King of Creation
Chapter 227: Chapter 224: Encounter with Ghost Li (Requesting Guaranteed Monthly Tickets)
"This plain below is the Great Wilderness Plain, and that majestic city should be the Great Wilderness Pass. Once we pass through it, we enter the territory of the Sword Origin Empire."
On the plain, a martial artist, around twenty years old, was galloping wildly on horseback.
Beneath him was a Ghost-Eyed Jade Lion, capable of traveling three thousand miles a day. Above his head, a black cloud faintly hovered, closely following the movement of the Ghost-Eyed Jade Lion.
If an expert observed carefully, they would discover that within the black cloud hid a frightfully notorious Mid-grade Earth Level Demon Beast, the Cloud Winged Tiger.
With the Cloud Winged Tiger Cub present, the twenty-something martial artist galloping wildly below could naturally be none other than Ye Zhen.
At this time, Ye Zhen still had a square face, but his mouth corners drooped, and his once-upward arching eyebrows had turned into a straight line. His cheeks were taut, giving his cheekbones a protruding appearance. His original height of seven feet had also shrunk to six foot seven inches.
The change wasn’t much, but the appearance was drastically different!
With this appearance, not to mention Ye Zhen’s acquaintances, even Ye Zhen’s mother, Mi Jiangxue, wouldn’t recognize him.
After parting from Liu Datong, Ye Zhen had used the True Transformation Disguise Technique taught by Liu Datong to set such a very ordinary and slightly fierce appearance, and began to hurry on his way.
Traveling on the Cloud Winged Tiger was originally the best choice, but the Sect Leader had warned Ye Zhen on his way that the Cloud Winged Tiger Cub was Ye Zhen’s most significant marker, and it was best to show it less.
Moreover, for a martial artist at the Peak of Spirit Summoning Realm to fly alone would be very ostentatious.
On the way, Liu Datong had personally concocted a medicinal liquid to change the fur color. The originally pure white Cloud Winged Tiger Cub had turned into an imposing black tiger.
No, rather, a black cat.
With the Cloud Winged Tiger Cub’s grade breaking through to Mid-grade Earth Level, and having consumed plenty of Ning Shen Liquid from Caiyi at Qiyun Sect over the past month, the Universe Wishful Secret Technique that controlled size had also made a breakthrough.
It could now freely control the size of various body parts, shortening the legs or fattening the body as desired.
As they approached the Great Wilderness Pass, Ye Zhen waved his hand and the Cloud Winged Tiger Cub flying among the clouds swiftly into Ye Zhen’s arms.
It was indeed a genuine chubby black cat, especially the long cat tail, which was very conspicuous.
This cat tail had been intentionally controlled by Ye Zhen to make the Cloud Winged Tiger look more like a cat.
"Let’s go, into the city!"
Ye Zhen’s destination on this trip was the Phantom Divine Empire. To reach the Phantom Divine Empire, he had to first pass through half of the Sword Origin Empire and then go around the Gu’an Kingdom before arriving.
Moving forward, a majestic city stretching over dozens of miles soon appeared in Ye Zhen’s eyes.
Originally, the Great Wilderness Plain was an unending flatland. Over nearly a hundred years, as the Sword Origin Empire gradually expanded, they repeatedly surged forth from the Great Wilderness Plain into the Black Water Kingdom.
Later, the Great Wilderness Pass was built with the whole nation’s effort.
The Great Wilderness Pass on the Great Wilderness Plain is one of the three major border passes of the Black Water Kingdom and is the most formidable one.
It is said that in order to build the Great Wilderness Pass, the elders from the Qiyun Sect stayed here for years.
A hundred miles south of the Great Wilderness Pass, lies Beichang Town, a military town of the Sword Origin Empire. Because the terrain here is flat, which makes it easier to attack but harder to defend, most of the battles between the Sword Origin Empire and the Black Water Kingdom start from the Great Wilderness Pass.
With armies gathered from both nations, the Great Wilderness Pass gradually turned into Great Wilderness City, later attributing to being a border fortress where smugglers could be found everywhere, and needing constant repairs, it perennially drafted a hundred thousand civilians, making it as bustling as half the Black Water King’s City due to its abnormal prosperity.
