Bei Lingyuan, located in the northwest of the Bei Ling Realm, was about a day's walk from Bei Ling Academy. It was a vast and boundless territory, and though Bei Lingyuan was said to be fraught with countless dangers, peril often accompanied fortuitous encounters. Many people in this populous Bei Ling Realm, hoping for such opportunities, entered Bei Lingyuan one after another. Among them, some gained fortuitous chances, some struggled out covered in injuries, and quite a few remained forever beneath the dense foliage.
Going to Bei Lingyuan for cultivation was considered a major event for the elite disciples of Bei Ling Academy, with nearly half the disciples signing up to participate. This was because they all understood that the peaceful, everyday cultivation in the academy absolutely required genuine combat experience for true growth.
Only through real combat could one stimulate their temperament and temper it to become increasingly resilient. That was an indispensable path that all powerful cultivators had to walk.
Bei Lingyuan was not only teeming with various ferocious spiritual beasts but also a motley crew of all sorts of characters from all walks of life, among whom were quite a few notorious individuals.
Compared to those ruthless, bloodthirsty individuals, the disciples of Bei Ling Academy were like fat sheep. Even if their strength was not insignificant, if they truly engaged in combat, it was feared they wouldn't even be enough to pick someone's teeth.
Therefore, to protect its disciples, Bei Ling Academy dispatched a considerable number of relatively powerful guards. East Wing Master Mo and West Wing Master Xi also accompanied them. The two elders were genuine Spirit Soul Realm experts, and it was likely that few in the Bei Ling Realm would dare to boldly provoke two combined Spirit Soul Realm experts.
…
Early in the morning, the Bei Ling Academy's cultivation team began to stir and set off. By late afternoon, they had only reached the outskirts of Bei Lingyuan. As night gradually fell, the entire group had no choice but to set up camp and rest.
As darkness deepened, bonfires blazed within the camps. The disciples of Bei Ling Academy rarely ventured into such areas, so many of them appeared excited, with quite a few chatting boisterously in their tents. The atmosphere made it seem less like they were embarking on a dangerous adventure and more like a group on a pleasure trip. The true explorers, seeing this, secretly scoffed at the greenhorn youngsters, then quietly disappeared into the night.
In their eyes, these disciples were merely a few pampered young masters, pale-faced and clad in fine robes. When they faced ferocious spiritual beasts, they would surely wet themselves in fear.
Mu Chen sat cross-legged by the bonfire, his gaze sweeping across the dark night surrounding the camp. Somewhere in the distance, the howls of beasts seemed to echo, filled with a bloody aura.
This scene… felt somewhat familiar.
However, the atmosphere within was vastly different from that of the Spiritual Road, lacking much of its cruelty and gore.
Mu Chen involuntarily shivered slightly when a slender, delicate hand suddenly reached out from behind him and patted his shoulder.
At that instant, Mu Chen reacted with the speed of a fierce beast, his eyes cold, his body shot up like a flash, seizing and locking the hand.
"Ouch!"
The person cried out in pain, bringing Mu Chen back to his senses. He then saw it was Tang Qian'er. The coldness in his eyes dissipated, and he scratched his head in embarrassment, quickly releasing her hand.
"What are you doing? That hurts!" Tang Qian'er rubbed her wrist, wincing, and grumbled.
"I'm sorry."
Mu Chen lowered his head and forced a conciliatory smile. A year of training in the Spirit Road had honed his vigilance into an extremely sharp reflex. This instinctual vigilance had been suppressed after his return to the Northern Spirit Realm, but now, the familiar circumstances unexpectedly reawakened the instinct that had lain dormant for months.
“What’s wrong with you?”
Tang Qian’er pouted, staring at Mu Chen. She was cautious by nature, and when he had suddenly seized her wrist earlier, a chill had run through her. She suddenly wondered, if she hadn’t cried out in pain then, would he have broken her wrist right after?
Mu Chen gazed at the crackling fire before him, lost in thought for a moment:
“Back in the Spirit Road, if someone had acted towards me like you just did, I probably would have killed them. Because if I didn’t kill them, then the one who would be killed could only be me…”
Tang Qian’er was stunned, looking at the calm-faced youth. When he spoke the word “kill,” his expression was so light, as if it were a perfectly normal habit.
