Chapter 139: Chapter 99: Force Integration Level Black Beast
Soon, a crowd of people arrived in front of Li Yuanwai’s Mansion.
A raging fire had engulfed the entire estate, making it impossible for anyone to enter.
Some people brought buckets and splashed water onto the blaze.
But the flames were too intense; it was completely useless.
All they could do was give up and watch helplessly as the fire devoured the estate piece by piece.
"Sigh... what a tragedy. How could a fire this big just happen?"
"Heaven knows! Poor Landlord Li... He was such a good man, always so kind and charitable. To think this would happen to him!"
"Tell me about it! In this world, good people don’t always get what they deserve."
"Yeah, I just bumped into Landlord Li the other day! He even tossed me a large coin!"
...
As the crowd chattered on, they were completely unaware of a figure in the nearby darkness. A person wearing a Red Fox Mask was staring intently at the burning Li Yuanwai’s Mansion.
His gaze flickered with the flames.
"The summoning... failed again..."
He muttered to himself.
This man was none other than the Sacrificial Minister.
After Lotus and Red Tiger, the agents he had dispatched, failed to return, he realized this branch was no longer safe.
Therefore, he had accelerated the feeding of the Blood Sacrifice at the branch.
Once this Blood Sacrifice successfully broke through to the Iron Skin Realm, he initiated the ritual ahead of schedule.
And yet, every stage of the ritual had been performed flawlessly.
The souls of all those captured as offerings had been drained away.
For a moment, he had even sensed the vast presence of the Master of the Black Abyss—an aura so immense it made his very soul tremble.
He had been so ecstatic in that moment, his heart felt like it would leap from his chest.
But a few moments later, the presence vanished without a trace.
The piece of Black Abyss Flesh inside the Blood Sacrifice’s body instantly exploded, shattering into dust.
Everything had failed!
’What in the world... happened?’
He was utterly baffled.
He didn’t doubt the existence of the Master of the Black Abyss in the slightest.
He had well and truly sensed that immense presence.
’Just where... did it go wrong?’
He stared at the fire, his eyes filled with resentment and confusion.
’Could the ancient texts be wrong? Or... was there a problem with the vessel chosen for the Blood Sacrifice?’
He suddenly felt he was on the verge of grasping a crucial point.
But he still couldn’t pinpoint the exact problem.
’No, this won’t do. I have to retrieve the piece of Black Abyss Flesh in Lin Yuan City and try again!’
After confirming that the fire had consumed everything, his figure flickered and vanished into the darkness.
...
...
...
「At the foot of Moon Viewing Mountain.」
Jiang Che, with the Kunji Saber on his back, hid quietly to one side.
He watched as group after group of Martial Artists made their way up the mountain.
They were all clad in Beast Hides, their attire identical to that of the Horse Bandits Jiang Che had killed previously.
’So many Horse Bandits? What are they up to?’
Jiang Che was curious.
However, he had no intention of clashing with them.
Their Qi Blood was exceptionally strong; a single glance told him they were in the Iron Skin Realm.
Their leader was even a Force Integration Martial Artist!
Jiang Che waited until they had all gone up the mountain and everything was quiet before he cautiously started his own ascent.
He did his best to avoid the path the Horse Bandits had taken, making his way toward the summit.
Luo Kun had already explained the principles of Force Integration to him.
But he still wanted to fight a Force Integration Level Black Beast and experience the gap in power for himself.
And that Force Integration Level Black Beast generally stayed on the summit, rarely venturing down.
Using Qinggong to speed his way up, it wasn’t long before Jiang Che neared the summit.
Suddenly, he heard a terrifying tiger’s roar from up ahead!
’This presence... It’s so oppressive! That must be the Force Integration Level Black Beast!’ Jiang Che thought, instantly alarmed.
But he didn’t immediately head for the summit.
Instead, he carefully retreated to scout the vicinity for any other Black Beasts, as well as any sign of the Horse Bandits.
Challenging a Force Integration Level Black Beast was an extremely dangerous affair.
If he got injured and was then discovered by other Black Beasts or the Horse Bandits, it would be a disaster.
Jiang Che searched the entire area carefully.
During his search, he came across some Horse Bandits hunting Black Beasts.
He quickly ducked out of sight.
He watched them for a while and realized they showed no signs of climbing any higher.
Jiang Che vaguely sensed that the Horse Bandits’ main goal was to hunt for large quantities of Black Crystals.
He overheard them chatting; it seemed they wanted to gather enough Black Crystals before the end of the month.
With the exception of a freak like Jiang Che, who could absorb Black Crystals directly, most people hunted them for one of two reasons: to sell them for money, or to produce Exotic Beast Meat.
These Horse Bandits were highly unlikely to be selling the Black Crystals.
Leaving aside the question of whether they needed the money, who would even dare to buy Black Crystals from Horse Bandits?
So, their goal must be to raise their own Exotic Beasts and mass-produce Exotic Beast Meat.
That meant there was only one possibility.
They were supporting a large number of Martial Artists.
Jiang Che suddenly recalled the rumors that the Black Wind Mountain Horse Bandits had built an Earth Castle and were "recruiting worthy talents."
When they couldn’t find enough "worthy talents," they had even resorted to capturing Hunters to fill their ranks.
’These Horse Bandits are definitely up to no good...’
Combining this with what Zhang Xiong had told him—that the Court was weak and powerful factions were rising up everywhere—Jiang Che grew even more certain of his suspicions.
’If these Horse Bandits really decide to attack the city, I wonder if Lin Yuan City can hold them off...’
But when he recalled the sorry state of the city garrison’s equipment, he felt that the city’s chances were slim.
Jiang Che shook his head. He decided that after he finished investigating what happened to his parents, he needed to secure an escape route.
In his heart, he knew that in this day and age, someone who went missing was, ninety-nine percent of the time, already dead.
But as their son, he felt he had to do everything in his power to find out the truth.
Of course, if it proved impossible, he would have to let it go.
He shook his head, pushing the matter from his mind.
Once he was certain the Horse Bandits wouldn’t be heading to the summit, Jiang Che relaxed.
The closer he got to the summit, the fewer Black Beasts he encountered.
