"Don't be nervous," Ku Mu said. "They are Marked Warrior Masters of the Outer Door disciples of the Chen Xiao Sect. They are responsible for guarding the surrounding mountain."
Guo Shier was surprised. "Marked Warrior Masters can fly?"
"Of course, they can fly! They have Flying Glyphs with them. Why do you ask? Don't you have Flying Glyphs there?" Ku Mu asked back, suddenly understanding Guo Shier's astonishment.
Guo Shier can't help but smile. Of course he doesn't have a Flying Glyph. This is the first time he even heard about it.
"No," he said. "Even Grandmaster level Rune Smiths don't make Flying Glyphs. I don't even think they know about the existence of Flying Glyphs."
The two Marked Warrior Masters flew towards them. When they saw it was Ku Mu, they smiled. They dared not obstruct the trio any further.
Ku Mu waved and said, "Open the Rune Array Mountain Shield. Allow us to pass through."
The two Marked Warriors respectfully saluted, "Yes. lord."
They immediately turned back and flew down.
"Rune Array?" Guo Shier asked.
Ku Mu looked at him. "You don't even know what a Rune Array is?"
"I really don't know," Guo Shier replied, embarrassed.
Ku Mu shook his head. "I have never heard of such a low-level Rune World before. Strange, no one has conquered and controlled this World you speak of?"
Guo Shier was horrified to hear those words. He was about to reply but Ku Mu interrupted him.
"Pay attention, we are entering the Rune Array. Don't move!"
Upon entering, Guo Shier quickly analyzed the location. The mountain, the trees, the lakes appeared to be normal, but he was confused on the lack of wildlife. No beasts or birds can be seen. This place seemed to be a restricted area.
"That was the Rune Array Mountain Shield," Ku Mu said. "It's not very powerful. It can only resist an attack from a Rank 5 Marked Beast Variant."
Guo Shier knew exactly how powerful a Rank 5 Marked Beast was. That huge Mammoth Beast Variant hasn't even reached Rank 5, but Luo Jie's team was already running desperately away from it. If it were a Rank 5 Marked Beast, they would have no hope of escaping.
Ku Mu suddenly accelerated. Guo Shier had no time to sigh.
They continuously flew over a dozen peaks.
"We'll soon arrive at the Chen Xiao Sect mountain gates," Ku Mu declared.
"Is it that town?" Guo Shier asked, staring at the small town not far away.
Ku Mu took them directly across the town. "That is a Rune City. The mountain gates are not there."
Amidst their conversation, Guo Shier noticed a lot of people flying through the air with their Flying Glyph. He was mesmerized by the sight and couldn't help but ask, "Is a Flying Glyph worth a lot of money?"
"There are different kinds of Flying Glyphs," Ku Mu explained. "An Advanced Flying Glyph is hard to come by, while a Low-Level Flying Glyph can be seen anywhere and is not that expensive. However, ordinary Sect Disciples are not permitted to use them."
Ying Mo was gradually becoming accustomed to flying, although he hasn't spoken and was simply observing quietly. He found Ku Mu to be very accommodating as he answered almost all of Guo Shier's question patiently. Still, Ku Mu had a monotonous voice, and his face was without a hint of facial expression.
While crossing the town, Guo Shier noticed more people travelling by air at lower altitudes. Only a few of them were flying at higher altitudes.
"Are those flying higher using an Advanced Flying Glyph?" he asked.
“No. The people flying higher are not using a Flying Glyph. Those people are like me—they are flying without the Flying Glyph," Ku Mu explained.
It became clear to Guo Shier that flying was a skill. He promised himself to master it later. Anyone trying to master this flying skill should at least be at the Grandmaster level, but he was still in the dark about his power ranking in this new world.
Ku Mu slowed down and landed on the ground with them two.
"This is a no-fly zone. We'll have to walk up from here," he said.
When Guo Shier heard the words 'no-fly zone,' he was very surprised.
He quickly asked, "Is this the mountain gate? But I didn't see any gate."
"The so-called Mountain Gate is just a symbolic word," Ku Mu replied. "It doesn't mean that a Mountain Gate would actually be present."
In the middle of the lush forest, a not-too-wide green stone road stretched up towards the mountain top.
"Since this is the Mountain Gate, why is no one taking this path?" Guo Shier wondered out loud.
"This is just a narrow trail that branched from the main road. The big road is over there, which most of the Disciples take."
The three of them walked down the long trail towards the mountain.
Ku Mu's feet did not touch the ground and just floated forward, so his speed was relatively fast.
Ying Mo had to pick up Guo Shier to chase behind Ku Mu. Even as a Marked Warrior Grandmaster, Ying Mo was having a hard time keeping up.
Arriving at a mountain ridge presented them a view of a huge platform, which was around 3 square kilometers. The upper half of the mountain looked like it had been cut, exposing a huge cross section.
There were many people on the platform.
"This is the Chen Xiao Sect Square," Ku Mu said. "The Sect can be accessed through here. If you pay attention to the ground, there's a huge Rune Array printed on it. The Sigil lines are part of the array. Once an enemy is detected, a very powerful killing Rune Array is activated."
