Chapter 122: The Southbound Peacock
Translator: Alsey Editor: Chrissy
Lu Tong warned him. "Merely, that place is too dangerous. King level entities roam free and peerless experts struggle for hegemony while corpses form mountains and flowing blood accumulate into oceans. Too many have died in that place."
He was rather worried about Chu Feng, afraid that he would die there.
Although the Pilgrimage Grounds was a holy place with auspicious clouds blooming at its peak, it was also a land of death.
However, the situation at hand was extremely dire. He had a feeling that if Chu Feng did not leave this area, a catastrophe would befall him.
"Agents of the Eight Visions Temple and Roaming Jade Temple have already arrived at the Pilgrimage Grounds, so it shouldn’t be long before they occupy the place!" said Lu Tong.
Chu Feng noticed the gravity of the situation, seeing as how even the other two masters had taken action.
Lu Tong began contacting relevant personnel to arrange for Chu Feng’s imminent departure.
"After I leave, what about my parents?" Chu Feng enquired.
"This is still the Hollow Jade Temple. Your parents are quite safe here. If the beast race even dares to charge into this place, then their homelands will, no doubt, be razed to the ground and flattened.
At this moment, old man Lu Tong was full of domineering confidence.
The reason was that the masters of the Hollow Jade Temple, the Eight Visions Temple and the Roaming Jade Temple had once announced that they would retaliate in unison against any force that dared to invade any of their grounds.
"You killed the Ash Wolf, so their only only justifiable target is you. They probably won’t cross the line to target your family, or else their heirs can forget about living," Lu Tong reassured him.
Then he sighed. "At first, I also wanted you to hide within the Hollow Jade Temple, but with all the experts out in the field, I fear a desperate attack from the enemy might put you in danger."
At the same time, he wasn’t willing to be overly passive. Instead of running away and hiding, it would be better if they could find a way to have him quickly rise to power then kill his way back.
The old man was normally mischievous, but at the critical moment, he was decisive and tyrannical
He had great hopes for Chu Feng; he believed Chu Feng had what it takes to be a king level expert.
Chu Feng got up and went to bid his parents farewell.
"Mom, dad, don't worry, there are an abundance of experts holding the fort there. It is fairly safe," Chu Feng explained in an easygoing manner.
Wang Jing’s eyes were red. She was truly worried about her son in the face of such a crisis.
"You have to be careful," reminded Chu Zhiyuan.
After that, Chu Feng’s communicator rang, it was Yellow Ox. It appears that even those at Mount Kunlun had gotten wind of the recent incident.
He told Chu Feng that he could go and meet up with the Great Black Yak at Mount Kunlun, and that they would kill anyone that came chasing him.
Chu Feng laughed dryly. It would take too long to reach Mount Kunlun, the Pilgrimage Grounds were closer.
After ending the call, he walked towards the large flower put in the room. Buried under four kilograms of mutant soil was a stone box with a seed inside.
"Eh?" Chu Feng parted the upper layer to reveal the mutant soil, but they had all lost their color and aura, turning back into normal soil.
It appears the seed had sucked out all the essence.
Chu Feng carefully dug out the seed and observed that the abstruse patterns on the white seed had increased by quite a bit. It was emitting an aura of fierce vitality and a special dao intent could be felt from it.
Unfortunately, that was the extent of it. There were no signs of budding or growing roots.
The mutant soil had lost all its essence and there was no longer any use in burying the seed there.
Chu Feng placed all three seeds into the box, prepared to take them with him.
Before long, he had left the house and met up with Lu tong at the Hollow Jade Temple.
"Everything has been arranged, you can set out now!"
A car was at the ready. It drove Chu Feng through a secret underground passage and resurfaced at a certain commercial parking lot.
After that, they set out from there.
The reason was because there were quite a few mutants outside of the Hollow Jade Temple, spying on their every movement.
"I should go and meet these people and see if they can be reasoned with." Lu Tong moved out to meet Kong Sheng’s group.
