Chapter 59: Chapter 57: How Did They Do It?
The world fell deathly silent!
Song Zian, the young master of the Yun Country’s Song Family, was dead just like that, turned to ash.
Everyone stared blankly at the scene, their hearts trembling in shock.
They had seen too many incredible things today, and it was all because of the strange young man who had suddenly joined them.
"Jiang Jichen, you killed Song Zian! If the Song Family of Yun Country comes after us, you’ll be the one to bear full responsibility!"
The belligerent young adventurer, whose name was Fuu Jie, was the first to speak after snapping out of his shock.
Jiang Jichen said coolly, "Did I ever say I’d let you take responsibility? Besides, what would a heartless, ungrateful cur like you know about responsibility?"
After tossing out the casual insult, Jiang Jichen acted as if nothing had happened and continued to lead the way into the distance.
Su Fei glanced at the others, said nothing, and quickly fell into step beside Jiang Jichen, walking shoulder-to-shoulder with him.
Fuu Jie’s face turned livid from Jiang Jichen’s insult, but he couldn’t find the words to retort. He could only turn to the squad leader, Houu Han, and say in a grim voice, "Captain, killing Song Zian is a huge deal. If the Song Family of Yun Country investigates this, our Flowing Moon Adventurer Squad is done for!"
The others strongly agreed with Fuu Jie. Before a behemoth like the Song Family of Yun Country, they were less than ants, let alone capable of putting up a fight.
They simply couldn’t fathom how the young man could be so audacious as to kill a young master of the Yun Country’s Song Family without a moment’s hesitation.
Houu Han mulled it over for a moment before saying, "No one is to speak of Song Zian’s death. If the Song Family of Yun Country really does come looking for trouble, that’s a problem for another day. For now, we follow Jiang Jichen. He’s the only one who can guide us past the Fire Ape Spirit Fiends!"
After saying his piece, Houu Han followed the path Jiang Jichen had taken. Six other seasoned adventurers immediately fell in line behind him.
The two remaining young adventurers exchanged a look before finally following as well. However, one of them discreetly took out a Sound Transmission Jade.
...
Su Fei watched Jiang Jichen’s Step Technique with amazement. She couldn’t help but ask in a low voice, "Little Jiang, what kind of Step Technique is that? Each seemingly random step is actually imbued with a Void Dao Charm. And I can’t sense even the slightest flow of Spiritual Power from you."
Jiang Jichen glanced at the beautiful, curvaceous woman beside him. He noted her graceful, swaying gait; each step exuded an alluring charm. Despite this, she was surprisingly fast, effortlessly keeping pace with him.
"Sister Su Fei, your Step Technique contains an Ancient Rhyme Dao, and you’ve even cultivated it to the state of Spiritual Breath Concealment. You can walk through the air without a sound. That’s far more impressive than what I’m doing!"
Jiang Jichen just smiled, remaining tight-lipped and revealing nothing about his own Cultivation Technique.
Su Fei knew she wouldn’t get anything out of him, but she was still shocked by his perception. He had discerned from her ordinary movements that she was using an Ancient Spiritual Cultivation Step Method. She had done her best to conceal it, yet Jiang Jichen had seen through her with a single glance.
This only made Jiang Jichen seem all the more mysterious to her.
Su Fei shot Jiang Jichen a look full of flirtatious charm. "Sly little rascal. If you don’t want to talk about it, fine. Everyone has their secrets, after all. But you killed Song Zian and offended the Song Family of Yun Country. I’m afraid they’ll hunt you down for this. You were too impulsive back there!"
Jiang Jichen was actually quite touched. He and Su Fei had only just met, yet she had consistently defended him and was now worried on his behalf. ’She’s been surprisingly good to me,’ he thought.
...
On the subsequent journey, with Jiang Jichen leading the way, the Flowing Moon Adventurer Squad had a few close calls but ultimately arrived safely in the depths of Red Fire Mountain.
Of course, along the way, they also collected many precious Spirit Medicines, slew several Spirit Beasts, and obtained a good number of Inner Cores and other materials.
Red Fire Mountain was a treasure trove. Many adventurer squads, even those who held no hope of finding the Ice Dragon Flower, could still reap great rewards within its borders.
However, many had also met their end at the hands of the Fire Ape Spirit Fiends. It was generally very difficult for Cultivators below the Innate Realm to reach the depths of Red Fire Mountain. Even a few Spirit Cultivator Powerhouses at the Innate Second Realm had perished, incinerated by the powerful fiends.
In the end, the vast majority of those who managed to reach the depths of Red Fire Mountain were experts at the Innate First Realm or higher. Of course, there were also many disciples from Noble Families and Sects who had been led here by experts at the Innate Fifth Realm.
As for the other adventurer squads, many were nearly wiped out, with all adventurers below the Innate Realm slaughtered by the Fire Ape Spirit Fiends.
But the appearance of Jiang Jichen’s group shocked the other adventurers. In their party, aside from Su Fei, Houu Han, and two other burly men who were in the Innate Realm, the rest were all at the Ninth Level Mortal Realm. Among them was even a young man at the Seventh-level Mortal Warrior Realm.
’How did they manage that?’
This thought crossed everyone’s mind. A middle-aged man in black who recognized Houu Han walked over and asked, "Mr. Houu, what’s the deal here? How did you manage to bring a bunch of weaklings this far? All the adventurers on our team below the Innate Realm are dead!"
Meanwhile, a middle-aged woman who knew Su Fei approached her and asked, "Little Fei, you all are incredible! Our squad has an expert at the Innate Fourth Realm, and we still barely managed to get a single member at the Ninth Level Mortal Realm here alive. And look at you—your whole team is practically unscathed!"
...
While everyone crowded around Su Fei and Houu Han in shock, peppering them with questions, Jiang Jichen had already begun to quietly survey his surroundings.
Here, in the depths of Red Fire Mountain, was a vast expanse of molten rock. Crimson lava churned without end, radiating waves of astonishing heat.
And yet, at the far end of this molten expanse, a massive Ice Valley appeared. Snow filled the sky and biting winds howled, a stark contrast to the world of lava.
They stood upon a wide stone platform, perfectly situated between the world of lava and the Ice Valley.
