Southern Qi.

A vast training ground.

A scorching aura surged from the training ground.

Intense flames fell onto the ground, and more than half of the training ground instantly turned into a sea of fire.

“Ugh…”

In the sea of fire, several Beastified Martial Artists, grotesque in appearance, half-human, half-beast, were engulfed.

They were quickly enveloped by the intense flames, letting out painful roars as they charged towards the figures outside the training ground.

After only a few meters, they collapsed to the ground, and in the raging flames, soon only charred skeletons remained.

Soon, several more figures were thrown into the sea of fire from the side.

These figures were also terrifying Beastified Martial Artists.

However, compared to the previous ones, their beastification was clearly more advanced, and the aura emanating from them was much stronger; they possessed the formidable strength of the Bone Transformation Realm.

As these Beastified Martial Artists fell into the sea of fire, their restraints quickly disappeared, and they also let out a series of shrill, violent roars.

Their crimson eyes fixed on the outside of the training ground, and then they madly rushed out of the sea of fire. Their speed was extremely fast; even with the wide training ground, in just a few breaths, they had reached the edge of the training ground and burst out of the sea of fire.

But that was all. Barely out of the sea of fire, without exception, all the figures successively collapsed to the ground, turning into charred skeletons.

Clap, clap, clap—

At the edge of the training ground, crisp clapping sounds rang out.

Sect Master Zhong Po of the Qianpo Sect wore an undisguised look of astonishment on his face, but it quickly turned into great joy.

“Excellent, excellent. I didn't expect, General Huyan Ji, that your army would possess such a deadly weapon. The Scarlet Flame Cannon’s power is much stronger than the Scarlet Flame Arrow, and its range is greater. Against those Beastified Martial Artists, one shot could probably take out dozens.”

“With such a fierce weapon, General Huyan Ji, why didn’t you bring it out before? Otherwise, Northern Yan wouldn’t have been so rampant.”

Beside Zhong Po, Huyan Ji, who was clad in armor and had rough features, showed a slight smile and gently shook his head.

“The Scarlet Flame Cannon has always been in the experimental stage. It has only just been completed and can now be deployed on the battlefield. Although its power is good, the manufacturing process is extremely complex. Even with continuous work day and night, only a dozen have been completed, and its consumption of red crystal stone is thousands of times that of ordinary Scarlet Flame Arrows. It cannot be used on a large scale yet.”

Hearing this, Zhong Po’s face showed a look of realization. His gaze fell on the giant cannon platform, which was about a zhang (3.3 meters) long and over two meters high, at the edge of the training ground opposite. As if he thought of something, he spoke again.

“General Huyan Ji, although my Qianpo Sect has always been in the Northern Wasteland, I am very knowledgeable about matters in other regions. Yet, I have never heard any rumor about the Scarlet Flame Arrow or the Scarlet Flame Cannon. Your military department, General Huyan Ji, has certainly kept it well hidden.”

“Hehe…”

Huyan Ji chuckled lightly.

“Since Brother Zhong has now joined our military, you are considered one of us. So, this General doesn't need to hide it from you. The Scarlet Flame Arrow and Scarlet Flame Cannon were developed in cooperation with Siro Country and have always been a royal secret, so naturally, you wouldn't know.”

“Siro Country!?”

Hearing this, Zhong Po’s face showed a look of surprise. He naturally knew about Siro Country, that distant Empire, but he hadn't expected the imperial family to have cooperation with Siro Country.

To be able to produce military killing weapons like the Scarlet Flame Arrow and Scarlet Flame Cannon, it was clear that the cooperation between the two sides had probably been going on for some years.

“Alright, Brother Zhong, this matter is a military secret and must not be leaked.”

“I understand, General Huyan Ji, rest assured, I will not reveal a single word.” Zhong Po immediately said seriously.

“Alright, we have officially reached cooperation with Dark Star. After some time, several batches of red crystal stones will be transported from Northern Yan. This is our first cooperation. Brother Zhong, you should go to the other families and set aside some quotas of this year’s Heavenly Given Spirit Spring for the Geniuses transported by Dark Star this time.”

“Heavenly Given Spirit Spring!!”

Hearing this, Zhong Po frowned slightly and spoke with some hesitation.

“General Huyan Ji, the Heavenly Given Spirit Spring’s production is decreasing year by year, only producing some every ten years. The quota is limited, not even enough for the Geniuses within our Southern Qi. Now we have to take some out again; I’m afraid the other families won't agree.”

“Hmph, whether they agree or not is not up to them. These are the terms my Senior Brother negotiated. If anyone has an objection, tell them to go find my Senior Brother, or have their School’s Disciples stand on the front lines.”

