this Yibai Peak Protector disciple. As a Protector of the Yibai Peak Sword Guarding Pavilion, the highest cultivation level he usually interacted with was the Pavilion Elder, who was at the mid-stage of the Passable God Realm.
Being held accountable by a great power of the Myriad Transformations Realm level, like Yue Chi, the second-in-command of Kongyuan Mountain and the True Dharma Elder of Kongyuan, made him dare not even breathe heavily.
"It was my intention, Elder Yue."
Li Haowen said.
Yue Chi remained silent, slowly turning his head, his gaze shifting towards Li Haowen's direction.
"Leaving roots unremoved has severe consequences."
After the time of two breaths, Yue Chi said.
"These people have no will to fight anymore."
Li Haowen replied.
"Leaving roots unremoved has severe consequences!"
Yue Chi merely repeated it once more.
"......"
Li Haowen fell silent, only offering a wordless resistance.
"Dispose of these prisoners."
Yue Chi shifted his gaze away from Li Haowen and gave the order to the Yibai Peak Protector disciple beside him.
"These people have no ability to resist anymore."
Li Haowen said.
"That's the case now. But what about later, when these people, harboring hatred, come to retaliate against our Kongshan Sect disciples?"
Yue Chi said.
"But that's just speculation. Nothing has happened yet."
Li Haowen retorted.
"Do you insist on watching such a thing happen with your own eyes, Li Haowen?"
Yue Chi rebuked.
"Those who surrender shall not be killed. That was my promise to them."
Li Haowen said.
"A foolish promise."
Yue Chi sneered.
"Elder Yue, fifteen years ago, on Heavenly Summit Mountain, I was unable to do anything..."
Before Li Haowen could finish his sentence, he saw Yue Chi raise his hand. A pale blue palm imprint shot towards the over two hundred Coiling Dragon Sect prisoners in the open area. A mist of blood drifted before the Coiling Dragon Sect's main hall.
"Now you are also unable to do anything."
Yue Chi turned and left.
"Don't do foolish things anymore. None of us have a choice."
...
Fusheng Island was a solitary island suspended at the edge of the Southern Region of the Chenping Continent, forty-seven thousand five hundred li away.
Chen Yan flew through the air, carrying Si Youyou across the ocean between the Chenping Continent and Fusheng Island. The entire journey took only a few hours.
When Chen Yan and Si Youyou landed on the sandy beach at Fusheng Island's shore, he quickly realized he was mistaken.
Fusheng Island was not the uninhabited solitary island he had imagined, aside from Fusheng City.
On Fusheng City's beach, hundreds of abandoned ships lay discarded. Scattered footprints were also visible on the sand, and these footprints looked quite fresh.
"This is..."
Chen Yan frowned slightly, murmuring to himself, then led Si Youyou deeper into the solitary island.
Walking along the beach inward, after traveling less than ten li, Chen Yan, standing on a hillside on the island, saw a building that looked like an inn about three li away from his current location. It surrounded a courtyard roughly the size of three mu of land, with stables set up nearby.
The architectural style of that inn looked quite similar to the style of the Southern Region of the Chenping Continent.
Was this really Fusheng Island?
It was completely different from Chen Yan's imagination. He originally thought Fusheng Island should be an ethereal, immortal-energy-filled place like Heavenly Summit Mountain, with a lone, majestic, true Immortal City standing on the island—a city where people were born at the Martial Spring Realm from the day they were born.
A realm countless individuals with low or mediocre talent in the Chenping Continent dreamed of attaining.
But now, in Chen Yan's eyes, the so-called Fusheng Island seemed to be nothing more than a remote small island far from the Chenping Continent.
Yet he knew it couldn't be that simple.
Chen Yan made up his mind, deciding to first go to that inn to investigate the situation.
"Is anyone here?"
Chen Yan stepped into the courtyard of that inn. Four tall horses were tethered in the stables to the side. With just one glance, Chen Yan could easily tell these four horses were high-quality spirit horses of quite pure bloodline.
These spirit horses, in different regions of the Chenping Continent, could be sold for prices ranging from tens to nearly a thousand high-grade spirit stones.
"Coming!"
First, a clear and bright voice came from inside the inn. Soon, a young man dressed in waiter attire emerged from the inn's main door, smiling at Chen Yan and Si Youyou standing in the courtyard.
"You two, here for a meal or staying the night?"
"Just here to take a look first."
Chen Yan said.
He fixed his gaze on the waiter before him. With his current cultivation at the early stage of the Passable God Realm, he only needed one glance to easily see through the other's cultivation level.
This inn's waiter was at the mid-stage of the Qi Sea Realm.