“I’m not too slow, am I? I never thought I’d only uphold my promise of the past now.”
Li Qingshan recalled how Peng Jingni and Qian Liangmu had visited Savage mountain together in the past. Before he knew it, that was already several years ago.
“If that’s slow, then probably nothing in the world can be regarded as fast! In just a few years, you’ve swept up the demonic cultivators of the south, made the Myriad Poison cult suffer a great defeat, and killed countless Bone Eating shamans. Who in the Mist province doesn’t know the name of the King of Savages right now? I just hope that we can leave today with terms that we’re both satisfied with,” Peng Jingni said sincerely. Probably no one imagined Li Qingshan could rise up so quickly.
“Then let’s see whether your master takes me seriously or not!” Li Qingshan smiled.
“You’re the mighty King of Savages. Who doesn’t take you seriously?” Peng Jingni shook his head with a wry smile.
The two of them got along well there, but the elders and disciples from the South Sea Sword pavilion behind them were not as amiable. Many of them looked at Li Qingshan with hostility. Not only had Li Qingshan ruined the South Sea Sword pavilion’s plan, but he had even enslaved Yu Wufeng, forcing the master of the sword pavilion to venture all the way to Giant Ship island with everyone else. They were obviously in a bad mood.
The elders who were relatively older could hide their emotions, but the younger disciples were not as capable. If Peng Jingni had not quickly expressed their standing with Li Qingshan, there probably would be a few people who would not be able to help themselves but to mock and sneer at Li Qingshan, leading to many more issues.
Yu Wufeng saw all of this and nodded secretly in acknowledgement. Junior brother Peng had already filled in the shoes of the first senior brother quite well.
“Sir,” Ji Qingyu called out carefully from the side.
“We’ve made you wait. We’ll head over right now!” Li Qingshan arrived on the platform with Xiao An. He clasped his hands. “I’ve heard about the Wind Gale King’s great reputation long ago. Now that we finally meet, you truly do live up to your reputation. I’ll be troubling you for the next few days.”
“The King of Savages’ presence is an honour for the Cloud Sail sect. Please give me a moment. There really are a lot of goods this time!” Ji Changfeng returned the gesture politely, treating Li Qingshan as an equal.
“There are a lot, but there doesn’t seem to be anything particularly precious.”
The goods on the backs of the whales were obviously priceless to regular cultivators, but they did not really catch Li Qingshan’s attention. He obviously understood the goods of actual value would not be stored outside. Instead, they would be placed in sumeru rings and hundred treasures pouches.
This left many people wondering. Were the two mighty cultivators meeting up with the Merfolk Queen just to examine these common goods?
The Myriad Poison Ancestor was basically qualified to make them wait, but according to the plan, the Myriad Poison Ancestor would have never appeared now in the first place. He had made it clear on the notice too. The master of the sword pavilion might not be willing to wait either. After a short conversation with Gong Yuan and Ji Changfeng, Ye Duanhai arrived on the side of the platform alone. He was currently talking with Yu Wufeng, and he was extremely serious, but he did not seem displeased at all.
“Once the sea fair begins, you’ll obviously be able to see it for yourself, fellow. However, you may be unaware that…” Ji Changfeng paused for a moment. “…the head caretaker of the King of Zhao’s estate, ah, isn’t he here?”
The King of Zhao’s estate!
Li Qingshan raised his eyebrows. That had not been in his calculations. He wondered whether it would affect the plan. Whatever, it was impossible to calculate everything in life anyway. He would just see and adjust accordingly along the way!
To the north, a mountainous cloud sailed against the wind.
Suddenly, a huge ship burst out of the cloud, shining silver under the moonlight. It accelerated.
“What a great ship!” Li Qingshan was astounded. The ship was approximately three thousand meters long, with a style that resembled Soaring Dragon ships, except the details were even sharper and more fluid. It was ten times larger than a Soaring Dragon ship, hovering in the air like the sword of a god.
“Hmm? It’s the Silver Dragon King! Don’t be mistaken by its size! If it flies at full speed, it’s no slower than pavilion master Ye’s sword-riding!”
Ji Changfeng was surprised too, introducing the ship with a smile.
However, Li Qingshan clearly noticed his expression was not as natural and relaxed as before. Even Gong Yuan’s gaze became slightly colder, while Ye Duanhai stopped talking with his disciple. He raised his head and gazed at the incoming Silver Dragon King. He did not refute what Ji Changfeng said.
The South Sea Sword pavilion is relatively close to the Mist province, but it’s remained independent the entire time. Ye Duanhai is not an honoured guest either. The Cloud Sail sect is located beyond the shore, so they only have to remain on good terms with the Merfolk, which gives them even less reason to care about the King of Southern Yue. The merpeople go even more without saying. They’ve always viewed humans as enemies, and it seems like they’ve even gone to war against the King of Southern Yue’s estate in the past.