...
The guest room was spacious with meticulously planned decorations that were not overly grandiose yet sufficiently presentable.
Kong Sheng was seated in a sofa, clean and perfectly kempt. His waist-length purple hair and his handsome bearing served to give one an impression of elegance.
He offered Lu Tong tea with great calm, with a flat tone that was just barely polite.
Notwithstanding her status as a beast king heir, Miao Chan was there making tea. Her skills in that respect were nothing short of artistic, and her movements were deft and practiced. Watching her make tea was an enjoyment in and of itself.
It had to be reminded that they were originally of the beast race, yet here she was, the very picture of grace and etiquette.
Naturally, Huang Xiaoxian was a rare exception. He sat on a wheelchair, his whole body covered in bandages and casts. Embers of deep hatred glowed within his eyes.
His words were far from pleasing to the ears. "This Chu Feng is nothing. Once brother Kong makes his move, he will be destroyed immediately. Is he even worth you people coming to plead for mercy?"
Lu Tong swept a dull gaze over him and proceeded to ignore him.
"I understand the intention of Elder Lu’s visit today. You are overthinking this. From the beginning, we had no intention of harming Chu Feng, everything must be a misunderstanding," Kong Sheng replied warmly.
Lu Tong discarded all pretenses and directly asked, "I’m going to speak frankly since everyone here is already clear about what is going on. What do we need to do to settle this? After all, the human and beast races have just recently signed an agreement of peace, and it is our duty to support and maintain this pact."
Kong Sheng laughed. A faint purple glow flowed within his eyes as he said, "I’m quite indifferent to the matter, but this time, Chu Feng had wounded brother Huang here quite severely. Even the elders were shocked at his viciousness, and some of them intend to ‘get to know’ this interesting human."
As he said this, he pointed at the elders sitting on a sofa to the side, who nodded in response. Naturally, they were Huang Yun and Kong Lin.
At almost the same time that they met eyes with Lu Tong, they released a terrifying aura from their bodies that was able to penetrate even the soul.
Lu Tong’s thoughts sank, these two were quasi beast kings; they were greatly superior to the normal beast race warriors. They were already able to sense the shackles of the mortal body, and it could be said that they were just half a step away from reaching the level of beast kings. [1]
All the current beast kings have at least broken one of their shackles and hence, the experts in question here are called "quasi beast kings".
Huang Yun’s hair was completely yellow and possessed the same facial features as Huang Xiaoxian, with a sharp chin and glowing eyes. He said, "We don’t have any evil intentions, we just want to see how extraordinary this little brother Chu is. I wonder if brother Lu could arrange for us to get to know each other?"
Lu Tong frowned. He would have to be insane to believe in their words. If even quasi beast kings were mobilized, the situation was dire for Chu Feng. It was rather lucky that he had arranged for Chu Feng to be moved away.
Suddenly, he received a message from Chu Feng saying that the commercial flight had been delayed due to some technical difficulties.
Lu Tong’s expression sunk; things have turned unfavorable for them.
At this time, Huang Yun’s communicator had also started ringing. He looked down at it and a smile of great satisfaction appeared on his face. Getting up swiftly, he said, "Excuse me, brother Kong and I have some business to attend to."
The two beast race elders stood up and excused themselves.
Lu Tong felt depressed. Could it be that the delay at the airport had something to do with them? That would be a truly terrifying thought. He did not want to entertain such a possibility.
However, he contacted Hollow Jade Temple as soon as he could.
"Zhao Yu, retrieve the mutant fruit that I have kept hidden and deliver it to Chu Feng immediately. Tell him to act according to the circumstances!" Lu Tong instructed by text.
Perhaps that fruit could help Chu Feng break through at the critical moment. Even though hopes were not high, he had to take the chance.
Because the suppressive force of the king level boundary was too strong, most mutant fruits would be rendered ineffective at that point—only those extraordinary fruits raised on the famous mountains had a chance.
