Translated By – DemonKiller
Checked and Edited By – Liveiwdsmile
Proofread By – DemonKiller
Please do not host our works anywhere else without our permission.
Chapter 0524: Infatuation or something else
After Ning Cheng returned to the Bright Gist Resting Pen, Lan Ya and Shi Yulan had still not come back. Although Ning Cheng felt worried about Jing Wuming, he could only wait.
At the same time, after learning the purpose for which the Imperial Concubine Xuan Yu had called him for, Ning Cheng understood that he must somehow come up with a Spiritual Consciousness Cultivation Method. Otherwise, it would prove difficult for Jing Wuming and him to escape.
Therefore, after Ning Cheng came back while waiting for Jing Wuming to return, he tried to extrapolate a cultivation method to cultivate Spiritual Consciousness. After deducing a rough outline for a cultivation method to cultivate Spiritual Consciousness, he could then present it to Imperial Concubine Xuan Yu to get out of this present difficult time. As long as he could reach the Man Lun Starry Skies, it would turn out fine.
What surprised Ning Cheng was that it was not even night yet when Jing Wuming returned to the Bright Gist Resting Pen. Not only had he returned Jing Wuming also sported a refreshed look.
Jing Wuming did not immediately head to his room and instead went straight to Ning Cheng's room.
"Not only did Xuan Yu hold you back, she even let you go this easily?" Ning Cheng spoke as he doubtfully looked at Jing Wuming.
Jing Wuming sported a very embarrassed look, and only after a good while later did he shook his head showing a hesitating expression. He did not know how to breach this news to Ning Cheng.
"Wuming, what's the matter? If you want to speak then speak." Ning Cheng was not in the mood to guess at what Jing Wuming hinted.
"Brother Xiaocheng, I think I'm in love with Xuan Yu, I….."
"WHAT?" Even with Ning Cheng's solid emotional control, he could not help feel shocked by Jing Wuming's words. Did this fellow really want to die that badly?
Jing Wuming finally calmed down and spoke with confidence, "I fell in love with Xuan Yu, just like when I first fell for Yulan. I initially thought that I would end up all alone in this life and that I would never love another woman. However, I couldn’t reject Xuan Yu, she made me realise, I……"
Ning Cheng interrupted Jing Wuming's words and spoke out coldly, "Wuming, you already know this that you and Shi Yulan have no chance together. You also know who Xuan Yu is; she is a Celestial River King's woman. Besides, I don't want my brother to be a third person."
Jing Wuming sucked in a deep breath. Then seriously looked at Ning Cheng and spoke, "I loved Yulan. However, I also know that it is impossible for us to get back together. Not to mention about her being with a son of a man who killed her father, even if she was willing, the departed spirits of my ancestors wouldn't allow me to be with her."
"Whether you want to get together with her or not, that's not the issue here. The issue is what you said about Xuan Yu a few moments ago." Ning Cheng frowned. Imperial Concubine Xuan Yu was a Celestial River King's woman. If others knew that Jing Wuming wanted to stir the pot with a married woman, what would happen then?
"She asked me how I knew you and about your origins. Initially, I did not know what was going on, and just blurted out everything, including the matter with Shi Yulan. After she heard, she remained silent for a long time before she finally told a lot of thing about her……"
"Xuan Yu leads a wretched life, nothing like the glory everyone sees on the surface. Moreover, I can't forget her anymore….." Jing Wuming spoke slowly but with conviction.
"Did you f*ck her?" Although Ning Cheng might have not understood what had happened, he was also not someone who was born yesterday. From the words and behaviour, Jing Wuming and Xuan Yu most likely had sex.
Jing Wuming gave a sheepish nod before continuing, "She had an elder sister called Lu Yu, and the one Orchid Borough Celestial River King originally had taken a fancy to. At that time, Lu Yu already had someone she loved. With the intention of not marrying the Orchid Borough Celestial River King, Lu Yu and her lover escaped from the Orchid Borough Celestial River. It resulted in the Orchid Borough Celestial River King venting his anger on Lu Yu's family. Fortunately or unfortunately, he saw Xuan Yu, resulting in shifting his goal. Xuan Yu ended up marrying Orchid Borough Celestial River King to save her family from complete destruction. However, she does not bore even half a shred of love towards that man."
Ning Cheng remained speechless for a long time before speaking quietly, "What you did is not something trivial. Once the Orchid Borough Celestial River King came to know about this, we all will die without a burial."
