Sovereign of the Three Realms

Indeed, Xu Gang laughed heartily, “How about this, Daoist Gaoqi, you two stay here and wait. We’ll go in and scout ahead first. You can bring up the rear when the Walkabout Sect shows up.”

“I think that will do. Daoist Gaoqi is highly principled and most suited to wait here.” Feng Wanjian also concurred.

Mu Gaoqi may be cautious and wary by nature, but that didn’t mean he was a fool. It was obvious that Xu Gang and Feng Wanjian’s spectacle that they wanted to ostracize him. Mu Gaoqi’s lips twitched, but even so, he remained silent, just remaining in place with a reddened face, like a wife who’d been angered.

Jiang Chen could tell that each of these people all had their own schemes. None of them viewed Mu Gaoqi as an ally. Now that his pills were divided amongst them, his value was just about over. Judging from their posture, the four sects wanted to leave him out in the cold.

Jiang Chen followed quietly behind Mu Gaoqi. He decided to wait and see first. If this group really planned on leaving Mu Gaoqi out of the spoils, he naturally wouldn’t agree.

The five pairs walked into the depths of the rock outcropping and soon arrived in front of a deep cave at the end of a narrow stone corridor. Mu Gaoqi and Jiang Chen were at the rear and about to enter when a golden-clad silhouette suddenly blocked the way in front of them.

It was that Feng Wanjian.

“Daoist Gaoqi, didn’t we agree that you’d wait outside for our friends from the Walkabout Sect? In that case, I think you shouldn’t go inside, hmm?” Feng Wanjian’s tone was faint, yet full of an overbearing presence.

Mu Gaoqi quibbled, “Everyone should enter and leave together. If we wait, then everyone should wait together.

Feng Wanjian jeered and gave a shout of laughter, “Only you proposed waiting, so naturally you’re the one who waits. Doesn’t everyone agree with me?”

The other three pairs all burst into uproarious laughter. One less pair meant two fewer opponents. This would be more for them to share when they reached the spring. It was obvious that since Mu Gaoqi was the weakest, there was no pressure at all in ostracizing him. In addition, his main value lay in pills. Since he’d handed them over, there was no point in him entering the cave. He wouldn’t be of any help apart from dragging them down.

“See, you waiting here is what everyone hopes for.” Feng Wanjian shrugged and extended his leg to carve a long line on the hard, stone ground. He commanded coldly, “Wait beyond this line and don’t go past it. Don’t blame me for treating you unkindly if you do!”

As good an upbringing as Mu Gaoqi had, he too was a bit enraged at this moment as well. However, he was weak and was accustomed to giving way in front of others. He didn’t know what to do even though he was mad and could only hold everything in with a beet red face.

“Daoist Feng, you… you go too far in bullying others!” This was the only thing he said after trying for a good long while.

Feng Wanjian laughed heartily, “Haha, this is everyone’s opinion! Too bad you had to be such a loudmouth.”

Jiang Chen had made no move or sound up until now. He suddenly walked in front of Mu Gaoqi and stared at Feng Wanjian with a remote look. He asked casually, “Do you mean to forget about past favors and dismantle the bridge after you’ve crossed the river, thereby ostracizing our Regal Pill Palace?”

Feng Wanjian hadn’t thought anything of Jiang Chen because the latter hadn’t said a single word or expressed any opinions since showing up. He also only looked to be second level origin realm. With the social skills of such trash as Mu Gaoqi, he likely wouldn’t have invited anyone strong, so the others had also ignored Jiang Chen.

Feng Wanjian had been the same. When he saw Jiang Chen speak, the former smirked arrogantly and flicked a glance at Jiang Chen. “And who are you? Do you have the right to speak here?”

Jiang Chen didn’t say a word, merely walked up, stuck out a foot, and erased that line in the ground. The carving instantly smoothed over.

“Go to hell!” Feng Wanjian was incensed by Jiang Chen’s actions. How dare someone erase the line he’d carved! This was a great challenge to him!

He threw a punch directly towards Jiang Chen’s chest, but he’d yet to touch his opponent’s chest when he suddenly felt his wrist go numb.

His wrist hand landed in Jiang Chen’s hands in the next moment. Jiang Chen pulled, yanked, and flung Feng Wanjian out like a broken kite, making him slam fiercely into a large tree ten meters away.

Bam!

Although this collision wasn’t fatal, it was an undoubted loss of all face for an origin realm cultivator.

Jiang Chen walked past like there was no one there.

“Does anyone else have an opinion?” His gaze was deep as he swept it in a circle across the faces of those present.

Feng Wanjian was a disciple of the Sacred Sword Palace, and although his close combat skills weren’t as proficient as his skill with the sword, it was still rather incredible that he’d been casually thrown out like this.

The atmosphere at the scene instantly grew quite interesting. Everyone’s gazes involuntarily looked towards Yue Pan, the only earth origin realm present.

When Yue Pan’s gaze met Jiang Chen’s, he immediately laughed heartily. “You have hidden your skills well and masqueraded as a pig to eat a tiger. I am quite in awe.” He swept his gaze around the scene after speaking, “The more of these kinds of strong comrades, the better. Anyone opposed to them is also opposing me, Yue Pan!”

