Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
Having spent many resources once again, Su Yu and Xueying were now riding on the same wizard phoenix.
Unlike the phoenixes of the God Realm, the wizard phoenix practiced sorcery energy.
As it spread its wings, sorcery energy condensed in them, making it speed up dramatically. In the fraction of a second, it traveled millions of miles. As a transport animal, its speed was fairly impressive.
They moved forward as fast as the wind.
For the sake of safety, Su Yu took up the front, while Xueying occupied the rear.
Although the body of the wizard phoenix was not broad, it could accommodate more than two riders.
Three days later, having traversed countless mountains and rivers, the phoenix arrived at a pitch-dark world.
The clouds in the sky were like dense ink, covering the heavens above. Faint, low growling sounds resonated in the clouds. It was spine-chilling.
The black expanse of the sky was extremely wide, several hundred million miles in perimeter, the view stretching infinitely ahead.
The wizard phoenix was a ferocious creature, but while it flew in the black sky, its feathers stood on their ends as it shrieked in a frenzy of panic and dread. The phoenix dared not advance any further but chose to take a detour instead.
Su Yu was startled. He turned around and asked Xueying, “Which place is this? This wizard phoenix is a Level Four deity, yet it is obviously frightened…”
However, Su Yu’s words froze on his tongue.
That was because Xueying’s reaction was no better than that of the wizard phoenix.
He tensed up, the sorcery energy within him surging turbulently, the expression of his face unprecedentedly solemn as he fixed his stare on the dark sky, his eyes flickering restlessly.
When he heard Su Yu, he was still staring into the blackness of the sky. In a somber voice, he said, “We are unlucky enough to have run into the Asura Forbidden Land!”
Upon hearing that, Su Yu’s pupils shrank and a chill crept into his heart.
He had studied wizard history in depth. How could he not know about the three forbidden lands of the Lost Nation?
One of them was the Epoch-making Dragon’s Forbidden Land of Ten Thousand Demons.
The Asura Forbidden Land was another.
The difference between the Asura Forbidden Land and the two other forbidden lands was that the Asura Forbidden Land existed inside the Void and was never in a fixed location. It could shift from one place to another anytime.
Under normal circumstances, it only moved within a fixed range of the Void, never leaving that specific area.
However, this was not the usual area where one could expect to run into it.
No one would have expected to encounter the notorious Asura Forbidden Land in this location!
Su Yu knew just how dreadful the Asura Forbidden Land was. The Epoch-making Dragon had told him before that the Forbidden Land of Ten Thousand Demons, where he was located, should not really be considered a forbidden place compared to the other two.
If someone happened to enter one of them, there would be no chance of survival.
Chirp!
With a shrill cry, the wizard phoenix frantically flew around the edge of the forbidden land.
However, while they were midway, a pitch-dark dragon-shaped creature with blood-red eyes flew out from amidst the black clouds. It looked quite demented with fury. It opened his humongous, terrifying mouth and attacked the wizard phoenix.
Its colossal body was around ten million feet in width. Its aura made Su Yu gasp in shock.
That was a creature as powerful as a Level Three deity!
Even more creepily, the energy of the creature was neither wizardry nor a Divine Path, but another form of ominous, rare force.
Fortunately, when the enormous dragon was about to leave the boundaries of the black patch of sky, a dark grey talisman fell onto the border between the black sky and the outside world.
It had powerful sorcery energy, and its scent implied that this energy happened to belong to the Wizard Ancestor.
As soon as the gigantic dragon crashed into it, it was assaulted by the sorcery energy in return. The Level Three giant dragon was crushed into a muddy mess of flesh then and there!
The gruesome sight was unnerving and bone-chilling.
However, what was even more extraordinary, the dark clouds in the sky cleared up with the surge of powerful magic.
Then, all of a sudden, Su Yu and Xueying clearly saw that above the clouds, a great many more of the dragon-shaped creatures roamed. There were probably over ten thousand of them!