"I'm not going to take any chances. I have already discussed things with Xuan Yu and will still head to the Time Wilderness. After I come out of the Time Wilderness, she and I would secretly leave the Man Lun Starry Skies. If I cannot come out of the Time Wilderness, she will anyway leave the Man Lun Starry Skies by herself. Her younger brother had already perished a few years ago. Now she does not have any family left." Jing Wuming spoke in a gentle yet firm tone.
Ning Cheng stood up and patted Jing Wuming's shoulder before speaking, "Whatever you want to do think it out clearly and remember to tell Lan Ya and Shi Yulan about your decision. Otherwise, once you run away with the Imperial Concubine of the Orchid Borough Celestial River King, the Orchid Borough Celestial River King would immediately launch a Celestial River-wide hunt. At that moment, every person that you've been in contact with will face grave dangers."
After sending away Jing Wuming, Ning Cheng pondered for a long time. This incident had revealed many bizarre surprises from the start to the end. That Imperial Concubine Xuan Yu definitely was an outstanding woman, with cultivation that far outstripped that of Jing Wuming's. Even if she had no love for Orchid Borough Celestial River King, logically speaking she would never consciously sleep with Jing Wuming, or would she?
Although Jing Wuming also had outstanding qualities, it should not be enough to get into her eyes. What did this woman want from Jing Wuming? Was it really love at first sight?
Alternatively, was it an induced infatuation? However, that woman and Jing Wuming had even slept together; can someone fake such a ridiculous matter? With cultivation on the level of Xuan Yu, generally speaking, as long as she was not a dissolute woman, such an affair would only result in substantial consequences.
Maybe Xuan Yu felt moved by Jing Wuming's past, especially his passion for Shi Yulan, giving birth to the thought that this man was worth her love. On the other hand, she might just want to leave Orchid Borough Celestial River, and Jing Wuming happened to cross her eyes.
Ning Cheng sighed, whether it was true or not, leaving the Orchid Borough Celestial River was the right thing for now.
Three days later, a silver Void Airship departed the Orchid Borough Public Square. Just like a warping shadow, it rushed out of the Orchid Borough Star.
This was the airship plying between the Orchid Borough Celestial River and the Man Lun Starry Skies; as such, apart from the 10,000 participating cultivators, many other cultivators were travelling by this airship.
It was also the first Time for Ning Cheng to ride an Apex Rank Celestial River Class Airship. The primary role of an ordinary Celestial River Class Airship was to carry people; however, this Apex Rank Celestial Class Airship, in addition to moving people, also had the capabilities of an Apex Rank Celestial River Class Battleship. It felt like a Celestial River Class Battleship that someone had fused with an airship of the same rank.
This airship was like a small city in itself and had five floors above and below. The bottom floor belonged to the more impoverished cultivators. Most of them had to spend almost all their Celestial Coins to get a seat on the ship and had no extra money to spare. As such, many of the people had to huddle together on the lowest floor to support each other.
The top floors contained cultivators with both high cultivation and high statuses. They not only had private cabins assigned to them, but even their cabins were also highly luxurious.
The third and fourth floors were home to some of the mid-level cultivators and had all kinds of merchant houses and even hotels. As long as one had the money, one could comfortably live the most luxurious life over this Void Airship
The second floor was also a place for the ordinary cultivators; however, it also contained some low-level merchant houses. Nevertheless, compared to the third and fourth floors, the standard of living here was quite low.
Ning Cheng and the participating cultivators had to live on the second floor. Although the place was not too spacious, the top 1000 to 5000 in rankings still received single rooms. As for the first 1000, they did not live on the second floor but on the third.
After entering the Void Airship, Ning Cheng had not seen Imperial Concubine Xuan Yu. However, from Jing Wuming's demeanour, Ning Cheng could tell that he and Xuan Yu were doing well. Ning Cheng, anyway, was not a person who likes to gossip; as such, he did not ask Jing Wuming about it. Before ascertaining the matter, why worry?
Shi Yulan and Lan Ya apparently received some news from Jing Wuming too, and after the two of them entered the airship, they decided not to come out of their cabins. As for Ruan Mingshu, who currently resided on the third floor, she did not choose to look for Ning Cheng.
Ning Cheng returned to his cabin after a short tour of the ship's merchant houses. From the Revolving Jade City to the Man Lun Starry Skies' mainland, the Man Lun Star Land, it would take a few more months. During these months, Ning Cheng wanted to consolidate his cultivation further.
