Farewell Gift, Return to the Lower Realm

Jiang Chen watched as the earth shook and the mountains trembled, immediately leading Ye Hongyu and Li Jiang to the barrier around Fruit Mountain.

"Brother Jiang Chen, what do we do? There's a barrier—we can't get out!"

Rumble—

Jiang Chen raised the Zhuxian Sword and struck out, but the barrier only tore open a small crack before rapidly repairing itself.

"Looks like I'll need a full-power strike to break it."

Jiang Chen turned to the two of them again. "Once the barrier breaks, fly out at full speed."

The two nodded.

"First Divine Skill, Myriad Swords Return to the Sect."

The gigantic Zhuxian Sword manifested tens of thousands of phantom blades, their aura not the least bit weaker than the original sword.

"Damn it, break for me!"

Boom—

The thunderous blasts continued without end as the barrier was torn open directly from a single crack. "Go!"

The two figures shot out of Fruit Mountain the instant the opening appeared.

"Damn it, I'm not even out yet, and you're already closing up?!"

Seeing the barrier about to recover, Jiang Chen slashed out several more times, then flashed forward and flew beyond it.

"Phew~ Brothers inside, you've had it rough."

Jiang Chen looked at the gods within Fruit Mountain's barrier, whose eyes were practically popping out, and smiled. "Brothers inside, you've had it rough."

Jiang Chen returned to Ye Hongyu's side, and the three of them flew into the distance together.

"Brother Li, Miss Hongyu, once we reach Clear Moon City, I'll be leaving."

"..."

Outside Clear Moon City, Li Jiang cupped his hands toward Jiang Chen. "Brother Jiang Chen, when you return to the God Realm someday, remember to come find me at the Liyue Sect."

After saying that, Li Jiang entered Clear Moon City.

"Young Master Jiang, when you come to the God Realm in the future, remember to find me at the Dao God Sect. Until we meet again..."

Seeing Ye Hongyu about to leave, Jiang Chen immediately caught her slender jade-like hand.

"Wait, I have something for you."

Jiang Chen promptly took out a pendant of smooth, delicate jade. "This jade is called the Soul-Cleansing Jade. After you recognize it as your master with a drop of blood and wear it on your body, it can eliminate the barriers encountered when breaking through realms."

"It can also give you a sliver of an opportunity to break through to the Supreme God."

Jiang Chen gently opened Ye Hongyu's hand, placed the Soul-Cleansing Jade in her palm, and lowered his voice.

"Young Master Jiang, I can't accept this..."

Before Ye Hongyu could finish, Jiang Chen turned into a rainbow streak and flew toward the horizon.

Ye Hongyu stared blankly at the Soul-Cleansing Jade in her hand. "Young Master Jiang, I... will wait for you to return."

Jiang Chen flew to an empty sea of clouds devoid of people. Along the way, he had sensed that this was the place where the barrier's energy was weakest. Opening a passage between the two realms would inevitably cause a commotion; with no one here, opening the passage would be easy and unlikely to draw notice.

Holding the Zhuxian Sword, Jiang Chen gave it a light slash, and a vortex appeared.

Jiang Chen leaped down. The instant he entered the vortex, he closed the passage.

The breeze was gentle and the clouds were light. It was a familiar feeling.

After landing, Jiang Chen looked around and found himself surrounded by mountains, with no sign of human habitation.

His spiritual power swept across the area, and he discovered a village a hundred li away. Riding the clear wind beneath his feet, Jiang Chen sped toward it.

Before long, several children were playing outside a tranquil village as a youth in white gradually approached.

"Kids, do you know where this is?"

Hearing someone call to them, the children stared blankly at Jiang Chen. Seeing his splendid clothes, their eyes lit up.

"Big brother, your clothes are so pretty~"

Children always focused on the most unexpected things.

"Kids, do you know where this is?"

Jiang Chen flashed a brilliant smile and asked again.

"This is Grass Temple Village!"

