Volume One: The Wild Child Chapter Ten: A Visitor Gazes at the Sky, Admiring the Elegance

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Battered and worn, Lin Changtian looked at Yu Baili with a look of total despair and asked, “Can you at least tell me where we’re going?” After being carried through the sky for hours, even Lin Changtian, with all his stubbornness, was beginning to crack.

Yu Baili glanced at the nearly broken Lin Changtian and replied slowly, “Let’s go take a look at the Bohai.”

“Isn’t the fighting over there finished? The internet’s working, justice has prevailed—those were your words!” Lin Changtian retorted feebly.

Yu Baili stopped, turned to face Lin Changtian, and said with an innocent expression, “Yes, the fighting’s over. But who really won, that’s still unknown. For all you know, every Celestial on the Bohai front could have been wiped out.”

Lin Changtian was at a loss. It was Yu Baili who had first painted this disaster as the end of the human race; it was Yu Baili who had dispatched all the monsters with an air of nonchalance; and it was Yu Baili who, after slaying the beasts, declared the calamity over and justice victorious. Yet now, Yu Baili professed complete ignorance about the state of the Bohai front. All these contradictions tangled together for the first time left Lin Changtian feeling that his head might not be up to the task.

As if reading his mind, Yu Baili began to explain at a leisurely pace. “This disaster did indeed have the power to destroy heaven and earth. But first, the intensity of the places affected is balanced. The monsters and Celestials where we were are weak—so just imagine how formidable the monsters that appeared on the Bohai front must be. Second, just because the mobile network is working doesn’t mean the Celestials won, nor does it mean they lost. There are plenty of old hands on the front lines.

“As things stand, both sides have likely suffered losses and retreated, which means there’s a good chance we could pick up some opportunities that others missed. Oh, and you needn’t worry about your classmates in the rear. The old scholar is far more powerful than you imagine.”

Lin Changtian’s expression relaxed considerably after hearing this, and he resumed muttering complaints about Yu Baili under his breath.

Yu Baili paid no mind to Lin Changtian’s grumbling, simply flying onward.

Before long, the mist ahead grew denser and denser, forcing Yu Baili to descend.

Gazing at the thick fog ahead, so reminiscent of the school grounds, Lin Changtian narrowed his eyes, his face resolute with righteous energy as he declared to Yu Baili, “There’s a murderous aura here. Big brother, you stand guard while I go back to fetch the old scholar to come rescue you.”

“You know how far we are from your school. Do I really need to say more?” Yu Baili’s offhand remark instantly reeled Lin Changtian, who had leaped more than a hundred meters, back to his side.

Seeing Lin Changtian’s crestfallen look, Yu Baili said slowly, “There are no monsters ahead, you can rest assured of that. But in this fog, you’re on your own.” Without waiting for a response, he strode alone into the thick mist. Gritting his teeth, Lin Changtian followed.

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“I wonder how Brother Lin is faring,” the fat boy mused lazily, lying with his eyes half-closed on Chen Ziliang’s lap, his thoughts wandering in the wake of their recent brush with death. Suddenly, a chill ran through him. He opened his eyes wide and looked around, meeting Lin Xiaoxi’s resentful gaze. He gave her an awkward smile, then, to her utter astonishment, lay back down and soon began to snore softly. Chen Ziliang, meanwhile, maintained a look of perfect composure, as if whoever lay in his arms was no concern of his.

The old man beamed at the relaxed group. Though sorrow and worry could not be masked on his face, for now, all present savored this rare moment of peace. Xu Yong stood beside the old man; when the old man sat, Xu Yong sat; when the old man smiled, Xu Yong smiled too, but he never spoke. At last, the old man could not take it anymore and broke the silence. “Young man, why aren’t you resting with your companions? Why stick with an old man like me?”

Xu Yong hesitated for a long while before finally asking, “Sir, do you think anything bad will happen to Lin Changtian?”

The old man gave Xu Yong a curious look. “Are you two close?”

“Mostly, it’s because he owes me money. But even though he’s usually quiet, he turns into a chatterbox around us. So I hope that guy makes it through.”

The old man patted Xu Yong’s shoulder. “Evil lives a thousand years, don’t worry. Besides, Yu Baili’s with him.”

Xu Yong, his back to the old man, nodded and quietly wiped away the frost forming at the corner of his eye.

As for the so-called troublemaker, he was currently struggling through dense fog.

“Yu Baili, where are you?” Lin Changtian had curled himself up like a hedgehog, shuffling forward and calling out, hoping to summon that ever-reliable, if mischievous, Northern Hawk Tiger. As he went deeper into the mist, whispers began to rise at his ears—sometimes like ghosts beckoning souls, sometimes like gods bestowing enlightenment. Oddly, the voices didn’t frighten Lin Changtian. Instead, as if guided by instinct or something deep in his blood, he let go of all resistance, sat cross-legged in the chill mist, and closed his eyes. Perhaps it was something in the air, but behind the youth, it seemed as if an immortal placed a blessing upon his head.

Following his heart’s guidance, Lin Changtian seemed to witness the Bohai battle at its height, his vision as broad as heaven and earth, watching with icy detachment.

In the Bohai, a terrifying great demon had appeared—impossible to describe, draped with countless monsters, its tentacles coiling for three thousand miles of sea, blotting out sun and moon, concealing the sky. Before it stood a lone swordsman in a straw cloak, hands behind his back, so insignificant in comparison it was like an ant challenging the moon.

Battered by the sea wind and waves, the swordsman seemed to have reached his limit. He rubbed his hands, uncertain whether it was the monster’s presence or the chill of the sea air that bothered him more.

At last, the swordsman raised his sword.

All speculation ceased, the monster’s oppression ended.

A single sword gleamed coldly, fusing with the world’s righteous energy. With a long, piercing cry, seven-tenths of the mist was split, and the rest distilled into a cup of wine—half for himself, half as an offering to the ocean.

His ancestor’s three-foot blade, once drawn to slay a dragon in the Wu ponds.

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But it was not just the swordsman who contended with heaven and earth.

There was one whose fists strove to light the towers of Loulan with dawn’s fire.

Another, astride a horse on the Bohai shore, carved his blade into stone. A fierce soul under heaven, he gazed at the sky, so awe-inspiring that even the immortals dared not appear.

There were many such gallant figures.

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Seeing the Celestials of humanity drive the monsters to retreat, pressing toward the vortex fiercely guarded by the demon beasts in the Bohai, suddenly a low growl echoed out. As if on cue, both sides ceased fighting and turned to the vortex, as if awaiting the arrival of the world’s true master.

A brocade chariot soared from the heavens, a felt tent unfurled among the clouds.

The creature that emerged moved even the omniscient eyes of heaven and earth—it was a pale dragon! With ancient, cloudy eyes it gazed down upon all living things. The sword immortal drew his blade, the knife-wielder unsheathed his weapon, the martial artist readied his fists, their auras still capable of overturning seas and rivers. Yet their gallantry vanished like smoke before the pale dragon’s might.

And yet, the three who had so devastated the Bohai monsters did not even warrant the pale dragon’s attention. With curious golden eyes, it turned, and in its gaze was only a single figure—Lin Changtian, and none other.