Yue Pan was tall and buff, appearing quite brutish and savage. Who would’ve thought that he’d change tack so quickly? The ones from the other sects all looked at each other, askance for the moment.

When Feng Wangjian scrambled to his feet, his hand was already on the handle of his sword. But his heart sank when he heard Yue Pan’s words and he glared fiercely at Jiang Chen, finally suppressing his anger in the end.

It was apparent that Feng Wanjian could also see that if even Yue Pan didn’t dare offend the person that Mu Gaoqi had invited, then this newcomer’s strength wouldn’t be too far off from Yue Pan’s. The latter had made this kind of proclamation. If he, Feng Wanjian didn’t realize what situation he was in, he’d be going head to head against the Regal Pill Palace and Great Cathedral then.

Feng Wanjian may have been arrogant, but he didn’t have this level of confidence.

The other Great Cathedral disciple, Xu Gang chuckled. “That was just a small misunderstanding. We are all still close comrades since we’ve cleared things up. Our cooperation is needed to investigate this cavern.”

Jiang Chen watched the quick about faces from the two Great Cathedral disciples. Each had been more ludicrous than the other. This Xu Gang had even planned on taking down Mu Gaoqi a moment before, but now it had all turned into a misunderstanding and they were close comrades.

This kind of person was much more frightening than a cocky fellow like Feng Wanjian, one with eyes at the top of his head.

Those from the Tristar and Dark North Sect had kept a low profile all along. They naturally wouldn’t step forth to be a villain when they’d just seen how strong Jiang Chen was.

When Mu Gaoqi saw that Jiang Chen had exerted control over the situation with one move, he too was quite agitated. Traces of gratitude appeared in his eyes as he looked at Jiang Chen. This spring of wood spirit energy was simply too important to him. If he’d been ostracized and couldn’t enter, then all the efforts he’d conducted in the past couple of days and his dreams would all be completely decimated. The minor conflict just now had given him a great psychological blow.

Strength was king. What use was refining pills if he had no strength? He’d given them the pills, but they’d still erupted in open hostility just like that. All of his pills hadn’t been as useful as Jiang Chen’s single move. Fists determined reason alright!

The group walked into the entrance and was greeted with the sight of a cave with an extremely spacious entrance. It was pitch black, like a black curtain was hanging across everything. Even Jiang Chen’s God’s Eye could only extend to one tenth of its usual range.

“The darkness of this cavern isn’t normal. My God’s Eye should be able to see through the night as if it were day, but I can only see a tenth of my usual in this dark cave. It looks like there’s something special about this cavern that can restrict all light.”

Xu Gang halted his footsteps and said to a Tristar Sect disciple. “Gao Yi, we said that your sect would prepare the night pearls1. You prepared them, didn’t you?”

The thinner of the two chuckled, “Of course.” He flicked his fingers as he talked, shooting the pearls to those present. Everyone held one, including Mu Gaoqi.

Their vision was a bit more illuminated with the pearls in hand. But the pearl didn’t have much use for Jiang Chen. Vision wasn’t the most important sense in the cavern.

“There are all sorts of earthen fire attacks in this cavern, and they’re triggered if the area is illuminated with torches. The pearls are relatively better.” Mu Gaoqi said quietly.

“Let’s go.” Xu Gang waved his arm and took the lead, striding forward first.

Yue Pan however, smiled, “I’ll bring up the rear.” The two from the Great Cathedral were both in the lead and rear, patently very distrustful of the others and also demonstrating the domineering style of the strongest sect in the Myriad Domain.

Jiang Chen and Mu Gaoqi walked in the middle, the former fully calling upon his Boulder’s Heart and Psychic’s Head, following behind the group and heading into the depths of the cavern.

The cavern was dim and quiet, sloping downwards the more one went in. Jiang Chen’s wariness was seven parts for this cavern and three parts for Yue Pan behind them.

Although the two from the Great Cathedral weren’t uncommonly strong, they were the type to quickly turn on you, so one had to exercise the utmost of cautiousness when working with this kind of person.

The group felt the cold air become heavier after roughly an hour.

“The hell? It seems colder here than it was last time.” Gao Yi of the Tristar Sect complained a bit.

“Hmph, look how far we’ve gotten, you’re complaining already?” Xu Gang glared at Gao Yi with displeasure.

Gao Yi chuckled, “I was thinking, will those from the Walkabout Sect show up behind us?”

Xu Gang snorted derisively, “They won’t get anything even if they show up because they were late.” Gao Yi murmured obsequiously to that.

Jiang Chen heard none of this. He’d felt that something was off the moment they’d entered the cavern. There was actually a faint trace of a presence in the air. It was very faint. If Jiang Chen hadn’t trained the Psychic’s Head, he never would’ve captured this presence. When his thoughts travelled here, he sent a silent message to Mu Gaoqi, “Be careful Gaoqi. Someone’s been here before our group.”

Mu Gaoqi grew inwardly stern when he heard this, but didn’t say anything. He had learned from his lesson and had seen through these fellows. He would never speak up out of kindness even when he knew danger was ahead.

1. A legendary pearl that shines at night.