The next day, Ye Chen entered the pitch-dark fog by himself, without informing anybody else. In the thick fog, he floated in the air, holding a Perceptive Ball in his right hand.
"The ball is flickering orange. The distance from the island should be eight hundred li, and one thousand li from the tower. If the island is at the center of the zone, then my distance from the edge of the zone is about half of thirty thousand li minus one thousand li, which is fourteen thousand li. Fourteen thousand li, eh? My soul power can only spread out forty seven li in the thick fog. In other words, I would need to position my soul power three hundred times. And, if a big deviation occurred during any of these times, all my efforts would be for naught."
"But, advancing forty seven li at a time is countless times better than moving fourteen thousand li without any plan. By advancing forty seven li, I won't be affected too much thanks to my powerful will, and thus, can keep the deviation to a minimum. To move fourteen thousand li, even the wills of the absolute majority of Sea of Soul realm experts wouldn't hold, and they would be lost."
"Alright, let's begin!"
Putting back the Perceptive Ball, Ye Chen closed out his eyes. A powerful soul power spread out from his forehead, propagating forty seven li through the fog and marking the first target. Ye Chen's eyes didn't open as his Zhen Yuan erupted and his figure shot across.
After twenty breaths…
"I'm here!"
Following the procedure, Ye Chen's soul power again spread out forty seven li into the distance, marking his second target that was forming a straight line with his starting point.
Third target!
Tenth target!
Three hundredth target!
"Seems like the zone's edge is still far away. Perhaps the distance from here is more than fourteen thousand! After all, the shape of Bewilderment Fog Bewilderment Zone is not a regular circle. Some areas relatively long while others short. Let's move on for a while."
Three hundred twentieth target.
Four hundredth target.
Five hundredth target.
"Wrong, damn it! Five hundred targets, and forty seven li for each target equals twenty three thousand five hundred li. If there were no error, I should have gotten out long ago."
Although Ye Chen had already prepared himself for failure, the harshness of Bewilderment Fog Forbidden Zone still made him laugh bitterly.
"Now, I don't even know where I am in this zone. One step wrong really does mean all the following steps will be wrong."
It wasn't time to be gloomy. The time he had traveled for wasn't much, merely an hour for all the five hundred targets combined. Ye Chen intended to continue flying in a straight line. The distance didn't matter. Only when flew in straight line would he have opportunity to leave. He didn't believe he would never get lucky.
The water clock let Ye Chen know that a month had passed.
During this month, his soul power positioned eighteen thousand times. Every day, out of twenty four hours, twenty hours went in flying, and of the remaining four, two went in absorbing Yuan Qi from mid grade spirit stones and two in rest.
During this month, he fortunately or unfortunately returned back to Bewilderment Fog Island eleven times.
He could ascertain that closer one got to the island, the lesser would be the zone's effect, and the closer one was to the zone's edge, the larger the effect would be. Him being able to return the island eleven times was the proof.
"It can be assumed that even Sea of Soul realm experts relied on luck to get out. If one's luck was good, he could get out in short period of time, and if one's luck were poor, being trapped for even three to five years wouldn't be an exaggeration."
"But, as long as one has perseverance, luck will naturally follow."
Shua!
Ye Chen's figure streaked through the dense fog.
Another month passed away.
Bang!
An earthen-yellow fist image erupted, setting off surging waves on the lake.
"Damn it all! It's been two months. Could it be that my method was wrong from the very beginning? Is it impossible to leave by relying solely on will, or my will simply isn't strong enough?"
For an Astral Reaching expert, a time period of two months was equivalent to a mere closed door session. A wink, and it was already gone. However, at present, the situation was different. During this time, Ye Chen had been repeatedly locking targets and flying. While performing such a dry and repetitive task, if Ye Chen knew the time limit, he wouldn't have lost his mind. The important part was that even he himself didn't know how many more such days he would have to spend. After enduring for so long, he finally erupted, and erupted big time.
Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!
The lake's surface for several dozens of li was riddled with hundreds of scars and thousands of holes. More than a thousand meters high waves rose, and many demonic beasts died due to the shocks.
After venting out, Ye Chen panted.
"This is bad. I can't even believe in myself, so what sword dao do I cultivate? Sword dao will only continue to get harder and won't allow the slightest trace of impurity. It seems like my strength is sufficient, but my mental state is not. Usually, I consider myself to be cool-headed, thinking I won't bat an eye even if the heavens were to collapse. However, when faced with an actual test, I completely failed. Alright then, I will not only search for the exit this time, but temper my mental state as well."
Ye Chen's most frightening aspect lied in the ability to promptly introspect. If it had been an ordinary person, he would have only tangled with the problem of leaving Bewilderment Fog Forbidden Zone. However, Ye Chen was able to jump ahead and discover his own problem.
Buzz!
Taking out a wide wooden plank from his storage ring, Ye Chen placed it on the lake water and sat down in meditation, calming his mind.
"Any torment shall be a trial for me."
"Any fall shall bring me to another height."
"Any detriment shall be the opportunity for my improvement."
"Be it advantage or disadvantage, I'll accept them all. This is my will, my spirit, and my sword dao."
In the dense fog, the youngster had begun his life's first mental transformation. Of course, the transformation had just begun. Whether he could break through or not only depended on himself.
Third month, defeat!
Fourth month, defeat!
At this point, the fifth month was about to begin. During this time period, Ye Chen had experienced dejection, shaken self-confidence, and also, perseverance, realization, and introspection.
Every time he pulled himself together, he felt his spirit had been baptized and sword will had sharpened further.
Fifth month, seventh day.
Ye Chen continued to fly with a firm expression.
"Feng Yanrou, you've been chasing me for three months now. Why don't you give up?" On the boundless water, two figures were separated by seven-eight li, one chasing after the other. The one who said these words was the middle aged man being chased. His figure was lean and tall, and he was wearing a long robe. As he flew, his entire being seemed to have turned into wind. Under the wind's escort, he was as quick as a ghost.
Chasing behind him was a young woman in her early twenties. She was wearing a long sword at her waist and snow-white clothes. Her fine black hair were like a waterfall, and eyes like stars. Her cold expression carried a sort of stunning beauty. Especially eye-catching was the image of a snow flower on her forehead, which gave her a peculiarly pure kind of charm. She said coldly, "Gao Qianhe, the matter of you slaughtering my junior sister wouldn't be settled so easily. Even if I had to chase you for a whole year, I'll kill with my own hands."
"Hmph! then keep on chasing! Although my strength is not as high as yours, when it comes to light techniques, I am unparalleled in the Astral Reaching realm."
The young woman called Feng Yuanrou creased her brows. The former's words were correct. Although her light technique was quite exceptional, the former's was even more frightening. His comprehension couldn't be belittled. He had actually comprehended wind mentality and soft mentality to their extremes. The speed obtained after combining these two mentalities was simply outrageous. If not for her rich Zhen Yuan and speed amplifying skill, she would have long been left behind. Even so, she had lost him several times during these two months. Fortunately, she was quite well versed in following trails, and thus, was able to catch up again.
"True, if nothing happens, I won't ever be able to catch you. Still, I can endure such days, but can you do the same?"
Gao Qianhe was furious, "You!"
After being chased for three months, he already couldn't stand the exhaustion. Not only was he tired physically, his mental exhaustion was much more painful. He was quite regretful that he didn't immediately killed her junior sister. As for why this matter happened, he cultivated a kind of evil technique, making him extremely lustful. One day, he encountered her junior sister in a remote area. His lust awakened, and he injured her, wishing to make love with her. Who could he have known that she contacted Feng Yanrou through some secret skill and plotted against him at a completely unexpected moment? He engaged her for a while, then eventually killed her in fury. However, as soon as he did so, Feng Yanrou arrived.
