Trials of the Abyss

Chapter 154: Jiu Yuan of the Blood Moon Sect

Pang Jian had been deeply immersed in comprehending the mysteries of the Innate Realm lately. When he heard they had arrived at the Primordial Wilderness, he stood up to peer down at the scenery.

Nine towering peaks rose majestically from the verdant earth, standing tall and imposing.

The Primordial Wilderness was larger than the Three Immortal Islands, with a total area four to five times that of Divine Fortune. The land was covered in wilderness, with nine towering peaks in the center.

A palace-like structure stood at the summit of a two thousand zhang tall peak. The other eight peaks had no buildings and were occupied by Fire Cloud Ships, Formless Sailboats, Scarlet Dawn Boats, Gilded Chariots, and Cloud Sails.

However, most of the Cloud Sails were anchored in the forests as they lacked the privilege to land at the peaks.

Pang Jian's eyes swept across the fragmented landscape and noticed several Fire Cloud Ships and Formless Sailboats docked at the slightly shorter peaks. It was evident the members of the Radiant Sun Sect and the Blood Moon Sect had arrived separately.

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

Cloud Sails headed toward the Primordial Wilderness below one after another.

Pang Jian estimated roughly a hundred Cloud Sails docked in the forests. This did not include the advanced flying vessels from the Radiant Sun Sect, the Blood Moon Sect, the Star River Alliance, and the Red Mountain Sect.

Considering each Cloud Sail could carry dozens of people, the number of cultivators in the Primordial Wilderness was likely in the thousands.

"The First Peak of the Primordial Wilderness is where Old Monster Cao holds the trade fair. Most of his subordinates are concentrated there," Gao Yuan explained. "Those qualified to land at the Second Peak to the Eighth Peak are either from the five major sects or are renowned rogue cultivators in the Third World.

"The Primordial Wilderness is vast, and Old Monster Cao cannot manage it all. Combat is only prohibited on the First Peak and its surrounding areas.

"Participants who lack confidence in their strength and fear ambushes from rogue cultivators can spend a large amount of spirit stones to stay in the caves of the First Peak. They won't have to worry about trouble as long as they stay there until they leave the Primordial Wilderness."

Gao Yuan wanted the siblings to be aware of the rules so they could decide whether they would stay at the First Peak after landing.

That was when an unexpected message came in from a talisman for short-distance communication under Gao Yuan's robes.

"Yuan Fei is also here. He called me over to chat." Gao Yuan said, glancing around. Spotting a Cloud Sail stopped mid-air, he turned to Luo Hongyan. "If it won't delay us, I'd like to—"

"Take your time." Luo Hongyan nodded.

"Thank you." Gao Yuan bowed, then directed his Cloud Sail toward Yuan Fei's ship.

"Maverick Ling Yun and Wang Yisen had nearly 100,000 spirit stones and many rare items. I'll go and exchange these for two participation tokens later," Luo Hongyan said softly to Pang Jian.

"Profound Abode Realm cultivators have that many spirit stones on them?" Pang Jian was astonished.

The spirit stones, spirit artifacts, and pills in the spatial pouches of the deceased rogue cultivators on Ice Rock Island only added up to about ten to twenty thousand spirit stones each.

The number of spirit stones these two powerful cultivators possessed far exceeded that of hundreds of deceased rogue cultivators combined!

"Rogue cultivators in the Marrow Cleansing Realm and Meridian Opening Realms don't have much wealth. The few Innate Realm rogue cultivators on the island managed to survive and make it to Yuan Fei's Cloud Sail," Luo Hongyan said regretfully.

"Ah!" Gao Yuan suddenly screamed.

Pang Jian and Luo Hongyan had been engrossed in their conversation and had not been paying attention to Gao Yuan. The pair turned to look for what had caused his scream.

A flayed corpse hung from the mast of Yuan Fei's Cloud Sail!

The bloody corpse had been left exposed under the scorching sun and looked incredibly gruesome. While the face of the corpse was relatively intact, the eyes had been gouged out, leaving only empty sockets filled with congealed blood.

"Yuan Fei!" Gao Yuan cried.

If Yuan Fei was dead, who sent him the message?

Gao Yuan trembled as a sense of foreboding washed over him. Suppressing his curiosity, he prepared to turn his Cloud Sail around and make a hasty departure.

As a rogue cultivator, he was like rootless duckweed in this harsh world. Encounters with powerful disciples from the five major sects could easily result in his death and meeting stronger rogue cultivators could lead to an inexplicable demise. Despite his overwhelming curiosity, he did not dare to investigate further or ask questions.

A deep, hoarse voice came from below Yuan Fei's corpse. "This old man is Jiu Yuan."

Gao Yuan's scalp tingled.

Pang Jian and Luo Hongyan frowned at the familiar name.

While the deaths of the Shadow Specter Sect's members had been due to Maverick Ling Yun's information and Zhu Yuanxi's actions, the true mastermind that had ordered it all was Jiu Yuan!

In the Fourth World, Fei Zheng had forcibly abducted Bai Wei and Bai Zhi to curry favor with Jiu Yuan, leading to the Shadow Specter Sect and Pang Jian's joint raid on the beast-hunting sailboat.

