The Strange Races of the Dou Qi Continent

"You can think of it as a sect."

Xiao Chen offered that explanation anyway.

Then he looked at Yin Yuandong again and asked, "Aside from the unusual statue, is there anything else strange about that hall?"

Yin Yuandong said, "Yes, quite a few things."

"They say that every night, ghostly wails and wolfish howls come from that hall. Some people who knew nothing about it once spent the night there and ended up being eaten by strange races."

"Those things can't hurt us."

The young woman in military attire spoke from behind them, her voice full of pride and confidence.

"What about the rest of Poison Cloud Mountain?" Xiao Chen asked.

Yin Yuandong had suddenly appeared here, so he definitely had some secret he could not divulge.

Still, given the old fellow's temperament, he really did enjoy exploring with young people.

He never seemed to find it troublesome, either-

Next, Yin Yuandong told them everything he had learned about Poison Cloud Mountain.

Three places interested Xiao Chen the most.

One was the Purple Wood Forest on the western side of Poison Cloud Mountain. No one knew what kind of trees grew there, and deadly poisonous miasma shrouded it year-round. Any ordinary person who wandered inside could forget about coming back out.

Another was a pitch-black trail on the back of Poison Cloud Mountain, said to be crawling with bloodthirsty strange races.

The third was a dark green poison pool at the summit of Poison Cloud Mountain. Poisonous fumes filled the air above it, making it impossible to approach.

Besides these three places, Poison Cloud Mountain had other dangerous areas.

But to Xiao Chen, these three were the ones that mattered most.

The Purple Wood Forest and the dark green poison pool would both be excellent nourishment for Xiao Yi Xian.

As for the pitch-black trail, he wanted to see just how strange the strange races of the Dou Qi Continent really were.

"Yin Yuandong, take us to that garden first!"

The young woman in military attire suddenly spoke.

She had heard what Yin Yuandong had said too, and had made her choice from among the many locations.

Yin Yuandong shuddered all over and said fearfully, "Miss, that's an extremely dangerous place-"

The young woman interrupted him. "Say no more. Just take us there. I guarantee you won't come to any harm."

Yin Yuandong sighed, looked at Xiao Chen, and asked, "What do you think?"

"Sure."

Xiao Chen answered casually.

He had originally planned to take Xiao Yi Xian straight to that poisonous swamp.

If he had not run into this old fellow, he would never have traveled with these people.

Hearing Xiao Chen's answer, the young woman's slender brows furrowed.

A guard beside her lowered his voice. "There's no need to worry, miss. If this man interferes with our mission, we can simply kill him."

The young woman gave a hum of acknowledgment and said nothing more.

As they talked, they had already traveled some distance.

Poison Cloud Mountain took its name from the words "poison" and "cloud."

"Poison," naturally, referred to the many poisonous things on the mountain.

"Cloud" had to do with the peculiar weather here.

From outside, the skies above Poison Cloud Mountain looked clear and bright.

But once they entered Poison Cloud Mountain, an entirely different sight greeted them.

Overhead, dark clouds crowded the sky, leaving everything gray and dim.

Gusts of mountain wind blew past, and the vegetation and oddly shaped rocks made all manner of sounds. A stifling air spread through the surroundings.

"I thought it was just a naturally formed poisonous mountain. Now it seems it isn't as simple as I imagined."

Xiao Chen looked thoughtful.

He had noticed a few clues.

"Be careful, everyone. We've entered the mountain now, and we're very likely to encounter unexpected dangers along the way."

Yin Yuandong's expression grew solemn.

Xiao Chen immediately scoffed inwardly.

"Everyone, draw your weapons. Don't be careless. If we encounter any danger, remember to protect the young lady immediately."

At those words, the black-robed middle-aged man barked in a deep voice.

"Yes!"

The guards immediately sprang into action.

The young woman in military attire also drew her sword.

When she saw Xiao Chen still behaving as though nothing was happening, even chatting and laughing with Xiao Yi Xian beside him, she froze briefly before giving a cold snort.

This older sister must have been blinded by that fellow's good looks!

Hurry up and let some danger appear.

Let's see what a coward he looks like when he's scared out of his wits!

As they continued, the clouds grew heavier and heavier, even taking on a faint dark red tinge.

Together with the mist that filled the mountain, they impaired everyone's vision.

Suddenly, a gust of wind blew past, carrying a trace of chill.

Yin Yuandong's expression changed drastically. "This is bad! Something has set its sights on us! We can't go any farther!"

But just then, the black-robed middle-aged man gave a cold snort.

He took out a pitch-black bone saber and sprang forward.

Swish!

A dazzling flash of saber light shot out, immediately followed by a shrill scream.

"It was only a Bat Monster with strength around that of a two-star Dou Shi. No need to panic. Yin Yuandong, keep leading the way."

The black-robed middle-aged man looked calm, his entire bearing radiating a murderous chill.

Xiao Chen nodded slightly.

Yin Yuandong let out a long breath of relief and cupped his hands. "So you possess such formidable strength, sir. This old man needn't be afraid anymore."

Even one of her guards is a Five-Star Dou Ling. Just who is this young woman in military attire?

Xiao Chen looked thoughtful.

Within the Jia Ma Empire, a Dou Ling already counted as a powerful figure in their own right.

The group continued onward.

They encountered no further mishaps along the way.

Poison Cloud Mountain was enormous. Only after a full four hours did they finally reach the mountainside.

"Look, Xiao Chen. That over there is the hall I mentioned, the one that enshrines a statue of a Dou Di."

Upon reaching this point, Yin Yuandong pointed into the distance as he spoke.

Everyone looked over, but all they could see was a bank of mist, with what seemed to be a building faintly visible within it.

"If we're too tired on the way back, we can rest in that hall."

As the young woman spoke, she was about to tell Yin Yuandong to keep leading the way.

Just then, an aura spread toward them from the distance.

"Hm?"

Everyone froze.

"Someone's there?"

The young woman showed no fear. Instead, curiosity appeared on her face.

"So someone reached Poison Cloud Mountain before us?"

"That appears to be the case."

The black-robed middle-aged man spoke in a deep voice.

"Now that's interesting."

After a moment's thought, the young woman decided, "In that case, let's go take a look. It won't delay us much."

Xiao Chen and Xiao Yi Xian exchanged a glance, both looking puzzled.

Logically, no one should have come to a place like Poison Cloud Mountain.

In a place like this, even poison masters risked being poisoned to death.

Yet why had so many people come here now?

The group immediately changed direction and headed toward the hall.

Leading the way, Yin Yuandong said with a smile, "That hall is quite safe during the day. There's no need to worry about danger."

Before long, the group reached the area in front of the hall.

Suddenly, the young woman, who had been walking with a calm expression, stumbled.

When she saw what had tripped her, her expression changed drastically.

It was unmistakably a skull buried in rotting leaves.

Stained with grime and dust, its hollow eye sockets stared at the heavens.

Although she was bold, suddenly seeing a skull like this still gave her a fright.

Xiao Yi Xian also felt her hair stand on end.

Xiao Chen merely glanced at it before looking away.

As for the young woman's guards, they were even more composed.

They had all been on battlefields and survived countless bloody clashes. A mere skull was nothing to them.

But before they had gone much farther, everyone's footsteps halted.