"Where are you headed, senior? Perhaps I can guide you!" Leng Wushuang said respectfully.
"Don't call me senior. Just call me Xu Chuan," Xu Chuan said. He found it incredibly awkward to be called 'senior' by someone who looked older than him.
Frankly, he was only nineteen years old. In his previous life, that was barely a young adult.
"Leng Wushuang thanks Young Master Xu for saving my life!" Leng Wushuang expressed her gratitude again, and also revealed her name to Xu Chuan.
Xu Chuan tacitly accepted Leng Wushuang's address. "Young Master Xu" was far more palatable than "senior" repeated over and over.
"How far is Lingxiao Sect from here?" Xu Chuan asked Leng Wushuang. He wanted to get directions quickly and head there without delay.
"Lingxiao Sect?" Leng Wushuang was taken aback. Why would this young Tongtian realm expert be going to Lingxiao Sect? She was intimately familiar with it, being the daughter of the Sect Master and the nominal young sect mistress.
"May I ask what brings Young Master Xu to Lingxiao Sect?" As the young sect mistress, Leng Wushuang felt it was her duty to inquire about Xu Chuan's intentions. She couldn't risk bringing danger to Lingxiao Sect. After all, even her father was only an eighth-level Tongtian realm martial artist. Judging by Xu Chuan's displayed combat power, he was comparable to a peak Tongtian realm expert. If Xu Chuan harbored any ill will towards Lingxiao Sect, no one there could stop him.
"It's nothing major. I just want to learn about the Southern Domain, some general information to help me travel to the Eastern Domain." Xu Chuan was completely honest.
"Is this your first time in the Southern Domain, Young Master Xu?" Leng Wushuang's eyes lit up as she caught the implication in his words.
"That's right," Xu Chuan nodded.
"Then allow me to guide you! I know the way to Lingxiao Sect very well!" Leng Wushuang said. Having understood Xu Chuan's purpose and intentions, her caution subsided.
"Alright." This was precisely what Xu Chuan wanted. Having someone guide him was better than wandering aimlessly. Moreover, it was the Sect Master's daughter herself guiding him, ensuring no one would dare obstruct them.
With that, Xu Chuan produced the carriage that Situ Lin had given him earlier, a treasure comparable to a Heavenly grade weapon. He had kept it in his ancient palace world along with the winged fierce tiger. He hadn't had a chance to use it and had almost forgotten about it. The tiger beast, also in the ancient palace world, had consumed various rare treasures and had advanced to become a powerful ninth-level Samsara realm demonic beast.
Seeing the incredibly luxurious carriage Xu Chuan produced, and the ninth-level Samsara realm demonic beast pulling it, Leng Wushuang was astonished. It further solidified her belief that Xu Chuan was from an extraordinary background and held an exceptionally noble status. Otherwise, how could he possess Tongtian realm cultivation at such a young age? And a mere carriage for travel, comparable to a Heavenly grade weapon, and pulled by a ninth-level Samsara realm beast – the extravagance was astounding. In Lingxiao Sect, a ninth-level Samsara realm cultivator was already qualified to contend for the position of Grand Elder!
"Let's go, you lead the way!" Xu Chuan stepped onto the carriage and invited Leng Wushuang to join him.
Leng Wushuang, her cheeks slightly flushed, nodded and also boarded. It was the first time in her life she had shared a carriage with a young man, and she felt a bit shy. However, she quickly regained her composure and addressed the other guards, "You escort these people to Lingxiao City and then immediately return to Lingxiao Sect to report!"
"As you command!" the guards replied respectfully. They obeyed Leng Wushuang's orders unconditionally.
Satisfied, Leng Wushuang nodded. Then, she and Xu Chuan boarded the carriage, ready to depart.
"Roar!" The tiger demonic beast let out a sky-shattering roar. With a flap of its wings, it pulled the carriage into the air. Following the direction provided by Leng Wushuang, it sped towards Lingxiao Sect at terrifying speed. Now at the ninth level of the Samsara realm, the beast's speed was even more fearsome, and its innate divine abilities were unleashed to their fullest, even impressing Xu Chuan. Its speed was almost on par with his, and he had mastered a speed-related divine ability, the Golden Crow Transformation into Rainbow technique!
In the valley, everyone watched the departing figures in the sky with longing expressions. They all fantasized about becoming such powerful beings one day, roaming freely between heaven and earth.
No one noticed that He Chen, who had been following Xu Chuan, had, at some point, vanished from the valley. He was like a transparent figure, disappearing without drawing anyone's attention.
He Chen, who had been teleported far away by Xu Chuan, also slowly woke up. "Brother Xu, where is the demon? Is he dead?" he asked Xu Chuan, rubbing his sore eyes.
However, no one answered him. He then noticed that his surroundings had drastically changed, and he was the only one present. "Huh? Where am I? Where is Brother Xu? Where is everyone else?" He Chen was somewhat panicked. How could the scenery change after a nap? He wasn't prepared for this!
He clearly hadn't realized that his circumstances had completely transformed. He was no longer an ordinary mortal but a genuine Nirvana realm martial artist.
Just then, a wolf demon, deep in the forest, was slowly approaching He Chen. At this moment, He Chen, still in a daze, failed to notice the approaching danger. This wolf demon was a first-level Divine Ability realm lone wolf, recently defeated by the new wolf king of its pack and driven out. It was ravenously hungry, and He Chen, before it, was an irresistible sight.
"Roar!" It crept up behind He Chen, its hunting instincts fully displayed. When it was less than half a meter away, close enough to snap He Chen's neck with a single bite, it let out a thunderous howl and lunged forward, aiming for He Chen.
Hearing the sound, He Chen snapped back to reality and turned around. The wolf demon's gaping maw was already close. "Ah!" He had no time to dodge. He could only close his eyes tightly and flail his hands aimlessly, attempting to scare the wolf demon away. However, the starving wolf demon was unfazed, its eyes gleaming with ferocity and hunger for prey.
Just as the wolf demon was about to bite off He Chen's neck, He Chen's fist struck the wolf demon's head. "Ouch!" A pained yelp instantly rang out. The wolf demon was then sent flying by He Chen's punch. It struggled and whimpered a few times before falling silent.
"What?" He Chen opened his eyes, looking at the scene in disbelief. He could never have imagined that he had killed a demonic beast with his bare hands!
At that moment, some information suddenly surged into He Chen's mind, filling his consciousness.