Devouring Soul Emperor

Of course, Chu Qingyun knew nothing about those Martial Emperor Realm experts, or even the Supreme Elders of the sects.

For the past few days, he had been focused solely on traveling, rushing toward Celestial Martial City.

Because Chu Qingyun had deliberately avoided cities along the way, he hadn't encountered many people, save for the occasional few who, like him, were frantically fleeing for their lives.

And along this journey, Chu Qingyun didn't hold back at all.

Whenever anything blocked his path—be it Mutants, Mutated Demon Beasts, or even ill-intentioned people—Chu Qingyun used every method at his disposal to eliminate them as quickly as possible.

Ever since leaving Blood Abyss City, Chu Qingyun had always been at the very forefront of the fleeing refugees.

Since he never stopped along the way, he had shaken off nearly all the Mutants and Mutated Demon Beasts after just two or three days.

Seven days later, Chu Qingyun tentatively entered a city.

He stayed there for two days and managed to gather a lot of information about the strange disease and the seal that had been established.

After filtering out all the miscellaneous rumors and speculation, he learned what had happened.

The rapid spread of the strange disease had finally attracted the attention of the sect powers. They had dispatched supreme experts to cast a new seal, locking up all the Mutants and Mutated Demon Beasts.

After learning this, Chu Qingyun couldn't help but worry about Mu Xiaoxiao and Dai.

'I wonder if they made it out...'

'Mu Xiaoxiao and Dai fled past Blood Abyss City as soon as the first Mutants appeared. Logically, they should have barely encountered any of them.'

'They should be ahead of me. I'll find out once I reach Celestial Martial City anyway...'

Having learned everything he wanted to know, Chu Qingyun didn't linger. He procured two swift horses and hurried toward Celestial Martial City.

The seven days of non-stop fleeing had left him utterly exhausted. Fortunately, he had recovered a great deal after resting for two days.

The journey from there to Celestial Martial City took Chu Qingyun over a month.

This last leg of the journey, over a month long, was not a peaceful one either.

Toward the end of his journey, the number of people attacking others to seize sect Golden Orders began to increase.

Traveling alone, Chu Qingyun was ruthless against anyone who dared to attack him. He unleashed his Devouring Power, and many a Level 7 Martial Spirit died at his hands, their Primordial Power devoured.

By the time he reached Celestial Martial City, the Primordial Liquid in Chu Qingyun's Qi Sea was nearly full.

With a little more Primordial Spirit Liquid, he could probably break through again, advancing his Martial Arts Realm to that of a Sixth-level Martial Spirit.

Ever since advancing to a Fifth-level Martial Spirit, and after the fierce battles in the Blood Sect ruins and over a month of travel and combat, the meridians in Chu Qingyun's body had long since adapted to his current level of Primordial Power.

The Primordial Liquid in his Qi Sea was also incredibly solid and stable, meaning he was fully prepared to break through to the next Realm.

Furthermore, over the past month, while traveling on horseback, Chu Qingyun had used his Devouring Power in his spare time to consume the energy on the blood-colored sphere.

However, even after reaching Celestial Martial City, the crimson power protecting the sphere had not completely vanished. It continued to stubbornly resist Chu Qingyun's attempts to probe it.

Its color had faded significantly, however.

It was foreseeable that if he continued to wear it down with his Devouring Power, he would soon break through the crimson light completely.

In the process of devouring, Chu Qingyun had also managed to condense a large pile of crimson, diamond-shaped crystals, most of them about the size of his palm.

Since he didn't know what they were used for, he had thrown them all into his Storage Ring.

Celestial Martial City was the city in the sect territories closest to the Blood-soaked Land.

The Land of Hundred Dynasties was divided into over a hundred empires, large and small.

The Blood-soaked Land was divided into eastern and western regions, each ruled by a major faction. Beneath them were numerous cities, either granted to vassals or managed directly by the two factions themselves.

The sect territories also had a few cities.

However, most of these cities had no specific allegiance, serving as a kind of free territory, similar to trading hubs.

A Martial Artist's cultivation often required all sorts of strange and varied treasures and resources.

It was virtually impossible for one person to obtain everything they needed on their own, making trade extremely important.

Trades within a sect could be conducted on that sect's own territory.

But for inter-sect trading, fixed trading zones were necessary. This was how the earliest prototypes of cities in the sect territories came to be.

Later, their locations became fixed and their scale expanded, and they gradually developed into one city after another.

'It's been nearly ten months since I left Lianshan County City. I've finally made it to Celestial Martial City...'

Gazing at the tall, majestic city walls in the distance, Chu Qingyun couldn't help but feel a wave of emotion.

Ever since leaving the Blood-soaked Land and stepping into the sect territories, Chu Qingyun felt the entire atmosphere change, and a sense of ease washed over him.

The style of Celestial Martial City was completely different from the cities in the Blood-soaked Land. Those cities were mostly built from black and gray stone, and many were mottled with bloodstains.

They had an oppressive air about them.

But the walls of Celestial Martial City were white, exuding a sense of tranquility and peace.

For half a year in the Blood-soaked Land, his eyes had been met with nothing but deep, somber hues. The sudden sight of a magnificent white city was like a balm to Chu Qingyun's soul.

There were no special rules for entering Celestial Martial City, not even an entrance fee. One simply had to line up and enter in an orderly fashion.

"Chu Qingyun, we finally found you!"

Chu Qingyun had just entered the city when he heard a cry of pleasant surprise.

He turned to see a smile break across his face. "Mu Xiaoxiao, Dai, you really did get here before me."

The three of them walked into Celestial Martial City together.

"When did you get to Celestial Martial City? How come you were right at the gate?" Chu Qingyun asked on the way.

Mu Xiaoxiao was all smiles as she said, "We got here three days before you and have been waiting at the gate ever since. All the areas overrun by Mutants were resealed by the sects. We were worried you'd been trapped inside."

"I had to run for seven days straight before I dared to stop and enter a city."

"By the way, your home... Is Cold Star City okay?" Chu Qingyun asked.

"It's fine, but that was a close call. Mutants from the direction of Blood Abyss City had already begun to push into the Hengduan Mountain Range. Luckily, they didn't get very far before the sects sealed them off."

"If there had been a delay of another two or three days, they might have even crossed the Hengduan Mountain Range. That strange disease spreads faster and faster, you know."

Mu Xiaoxiao replied.

Chu Qingyun nodded, a lingering fear in his heart. "As long as it's fine. It's a good thing those sects are so powerful, to be able to create such a massive seal..."