Medical Sage

The path, which looked as if it had been cleaved through the mist by a sharp blade, seemed extremely long. Yet, after Chen Fei and his companion had taken only about a dozen steps, they reached what felt like the end of the road, as everything had suddenly become clear and bright.

Inside the formation was a verdant green valley brimming with the essence of spring. Although snow-covered trees and silver blossoms still dotted the landscape, the scene before them felt truly wondrous. The valley was surrounded by mountains on three sides, and the only exit appeared to be the strange, fog-covered slope from which they had just entered.

The valley was quite large, easily covering more than three hundred acres, and was filled with a great number of magnificent, palace-style buildings of varying heights with ornate carvings. Naturally, the valley was also bustling with people. Some were clad in modern-style cloaks, coats, and jeans, while others were dressed in peculiar, ancient attire, clearly identifying them as Ancient Martial Artists or Qi Practitioners who had spent years secluded in deep forests, detached from worldly affairs.

Upon seeing this, even someone with Chen Fei’s disposition could not help but squint and take a deep breath. The scene indeed reminded him of the fledgling Cultivation World he had seen in his dreams. This caused him to become somewhat lost in thought, his spirit seemingly wandering beyond the mortal realm.

”Mr. Chen, you’ve arrived?” Just then, an enthusiastic voice of a middle-aged man called out from a distance.

Following the sound, Chen Fei saw that it was Cao Qiguo from the Central Guard Bureau.

”Brother Cao, it’s you. It’s been a long time,” Chen Fei said with a slight smile as he watched the middle-aged man approach them.

”So you’re the famous Mr. Chen Fei? I’ve admired your reputation for a long time. Allow me to introduce myself—I’m Xia Shanchuan. It’s a pleasure to meet you.” Next to Cao Qiguo stood a slightly younger man. He was tall and sturdy, with thick eyebrows and large eyes, and he looked at Chen Fei with a gaze full of both warmth and curiosity.

Evidently, although Chen Fei did not recognize this person, the broad-browed, big-eyed Xia Shanchuan had certainly heard of his reputation.

”Hello, I’m Chen Fei. It’s a pleasure to meet you. Brother Cao, who might this be?” Chen Fei asked, smiling as he extended a hand to shake Xia Shanchuan’s, all while casting an inquisitive look at Cao Qiguo.

The latter smiled slightly and then laughed heartily, turning to the big-eyed Xia Shanchuan. ”He’s one of the aces of our Central Guard Bureau! On just his second day here in Immortal Ascension Valley, he was selected by the Floating Cloud Sect, one of the Five Great Immortal Sects!”

”The Five Great Immortal Sects?”

Chen Fei was stunned for a moment before it dawned on him. He looked at Xia Shanchuan, who was scratching his head in embarrassment and smiling guilelessly, and a faint smile touched his lips. ”Does this mean I should congratulate you, Brother Xia? Being selected by the Floating Cloud Sect on your second day proves your cultivation talent must be quite impressive. But what are these Five Great Immortal Sects?”

”Oh, listen to me. Mr. Chen, you’ve just arrived at Immortal Ascension Valley, so of course you wouldn’t know about the Five Great Immortal Sects,” Cao Qiguo said, smacking his forehead in embarrassment before beginning to explain earnestly.

It turned out that the other side of Tianchi Snow Mountain was the world where Qi Practitioners lived. That region, known as Eagle Gorge, was vast and filled with towering mountain ranges. It was ruled by a tremendously powerful force, under whose command were more than twenty or thirty notable sects, families, and factions.

This time, five of these factions had sent representatives to Earth to select suitable candidates to take back to the Cultivation World. These five factions were the Floating Cloud Sect, the Yuue Family of Black Water Ditch, the Exquisite Sect, the Purple Flame Palace, and the Xu Family of Chengxia Mountain.

Among these five, the Purple Flame Palace was undoubtedly the most powerful, with the Exquisite Sect being slightly weaker but still a close second. The remaining factions were not worth comparing, as they were all more or less on the same level, with no significant disparities.

”By the way, the Sunx Family produced a very powerful individual this time. He’s only twenty-seven or twenty-eight, but he is said to have already reached the Qi Refining Fifth Layer. His talent is terrifying. On his first day here in Immortal Ascension Valley, he was snatched up by the most powerful Purple Flame Palace. So, Mr. Chen, you should be careful,” Cao Qiguo added, his expression suddenly turning solemn as he leaned in and lowered his voice.

Although he knew Chen Fei was formidable, Sunx Tianzheng was now favored by a behemoth like the Purple Flame Palace, and the situation here was indeed different from back in Capital City.

”Qi Refining Fifth Layer, you say? Alright, I understand. Thank you for the warning, Brother Cao.” A strange light flashed in Chen Fei’s eyes for an instant, but he then smiled calmly, as if he did not really care. It couldn’t be helped; to ordinary people like Cao Qiguo, a twenty-seven-year-old at the Qi Refining Fifth Layer was indeed incredibly impressive and terrifying. Otherwise, the top-ranked Purple Flame Palace would not have snatched him up on the very first day.

But what did that amount to for him? A Qi Refining Fifth Layer? He could probably crush someone at that level with one hand. So what...?

