“He was a fallen one of the tribe.”
The captain, Jiao, answered.
“A fallen one?” Zhenzhu rolled the noun around in her mind, then asked softly,
“Why is he a fallen one, and how did he fall?”
This time, the tall, powerfully built dragon man fell silent, and did not reply for a long while.
The mermaid queen set her pretty face sternly and rebuked him:
“Answer me!”
No matter how gentle her nature was, she was still a beyond-mortal descendant of gods and demons, and the queen of her people.
“Roar!”
The black river dragon coiled above their heads let out a timely bellow, intimidating the dragon men.
The bodies of the dragon men shook. Like subjects faced with an enraged sovereign, they prostrated themselves on the ground and did not dare raise their heads. Jiao did not dare conceal anything, and confessed truthfully:
“I don’t know why they fell. They were originally the elite warriors guarding Dragon City. After they went out with the chief, they fell.”
Dragon City was the largest city in the Arsu Archipelago, and also the only city.
Went out exploring… Xu Qi’an glanced at the black river dragon in mid-air. The mermaid queen had been watching this man all along, and immediately asked on his behalf:
“Was Moyu travelling with him? Where did they go exploring?”
Jiao said timidly:
“Not long ago, the chief somehow got news that a treasure land had been discovered. So he invited Sir Moyu to go and explore it together.
“Sir Moyu and the chief are close friends. Everyone is descended from dragons, and Dragon Island and the Arsu Archipelago have always been allies.
“The chief took the elite of his personal guards and went exploring with Sir Moyu. They were gone for more than twenty days and nights. When he came back, he was alone. The personal guards who had gone with him, and Sir Moyu, were nowhere to be seen.
“The chief told us that Sir Moyu had died during the exploration, and that the personal guards who had gone with him had all fallen. He told us to be on strict guard, then went into seclusion to heal his injuries.
“And sure enough, after only a few days and nights, massacres began breaking out all over the island. Those fallen ones had returned and launched cold-blooded slaughter upon their homeland…”
They came back because their obsession with returning home was at work… Zhenzhu could not help looking at the black river dragon. Moyu, too, must have been too deeply obsessed with her, which was why he had come to Mermaid Island and slaughtered her people.
The mermaid queen relayed the draconic captain’s account to Xu Qi’an word for word.
Exploring a treasure land? His good brother and personal guards all fell, yet he returned safely. His strength really is impressive… Xu Qi’an said,
“Let’s go and have a talk with the island lord of the Arsu Archipelago.”
With the great tribulation approaching, for such a treasure land to appear out of nowhere was deeply unsettling. No matter what, Xu Qi’an had to go and investigate it.
The nine-tailed fox and the mermaid queen both gave a slight nod.
The three of them rose into the air and stepped onto the river dragon’s back. Xu Qi’an took out an Earth Book fragment. and stored the treasure ship in the mirror, then rode the black dragon off into the azure horizon, leaving behind the thirteen dragonmen patrol guards.
“C-Captain, let’s hurry back and report this to the chief.”
One of the dragon men shouted.
The chief won’t need your report any more… Jiao looked at his subordinate with pity.
“No need to rush. Let’s just swim back slowly.”
…
The sky was clear and spotless, with white clouds drifting slowly by.
The black river dragon did not fly too high, keeping to an altitude where the riders’ vision would not be blocked by the clouds.
Half an hour later, the monotonous blue below finally gave way, and the Arsu Archipelago came into the sight of the three of them.
Viewed from high above, its main island was semicircular, with smaller islands dotted around the semicircle to form the archipelago.
Within the islands were vast and fertile plains, dense rolling forests, sapphire-blue lakes… just as the mermaid queen had said, this place was rich and fertile, suitable for habitation.
At a glance, Xu Qi’an saw many rough-hewn buildings scattered all across the island.
They formed villages, some large, some small.
And slightly north of the centre of the main island, there stood a proper city. Its scale was roughly comparable to a commandery in the Great Feng with a population of over a hundred thousand.
