Chapter 49: Lin Yuan vs Gu Shiyan (4)
The arena frowned in fear. The suffocating silence that followed was heavier than any battle aura. The spectators stared at the ruined battle stage and blood pool around the both disciples. No one cheered or murmured. Even the wind seemed to have abandoned the academy grounds.
Gu Shiyan’s corpse lay motionless upon the battle stage, his chest was hollow and his eyes sockets are blood craters. The dark-green beast essence that had once erupted from his body slowly vanished into the thin air like poisonous smoke returning to heaven.
Thud! Thud! Thud!
The masters immediately stepped onto the battle stage. Mo Qinghe, Dan Zhenren, Teng Lianhua, Gu Yanluo and Luo Zhen stepped up, their eyes spasming in disdain. And the remaining assistant masters followed shortly behind, but something strange happened. Nobody questioned Lin Yuan, accused him or demanded an explanation for killing Gu Shiyan.
Every single person had witnessed the battle — Gu Shiyan’s confession. About Mei Jian Li, the demonic cultivation, the beast devouring. The academy had seen everything about the demonic nature of Gu Shiyan. Gu Shiyan had abandoned humanity long before Lin Yuan killed him.
At the edge of the battlefield, Gu Yanluo stood silently, his expression remaining calm. And his pitch-black eyes stared at Gu Shiyan’s corpse frenziedly. The body of his clan member, but still no emotion appeared upon his face.
"He was already dead the moment he chose the demonic path," Dan Zhenren slowly sighed, clicking his tongue. "Pathetic!"
Nobody argued with the words of Dan Zhenren. Meanwhile, Lin Yuan’s body swayed, his breathing became increasingly ragged. The adrenaline that had kept him standing instantly disappeared. The pain of the injuries, depletion of the beast essence, and the fear of the battle crashed into him at once.
Lin Yuan’s vision obscured, his eyes squinting sluggishly. The academy grounds began spinning in his vision. Lin Yuan stumbled forward, then a hand caught his shoulder. It was Lin Cangxuan. The Headmaster had appeared beside him without anyone noticing.
"You’ve done enough.." Lin Cangxuan murmured, his face soothing with a warm smile. "Take rest now, Lin Yuan!"
Lin Yuan tried speaking, but nothing came out. His body completely lost strength, and the darkness consumed his vision. Before he could fall, Lin Cangxuan grabbed him firmly.
The old man’s eyes softened. "Sleep!"
And after listening to the words Lin Yuan lost consciousness.
****
"Humph! Sigh! This blue mist is annoying, my dear panther," the Silent Wanderer sneered, lazily stroking the beast’s thick fur. He rode on its back as the panther sprinted across the grassy forest ground, surrounded in a thick blue mist. It was Yunmeng mountain located at the mid-east peaks of the Tianyuan continent.
It was an infamous mountain on the continent, only because of the three demonic cultivators. Three demonic cultivators had occupied the mountain. They slaughtered merchants, and devoured many beasts of the travelers. They refined demonic beast blood with innocent people’s lives. No one was dared to go to the mountain because they were scared of those three cultivators.
The Silent Wanderer climbed the mountain path, riding his bear beast deliberately and quickly.
Whoosh!
Suddenly, a blood laser beam shot narrowly in front of the panther beast. The Silent Wanderer commanded his beast to stop, and descended down from its back. He unhurriedly flicked his wrist, then the panther beast vanished into thin air.
"Do you think the tree can hide your presence?" The Silent Wanderer muttered, folding his hands back, and his eyes didn’t even turn toward the side he was talking about. "Come out, brats!"
"Hahaha! Sharp eyes... old geezer..." The First Demonic Cultivator appeared, laughing with surprise and pure malice. "Hand over the storage bags you have... We will let you live."
The Silent Wanderer didn’t even blink. His posture remained relaxed, hands folded behind his back, as two more figures stepped out from the swirling blue mist of Yunmeng Mountain. These were the three notorious brothers who had terrorized the mid-east peaks, refining innocent people’s blood and devouring beasts alike. The three brothers wheezed, a viscous drool dripping out from the edge of their mouths.
"Big brother, why are you talking to an old bastard?" the Second Demonic Cultivator sneered, the shimmering sickening dark-green essence erupted from his body as he manifested his beast silhouette — the Shadow Demon Wolf. He possessed a Spirit Beast Realm Peak stage cultivation and his aperture held 35% beast essence vehemently swirling around. The mist around him hissed as the toxic aura lingering out from his aperture.
"Leave the panther’s core to me," the Third Demonic Cultivator grinned, stepping forward. His aura was even more suffocating, radiating a light-blue beast essence that marked his Core Beast Realm Lower Stage Cultivation. With 38% beast essence in his aperture, his Bone-Serpent, which is playing in the pool of beast essence, shot out with his command instantly. The Bone-Serpent silhouette rattled aggressively in the damp air.