And among them, there were no less than a hundred creatures with a Level Three aura!
The dark clouds soon gathered up once again, concealing the blood-curdling, horrendous creatures. Su Yu and Xueying were horrified beyond words.
“How… how could there be so many of these monsters?” Xueying stuttered.
Su Yu nodded solemnly. “Yes. I am afraid the information the Wizard Tribe has is not up-to-date. According to the records of the wizards, there are around a hundred Level Three ferocious beasts in the Asura Forbidden Land.”
“However, we have only seen a small area, and there are already around a hundred of Level Three creatures here. Just how many are there altogether in the whole of the Asura Forbidden Land?”
Xueying said, “Yes, the Saint Lady Temple Mistress has to be notified about this! However, to our good fortune, they are blocked by the sorcery energy of the Wizard Ancestor. Otherwise, if they were released, I can’t imagine what would become of the Lost Nation.”
Judging from the ferocity of the humongous dragon, the Lost Nation would most probably end up as a hunting ground for the beasts.
The two of them felt extremely apprehensive. Su Yu, who had just seen the Asura Forbidden Land for the first time, was stupefied.
The Epoch-making Dragon was right. Compared to the Asura Forbidden Land, the Forbidden Land of Ten Thousand Demons could not be considered dangerous at all. There, one still had a chance of making it out alive.
However, the Asura Forbidden Land… if one was unlucky enough to stumble into it, chances of survival were extremely slim.
Chirp!
The scene must have also frightened the wizard phoenix. With an ear-piercing, horrified screech, it spread its wings and flew around in frenzy, its body shivering non-stop.
Immediately, Su Yu maneuvered his Power of Five Elements. His weight multiplied a thousand-fold to secure the phoenix in its path and prevent it from overturning.
However, behind him, Xueying could not react in time. He slid forward and crashed into Su Yu’s back.
Ahh!
Xueying cried out in surprise, his hands moving up to clutch his chest. His cheeks were flushed red.
Su Yu maneuvered his Soul Energy to stabilize the wizard phoenix, then turned around to look at Xueying. He asked, “Were you hurt?”
Upon hearing that, Xueying’s face turned even redder. His lips parted as if he wanted to say something, but he held back his words.
“Let me help you check,” Su Yu said, and a whiff of divine energy reached out from the tip of his finger towards Xueying’s chest.
Xueying looked perturbed and confused. His cheeks were as red as poppies. Stammering, he said, “No, no need, I’m alright.”
“Your chest is fine?” Su Yu asked.
Embarrassed yet indignant, Xueying muttered under his breath, “Why are you so concerned about my chest?”
“Fine, it is fine,” he said meekly.
Su Yu said, “Alright then. If you need my help, tell me anytime.”
Xueying said under his breath, “I don’t need your help with this kind of thing.”
After one last look at the Asura Forbidden Land, Su Yu turned the wizard phoenix and flew away in a hurry.
Several days later, their entire journey taking around a fortnight, they finally arrived at Fan City.
Compared to the Saint Capital, Fan City was no less busy and populous, and all sorts of industries flourished there, much more than in the Saint Capital.
All sorts of wizards walked around the place, selling and buying wizard tools and materials originated from ferocious beasts. It was a scene of bustle and excitement.
They came to a restaurant and took seats on the second floor. On the stage below, beautiful, elaborately dressed dancers were singing and capering about merrily.
“I’ll introduce you to someone later,” Xueying said, smiling.
Su Yu was surprised. “Who?”
“It was arranged by the Saint Lady. You’ll know when you see. She came to Fan City a month beforehand to help you prepare all that you need.”
A month beforehand? That was when Su Yu just descended from the Holy Altar, wasn’t it?
The Saint Lady had sent someone to Fan City so far in advance in order to help him?
While eating and drinking, they patiently waited for the mysterious person whom Xueying mentioned.
