Chapter 40

Chapter 40: Growing Up

A long time passed, and the candy melted in his mouth.

Sunlight fell through the cracks in the canopy, falling directly onto Xu Qing’s face. Just like candy, it also melted into the depths of his heart, soothing his grief.

After a while, Xu Qing silently opened his eyes and looked up at the sun in the sky. Then he looked down at the old man’s gravestone, sighing softly.

“Captain Thunder, farewell… Have a safe journey.”

Xu Qing stood up and bowed deeply. When he turned around, he suppressed his fragile emotions deep in his heart. At the same time, he also buried his final traces of youthful innocence, laying them to rest here along with Captain Thunder.

Fate had given him a trace of warmth, but the world had now ruthlessly snatched it away. This was the helplessness of humans in this world. But Xu Qing still had to go on living.

His eyes slowly sharpened, and there was an additional depth to them.

His aura gradually gained an edge, along with a newfound richness.

In a flash, Xu Qing dashed towards the edge of the jungle under the morning sun.

His figure was extremely fast as he shuttled through the jungle, passing gaps in the canopy where light managed to shine down. However, if someone looked at him closely, they would notice the bleakness on his body that even the morning light was unable to quickly dispel.

It was so intense that it turned into desolate loneliness.

It became deeper and deeper.

And colder and colder.

It was like a wolf cub living in a cruel forest. Having grown up in solitude, it gradually became a true lone wolf.

Soon, one day passed by. Xu Qing’s figure didn’t stop until dusk fell, and by that time he had already stepped out of the forbidden area and returned to the normal world.

However, he didn’t step out into the region of the camp, but from the other side of the forbidden area.

He wasn’t going to return to the camp.

The death of Captain Thunder’s enemy would certainly leave trouble behind.

Since his organization was able to travel the entirety of South Phoenix, it clearly had a significant amount of influence. Although the person who died was an irrelevant weakling, there most likely would still be some sort of investigation.

Xu Qing didn’t want to gamble.

And the most important problem was the death of the camp owner.

Xu Qing had heard about the Vajra Sect from Captain Thunder.

Although Captain Thunder’s enemy belonged to a more powerful organization, they were still the strong dragon in comparison to the Vajra Sect being the local snakehead[1].

After all, purely in the nearby area, the Vajra Sect was considered the strongest force.

Dozens of cities and scavenger camps nearby were more or less related to the Vajra Sect, being either directly under its control or indirectly influenced by it.

The sect’s ancestor had even reached the Foundation Establishment Realm.

To the people and scavengers in this area, Foundation Establishment cultivators were similar to mythical immortals. Although few people had ever met one, just the title “Foundation Establishment” gave everyone a sense of pressure and awe.

Therefore, Xu Qing knew very well that since he had killed two elders of the Vajra Sect, the first thing he would have to face was the Vajra Sect’s anger. The solution to this problem was actually very simple.

He needed the backing of a stronger force to deter the Vajra Sect from acting rashly.

And in Xu Qing’s plans, this force was the Seven Blood Pupils.

For the nearby cities and camps, the Vajra Sect was an almighty behemoth. But for the Vajra Sect, the Seven Blood Pupils was the real heaven-supporting existence.

Even if the Vajra Sect was a hundred times more courageous, it would never dare to provoke the Seven Blood Pupils.

Therefore, Xu Qing knew clearly that as long as he was able to enter the Seven Blood Pupils as a disciple, his crisis would be temporarily averted.

As he walked out of the forbidden area, his eyes showed a bright light and he touched the Seven Blood Pupils token in his leather bag.

He was going to the Seven Blood Pupils!

The Seven Blood Pupils was very far from here, and an ordinary person might take several years just to travel there. Over these several years, they would not only have to climb mountains upon mountains, they also had to survive various perils.

But for those who had a token, everything was much simpler.

There was a map of the Seven Blood Pupils engraved on the back of the token. Countless bumps were on the token, and each of them represented the location of a branch city of the Seven Blood Pupils.

When someone holding the token entered any of these branch cities, they could teleport to the main city for free.

The nearest branch city was Antler City, in the opposite direction of Pinewind City.

