Journey to the Extreme North

As Ye Ye spoke, a suit of armor appeared around him. Made of black scales, it covered his entire body and looked sleek and mechanical.

Ye Ye had actually stumbled upon it by accident. He'd discovered a suit of armor inside the Godzilla Blade that he could summon. He could also leave a trace of his will in the Godzilla Blade and control it remotely.

Ye Ye: "Today, I'm going to rid the people of evil!"

With that, Ye Ye leaped down.

Lu Xinyi: "You little Lao Liu, you dare show off in front of an expert? Brothers, charge!"

All the soldiers behind him summoned their Martial Souls and Soul Rings. In the darkness, a riot of colorful lights appeared, making for a dazzling sight.

Ye Ye's eyes glowed faintly red. He charged forward, raised his sword, and leaped into the air. After a few swings, several blue sword beams shot toward them.

The sword beams cleaved through some of the soldiers, splitting them in two. Ye Ye then plunged into the crowd and began fighting them at close range.

Everyone who came into contact with the Godzilla Blade was torn to pieces, spraying blood and gore. In an instant, countless soldiers were dead or wounded. Someone took advantage of the chaos and slashed Ye Ye with a blade, but it had no effect. There was only a white mark on the Godzilla Armor, but it vanished as soon as the wind blew. It turned out to be a fragment from the attacker's shattered blade.

Ye Ye himself hadn't suffered so much as a scratch. He turned and cut the man who had slashed him in two. Ye Ye had always repaid every grudge.

A little while later, everyone had been killed by Ye Ye. Only Lu Xinyi remained.

Lu Xinyi: "Sir, I didn't mean to do it! Spare my life, and I'll repay you handsomely!"

Ye Ye: "It's a swordsman's duty to rid the people of evil. You're a dead man!"

Seeing that there was no way out, Lu Xinyi began cursing. "What kind of damned swordsman are you? I'll make you pay for this!"

Ye Ye: "Maybe in your next life."

With that, Ye Ye swung his sword, and a head rolled to the ground!

Ye Ye dismissed the Godzilla Armor, then looked at the Godzilla Blade. "Xiao Ai, nothing's changed!"

Aside from a few bloodstains, the Godzilla Blade had shown no change at all. However, it was actually absorbing the blood.

[ Ding! The time is not yet right. When the time comes, it will awaken naturally! ]

Ye Ye: "Looks like I'll have to keep ridding the people of evil!"

Suddenly, Ye Ye thought of something. He grinned and carved two big characters into the wall with his sword: "Lao Liu"!

More than half a year passed.

It was winter now. For some reason, this year's winter was especially cold. It had started snowing as early as the beginning of winter.

Ye Ye sat in a little village tavern, sipping wine and eating snacks. A swig of wine in the depths of winter warmed him from head to toe. Life was wonderfully comfortable.

No one knew that Ye Ye had become famous throughout the Heaven Dou Empire. But no one actually knew who he was. They only knew the name "Lao Liu"!

Just then, the door opened, and several people came in, bringing a few snowflakes with them.

They found a table and said to the owner, "Two jars of your finest wine, please, and a few dishes!"

Owner: "Coming right up!"

The men poured themselves some wine and took several hearty gulps. Then they began chatting.

First Big Brother: "Have you heard? The great hero Lao Liu has taken down another corrupt official!"

Second Big Brother: "That's right! I heard about it, too. The great hero Lao Liu is a real good guy!"

Another man: "Brothers, who's this Lao Liu you're talking about? Why does everyone keep bringing him up?"

First Big Brother glanced at him, then said, "You're from the Star Luo Empire, aren't you? The great hero Lao Liu is a swordsman!"

Stranger: "A swordsman?"

First Big Brother: "That's right, a swordsman! The great hero Lao Liu appeared out of nowhere half a month ago. He's been ridding the people of evil and killing corrupt officials! He even returned the money they stole—cough, I mean, the money he got back from the corrupt officials—to us!"

Stranger: "So he really is a great hero!"

The more Ye Ye listened, the happier he became. He stood up and said, "Of course Lao Liu is a great hero! And he's incredibly handsome, too!"

Stranger: "Oh! How handsome?"

Ye Ye: "You could say he's dashing, charming, elegant, and exceptionally distinguished!"

Stranger: "You must really admire the great hero Lao Liu! So why is he called Lao Liu?"

Ye Ye: "Well..."

Ye Ye had just made the name up on a whim. He couldn't exactly explain what "Lao Liu" really meant!

So Ye Ye improvised: "The name 'Lao Liu' has two parts. 'Lao' is an adjective meaning 'super,' 'very,' or 'extremely.' 'Liu' means '666,' and '666' means really powerful, really awesome. So 'Lao Liu' means someone who's unbelievably powerful!"

After making that up, Ye Ye wiped the cold sweat from his brow. Who would believe such an explanation? Probably only a Da Congming!

The stranger and the two brothers said, "So that's what it means! Thanks for explaining, brother!"

Ye Ye was stunned. He couldn't believe they really were Da Congmings!

Before he could react, they said, "Then I want to be a Lao Liu, too!"

Ye Ye was stunned again. Who would've thought Lao Lius were right there beside him? People in the other world all hated Lao Lius, yet these men wanted to become them!

