After Gouyu came to, Xue Tong and the others also woke up one after another. Jiang Chen wasnât in a rush to unseal the senses of the others from the Regal Pill Palace. These particular people were those of his inner circle. After parting ways for almost a whole year, they had too many things to say to each other. If he were to unseal everyone elseâs senses now, it would sour the atmosphere instead. Just like Gouyu, everyone was surprised to see Huangâerâs true appearance. Theyâd never imagined that the ugly-looking Miss Huangâer was in reality an outstanding beauty. There was nothing wrong in calling her a goddess who had descended to earth. Even Gouyu, for all her competitiveness, was completely convinced by Huangâerâs temperament and beauty and felt no resistance towards her whatsoever. She naturally came to the firm opinion that Miss Huangâer was the most perfect match for the young master.
Of course, there were psychological reasons behind her acceptance. Back in the Regal Pill Palace, Gouyu had been close enough with Huangâer to be called sisters. Even before this revelation, Huangâerâs behavior, temperament and grace had already won over those in Jiang Chenâs circle. Now that Huangâer had revealed her true countenance, not only did they feel not repelled by it, they even thought of it as the way it was supposed to be. It was only right that Huangâerâs natural and unrestrained manners, amiable and approachable temper, and extraordinary qualities were complemented with an equally unrivalled beauty. Everyoneâs voices grew thick with emotion as they described their experience.
âYoung master, countless experts descended on the Regal Pill Palace back then, and the great formation didnât even last an hour under their attacks. All of the sect experts whoâd sustained the formation were slaughtered to the last in just an hourâs time. At that time, Elder Yun Nie had come to Rosy Valley to gather up the geniuses and retreat, but we recalled the young masterâs instructions and chose not to escape. Instead, we convinced Elder Yun Nie to hide with several dozen others inside the formation. To its credit, at first, they werenât able to break through the formation at all. But later, an even more powerful emperor realm cultivator appeared and joined hands with several other emperor realm cultivators to attack the formation in unison. Only then did they finally managed to break through the formation. As a result, all of us became captives...â Gouyu talked about that day in great detail. The sheer desperation of that battle was so vivid in her story that they felt as if they truly were present then. âYoung master, those people had originally wanted to kill us all. However, it sounded like they spared us because they wanted to interrogate us about a certain pill recipe. At first, Elder Yun Nie refused to submit even in the face of death and said not a word. However, the enemy began to kill a Regal Pill Palace disciple for every question that went unanswered. After killing a dozen or so people, they hauled Mu Gaoqi in front of Elder Yun Nie... and...â Gouyu cast a glance at Jiang Chen, looking a bit hesitant as to whether she should continue.
Jiang Chen waved his hands and said, âContinue.â
âIf Elder Yun Nie still refused to speak, then Mu Gaoqi would be slaughtered too. Therefore, Elder Yun Nie finally revealed the pill recipe. Young master, if it wasnât for the pill recipe, we might have been killed outright by the enemy already. Those people were extremely savage, and theyâd never planned to leave anyone alive at all. In fact, they were going to execute us on the spot after obtaining the pill recipe. However, someone brought up the fact that they had a group of slavers at their place, and they could sell us to them and earn quite a lot of spirit stones...â
Gouyu didnât know from beginning to end who had destroyed the Regal Pill Palace or taken them captive. They naturally didnât know where theyâd been sold to either.
Jiang Chen more or less understood the entire situation after Gouyu had finished her tale. He actually felt relieved after hearing her story. He had to admit to feeling a bit of hesitation when he discovered that the Longevity Pill recipe had fallen into the hands of the Eternal Celestial Capital. Although he didnât believe that Elder Yun Nie was a coward, it was a fact that heâd leaked the Longevity Pill recipe. Now that he learned that Elder Yun Nie had done it to save Mu Gaoqi, the last bit of suppressed emotion clogging up Jiang Chenâs heart had vanished completely.
Xue Tong asked, âYoung master, who on earth did the Regal Pill Palace provoke? Was it the Ninesuns Sky Sect?â
âThe Ninsuns Sky Sect was indeed involved in this matter, but the main culprits are the Eternal Celestial Capital and the Great Scarlet Mid Region. The Eternal Celestial Capital was the mastermind, and the Great Scarlet Mid Region acted as the butcherâs knife. Moreover, the Regal Pill Palace was not the only victim of this incident. The entire Myriad Domain and in fact almost every sect, regardless of their size, have been eliminated.â
âWhat?â Gouyu and everyone else was greatly shocked by this news, especially Gouyu, âWhat... what about the sixteen kingdoms alliance?â The sixteen kingdoms alliance might be a small place, but it was still their home.
âThere is no news from the sixteen kingdoms alliance, but I notified the Precious Tree Sect about something like this a long time ago. They should have put some countermeasures in place. As for the secular kingdoms, they never even entered these forcesâ eyes. No matter how idle those bastards are, they wouldnât eliminate the lowest of kingdoms,â Jiang Chen explained. He knew that Gouyu was worried for the Eastern Kingdom. It was her home after all, and the place where her relatives lived. To a sect, a secular kingdom was like an ant beneath an elephantâs foot. It was doubtful that they would even see it, much less bother to eliminate it.
If a sect had rooted out and razed even a place like that, then they would literally draw ire from all sides. The cultivation world had its own unspoken rules. If they had really gone to bully a tiny ant, then even the heavenly laws wouldnât be able to tolerate such a despicable action, much less societal customs.
âYoung master, how did you find us?â Wen Ziqi was naturally shy, and hadnât spoken a word till now.