Huyan Ji snorted coldly and said in a deep voice.

“I understand.”

Upon hearing this, Zhong Po already had a plan in mind and said no more.

*

*

Time flew by, and in the blink of an eye, half a month had passed.

The border between East Sea Prefecture and Dongling Prefecture.

In the dense mountain forest.

Several figures moved swiftly, led by a hunched old man who carried a four or five-year-old boy on his back. Beside him was a young woman who appeared to be in her early twenties, and behind them were three men around thirty years old.

Everyone in the group wore light blue uniform clothing.

A fish-shaped mark was embroidered on their chests, clearly indicating they belonged to a certain School.

“Young Miss, with our speed, we can’t shake off those hounds at all. The only way now is to split up.”

The hunched old man, Water Uncle, kept looking back, his face anxious.

No sooner had he spoken than a sharp whistling sound came from the dense jungle behind them.

“Careful!!”

The hunched old man’s expression changed slightly, and he immediately let out a low shout of warning, but it was clearly too late.

The man at the very back heard the strong wind approaching from behind and, before he could react, his shoulder was pierced by a crossbow bolt. The tail of the crossbow bolt had barbs, causing it to directly embed the man into an ancient tree, pinning him to the trunk.

“Senior Brother Zhou!!”

Seeing this scene, the young woman couldn't help but cry out.

“Young Miss, you take the Young Lord and go first. This old servant will hold them off!!”

The hunched old man, however, spoke with determination, and as he spoke, he placed the boy he was carrying into the woman's arms.

“Water Uncle, if we go, we go together…” The woman couldn't help but say.

“Young Miss, now is not the time for indecision. Don’t worry, with this old servant’s strength, I may not be afraid of those people. You go first, and I will follow soon!” The hunched old man shouted urgently.

“Okay, Water Uncle, you must take care!”

A look of sorrow appeared on the woman’s face, but she also understood that now was not the time for more words.

Clutching the boy in her arms, she sped up, quickly disappearing into the jungle.

“Wang Hai, Ma Ping, hold them off for the Sect.”

Watching the woman leave, the old man’s face finally showed a hint of Killing Intent. Looking at the dozen or so figures that had appeared in the jungle behind him, he said in a deep voice.

“Yes!”

The two Disciples looked determined and responded firmly.

“Why aren’t you running!? Do you really think a few of you can stop us?”

Before the dozen or so figures from the jungle behind could get closer, two figures had already appeared in front of the three old men.

The two were dressed in black, with steel sabers hanging from their waists, and silver-patterned badges constantly swaying. They looked at the three old men with disdain.

“Kill!”

The old man ignored the disdain in their words, let out a low shout, and his figure transformed into a blur, directly charging towards the two.

Azure Qi emerged from his palms, instantly transforming into a dozen palm prints, carrying wave-like force, enveloping the two Silver Badge Constables.

“Old man, with half your body in the grave, you still dare to be presumptuous in front of us.”

One Silver Badge Constable drew his steel saber from his waist with a swish, bringing forth a large expanse of cold light.

“Nine Blades of Returning Mountain, break for me!”

Saber light and palm prints collided, and soon a series of explosions echoed through the jungle. The collision of powerful Qi caused leaves to scatter and birds and beasts to flee in fright.

“Run! I can’t let down Water Uncle and my parents’ expectations. I must live, only by living can I avenge them and save my parents. I cannot die!!”

The young woman tightly held the boy in her arms, pushing her speed to the limit.

“Sister, I’m scared…”

The boy in her arms had a pale face at this moment, with traces of tears, clearly very frightened.

“Little Hai, don’t be afraid, we’ll be safe soon.”

The woman spoke softly, yet her steps did not slow down by half a point. Even though her legs felt as heavy as lead from the long journey, each step made the feeling heavier.

At this moment, she could no longer hear the sounds of fighting behind her, which made her even more anxious and worried.

Soon, the time it takes to brew a cup of tea passed.

Whoosh—

As she was rushing forward with her head down, a sharp whistling sound rapidly approached from the jungle behind her. The woman’s expression changed.

Without hesitation, she activated a secret technique, twisting her slender waist to the side at an extremely fast speed, narrowly dodging the strong wind from behind.

Although she successfully dodged, a large piece of her clothing was torn off her waist by the arrow, and a gash was cut into her waist, immediately causing streaks of fresh blood to flow out, staining her fair skin red.

The burning pain made the woman gasp, but at this moment, she couldn't care less about it.

