Bachelor [EN]: Chapter 854

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“You want us to carry this around?”

Noeran narrowed her brows, holding up the white jade pendant. Baekbyeok, beside her, held the same object, looking equally puzzled. The jade pendant, with its shimmering silver spell characters, clearly looked valuable.

It was something Han Li had taken out from his robes a moment ago, telling them to keep it on their person.

“Besides a bit of protection, it also conceals our energy and lets us know each other’s location. Even if we get separated by some unforeseen accident, we can find each other with these jade pendants.”

It was an item called the Limitless Pendant, a treasure he had purchased at a high price in the Celestial City. After leaving the desert and arriving at a small mountain, he had suggested they carry them, being cautious.

“I’ve never carried another person’s magical artifact before. I’ll just be grateful for Brother Han’s kindness.”

Noeran refused outright with a dark expression, and Baekbyeok also smiled awkwardly, shaking his head. Han Li didn’t force the issue and put the jade pendants back into his robes.

“Since both of you don’t want them, that’s fine. But we’ve already encountered a relay demon on the first floor, so we need to be even more careful. Fortunately, I have a treasure that allows us to move forward quickly while concealing ourselves.”

“A flying treasure would be helpful.”

This time, Noeran replied with a smile, and Baekbyeok nodded in agreement.

When Han Li rubbed the dust-covered wooden object, a yellow-brown flying chariot appeared, narrow in the front and wide in the back.

It was about seven or eight feet in size, more than enough for the three of them. This was also one of the several flying chariots he had purchased before leaving the Celestial City. He had prepared them in advance to use according to the situation.

Han Li’s figure blurred as he first boarded the flying chariot, and the other two followed. Then, he struck the chariot, injecting profound magic.

Whoosh.

A milky white protective barrier surrounded the entire chariot. The light flowed along the barrier, gradually becoming transparent, and finally turned into a shadow.

“Brother Han, if you had such a treasure, you could have used it from the beginning.”

Baekbyeok, who had been observing the chariot, which was very different from the flying treasures of the Flying Spirit Clan, asked with a smile.

“The flying chariot’s performance isn’t bad, but it has its flaws.”

“What flaws?” Noeran interjected, curious.

“Activating the concealment requires high-grade wood-attribute spirit stones, and the amount needed to maintain it is not small. Also, while it’s good in terms of speed and concealment, its defensive capabilities are significantly lacking, making it easily damaged. So, unless we need to hurry, there’s no need to use it.”

At his words, Baekbyeok and Noeran smiled and didn’t ask further. The flying chariot moved forward at an extremely fast speed, like a ghost.

Unbeknownst to the three inside, a green mist twitched and stopped far away from them. Then, it growled lowly and shot out like a meteor, increasing its speed.

At that time, a group of seven or eight Flying Spirit Clan members were cautiously flying, approaching the Great Canyon, the final gateway of the first floor of the Jiyuan [a trial ground]. The leader of the group was a dark-skinned Chukeumja [a high-ranking member of the Flying Spirit Clan], and the rest were Red-Fused Clan Saints.

The deeper they went along the Great Canyon, the darker it became. It was so dark that they couldn’t find any light, making it feel like a path to the underworld.

However, the Red-Fused Clan Saints seemed calm even in the darkness, their eyes flashing with red light. Soon, a strange cry was heard from the front, and something dark and murky popped out.

Squeak! Squeak!

It was unexpectedly a swarm of strange bats with crimson eyes, which covered the Red-Fused Clan group while making strange noises. The Chukeumja flying at the front looked at it expressionlessly and shook the wings on his back.

Then, numerous feathers flew out, turning into fire arrows that pierced through the swarm of bats.

Boom!

With an explosion, the bats all fell, turning into balls of fire without exception. The Red-Fused Clan members didn’t slow down and disappeared into the darkness. If they continued along the Great Canyon for just one day, they would be able to safely reach the second floor of the Jiyuan.

* * *

A huge black shadow swept across the vermilion ground.

And not long after the black shadow passed, the end of the sky flashed, and about a dozen balls of light flew in. These people with black tattoos on their faces were the July Clan Saints, known as the first branch of the Flying Spirit Clan.

At the very front of the group, a girl named Ohcheong was flying. She sneered, looking at the black shadow fleeing far away.

“Senior Sister Oh, the direction the Golden Fang Beast fled is far from the entrance to the second floor that we need to go to. Wouldn’t it be better not to chase it anymore?”

One of the July Clan Saints, a well-built man, couldn’t hold back and spoke up.

“What’s the rush! We encountered the Golden Fang Beast, a relay demon that lives in groups on the first floor of the Jiyuan, so of course we have to catch it. Are we going to fail the trial just because we’re a little late?”

Ohcheong didn’t turn her head and asked in a low voice.

“It’s not that, but I’m worried that another branch might find the Myungyeom Fruit [a rare fruit] first.”

The well-built giant was startled and made an excuse.

“If we’re really late, we can just take it from the other branch. If that doesn’t work, we can just go down to the fourth floor of the Jiyuan and find a large amount of Myungyeom Fruit. We can just spend some time going down one more floor!”

Ohcheong smiled coldly, and the giant just opened his mouth and couldn’t say anything. Thus, the July Clan group moved leisurely, chasing the black shadow.

* * *

On a pile of stones, three Flying Spirit Clan members with blue wings and scales on their skin were fighting a black demon with a deer’s head and a human body.

The demon was emitting black energy from its entire body and was fighting the Flying Spirit Clan Saints alone, not being pushed back at all, and becoming more violent. The Flying Spirit Clan Saints, who were surrounding and attacking, were the ones groaning.