“That Spirit Road… it sounds terrifying?…” Tang Qian’er whispered. In everyone’s eyes, the Spirit Road was shrouded in mystery. Most who emerged from it kept their mouths tightly shut, never speaking of the place. However, because those who emerged possessed immense strength, young men and women like Tang Qian’er all believed it to be a paradise to aspire to.
But they naively didn’t know that to enter such an extraordinary place, one also needed extraordinary strength.
Mu Chen chuckled softly, murmuring to himself:
“There, everyone sees each other as rivals, only more ruthless. There are quite a few abnormal people in there; one moment they’re laughing and chatting amicably with you, the next they’ll plunge a dagger into your heart.”
“So, ‘trust’ is a word that shouldn’t even be in the dictionary there. However, if you can find someone you can trust, that is the most precious gift in your life.”
Mu Chen sighed softly, his expression softening. He recalled the graceful silver-haired girl, truly an unusual person who had given him no small amount of headaches, pursuing and trying to kill him for half a year. Mu Chen had fought her three times, and in that final encounter, the girl had found an opportunity to end it. The hilt of her jet-black longsword, like a specter demanding a life, stopped right at his throat.
At that moment, she had clearly won. With just a slight push of her hand, the name Mu Chen would forever remain in the Spirit Road.
But in the end, she didn’t stab him. Instead, she retreated into the shadows, watching him with her jade-like eyes for a long time, slowly sheathing her sword, and then lowered her head and said:
“I can’t kill you. Come with me.”
Mu Chen was utterly astonished then, and it took him half a day of brooding to finally voice what had bothered him for half a year:
“Why did you chase and try to kill me for so long? If I hadn’t saved you, you would have died long ago.”
The first time he saw her, it was a perilous situation. Five fox-like cunning monsters had cornered her, leaving her no escape. Mu Chen hadn’t originally intended to intervene, as those guys were very troublesome, but a fleeting glimpse of sadness in her exquisite, glazed eyes softened his heart.
Saving her only led to half a year of trouble by his side.
A week later, Mu Chen, with the injured girl, began a desperate escape. However, after ten days, the five deranged individuals were successively defeated by him; he killed three of them, and the remaining two had no choice but to give up.
Having dealt with the five major troubles, and before he could even catch his breath, the girl who hadn’t spoken a single word since being rescued began to draw her sword, and thus began his half-year of fighting and fleeing.
The girl listened to Mu Chen's question, seemed to ponder it, then gave him an answer that made Mu Chen want to spit blood:
"I don't think I'll ever develop feelings for you. All I want is to cultivate; feelings would only distract me."
"Are you out of your mind?!"
At that moment, he truly lost his composure and shouted.
"So, what are you going to do now?" Mu Chen asked helplessly.
"Just now, I intended to kill you, but... it seems I couldn't bring myself to do it." The girl even looked genuinely worried, the faint moonlight illuminating her small, peerlessly beautiful face as she frowned and said, "I feel that over the past half year, I've developed feelings for you."
Mu Chen said nothing, only rolling his eyes skyward. Chasing and trying to kill me for half a year, how did that murderous intent turn into feelings...?
"I didn't kill you just now, so you owe me a life. You must join my team. When I don't like you anymore, then I'll kill you."
"Do you think you're raising a dog?"
"Uh... at that time, I won't kill you. I'll just let you go."
"..."
Speechless, Mu Chen helplessly shook his head, then turned and walked away.
"Not interested."
The girl watched him turn and walk away, then hesitated slightly before suddenly blurting out, "I can protect you from all sneak attacks from behind. As long as you don't harm me, I will protect you, whether in the Spirit Road or the Great Thousand World."
Mu Chen paused. Her soft, gentle voice pierced through space, suddenly striking his heart and making his tense heart soften.
"Usually, you don't say a word, but I didn't expect a few words from you to be so touching."
Mu Chen turned back, smiled faintly, then sighed, walked over, and extended his hand to her.
"Then, happy to cooperate."
Her usually cold face, which never showed any emotion, suddenly revealed a faint, feather-light smile. Its unexpected beauty made even the moonlight dim.
She extended her small, soft, cold hand and clasped his hand tightly.
"This is our pact!"