"Who is it?"
Ye Chen's strike, which contained both hard and soft powers, forcibly separated Zhao Yushuang from the bulky middle-aged man. Of course, the soft part acted on Zhao Yushuang's body while the hard part struck the man, causing him to clumsily retreat with a horrified face.
Ye Chen walked over step by step with a cold indifference on his face, "Get lost!"
"Who are you? You know, I'm a subordinate of Elder Tai."
Although he was an early Astral Reaching expert, he was apprehensive of Ye Chen's strength. Ye Chen had to be at least a mid Astral Reaching expert. Even an ordinary mid Astral Reaching expert couldn't have separated them apart without injuring either of them. Such a feat required an overwhelming strength. Therefore, he could only threaten Ye Chen by relying on the power of his superior, hoping it would be enough to deter Ye Chen.
"Humph!"
No longer wasting any words, Ye Chen waved his hand. The surging Zhen Yuan blasted away the man, then revealed a grand elder token, "The next time, you'll die a dog's death."
"You…How...Grand elder token?" The man's eyes were wide opened as his gaze fell upon the grand elder token.
In Bewilderment Fog Island, after the three Island Masters, the grand elders were precisely the next in line. To threaten a grand elder with an elder was simply not knowing what death was. The bulky middle-aged man was terrified that Ye Chen would kill him in anger. When he heard that the latter didn't intend to kill him, he immediately said, "Yes Sir, Li Tao will leave immediately?"
"What, you wish to leave without any compensation?" Retrieving the token, Ye Chen said indifferently.
"I'll compensate with ten thousand low grade stones. No...thirty thousand stones." Although he didn't lack low grade spirit stones, that was because he didn't use low grade spirit stones for cultivation. To him, low grade spirit stones were purely currency. Apart from the middle-grade spirit stones, he'd a total of seventy to eighty thousand spirit stones. Moreover, as an Astral Reaching expert, he could easily make more in the future. That was the reason he dared to say that he didn't lack low grade spirit stones.
"Ye Chen said, "Thirty thousand is not enough. Hand over fifty thousand and you can leave."
"Fifty thousand? Alright, I'll do as you say!"
After a slight hesitation, Li Tao reluctantly took out five big chests, each of which contained ten thousand low grade spirit stones.
After Li Tao left, Ye Chen turned his head towards Zhao Yushuang, "These are all yours."
"All mine?" Zhao Yushuang was still in shock. After just a dozen of days, how could Ye Chen become a grand elder? In her memory, grand elders were under only three people and above millions of others, giving them absolute power over their life and death.
"You are the newly-appointed grand elder?"
Zhao Yushuang couldn't bear her curiosity, asking cautiously.
Ye Chen faintly nodded, "This matter is quite long. I'll tell you later sometime."
After saying these words, Ye Chen headed towards the city gate.
"No wonder Yushuang wasn't in a hurry to marry. She actually knew the newly-appointed grand elder."
"Such a young grand elder with both money and power. If she marries him, she wouldn't have to worry throughout her life."
Zhao Yushuang's friends were quite envious.
…
Several hundred li away from the island, a figure could be seen floating in the air.
"Perceptive ball is mysterious indeed. It is active even so far out. I don't need to fear losing myself in the fog." In Ye Chen's palm was a light ball which was emitting a golden radiance. By infusing it with his spirit power, Ye Chen could easily feel the direction of Bewilderment Fog Island.
"Perceptive Ball is connected to the Perceptive Tower for a distance of thousand li, and Perceptive Tower is located at the center of the island- almost two hundred li away from the island's edge. In other words, I can't go outside eight hundred li, or the Perceptive Ball would lose its effect."
"I am not at the edge yet, so let's keep moving."
Holding the Perceptive ball, Ye Chen entered the depths of fog.
Six Hundred Li!
Seven Hundred Li!
Seven Hundred Fifty Li!
As the distance increased, the Perceptive Ball's light gradually turned red, and finally orange, which meant danger.
"Almost there!"
Ye Chen no longer flew straight ahead, and instead began to circle around the island.
"Eh? Ye Chen!"
After traveling for about three thousand li, Ye Chen ran into the only female Grand Elder, Liu Mel.
"So, it's Grand Elder Liu. How come you're here?" Ye Chen greeted.
Liu Mei brushed her flocks away and smiled, "Same as you, trying to figure out how to leave the Bewilderment Fog Forbidden Zone. I have no intentions of spending the rest of my life here."
"That's how it is!"