However, Chen Fei then asked Zhen Jingkong inside his consciousness, ”Senior, have you ever heard of Eagle Gorge? Is it a famous place in the Qiannan Ancient Kingdom?”

”Never heard of it. It’s probably just some insignificant backwater in the Outer Domain. There are far too many places like that in the Ancient Kingdom; you can find them everywhere. In the Outer Domain, only places qualified to establish a city are somewhat famous. I believe there are only a few dozen cities in the entire Outer Domain,” Zhen Jingkong replied.

Is that so? A glint appeared in Young Master Chen’s eyes.

He had already learned some things about the Cultivation World and the Qiannan Ancient Kingdom from Zhen Jingkong, so he understood the concepts of the so-called ’Outer Domain’ and ’cities.’

The most defining characteristic of the Cultivation World was its vast land and sparse population. The world was filled with endless perilous lands, treacherous mountains and rivers, and deadly swamps and poison marshes. There were even many other races whose strength was no less than that of the Human Race—some monstrous races even had the potential to surpass them—spread far and wide across the land. All of this led to one simple fact.

In the Cultivation World, it was simply impossible for the Human Race to achieve the kind of dense settlement seen on Earth, with ”a city every ten miles, a fort every five.” In other words, any faction with the qualifications to build a city in the Cultivation World could definitely be considered an esteemed power, even in the context of the entire Qiannan Ancient Kingdom.

This point was proven by Zhen Jingkong’s statement that the entire Outer Domain of the Ancient Kingdom had only a few dozen cities. As for this Outer Domain…

The Qiannan Ancient Kingdom is divided into three major regions based on the richness of the land and the density of its Spirit Veins: the Inner Region, the Middle Region, and the Outer Domain.

Among these three, the Inner Region was undoubtedly the wealthiest, with the most abundant cultivation resources, and served as the ’pinnacle region’ where the most powerful factions were entrenched. However, the Inner Region also had the smallest land area. The Outer Domain was the complete opposite; it had the most expansive territory but was also the most barren of the three regions. Top-tier experts disdained to even set foot there. The Middle Region lay between the Outer and Inner Regions and was exceptionally mysterious.

Zhen Jingkong had never even heard of Eagle Gorge, and it didn’t seem to be connected to any city-holding factions. It’s probably just some insignificant backwater in the Outer Domain, isn’t it?

At this thought, the initial enthusiasm Chen Fei felt began to rapidly cool. A place of this caliber held very little allure for him.

”Mr. Chen, shall we go sit in the Immortal Ascension Pavilion? The experts from the Five Great Immortal Sects will be observing us from the top floor. If we want to catch their eye, that pavilion is definitely our best and most direct opportunity,” Cao Qiguo spoke up again, leading Chen Fei toward the most conspicuous and majestic pavilion in the valley.

Almost everyone in Immortal Ascension Valley seemed to be holding their breath, eager to be noticed by the experts from the Five Great Immortal Sects. They were all brimming with determination, and in such a tense atmosphere, friction was naturally inevitable.

BANG!

As Chen Fei and the others were walking toward the Immortal Ascension Pavilion, a figure suddenly came from the opposite direction and slammed into Cao Qiguo, knocking him to the ground. Immediately, a sneering laugh, dripping with scorn, echoed.

”Well, well, if it isn’t the great official Cao Qiguo from the Central Guard Bureau? My sincerest apologies. I was a bit distracted and didn’t see such a big fellow right in front of me. But why didn’t you call out to stop me? Haha, hahaha.” The person who had bumped into Cao Qiguo was a ’short, skinny monkey’ who stood less than 1.6 meters tall.

Yet, he had managed to knock down the tall and sturdy Cao Qiguo with a single bump, which was certainly surprising.

Chen Fei and Xia Shanchuan frowned at the sight. The latter glared angrily at the short, skinny monkey and snapped, ”Zhu Longying, what is the meaning of this!?”

”And who might this be? Oh, another grand official from the Central Guard Bureau. Heh, I’m warning you, Xia Shanchuan, this has nothing to do with you. Don’t go looking for trouble. Don’t think you’re something special just because the Floating Cloud Sect has taken a liking to you. You’re not qualified to point fingers at me, Zhu Longying. Hmph!”

The short, skinny monkey shot a contemptuous look at Xia Shanchuan before letting out another cold snort.

Instantly, many eyes in the crowd turned in their direction.

”Look, isn’t that Zhu Longying? I heard he was chosen by an expert from the Purple Flame Palace yesterday.”

”That’s what I heard. Hey, isn’t that Cao Qiguo from the Central Guard Bureau on the ground? And Xia Shanchuan, who was already selected by the Floating Cloud Sect, is there too… I think I heard someone say that Zhu Longying has a grudge against the Central Guard Bureau.”

”That guy apparently started out as a drug trafficker in the Golden Triangle. He used what little power he had to commit all sorts of lawless evil until the Central Guard Bureau sent people to wipe out his entire operation! I guess the grudge must have started back then. And now, he’s been chosen by the Purple Flame Palace, so what can you do?”

…

Various whispers spread quietly through the crowd, exposing Zhu Longying’s past. It had all the makings of a villain reveling in his newfound success and seeking petty revenge.