Refining the Mountains and Rivers

This was probably the first time in history that the Boiling Mountain Fantasy had ended so abruptly.

With the mass destruction of 'stars', the entire Boiling Mountain Fantasy range entered an unstable state.

As such, all cultivators were forced out of the Boiling Mountain Fantasy.

It was rumored that a great wave of anger overflowed from the cultivators that day and they cursed out loud.

The battle between the Abyssal Titan and the Taotie had shocked many people, and this news traveled far and wide throughout the land.

Although no one could be absolutely sure, the early closure of the Boiling Mountain Fantasy must be related to their battle.

As such, the murderous intent shared across the crowd was confused on one thing - they had to find the perpetrator!

……

Li Zhouyi was currently in his palace. He paced back and forth with a stiffened expression. Others may not know, but he was aware of the truth.

Ning Xiao was dead!

He knew very well that this was related to the Darkness Ruler.

However, Boiling Mountain Fantasy was a vast and wide world. After the cultivators entered it, they scattered in all directions and the chances of any of them meeting each other were very low.

Furthermore, cultivators who entered Boiling Mountain Fantasy would focus their attention on improving their cultivation. No one would bother each other.

As such, many years had passed since the last severe incident that happened in Boiling Mountain Fantasy.

What was the Darkness Ruler trying to achieve by doing such indiscriminate things? Or did Ning Xiao refuse to give up? Although the outcome was already decided, this question continued to puzzle Li Zhouyi.

Border Cliff Saint had been waiting outside. He entered the hall and bowed, "Your Highness!"

Li Zhouyi asked, "How is it?"

Border Cliff Saint replied, "The Darkness Ruler's aura is stable and he is alright."

Li Zhouyi's tightened chest could finally relax. With his current circumstances and the tight timeline, he could not find another talent quickly.

If the Darkness Ruler was injured, it would ruin the journey to the Tomb of the Barbarian King!

And that would not be the worst outcome…

Sighing deeply, Li Zhouyi stepped forward and ordered, "Without my permission, no one shall be allowed to enter!"

Border Cliff Saint bowed.

In his room, Qin Yu's eyes flung open. He cupped his hands together and said, "Greetings Your Highness."

Li Zhouyi asked "Darkness Ruler, does anyone else know what happened in Boiling Mountain Fantasy?"

There was a slight pause from the black-robed man before he replied, "No."

This was already a confession.

Although neither of them said it explicitly, they knew what had happened.

Li Zhouyi's expression relaxed a bit. Firstly, no one knew about Ning Xiao, and next, Qin Yu had been very frank with him.

He gave a deep sigh and said, "What happened?"

Qin Yu replied, "After I entered Boiling Mountain Range, I was focusing on my cultivation. Somehow, Ning Xiao discovered my location…"

Thinking on his feet, he made some modifications to the story and 'perfected' it.

Li Zhouyi heaved a sigh of relief. It appeared that it was Ning Xiao who initiated the battle. This also meant that the Darkness Ruler could be controlled and he did not have any rebellious thoughts.

While the Sixth Prince did not fully trust Qin Yu, he did not grow more suspicious of the Darkness Ruler because he did not think the Darkness Ruler would initiate the battle.

Without the Sixth Prince's support, the Darkness Ruler was a lone wolf who required help. How would he have been able to pinpoint where Ning Xiao was in Boiling Mountain Range?

On the other hand, if Ning Xiao had the Eldest Princess' help, he could easily find out where Qin Yu was with some preparations.

Li Zhouyi frowned and his expression grew more serious as he said, "It is not possible for Ning Xiao to have acted alone and it is highly possible that the Eldest Princess helped him. She will easily be able to deduce that it was you."

As he explained, his expression grew darker.

As mentioned before, the number of available spots for the Boiling Mountain Fantasy was extremely limited and those who could obtain the right to enter were either extraordinary talents, unique individuals, or those with a strong background.

Regardless of the reason, triggering any of them would bring about severe consequences. The current state of the capital was somewhat like an angry pot of oil - everyone wanted to find someone to pin the blame for the Boiling Mountain Fantasy incident on. If it was revealed that Qin Yu was related to it…Li Zhouyi knew that he would be hammered by people from all sides like he was a broken drum!

That feeling was extremely sour.

Looking at Qin Yu's expression, it was easy to guess his current thoughts. A flash of light came from under the black robe and he calmly said, "Don't worry Your Highness. Even if the Eldest Princess knows, she will not reveal anything."

Li Zhouyi looked at him.

Qin Yu explained, "Compared to exposing you, the Eldest Princess will not want to take the risk and bear the consequences once everything is exposed."

These words were confusing and puzzling but the logic was clear.

Li Zhouyi slowly nodded his head.

……

The pretty face of the Eldest Princess had a flash of coldness in it and her body appeared as cold as jade. "It was the Darkness Ruler." Her voice was clear and calm and it seemed like she did not have any feeling towards Ning Xiao's death.

This was the case even though Ning Xiao had been chosen to enter the Western Barbarian Land to take the treasure of the Barbarian Clan.