After battling Suo Qiaoye, although he gained a lot, he did not have the time to go into seclusion to sort out his gains. Now that he had more than half a year, he could definitely use it for himself.
The Mysterious Yellow Formless was the best cultivation method within the starry skies. However, even if Ning Cheng became aware of his shortcoming and wanted to blend in the comprehensions that he gained, it was not something simple and easy to accomplish.
Three months later, Ning Cheng's cultivation had also steadily made its way to the mid-stage Celestial Novice Realm; however, he still could not come up with an attack method for his Spiritual Consciousness. In addition to this, aside from the improvements in cultivation, the only other improvement was coming up with a move for his powerful Spear Intent, named 'Traceless'.
He had realised this technique from the Everlasting Blue Thunder City's projection. A powerful cultivator had used a purple spear to kill a powerhouse that could easily demolish a planet. After seeing that projection, he felt extremely shocked in his heart, which finally led to condensing all of his comprehension into that one technique.
He had also used this one spear to kill many strong opponents. Once this spear came out, it would not bring any warning, nor would it leave behind the slightest trace. It cut through the space to kill the opponent directly. As such, calling this technique 'Traceless' was also appropriate.
Now, Ning Cheng had at least two techniques to use with his Spear Intent, Nothingness Flame Patterned Spear and Traceless.
On this day, Ning Cheng was still deducing a method of using Spiritual Consciousness for combat when he felt the room suddenly shaking.
Was it a starry skies' demonic beast attack? Ning Cheng immediately thought of starry skies' demonic beasts. He had remained in seclusion for almost three or four months, and the journey also remained smooth until now. He had already come to an understanding that in front of this Apex Ranked Void Airship, if not for a relatively large starry skies' demonic beast horde, nothing else would cause it to shake so much.
However, Ning Cheng did not come out to look. In the face of this Apex Rank Celestial River Class Airship, with a Celestial River King on board, ordinary starry skies' demonic beasts would not pose much risk. Moreover, even if he came out, he would not be able to do much anyway.
However, even after a full hour, the vibrations did not weaken at all. Instead, it grew even stronger. The restrictions inside the cabin had started to shake slightly. At this moment, Ning Cheng finally stood up. It looks like this starry skies' demonic beast horde was not easy to deal with.
At this moment, the restriction over the door suddenly flickered. Ning Cheng immediately opened the restriction and saw Lan Ya and Shi Yulan standing there in anxiety. He immediately asked, "What happened?"
"Are you really not anxious? An endless horde of starry skies' Spirit Devouring Rat Tide has attacked our ship. Most of the restrictions on the outside of the hull have disintegrated. Those starry skies' Spirit Devouring Rats even devoured a Heaven Seated Expert. All the people have already scattered, we also need to hurry and escape…." Lan Ya explained the situation quickly.
"What?" Ning Cheng felt shocked in his heart; at the same time, he immediately swept out with his Spiritual Consciousness. After entering the starry skies, Ning Cheng especially spent some time studying about the starry skies' demonic beast hordes. As such, he was no stranger to the starry skies' Spirit Devouring Rats. This was a horrifying and terror-inducing starry skies' demonic beast. This kind of demonic beast tide could easily cover the entire range of one's Spiritual Consciousness, which was what made it so terrifying.
Once the starry skies' Spirit Devouring Rat Tide found a target, it would never show any fear and completely swarm the target. No matter what, as long as there was even a whiff of Spirit Qi, this rat tide would frantically rush up and bite down until nothing remained of their meal. Moreover, the starry skies' Spirit Devouring Rats were also highly toxic. Once bitten, he or she would end up poisoned with complete surety.
As Ning Cheng's Spiritual Consciousness swept out, he immediately saw the broken restrictions along with an endless horde of starry skies' Spirit Devouring Rats pouring into the airship through those broken restrictions. The scene quickly turned his scalp numb.
Translated By – DemonKiller
Checked and Edited By – Liveiwdsmile
Proofread By – DemonKiller
Please do not host our works anywhere else without our permission.
Chapter 0525: The Terrifying Rat Tide
Some of the cultivators who wanted to escape alone ended up entirely surrounded by the starry skies' Spirit Devouring Rats and disappeared in a short time. Some of the cultivators who suffered even a bite from the starry skies' Spirit Devouring Rats immediately started twitching all over; however, before the poison could penetrate them too deep, the rest of the starry skies' Spirit Devouring Rats surrounded and devoured them without leaving anything behind.
Many cultivators even rushed madly towards the deck and wanted to try escaping from there. However, the rushing cultivators once more found themselves surrounded on all sides by the endless starry skies' Spirit Devouring Rats.