Ye Chen realized. From her appearance, she looked somewhere in her thirties. Going by the estimated two hundred year lifespan of an Astral Reaching expert, she was at most in her seventies, and quite possibly, might have not even hit fifty yet. Far from the life expectancy limit of an Astral Reaching expert, it wasn't much likely that she entered for Defiant Nine Turn Spirit Grass. Of course, she would try every possible means to leave the island.
"So, you have any clues?" Lu Mei asked.
Ye Chen shook his head, "Bewilderment Fog Forbidden Zone is too strange. Not only can it restrict spirit power's propagation, in the dense fog, spirit power can't lock onto anything."
If one flew into a straight line, leaving this zone would be quite easy. For example, Ye Chen's soul power range was a couple dozen li. As long as he could lock onto a certain region with his soul power, he could fly in a straight line towards that place. By continually releasing his spirit power and following this pattern, he could easily leave this zone. However, Bewilderment Fog Forbidden Zone wasn't that simple. After arriving at that place, one would discover an enormous deviation. In other words, one would feel that they had locked onto that place, but in reality, they wouldn't have.
Liu Mei understood Ye Chen's thoughts. She had also tried this method before, but it didn't yield any results.
"Seems like we might be stranded in Bewilderment Fog Forbidden Zone forever." Liu Mei's face showed a bitter smile.
"Heaven and Earth always leave a slither of opportunity. There is always a method."
Ye Chen wouldn't give up that easily.
Liu Mei hoped Ye Chen to be able to find a method, but subconsciously, she didn't think he could. One should know that she had been stranded here for five years. She had tried all kinds of methods and even got lost in the dense fog several times, but she still didn't have a single clue.
Liu Mei left, and Ye Chen's brows creased.
Like he said, the heaven and earth would always leave a slither of opportunity. The fact that Sea of Soul realm experts could go out without much difficulty certainly conformed to this criteria.
"My soul power is only restricted by ten percent. This is my advantage. I'll certainly find a method."
Compared to other Astral Reaching experts, the chances of Ye Chen leaving this zone were countless times higher.
As the evening approached, the fog became increasingly denser.
"Previously, I thought I would be able to leave through the first sky- Surprising Sky. However, this Bewilderment Fog Forbidden Zone has even enveloped the Surprising Sky. Fortunately, I smelled something fishy and immediately stopped. Otherwise, I probably wouldn't have been able to return."
The deeper one went into the zone, the more they would realize its terror. In Ye Chen's estimate, even the second sky, Extreme Void, was also enveloped by the zone. Otherwise, the almighty Sea of Soul realm experts wouldn't have avoided this zone as much.
"The sky is turning dark, so let's return!"
Unable to find any methods for the time being, Ye Chen had no choice but to return island.
…
Days passed as Ye Chen tried to find a method to leave the zone.
On this day, an attendant came with an announcement.
"Tomorrow I'll oversee Bewilderment Fog Ship?" Ye Chen said.
"Yes."
The attendant nodded his head.
"I see."
Bewilderment Fog Ship was that enormous ship Ye Chen had seen when he had first arrived. Every time it went for an exploration, three grand elders had to be its overseers. This time, it was Ye Chen's turn with two other elders.
On the next day, Ye Chen arrived at the dock early morning.
"Grand Elder Ye!"
On the boat, which was more than a thousand meters long, Liu Mei and other elderly grand elder were standing on the deck. The one who had greeted Ye Chen was Liu Mei.
Ye Chen smiled and flew towards them.
"What a coincidence."
Liu Mei said, "That's right! Bewilderment Fog Ship makes a monthly trip. Since you are new, you were brought in."
"So that's what happened!"
At this moment, Grand Elder Chen spoke, "Grand Elder Ye, although commanding Bewilderment Fog Ship isn't dangerous, we can't be careless. A few decades ago, all the people inside the ship strangely disappeared, including the three grand elders. Therefore, we have to make preparations thoroughly."
"The people on the ship disappeared?"
This was Ye Chen's first time hearing such a thing.
Liu Mei said gravely, "That's right! I heard of this matter when I first arrived. It's a mystery to this date, and nobody knows where those people went."
When all the crew arrived, Bewilderment Fog Ship set the sail.
The range of the small Perceptive Pagoda on the ship was far higher than that of the Perceptive Ball, around three thousand li. Of course, the safe distance was generally two thousand eight hundred li. Traveling further would be comparatively dangerous.
Clatter!
On the surging waves of lake water, Bewilderment Fog Ship moved with a speed of a hundred li per hour.
