The Desolate Era

Chapter 6 – Ji Ning – Entering Lake, Battling Serpentwing

Ji Ning only felt spacetime changing, and then everything calmed down.

“Huh?” Ning looked at the dark tunnel in the lair. This was the place he had been teleported from. He couldn’t help but laugh.

This event truly had been something he had barely survived.

However, in the end, he had lived, and his power was much greater than before as well.

“Next time I go in, I’ll need to have first bound this control talisman.” Ning stretched out his hand, and a roughly made talisman appeared within it, with the Fiendgod character for ‘Right’ embedded on it. Ning had tested binding it, but unfortunately, his Xiantian ki was completely unable to enter it. It seemed as though he absolutely had to wait to become a Zifu Disciple.

“Right?” Ning murmured. “Why is there a ‘Right’ character on this talisman? I wonder what sort of history it has.”

And then, Ning pushed it to the back of his mind as he stored the talisman again. With a leap, he moved out from the corridor as agilely and as quickly as a gust of wind.

———————-

Serpentwing Lake, within a crude room. Ji Yichuan and his wife were living here.

Yuchi Snow was currently quietly seated at the side of the lake. In her hand, she held a cup of boiling hot water, which she was slowly drinking.

“Snow, Snow.” Suddenly, a cry of excitement rang out from within the room. Yuchi Snow immediately turned her head to look. The normally glacier-like Yichuan now had his face covered with excitement and joy as he rushed out. On his chest, some drops of water could be seen, with the faint scent of wine.

Yuchi Snow, seeing the way her man was acting, had a sense that she knew what had happened. “What is it?”

“I can sense it.” Yichuan said hurriedly. “I can sense the jade sword. It is completely unharmed! Previously, Ning definitely must have suddenly entered a secret, hidden area, a small dimension or a small world, or perhaps an ancient formation. He has already come out of that hidden area alive.”

Encountering a relic site was a matter of luck, but it also represented an enormous risk! Ning hadn’t left for over a month, and so the two of them had been growing increasingly concerned and increasingly panicked.

Yuchi Snow closed her eyes. Two flows of tears came out, and she murmured to herself, “Thank the heavens and thank the earth. Thank the heavens and thank the earth.”

“He is currently in the center of Serpentwing Lake, most likely on that island.” Yichuan said hurriedly.

“Let’s go see him.” Snow stood up.

“Right.” It had been a long time since Yichuan had lost his composure like this. Even when he had learned that his son had broken through to the Xiantian level, he hadn’t been this excited. Immediately, he took his wife by the hand and began running across the surface of the lake as though it were solid land, transforming into a streak of blue mist as he hurried afar.

The Azure Firebird couldn’t always be here waiting. After all, that was the spirit-beast of Ji Redflower! In recent days, Yichuan and Snow had been living here, while the Azure Firebird had gone home.

Suddenly…

“Diremonster Serpentwing, I, Ji Ning, have come again! You still won’t come out?!” A loud roar spread in every direction, including into the ears of Yichuan and his wife, still walking across the surface of the lake.

“Ning, he…” Yuchi Snow couldn’t help but reveal a hint of a laugh on her face. “As soon as he leaves that hidden relic site, he immediately once again challenges that Serpentwing.”

Yichuan nodded. “Ji Ning relied on the [Crimsonbright Diagram of the Nine Heavens] to become a Xiantian, and so he wasn’t that far off from Serpentwing to begin with in power. This time, within that hidden relic site, perhaps he had some certain gains…and now that I can sense his location, there’s no need for any concern.”

“Right.” Snow nodded as well.

The two continued to move forward.

Soon…

“Look!” Yichuan saw from afar, in the distance, the waves of the lake were parted as a youngster was walking directly towards the bottom of the lake. “That kid has actually parted the waters and is heading directly towards the bottom of the lake.”

“He’s going to the bottom of the lake?” Snow was shocked.

Yichuan shook his head. “Don’t be worried. You watched Ning as he grew up. Can it be that you don’t know his temperament? If he wasn’t confident, would he go down?”

“Right.” Snow nodded.

“Let’s go over, but we’ll stay on the surface of the lake.” Yichuan said. “We’ll monitor the situation down below at all times. As soon as anything goes wrong, I will immediately go down.”

———————–

“Diremonster Serpentwing, I, Ji Ning, have come again! You still won’t come out?!” After calling out while at the surface of the lake, Ning waited for a long time but Serpentwing still did not come out. Ning immediately made the decision to use his power to control fire and water to take command over the water around him in Serpentwing Lake.

Huahuahua….

The waters of the lake were parted by an invisible hand, and were parted, revealing a corridor into the water.

Ning walked directly towards the bottom of the lake. The deeper he went, the more powerful the water pressure became. Ning directly controlled a cylindrical underwater ‘corridor’ roughly ten meters across as he walked down through the corridor.

“That’s the one named Ji Ning.”

“It’s him.”

