Quiet And Steadfast could only helplessly look on in confusion as Master and disciple started to bicker. He stretched out his hand and patted Shen Jingbin on the back. "Thatâs enough, weâve got more pressing matters to attend to."
"Mm," After hearing what he said, Shen Jingbin obediently gave a grunt of affirmation.
"Sect Leader Song, please tell us about the Vermillion Bird."
Steeling his expression, Song Yuqing said, "Alright. The two of you should have a seat."
Shen Jingbin and Quiet And Steadfast found a place to sit.
"The Vermillion Bird is the Divine Beast of the South. As White Cloud Temple and Sword Master Pavilion are associated with the South, the Vermillion Bird acts as the guardian for both our sects. This was also why I didnât tell you about the Vermillion Bird at the start."
"Its related to Swordmaster Pavilion as well?" Shen Jingbin asked.
"What do you think?" Song Yuqing said as he shifted his gaze to her.
He continued speaking, "Among the Four Divine Beasts, the Azure Dragon is the most sacred of them all, and is worshipped by the Celestials as their Divine Beast. The Vermillion Bird guards the South and protects us Humans. The Black Tortoise is proficient in the Dark Arts of the Underworld and protects both the North and the waters of Beiming. Naturally, this led to it being worshipped by the Demon race. As for the White Tiger, although itâs a Divine Beast, its aura of slaughter was too strong and its whereabouts were unknown, making it the most unique existence amongst the Four Divine Beasts."
"Regarding the Vermillion Bird, do you know of the saying that only one of them may exist in the world at a time?"
Shen Jingbin shook her head.
"The Vermillion Bird reproduces differently from the other Divine Beasts. A new Vermillion Bird may only be born after the previous generation dies. When a Vermillion Bird is born, its flames would burn like a scorching summer... Thatâs all I can tell you."
Shen Jingbin was stunned. "Eh? Thatâs it? Most importantly, was anything you said even useful?"
Song Yuqing wore an enigmatic look on his face, "Everything is known only to the heavens, youâll have to find it out on your own."
Screw you!
"Alright, you guys should leave, thereâs still plenty of things for you to attend to," With that, the Sect Leader proceeded to chase the two of them off.
Shen Jingbin had a face like sheâd stepped in dog shit as she was chased out of White Cloud Temple by her own Master.
"Talking to NPCs sure is tiring, they never tell you the entire story," Shen Jingbin couldnât help but grumble.
Quiet And Steadfast tried to console her, "Itâs the game companyâs fault."
"I feel like bombing the game company!"
"Iâll buy the explosives for you."
The two of them continued to ridicule the game company as they made their way towards White Cloud Templeâs entrance.
When they reached the gate, Quiet And Steadfast said, "Iâll be logging off first, I have some matters to attend to."
"Go on then, I just so happened to be going to the Demonic Sectâs map to play around anyway."
Although she had the Demonic Sectâs entry token, sheâd been far too busy and hadnât had the chance to enter the Demonic Sectâs map yet.
"Alright then, stay safe and be careful, especially if you run into players from Sovereignâs Descent or Life At First Sight," Quiet Steadfast exhorted.
Shen Jingbin nodded her and waved at him before he disappeared. She then fished out a teleportation scroll and slowly tore it apart.
"Notification: Will you use the Demonic Sectâs teleportation scroll? Yes/No."
"Yes."
"The teleportation scroll has been successfully used."
"Teleportation in progress, please wait..."
After the familiar bout of dizziness from teleporting had subsided, Shen jingbin realised she was no longer at the entrance of White Cloud Temple. Her vision was filled with a layer of pitch black, and only a small bit of light could be seen from beneath her feet.
Feeling curious, Shen Jingbin took a step forward, causing the light beneath her feet to move a step forward as well. She turned to look at the spot where sheâd previously been standing.
Good, thereâs still light there.
Now she knew what was happening.
The Demonic Sectâs map was huge. Even now, some portions of the map remained unexplored by players, and this portion of the map in particular was pitch black. When players arrived at an unexplored area, that portion of the map would slowly reveal itself as they explored it, just like how it did when she took a step forward.
Shen Jingbinâs fantastic luck had landed her in an unexplored region the moment she teleported into the map. The benefit of this was that she could explore the area without worrying about running into other enemies.
Shen Jingbin took large steps forward, occasionally reaching out to feel up her surroundings. As she moved, the system notification continuously rang out in her ears.
"Congratulations on discovering a narrow and winding road."
"Congratulations on discovering a river."
"Congratulations on discovering an ancient firmament tree."
...
"Congratulations on connecting to Undying City."
After wandering about, the notifications sheâd been hearing suddenly changed. A bright light appeared before her eyes and the next thing she knew, the solemn and lofty walls of a city was in front of her.
It looked like sheâd passed from an unexplored area to an explored one.
Shen Jingbin turned back and was about to look for a different place to explore when she heard someone called out to her.
"Nutjob?"
Eh?
Shen Jingbin looked back suspiciously and found a somewhat familiar looking man standing atop the city walls looking at her with a smile on his face.
Who is that?
Shen Jingbin wracked her brain as she tried to recall who the man was.