On the deck, Ye Chen took out the Perceptive Ball. Its connection had already been lost with the island.
"We have arrived one thousand five hundred li away from the island. Fortunately, the ship has a little Perceptive Pagoda." Retrieving the Perceptive Ball, Ye Chen spread out his soul power, observing the surroundings.
Gurgle!
Indistinctly, Ye Chen heard a strange sound.
Gurgle!
Gurgle!
…
The sound became increasingly rapid. All the people on the ship could hear it.
Grand Elder Chen walked over, "Be careful! It's an eighth rank Bewilderment Fog beast. This kind of beast is not present outside. Moreover, it will not appear on the surface under usual circumstances. Only when the Bewilderment Fog Ship is sailing will it chase and launch a fierce attack."
"It's attracted by the Perceptive Tower?"
Ye Chen asked.
"More or less! It's coming."
Rumble!
As Grand Elder Chen spoke, a huge wave was aroused, and at the same time, a ginormous shadow appeared in the dense fog, rapidly advancing towards the ship.
"Courting death!"
Grand Elder Chen drew out a silver mace and struck resolutely.
Peng!
Huge gales erupted at the lake's surface, shockwaves blasting out in all directions. Ye Chen extended his hands and made a True Yuan wall, cutting off the shockwaves.
Liu Mei walked out of the cabin and said with a creased brow, "Every time we go out, we meet with the Bewilderment Fog Beast's attack. It's really annoying."
Roar!
The Bewilderment Fog Beast seemed to have been injured. The boat was severely impacted by the chaotic water. The ship head turned and the boat shook incessantly.
"Berserk Mountain Slash!"
Grand Elder Chen let out a roar. Arousing his Zhen Yuan, he vertically slashed with his silver mace.
Dense Fog was slashed apart and everybody could see the Bewilderment Fog Beast's true body. It was an enormous demonic beast which seemed like a bull but not a bull at the same time. From its head, white mist spiraled towards the sky. As it received Grand Elder Chen's full power strike, the corner of his head exploded open, and it shot off in the sky from the impact.
"Powerful! Its battle strength is at least that of peak Astral Reaching experts, and its defense is almost the same as extreme Astral Reaching experts. Really hard to kill…."
"Who is it?"
Ye Chen's strike, which contained both hard and soft powers, forcibly separated Zhao Yushuang from the bulky middle-aged man. Of course, the soft part acted on Zhao Yushuang's body while the hard part struck the man, causing him to clumsily retreat with a horrified face.
Ye Chen walked over step by step with a cold indifference on his face, "Get lost!"
"Who are you? You know, I'm a subordinate of Elder Tai."
Although he was an early Astral Reaching expert, he was apprehensive of Ye Chen's strength. Ye Chen had to be at least a mid Astral Reaching expert. Even an ordinary mid Astral Reaching expert couldn't have separated them apart without injuring either of them. Such a feat required an overwhelming strength. Therefore, he could only threaten Ye Chen by relying on the power of his superior, hoping it would be enough to deter Ye Chen.
"Humph!"
No longer wasting any words, Ye Chen waved his hand. The surging Zhen Yuan blasted away the man, then revealed a grand elder token, "The next time, you'll die a dog's death."
"You…How...Grand elder token?" The man's eyes were wide opened as his gaze fell upon the grand elder token.
In Bewilderment Fog Island, after the three Island Masters, the grand elders were precisely the next in line. To threaten a grand elder with an elder was simply not knowing what death was. The bulky middle-aged man was terrified that Ye Chen would kill him in anger. When he heard that the latter didn't intend to kill him, he immediately said, "Yes Sir, Li Tao will leave immediately?"
"What, you wish to leave without any compensation?" Retrieving the token, Ye Chen said indifferently.
"I'll compensate with ten thousand low grade stones. No...thirty thousand stones." Although he didn't lack low grade spirit stones, that was because he didn't use low grade spirit stones for cultivation. To him, low grade spirit stones were purely currency. Apart from the middle-grade spirit stones, he'd a total of seventy to eighty thousand spirit stones. Moreover, as an Astral Reaching expert, he could easily make more in the future. That was the reason he dared to say that he didn't lack low grade spirit stones.
"Ye Chen said, "Thirty thousand is not enough. Hand over fifty thousand and you can leave."
"Fifty thousand? Alright, I'll do as you say!"
After a slight hesitation, Li Tao reluctantly took out five big chests, each of which contained ten thousand low grade spirit stones.
