Maiden Galaxy

The sixteen Greenstone Greatswords were like sixteen columns that simultaneously stuck into the ground.

Their powerful swordtips were like the fangs and claws of beasts, able to shred apart the defenses of any cultivator. With Chen Mo's cultivation, he could not possibly escape, no matter what. But after the sword array passed, Chen Mo was surprisingly nowhere to be seen.

Can it be he has been completely destroyed by the sword array?

Wen Yiliu's Divine Intent scanned, the vast Greenstone Sword Array hovering in the air. Let alone a person, not even a drop of blood could be seen.

Discovering that his sword array did not kill Chen Mo at all, Wen Yiliu was a bit astonished. Even cultivators of equal level would need to be a bit wary of his "Great Greenstone Sword Array." They did not dare face the sword array directly, and in the case they were trapped, it would be very difficult to break free. But Chen Mo was no more than Qi Flower Realm cultivation. TO surprisingly be able to avoid the slaughter of this sword array, this practically toppled his understanding of cultivation.

Wen Yiliu pointed his finger. The sixteen Greenstone Swords flew into the firmaments, spinning around his body. Looking carefully, he was stunned.

It turned out that Chen Mo was behind the sword array. A cold and elegant woman was carrying him in one hand. Very evidently, she had pulled Chen Mo out from the sword array. To be able to break free of the sword array without any sign, so much so that he was even unable to perceive a single hint, there was only one person in this world capable of such a feat.

Wen Yiliu's expression abruptly changed, greatly astonished.

This is bad.

Star General!

The man turned and raised a green light, escaping towards the sky. After undergoing a Thunder Calamity, a cultivator was already able to control worldly spiritual power. Regardless of riding sword or light, they could move unhindered. This escape took him several dozen li away in the blink of an eye.

Chen Mo was even stunned. This Wen Yilou had just been conceited and arrogant a moment ago, incomparably savage. Now, in an instant, he turned and fled with his tail between his legs. That speed honestly was fast.

"Thinking of leaving?" Chen Qingzhi gazed at that figure fleeing into the blue sky. Her white hair fluttered in the wind, blowing past the corner of her mouth. The woman's ice-cold eyes penetrated the horizon.

As she spoke.

Heavenly General Star Chen Qinghan already vanished from Chen Mo's side. A Heavenly Star General could move unfettered. Without her permission, how could Wen Yiliu ever escape.

A chill ran straight down his back, scaring Wen Yiliu pale.

Heavenly Star.

She was surprisingly a Heavenly Star.

Wen Yiliu screamed: "You and I have no enmity, why do you want to kill me!!" The man was flustered, raising a magic weapon, a willow branch.¹ This branch was like jade, crystalline and glistening, emitting spiritual power. Gently waving it, Wen Yiliu's body techniques suddenly accelerated. This weapon's name was "Windbright Willow,"² an ancient treasure. It was able to upgrade a cultivator's escape technique a level. Combined with his "Clear Breeze Bright Moon Escape," he could instantaneously cross close to a thousand li. 

To be able to have such formidable cultivation at such a young age, Wen Yiliu had relied on this escape technique and magic weapon. Killing and robbing people in other Star Fields. Practically no one could hinder him. Not a moment later, Wen Yiliu already was approaching Chang'an. From a distance, he could spot Chang'an's Brokeback Mountain Range.³ So long as he reached this leyline, even a top-notch Star General would need to be cautious.

Wen Yiliu thought quickly, but the chill behind him was quicker.

The sixteen Greenstone Swords immediately became great stone pillars to attack the weapon. Green light rippled across the heavens, the sound of swords roaring like thunder.

"Where are you going?"

Chen Qinghan appeared in front of him.

Wen Yiliu froze.

This woman's speed was too fast. Even his escape technique was surprisingly unable to outrun her.

"There is no grudge between us. If you kill me, would you not be shaming your name as a Heavenly Star." Wen Yiliu's tone was meek.

"Where is the courage you had when you tried to kill my nephew?" Chen Qinghan coldly looked at him.

Nephew?

Wen Yiliu's mouth hung agape. Was she mistaken, a Star General could have a nephew, too?

