Young Noble Be Monster Slaying

Chu Liang's eyes widened. "Oh?"

The moment the vice-chief brought up this topic, he became intrigued.

He had two major concerns on his mind: Lin Bei's safety and finding a way out of this place.

Locating Lin Bei shouldn't be too difficult. Python Belly City wasn't that big. If he couldn't find him today, he would find him tomorrow, assuming nothing bad had happened. With Lin Bei's ability to blend in anywhere, he'd probably already adapted to life here in just an hour. His knack for fitting in made the chances of him running into trouble pretty slim.

Most of the city's inhabitants understood the importance of newcomers, viewing them as essential sources of fresh energy. They wouldn't exploit their knowledge to harm the newcomers; such behavior was frowned upon. Because of this, Chu Liang wasn't overly worried about Lin Bei.

However, the prospect of finding an exit was a different story. No one had ever escaped from Python Belly City. What made him think he could be the first?

When the vice-chief unexpectedly mentioned the possibility, Chu Liang's demeanor changed instantly and he listened solemnly.

"It's not just you. Everyone feels the same when they first arrive," the vice-chief said, her face darkening. "Who wants to spend their entire life in the belly of a python, in this dark, barren place? But there's no other choice."

Chu Liang nodded, understanding the grim reality.

The vice-chief continued, "Some people have never given up trying to find a way out, and our chief is one of them. He's been searching relentlessly for twenty years and finally discovered a possible exit. He tried, but he failed."

"So where exactly is this exit?" Chu Liang couldn't help but ask.

"I don't know," the vice-chief replied, shaking her head. "The chief never mentioned it to us; he was quietly exploring on his own."

"Only he knows?" Chu Liang looked skeptical. Could she be trying to manipulate him into saving their chief?

The vice-chief seemed to read his thoughts. "This is absolutely true. Anyone caught attempting to escape would be executed by the city lord, and anyone who knows about it but doesn't report it would be killed too. There have been countless such incidents. The chief feared that if he failed, it would bring disaster to the entire Blazing Fire Gang. I believe that if he confirms that there's an exit, he'll come for us all and take us out of this place."

As Chu Liang pondered her words, he sensed that she wasn't lying. If she knew where the exit was, she wouldn't be stuck here; she would have escaped herself.

Moreover, under the terrifying rule of the City Lord's Residence, even if the chief found clues about the exit, he wouldn't share them immediately. If word got out, someone might betray him. Doubts would always linger in the air.

In any case, this was his only choice; he had to give it a try.

"So, if I want to find the exit, what should I do?" Chu Liang asked.

The vice-chief's expression turned grave. "You've guessed it. I plan to save the chief," she said. "I haven't informed the entire Blazing Fire Gang, just the brothers who started out with us. If you want to leave, come with us... to grab him from the execution ground."

Whoa. This was truly the behavior of esteemed heroes.

Chu Liang immediately asked, "Will we be strong enough to do that?"

"There are always fewer than ten Dragon Cavalry members when they go out on missions. They're all at the fifth or sixth cultivation realms. With the high-ranking members of the Blazing Fire Gang and you, we have a chance," the vice-chief said.

Chu Liang wasn't easily convinced. "If it were that simple, wouldn't the people of Python Belly City have overthrown the City Lord's Residence long ago?"

He quickly spotted the flaw in her plan. It couldn't be as straightforward as she made it seem.

"The reason the City Lord's Residence maintains its rule is because the city lord is invincible," the vice-chief explained. "It's not actually those envoys from the Dragon Cavalry."

"But the beings swallowed by the Heaven-Devouring Python should be below the seventh realm, right?" Chu Liang wondered aloud.

The most powerful trait of the Heaven-Devouring Python was its enormous mouth and the world within its stomach; its actual combat strength shouldn't be particularly formidable. Otherwise, it would have become the world's most ferocious beast long ago.

As for the seventh realm beings it previously devoured...

The Inferno Dragon of the South Sea that was swallowed as well had been trapped by a powerful water prison, which was why it could be swallowed. And now, the Inferno Dragon of the South Sea was nowhere to be seen, which meant that it was likely not trapped here.

