Chapter 630 - 412: Fifth Divine General
The mysterious woman stood outside Cangwu Mountain, gazing into the distance, appearing somewhat lonely and desolate.
The breeze blew, rustling her clothes, enhancing the feeling of isolation from the world, making her seem as if she belonged to a different era, deeply intensifying the melancholic atmosphere.
Even Wei Fan felt somewhat affected by this scene.
In comparison, he was even less a part of this era, perhaps not even of this world.
"You seem lonelier than I am, more of a stranger to this world!"
The woman finally came back to her senses and, out of curiosity, looked at the man beside her. When they first met, he didn’t seem to emit such an aura. Now influenced by her emotions, there was an air of incongruity about him.
"Sort of, but I’ve always been trying to integrate into this world. The past is like the wind; reminiscing will only make one sad," Wei Fan said with a smile, quickly restoring his emotions to normal.
He had long adapted, merely stirred by the woman’s emotions, expressing his feelings.
The woman was startled by his words, and after a moment of silence, she solemnly said, "My name is Huangfu Nalan!"
She hadn’t told Wei Fan her name last time, but this time she offered it voluntarily.
"I am Wei Fan!"
Wei Fan’s heart fluttered, speculating she might be the daughter of Medicine Emperor Huangfu Qingyang. Though curious, he didn’t inquire further.
This Huangfu Nalan was even colder than Long Xueyi. Long Xueyi’s coldness stemmed from disliking conversation, whereas Huangfu Nalan’s coldness stemmed from loneliness, as if she had lost interest in everything.
"Miss Nalan, I have matters to attend to in Cangwu Mountain, so I’ll take my leave!"
He had no intention of continuing the conversation with Huangfu Nalan. After cupping his hands, he stepped towards the entrance of Cangwu Mountain.
Liya and the others had taken him out this way before, so he was somewhat familiar with the path.
"Boom!"
With a single step, it felt as if the heavens and earth shifted. An immense pressure, like a vast sea, weighed down from all sides. Wei Fan couldn’t help but tremble, and even the Primordial Spirit within his Sea of Consciousness appeared to wither.
"Breaking through to the Saint Realm didn’t allow me to ignore Cangwu Mountain’s peculiar power. Instead, it made me feel an even more terrifying pressure!"
This Forbidden Land was indeed unique, which explained why it could trap so many forbidden existences here.
"First time entering Cangwu Mountain?" Huangfu Nalan appeared beside Wei Fan. She had also entered Cangwu Mountain.
Wei Fan shook his head, "I came once before, but this time feels completely different!"
He quickly adapted to the strange pressure and continued forward, with Huangfu Nalan following closely, seemingly on the same path as Wei Fan.
The verdant Cangwu Mountain, shrouded in mist, resembled an otherworldly realm. Normally, such places shouldn’t lack wildlife, yet there was almost no sound of insects or birds in the forest. The silence was eerie, with only the sound of their footsteps pressing against the thick leaves.
"In such a short time, you’ve actually broken through to the Saint Realm?"
Huangfu Nalan, hearing this, immediately understood the cause of this situation and couldn’t help but show a hint of surprise.
From their parting at Treasure Flower Continent to now, it had only been five or six days, and already Wei Fan had successfully broken through to the Saint Realm, becoming a Saint Realm Powerhouse. Even the usually unflappable Huangfu Nalan couldn’t help but show surprise at Wei Fan.
Wei Fan shook his head, "It’s all thanks to the Holy Blood Fruit I found in Medicine Emperor’s Dojo."
Strictly speaking, they had stolen from Huangfu Nalan’s home, yet she wasn’t bothered, instead asking Wei Fan why he wanted to enter Cangwu Mountain.
Cangwu Mountain had existed since ancient times as a Forbidden Land. Ordinary people would never enter without significant reason.
Wei Fan explained his connection with the White Bone Tribe and the matter Liya had contacted him about, not concealing the fact that he had fallen into Cangwu Mountain after crossing the void from the Wilderness.
Regarding his Wilderness origins, there was no need to hide from Huangfu Nalan, who likely had no idea what the Wilderness represented now. Most importantly, according to his deductions, the Dao Collapse should end soon, and he wouldn’t be able to conceal his origins for long.
Moreover, having now become a Saint, he had the confidence to face many secrets without fear.
Sure enough, Huangfu Nalan didn’t seem concerned about anything related to the Wilderness. Instead, she shook her head and said, "It’s impossible to cross the void from the outside world to enter Cangwu Mountain. It is isolated, almost like a world of its own.
If traversing the void from outside to enter Cangwu Mountain were possible, people living here wouldn’t need to risk traveling through the mountain every time they enter or exit. They could simply build a Transmission Domain Gate. Those two coffins have issues; something alive might still be inside them, and it was their astonishing method that sent you into Cangwu Mountain.
The reason is probably related to this White Bone Tribe!"
Wei Fan nodded. He had suspected something was off before. He said it only to verify his intuition, but it was the fact that the White Bone Tribe’s Clan Leader had recognized him from the Wilderness at a glance that was so perplexing.
Even now, after becoming a Saint, he still couldn’t figure out how the White Bone Tribe’s Clan Leader recognized him from the Wilderness at a glance.
"So is it possible that Qi Daozhen isn’t dead, or did something evil arise from inside the coffins?"