Was that Chen Mo not Chen Zhangtian's fourth son, when did the son have a Star General for an aunt? This was bad. He feared there was something deeper to this, "Your Servant offers an apology at once. Please be lenient."

Pausing, Wen Yiliu took out a bottle of pills and reluctantly tossed it over. "This bottle of Grade Five True Energy Gathering Qi can definitely help the Young Lord's Qi Flower Realm mature."

"It would be better for Your Servant to also give you a word puzzle. If you can guess correctly, this matter will be over with." Chen Qinghan's tone was calm, yet it was like cold ice.

Wen Yiliu's expression sank. His counterpart's words demonstrated that she had seen everything that transpired.

"Speak!" If he was not so skilled, how could Wen Yiliu let someone humiliate him like this.

"Nightfall and ravaged flowers covered in dirt!"⁴ Chen Qinghan said.

When Wen Yiliu heard this, his expression suddenly changed. He shouted, the sixteen Greenstone Greatswords becoming sixteen green lights, shooting over like stone pillars. Then, Wen Yiliu prepared to activate a High Grade life-preserving talisman, waiting for an opportunity to escape.

"You guessed correctly." Chen Qinghan coldly said. Her white figure instantly vanished.

As if piercing through space, she easily breached out of the sword chant's array. Wen Yiliu only felt a blizzard pour over his head, and his entire body froze, immobilized. He lowered his head to see a white spear of Dark Ice had already ran through his chest, breaking his defensive powers as though they were a sheet of paper. 

"The correct answer is death."⁵ Chen Qinghan said.

"Chen Qingzhi…" Wen Yiliu died wide-eyed.

Chen Mo ended his meditation, looking up to see his Auntie slowly walk down from the sky, holding someone in her hand. She threw the body onto the ground; it was the deceased Wen Yiliu.

Seeing that this First Layer Greater Thunder Tribulation cultivator had died so easily at Chen Qinghan's hands, Chen Mo felt quite regretful. In Star World, no matter how powerful a cultivator trained to, even cultivating to Dragon Wind In Man's highest level, they still paled in comparison to a Heavenly Star.

"What?" Chen Qinghan glanced at him.

"I just feel that cultivators are far too weak compared to Star Generals." Chen Mo sighed.

Chen Qinghan gave him a pitiless expression that said, I have no interest in your distress.

Chen Mo was a bit hurt.

"You were lucky I was able to help this time. In the future, you had better look after yourself." Chen Qinghan said.

"In a fight between immortals, normal people suffer." Chang'an was full of high-level cultivators, where any random person could be a Thunder Tribulation cultivator. With cultivation like his, he currently was unable to handle them. To be able to contend against Wen Yiliu's three attacks a moment ago was already considered strange.

Chen Qinghan was very impressed with Chen Mo's conduct a moment ago. She had been secretly observing all this time, wanting to know to what stage this nephew had grown. She never imagined that he advanced far faster than she had imagined, to surprisingly ward off several attacks from a Thunder Tribulation cultivator. However, what she paid more attention to was not this. "You signed contracts with others?" Chen Qinghan asked.

"En, Zhongli Mo and Attila." Chen Mo did not hide anything from his aunt.

Chen Qinghan pondered, but she did not pursue the matter further. She was very uninterested in Chen Mo's ability to contract with multiple Star Generals.

At this time, Chen Mo finished searching through Wen Yiliu's Astral Stone. Obviously, a Thunder Tribulation cultivator had quite the assets. Never mind the pile of gold and silver, Chen Mo found a "Clear Breeze Bright Moon Escape," a few unused magic weapons, a few Low Grade Lightning Flash Talismans, two Middle Grade Substitution Talismans, and a High Grade Heavenly Calamity Talisman. Other than these, there many pills. What caught Chen Mo's attention the most was that bottle of "True Energy Qi Gathering" and the Grade Four medicine, Dragon Turtle Qi Emission Pill. These were valuable medicines to cultivate to Qi Flower.

Using it to quickly reach the peak of Qi Flower Realm was entirely possible.

