Chapter 320 - Crescent City

After dawn, Xiaolang started to head towards a place with signs of civilization, and soon, a small city appeared ahead. It was almost the same size as Yuanling City and its satellite city, Yuanyang City. It was considered smaller than Yuanling, so the strongest cultivators there were at the Heavenly Core Realm.

Since they did not know if there were informants of the royal family within this city, Long Chen did not plan to let Ling Xi and Xiaolang enter. He hid them in a secluded area of the forest outside the city gates, gave them a few reminders, and then went up to the gates himself. There were characters carved above the city gates, and from them, he learned that the city was named Crescent City.

However, this was not important to him. When he saw that the guards at the gates were much stricter, he was privately shocked. He did not enter immediately, but focused on listening to their conversation from far. Since he had super hearing, he could faintly hear what they were talking about despite the distance.

“There is such a huge commotion! Where in the world has Long Chen run to? They’ve already mobilized people throughout the whole Cangyang Kingdom looking for him. I heard that he has a woman without any cultivation with him, so he can’t travel very fast. So why hasn’t anyone heard anything yet?”

“Maybe he escaped? Long Chen’s famous now. He committed a serious crime; he was bold enough to kill the Ninth Prince! That’s ridiculous.”

“Escaped? That’s impossible. The commander said that the imperial capital has mobilized many people, and most of them are heading west, which is our way. Long Chen is a tiny brat that no one had heard about before; how could he escape their tight web?”

“I hope he gets caught soon. We'll have to stare at nothing all day long until that happens. And they scold us whenever we lose focus for even a moment.”

Long Chen’s heart sank. Indeed, the royals were coming.

His strength had recovered over the past few days, and he had completed his Divine Fire Clone preparations. Although Xiaolang could not use the Nine Devils Ancestral Fire for the moment, he had reached Category Five Earth-tier and gained extraordinary strength due to the nine Fire Essences. However, fighting against the imperial masters was the same as striking a rock with an egg.

His heart was heavy. However, Long Chen would not give up so easily. Now that he knew they were coming, he had to think about his retaliation plan. He could not enter Crescent City through the entrance right now, but how could a small city, whose strongest cultivator was only at the Heavenly Core Realm, stop him? He moved towards the city wall and slipped inside.

It was early morning, so the main streets were silent. Long Chen took out his hooded cloak and covered his face. There were many people unwilling to reveal their faces in this era, so he did not stand out.

At Crescent City, Long Chen used the divine jades left from his time at Yuanling City to buy daily necessities used by most normal people, preparing for all common scenarios. The basic necessities were clothing, food, shelter, and transport. He knew that while he could not provide shelter and transport, at least he could make the necessary preparations for Ling Xi’s food and clothing.

“Boss, do you have a map of the Cangyang Kingdom for sale?” he asked casually after making a payment and putting his goods in his Universe Pouch.

The shopkeeper was a rich-looking middle-aged man. His figure was similar to that of Li Wudi of Yuanling City’s Dawn Trading Alliance, but he was only at the Draconic Realm.

Since he could tell that Long Chen was likely an expert, the man was a little terrified. Worried that he could not serve Long Chen well, and Long Chen clearly needed it, he thought for a moment and quickly said apologetically, “I’m sorry, we do not sell maps here. But ...”

“But what?” Long Chen blurted.

“I personally have one. If you’d like, Sir, I can give you mine. You did buy a lot of stuff after all.” The fat boss smiled widely.

“Thank you so much.”

After receiving the map from the shopkeeper, Long Chen left. He was already drenched in sweat when Long Chen walked out. He trembled as he looked in the direction Long Chen had gone in, then stuttered, “W-w-will I really receive one million divine jades ...”

***

After he left Crescent City, Long Chen dashed straight for the forest. He had an excellent memory and also the Soul Swallowing Gaze, which allowed him to see souls, so finding Ling Xi and Xiaolang was easy. However, his killing intent rose when he noticed that there were bandits surrounding them. Since they had not attacked, it was clear that they had just arrived.