To the human race, it was nothing remarkable, but among settlements of descendants of gods and demons, it was absolutely one of the largest.
“Tsk tsk, this scale’s a bit frightening,” Xu Qi’an remarked.
Descendants of gods and demons were different from humans. They were born powerful, natural-born combatants.
“What’s so special about this? The human race is so numerous it’s impossible to count. Picking out a hundred thousand or so cultivators would be effortless.” The nine-tailed heavenly fox smiled.
“Don’t be too fearful of descendants of gods and demons. When the legends of Jiuzhou speak of descendants of gods and demons being matchlessly powerful, they’re talking about bloodlines within three generations of the gods and demons themselves. But the descendants of gods and demons now have bloodlines that have long since grown thin.”
As she spoke, Xu Qi’an guided the black river dragon down towards the main island.
Clang, clang, clang…
Suddenly, great bell chimes rang out from the ancient and majestic city wall, one after another, echoing between blue sky and emerald sea.
The warning bell was being sounded.
Immediately after, a giant azure bird with a wingspan of ten metres beat its way up out of the forest, whipping up a gale as it flew to meet the black river dragon.
The azure bird’s feathers were a pure, proper azure, gleaming in the sunlight, clean and neat. Its tail feathers were tinged with gold amidst the azure, adding a touch of nobility to its appearance.
“Jing pays respects to Sir Moyu.”
The azure bird spoke in a clear and pleasant voice.
It was a female bird.
Her lively black eyes examined Moyu warily.
When the chief had returned, he had said that Sir Moyu had died during the exploration. Yet now he had appeared once more in the Arsu Archipelago.
Seeing that Moyu said nothing, the azure bird looked towards Zhenzhu, her tone remaining respectful towards the strong:
“Greetings, Your Majesty.”
Her gaze swept past Xu Qi’an, then turned to the nine-tailed heavenly fox…
The azure bird’s lively black pupils trembled violently. Every one of the azure feathers on her body stood on end. Her feathers had puffed right up.
She first let out a sharp, miserable cry, then screamed:
“It’s you, it’s you!”
She suddenly dived down and flapped towards the city.
Xu Qi’an, who had not understood what was going on, cast an enquiring look at the nine-tailed fox.
The silver-haired demoness smiled radiantly.
“When I came here last time, a few birds from her clan offended me.
“So I roasted them. They tasted really good.”
After saying that, she stuck out her little tongue tip and licked her bright red lips.
It was clearly a seductive little gesture from a bewitching beauty, but Xu Qi’an’s mind was full of complaints. After a moment’s thought, he asked in a low voice:
“How good?”
“A delicacy of the mortal world.” The nine-tailed heavenly fox blinked and shot him a flirtatious glance, egging him on. “Next time, big sister will bring you to try some.”
As they spoke, the azure bird returned, carrying a dragon man over three metres tall to the three of them.
This dragon man was covered all over in azure scales. Blunt triangular spines grew from his elbows, knees, and back, and the mane on his neck and head was brown mixed with silver-white.
It marked this island lord as no longer young, even among those in the beyond-mortal realm with their long lifespans.
Xu Qi’an had learned from Zhenzhu that this island lord’s name was Nulang—“Furious Wave”. Rather than a name, it was more accurately a nickname.
When this island lord had been young, he had once raised towering waves thousands of feet high, sweeping all before him across these seas, and thus had earned the name.
The azure-scaled dragon man gave Zhenzhu and the nine-tailed fox a slight nod, ignored Xu Qi’an, and then stared at the black river dragon with a complicated expression.
“How—how is he with you?”
The azure-scaled dragon man looked at the black river dragon, his voice unconsciously sinking a little.
Zhenzhu then briefly described how Moyu had slaughtered merfolk, and had then been subdued by Xu Qi’an and the nine-tailed fox.
Since Zhenzhu had not overstepped and boasted on Xu Qi’an’s behalf, Nulang simply assumed that the one who had subdued the black river dragon was the nine-tailed heavenly fox.
This ruler of the wanyao kingdom from the continent of Jiuzhou was outstanding even among second rank experts. Let alone one black river dragon, even if he, Nulang, were added in, they would still be far from her match.