Unlike Pinewind City, buying a residence right in Antler City not only cost more spirit coins but also required the recommendation of a Seven Blood Pupils disciple. This was the reason Captain Thunder had to choose Pinewind City back then.

Musing to himself, Xu Qing turned and cast a deep look at the forbidden area. After a while, he turned around and ran forth under the twilight, heading straight for Antler City.

“Calculating the time… I should be able to reach Antler City in three days at most.” Xu Qing made a quick mental estimate.

He had never been to Antler City, but the name wasn’t unfamiliar to him. That was because Antler City was actually not too far from the now-ruined city where he had lived for six years.

Taking advantage of the darkness, Xu Qing ran alone in the wilderness, moving faster and faster.

Two days passed.

Xu Qing’s decision not to go back to camp was correct.

Right now, dozens of Vajra Sect disciples waited coldly in the camp, and several of them even stepped into the forbidden area to search the jungle.

The reason they were able to find out so quickly was because of the scattered and diverse nature of the scavengers. Scavengers comprised people with all kinds of thoughts, so unless everyone was killed, the information would definitely spread.

And when the Vajra Sect got wind of it, the entire sect was furious.

For the Vajra Sect, the death of two elders was a huge matter, particularly with how it affected their reputation. A slap to the face like this needed to not only be solved as soon as possible, but also in a way that restored their reputation and built their prestige.

But even after waiting for a long time, Xu Qing didn’t come back. Moreover, the forbidden area was too large, so they couldn’t be sure whether he had entered or not. In addition, the wilderness beyond was even bigger, so the Vajra Sect’s manpower was inevitably spread thin.

Just like that, two days passed without any sign of Xu Qing.

However, the story spread uncontrollably, and soon, all the cities and scavenger camps inside the Vajra Sect’s range of influence had heard about it. This caused the Vajra Sect’s anger from a long but unsuccessful search to intensify.

At that moment, inside the Vajra Sect, there was a loud shout of anger.

The Vajra Sect entrance was not too far from Pinewind City. It was a luxurious gate built atop a mountain peak. There were hundreds of disciples in the sect with many experts among them.

The angry shout that reverberated through the sect just now had come from a hall on the top of the mountain.

“You haven’t caught him yet?”

In the main hall, a middle-aged man in golden robes sat in the leader’s position. His expression was dignified and his eyes were full of anger. In his anger, the spiritual energy fluctuations rolling off his body spread in all directions, giving off immense pressure.

Two people stood below him.

Both of them were middle-aged men wearing golden robes, and the spiritual energy fluctuations were very strong, surpassing the camp owner. They were both frowning, and after a long while, one of them spoke in a low voice.

“Sect master, the wilderness is too big. Why don’t we send out an order for the city guards and scavengers to search together? This way, it will take at most three days to find him.”

“Do you think we haven’t made a big enough fool of ourselves? Two elders killed by a child, and the camp was bathed in blood. If we need help from others to solve this matter, what face will my Vajra Sect have in the future?” The Vajra Sect’s sect master sitting at the head of the hall said angrily.

The pair below him fell silent and no longer spoke.

After a long while, the Vajra Sect’s sect master took a deep breath. Strong killing intent appeared in his eyes as he pointed at the two people below him.

“Elder Li, Elder Chen, both of you are at the peak of the ninth level of Qi Condensation. Either one of you can easily take care of that kid.”

“I will ask the old ancestor to lend you two tracking talismans. Once he agrees, you two will personally set out. No matter what method you use, I want to see that kid’s head within twenty-four hours!”

When they heard that this matter had been escalated up to the ancestor, the two elders suddenly grew solemn.

The Vajra Sect’s sect master’s eyes were cold. After he spoke, he pulled out a jade slip, about to contact the ancestor. However, a cold snort suddenly came like thunder from outside the hall.

The sound was so loud that the hearts of the two elders trembled violently. Even the sect master’s expression changed, and he stood up immediately, stepping down from his seat. Outside the main hall, an old man wearing gold and red robes appeared.

This old man was very tall and had a ruddy complexion. His white hair scattered messily, and his eyes seemed to be filled with lightning that covered a chilling gleam. As he walked, mighty fluctuations that surpassed any Qi Condensation cultivator rumbled out in all directions.

Everywhere he passed, cracks appeared in the ground.