At the same time, Lu Tong did not wish for Chu Feng to ingest too many mutant fruits since it was more advantageous for him to use pollen to break through. However, desperate times called for desperate measures.
He was truly afraid that the delay at the airport was Kong Sheng’s doing.
Within the Hollow Jade Temple, Zhao Yu’s expression was ashen. He was one of the most powerful seedlings raised by the Hollow Jade Temple, and great investment had went into him.
Yesterday night, he was also the first to step out and deter Chu Feng from killing Huang Xiaoxian.
Recently, he had been feeling some pressure—a feeling that Chu Feng had been receiving increasing attention from the Hollow Jade Temple.
"I’ve hinted my desire for this fruit on several occasions, yet the old man would not give it to me. But now, he wants me to deliver it to Chu Feng!" Zhao Yu’s expression was quite ugly.
He retrieved the fruit and set out towards Chu Feng’s location.
However, he stopped midway in hesitation. Finally, he ground his teeth and decided that he would hide the fruit and use it for his own breakthrough!
Following that, he dialled a certain number and informed the other party about Chu Feng’s flight details.
Only after that did he slowly drive towards the airport.
Zhao Yu coldly muttered, "If you actually die, everything would be perfect. If you survive, then I’ll just tell them that I was too late to deliver the fruit."
In the guest hall, Lu Tong was silently waiting for news of further development.
However, what surprised him was that Kong Lin had returned and sat beside him. He said, "Everything has been settled, excuse us for leaving just now."
He concluded that these people hadn’t received any news regarding Chu Feng. It must be that they had deliberately made such a move to observe his response.
Thus, he sat there leisurely, no longer looking at his communicator. It would be for the best if he could hold these two quasi beast kings here.
Not long afterwards, someone came in and handed Kong Sheng a strip of paper which he passed to Kong Lin and Huang Yun after looking at the contents.
"Ah, I’m sorry but something else has come up and we are forced to leave once again," said Huang Yun.
Lu Tong’s smile vanished as he silently watched the two elders leave.
Huang Yun and Kong Lin left Shuntian in due haste, changing into their original forms.
"Is the news reliable?" Huang Yun asked. He was in the form of a yellow weasel, and his eyes were glowing with an eerie light as he looked towards the south.
"It should be reliable, let’s assassinate him midway!" Kong Lin was in his peacock form, and a glowing mist surrounded him, shining with cold light as if he was made of metal.
With a whoosh, Huang Yun had jumped onto the back of the giant peacock which spread its wings and flew through the skies. A sonic boom could be heard as they broke the sound barrier.
They travelled due south, planning to kill Chu Feng mid flight.
After quite a while, Chu Feng had boarded the plane headed towards the Pilgrimage Grounds.
After flying about 500 meters away from Shuntian, a warning sounded on the plane. They were on a collision course with a large object which had suddenly appeared through the clouds. It was a huge peacock which was tens of meters long, glowing in prismatic lights and emitting a terrifying aura.
"Oh god, could that be a beast king level entity?" the pilot cried in alarm.
The commercial plane was a modified model, and some basic weaponry were installed for use in emergencies. The pilots opened fire immediately as they noticed that the gigantic beast was charging straight at them.
At the same time, they contacted the surface control tower and informed them of their situation.
Along the route of this flight, a series of high-tech ground to air weaponry had been installed to defend the planes. They were aimed at the sky, always ready to initiate a network of firepower at a moment’s notice.
Boom!
A huge battle took place in the sky as scores of anti-air guided missiles were fired from the ground.
However, the peacock’s senses were too keen. Its body exploded with brilliant light, shrouding its exact position and obscuring vision in the vicinity.
Taking advantage of this window, it dashed towards the plane at an astonishing speed and positioned itself behind the plane, effectively avoiding the guided missiles.
Kacha!
He directly tore open the plane’s body with his sharp claws as if he were pulling at dried and rotten weeds.
