Screams echoed from all sides, one after another.
Sometimes from the east, then again from the west.
The woman, her eyes tightly shut, flinched with every scream.
She didn't know what was happening around her. She was curious but dared not open her eyes.
Less than a minute later, Chu Fan's voice sounded beside her.
"You can open your eyes now!"
Her eyelids trembled as she opened them. She had expected to see many dead bodies around, but she found none.
"Let's go!"
Without waiting for the woman to ask more, Chu Fan headed into the mountains.
The woman glanced around, her brows furrowed in confusion.
She had clearly heard screams just moments ago, and those people were clearly in dire straits. Yet, not a single corpse was to be seen.
Little did she know, all the bodies were currently piled up in the nearby grass.
Knowing the woman was timid, Chu Fan, ever the good samaritan, had disposed of the eight-gods sect members and tossed them into the distance.
Coupled with the darkness of the night, the woman naturally saw nothing.
Later on the path, the woman followed closely beside Chu Fan, guiding him.
After crossing the first mountain range, she pointed to a faintly discernible black giant peak in the distance and said, "That is Heavenly Sword Mountain!"
She didn't notice that Chu Fan's brow furrowed the moment he first saw Heavenly Sword Mountain.
It was too strange!
Gazing at Heavenly Sword Mountain, Chu Fan felt an overwhelming sense of strangeness.
His instincts told him that Heavenly Sword Mountain was starkly out of place with its surroundings.
This towering peak looked as if it had been moved from afar and forcefully driven into the ground.
Chu Fan was also very knowledgeable about geography.
He knew that tectonic plate movements could indeed push up some mountain peaks.
However, those types of mountains were always sloped.
Heavenly Sword Mountain, however, looked as if a stick had been erected on flat ground.
This phenomenon was highly unusual.
It was precisely this abnormality that validated his suspicion that a secret realm lay beneath.
At this moment, a sense of urgency surged within Chu Fan. He was desperate to reach the base of Heavenly Sword Mountain immediately and uncover the secret realm.
However, just as he was about to move, he remembered that he wasn't alone.
He had no familial ties to the woman. Bringing her along would not only slow him down but also, Chu Fan considered, people coming for the treasure had likely already noticed Heavenly Sword Mountain's unusual nature and gathered there.
Taking the woman along would be very inconvenient, so he immediately turned and said, "I'll escort you down the mountain!"
"Ah..."
The woman was startled at first, then said nervously, "I'll follow you. I'm afraid to go out alone!"
Knowing the woman's concerns, Chu Fan said, "Don't worry, I'll find someone to protect you!"
He then took out his phone to make a call.
The last time he had used the Eternal Token, it had mobilized quite a few Grandmasters.
These Grandmasters had subsequently been dispersed to various parts of the Dragon God Kingdom.
Therefore, as Chu Fan delivered the woman to the foot of the mountain, a car arrived. The driver was a Grandmaster expert hidden within this small county.
Rarely seeing the Demon God, the person arrived with an excited expression, bowing respectfully.
"Take good care of her, and ideally, arrange a safe place for her to live!"
"Yes!"
The person's voice boomed, startling the woman, who tensed up. She then took one last look back as she got into the car and left.
Little did she know, her good fortune was about to begin.
In the Dragon God Kingdom, very few people could have the Demon God personally ask for their care.
From this day forward, the woman would enjoy a life she had never dared to dream of.
With the burden gone, Chu Fan was finally able to move freely.
In the mountain forest.
Two men who had come searching for treasure were preparing to rest when a sudden gust of wind blew past, startling them. They nervously swept their flashlights around.
"What's happening?"
"Why did it suddenly start windy?"
"Did something just fly past?"
"It must have been a flying device brought by a treasure seeker. Only a flying device could move that fast!"
The one causing the considerable commotion was, of course, Chu Fan.
Traveling at full speed, his pace was comparable to that of a speeding car.
In just ten minutes.
Chu Fan stood on a small hill, five hundred meters away from Heavenly Sword Mountain.
From a distance, Heavenly Sword Mountain hadn't seemed that imposing.
Now, up close, he could truly feel his own insignificance.
Chu Fan squinted at the towering Heavenly Sword Mountain, musing that the name was indeed fitting.
Heavenly Sword Mountain was sheer on all sides, like a giant sword piercing the heavens. He wondered who had been so bored as to move this massive mountain from elsewhere and plant it here.
*Swish swish swish...*
As Chu Fan was about to move forward, sounds of air being cleaved came from all around.
Five martial artists appeared around Chu Fan from different directions, all of them at the half-step Grandmaster realm.
"Friend, this area has been declared a forbidden zone. Outsiders are prohibited from approaching. Please turn back!" one of them stepped forward to warn.
"Declared a forbidden zone?"
Chu Fan feigned surprise and then asked, "Who gave you the authority to declare this a forbidden zone and prevent others from approaching?"
Seeing Chu Fan not leaving but instead prying, one of them angrily retorted, "Kid, if you know what's good for you, scram!"
"I said this is a forbidden zone, so it's a forbidden zone!"
"If you spout any more nonsense, we'll cripple you and leave you here for the wild beasts!"
"I apologize, but I don't think you have the qualifications to declare this a forbidden zone!"
Chu Fan said this as he walked forward.
Seeing him intend to force his way through, the man who had just berated him widened his eyes and lunged at Chu Fan first.
*Bang...*
A muffled thud echoed.
What?
The remaining four were shocked and frozen.
They hadn't even seen how Chu Fan had moved. Their companion had been sent flying into the sky like a ball.
*Whoosh...*
A brilliant firework suddenly bloomed in the sky.
Realizing Chu Fan, who intended to force his way through, was not simple, one of them immediately fired a signal to call for reinforcements.
Sounds of air being cleaved continued to come from all around Heavenly Sword Mountain.
The four who had recovered, despite knowing they were likely no match for Chu Fan, still charged at him resolutely.
The outcome, as one might expect, was inevitable.
After dealing with the four, Chu Fan continued forward.
Along the way, people kept rushing out, attacking him with murderous intent.
At this moment, Chu Fan was like a god of slaughter.
No one could halt his momentum.
The reinforcements who arrived later, realizing that Chu Fan might be a half-step Grandmaster and that they were no match for him, did not rush him like moths to a flame. Instead, they followed him from the periphery.
The trees at the foot of Heavenly Sword Mountain had already been cleared.
As Chu Fan entered, a group of over ten people all stood up, their gazes fixed on Chu Fan with vigilance.
Scanning the entire scene, Chu Fan's gaze fell upon three individuals.
These three were the strongest on the scene, all at the half-step Grandmaster level.
However, what drew Chu Fan's attention was not their strength, but their attire.
The clothes worn by these three bore a resemblance to the long robes of ancient times, an attire rarely seen in modern times.
From this, it was evident that these three were from hidden families.
As Chu Fan stared at them, their gazes were also fixed on him, their eyes flickering with shock.
This was because they found themselves unable to discern Chu Fan's true strength.
Furthermore, they sensed a faint aura of danger emanating from him.
When had the outside world produced such a formidable young man?
The atmosphere in the vicinity suddenly became tense, resembling a drawn bowstring.