From the beginning, the root cause of the bloody conflict between the Shadow Specter Sect and the Blood Moon Sect had been Jiu Yuan!

Whoosh!

A burly man with broad shoulders and a crimson cloak stood up with a smile. He flew toward Gao Yuan's Cloud Sail and said, "Don't be in such a hurry to leave. I sent you a message because I wanted to have a chat."

Although he was talking to Gao Yuan, Jiu Yuan's eyes remained fixed on Luo Hongyan and Pang Jian.

Yuan Fei had confessed everything he knew under intense interrogation. Thus, Jiu Yuan learned about the mysterious siblings from the Second World appearing on Ice Rock Island.

The brother had paid special attention to the Shadow Specter Sect members' bodies and had referred to Dong Tianze as the Sect Leader. He had also killed Zhu Yuanxi, seemingly to avenge the members of the Shadow Specter Sect.

They're from the upper world but have connections to the Shadow Specter Sect. I wonder what the situation could be...

Jiu Yuan did not know much about Luo Hongyan and Pang Jian, so he refrained from acting rashly. After learning they were traveling with Gao Yuan, he decided to wait for them on Yuan Fei's Cloud Sail to see them in person.

When Jiu Yuan landed, Gao Yuan immediately bowed, his body going cold with fear.

"This young one is Gao Yuan. At your service, Elder Jiu Yuan," he greeted

With Jiu Yuan's status in the Blood Moon Sect, killing rogue cultivators like him and Yuan Fei was no different from slaughtering a chicken. Even within the Primordial Wilderness, Jiu Yuan could kill Gao Yuan at will unless he stayed at the First Peak.

Jiu Yuan nodded without even glancing at Gao Yuan. Instead, his crimson pupils gazed intently at the veiled Luo Hongyan.

Smiling brightly, he said, "Don't take offense. This old man just wanted to see who killed Ling Yun and Zhu Yuanxi. Everyone knows Zhu Yuanxi was my subordinate and Ling Yun...Well, we were close."

"I'm the one who killed them," Luo Hongyan responded calmly, returning Jiu Yuan's stare with a mocking smile. "What do you intend to do about it?"

Her strength would soar as long as she could find the necessary rare spirit materials at Old Monster Cao's trade fair. Once that happened, she would have no reason to fear Jiu Yuan.

She dared to be brazen in front of Jiu Yuan because she could dramatically increase her combat prowess in a short time.

Jiu Yuan suppressed his anger and asked, "Could you give me a reason?"

"There's no reason!" Luo Hongyan's attitude was firm.

"Then could you tell me where you come from?" Jiu Yuan asked again.

"You're not qualified to know."

Jiu Yuan took a deep breath, his chest swelling like a balloon, making him appear even bulkier than before. He cast a long, deep stare at Luo Hongyan before smiling faintly and nodding. Clasping his hands together, he said, "Please pardon my intrusion."

As soon as he finished speaking, he left Gao Yuan's Cloud Sail. The instant he landed on Yuan Fei's Cloud Sail, it exploded.

Boom!

The Cloud Sail burst into a spray of wooden chips which were then pulverized into dust by a crimson light.

Having nowhere else to vent his anger, Jiu Yuan headed to the Fourth Peak of the Primordial Wilderness in a swirl of dust.

Gao Yuan collapsed onto the deck, drenched in sweat. He wiped his brow while gasping for breath.

"I'm still alive," he muttered, his face deathly pale.

"It's unlucky that we encountered this guy before even arriving at the Primordial Wilderness." Luo Hongyan snorted, glancing at the unruffled Pang Jian. "Do you know why I kept defying him? The more you stand up to him, the more he fears you."

Pang Jian nodded in acknowledgment.

"People like him won't hesitate once they're certain they can eliminate you without trouble." Eyeing Gao Yuan's sprawled form, she mocked, "Are you that afraid of him?"

"If it weren't for you two, I'd have ended up like Yuan Fei. He would've skinned me alive," Gao Yuan said, still gasping for air. He was clearly shaken.

Although Yuan Fei's Cloud Sail had been destroyed, the image of Yuan Fei's bloody, skinned corpse hanging from the mast still lingered. It would likely haunt him for years to come.

Rogue cultivators like him did not have the protection of a sect and were destined to face horrific ends if they inadvertently provoked someone like Jiu Yuan.

The only way for rogue cultivators to command the respect and caution of the five major sects was to reach the level of someone like Old Monster Cao.

"We'll stay at the First Peak to be safe. It might cost more spirit stones, but at least during the trade fair, you two won't face any trouble," Luo Hongyan said decisively.

Gao Yuan nodded vigorously in agreement. "I've decided. I'll spend all my savings if I have to. As long as Jiu Yuan is in the Primordial Wilderness, I'm not leaving the First Peak!"

The tragic death of Yuan Fei forced him to exercise extreme caution as he did not wish to fall victim to Jiu Yuan or his subordinates.

Soon, their Cloud Sail descended toward the Primordial Wilderness.

Two Formless Sailboats were anchored on the Fourth Peak. The muscular Jiu Yuan stood at the summit with his crimson cloak billowing in the wind, watching as Gao Yuan's Cloud Sail descended into the valley of the First Peak.

So, they're from the upper world. Are they from a noble family? Or one of those sects? Jiu Yuan wondered with a frown.