"Three pests," the Silent Wanderer sighed smoothly, a faint smirk crawling on his face. "You talk too much... Hehehe... I will rip your hearts out!"
The Second Demonic Cultivator lunged first, turning into a streak of dark-green shadow. The Shadow Demon Wolf silhouette formed its claws around its master’s hands, aiming for the old man’s throat. But before the claws could connect, the Silent Wanderer simply took a half-step sideways. With a casual flick of his sleeve, a massive pressure dropped from the heavens.
Boom!
The 35% dark-green essence was obliterated in a fraction of a second. The Second Demonic Cultivator didn’t even have time to let out a dying gasp before the colossal boar beast plummeted from the sky. Crashing down with earth-shattering force, the beast crushed him instantly; his ribs snapped like dry twigs, and his ruptured organs exploded into a gruesome, bloody paste beneath the immense weight of the boar’s hindquarters.
"Second brother!" The First and Third cultivators roared in unison, tears crawling out from their eyes. "We will kill you for this sin, bastard...!!"
The Third Demonic Cultivator unleashed his Bone-Serpent around his arm, the light-blue essence whipping through the mist like a tidal wave. The Third Demonic Cultivator lunged forward, his left hand surrounded by Bone-serpent, its jaws wide enough to swallow a boulder.
The Silent Wanderer merely extended a single finger. A concentrated beam of pure, unadulterated energy pierced straight through his hand, shattering the Bone-Serpent and demonic cultivator’s hand into a thousand white fragments and blood splashes.
In an instant, the black panther lunged forward from the Silent Wanderer’s wrist tattoo. The beast ripped open the Third Demonic Cultivator’s ribcage, tearing into his internal organs.
The First Demonic Cultivator fell to his knees, his malice replaced by terror. He realized too late that they hadn’t ambushed a helpless old traveler, but had provoked a monster. He also realized something else.
"Wait!! How the fuck are you controlling multiple—"
Whoosh!
With a blur of immense speed, the White Tiger manifested from the Silent Wanderer’s chest, closing the distance in three leaps. Then it chomped his neck in a semi-circle and gnawed the flesh in a single gulp. And the boar beast, panther beast, and white tiger ate the three demonic cultivators slowly, enjoying their massive feast. The three tyrants of Yunmeng Mountain had been wiped out in under sixty seconds.
Standing amidst the cooling corpses, the Silent Wanderer looked down at his hands, his gaze piercing through the blue fog as if looking across time itself.
"Sin is a sin," he murmured into the silence of the mountain. "A man should never feel regret, because the sin is caused by him. Believe thy will. If thy will says it was the right decision, never waver into confusion."
****
Lin Yuan’s eyes snapped open. He gasped for air, his heart hammering against his ribs as the image of the Silent Wanderer faded from his mind. The sunlight shimmered through a window, hitting his face. The familiar, sweet scent of medicinal herbs filled his nose.
"Lin Yuan! You’re awake!" Chen Ming bellowed.
Turning his head stiffly, he saw Chen Ming instantly turning aside from a bedside bed. Surrounding the bed were Chen Wenshu, Chen Ruolan, and Chen Yu Ming, all looking at him with immense relief etched into their faces.
"How long...?" Lin Yuan’s voice was hoarse, his eyes darting through them. "How long was I asleep?"
"It’s already been two days since you fainted on the battle stage," Chen Wenshu answered softly, placing a warm hand on his shoulder. "The academy masters brought you here to recover. Your body is weak and your beast essence is depleted."
Before Lin Yuan could fully process, the wooden door of the medical hall pushed open. Dan Zhenren walked in, carrying a faint aroma.
"How are you feeling, Lin Yuan?" Dan Zhenren asked, checking his pulse. "You gave the academy a shock, but your foundation is stable."
"I’m... recovering, Master. Thank you," Lin Yuan muttered.
Dan Zhenren nodded, then his expression turned slightly serious, though still gentle. "Lin Yuan, now that you are awake, there is something the academy needs to understand. What exactly happened back then... in the mist?"
Hearing the question, Lin Yuan’s mind instantly flashed back. But he wasn’t thinking about Gu Shiyan. Instead, an absurd memory forced its way into his brain immediately.
’Fuck! How did that turtle even speak?!’ Lin Yuan scoffed in his mind, the sheer ridiculousness of a turtle talking to him out loud in the midst of a life-or-death struggle made his brain freeze.
Suppressing his inner bewilderment, Lin Yuan took a deep breath and began to carefully narrate the things that had caused havoc within the thick mist, explaining the illusions, the hidden traps, and the desperate struggle for survival. The Chen family members and Dan Zhenren listened intently, grasping every word.
Even though he completed the explanation of the battle, Lin Yuan’s internal thoughts were in chaos. His mind raced frantically, locked on the impossible phenomenon. ’A turtle beast speaking human language... Is it an ancient spirit? A demonic creature? How is that even possible?!’
Suddenly, an echoing voice vibrated inside his consciousness, evading his ears again. "Lin Yuan..."
