Chapter 347: Chapter 346: Divine Martial City
"Eradicate a second-class Sect!" A sudden shriek echoed through Jun Luohua’s flower garden, scaring the birds resting on the peach trees into a panicked flight.
At that moment, inside the main hall, Han Xu stood before Jun Luohua, his face a mask of disbelief. They had been summoned from the Celestial Spirit Hall by the Third Elder and had returned to her garden, never expecting her to give them such a mission: to eradicate a second-class Sect!
"This... Elder, are you joking with us? Even the weakest second-class Sect has a Spirit Emperor powerhouse. Forget the three of us—even with ten more people, we’d just be throwing our lives away!" Murong Wanqing also frowned, her voice heavy.
Hearing this, Jun Luohua didn’t reply. Instead, her gaze shifted to Shen Haoran, expectantly awaiting his response.
When he saw Jun Luohua look his way, Shen Haoran stopped what he was doing, set down the teacup he had been toying with, and slowly rose to his feet.
"It’s just a second-class power, isn’t it? Don’t worry, Elder Jun. In two months, the Hehuan Sect will be completely wiped from the Northern Domain, with no one left!" As Shen Haoran finished speaking, a formidable aura erupted from within him, and the Peach Wood Tea Table at his feet instantly shattered!
Seeing Shen Haoran’s resolve, Jun Luohua nodded. "A good show of force," she said lightly. "I knew you’d say that!"
However, Jun Luohua’s next words made Shen Haoran’s imposing aura deflate, nearly sending him stumbling to the floor.
"That Peach Wood Tea Table was three thousand Points. I’ll deduct it from your Points Token..."
PFFT...
Han Xu and Murong Wanqing, who had been looking utterly distressed, heard this and sprayed out their tea. In an instant, all their tension vanished.
"Alright, enough talk. If the three of you can’t even handle a small matter like this, then don’t you dare go around calling yourselves my disciples!" Jun Luohua said coldly.
"We guarantee we’ll complete the mission. But, Elder Jun, could you first tell us about the situation with the Hehuan Sect?" Shen Haoran asked.
Hearing this, Jun Luohua took a delicate sip of her fragrant tea. "I was planning to tell you," she said lightly, "but you broke my favorite tea table. So, you can go gather the intelligence yourselves!"
Hearing Jun Luohua’s words, Shen Haoran’s face instantly darkened. ’They say women hold the worst grudges,’ he thought. ’Damn, it’s really true!’
"Well, where is the Hehuan Sect? Surely you can at least tell us that, Elder Jun!" Murong Wanqing and Han Xu asked, shooting a glare at Shen Haoran.
"Divine Martial City."
"Divine Martial City? Fine, we’ll set out today!" Shen Haoran said after a moment of contemplation.
But the moment the words left his mouth, Jun Luohua started shooing them away. "Today? What are you waiting for? Get going right now!"
And just like that, without even a chance to pack, the three of them were unceremoniously kicked out by Jun Luohua.
「Outside the gates of the Celestial Spirit Sect...」
"What was that all about? The Elder is making things way too difficult for us!" Murong Wanqing complained, clearly vexed.
"Exactly! She tells us to eradicate a second-class Sect but won’t give us any details about our opponent. Isn’t she just messing with us?" Han Xu was still a bit bewildered.
Hearing this, Shen Haoran couldn’t help but glance back towards the Celestial Spirit Sect and mutter, "’Making things difficult’? I’d say she’s just being petty. It’s not like I did anything more than break a tea table..."
But as he was muttering, he felt two waves of killing intent wash over him. Turning his head, he saw Murong Wanqing and Han Xu staring at him coldly.
"What... what do you want?" Shen Haoran asked, his voice trembling.
"What do you think!" Murong Wanqing and Han Xu replied with a sinister laugh before pouncing on him.
"AHHH..." A bloodcurdling scream echoed from before the gates of the Celestial Spirit Sect...
...
Half a day later, as the sky began to dim, the three of them sat around a campfire, discussing their plan.
"Brother Haoran, do you have a plan?" Murong Wanqing asked.
"Yeah, the Elder only told us the Hehuan Sect’s location. She didn’t tell us anything about their strength, their informants, the number of powerhouses they have, or any other vital intelligence. How are we supposed to eliminate them?" Han Xu said, his face grim.
"That’s right," Murong Wanqing added. "Sun Tzu said to know your enemy and know yourself. Right now, we know nothing. We can’t just run around like headless chickens!"
Listening to Murong Wanqing and Han Xu’s concerns, Shen Haoran mulled it over for a moment before asking, "Divine Martial City is one of the Northern Domain’s Eight Great Cities, isn’t it? Is there a Celestial Martial Auction House there?"
"Of course there’s a Celestial Martial Auction House. But why are you asking?" Murong Wanqing asked.
"If we want to gather information, the auction house is the natural place to go. It’s crowded, people talk, and it should be easy to overhear the intelligence we need. Besides," Shen Haoran added with a hint of excitement, "I haven’t been to an auction in ages. Who knows, I might even find a treasure or two!"
"Is this really the time to be thinking about that? I can’t believe we just got into the Celestial Spirit Sect and we’re already back out. This time, I don’t even know if we’ll make it back alive!" Murong Wanqing said, a note of melancholy in her voice.
"Don’t worry. We’ll definitely complete this mission. I’m here, after all!" Shen Haoran said, patting her on the shoulder as he saw her dejected expression.
Reassured by Shen Haoran, Murong Wanqing and Han Xu reluctantly set their minds at ease. For now, all they could do was take things one step at a time.
The three rested in the forest for the night before heading toward Divine Martial City the next day.
「Two days later.」
Shen Haoran and the others finally arrived at Divine Martial City. Staring at the magnificent city before them, Shen Haoran couldn’t help but sigh in admiration. "This Divine Martial City is so much more imposing than Desert City!"
"This city is near a mountain range, while Desert City is next to the Desert Land. You can’t compare the two!" Han Xu shot Shen Haoran a glare, clearly unhappy that he was badmouthing his hometown.
Shen Haoran gave an awkward laugh, then took an Alchemist’s robes from his Storage Ring and put them on. ’An Alchemist’s identity should make things easier in a large city like this,’ he thought.
"Let’s go." Dressed in his Alchemist robes, Shen Haoran led the way into Divine Martial City.
Wearing the Alchemist robes, he entered the city without any trouble. The guards didn’t have the courage to offend a Fourth Grade Alchemist.
The moment they were inside, Murong Wanqing became like a horse that had slipped its bridle. She couldn’t be held back, darting from one stall to the next, completely unstoppable. Shen Haoran and Han Xu had no choice but to trail after her as she wandered all over the place.
"You... let me go! Help!"
Just as the three of them were being led on this aimless tour, a sudden commotion broke out in the marketplace, and a crowd of shoppers began to converge on the source.
"What’s going on? What happened?" Han Xu asked with a frown, watching the crowd gather toward the eastern side of the market.
"It’s none of our business. Let’s just go to the Celestial Martial Auction House first," Shen Haoran said dismissively after a quick glance.
But he had barely finished speaking when Murong Wanqing was already dashing off, following the crowd.
"Sigh, that girl..." Seeing this, Shen Haoran and Han Xu had no choice but to hurry after her.