Once Ku Mu reached the square, his speed drastically slowed down.
Guo Shier noticed that the people here dressed like the ancient Chinese, with long sleeved gowns fluttering in the wind. He became very aware that he was wearing fur and that he probably looked like a savage.
“Uncle Ying Mo, let me down."
Ying Mo crouched down and whispered, "Shier, be careful. We are in unfamiliar territory."
“Don’t worry, no one here would dare provoke you," Ku Mu said.
Guo Shier laughed. "It's okay, Uncle Ying Mo. I will be careful."
Before Guo Shier could finish talking, he heard someone laughing.
"Hha! Where did that little savage come from?"
"Is it a slave?" another person asked.
Ku Mu flew out like a lightning bolt. In an instant, he came before the two people who were gossiping.
Bam! Bam!
Blood gushed out into the air.
Guo Shier saw what happened. The gossipmongers were two young people who were wearing royal blue robes. Ku Mu slapped them, and they are now lying on the ground spitting a mouthful of blood.
The two had several companions, and one of them immediately exclaimed, "It's Martial Uncle Ancestor Ku Mu!"
Everyone suddenly turned pale with fright. Ku Mu was known to be cold and ruthless in the Chen Xiao Sect. He killed anyone who offended him without blinking.
The two people on the ground didn't quite understand how they offended Ku Mu.
"Go to the Disciplinary Hall," Ku Mu ordered coldly. "You both will receive ten sticks! If you dare talk anymore nonsense I will personally cut your heads and hang it on a flag pole! Do you understand? Scram!"
Guo Shier saw the two scrambling to get away. They were both filled with cold sweat.
When Ku Mu said, "No one will dare offend you here," he meant it. Guo Shier was just laughed at randomly by two people and they were smashed immediately in the face!
"Those who wear green and grey robes are servants," Ku Mu explained while the three of them walked. "Like that man in the gray robe and that woman in that green dress."
"Outer Door Disciples wear dark green gowns, while the Inner Door Disciples wear royal blue robes," he continued,
Guo Shier now knew that the two people who were beaten were Inner Door Disciples.
Ku Mu continued. "A Master level Elder mostly wears silver satin robes. Grandmaster Elders are dressed in special purple-red (fuchsia) gowns."
The rankings here were distinct and clear—not as confusing or loose as within the North Rune Sect. The organizational structure here seemed to be more rigorous.
"What did you mean by slave?" Guo Shier asked.
"Slaves exist here. This is nothing to be concerned about," Ku Mu said. "Most of them have been plundered from lower-level Worlds. In fact, most of the people here have been swept away from the lower Worlds.
"If you have strength—even if you are a slave—you will not suffer here," he continued. "But the slaves are not free. Their life and death are controlled by their master."
Guo Shier started feeling a bit heavy. He asked, "Are the people familiar with the Wild Beast Secret Realm?"
"Did you mean the Secret Realm we were at?" Ku Mu asked.
Guo Shier nodded. "Yes."
Ku Mu said, "I just happened to come across that Secret Realm. No one here should know about it. The address of that Secret Realm is hidden; after all, it's a treasure trove of raw materials. No one is stupid enough to share this Secret Realm with others."
Guo Shier was able to relax a bit.
"Are you afraid that we will rush to your World?" Ku Mu asked. "Don't worry, only around ten people can travel to this place at one time. This is an invisible restriction, like the rules set by the Secret Realms. This force cannot be easily be countered."
Ku Mu left out one thing, though. He did not mention that the Sect's large Rune Gate that had access to low-level Worlds. It was just very expensive to use. If there was no absolute reward, the Sect didn't use the large Rune Gate.
"The number of people allowed to travel from low-level worlds to a higher world is unlimited, but we discovered a big issue when that's reversed. If this rule did not exist, the low-level worlds would have been conquered countless times already," he continued.
They went towards the edge of the square platform.
Ku Mu pointed to the left side, "If there is no Rune Array blocking our path, you can fly directly towards our place at the West area of the Chen Xiao Sect."
"Is this Rune Array the only way to access the Chen Xiao Sect?" Guo Shier asked.
Ku Mu nodded. "Yes, this is the only entry into the Chen Xiao Sect. Once the Rune Array on this square is activated, the mountain gate would be completely closed. No one can go out and no one can come in."
Guo Shier was secretly scared. This level of defense was much stricter than the North Rune Sect. It also meant that it was much more dangerous than the North Rune Sect.
"Is it dangerous out there?" he asked.
Ku Mu did not expect Guo Shier to figure out so much of the situation this fast. This little fellow was not ordinary.
He nodded. "The outside is indeed dangerous—a hundred times more dangerous than you. It would be suicide for a person without the strength to walk outside. But you've already entered the Chen Xiao Sect, so you don't have to worry. The Sect's mountain door is relatively safe."
"Where are we going?" Guo Shier asked.
"I'll take you to the Sect's registration. I'm going to take you in as my disciple. Are you willing?"
Translator: Glasses TangGu
Editor: M