The answer to this question however, would be quite lengthy. Jiang Chen smiled easily, âItâs a long story. Iâll tell you guys about it in the future.â
Contrary to expectations, Huangâer actually smiled and spoke up, âYour young master is acting humble. Please allow me to tell you this story.â
Huangâer wasnât a talkative person, but sheâd experienced firsthand Jiang Chenâs innumerable efforts during this trip and the terrible hardships heâd undergone to save his people. It was not a story she wanted to go untold.
She started from the Myriad Grand Ceremony and described everything that had happened up until their rescue. The story greatly stunned and moved everyone. The young master had traveled over several million kilometers into the Upper Eight Regions, braving innumerable obstacles and dangers, all to save them from disaster. How could they not be moved by this act? If the young master hadnât been strong enough, or if the young master had been any later, they wouldâve been sold off as slaves already. If that happened, then not even the young master with all his power would have been able to find them again. Everyone was touched and grateful for their good fortune when their thoughts reached that point. They knew very well what kind of life a slave faced.
When they thought of the amount of opponents Jiang Chen had obliterated along the way, they couldnât help but feel the pleasure of vengeance suffuse them. Although they hadnât taken revenge personally, they all felt their blood boiling as they listened to Huangâerâs narration. No matter how fierce or terrifying their opponents were, they were never able to escape their young masterâs grasp. In fact, their young master had even killed dozens of emperor realm cultivators! It was only now that they realized just how incredible and wonderful their young master was!
âYou may keep this in your heart, but please donât tell the other Regal Pill Palace disciples about this. Although we are at Veluriyam Capital now, the Eternal Celestial Capital and the Great Scarlet Mid Region wonât give up just like that. The Ninesuns Sky Sect is also waiting for an opportunity to jump into the fray. Thatâs why we absolutely cannot let our guard down!â Jiang Chen reminded them.
They all nodded, âYouâre right, young master. Weâve become your burden once, and we mustnât drag you down a second time.â
âMm. We wonât be able to leave Veluriyam Capital for now. Here at least, those forces wouldnât dare to act wantonly. We may very well be hunted down again the moment we leave.â
âWe obey your orders, young master.ân/o/vel/b//in dot c//om
âYeah, weâll do as you say, young master.â
Jiang Chen nodded as the crowd stared at him. He had in fact formed this plan long before today.
âWeâll be living in Veluriyam Capital for the foreseeable future. However, weâll have to change some of our identities. The Regal Pill Palace will become a thing of the past until we can fully guarantee our own safety. No matter what, our identities are our greatest secret. Iâll think of a way to help you all settle in,â Jiang Chen cast another glance at the unconscious fellow sect disciples. âIâll have to arrange these people properly as well. If any one of them is exposed, we will all fall prey to disaster.â
Huangâer also remarked, âConsidering the number of people involved, this will need proper planning. Sir Jiang, in my opinion, itâll be best if we build a force of our own in Veluriyam Capital. If people are relocated into someone elseâs domain, itâs only a matter of time before theyâre exposed.â It was a certainty that they would be interrogated and investigated if they were to live under someone elseâs roof. As a result, it was very likely that their real identities would be exposed. If they had their own force, then they would have their own territory and no fear of investigation.
Jiang Chen pondered for a moment and said, âIâve given it some thought. We will definitely draw a lot of attention if we were to establish a sect in Veluriyam Capital. I personally think that thereâs no need for us to do that. If we must build a force, then we should establish a business group or operate a store. Thatâd be the safest method.â
It was quite normal for a sizable store to accommodate several dozens of people. Itâd also be much easier to make arrangements for these people and hide their identities.
âMm, thatâs a good idea,â Huangâer nodded in full agreement. Gouyu and the others naturally had no opinions regarding this matter. Right now, they only wanted to avoid becoming Jiang Chenâs burden and dragging him down. They wouldnât mind whatever Jiang Chen planned to arrange them. Seeing that no one else had an opinion to offer, Jiang Chen cast a glance at his other sect mates, âLetâs wake these people up. They are our sect mates, and I hope that they wouldnât act stupidly.â
If he were to be frank, he hadnât stayed at the Regal Pill Palace for long enough to form connections with these people. He had no real feelings for the others, and the only reason he even bothered to care, arrange and rescue these people was his principles and morality. Their rescue was for Palace Head Dan Chiâs sake and as a member of the Regal Pill Palace. If these people chose to act stupidly and disobey his arrangements, then he would have no qualms in employing a more forceful method.
As their senses were unsealed, the Regal Pill Palace disciples slowly awakened from their slumber. Everyoneâs first reaction when they fully woke was that they were dreaming. Some of them even thought they were dead already. More or less, their reactions were similar across the board.
Jiang Chen didnât speak up immediately. He waited until they had calmed down a little before speaking to Shen Trifire, âShen Trifire, do you still remember me?â
Shen Trifire was one of the top geniuses in Regal Pill Palace. He was steady and had a clearer mind than most. âSenior brother Jiang, were you the one who saved us?â
Shen Trifire was very smart, and had placed himself in a very good position. Although he was quite a bit older than Jiang Chen, and had entered the Regal Pill Palace much earlier, he still addressed Jiang Chen as his senior brother. This way of addressing was rather quick thinking on his part. If he were to call Jiang Chen junior brother Jiang, he would sound too arrogant and full of it. But if he were to call Jiang Chen brother Jiang, he would sound a little too distant and fail in displaying the relationship between sect members. Right now, Shen Trifire knew better than anyone just how important this relationship was.
Get up to 20 advance chapters on Patreon!~
PS. There will be some celebratory releases today in honor of volareversary, volare is two years old! I will also be doing a live reading of my new novel, Phoenix Ascending, at 10am GMT+8! Thatâs 9pm US EST 12/14, so please tune into the volare Discord then~ The new novel will launch this weekend!