“Nulang, just what place did you and this river dragon find?”
Before Zhenzhu could speak, the nine-tailed fox took the initiative to ask, voicing the curiosity and doubts she had held in her heart for a long time.
“This is not the place to talk. Please come to my residence.”
Island Lord Nulang was respectful and courteous.
Xu Qi’an rode the black river dragon and followed the azure bird down onto the tallest tower in the city.
The buildings in the city are generally built from piled stone, heavy and plain. Mm, is this to withstand typhoons and tsunamis? Xu Qi’an let his thoughts wander idly as, under Island Lord Nulang’s lead, the group entered the great hall on the top floor of the tower.
After dismissing the azure bird, Island Lord Nulang said:
“Some time ago, I met an old friend. He had returned from the far south and brought back some news. In the depths of the Guixu to the south, an island had risen from the sea. There were signs that ancient gods and demons might still be alive upon it.1
“His cultivation was shallow, so he did not dare enter rashly. He only observed from afar for a time before hurrying back to report it.
“After receiving the news, I contacted Moyu and went with him to explore it. Who could have known that the danger there would far exceed my expectations.”
The silver-haired demoness pressed him:
“What did you encounter there, and what did you see?”
Island Lord Nulang’s face did not look good as he said slowly:
“That island was boundless. Rather than an island, it was more like a small continent. Outside the island, we heard terrifying roars. We saw a giant turtle entwined by serpents, and a bird wreathed in flames like a second sun.
“We saw a one-eyed giant wandering aimlessly, and a three-headed golden lion devouring its own kind…”
Xu Qi’an listened with his heartbeat quickening. Many of the forms of gods and demons that Island Lord Nulang described, he had seen in fragments of the Gu God’s memories.
“Moyu and I also believed that the gods and demons had not completely perished, but had merely been trapped on that island. Never in all these endless years had we been so excited. If the gods and demons on that island returned to Jiuzhou, then this world would still belong to us gods and demons.
“But when we approached that island…”
Terror began to flicker in Island Lord Nulang’s eyes. In a trembling voice, he said:
“The spiritual essence in our bodies was twisted by some sort of power, and at the same time we gained a great deal of broken spiritual essence that did not belong to us. Moyu and the personal guards went mad on the spot.
“I was fortunate enough to retreat in time and did not end up like them. Looking back now, the reason they went mad was because they had been tainted by the aura of that island.”
Xu Qi’an, the silver-haired demoness, and the mermaid queen looked at one another, and all saw bewilderment in each other’s eyes.
The mermaid queen frowned slightly.
“What sort of place was that exactly? I’ve never heard of it, nor have I ever seen such a place in the murals left behind by our ancestors.”
Island Lord Nulang said in a low voice:
“At first I didn’t understand either. But with all my thinking during my recovery, I now roughly know what kind of place it was…”
…
In the pitch-black deep sea, an enormous monster moved along with the dark current.
“In another three days southward, we will reach the legendary Guixu.” Desolation’s voice spread through the dark deep sea.
“It is said that Guixu is the destination of the great sea. Life that enters Guixu returns to its most fundamental state. Guixu did not exist in the age of gods and demons. It only appeared after their fall. Do you know what its purpose is?”
The Jianzheng transmitted calmly:
“Why are you telling me all this?”
Desolation’s voice remained ethereal, but his tone had changed, as if he were forcibly suppressing excitement.
“Guixu is used to preserve the ancient battlefield of the gods and demons. We are about to return to that savage land once more,” Desolation said.
“You brought me out to sea for the sake of that ancient battlefield of the gods and demons?” the Jianzheng said in a tone of sudden understanding.
…
Island Lord Nulang said word by word:
“That was a place where ancient gods and demons once lived and fought. My instincts tell me so, and they won’t be wrong. Perhaps the secret of the fall of the gods and demons is buried there.”
Guixu: the legendary abyss in chinese mythology which marks the end of the sea, where all the water of the world pour in without ever filling it. ↩
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