The aura exuding from his body whipped up into a storm that surrounded him. If you looked carefully, you could see that his feet stepped not on the ground, but in the air.

He wasn’t relying on any wind technique. This was truly stepping on air.

Behind him there faintly seemed to be an illusory shadow of a furious Vajra guardian[2]. It was as if the hall wouldn’t be able to bear the power if it fully materialized.

When he arrived, the three people in the hall immediately knelt and bowed down.

"We pay respects to the ancestor!"

The Vajra Sect ancestor didn’t speak, walking up to the head seat and sitting down. Then he looked coldly at the three people below him, finally staring at the sect master with his lightning-like gaze.

“Yunwen, have you forgotten the policy of my Vajra Sect?”

Sweat poured down the sect master’s forehead as he responded immediately.

“Reporting to the ancestor, Yunwen has not forgotten the Vajra Sect’s policy. It’s fine not to make a move, but once we do take action, we must strike like lightning. That’s why I’ve arranged for both Great Elders to head out at the same time.”

“Nonsense!” The ancestor of the Vajra Sect glared at the sect master.

“This old man has just finished carefully studying that kid’s past. He rose up from being an ordinary person in a very short time. First, he became a new member of the Thunder Team. Then, he killed countless people on his first foray into the forbidden area. He defeated Blood Shadow as the weaker party. He has also saved many scavengers!”

“He’s even skilled in poisons. At only the sixth level of Qi Condensation, he defeated those stronger than him and killed two elders of our sect. So many disciples are chasing him, but he can still hide himself safely and you have yet to find him.”

“The camp has so many people, but only two reported to us, showing his popularity in the camp!”

“According to my experience after years of reading countless ancient books, there are only two ways to deal with such a person. We can either take a step back and resolve our conflict, or we must kill him with all our strength.”

“You actually wanted to just send the two great elders to deal with him. To a person like him who’s good at defeating the strong as the weaker party, you might as well be sending them to their deaths!” The Vajra Sect ancestor was almost roaring at the end.

Below him, those three people could only bow their heads and tremble in anger.

The Vajra Sect ancestor took a deep breath before snorting coldly and continuing to speak in a gloomy manner.

“This old man can already foresee that once the two of them go, it’ll be fine if they can’t find him. But once they do find him, he will definitely kill them.”

“Then you will get angry and set out personally, but you will also definitely die.”

“At that time, when this old man finally sets out, the kid will have already escaped far away. After a few years, he’ll return, and at that time, he’ll probably be able to kill me with a single palm strike.”

Listening to the ancestor’s words, the sect master was stunned, and more sweat appeared on his forehead. Secretly, he felt that the matter wouldn’t necessarily develop in such a way, but he didn’t dare to talk back in front of the ancestor.

Thus, he could only lower his head and ask.

“Ancestor, please give your orders.”

The Vajra Sect ancestor raised his head, looking at the wilderness outside the hall. His eyes seemed to be looking far into the distance, and he only spoke slowly after a long time had passed.

“Send out all the disciples and search everywhere. At the same time, keep an eye on every single city and scavenger camp, as well as our territory’s borders.”

“I will give the two elders flight and tracking talismans. Each one will be responsible for half of the search area, and this old man will also participate personally. Once he’s found, immediately notify me to come and give the finishing blow.”

“This is the safest method. At the same time, we can reestablish our prestige and deter those thieves!”

A moment later, bells tolled throughout the Vajra Sect.

Waves of disciples were sent out one after another, and the ancestor even took the two great elders and suddenly flew into the sky.

There were three shining runes in front of him which seemed to point in different directions, leading them into the wilderness. The trio split into three, speeding away separately.

[1] “A strong dragon cannot suppress the local snakehead” – Chinese saying. Basically Xu Qing is saying that the Vajra Sect is weaker but more dangerous since they’re the local overlords, while Captain Thunder’s enemy’s organization is stronger but less dangerous to Xu Qing at the moment.

[2] While the term "vajra" technically refers to Indra's weapon, the Chinese raws used here can also refer to a fierce guardian deity. From what I can tell, these guardian deities are related to Vajrapani, a Buddhist deity symbolizing power whom you might know as the inspiration of the Japanese Nio statues.

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