Ye Ye: "Ahem, ahem!"

Then Ye Ye left. He'd been killing evildoers all this time, but the Godzilla Blade still hadn't changed in the slightest.

Ye Ye was planning to head to the Extreme North. That's right, the Extreme North. There was a sign-in location there, so he had to go. Maybe this time he'd get the Godzilla Ice Form. Wouldn't that solve his problem with the cold?

After making up his mind, Ye Ye prepared to set out for the Extreme North. He didn't need to bring anything. First, he didn't need food, since he didn't need to eat. If he really had to, he might as well have a Nuclear Rice.

Then there was the matter of keeping warm. Ye Ye was afraid of the cold, but given his current constitution, if a person could feel cold, clothes wouldn't do a thing to help.

Ye Ye set off. He was in the south, while the Extreme North lay at the northernmost end, so he would have to cross the Heaven Dou and Star Luo Empires.

Ye Ye set out at once. He had to pass through Nuoding City first, which reminded him of his godson, Tang San.

Ye Ye: "Sigh! I wonder how my godson's doing. According to the story, he should be doing pretty well. I just don't know if Yu Xiaogang has returned to Nuoding Academy! If he has, I'll give him a hand. If not, I'll help my dear godson train!"

With that settled, Ye Ye hit the road.

He crossed forests, walked over grasslands, waded through streams, and endured half a month of hardships as he traveled thousands of miles. At last, he arrived in Nuoding City.

All right, it wasn't nearly that dramatic. Ye Ye had just gotten lost, and then gotten lost again. After wandering around for a week, he finally started following "Unscrupulous Navigation"!

(I realized Unscrupulous Navigation hadn't appeared in a long time, so I'm giving it a role again!)

Ye Ye had also been punishing evil and promoting good along the way, killing some street thugs and corrupt officials.

Ye Ye entered Nuoding City. It was just as familiar as ever.

Unscrupulous Navigation: "You still don't know your way around, do you?"

Ye Ye: "How could that be!"

Ye Ye felt insulted and snapped back angrily!

This was the first city he'd visited after arriving on Douluo Continent. It was also where he'd met the protagonist, Tang San, who had accepted him as his adoptive father. Ye Ye remembered it very clearly.

Ye Ye thought it over and realized he might not remember it all that well after all!

Ye Ye: "Uh... well..."

Unscrupulous Navigation: "Goodbye!"

Ye Ye: "Wait!"

But Unscrupulous Navigation was already gone. It didn't answer, no matter what Ye Ye said, so he had no choice but to ask someone else for directions!

Ye Ye cursed to himself, What a useless navigation system. One day, I'll break you!

(Don't get the wrong idea~ Heh heh heh!)

Ye Ye found an old man sitting down to rest and asked him for directions!

Ye Ye: "Sir, where's Nuoding Academy?"

Old Man: "What academy?"

Ye Ye: "Nuoding! Nuoding Academy!"

Old Man: "Nuoding what?"

Ye Ye: "Nuoding Academy!"

Old Man: "What Ding Academy?"

Ye Ye: "Never mind!"

Ye Ye thought the old man might genuinely be hard of hearing, but then he noticed the greed in his eyes and the reek of money about him. Suddenly, he understood!

Ye Ye took out a pouch of Gold Soul Coins and said, "I'll ask one last time. If you can't hear me, forget it!"

The unspoken meaning was: This is your last chance. Answer or don't.

(The author is being thoughtful: Some readers might not know what "forget it" means. It means "never mind," but "forget it" sounds more casual!)

The old man took Ye Ye by the hand and said, "I'm old, and my hearing's not so good. But I'm fine now. You're asking for Nuoding Academy, right? Turn left at the intersection up ahead, then keep going straight and you'll get there!"

Ye Ye handed him the Gold Soul Coins. "You really are a good old man!"

Ye Ye deliberately raised his voice on the word "good."

Old Man: "Thanks for the compliment!"

Ye Ye: "..."

(Your old man is still your old man!)

Ye Ye headed in the direction the old man had pointed. Before long, he saw the gates of Nuoding Academy!

Ye Ye walked straight toward the entrance. Two gate guards were on duty there, and one of them was the guard who had been there the first time Ye Ye visited the academy.

When the other guard saw Ye Ye approaching, he shouted, "Hey, you! Move along!"

The guard who recognized Ye Ye panicked. He knew Ye Ye was powerful, even if he didn't know the full extent of it.

The other guard came over, slapped the one who had shouted at Ye Ye, and roared, "Get lost, you idiot!"

The guard who'd been slapped: "Boss, why'd you hit me?"

The guard who recognized Ye Ye: "Because of those titanium-alloy dog eyes of yours! How can you call him an outsider? This is Teacher Ye!"

Guard: "But I've never seen him before!"

The guard who recognized Ye Ye: "There are plenty of people you've never seen. Do you think you're someone who gets to meet an important figure like him?"

Then the guard who recognized Ye Ye went over to him and said ingratiatingly, "Teacher Ye! Please come in!"

Author's Note:

Today's first chapter is done. My phone broke, so I haven't had any chapters saved up these past few days. I'll have to work harder now. Of course, you definitely won't see this line; by the time you do, it'll be after National Day.