The child spoke innocently, curiosity written all over his face.

Grass Temple Village—why did that sound so familiar?

Jiang Chen only felt as though he had heard the name of this village somewhere before, but he could not recall it for the moment.

"Then which empire does this place belong to?"

The children all scratched their heads and shook them.

"Sigh~ Can you take me to see the village chief?"

Jiang Chen took out four lollipops and handed one to each of them.

"Okay, big brother!"

"Jingyu, come with me and take big brother to see Grandpa Village Chief."

"Okay..."

Two children ran over to Jiang Chen and led him into the village.

"Wait, what did you just call him?"

Jiang Chen suddenly remembered and asked.

"Jingyu~"

"Hehe~ Big brother, my name is Lin Jingyu..."

Lin Jingyu wiped his nose and grinned foolishly.

Jiang Chen froze. "Then is his name Zhang Xiaofan?"

The other child looked at Jiang Chen in surprise. "Big brother, how did you know?"

Jiang Chen: So you're both protagonists, huh?

"Grandpa Village Chief~"

Zhang Xiaofan and Lin Jingyu ran toward a small thatched hut ahead. Before long, a white-haired old man emerged, leaning on a cane.

"Young master, what can this old man do for you?"

The old man asked with a kind smile.

Jiang Chen explained his purpose to the village chief. The chief nodded in sudden understanding. "Indeed, this place is remote and desolate, with many forests. It's very easy to get lost."

"This is within the borders of the Balak Kingdom. Wuhun City, where you're headed, is several thousand li to the north."

"Thank you, sir. I have nothing else on me, so please accept some worldly coin as a token of gratitude."

Jiang Chen took out a hundred gold soul coins and handed them to the village chief.

The village chief was truly startled. He had lived in this desolate place his entire life—when had he ever seen so much money?

"Young master, I can't accept this, I truly can't!"

The village chief refused, but Jiang Chen was nowhere to be seen.

"Grandpa Village Chief, big brother left."

"Left? Go bring him back! I would be ashamed to accept so much money!"

Lin Jingyu pointed at the sky. "Big brother flew away."

"Jingyu, how could a person possibly fly?"

The village chief looked up into the sky with a stunned expression. A figure was slowly vanishing beyond the horizon.

"Are there really... really immortals in this world?"

Jiang Chen rode his sword through the air, his long hair fluttering beside his ears. He looked carefree and unrestrained, carrying the bearing of a sword immortal.

Inside Wuhun Hall, Bibi Dong sat upon the throne, her gaze icy. "Have you found Xiao Chen?"

Chrysanthemum Douluo knelt on one knee and carefully replied, "Reporting to Your Majesty, not yet."

"Leave. Continue searching for him!"

"Yes."

Chrysanthemum Douluo walked out of the great hall, cold sweat sliding down his forehead. The Pope had made him search for Jiang Chen for two months straight, yet he still had not found him. Every time, he truly had no idea how to report back.

"They're all useless trash! They can't even find one person!"

A trace of anger appeared on Bibi Dong's cold, beautiful face. Jiang Chen had been missing for nearly three months, with no leads whatsoever. She wished she could turn the entire continent upside down to find him.

"Teacher, has junior brother still not been found?"

Hu Liena entered the hall, her face full of worry.

Ever since the night she had gone to see Jiang Chen, he had vanished without a trace. Panic had also begun to rise in her heart.

"He still hasn't been found. Since Xiao Chen can't be located, you'll have to serve as the team leader for the Advanced Soul Master Tournament. Go prepare first."

"Yes, Teacher."

Hu Liena left the great hall. A trace of self-reproach flashed across Bibi Dong's face. "Xiao Chen, you mustn't let anything happen to you. If you can return, your teacher would be willing to do anything."

Jiang Chen, who was flying through the sky on his sword while releasing his spiritual power to search, looked stunned. What had Teacher just said?

"Hehe... then I won't hold back!"