The aquatic lesser monsters within the lake stared from afar as a human walked down through a corridor. All of them once more went to make the report.

Serpentwing’s nest.

The Diremonster, Serpentwing, had already transformed into human form, and was seated on a chair. He was forcibly suppressing his rage. “This Ji Ning came over a month ago to challenge me, and now he is challenging me again! The lake is so enormous. If some Xiantian lifeforms are hidden nearby, who would know? I know you have a trap. How could I let myself fall for it?”

“Great king, great king.”

“Great king.”

Three lesser aquatic monsters came charging over.

“What is it?” Serpentwing growled.

Of the three lesser aquatic monsters, the leader, a prawn monster, hurriedly reported, “Great king, that Ji Ning suddenly parted the waters and has begun entering the depths of the lake.”

“Entering the lake?” Serpentwing suddenly stood up, then immediately said, “When he parted the waters, what method did he use?”

“We didn’t see him use any Xiantian Ki, nor did we see anything special. The waters simply naturally parted.” That prawn monster said hurriedly.

Serpentwing said in astonishment, “No wonder this Ji Ning dared to challenge me in such a way. So he was capable of controlling water as soon as his Fiendgod Body Refining technique reached the Xiantian level. I wonder which type of technique he trains it. Who cares. When I went to the Western Prefecture City, he was only at Houtian level. Now that he has reached the Xiantian level, he is still only at most an early Xiantian!”

“He actually dares to enter the lake!” The long, narrow eyes of Serpentwing were flashing with a ferocious light. “Hell has no doors, but you insist on barging in. I, Serpentwing, will naturally grant you your wish and send you to the depths of the eighteenth level of Hell.”

Serpentwing immediately charged out of his nest.

If they were on the surface of the lake, Serpentwing would be afraid of an ambush. But the bottom of the lake was his territory. Humans who entered it wouldn’t be able to use a tenth of their power; even if Yichuan had entered, he would only at most be able to wound Serpentwing.

“Ji Ning is actually as stupid as this? It makes sense. He’s just an eleven year old child. His power is great, and so he thinks he is a peerless talent, and he has no regard for anyone. You killed my boy Redtip. I will definitely kill you.” Serpentwing, upon leaving his nest, immediately transformed into his enormous winged serpent form, swimming at high speed.

“So it really is him!”

Serpentwing suddenly came to a halt. Staring into the distance, he saw that from afar, Ning was already very close to the bottom of the lake, and a cylindrical downwards corridor was constantly being created, with a human youth slowly walking downwards.

“He really did come to the bottom of the lake.” Serpentwing’s red eyes were filled with a murderous light. “He really is asking for death.”

Hua…

He quickly swam over.

——————————-

Ning was wielding the Darknorth sword in his hand, striding on the water as he walked towards the bottom of Serpentwing Lake. Wherever he walked past, the waters of the lake naturally parted to form a corridor.

“Hrm?” Ning immediately saw that enormous black shadow draw close to him.

“Serpentwing!” Ning immediately recognized him. As the enormous black shadow drew near, that ferocious head of Serpentwing’s grew clearer as well. Those scarlet red eyes were staring angrily at Ning.

“Ji Ning!” Serpentwing let out a furious howl, his voice ringing out. “You killed my son. Today, I will make you pay for it with your life!”

Ji Ning roared back, “Old monster, you have slaughtered humans in the thousands. You caused the death of Spring Grass, and today, I will personally execute you!”

The original cause of so many things!

So many people had died. Spring Grass had died. All of this came from the enmity between himself and Serpentwing.

“Hahaha, you will execute me? Little child, you truly don’t know your own limits. You actually dare to come into the depths of the water…once you are within the water, you won’t be able to return to the surface of the lake until your next life!” Serpentwing was supremely confident. “Your father wounded me multiple times, but I will let him share the pain of losing a child with me!”

As soon as his words came to an end, Serpentwing suddenly scurried forward, charging straight towards the corridor which Ning had created.

“Hua…” First, a serpentine tail pierced into the watery corridor, smashing straight towards Ning. Serpentwing’s current speed and power…was immeasurably greater than the Azure Skysnake’s.

“He lives up to being a peak Xiantian-level Diremonster.” Ning was startled. In terms of speed alone, the late Xiantian-level Serpentwing was actually somewhat weaker than the Azure Skysnake, but in strength he was definitely above the Azure Skysnake. But now, even in terms of his weakness, speed, Serpentwing was superior to the Azure Skysnake.

As for his strong point, power, Serpentwing had reached an awe-inducing level.

“Old monster, prepare for death!” Ning immediately utilized his Windwing Evasion, transforming into blurred smoke that was even faster than the whipping attack of the serpentine tail of Serpentwing, immediately leaping onto the body of the snake.

“Roaaaaaaaaaaar.” Serpentwing turned his head, opening his foul maw and biting down towards Ning.

Ning, wielding his Darknorth swords in his hands, leapt up and directly stabbed towards Serpentwing’s serpentine head.