Chapter 396 - 164: Turmoil in the Mountains, Li Xinggang! The Toad Pokes Its Head Out
For an ordinary person, these falling boulders and trees were like a natural disaster, but to him, they were nothing.
As long as he didn’t actively rush into the very center of the aftershocks, he wouldn’t be in any danger.
’It really is a death trap. If I hadn’t intervened, even if they weren’t crushed to death by the overwhelming torrent of boulders, they wouldn’t be able to escape the panicked stampede of wild beasts and Fierce Beasts...’
Chen Shaoyou stepped forward and, with a wave of his sleeve, cleared the billowing dust and smoke, tossing a Medicine Gatherer onto a nearby patch of grass.
Most of his attention, however, was focused on the simple and honest-looking middle-aged man named Li Xinggang.
Amidst the flying dirt and rocks that came down like a torrential downpour, Li Xinggang was no better off than the others. In fact, he was in an even worse state, a complete mess.
However, the guy was repeatedly leaping about in the forest. Although he was covered in dirt, he wasn’t in any life-threatening danger.
It might have seemed ordinary, but to Chen Shaoyou, who had been watching him all along, it was a clear giveaway.
’Could it be... that he’s the one who found the Toad Wrath’s offspring?’
Recalling the rumor, Chen Shaoyou was both shocked and delighted, but he didn’t dare to jump to conclusions.
He weaved through the forest, sweeping away flying dirt, rocks, and tree trunks to prevent the entire group from dying here.
At the same time, his heart was incredibly heavy.
Of all the people present, only he knew what was truly happening.
If he wasn’t mistaken, this was the prelude to the escape of that legendary Great Demon Ghost.
Disturbances like this would occur many times over the next few decades, affecting countless cities.
This would continue until hundreds of years later, when the Seven Heroes and Three Li fully reawakened and unleashed a world-ending tide that annihilated everything.
Everything was reduced to Jie Mie.
Only the Elder Celestial Master personally acted to seal the Seven Heroes and Three Li, leading a group of people across the apocalypse of this era to the twenty-first era.
BOOM!
BOOM!
Throughout the mountain range, herds of beasts fled as countless peaks rapidly cracked apart. Layers of ripples spread high into the sky, parting cloud after cloud with tremendous force.
Not far away, at the edge of a forest.
Two people stood one behind the other.
The surrounding forest trembled, splattering dust and dirt, yet not a speck could touch the two of them.
"Such a huge commotion? I sense a familiar aura in these ripples..."
Ye Xiaoyu gazed at the distant mountains, her brow slightly furrowed.
She could, of course, sense that the ripples from this clash of Divine Techniques originated from an incredibly distant place, perhaps an entire province away.
The combatants must be Feathered, and what’s more, they were Feathered Strong People with extremely profound Cultivation.
"Warden, have you discovered something?"
Behind Ye Xiaoyu, a middle-aged man in a green robe asked with a slight bow.
His name was Fang Mu, a member of the Celestial Patrol Bureau stationed in Ling Province, responsible for monitoring all matters big and small, both inside and outside the province.
Whenever a Cultivator committed a crime, it was his duty to report it to his superiors, who would then dispatch agents to apprehend the culprit.
"It’s nothing."
Ye Xiaoyu shook her head slightly, her gaze still fixed on Chen Shaoyou, who was leaping back and forth in the forest not far away.
With Su Bai’s tip, coupled with the Celestial Patrol Bureau’s firm control over Ling Province, she had easily singled out Chen Shaoyou from countless others.
In a tightly controlled environment, an unpredictable person—someone whose temperament had changed drastically and whose strength had advanced by leaps and bounds—was far more conspicuous than one might imagine.
Take Chen Shaoyou, for example.
’How could a young man who feared his father like a tiger suddenly find the courage to face his thunderous rage and still insist on leaving home?’
If no one bothered to follow up on these trails, then of course, nothing would come of them.
But the moment someone started a real investigation, there was nowhere left to hide.
Over the past month, she had secretly investigated thousands of suspicious individuals before finally zeroing in on Chen Shaoyou.
"Warden, why are you so interested in this person? Could it be that the Dingyang Marquis has committed a crime?"
Fang Mu asked cautiously.
He had originally been a Loose Cultivator before being accepted into the Boxing Saint Daoist Temple and taught an orthodox Cultivation Method. Although he was away on assignment year-round, he was still considered a member of the Boxing Saint Dojo.
He naturally knew that the Daoist Nun before him was the disciple of the Boxing Saint Daoist—one of the most formidable figures in the current Dayu Immortal Dynasty.
She was also the junior sister of that Daoist Cui, who had slain countless Demon Ghosts in the five years since the new laws were implemented.
Having witnessed Cui Yanliang’s terrifying transformation.
In the current Dayu, there wasn’t a single person who dared to underestimate her.
Even some Returning Void Realm True Masters whose Cultivation surpassed hers had to treat Ye Xiaoyu with courtesy when they met her.
This was all the more true for Fang Mu, whom she had personally accepted into the Boxing Saint Daoist Temple and taught a Cultivation Method.
"That is none of your concern."
Ye Xiaoyu gave Fang Mu a cool glance. Without any visible movement, she had already drifted far away, disappearing into the overwhelming downpour of mud and sand.
"Wait outside the mountains. Do not enter without permission."
"Yes!"
Fang Mu bowed slightly, his expression one of extreme reverence, regardless of whether Ye Xiaoyu could hear him.
BOOM!
A boulder weighing untold tons fell from the sky, smashing heavily onto the ground.
CRACK!
As the ground shook, a fissure suddenly split open on the mountain face.
"Xinggang, look out!"
Li Yunfeng screamed like a madman and was about to charge out of the ravine, but several Medicine Gatherers held him down firmly.
"What?"
Hearing his father’s shout, Li Xinggang’s heart skipped a beat. He looked around, but the air was thick with dust, and he couldn’t see a thing.
He instinctively took a step back, but his foot met empty air, and he tumbled backward.