"Oh god, what kind of beast is that? Could it be a beast king level expert?" The ground control staff were shocked.
It was especially the case since they were unable to see through the glowing light shroud to discern the actual form of the beast.
"He is intentionally hiding his identity!" The ground staff were grinding their teeth in anger.
Very quickly, everyone’s expression changed as they saw the plane being torn apart by the enormous beast.
"Attack! We must bring that thing down!" the ground staff were shouting in anger.
Since the plane had been torn to pieces, they had no need to hold back on the firepower. They swept the sky with anti-air ammunition.
At this moment, even the peacock turned apprehensive. An enormous amount of terrifying ammunition were approaching from every direction, covering the whole sky.
After suffering from such an attack, the peacock finally fell from the skies, its body stained with blood. Kong Lin was, after all, not yet a true beast king level expert.
"Brother Kong, are you alright?" Huang Yun asked from atop his back.
"I won’t die, it appears that I have underestimated the human weaponry!" Kong Lin flew swiftly, dodging and turning midair while attempting to land as fast as possible.
"Has that brat died?" Huang Yun asked.
"Even if he did not die within that explosion, he should’ve fallen to his death!" Kong Lin replied, but suddenly, a beam of light shot out from his pupils. After which, he said, "He’s still alive, there’s a mutant with flight capabilities escorting him!"
Chu Feng was indeed being escorted by a mutant who was capable of flight just in case. After the plane was destroyed, they descended swiftly towards the ground.
That mutant did not use his powers of flight immediately, but let themselves free fall until they were out of the peacock’s range. Only then did he unfurl his wings and brought Chu Feng to safety.
"He’s definitely going to die today!" Huang Yun shouted.
"The situation is not too good, one of my wings have been broken. I will land us safely on the ground, but after that, I might not be capable of flying quickly. It will be faster for you to run after them," said Kong Lin.
"Old man, I’ve been attacked. The plane has been destroyed!" Chu Feng contacted Lu Tong as soon as he could.
"What?" Lu Tong was already back at the Hollow Jade Temple. He was just letting out a sigh of relief, knowing that Chu Feng was already on his way south. He never expected an attack midway.
"Where are you now? I’ll send people over to rescue you!" Lu Tong was truly anxious.
"In the mountains, about 500 miles south of Shuntian. The former name of this place, if I remember correctly, is the Qi mountain ridge," explained Chu Feng.
"There’s no other choice, eat that fruit I sent you," the old man instructed.
"What fruit?" Chu Feng asked in surprise.
"Didn’t Zhao Yu deliver one to you?" Lu Tong was flustered.
"No, he didn’t. I’ve got to run now!" Chu Feng cut off the conversation because he noticed the two beast race experts heading his way at high speed.
Chu Feng turned towards the flying mutant and instructed, "Take this opportunity to fly away at full speed, their target is me!"
"But…"
"This is not up for debate!" Chu Feng let the man escape on his own, while he himself dashed into the depths of the forest. He was thoughtful as he sped towards a certain direction.
Meanwhile, in the Hollow Jade Temple.
"Where is Zhao Yu?" Lu Tong shouted in rage.
"Zhao Yu was ambushed on his way to find Chu Feng, and is now in a state of unconsciousness at the hospital," one of the staff reported.
"What?" Lu Tong frowned.
Following that, he called the heir of the Peacock King and coldly said, "Kong Sheng, you have made such a malicious move towards us. Do you not fear that you will meet the same fate?"
Kong Sheng’s voice was extremely peaceful as he replied, "Elder Lu what are you talking about? Are you talking about the bubble that burst towards the south? The small insect inside the bubble should be dead by now, he is such a weakling. I have no interest in such a mater, much less make a move myself."
"Very well, I shall let you be arrogant for a while longer!" Lu Tong roared.
Within the guest room, Kong Sheng put down his communicator and moved towards the french windows. He gazed towards the south, saying, "How fragile."