Chen Mo then looked at that ancient treasure, the Windbright Willow. Due to not having undergone Thunder Tribulation, he was unable to utilize this kind of powerful treasure, however, that Clear Breeze Bright Moon Escape was not bad. It was an ability able to be used at the Qi Flower Realm. At its highest level, the body technique was indeed like a cool breeze, able to ascend into the heavens up to the moon with a bound, thus receiving its name. The body technique was fast, very creative.

"Right, I came back this time to inform you of something." Chen Qinghan recalled the reason she came to see Chen Mo.

"What? Do you know where my mother is?" Chen Mo eagerly asked.

"This is about the Alpha Ursae Majoris Stone." Chen Qinghan said.

"Auntie, you've found it?" Chen Mo's Northern Dipper had seven slots, distributed according to the constellation. Altogether, they represented seven stones for the Northern Dipper.

There were records about the Northern Dipper's seven Star Stones in the Book of Casting, but they were very sparse. Reportedly, they would only appear after the stars of Star World reached a certain pattern.

Chen Mo did not know what use the seven Star Stones had, but they were all different from casted stars or imbued spirit. This Northern Dipper in his hand would only be considered truly complete once its seven Star Stones were embedded.

"En, however, you will have to gather it yourself. Auntie will not help you." Chen Qinghan did not want Chen Mo to rely on her for everything.

Chen Mo nodded.

"It is at Ghost King Mountain's Underworld Grotto."

Upon hearing Ghost King Mountain, Chen Mo was gloomy. That place was the Tail Fire Star Field's most remote location. It would take several months to walk there. Even with the Nebula Flying Chariot, it would take more than ten days. Crossing the Yama Line, he could reach the Distressed Yin Star Field.

That place's Yin Qi was too heavy, and legend said that there were ghosts and monsters.

Because it was at Great Chong Dynasty, the Underworld Grotto was also named the Underworld Cave, the domain of King Yama.

"Take this. Only when you reach the summit of Underworld Mountain can you open it." Chen Qinghan threw a four-cornered box to Chen Mo, giving an order.

"I understand." Seeing his Auntie say as much, Chen Mo could not decline.

"Good. Now let Auntie see just how well you have trained your Bagua."

After explaining her business, Chen Qinghan had time as agreed before to look at how Chen Mo had trained. Chen Mo displayed a routine, the Bagua Chant already practiced considerably proficiently. Against a warrior of the same level, or even one a level higher, he absolutely could crush them. If he combined this with Northern Dipper and an Innate Skill, he could even dare to fight a Lesser Thunder Tribulation cultivator.

Chen Qinghan was very satisfied. Chen Mo's progress was far faster than she had imagined.

Perhaps.

He actually could help her.

Chen Qinghan lowered her gaze, slightly wrinkling her brow.

Considering the enemy would once again dispatch powerful assassins, Chen Mo decided to linger at the back mountain for now before the metropolitan examination. He would make use of those Grade Four and Five pills that Wen Yiliu left behind in order to break through to a complete Qi Flower, then show up at the metropolitan examination.

By that time, I don't care what prince you are, I won't be easy to kill.

That night, Chen Qinghan have Chen Mo some pointers about the Bagua and left without saying goodbye. After Chen Mo disposed of Wen Yiliu's corpse, he concealed himself in a cave.

When Chen Qing came to the ancestral hall, he was vaguely able to see the traces of an immense force on the ground, as if a massive beast had tore apart the ground. Chen Qing did not see Chen Mo's corpse, but he thought no warrior would be able to resist a Thunder Tribulation cultivator and survive. There was no chance he lived.

After waiting a while, Chen Qing decided that Chen Mo should be dead, seeing no trace of the latter. Unable to contain his joy, his cultivation became even sharper.

Author's Note:

Your subscriptions, please.

I'll absolutely put in the effort with the newer chapters

1. His namesake. ↩
2. 風明柳 ↩
3. 斷背山脈, yes, this is the literal translation. ↩
4. 一夜殘花掩黃土 ↩
5. 死. 一夜 can mean "nightfall," which in turn can be interpreted as 夕 (evening). 殘花 (destroyed flowers) turn into 匕. And what does a layer of dirt look like from the side? 一. Cover nightfall and ravaged flowers with dirt, and you have the word 死 ↩