A shiver ran through Wei Fan’s heart, filling him with a creepy feeling.
Qi Daozhen didn’t die fortunately, but if he gave birth to evil spirits, what was the reason for that thing sending him to the Bone Tribe?
"Why did Miss Nalan want to enter Cangwu Mountain?"
Huangfu Nalan had always followed Wei Fan and hadn’t left; Wei Fan became curious about her reason for entering Cangwu Mountain.
"Just reminiscing about the past. In the past, my father often took me to collect herbs in Cangwu Mountain. Now, things have changed, and I come here for a walk when I have nothing to do."
Wei Fan couldn’t help but be shaken in his heart; as expected of a Martial Emperor powerhouse, the Forbidden Land of Cangwu Mountain, feared by all, was merely a medicinal mountain in Huangfu Qingyang’s eyes.
Of course, whether Huangfu Nalan was really just here to reminisce, only she knew.
During the day, the two walked, and at night, they found a cave to rest. According to Wei Fan’s observations, Huangfu Nalan indeed seemed to have no particular purpose, sometimes deviating from the path to pick a few spirit medicines and quickly returning.
Wei Fan didn’t abandon her and leave alone. To dare enter Cangwu Mountain, Huangfu Nalan must have something to rely on.
On the fifth day, a thick mist surged forward like waves spreading in the mountains; at the same time, the sound of footsteps echoed in the mist.
"Finally encountering these things!"
Wei Fan’s spirit instantly tensed; this time, with no Demon Beast raised by the Cangwu Mountain Tribe to die on their behalf, they had to deal with it themselves.
He flipped his wrist, secretly clutching the Divinity-Sealing Seal in his hand. Looking back, Huangfu Nalan appeared surprisingly calm, not showing any tension but instead a little reminiscent.
Soon, the mist enveloped them both, and the footsteps approached. However, strictly speaking, it was not footsteps but hoofbeats.
"Clop clop..."
Wei Fan followed the sound and saw a humanoid creature in armor, holding a rusty long spear, riding on a tall warhorse.
This knight was covered entirely in armor, with a mask concealing his face. One couldn’t discern his true features, and his whole body emitted decayed Qi blood.
Half his face was missing, with blackened bones visible. A bowl-sized blood hole shone through his chest, and scars were all over his body, not from swords or knives but claw marks from a Demon Fiend, constantly bleeding black blood.
The warhorse he rode on was similar, draped in rusty heavy armor, half its head appeared to have been bitten by a terrifying Demon Fiend, its abdomen hollow, organs gone, also dripping sinister black blood.
The black blood dripping on the ground quickly turned into black smoke, rising and reintegrating into the knight and warhorse.
Wei Fan knew this wasn’t a corpse but something similar to evil spirits. That’s why he used to regard such forbidden existences as evil spirits. These taboos existed only because of some unyielding obsession of supreme warriors; the real corpses probably long turned into piles of white bone, or nothing remained.
"Bold Demon Fiend, how dare you invade my emperor’s resting place!"
A resounding shout echoed powerfully as the knight spotted Wei Fan and Huangfu Nalan. Clamping his legs against the warhorse beneath him, he raised the long spear in his hand and charged at the two, kicking up dust all the way.
[Forbidden: Materialized unwavering obsession of the Fifth Divine General]
[Killing it grants 1,000 years of Martial Saint’s power, or 200 million years of ordinary power]
"This taboo was merely a Divine General under some supreme powerhouse while alive?"
Wei Fan was deeply shaken inside. Combining the panel’s displayed information with the obsession in the taboo’s mouth, he roughly guessed this taboo’s origin.
"Could there be a great tomb of a supreme powerhouse nearby?"
Each taboo existed due to some obsession in its previous life. The Fifth Divine General’s obsession was clearly to guard the resting place of the "my emperor" he spoke of.
"Two million years of ordinary power!" Wei Fan felt tempted. Should he summon the Ten Thousand Spirits Bell to slay this Fifth Divine General? Capturing the opponent’s flying mark in the Ten Thousand Spirits Bell would surely benefit it greatly.
With a tide-like killing intent surrounding him, Yin winds blew in all directions. The Primordial Spirit in Wei Fan’s Sea of Consciousness nearly unfurled the Wind and Thunder Wings, but he suppressed it.
He took a step forward, Holy Light surging on his body, dispersing the heavy mist. He hesitated whether to use the Divinity-Sealing Seal to seal the Fifth Divine General, or to summon the Ten Thousand Spirits Bell to destroy it in front of Huangfu Nalan.
His hesitation had another reason: he wasn’t certain if the Ten Thousand Spirits Bell could annihilate the Fifth Divine General. The terror of taboos lay in their indestructibility.
"Do not harm him!"
Huangfu Nalan suddenly spoke, stopping Wei Fan.
Soon after, a piece of paper flew from her hand like a secular emperor’s decree, emitting a blinding light.
Wei Fan focused his gaze and saw the decree inscribed with "Human Emperor’s Decree" in four large characters on one side, with nothing on the other.
The decree emanated not a world-destroying power but contained overwhelming majesty, invoking an instinctive urge to bow and worship.
Huangfu Nalan shouted softly: "Retreat!"
The Fifth Divine General dismounted, kneeling on one knee: "At your command!"
Then he mounted his horse, clamped his legs, and quickly disappeared into the forest.