The three of them are all powerful figures that the world only has a limited number of, yet they’ve all become so serious when they face a mere caretaker, some Golden Core cultivator called Ram or Ewe. The King of Southern Yue’s influence is just far too great. Oh, I even forgot to include myself. I’m a genius cultivator from the enemy’s side who’s clearly stated I would not become an honoured guest of the King of Yue’s estate. I do have the Great Banyan Tree King mediating our relationship, but the King of Southern Yue definitely isn’t fond of me. If you look at it like that, we all technically stand beyond the system.
Li Qingshan thought of it like that and suddenly shivered slightly inside. Throughout history, the creed of fiercely ambitious people had always been, “To be used or to be killed.” as well as “How can I just let a threat remain right beside me?”
According to the Great Banyan Tree King’s analysis of the situation in the Mist province, the King of Southern Yue’s estate had already begun gathering the forces of the Mist province’s cultivation community en masse. They were preparing for the incoming war. There was such a group of relatively powerful people like them in the south who stood “beyond the system”, where some of them could even be regarded as “opposition” lurking away. The King of Southern Yue must have been very tempted to eliminate them all.
And because of the Merfolk sea fair, they just happened to be all gathered together…
The Silver Dragon King drew closer and closer. It was clearly an inanimate object, yet it gave off a great pressure. After noting its speed, Ji Changfeng lost interest in saying anything more.
However, Li Qingshan knew that regular Soaring Dragon ships were not known for their speed. Instead, they were known for their indestructible defence and terrifying destructive power. He had his doubts on whether they could take down something like that even if they worked together.
Among everyone present, only one person knew the answer to that question, which was neither Ji Changfeng, Gong Yuan, or Ye Duanhai. Instead, it was Xiao An, because the king’s estate of the Green province had a similar Scarlet Dragon King.
And the answer to the question was “absolutely not”!
This was a war machine that great cultivators of mohism had created through tremendous amounts of time and energy, using up enough resources to refine several arcane treasures. Compared to regular Soaring Dragon ships, the difference that existed was like a Soul Nascence cultivator to a Foundation Establishment cultivator. Its purpose was not for targeting individual cultivators, but to destroy entire sects.
If the Silver Dragon King unleashed an attack, the protective formation of the Cloud Sail sect would definitely fall. Just a single blast from its main cannon, the Dragon’s Roar, would be enough. And just like how regular Soaring Dragon ships were filled with a large number of puppet soldiers, the Silver Dragon King was no different. There were probably Puppet Kings in the mix, and perhaps more than just a single one too.
If all the costs and efforts put in by a great cultivator of the school of Mohism were taken into account, then even major sects would not be able to afford one, let alone individual cultivators. Only the estates of kings that ruled over an entire province had the capacity, but even they could only create a single one.
Receiving Xiao An’s message, Li Qingshan gasped. He tried scanning the ship with his soul sense, but the silver screen blocked off everything. If a few more great cultivators were hiding inside, or even the King of Southern Yue himself…
A Baffling Author’s Word
November has finally come to an end. Although the release rate has still been rather lacklustre, at least it’s better than last month. I wrote an additional thirty thousand characters. Next month’s goal is to write thirty thousand more, next next month can be another thirty thousand more, and the month after that can be… Alright, I better stop with the fantasizing, or I’m going to lose too much blood from my nosebleeds.
Anyway, everything is developing positively, not just in quantity, but in quality too. Personally, I was rather satisfied with the Mirage sea, but if you read it chapter by chapter, it might be very confusing or even baffling. It’s better if you read it in one breath.
Perhaps because I’ve been engrossed, I’ve been writing particularly smoothly too, like drinking alcohol. Oh right, I’ve never been drunk before. No matter how painful and unbearable it is, my rationality will always firmly suppress my other emotions like the spirit turtle. Even if my stomach is a mess, I’ll grit my teeth and refuse to vomit. However, my father said this is also my greatest problem. I’m too close to the other extreme.
The negative emotions I’ve been unconsciously building up will sometimes surge wildly, so I know why people go crazy, so I understand my personal weaknesses.
Alright, that’s all just some of my pointless dilemmas!
However, geniuses of the arts have always been cursed with a short life. As a nerd born in a time of peace, there aren’t a lot of unfavourable situations and moments of adverse fate that I can go through. If I don’t toil around in my personal dilemmas a little, how am I supposed to write a novel?
The world is far too noisy. Sometimes, you just need loneliness in order to hear the whispers of the heart. Although it might turn into a roar or even a howl sometimes, at least you’ll be able to hear it more clearly. Your ability to appreciate and admire grows with that too. van Gogh’s “Starry Night” is a masterpiece! Munch’s “The Scream” is a cornerstone of art too! However, I’d never want to understand the artwork of mental illness, though it’s said that Munch became much more lively after getting a mental illness.
Originally, I still had a lot more I wanted to say, to display what would be coming in the future, but I suddenly ran out of interest when I reached here, so that’ll be that!
Oh right, this is an author’s note for monthly votes. Having read up to here, do you feel an intense urge? One that you can’t hold back no matter what, one that will swallow you like the tide? Give up! Both enduring and resisting is futile! Go and cast the votes!