As for Xu Bashan, the chief of the Whale Gang and a master of that level, he was even less likely to be trapped here. There must be other reasons. This place must be hiding some secrets.

There must be a limit to how powerful the cultivation of those present here.

That limit would be the cultivation level of the Heaven-Devouring Python.

"The city lord wasn't swallowed by the Heaven-Devouring Python," the vice-chief said as she shook her head. "He is the master of the Heaven-Devouring Python."

"What?" Chu Liang's eyes widened in shock. "Is that true?"

The Heaven-Devouring Python had been a terrifying presence in the immortal realm for over a thousand years. There was only one, and it was never known to have a master.

"I've heard from others that the city lord can come and go as he pleases, spending most of his time outside the city. He rarely shows up, but when he does, it's a bloodbath." The vice-chief's voice trembled slightly as she recalled, "The fear of the city lord in Python Belly City was built through countless massacres."

"So you're saying..." Chu Liang said as he pondered, "We have to defeat the Dragon Cavalry, rescue your chief, and escape before the city lord arrives. Otherwise, it would be nearly impossible?"

"Yes," the vice-chief nodded.

"I agree," Chu Liang said solemnly.

"Good." The vice-chief finally smiled. "I'll arrange matters within the Blazing Fire Gang and contact you later."

…

Meanwhile, on Mount Shu...

Chu Liang's disappearance finally caused a stir.

Since he often went out for tasks, his absence on Silver Sword Peak had become quite normal. Everyone on the Silver Sword Peak grew accustomed to his absence.

Jiang Yuebai had been the first to notice that something was wrong.

She had told Chu Liang about the Whale Gang's grand ceremony, scheduled to take place in three days, and he had agreed to attend with her. Yet, since then, she had not heard anything from him. Jiang Yuebai even went to Silver Sword Peak to find him, but he was nowhere to be seen.

With the ceremony happening tomorrow, they needed to arrive a day early, meaning that they would have to leave this afternoon. If Chu Liang didn't return soon, it would be too late for him to attend the ceremony.

This was unlike Chu Liang's meticulous way of doing things.

It would only happen if something bad happened to him.

Jiang Yuebai reported this to Wang Xuanling, who immediately sensed that something was wrong.

His first step was to search for Lin Bei at Jade Sword Peak. Everyone knew Lin Bei spent all his time with Chu Liang and would likely know his whereabouts.

Upon inquiry, Wang Xuanling discovered that Lin Bei was about to form his core and had gone to the South Sea two days ago to gather treasures of nature. Lin Bei had asked Chu Liang to accompany him.

Could it be that something had happened to them in the South Sea?

With the team set to depart for the grand ceremony, Wang Xuanling had no choice but to pay Di Nufeng a visit.

When grand peakmaster Wang Xuanling arrived, Di Nufeng was just about to leave.

Wang Xuanling met her head-on and asked, "Where are you headed?"

"I’m going to the fruit garden," Di Nufeng replied.

Lately, she had been diligently working as the garden's security guard, patrolling several times a day. With the influx of sword coins into her wallet every month, Di Nufeng had become much more disciplined.

She realized that Chu Liang's line of work was making much more money at a faster rate than her previous exploits outside Silver Sword Peak.

Since Di Nufeng wasn't causing trouble, Mount Shu had become significantly safer. Chu Liang’s decision to employ her as security in the fruit garden somehow improved the safety of the entire sect.

Wang Xuanling said sternly, "Do you know your disciple is missing?"

"Hmm?" Di Nufeng's eyes widened in surprise. "What happened?"

Since Chu Liang had become busier, he no longer reported to her every time he went out, so she genuinely didn't know where he had gone.

Wang Xuanling then explained the situation.

"He must have had an accident," Di Nufeng said as she started frowning. "My disciple handles things just like me; he wouldn't do something as unreliable as being late..."

You've done far more unreliable things than being late, Wang Xuanling thought.

Wang Xuanling's chest rose and fell rapidly, as if he was about to unleash a torrent of harsh words, but considering the urgency of the situation, he held back.