After Li Tao left, Ye Chen turned his head towards Zhao Yushuang, "These are all yours."
"All mine?" Zhao Yushuang was still in shock. After just a dozen of days, how could Ye Chen become a grand elder? In her memory, grand elders were under only three people and above millions of others, giving them absolute power over their life and death.
"You are the newly-appointed grand elder?"
Zhao Yushuang couldn't bear her curiosity, asking cautiously.
Ye Chen faintly nodded, "This matter is quite long. I'll tell you later sometime."
After saying these words, Ye Chen headed towards the city gate.
"No wonder Yushuang wasn't in a hurry to marry. She actually knew the newly-appointed grand elder."
"Such a young grand elder with both money and power. If she marries him, she wouldn't have to worry throughout her life."
Zhao Yushuang's friends were quite envious.
…
Several hundred li away from the island, a figure could be seen floating in the air.
"Perceptive ball is mysterious indeed. It is active even so far out. I don't need to fear losing myself in the fog." In Ye Chen's palm was a light ball which was emitting a golden radiance. By infusing it with his spirit power, Ye Chen could easily feel the direction of Bewilderment Fog Island.
"Perceptive Ball is connected to the Perceptive Tower for a distance of thousand li, and Perceptive Tower is located at the center of the island- almost two hundred li away from the island's edge. In other words, I can't go outside eight hundred li, or the Perceptive Ball would lose its effect."
"I am not at the edge yet, so let's keep moving."
Holding the Perceptive ball, Ye Chen entered the depths of fog.
Six Hundred Li!
Seven Hundred Li!
Seven Hundred Fifty Li!
As the distance increased, the Perceptive Ball's light gradually turned red, and finally orange, which meant danger.
"Almost there!"
Ye Chen no longer flew straight ahead, and instead began to circle around the island.
"Eh? Ye Chen!"
After traveling for about three thousand li, Ye Chen ran into the only female Grand Elder, Liu Mel.
"So, it's Grand Elder Liu. How come you're here?" Ye Chen greeted.
Liu Mei brushed her flocks away and smiled, "Same as you, trying to figure out how to leave the Bewilderment Fog Forbidden Zone. I have no intentions of spending the rest of my life here."
"That's how it is!"
Ye Chen realized. From her appearance, she looked somewhere in her thirties. Going by the estimated two hundred year lifespan of an Astral Reaching expert, she was at most in her seventies, and quite possibly, might have not even hit fifty yet. Far from the life expectancy limit of an Astral Reaching expert, it wasn't much likely that she entered for Defiant Nine Turn Spirit Grass. Of course, she would try every possible means to leave the island.
"So, you have any clues?" Lu Mei asked.
Ye Chen shook his head, "Bewilderment Fog Forbidden Zone is too strange. Not only can it restrict spirit power's propagation, in the dense fog, spirit power can't lock onto anything."
If one flew into a straight line, leaving this zone would be quite easy. For example, Ye Chen's soul power range was a couple dozen li. As long as he could lock onto a certain region with his soul power, he could fly in a straight line towards that place. By continually releasing his spirit power and following this pattern, he could easily leave this zone. However, Bewilderment Fog Forbidden Zone wasn't that simple. After arriving at that place, one would discover an enormous deviation. In other words, one would feel that they had locked onto that place, but in reality, they wouldn't have.
Liu Mei understood Ye Chen's thoughts. She had also tried this method before, but it didn't yield any results.
"Seems like we might be stranded in Bewilderment Fog Forbidden Zone forever." Liu Mei's face showed a bitter smile.
"Heaven and Earth always leave a slither of opportunity. There is always a method."
Ye Chen wouldn't give up that easily.
Liu Mei hoped Ye Chen to be able to find a method, but subconsciously, she didn't think he could. One should know that she had been stranded here for five years. She had tried all kinds of methods and even got lost in the dense fog several times, but she still didn't have a single clue.
Liu Mei left, and Ye Chen's brows creased.
Like he said, the heaven and earth would always leave a slither of opportunity. The fact that Sea of Soul realm experts could go out without much difficulty certainly conformed to this criteria.
"My soul power is only restricted by ten percent. This is my advantage. I'll certainly find a method."
Compared to other Astral Reaching experts, the chances of Ye Chen leaving this zone were countless times higher.
As the evening approached, the fog became increasingly denser.
"Previously, I thought I would be able to leave through the first sky- Surprising Sky. However, this Bewilderment Fog Forbidden Zone has even enveloped the Surprising Sky. Fortunately, I smelled something fishy and immediately stopped. Otherwise, I probably wouldn't have been able to return."
