Heaven’s Shadow

The darkness had veiled everything in sight, leaving only a pair of green, blazing eyes glowing in the forest, producing an incredibly sinister sight. It was especially shocking when the pair of sinister green flames suddenly rushed toward Lu Chen when he approached.

Lu Chen stretched his hand forward to fend off Ah Tu, who was trying to poke its head over while wagging its tail excitedly. He said snappishly, "I didn't realize it before, but to think that a dumb dog like you would look so scary at night."

"Wang, wang wang..." Ah Tu barked gleefully, seemingly taking pride in Lu Chen's words.

Lu Chen shook his head helplessly and said, "Let's go."

Under the concealment of the night sky, the silhouette of a man and a dog faded into the darkness, as if they were specters inhabiting this remote mountain forest.

It was still deep into the night when they finally reached the foot of the Dragon Mountain. Lu Chen did not rush back to Moonfang City immediately as the city gates would have been long shut. Without the ability of flight, it was impossible for him to enter the city.

Lu Chen led Ah Tu away from the Dragon Mountain and to a secluded and peaceful spot. There, he took out an object from his embrace-it was the item which he retrieved from the crevice of the boulders. Under the faint illumination of the stars, one could see that it was a sealed letter.

A yellowish envelope sealed with red wax. Other than that, there were no marks or words to indicate its origin.

Lu Chen stared at the envelope in his hands silently for a moment before tearing it open impassively and retrieving the note within.

Naturally, there were words on the note within the envelope, but it only consisted of a few sentences. It didn't take Lu Chen too long to read through the letter. When he finally reached the end of the letter, his usual calm face suddenly changed. It was a bizarre transformation, it wasn't anger nor joy-rather, it seemed to be somewhat like nostalgia. All kinds of emotions suddenly surged into his heart, and for a short instant, his eyes reflected the turmoil within him. But eventually, everything returned to calmness and silence.

"Hu..."

The abrupt noise caused Ah Tu, who was lying beside Lu Chen, to leap in shock. Turning its head, it saw a lit ignitable paper roll in Lu Chen's hands, and he torched the letter along with the envelope.

The flames swiftly devoured the note. The bright glow of the flames illuminated Lu Chen's features, and the burning note and envelope reflected in the depths of his eyes.

After a moment, he sighed softly and muttered, "Unrelenting!"

※※※

As the first ray of dawn emerged from the horizon, Lu Chen woke up. Without any hesitation, he began traveling southward with Ah Tu. Even when the Leaping Tiger Gorge came into view, Lu Chen still continued to proceed forward without any hesitation. Just like that, he re-entered the Confounding Lands.

Even though it was returning to a place of its suffering, Ah Tu didn't seem to harbor any apprehension or that sort toward the place. On the contrary, it seemed to be excited by the vast lands and towering mountains, and it ran delightfully around Lu Chen. Its snout seemed to be determined to sniff everything in sight, and it took the liberty of relieving itself on a few towering trees as well.

Nevertheless, Ah Tu didn't stray too far from Lu Chen. If anything, it seemed to be following him even more tightly than it did back at Moonfang City, unwilling to leave Lu Chen's sight.

The human and the dog advanced, and surprisingly, the path they undertook was the exact same one that Lu Chen led Yi Xin and the others on when the group headed for the Black Armored Mountain. Thus, on the second day, Lu Chen and Ah Tu found themselves standing at the intersection near Black Armored Mountain once again.

Laying on the floor, Ah Tu stuck out its tongue and examined its surroundings with composure. It didn't seem to feel anything returning to its homeland. Or perhaps, this dumb dog didn't even remember that its home was just a short distance away from here.

On the other hand, Lu Chen shot the Black Armored Mountain a glance before calmly proceeding in another direction.

The path that led him to the depths of the Confounding Lands.

Faraway down that road, an eventful history filled with bloodshed, hatred, and betrayal was buried.

That was where the Barren Valley was.

※※※

Lu Chen and Ah Tu arrived at the Barren Valley on the sixth day.

The dangers that they had encountered along the way far exceeded the experiences Lu Chen had en route to the Black Armored Mountain. The demonic beasts they encountered grew increasingly stronger the deeper they traveled into the Confounding Lands, especially as they were approaching the Barren Valley. At the same time, the intangible distortion of the Five Elemental Spiritual Energy also grew increasingly violent.

It was fortunate that Lu Chen seemed to be born with an innate talent in navigating through dangerous lands. After avoiding many waves of demonic beasts and perplexing dangers, he and Ah Tu finally reached the outer perimeter of the valley.

The Barren Valley was a deep valley surrounded by mountains, and there was only a single narrow path connecting it to the outside world. Since ancient times, the Barren Valley had been permeated with a bizarre force which rendered it impossible for any lifeforms to survive within it, thus the name.

Ten years ago, the cultists of the Three Realm Divine Cult attempted to bring disaster upon the world from here, but the True Immortal Alliance managed to learn of the matter and sent in an army to exterminate those abominations in a single sweep, thus restoring peace in the world.

Legend has it that the battle had tremored the earth and dyed the heavens crimson. The demonic cultists suffered a crushing defeat, but their overwhelming resentment lingered in the land even after their demise. As a result, the Barren Valley became completely inaccessible to those whose cultivation were too weak. Rumor has it that the land was cursed by the demonic cultists before their deaths. But in any case, the valley was remote, so as time went by, no one came by anymore.

As Lu Chen walked on that narrow mountain path and glanced at the familiar geographical terrains around, complicated emotions flickered across his eyes. Even so, he continued pushing on. Only when he had reached the entrance of the Barren Valley did he finally stop.

In his memories, a figure had stood at the peak of the small hill beside the mountain path.

As the mountain wind blew, his clothes fluttered gracefully.

For a brief moment, Lu Chen seemed to see a dashing man dressed in a white robe. However, as the illusion faded, what that appeared in his vision was a valiant... plump man, but the illusion disappeared in the blink of an eye. What that appeared in his vision afterward was a valiant... plump man.

"Hey!" From higher grounds, that plump man waved to Lu Chen with a smile on his face as he shouted, "It has been long since we last met."

Lu Chen frowned as he watched Old Ma jumping clumsily from the small hill. He sneered, "Why aren't you dead yet?"

Old Ma replied seriously, "It isn't right for you to say that. No matter what, we were neighbors living in the same village for ten years. To ask if I am dead when we have only just met, are you certain that we're friends?"

Lu Chen spat, "If you consider yourself a friend, you shouldn't bother me."

Shrugging, Old Ma smiled bitterly, "If I had a say, I wouldn't come to bother you. I have no choice either..."

Taken aback, Lu Chen widened his eyes, "You mean..."

Old Ma pointed to the valley behind him and uttered softly, "He's here too."

The corner of Lu Chen's eyes twitched inconspicuously, and complex emotions flickered in the depths of his eyes.

Seeing his expression, Old Ma was at a loss for words. Eventually, he sighed and patted Lu Chen's shoulder, "Go in, he's waiting for you."

Lu Chen lowered his head, and for a very long moment, he was silent. Eventually, he still lifted his feet and walked slowly into the remote Barren Valley.

The steep and towering cliffs around the valley resembled sharp swords piercing into the heavens. They concealed even the sun, leaving behind large shadows behind it. Quietly, Lu Chen walked into the shadows once again and gradually disappeared.

...