‘This is just the first floor of the Jiyuan, but how is a Green-Faced Demon, which only appears on the third floor, here!’

The demon was after their flesh and blood, so they had no choice but to fight with all their might. Besides them, most of the Flying Spirit Clan Saints on the first floor were also facing unexpected problems.

On the other hand, some were smoothly finding the entrance to the second floor, or like the Red-Fused Clan, had already entered the entrance to the second floor.

And at that time, Han Li was forced to find the most secluded entrance to avoid the Heavenly Collapse Clan and the hostile branch saints.

The flying chariot’s concealment was useful, and the number of demons they encountered in half a day was very small. They passed through two forests and a hilly area and finally reached the depths of the first floor of the Jiyuan.

At this rate, they would be able to reach the entrance to the second floor in a day. Noeran and Baekbyeok were delighted. But when they had traveled tens of thousands of li [a unit of distance] and a black underground mountain range appeared before them, the flying chariot stopped.

“According to the map, this place should be a plain. How is there a mountain range?” Baekbyeok, surprised, muttered, looking at the huge mountain blocking their path. Noeran also widened her eyes, looking at the mountain range.

The peaks of the mountain range were mostly high and large, with their tops reaching the upper part of the underground world. No one knew how wide this mountain range was or what strange things were waiting behind it.

Han Li suddenly blurred and got out of the flying chariot, landing on the ground and thinking about something. Noeran and Baekbyeok were puzzled by his actions, but soon followed him out of the flying chariot and approached him.

“Judging by the surrounding traces, this mountain range appeared within the last hundred years, and it seems someone moved it with the power of magic.”

Han Li said slowly, letting out a long sigh.

“Moved a mountain?” Noeran’s face turned pale, and Baekbyeok also looked troubled.

“Not just one mountain peak, but this entire mountain range! But there’s no need to be so scared. Even a demon king who resides deep underground would have difficulty using such divine powers without any help, so it must have been done with the power of a treasure or a formation. If not, there might be a True Spirit-level demon under the Jiyuan.”

“I see.”

Baekbyeok thought for a moment and nodded, thinking it made sense.

“Even so, it’s strange. A moment ago, it was a desert, and now a mountain range suddenly appears. If the Jiyuan demons did this, wouldn’t they have a purpose?”

“It could be a sign that a demon rebellion is about to break out, or there could be another reason. But it’s not our concern, and if the trial isn’t going to be canceled, then it’s our top priority to go to the third floor and get the Myungyeom Fruit.”

Even with Noeran’s worried words, Han Li wasn’t greatly flustered.

“Brother Han is right. But to pass through that mountain range, we’ll have to go through the narrow path between the peaks, and we don’t know what dangers might be lurking there. And if we go around on either side…”

Baekbyeok hesitated, unable to finish his sentence.

“That’s not an option.”

Noeran firmly refused and added the reason.

“According to the map markings, one side of this mountain range is the Jiyuan Wind Zone. The wind there is on a different level than before. It’s extremely fierce and contains extreme cold, so we’ll turn into ice blocks. That’s why it’s a famous forbidden area even on the first floor. And the other side is no better. It’s the nest of the Black Abyss Flying Ants, which we shouldn’t touch on the first floor of the Jiyuan. They say there are tens of thousands of winged ant demons living there. If we recklessly go in with our cultivation, there’s a 50% chance we’ll die.”

“So that means we have to go through here.”

Han Li muttered, looking at the dark mountain range.

“Well, if we go around this area, we can find another route. But we’ll waste at least 7 or 8 more days. It’ll definitely be disadvantageous for finding the Myungyeom Fruit.”

Noeran said hesitantly. However, Han Li was silent, staring at the distant mountains, and Baekbyeok and Noeran also closed their mouths, leaving all decisions to Han Li.

“This mountain range feels strange! If we pass through here, we might face some danger. Even if we get through the mountain range, the loss of magic power might hinder our future trials, so it’s better to go to the second floor safely, even if it’s a little late. Also, if our schedule is delayed by a few days, it will be more difficult for other branches that are targeting us to figure out our route. And among so many saints, only a few will be able to find the Myungyeom Fruit on the second floor. We were going to go straight to the third floor to find the Myungyeom Fruit anyway, so let’s choose a safe path, even if it takes longer.”

Finally opening his mouth, he immediately flew back into the flying chariot. Noeran and Baekbyeok looked at it and exchanged a telepathic message, then boarded the flying chariot together.

“Brother Han, let’s discuss it a bit more. This mountain range might not be that dangerous.”

Baekbyeok said this as soon as his feet touched the flying chariot. He also thought Han Li’s words made sense, but he didn’t want to waste time here.

“There’s nothing more to discuss. I’m not going into this mountain range.”

Han Li cut off Baekbyeok’s next words and struck the flying chariot with his toe.

Whoosh!

The flying chariot turned, carrying the light of spiritual energy, and shot out like a meteor. Baekbyeok sighed at his resolute action, and Noeran closed her mouth. Han Li knew the two saints were looking at him with displeasure, but right now, Han Li’s heart was more turbulent than anyone else’s.

Part of Han Li’s consciousness was connected to the Demonic Soul within the Spirit Beast Bracelet, and the spirit beast’s uneasy emotions were directly transmitted to him, making his heart pound.

The moment he got closer to the mountain range, the Myung Soul Bead [a mystical artifact] in his body began to heat up. Surprised, he immediately checked the Demonic Soul in the Spirit Beast Bracelet, and the spirit beast was restless, growling lowly!

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