The deeper one went into the zone, the more they would realize its terror. In Ye Chen's estimate, even the second sky, Extreme Void, was also enveloped by the zone. Otherwise, the almighty Sea of Soul realm experts wouldn't have avoided this zone as much.
"The sky is turning dark, so let's return!"
Unable to find any methods for the time being, Ye Chen had no choice but to return island.
…
Days passed as Ye Chen tried to find a method to leave the zone.
On this day, an attendant came with an announcement.
"Tomorrow I'll oversee Bewilderment Fog Ship?" Ye Chen said.
"Yes."
The attendant nodded his head.
"I see."
Bewilderment Fog Ship was that enormous ship Ye Chen had seen when he had first arrived. Every time it went for an exploration, three grand elders had to be its overseers. This time, it was Ye Chen's turn with two other elders.
On the next day, Ye Chen arrived at the dock early morning.
"Grand Elder Ye!"
On the boat, which was more than a thousand meters long, Liu Mei and other elderly grand elder were standing on the deck. The one who had greeted Ye Chen was Liu Mei.
Ye Chen smiled and flew towards them.
"What a coincidence."
Liu Mei said, "That's right! Bewilderment Fog Ship makes a monthly trip. Since you are new, you were brought in."
"So that's what happened!"
At this moment, Grand Elder Chen spoke, "Grand Elder Ye, although commanding Bewilderment Fog Ship isn't dangerous, we can't be careless. A few decades ago, all the people inside the ship strangely disappeared, including the three grand elders. Therefore, we have to make preparations thoroughly."
"The people on the ship disappeared?"
This was Ye Chen's first time hearing such a thing.
Liu Mei said gravely, "That's right! I heard of this matter when I first arrived. It's a mystery to this date, and nobody knows where those people went."
When all the crew arrived, Bewilderment Fog Ship set the sail.
The range of the small Perceptive Pagoda on the ship was far higher than that of the Perceptive Ball, around three thousand li. Of course, the safe distance was generally two thousand eight hundred li. Traveling further would be comparatively dangerous.
Clatter!
On the surging waves of lake water, Bewilderment Fog Ship moved with a speed of a hundred li per hour.
On the deck, Ye Chen took out the Perceptive Ball. Its connection had already been lost with the island.
"We have arrived one thousand five hundred li away from the island. Fortunately, the ship has a little Perceptive Pagoda." Retrieving the Perceptive Ball, Ye Chen spread out his soul power, observing the surroundings.
Gurgle!
Indistinctly, Ye Chen heard a strange sound.
Gurgle!
Gurgle!
…
The sound became increasingly rapid. All the people on the ship could hear it.
Grand Elder Chen walked over, "Be careful! It's an eighth rank Bewilderment Fog beast. This kind of beast is not present outside. Moreover, it will not appear on the surface under usual circumstances. Only when the Bewilderment Fog Ship is sailing will it chase and launch a fierce attack."
"It's attracted by the Perceptive Tower?"
Ye Chen asked.
"More or less! It's coming."
Rumble!
As Grand Elder Chen spoke, a huge wave was aroused, and at the same time, a ginormous shadow appeared in the dense fog, rapidly advancing towards the ship.
"Courting death!"
Grand Elder Chen drew out a silver mace and struck resolutely.
Peng!
Huge gales erupted at the lake's surface, shockwaves blasting out in all directions. Ye Chen extended his hands and made a True Yuan wall, cutting off the shockwaves.
Liu Mei walked out of the cabin and said with a creased brow, "Every time we go out, we meet with the Bewilderment Fog Beast's attack. It's really annoying."
Roar!
The Bewilderment Fog Beast seemed to have been injured. The boat was severely impacted by the chaotic water. The ship head turned and the boat shook incessantly.
"Berserk Mountain Slash!"
Grand Elder Chen let out a roar. Arousing his Zhen Yuan, he vertically slashed with his silver mace.
Dense Fog was slashed apart and everybody could see the Bewilderment Fog Beast's true body. It was an enormous demonic beast which seemed like a bull but not a bull at the same time. From its head, white mist spiraled towards the sky. As it received Grand Elder Chen's full power strike, the corner of his head exploded open, and it shot off in the sky from the impact.
"Powerful! Its battle strength is at least that of peak Astral Reaching experts, and its defense is almost the same as extreme Astral Reaching experts. Really hard to kill…."