However, as Ye Zhen entered Great Wilderness City, he was somewhat puzzled.
The city, which should have been bustling with people, was unusually quiet. Besides some merchants, there were hardly any pedestrians on the street, and the shops were eerily quiet.
Moreover, the normally strictly guarded Great Wilderness City had its gates wide open, and even the soldiers on the walls were scarce.
The scene was comparable to that of Ye Zhen’s hometown, Wusan County.
Though it was quiet, as soon as Ye Zhen, riding the Ghost-Eyed Jade Lion and looking every bit the Martial Arts Hero, entered the city, a shrewd beggar immediately approached.
"Sir, for just ten copper coins, I can guide you anywhere you wish! Whether to the Border Army Camp or the biggest business firm, or even the most popular brothel or the biggest and best tavern in town, I know them all!"
A snot-nosed, thin-as-a-rail beggar, risking being kicked by the Ghost-Eyed Jade Lion, grabbed the horse’s reins in Ye Zhen’s hand!
"The best tavern, lead the way!"
"Alright, sir. Whatever matter you have or whatever you want to buy, or if you have any questions, just ask. There’s nothing in Great Wilderness City that I don’t know. Just hoping for a few more copper coins from you, sir!"
The young beggar, around sixteen or seventeen, was very pleased that Ye Zhen had hired him.
"Heh, you know everything, huh! Then tell me, why is Great Wilderness City so unusually quiet? I heard that outside of wartime, it is as bustling as the Royal City," Ye Zhen casually asked.
"Hey, sir, you’ve asked the right person! Duke Wusan, the well-known Duke Wusan, you know him, right?"
"Duke Wusan? Hmm, I know!"
Ye Zhen thought how the conversation had taken a turn towards his own self, nodded in agreement, and let the young beggar continue.
"You know about the War Soul Blood Flag, right?"
Ye Zhen was stunned, "You, a young beggar, know about the War Soul Blood Flag?"
"Well, I’m not sure if the beggars in the inland areas know about the War Soul Blood Flag, but everyone here in Great Wilderness City knows about the War Soul Blood Flag!
That incident from over a decade ago, when the War Soul Blood Flag was taken by the cursed grandsons of the Sword Origin Empire, it really pained Great Wilderness City! My parents, it’s said, were drafted to repair the city walls at that time and died tragically..."
At this point, the young beggar’s eyes reddened, and he abruptly burst into tears.
"The old beggar who took me in told me that when my parents died, I was only three or four years old, surviving on food from various families! Ah, if only Duke Wusan had been born a decade earlier, my life wouldn’t have been so tough!"
"What does your hardship have to do with Duke Wusan?" Ye Zhen wondered.
"My lord, you don’t know, ever since the news that Duke Wusan reclaimed the War Soul Blood Flag came through, all the bastards from Sword Origin Empire in Beichang Military Town have hunkered down, fortifying day and night. Suddenly, there’s been much more stability here!"
"About two months ago, right after the news that Duke Wusan had gotten the War Soul Blood Flag had spread, a delegation from Sword Origin Nation arrived.
About a month ago, a decree came from the Royal City!
The decree allowed a hundred thousand civilians who had been serving here for years to return home, and they were also exempted from conscription next year! Moreover, half of the Border Army stationed at the Great Wilderness Pass were granted leave to go home and visit their families!
Just the other day, there was a joke going around that some returning border soldiers had not seen their families in three to four or even seven or eight years. Their sons and daughters couldn’t even recognize their fathers anymore, not to mention the number of cuckolds they unknowingly sired!"
This was a joke, but it somewhat soured Ye Zhen’s ears.
"My lord, imagine if Duke Wusan had been born a decade earlier and had reclaimed the War Soul Blood Flag sooner. My deceased parents would have made it back in time to demobilize and return home, right?
If my parents had caught a good time and returned home from service, then I wouldn’t have ended up an orphaned beggar, would I? Heck, I might even have gotten married by now!"
At these words, Ye Zhen’s heart suddenly jolted.