Although the starry skies' Spirit Devouring Rats were weak individually, regardless of however many died, many more starry skies' Spirit Devouring Rats would take their place the next moment. In this kind of terrifying situation, even a Heaven Seated Cultivator would find it extremely difficult to escape once trapped.
"Where's Wuming?" Ning Cheng recalled that Jing Wuming had not come over with the Lan Ya duo and asked quickly.
"I'm alright." Jing Wuming's voice arrived followed by him sporting many bloodstains.
Those bloodstains most likely came from the starry skies' Spirit Devouring Rats. Jing Wuming only had a Celestial Shatterer Cultivation, after killing so many starry skies' Spirit Devouring Rats, how was he able to come out unscathed?
However, Ning Cheng quickly understood, as Imperial Concubine Xuan Yu's figure appeared looming behind Jing Wuming. This woman really protected Jing Wuming, ah, Ning Cheng's mind flashed with the thought.
"Sister Yu'er, I can't leave alone…." Jing Wuming anxiously turned around and called out.
Imperial Concubine Xuan Yu spoke out in a slightly hoarse voice, "Wuming, I can help you take these two women. As for Ning Cheng, no matter what kind of friendship you have with him, I cannot take him away. From now on, you are the only man I wish to remain close."
Taking someone else would expose her privacy as a woman; Lan Ya and Shi Yulan were ok as they were women; however, Ning Cheng was a man, and she had no intention of exposing her means before him.
"No, Xiaocheng is my best friend. If he doesn't come with us, I would rather die and die here." Jing Wuming spoke out with a firm voice.
It was clear that if he had to make a choice between Xuan Yu and Ning Cheng, he would choose to fight alongside Ning Cheng without hesitating and would not follow Xuan Yu to escape.
Imperial Concubine Xuan Yu remained silent. However, she only remained silent for a short while before speaking up with a trembling voice, "If you must take him away, then let them come together. That man has not found me yet, we have to hurry. I still have a way….."
"Yu'er, thank you." Jing Wuming walked over to that vague form of her before gently grabbing a pair of white hands.
Xuan Yu gently ruffled Jing Wuming's hair before speaking, "Why the need to say 'thank you' between us? I belong to you. I'll do whatever you want me to do."
"Xiaocheng, Senior Apprentice Sister Lan, Senior Apprentice Sister Shi….."
Jing Wuming had just called out the names of the three of them when Ning Cheng interrupted Jing Wuming's words, "Wuming since you have decided to be with Xuan Yu, I will also respect and understand what she feels. Your woman can only protect you. I anyway have the means to escape, so you do not have to worry about me. If you can, take Senior Apprentice Sister Lan and Junior Apprentice Sister Yulan with you."
Lan Ya shook her head, "I will walk with Ning Cheng. If I can escape, then I will escape. If I can't escape then falling in the starry skies is my fate."
Shi Yulan also spoke up, "I have already said that I will remain with Senior Apprentice Sister Lan and become a starry skies' wanderer. This is where we begin anew and where we part from the past, Wuming, thank you. You should escape; I hope you can achieve what you want one day."
Jing Wuming, on hearing those words, immediately spoke up, "How can this be? In front of these terrifying starry skies' Spirit Devouring Rat Tide, even Heaven Seated Experts cannot escape. How will you get out?"
"Wuming, I broke into the starry skies with a Crucible Transformation Cultivation. I have already experienced many things and even suffered a chase down by Void Exploding Golden Wasps. Yet, I am still alive and well. Do not worry and just take care of yourself. I will meet you somewhere within the universe's starry skies. When we meet again, I will take you to meet Eldest Brother Cang Wei." Ning Cheng spoke with a smile as he thought about the Void Exploding Golden Wasp King that was about to hatch. In the future, once he travelled the starry skies with a massive horde of Void Exploding Golden Wasps, which beastly horde would dare to encircle him, let alone kill him?
Seeing Jing Wuming still feeling hesitant, Ning Cheng added another sentence, "Don't be fussy like a mother-in-law; just go."
After he finished, Ning Cheng then trained his gaze at Xuan Yu and calmly spoke up, "Xuan Yu, I don’t care who you were before, but Wuming is my brother as such I will wish you both happiness. However, if one day I found out that you brought him harm, then no matter how big the starry skies are, no matter how wide the universe is, I will find you."