Taking advantage of the secret technique’s burst duration, she sped up her steps, and at the same time, took out a blue round stone the size of a baby’s fist from her embrace, throwing it behind her without looking back.

The blue round stone landed, and with a bang, it exploded into a large cloud of blue and white smoke.

Soon, two figures rushed out of the smoke.

But the woman’s figure had already vanished from the jungle before them.

“She has some minor tricks, but unfortunately, you can’t escape.”

The two Silver Badge Constables exchanged glances, a sneer on both their faces.

The next moment, the two quickly sped forward.

“Hoo… hoo…”

In the mountain forest, the woman was panting heavily, and the clothing around her waist was largely stained red with blood.

“I cannot die… I cannot die!!”

She kept repeating it, her steps still fast.

However, at this moment, she already felt the effect of the secret technique rapidly weakening. Clearly, it was nearing its limit, and when that happened, the side effects of the secret technique would take hold, leaving her as helpless as a fish on a chopping board.

By now, she had reached the edge of the mountain forest. On the official road, several grey wolves were gnawing on a decaying corpse. Seemingly having caught the scent of blood, their brown-yellow eyes turned, staring at her with greed.

Finally, the secret technique completely lost its effect.

A strong feeling of fatigue surged through her body, causing her to sway.

“Parents, Water Uncle, Nong Yu has failed your expectations…”

She murmured softly, a look of despair already on her face.

And those wild wolves were now closing in on her.

“Even if I die in the jaws of a wolf, I don’t want to become that kind of monster…”

She clenched her fists, looking at the boy in her arms.

“Little Hai, don’t blame your sister.”

She spoke slowly, already raising her palm.

Thump, thump, thump…

At this moment, dust flew up on the official road in the distance, and muffled thuds came from the distant official road.

The woman paused her movements, but then, as if she thought of something, a glimmer of life appeared in her eyes.

Blue Qi surged from her palm, smashing the heads of the several mountain wolves that had surrounded her. Holding the child, she endured the fatigue in her body and rushed towards the official road.

“Young Master, those two small mountains ahead are the boundary line. Once we cross them, we’ll be in East Sea Prefecture territory.”

Two carriages sped along the official road, kicking up large clouds of dust.

The stirred-up dust, before it could even get close to the carriage, seemed to be blocked by an invisible protective barrier.

Bai Can, holding the horsewhip, said to the carriage behind him.

“Are we there yet? It’s faster than I expected.”

Inside the carriage, Lin Sheng opened his eyes, a black gleam flashing within them, and spoke calmly.

“Yes, we’ve basically traveled non-stop, so naturally, it’s faster than planned. However, the Scarlet Crystal Mine is deep within East Sea Prefecture, so it will probably take another two or three days to reach it even after arriving in East Sea Prefecture.”

Bai Can raised his horsewhip and let it fall, then thought for a moment and replied.

Hearing this, Lin Sheng nodded. Just as he was about to speak, he suddenly sensed something, lifted the carriage curtain, and looked ahead.

“Woof—”

Inside the carriage, Big Yellow also stood up at once, barking towards the front.

Bai Can was a little surprised and was about to ask when he quickly noticed a figure, somewhat disheveled, darting out of the jungle about a thousand meters ahead, outside the official road, and heading towards the carriage.

“A woman, carrying a child, and she seems to be injured. Her strength is good, newly entered the Bones Transformation Realm, but her situation isn’t good at all; she’s at the end of her rope. It looks like she’s coming towards us.”

Bai Can squinted his eyes to look, then said to Lin Sheng.

The carriage did not stop; a mere thousand meters was crossed in a breath.

“Help… I am a Disciple of the Tianhai School in East Sea Prefecture. If you help, I will surely offer a generous gift…”

The young woman blocked the carriage, gritting her teeth and not dodging the rapidly approaching carriage.

“Young Master…”

Bai Can didn't speak, he glanced at the woman and looked back at the carriage.

“Go.”

From inside the carriage, only Lin Sheng’s calm voice was heard.

Bai Can immediately steered the carriage to avoid the woman.

Seeing this, the young woman’s face showed urgency.

She blocked the carriage again, and with a thud, knelt to the ground.

“Nong Yu asks for nothing else, only that you save my younger brother’s life. If Nong Yu lives to see another day, I will surely offer a generous gift!!”

Bang—

As she spoke, the woman’s head heavily hit the ground with a muffled thud, and a large patch of crimson immediately appeared on her fair forehead.

“This…”

Seeing this, Bai Can opened his mouth, his face showing some emotion, but he didn't say anything. After all, Lin Sheng was in charge of this mission, so it wasn't appropriate for him to say anything.