"He went missing while helping your disciple find treasures of nature. If something really happened to him, you owe me a new disciple!" Di Nufeng said.

Wang Xuanling finally lost his temper. "At a time like this, you're worried about that? Chu Liang is the swordmaster of the Violet and Azure Twin Swords. Losing him would be a huge blow to Mount Shu. Even if I gave you all my disciples, it wouldn't make up for it!"

Di Nufeng shook her head. "I don't want your crooked disciples. How about you become my disciple instead?"

Wang Xuanling couldn't be bothered to argue with her. He took a deep breath and asked, "Can you find him or not?"

"I haven't sensed the disappearance of the tracking jade talisman, so there shouldn't be any major issues," Di Nufeng said, looking up at the distant sky. "I'll go find him now!"

With that, she took a step, and her entire body turned into a blaze of fire heading southeast.

Although she always sounded indifferent, Di Nufeng was always the first to arrive whenever Chu Liang was in trouble. It was never a coincidence.

Chu Liang always carried the tracking jade talisman she had given him, so she could vaguely sense his position. She followed the tracking jade talisman and arrived at the South Sea.

But as she arrived above the South Sea, she realized the spiritual energy she was sensing became a blur. The jade talisman was probably being blocked by some force. She could still sense a general direction but couldn't pinpoint his exact location.

"Could he have entered a hidden realm?" Di Nufeng murmured.

The current situation showed that there was an eighty percent chance he would be in another small world and the barriers of that world were blocking the spiritual energy of the jade talisman from being sensed by people outside accurately. This was going to be troublesome.

No matter how big the hidden realm was, its entrance could be in a tiny, almost impossible-to-find location.

Di Nufeng then went to the spot on the map where the volcanic island with the Inferno Dragon of the South Sea was supposed to be, but there was no island in sight. All she saw was a stretch of blue waves.

Di Nufeng hovered in the air for a while. Then, instead of continuing the search, she turned around and headed north in a blaze of fire.

Before long, she arrived at a celestial mountain in the Central Region.

Purple qi swirled through the air, mingling with the floating mist, hinting at the presence of an immortal sect hidden within. Amidst the rolling mountains were clusters of pavilions and towers, with architectural styles blending seamlessly with the surrounding scenery, making it look like a true paradise.

Mount Reticence of the Celestial Pivot Pavilion.

Legend has it that an esteemed senior of divination once observed the Big Dipper here and understood the world, foreseeing five hundred years of human affairs. To warn himself not to divulge the secrets of heaven, he named this mountain "Reticence" and lived in seclusion here.

He carved the major human events he saw onto the mountain walls.

When people in later generations found this mountain, they discovered that the ancient writings of today's events had come true and realized the mystic nature of the writing. Upon exploring the cave, they found it desolate and dilapidated, with only the legacy of the techniques and the five words "Be a Reticent Heaven Observer" engraved on a stone plaque left by the esteemed senior.

Therefore, the people who inherited his legacy roamed the world and called themselves the descendants of the Heaven Observer. Because they predicted the secrets of heaven, they attracted numerous unfortunate events.[1] Only then did they understand the profound reason why the esteemed senior had written the word reticent before he died.

The later generations from the lineage of the Heaven Observer had no choice but to join the Heavenly Star Divine Cult for protection. With this merge, they evolved and became the lineage of the Celestial Pivot.

After the Heavenly Star Divine Cult split up, the Celestial Pivot Pavilion returned to Mount Reticence. It was as if the cycle had come full circle, back to its starting point.

The esteemed senior back then would have never imagined that the heaven-observing techniques he left behind for predicting worldly affairs would end up being used mostly for forecasting minor news and martial world gossip.

Di Nufeng hovered above Mount Reticence. She didn't descend to the ground. Standing upright in mid-air, she shouted loudly, her voice like the roar of thunder.

"Zhou Yijian, get the fuck out here!"

1. There is a belief that revealing divine or mystical knowledge can disrupt the natural order and bring misfortune. In Buddhism, divulging sacred or hidden knowledge might be seen as an action that brings negative karma or divine retribution. ☜

GLTD Alternate Universe's Thoughts

Translator: GT