Xuan Yu slowly spoke to Ning Cheng, "You are indeed Wuming's friend. He did not read you wrong. Wuming, let's go, Lan Ya and Shi Yulan will not be coming with us."
She had an old mentality and knew about Jing Wuming and Shi Yulan's history; as such, she knew that Shi Yulan would not follow her. At the same time, Lan Ya would also never leave Ning Cheng and Shi Yulan and escape alone with her.
Jing Wuming also clearly understood the truth and spoke to Ning Cheng, "Okay, I believe you can do it. We will meet again in the future….."
His voice had not yet dissipated when Imperial Concubine Xuan Yu's vague silhouette disappeared along with him without even a trace.
"Ning Cheng, what do we do now?" After Jing Wuming and Xuan Yu left, Lan Ya immediately asked Ning Cheng.
By this point, the entire airship had turned a lot more chaotic; at the same time, with the significant number of starry skies' Spirit Devouring Rats pouring into the void airship, the void airship had already lost control.
All the cultivators ended up thrown into the middle of a chaotic mess. Everyone wanted to rush out; however, only a few could manage to rush out.
The wild starry skies' Spirit Devouring Rats made terrifying grinding noises with their fangs, which were interspersed with the cracking sounds of chewing bones, making everyone want to escape from this place even more.
However, the starry skies' Spirit Devouring Rats had already surrounded them from all directions, stretching out many miles. Even when using Spiritual Consciousness, one could not find the end of it.
It was at this moment that a thick voice resounded, "Listen up people. The starry skies' Spirit Devouring Rats here are not something we can resist. In a while, we will use our Spiritual Techniques to open up a passage through this starry skies' Spirit Devouring Rat Horde. Your escape will depend on your own destiny. Those who can escape should gather on Man Lun Star….."
After hearing this voice, countless cultivators rushed over, for a short time, even the starry skies' Spirit Devouring Rats had to retreat under the combined rush.
Ning Cheng still had not made any moves. Suddenly a two or three feet long starry sky' Spirit Devouring Rat made its way to the place where Ning Cheng stayed. Lan Ya immediately slashed out with a knife, quickly slicing the Spirit Devouring Rat into two halves.
Shi Yulan spoke out in anxiety, "Senior Apprentice Brother Ning, we need to hurry up. Otherwise, staying here would only be inviting death."
Ning Cheng shook his head and calmly spoke up, "You made a mistake. Going up, we will only find death. However, at this place, there are many broken restrictions but only a few scattered starry skies' Spirit Devouring Rats have come in that cannot even pose a threat to us. Once we go up, with the cultivations of us three, we will definitely die. The people who had the means have already made their escape a long time ago. As for those staying in this place like us, simply put, they have no method to escape. That man said that he would slaughter open a passage; however, I don't believe it."
Having said that, Ning Cheng then looked at Lan Ya and Shi Yulan, "I don't know about the situation of the Orchid Borough Celestial River King, but if I had to guess, then he should have long since escaped. Even my partner, Ruan Mingshu, should have already made her escape. The people staying here are the ones who have no means to make their escape."
Shi Yulan spoke with some uncertainty, "Senior Apprentice Sister Mingshu and you……"
Even if Shi Yulan did not finish her words, Ning Cheng knew what she meant. Shi Yulan wanted to say that since Ruan Mingshu had treated him well, she would not leave alone. However, Ning Cheng felt sure that Ruan Mingshu had already departed. Moreover, the only reason Ruan Mingshu behaved so good with him was only due to his ability to help her accomplish something after entering the Time Wilderness. At such a critical juncture, would Ruan Mingshu even think of Ning Cheng?
"Even if we have to die, we need to rush out. Staying in this place might provide us with temporary safety, but once the bulk of those starry skies' Spirit Devouring Rats poured in, we would die an even more miserable death." Although Lan Ya tried to speak calmly, her voice still trembled.
"There is another way….." Ning Cheng hesitated before speaking.
"What way." Lan Ya and Shi Yulan asked simultaneously.
"I have a miniature world with me. The two of you can enter my miniature world. I will rush out by myself; however, if I fall, you two would also die." Ning Cheng told the truth. The laws within his miniature world were of a low grade; moreover, it would not support life on its own. Once he brought along living creatures within it, and he ended up falling, the miniature world and every living thing inside would inevitably collapse.
Lan Ya immediately spoke up, "Ning Cheng, it's better for us to join forces. Maybe we might even have a slight chance."
Ning Cheng shook his head, "There would be no chance if we joined forces. This is not a Void Collapse. This starry skies' Spirit Devouring Rat Tide is much more dangerous than the Void Collapse."
