Chapter 453 — The Floating Sky City

With hooves treading fiery clouds, the dragon-qilin sped southwestward, where the Tianfu Gate lay ahead—two towering mountains resembling a heavenly portal, crowned with myriad palaces and towers. Yue Qingshan, hastening toward the gate, suddenly felt a premonition.

Turning back, he saw the dragon-qilin bearing Shen Mu already close behind him. Startled, he halted at once.

"He is so fast! If I return to the sect to raise the alarm, he will surely slay me on the spot!

" The dragon-qilin drew to a stop; Shen Mu offered a greeting, and Yue Qingshan returned the salute.

Shen Mu said with a mild expression, "Brother Yue, why did you not attend the Flower Mountain Festival, and instead head back to the Tianfu Gate? " Yue Qingshan forced a smile and said, "My face is too ugly to please any fair lady; it is just as well I skip the festival.

" Shen Mu's countenance grew even gentler. "How could Brother Yue be ugly?

You are a man of striking appearance, destined to win fair maidens' hearts. You should go back and join the festival. " A chill ran down Yue Qingshan's spine.

Last time Shen Mu had used the phrase "a man of striking appearance," he had unleashed a sword move that turned the imperial blood into a vast ocean and killed four masters on the spot! Now he had used the phrase again.

If he were to persist in returning to the mountain, he would likely be sent to his death by that same sword! "Thank you for your auspicious words, Sect Master Shen," Yue Qingshan said, turning around and heading for Fangxiu City.

Shen Mu watched him disappear into the distance before letting the dragon-qilin resume its journey, skirting past the Tianfu Gate.

Catching sight of Fangxiu City from afar, Yue Qingshan looked back but saw no trace of Shen Mu.

He thought to himself, "Zhentian Palace has placed a bounty on his head.

If our Tianfu Gate could capture him and thereby grow closer to Zhentian Palace, my standing in the sect would rise enormously! " He was about to turn back when he suddenly noticed the giant human-shaped mountain standing in the wilderness. Stunned for a moment, he then saw the shattered roads and the devastation wrought by the bell's shockwaves in every direction. Several masters of the Yu family flew over, found the remains of Old Madam Yu, and wailed bitterly.

"Old Madam Yu is dead too? " Yue Qingshan was dazed, then composed himself and headed for Fangxiu City. "Even Old Madam Yu, with a whole mountain at her command, could not hold him.

Our Tianfu Gate is no match either.

Better to steer clear of trouble and meet a fair lady than fight to the death.

" "Yun City lies ahead. " Two days later, Shen Mu stood atop the dragon-qilin's massive head, took out the Western Territories geographical chart, examined it carefully, then checked against the celestial signs, and said delightedly, "Once we reach Yun City, we will not be far from Zhentian Palace. Fatty Dragon, you have been working hard lately—this time you ran very fast. " In the past two days, the dragon-qilin had not been lazy at all.

At its pace, covering twenty thousand li a day, it would take at most half a day to reach Zhentian Palace.

Along the way they had encountered no small amount of trouble. Zhentian Palace had issued a wanted order, and many sorcerers in the Western Territories were searching for his trail, leading to several fierce battles. But none had been as ferocious as the fight with the Bell-Lifting Mountain Giant of the Yu family. That giant's fighting power was truly terrifying.

A treasure of such caliber usually belonged to major aristocratic clans, and such weapons required a long time to prepare—the mountain spirit had to be awakened or the seal released ahead of time. The dragon-qilin was swift; unless they knew Shen Mu's movements in advance, they could not prepare in time to intercept him.

During the journey, Shen Mu had witnessed all sorts of peculiar sorcery in the Western Territories. Besides using mountains and rivers as weapons, Western sorcerers also raised spirit creatures.

They would enlighten exotic beasts, awaken their spiritual intelligence, and nurture them from youth, so the beasts grew up with them and were extremely loyal. Moreover, the beasts served as their primordial weapons, offered up like magic treasures. Compared to mountain spirits and earth spirits, such beasts were far more agile and versatile. The philosophy of "all things have spirits" in the Western Territories was truly eye-opening.

The dragon-qilin ran swiftly, drawing ever closer to Yun City. The terrain was mostly mountainous, and they occasionally encountered sorcerers traveling through the air, mostly riding flying exotic beasts.

Shen Mu raised an eyebrow, noticing that quite a few Western sorcerers were monitoring his movements. "We are being watched again. It seems I cannot enter Yun City.

There must be an ambush waiting inside. I have to go through the wilderness. " Shen Mu sent a pulse through his spiritual sense and, using the telepathy of the Skyfeather clan, signaled the dragon-qilin to prepare. Then he took a long breath, inhaling for quite a while until his lungs were full.

Whoosh—he breathed out, and instantly dense fog filled the surroundings, stretching to the heavens and covering more than a dozen li above and below.

The dragon-qilin immediately dived down into the mountain forest. The Western sorcerers rushed into the fog and searched everywhere, but by the time the mist dispersed, Shen Mu and the others were long gone. "The Young Master is coming!

" a sorcerer suddenly cried in alarm.

A jeweled carriage flew over, drawn by a rainbow phoenix. Seated within was a youth, somewhat plump but not obese, surrounded by a bevy of women.

Strangely enough, although the Western Territories were matriarchal, before this youth even the women of Zhentian Palace could only attend to him with due deference. The gathered sorcerers saluted one after another: "Young Master Yu!

" The Young Master Yu surveyed his surroundings and laughed.

"So he escaped again? That is hardly surprising.

Back then, when I led my men to hunt down Nai Kui, he was the one who interfered, allowing Nai Kui to get away. That place was the Wild Ruins, not the Western Territories, where I could not act as I pleased.

But here in the Western Territories, this is not his Wild Ruins.

If he thinks he can slip through my fingers this time, he is being rather naive. " He was none other than Yu Bochuan, the son of the current Palace Master of Zhentian Palace, the very one who had hunted Xiong Xiyu and her daughter.

Though young, he was ruthless and full of schemes. Xiong Xiyu had been the Palace Master of Zhentian Palace, overthrown by the Yu family.

Yu Bochuan's own cultivation was not supremely high, yet he had been able to lead a band to pursue Xiong Xiyu, an existence at the sect-master level, driving her to the brink of death and watching her strong protectors fall one by one.

That testified to Yu Bochuan's ability. His depth of scheming was extraordinary. Yu Bochuan nodded slightly. One of the Zhentian Palace women rose into the air and performed a mystical technique. The white clouds in the sky suddenly writhed and formed an arrow shape, pointing downward.

The carriage descended toward the mountain forest below. Another woman stamped her foot.

Many rocks on the mountain rolled together, coalescing into a stone giant, which raised its hand and pointed in the direction Shen Mu had gone. "That man rode off on a giant beast, heading that way. " The woman dismissed her technique, and the stone giant collapsed into a pile of rubble. The rainbow phoenix pulled the carriage onward.

Sitting inside, Yu Bochuan said with a smile, "In the Western Territories, no one can escape the tracking of my Zhentian Palace.