Huang Xiaoxian was evidently excited, saying, "The plane was torn to pieces, there is no way he could have survived. Even if he had survived, he won’t be able to run from the two elders."
That day, several heavily armed helicopters were seen rushing towards the southern woods.
...
By noon, Chu Feng’s body was soaked in blood. He was, indeed, no match for onslaught of the two elders.
The two were even stronger than the Ash Wolf that he had battled a while ago.
With merely a few exchanges, Chu Feng realized that the two elders were only half a step short of reaching the beast king level. In terms of raw strength, they can be said to have already reached that stage.
What was lacking for them at this point was divine instinct and speed.
After reaching the beast king level, they would come to posses terrifying divine instinct, gaining the ability to sense danger preemptively.
At the same time, any beast king would be able to break the sound barrier while running on the ground, truly terrifying.
The two beasts were too powerful for Chu Feng to handle. He could only defend and run for his life.
His whole body was ridden with wounds and drenched in his own blood. He did not utter a word but only ran at full speed, trying to flee one of the most dangerous life or death situations he had ever encountered.
"Brat, you won't live past today!" Huang Yun laughed as he gave chase. In truth, he was quite frustrated. After such a long chase, the prey was still alive and running.
"There is no road for you in the sky, and there’s no door for you in the earth. No one can save you today!" Kong Lion coldly shouted. He was now in his human form, giving chase on foot. One of his arms were drenched in blood and wounds, twisted into an unnatural position—that was one of his wings after transformation.
Chu Feng ran through the dense vegetation, and finally, pretending to have just accidentally discovered the silver mine and the ancient tree, he ran past and then circled back.
"What?! Such a big ancient tree! It’s also bearing fruit!"
Behind him, Huang Yun and Kong Lin were shaken.
One had to know that such large mutant trees were only to be found within the famous mountains. If they could get their hands on it, they would surely be able to breakthrough to the beast king level immediately.
"Scram!"
Kong Lin roared as he charged forward despite his wounds, transforming into his original form and unfurling his wings.
He pretended to attack Chu Feng, but then he turned and dashed towards the ancient tree.
Huang Yun also loudly shouted, following suit. The temptation of the fruits were too great.
"Ah…"
In but a short moment, Kong Lin’s miserable cries could be heard as the lower half of his body was ensnared by a silvery light. He was being dragged towards the silver mine despite his constant struggling.
"No!" Huang Yun screamed. He had also been latched onto by a strand of silver light.
Swoosh!
Huang Yun dashed out, but one of his legs had been sacrificed in the process. The open wound was dripping with fresh blood.
"Ah…"
"Scram!" Kong Lin was powerful enough to drag himself out but was left in a miserable state.
Only half of his body remained. Everything below the chest had become a blurry mess of flesh and blood. He fell down, greatly weakened.
Swoosh!
Chu Feng dashed towards them, and with a stroke of the black dagger, he had removed Kong Lin’s head from his body.
Huang Yun screamed as he turned to flee.
After just a moment, Huang Yun dialled Kong Sheng’s communicator.
"Elder Huang had to travel so far just to eliminate such an insect, I have troubled you greatly," Kong Sheng calmly said as he picked up the call, but soon he realized something was wrong—Elder Huang was gasping for breath!
At the same time, Chu Feng had contacted Lu Tong, saying, "Old man, send a helicopter this way and send me to Jinmen, I’ll proceed to the Pilgrimage Grounds from there."
At this time, nothing could shake his resolve. He had to break through immediately and grasp the power to fight toe to toe with a beast king!
..
[1] The original words here transate as "normally, they could already be called beast kings". At this point in the story, the author described only very vaguely about the difference between the quasi-beast king and the actual beast king levels. But reading forward into the story there is an enormous gap between the two. So to avoid confusion, to which this novel is rather prone, I decided to describe this quasi level as a state that is just half a step away from the king level.