Lan Ya suddenly remembered that when she had chased Ning Cheng into the Bright Void Gorge, Ning Cheng still came out completely safe and sound; however, she had nearly lost her life. At that time, what level of cultivation did Ning Cheng possess? Thinking of this, she immediately spoke up without any hesitation, "Okay, I'm willing."
"I'm willing too." Shi Yulan knew that under this horrifying starry skies' Spirit Devouring Rat Tide, not to say anything about her Celestial Gatherer Cultivation, escape would prove difficult for even a Heaven's Mandate Cultivator.
After Lan Ya and Shi Yulan entered the miniature world, Ning Cheng immediately stimulated his Twin Wings of the Heavenly Clouds. With just a few flaps, he emerged from the bottom of the Void Battleship and landed on the lower deck.
The lower deck had piles of bodies of the starry skies' Spirit Devouring Rats that fell from above along with bits and pieces of cultivators that those Spirit Devouring Rats had devoured. Ning Cheng, just by his Celestial Novice Cultivation, did not have any ability to change the situation. At this time, he could only rush out of the airship like the other cultivators and try to escape into the starry skies.
In this kind of place, any flight-type weapon, void battleship or airship were useless. Even a more powerful ship, under so many starry skies' Spirit Devouring Rats, would end up cleaned out in a flash. The vessel under his feet was the best example.
Although the Radium Light Arrows, Flowing Sky Cannons and Sky Locking Lights over the airship had already killed a considerable amount of those starry skies' Spirit Devouring Rats, those starry skies' Spirit Devouring Rats still managed to rip open the airship's restrictions and rush in,
As soon as Ning Cheng rushed into the starry skies, the horrifying fishy smell greeted his nostrils, even the surrounding space had completely stagnated. With so many starry skies' Spirit Devouring Rats concentrated in such an area, there was no need for them to exert any Spiritual Techniques or even tricks as the surrounding starry skies had already slipped under the control of the starry skies' Spirit Devouring Rats.
At this time, any kind of technique or Spear Intent would be meaningless. For Ning Cheng, even if he shot out with his Spear Intent, he could only kill a few thousands of those starry skies' Spirit Devouring Rats. At this time, the only thing he could do was to use the teleportation-like speed of his Twin Wings of the Heavenly Clouds to dodge those terrifying starry skies' Spirit Devouring Rat Tide. At the same time, Ning Cheng also had to make sure that he did not end up as a target for any high ranking starry skies' Spirit Devouring Rat.
Translated By – DemonKiller
Checked and Edited By – Liveiwdsmile
Proofread By – DemonKiller
Please do not host our works anywhere else without our permission.
Chapter 0526: You Don't Understand
The moment the Twin Wings of the Heavenly Clouds wound down for a moment. The endless starry skies' Spirit Devouring Rats swarmed in and quickly started filling the space around Ning Cheng without leaving any gaps.
Ning Cheng also finally witnessed the nauseating scene, with so many starry skies' Spirit Devouring Rats crowded around him making sharp teeth grating sounds. It almost made his head explode.
Most of these starry skies' Spirit Devouring Rat did not have a high rank, and were at most equivalent to Soul Essence Cultivators in strength; however, there were also a few high-ranked Spirit Devouring Rats in the back that exceed starry skies' cultivators in the Celestial Scryer Realm.
In such a crowded area, not to mention Ning Cheng using his teleport-like speed, it was starting to prove difficult for him to use his Twin Wings of the Heavenly Clouds like usual. His teleport-like speed was the result of the Twin Wings of the Heavenly Cloud's instantaneous acceleration and was not real teleportation that involved manipulation of space. If he could use teleportation through space manipulation, he could have easily ignored these starry skies' Spirit Devouring Rats. However, with just speed, there was no way to accomplish it.
Previously, there was still a small gap within the dense Spirit Devouring Rats. However, the moment he entered the starry skies, many Spirit Devouring Rats had suddenly swarmed in closing up the hole in just a blink of an eye. Without any hole, how could he take advantage of his speed to rush out?
Ning Cheng no longer hid his Celestial River Flame, the Celestial River Flame transformed into a flaming spear as it shot out. Bright purple flames exploded all around Ning Cheng and the terrifying temperatures instantly transformed countless starry skies' Spirit Devouring Rats into ashes, allowing a gap to appear in front of Ning Cheng. Ning Cheng fully stimulated the Twin Wings of the Heavenly Clouds while rushing in, before finding himself once again surrounded by another layer of starry skies' Spirit Devouring Rats.