One of the young men below her rose to his feet. His demeanor appeared somewhat unordinary and he was calm even in front of the Eldest Princess.

"Cultivating Taotie arts is a forbidden technique and it is not a pity that he died. The only pity is that our plans are ruined…Your Highness, you will have to make additional preparations for the Western Barbarian Land."

The young man scanned the Eldest Princess' indifferent attitude and his voice deepened, "Since you have determined that the Darkness Ruler did it, should we use the chance to…the Sixth Prince has enemies on all fronts now and we only need to stir up the wind and he will fall from grace forever."

The Eldest Princess shook her head, "We can't do that."

The young man said, "Wise thinking, princess. It is necessary for us to tighten the net around him so that he will not spoil your plans in the future."

The Eldest Princess stared at him solemnly.

There was silence in the hall.

Frowning slightly, the young man pondered for a while before saying, "I am willing to head to the Western Barbarian Land on behalf of Ning Xiao. However, my father may not agree to this."

The Eldest Princess said, "I will settle that." She paused before continuing, " Ye Wangu, I want you to return to the capital alive."

The young man smiled and his eyes sparkled radiantly with confidence, "By Your Highness' command, I will definitely return!"

……

The capital was in a frenzy because the matter was still unsolved. Although many people were suspicious because of Ning Xiao's death, there was no evidence and no one could challenge the Eldest Princess.

After all, she was one of the top candidates for the highly contested seat…no one wanted to provoke her. Perhaps she would be able to leap over the branches and soar to the sky like a phoenix. Who would want to be enemies with such a high flier?

Someone tried to ask the Eldest Princess for more information privately but he was turned away and returned empty-handed. However, everyone was still filled with rage…everyone whose chances were spoiled were waiting for the perpetrator to show himself.

They believed that the person was in the group, and this group would leave the capital today!

There wasn't any send off event and everything was conducted secretly. Those cultivators that were selected gathered at an ordinary residence in the capital.

The earth here had been dug to build a fortress with deep layers that were hidden from the public. There was a Teleportation Portal within the fortress. At this point, light gray markings on the Teleportation Portal were lighting up as energy was channeled into it.

Buzz buzz -

The space vibrated violently and a deep, crushing aura was released from it. Many faces among the crowd started to harden.

At this point, the number of people who knew where they were heading was fewer than a handful.

Qin Yu was one of them.

He was probably the one in the group with the best understanding of how dangerous this journey was going to be.

Tomb of the Barbarian King, the treasure of the Barbarian Clan…it was a powerful treasure that could greatly help a Half-King!

There were many powerful cultivators in the Desolate Area but Half-Kings were still very influential.

Every new Half-King would raise the strength of his own country immensely and even enhance the country's influence in the entire Desolate Area.

This was why the West Desolate treated this event with great importance!

Because they knew of its capabilities, they were prepared for any unexpected changes and were very calm.

As such, Qin Yu saw the new face.

Ye Wangu!

This name seemed powerful and his strength was probably going to be a surprise too. After all, he was the one who took the place of Ning Xiao.

Although his gaze never lingered on Qin Yu, Qin Yu was sure that they shared similar animosity.

Qin Yu also sensed the sinister aura from Blood Flag…before he even left the capital of the West Desolate, he already had two powerful enemies.

It seemed that this trip to the Tomb of the Barbarian King was not going to be smooth.

Qin Yu did not feel fearful or uneasy because of this. Instead, there was just a sense of deadly calmness that was driven by confidence in his own strength.

The destruction of the Boiling Mountain Fantasy caused a storm of rage to fly through the cultivators and they were determined to find the perpetrator and vent their anger on him.

In fact, the perpetrator was drooling greedily.

The first reason was the time star, next it was the Ice Flame, and lastly, he had obtained the Taotie Essence.

Because of this, Qin Yu's Time Dao had improved immensely. He could use it at critical moments to deal a decisive blow to his opponent.

After Furnace obtained the Ice Flame, it refined it and strengthened Qin Yu's Great Dao. It completed an unbelievable but wonderful transformation.

The Taotie Essence also raised the Abyssal Titan's strength. Qin Yu could feel the titan's bloodline thickening.

This was only what Qin Yu obtained from himself directly…although he did not have much evidence, his intuition told him that the greatest reward from the Boiling Mountain Fantasy was Stone Pagoda's trial.

However, Stone Pagoda still said that he required more time to prepare for this and he did not inform Qin Yu of when he would complete his trial.

Qin Yu believed that Stone Pagoda would be able to give him a huge surprise in the near future.

This brat was reliable and Qin Yu did not waste his trust on him!

"Once the Teleportation Portal has been activated, you must all enter it quickly…remember, everything that happens next is a top secret in the West Desolate; you must never reveal it at all!"

The deep voice cut Qin Yu's thoughts off. He sucked in a breath and followed behind the crowd. When he stepped into the Teleportation Portal, there was a great jerk from space. All of a sudden, everything around him was shattered like a mirror that had been smashed on the ground.