At that moment, the sounds of musical instruments below came to a stop and the dancers left the stage hurriedly.
Xueying was stunned for a moment, and then he came to a realization immediately. There were disgust and repugnance in his eyes. “I almost forgot. It is the time!”
Right when Su Yu wanted to ask what he meant, a big-headed, plump priest walked up to the stage and glanced around at the customers with a smile. “Hehe, it is afternoon again. I suppose all of you gentlemen are weary of waiting.”
All of a sudden, a commotion broke out among the customers, who knew what was about to happen.
“There is a special female servant here today. I believe all of you will be satisfied!” The priest had a jubilant look on his face, and upon hearing his words, many customers craned their heads to see better.
“Let us welcome her!”
Crying and sobbing, a young girl walked up to the stage with tears in her eyes, under the escort of two burly fellows.
The young girl had fair skin and was very pretty. She had a pair of enchanting emerald eyes and a willowy, alluring body. A long fox tail was trailing after her.
“Someone from the Fox Tribe? What are they doing now? Selling female slaves?”
Xueying’s expression was awful as he shook his head and said, “Much worse than that.”
“Oh? What are they selling then?”
Xueying said, “They’re selling food!”
“Food? Her?” Su Yu felt a surge of disgust washing over him and pushed his plate away.
Xueying found Su Yu’s reaction rather surprising. “Is there no such thing in the God Realm where you live?”
Su Yu said, “Yes, there is, but it is illegal, and those who sell creatures of various tribes as food are public enemies. As for those who flagrantly sell people of their own tribe as food, it is unheard of!”
Xueying sighed. “The civilization of the God Realm is more advanced after all. The Wizard Tribe still preserves some savage, barbaric customs. Although the former Sect Leaders have wisely abolished these traditions, some people still adhere to them.”
Compared to the civilization of the God Realm, the Wizard Tribe was indeed lagging behind.
“In Miaofang House, there is an hour of food auction every afternoon. Most of the unfortunate creatures are of small, distant tribes, for example, this demonic fox. Rumor has it that their flesh is succulent and delicious, and many wizards are fond of eating them.”
Upon hearing that, Su Yu felt chills creeping down his spine.
He took a glance around the place and saw many wizards with covetous, ravenous looks in their eyes. A wave of indignation rose within him at the sight of such viciousness.
“Let the auction begin! This fresh, delicious fox will belong to whoever presents resources of the highest value. The Miaofang House employs top-notch chefs, who would make it into a delicious dish while preserving its unique taste.”
Thud!
Immediately, someone tossed a valuable piece of rock onto the stage.
Other people offered herbs, wizard tools, and valuable materials that came from ferocious beasts.
Before long, the stage was covered in a wide assortment of precious objects.
The priest glanced around with a bright smile. When he caught sight of a highly valuable piece of rock, he bent down to pick it up, his face beaming. “Looks like the delicious fox is going to grace the table of this rock’s owner…”
However, just as he wanted to pick it up, a leaf fluttered onto his head.
The priest caught it, laughing. “Be careful, no need to throw things right at me.”
When he picked the leaf up, his eyes bulged with surprise. “Could… could this be the leaf of Soul-stabilizing Wood? No, it doesn’t look like it. The color isn’t quite right!”
“Who does this belong to?” The priest looked up, shaken.
Many eyes looked at Su Yu. It was he who threw the leaf.
“Does this belong to you, sir?” The priest asked in agitation. “Could you tell me what this piece of leaf is?”
Su Yu replied with indifference, “You will have to determine this on your own and decide if you want it or not. I can’t tell you about it.”
The priest made up his mind quickly. Judging by the marvelous spiritual energy contained in the leaf, it was a rare and precious treasure. How could a mere fox compare to it? It was a major gain!
“Deal! This fox belongs to you now. Sir, how would you like it to be prepared? Do you like it steamed, or roasted, or boiled in soup?” The priest asked amiably, in a gracious manner.