This was not the way to go, Ning Cheng thought while not recalling the Celestial River Flame. The Celestial River Flame once again condensed into a spear before plunging into the countless starry skies' Spirit Devouring Rats.
A variety of harsh screams and burning fumes filled the area. Although the starry skies' Spirit Devouring Rats had smooth skins that were fire resistant, they still could not handle the extreme temperatures of the Celestial River Flame.
The Celestial River Flame condensed into a spear was akin to a sharp ploughshare that could extend easily. A gap once again appeared in front of Ning Cheng. Ning Cheng no longer decided to stimulate the Twin Wings of the Heavenly Clouds; crazily activating the Celestial River Flame, Ning Cheng immediately flew out riding just behind the flames.
Ning Cheng had no idea about how many starry skies' Spirit Devouring Rats had fallen along the way; however, he also knew that these dead starry skies' Spirit Devouring Rats were not even equivalent to a single hair among the rat tide.
Although the Celestial River Flame had the necessary power and fierceness to it, Ning Cheng also was aware of a significant drawback of the Celestial River Flame. Simply put, it consumed a considerable portion of his reserves. In a relatively short time, Ning Cheng started to feel extremely fatigued.
At this time, Ning Cheng felt a powerful aura lock on to him.
This was a high-ranking starry skies' Spirit Devouring Rat, at least equivalent to a cultivator in the Celestial Bridge Realm. At this moment, the starry skies' Spirit Devouring Rats in front of Ning Cheng had loosened up and were not as dense as before. Although Ning Cheng felt extremely tired, he stimulated the Twin Wings of the Heavenly Clouds to its max, and with a faint afterimage, instantly disappeared.
After taking advantage of the Twin Wings of the Heavenly Cloud's instantaneous acceleration, Ning Cheng found that although the surrounding area still had many starry skies' Spirit Devouring Rats, they were a lot more sparsely distributed.
At this moment, Ning Cheng only had a single thought in his mind, and that was to escape.
After upgrading the Twin Wings of the Heavenly Clouds to four pairs of shimmering lights, the already teleport-like speed had also improved by several times compared to before. Ning Cheng crazily wielded the Twin Wings of the Heavenly Clouds, after flying for almost half a day, Ning Cheng finally could not continue anymore. At the same time, he found out that there were no starry skies' Spirit Devouring Rats around him. Moreover, that strong aura that locked on to him had also complete disappeared.
Ning Cheng finally stopped and sucked in a few deep breaths while cursing inwardly. This starry skies' beast tide was just too scary. Previously, Lan Ya and Shi Yulan had mentioned that they wanted to become starry skies' wanderers. At that time, Ning Cheng had thought that they had decided that based on adequate information and experience. However, everyone's path was their own personal choice; as such, he did not want to interfere with what other people choose for themselves.
Ning Cheng took out the imitation Celestial River Class Battleship while simultaneously bringing out Lan Ya and Shi Yulan.
"Did we really escape?" Lan Ya asked while looking at the vast starry skies all around. How could they not even see a shred of those starry skies' Spirit Devouring Rats?
Ning Cheng spoke with a tired voice, "Yes, we escaped. I have to go in and rest. This battleship has the positional coordinates of the Man Lun Star Land. Senior Apprentice Sister Lan and Junior Apprentice Sister Yulan, I will have to trouble you to take control of it."
"Ning Cheng, go in and take rest. Leave the rest to me." Lan Ya spoke with a gratitude-filled tone. This kind of life-saving graciousness was not something that she could express with just thanks.
Ning Cheng immediately went into one of the battleship's cabin to rest; however, Lan Ya and Shi Yulan felt waves surging within their hearts. The pair took joint control of the Celestial River Battleship for over several days and even then could not wholly calm down.
"Senior Apprentice Lan, what are you thinking?" Shi Yulan on seeing Lan Ya's always-hesitant expression finally asked.
Lan Ya did not immediately answer Shi Yulan but looked at Shi Yulan and asked, "Junior Apprentice Sister Yulan, what are you thinking?"
Shi Yulan bowed her head and remained silent for a long time before she finally shook her head and replied, "I don't know."
"Junior Apprentice Sister Yulan, I don't want to head to the Time Wilderness. My cultivation is still too low. If we go in, we might end up dragging down Ning Cheng. I have already set my heart on becoming a starry skies' wanderer. After we reach the Bell Edge Star, I will say my goodbyes to Ning Cheng." Lan Ya looked deep into the starry skies outside the Celestial River Battleship. Although her tone remained relaxed, it gave off a feeling of firm determination.