Xiaolang had not transformed into his combat state. The bandits were only at the Earthly Core Realm at most, so they were nothing to him. He was waiting for them to talk a bit more, thus revealing more information, then he would attack.

“This woman is beautiful! I’ve gone through many women in my lifetime, but I’ve never seen one this pretty!”

Most of the bandits had the same comment. However, when they saw Xiaolang, they recalled the shocking one-million-divine-jade bounty.

Long Chen had killed the Ninth Prince and fled. The imperial family had stated that whoever found them would immediately receive a million divine jades. That was more than what the most powerful person in Crescent City had! And that was enough for the bandits to enjoy the rest of their lives without worry.

“Big Brother, the beautiful girl and the young black wolf are here. Aren’t these the people who killed the Ninth Prince? But the main culprit, Long Chen, still hasn’t appeared yet.”

Everyone was naturally excited with this realization. Only the leader suddenly frowned and shouted, “Scatter now! Run!”

His mind was racing. This person was an expert who could kill the Ninth Prince, so he was definitely powerful! They were mere bandits from a weak region, so they would be no match for him at all.

The moment he gave the command, shrieks of pain came from behind him. He turned around and saw a blurry silhouette moving at speeds barely visible to the naked eye! The bandits died everywhere he went. No one survived one punch from him!

In just a few breaths’ time, more than a hundred bandits collapsed and died. This person was very fast. The leader’s mind went blank. All the hard work he had put in throughout the years had been completely destroyed! All turned to nothing!

But that was not all. In front of Long Chen, he was no different than the rest of the bandits. Long Chen punched his abdomen, and he could not defend himself at all. The clothes on his back were torn to pieces from the force, and that was the end of his life.

Gently pushing the corpse away, Long Chen arrived in front of Ling Xi. He had made the purchases and received some information, so there was no reason to stay here.

“I was worried they would leak our location, so I killed them all. The whole Cangyang Kingdom is searching for us, so we must be extra careful. Xiaolang, maintain this state. I will carry Ling Xi on my back and rush to the wilderness for now. You’ll attract attention if you’re too large!”

After giving instructions, Long Chen crouched and said to Ling Xi, “Xiao Xi, get up here, I’ll carry you.”

“Huh?” Although she was often in his arms, this was her first time on his back, so it was a little unnatural.

“What are you waiting for? Come here,” Long Chen said with a frown as he looked back.

“Alright ...” Ling Xi was hesitant. Before she was ready, he grabbed her legs and supported her on his back.

“Let’s go.” He then dashed towards the wilderness. Based on the map, there was a vast forest to the left of Crescent City. If they could make it there, they would be safer.

Although Xiaolang was in his small form, it did not affect his speed. As they quickly disappeared into the forest, the sun rose.

Despite having Ling Xi on his back, Long Chen did not feel burdened. Instead, he felt comfortable. She was soft, and she was leaning on his back with arms around his neck. Feeling her soft chest on his back, he relished this almost skin-to-skin contact. Even when danger was looming, he would not forget to take advantage of her whenever he could.

What he was most affected by was the lotus fragrance coming from her body due to the Heavenly Profound Jade Lotus. It was refreshing and elegant.

As for Ling Xi, she could hardly move since he was holding her tightly. She could only hug him tightly, and his muscular back made her swoon. Color finally returned to her pale face because of this strange feeling.

“You jerk.” After he grabbed her, she shyly stuck out her neck and gently bit his ear. Then she quickly retracted back onto his back.

“What’s the matter, Ling Xi?” he asked, pretending nothing had happened.

“I want to bite your ear off so you’ll remember me forever. And then you’ll carry me forever,” she whispered.

“I’ll remember you for the rest of my life regardless. You don’t need to bite my ear,” he said, feigning fear.

“Perhaps ...” Ling Xi was not so sure about the future.