Feng Yanrou's age was merely twenty-two or twenty three, but her martial art skill were unusually high. It was said that she ranked top five among the young generation of Misty Snow Nation. As for what place in the top five, nobody knew. After exchanging a couple dozen moves, he knew that he was not a match for her. Thereupon, he immediately gave up and escaped, and was then chased for three months.
"Snowy Sky!"
Separated by seven to eight li, Feng Yanrou pulled out the longsword from her waist and slashed into the air. An ice-cold sword Qi swirled up, shrouding the sky with snow, then slashed at Gao Qianhe. The sword intent it contained rendered his scalp numb, and he unwittingly increased his speed.
Kacha!
The Sword Qi never reached him. Instead, it froze the lake's water below and slashed an astonishing, more than three hundred meters long, sword scar on the surface.
"Fu**, this little wench's cultivation in the sword dao is too frightening. I am far from being her match. You wouldn't find such a powerful Astral Reaching realm sword artist throughout the Misty Snow Nation." He inwardly rejoiced then subconsciously looked ahead into distance.
"Eh! That's a fog zone up there. Maybe I'll have an opportunity to shake her off."
Dozens of li ahead, a thick fog was shrouding the heaven and earth. Neither its width could be seen, nor its height… an excellent place to escape.
"Damn! There is actually a fog zone in star lake."
Feng Yanrou's brows creased.
Thirty li.
Twenty li.
When Gao Qianhe was merely twenty li away, a hissing sound came from inside the fog. Following which, a blue figure rushed out. It was a youngster.
"I'm finally out!"
Ye Chen raised his head towards the sky. The warm sunlight falling on his body felt unusually gentle.
On the seventh day of fifth month, Ye Chen broke the iron rule of Bewilderment Fog Forbidden Zone by exiting the zone with a cultivation of Astral Reaching realm. If the news were to spread outside, who knew what the aftermath would be. However, these things didn't matter. What mattered was that he had finally left that ghastly place.
As he thought, Ye Chen couldn't help but be glad of his perseverance. If he hadn't preserved in the subsequent four months, the chances of him making out were almost zero. He guessed that since the Sea of Soul realm experts who were caught in Bewilderment Fog Forbidden Zone couldn't preserve for too long, they needed to spend a lot of time getting out. After all, when compared to Ye Chen, they were far superior in terms of speed and, had advantages in other respects as well.
"Eh, is this person being chased? He is quite fast."
Feng Yanrou and Gao Qianhe's scene of pursuit was too eye-catching. It would be hard for Ye Chen to have ignored it even if he wished so.
"Please, help me block him. Please…."
By employing her Zhen Yuan, Feng Yanrou's voice reached Ye Chen at a frightening speed. Actually, she didn't believe Ye Chen could black Gao Qianhe, but even if he were to buy her two breaths, she would catch up with all her might, and then absolutely wouldn't let him escape.
"If this man entered the fog, he wouldn't return, and chasing after him would also be impossible. In that case, I guess I might help her block him! In any case, it wouldn't cost me much effort." Based on the perception of his soul power, Ye Chen estimated that this man was an extreme Astral Reaching expert, and she was the same as well. However, the latter was much more powerful. She ought to be one of the best among extreme Astral Reaching experts. Of course, it didn't matter much to him.
"Even a young fool wants to stop me? Dream on! Image Shift Technique!"
Gao Qianhe's body suddenly stopped, and an astonishing scene occurred. Behind Ye Chen, another Gao Qianhe appeared. Two Gao Qianhe occupied Ye Chen's front and back respectively. It was unclear which was fake and which was real, and even Ye Chen was captivated for an instant.
Watching the scene before her, Feng Yanrou let out a bitter, helpless smile. To ask Ye Chen to stop Gao Qianhe, who excelled in light techniques, was simply making things difficult for the former. He couldn't be blamed.