The Bell Edge Star was a star within the Man Lun Starry Skies, and near to the Man Lun Star Land
Out of Lan Ya's expectation, Shi Yulan did not feel surprised. She also stared into the vast and empty starry skies before her and spoke up after a long time, "Senior Apprentice Sister Lan, what you don't plan to say, I plan to say that. Our cultivation and strength have no comparison to other powerful Celestial Scryer Cultivators. Senior Apprentice Brother Ning also has saved me a few times; however, I can't rely on him forever."
Lan Ya showed a smile, "Junior Apprentice Sister Yulan, it is I who should speak that sentence. I just wanted to tell you that after I leave, you should continue to remain at Ning Cheng's side."
Shi Yulan also showed a faint smile before shaking her head and speaking, "Senior Apprentice Sister Lan, I already have a man I love, and I can never forget his appearance. Every time I close my eyes, it is as if I am leaning beside him. In this world, no one can replace that man. Although Senior Apprentice Brother Ning is a good man, he is not mine, and I also can't be with him."
"Is it that starry skies' Wanderer?" Lan Ya asked as she looked into Shi Yulan's eyes.
Shi Yulan's face showed a hint of ruddiness before she finally nodded and spoke, "Yes, I love him. If only I could be with him, wandering the starry skies together, relying on one another… I wish I could give him a child, and we all could travel the starry skies, together…."
As Shi Yulan spoke, her tone gradually turned soft and gentle. She already had an unparalleled face, and because of those tender and soft words along with her blush, it made her face look even more beautiful. Even Lan Ya could only stare at her in stunned silence.
Lan Ya held Shi Yulan's hand before looking at her and speaking, "Junior Apprentice Sister Yulan, I know that you are very well aware that that starry skies' Wanderer is Ning Cheng. Since the Orchid Borough Celestial River's 9-Step Obscure Array, we have all known about it. It is just that we never choose to talk about it. After I leave, you can remain at Ning Cheng's side. He is also not an utterly unfeeling cultivator, you….."
Without waiting for Lan Ya to finish talking, Shi Yulan interrupted Lan Ya, "Senior Apprentice Sister Lan, I know. I already knew that Senior Apprentice Brother Ning is that starry skies' Wanderer; however, he cannot replace the starry skies' Wanderer in my heart. He is Senior Apprentice Brother Ning, which is different. Maybe you would not understand, but I know it in my heart. I know it very well……"
Lan Ya looked at Shi Yulan in amazement; she had a vague understanding of what was going on. Shi Yulan fell in love with the starry skies Wanderer, not Ning Cheng who stood right in front of her eyes. The person she saw in her heart, that person did not even exist.
"I understand….." Lan Ya grabbed Shi Yulan's shoulder and spoke up with a broken voice.
Shi Yulan immediately burst into tears, and only after a long while, did she shake her head and speak, "Elder Sister Lan Ya, you don't understand."
Lan Ya felt shocked. At this moment, she finally understood Shi Yulan's heart. She sighed and took Shi Yulan, still crying, into her arms and spoke softly, "Junior Apprentice Sister Yulan, come with me to the starry skies. Let's look for things that we must look for."
The crying Shi Yulan gradually calmed down. She walked to the deck of the Celestial River Battleship and looked at the vast starry skies in front of her. After a while, she finally spoke up softly, "The vast skies, the vines in the east, like the yellow bird, but no mulberries in the middle; to have stars flash and twinkle, but not for me……"
After the song spread out and dispersed into the vast starry skies, it only left behind faint ending tones.
By this time, Ning Cheng had fully recovered. Moreover, because of his Starry Skies' Sea of Consciousness formidable strength, even though he consumed most of his power for inducing teleport-like speeds of his Twin Wings of the Heavenly Clouds, he could recover a lot quicker compared to the past.
Just as he was about to come out, Ning Cheng heard Shi Yulan's song. He immediately stopped, letting Shi Yulan's song seep into his bones. Ning Cheng had to admit that he had never heard such a beautiful song until now.
It was just that the meaning of the lyrics was a little mournful, roughly translated, "Within the vast and boundless skies, I am like a vine without roots which spreads among the skies without any direction. I seem to be like a tired yellow finch that roamed the skies without finding a mulberry tree to perch. Although there is a star that shines brightly within the sky beckoning me, I know that it is not where I go…"