Only now did he somewhat understand why Sect Leader Guo Qijing confidently said that the Black Water Kingdom wouldn’t wage war within the next two to three years.
Ye Zhen had thought that reclaiming the War Soul Blood Flag would immediately provoke a counterattack from Black Water Kingdom. Surprisingly, they were focusing on recuperating first!
The Black Water Kingdom was weak, struggling with civilian hardships due to consecutive years of war.
However, the top brass of the Black Water Kingdom making such a bold decision must be related to the killing of five Sect Elders from Sword Origin Sect some days ago.
In other words, with the War Soul Blood Flag, Sword Origin Empire absolutely wouldn’t dare make any significant moves for the next five years.
However, battles among the sects were inevitable.
"By the way, why don’t you go back to your hometown?" Ye Zhen asked.
"Return to what hometown? When my parents died, there might have been someone in my hometown! I was only a few years old then; how could I have returned? Now that I am grown, the people in my hometown are probably all dead. Even if I went back, no one would recognize me. It’s better to just make a living here in Great Wilderness City..."
"Ah, the Hundred Battle Tower, we’re here! My lord, the Hundred Battle Tower is an established restaurant of Great Wilderness City for decades. Its most famous dish is the Snow Night Bow and Blade; you must try it!"
As they spoke, an attendant from the Hundred Battle Tower came forward to take their horses, while the little beggar looked hopefully at Ye Zhen for a reward.
"When you can, find a proper job!"
As he spoke, Ye Zhen tossed a weighty little money bag and then went upstairs.
The little beggar thought it contained copper coins. He opened it and was stunned to see at least five ingots of ten taels of silver each. With this silver, he could definitely start a decent small business.
The little beggar’s eyes immediately reddened. He knelt down on the spot and started kowtowing toward the ascending Ye Zhen.
"Thank you for the reward, my lord. Thank you for the reward. You are a great and good man like Duke Wusan. May you live a long life of a hundred years..."
Hearing this, Ye Zhen gave a wry smile and shook his head.
There were many suffering people in the world; all he could do was help one when he encountered one.
Once in the Hundred Battle Tower, the shopkeeper, who also had some cultivation and seemed to have broken through to the True Essence Realm, sensed the extraordinary aura around Ye Zhen and immediately approached him very cautiously.
"Shopkeeper, bring out whatever good dishes you have. Oh, and I heard there’s a dish called the Snow Night Bow and Blade; definitely serve that!" After several days of travel, Ye Zhen also wanted to pay homage to his stomach.
"Alright, sir, will you be staying at the inn?"
Ye Zhen shook his head, but the shopkeeper looked troubled and said, "Honored customer, could I open a guest room for you? You can take a comfortable bath, and we’ll bring the meal to you in the room, how about that?"
"That will do, but I see there aren’t many guests in your inn today?" Ye Zhen asked, looking puzzled.
"Honored customer, you might not be aware, but the great hero who captured the War Soul Blood Flag, the famous Duke Wusan, is passing through the Great Wilderness Pass today,
and the commander of the border army, martial arts heroes, various merchants are all eager to welcome Duke Wusan. They had booked the entire inn two days ago! Other guests could only stay in the guest rooms; we had to reserve the rest of the building!" The shopkeeper explained carefully with an apologetic smile.
At this, Ye Zhen was completely stunned.
He hadn’t told anyone that he would be passing through Great Wilderness Pass.
How could there be someone to welcome him?
And two days ago?
Two days ago, even Ye Zhen himself didn’t know if he could make it to Great Wilderness Pass today!
This was indeed strange; what was going on?
Suddenly, a rolling thunder of hooves resounded outside the Hundred Battle Tower. A youth dressed in brocade led a group of about a dozen riders, charging through the street like a whirlwind.
One of the knights, wearing armor, carried a large flag bearing "Duke Wusan Ye."
Almost simultaneously, hundreds of people rushed out from various enclosures below to greet the mounted youth in brocade.
"Honoréd guest, Duke Wusan has arrived. Please show us the courtesy of either dining elsewhere or tolerating a stay in the guest room," the shopkeeper said hurriedly, seeing the scene unfold.
Ye Zhen was quite exasperated.

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