Chapter 573: The Identity of Bi Lian (Two)
Yun Lian remained sprawled on the ground for some time before she finally cried herself to exhaustion. Her tears ceased, and the only thing left was pain.
A sigh escaped from Jian Chen’s mouth as he stared at Yun Lian. Turning to Dugu Feng, he said, “Escort the man down, but make sure he doesn’t run away.”
Dugu Feng sensed that there had to be some sort of special connection between Yun Lian and Jian Chen. With the hatred between Yun Lian and the head of the Yun family, he decided not to ask about it for now. He nodded his head in a serious manner. “Very well. I’ll look over him carefully.” The man was picked up by Dugu Feng like a clump of mud, and carried out of the room.
Jian Chen hesitated for a moment as he watched Yun Lian. Finally, he said, “Come with me to the Gesun Kingdom.”
She had not expected to hear the words that had come out of Jian Chen’s mouth. The one’s about going to the Gesun Kingdom, and thus, she was shocked as a result. Looking suspiciously at Jian Chen, she asked, “Why should I go with you to the Gesun Kingdom?”
“To confirm something. Perhaps you’ll find family there.” Jian Chen replied. All sorts of emotions were running through his mind at that moment. Who would have thought that a person he met just a few days ago would be a member of the Bi family?
“My family?” Yun Lian whispered for a moment before shaking her head in sorrow. “No, I have no family left. The only one I had was my mother, but even she is gone now. My father is no man, but a beast. He isn’t my rightful father. I’ll make sure to kill him by my own hand to satisfy my mother’s revenge.” Yun Lian bitterly cried out.
Slowly walking to Yun Lian, Jian Chen said once more, “Come with me to the Gesun Kingdom. There is one thing I must confirm. It relates to your mother.”
“To my mother? What could that be?” Yun Lian’s eyes lit up as if her interest had been piqued.
“I don’t have the words to say it right now. Wait until you come to the Gesun Kingdom, you will understand then.” Jian Chen explained in a serious tone.
She hesitated. This matter was surprisingly related to her mother, so she couldn’t be indifferent to it. After a moment’s hesitation, she finally nodded her head in agreement. “Fine, I will go with you to the Gesun Kingdom.”
“Then, let us go right now.” Jian Chen impatiently responded. Turning to Ming Dong and the others, he said, “I will return to the Gesun Kingdom first. Wait for me here until I get back. If anything happens, break this jade stone.” With that, Jian Chen handed a piece of jade to Ming Dong. This was an especially precious jade stone on the Tian Yuan Continent that would cause its sister stone to break apart at the same time when crushed, no matter how far the distance was in between the two. As such, it was considered a surefire method of signaling.
The group knew that this situation held more to it than they had thought. It wasn’t something they could even imagine, so they decided not to ask for now.
Taking the jade stone from Jian Chen, Ming Dong replied to him in serious manner, “Brother, come back quickly.”
Nodding his head, Jian Chen gave his farewells to everyone before walking back to Yun Lian. “Is there anything else you have left to do here? If not, then we’ll be on our way.”
“There’s nothing. But we’re a long way from the Gesun Kingdom, shouldn’t we prepare for our travel?” Yun Lian asked.
“No need, we’ll be there very quickly.” Jian Chen answered. Holding onto Yun Lian’s arm, Jian Chen waved his hand. With a single thought, he enveloped them both with a bubble of wind. Before she could even react, Yun Lian and Jian Chen immediately shot from the room into the sky. Like a bright burst of azure light, they ascended into the sky at a lightning-quick speed. So fast that the bystanders in the streets had been unable to make out what it was.
The sudden sensation of being shot into the sky had frightened Yun Lian so much that she had cried out and turned pale in terror. When she recovered, she could only hear the wind streaming through her ears and blowing her hair everywhere. Under her feet, Fengyang City had been reduced to a very small area. The previously giant city was now completely viewable in its entirety. Even the throngs of people on the streets had been reduced to the size of ants with no distinguishing characteristics between each one.
Stunned at the sight of the still rapidly diminishing city, Yun Lian was silent for a long while. At that current moment, she was terribly frightened and could not keep her heart in check.
It did not take long for Fengyang City to disappear into the horizon underneath the two. The scenery of the rest of the world gradually grew fainter before a plume of clouds started to obscure the ground from sight. Jian Chen had brought Yun Lian over a sea of clouds. Nothing else could be seen but the whiteness from the tops of the clouds.
After what seemed like a long while, Yun Lian finally regained her ability to think coherently. With eyes wide open, she stared in disbelief at the young but handsome face of Jian Chen with one hand over her mouth in shock. “Yo-you-you’re a… a Heaven Saint Master!”
A tidal wave of emotions overcame Yun Lian’s mind at that point. A Heaven Saint Master was among the strongest on the continent. On the power structure, they were nearly at the top, and would be heads above anyone else if put in any random kingdom. Even a king would have to treat them as majestic and illustrious entities with most haste. Their very existences were the same as being compared to an entire kingdom. The rise or fall of a kingdom was completely dependent on where the Heaven Saint Master was in the equation.
Yun Lian hadn’t thought it was possible that the youth right next to her would actually be a Heaven Saint Master. In the eyes of a commoner, men like these were god-like.
The Yun family was a small household, but as their treasured daughter, Yun Lian was gifted in her intelligence. She herself knew clearly what a Heaven Saint Master meant. As long as there was a Heaven Saint Master in place, then even a nobody clan would leap several rungs on that ladder to become one of the strongest powers in any kingdom.
With a hand covering her wide open mouth, she continued to stare at Jian Chen in mute silence. A Heaven Saint Master was indeed too much for her to take in at once.
Seeing shocked expression on Yun Lian’s face, Jian Chen couldn’t help but reveal a small smile. He didn’t bother to explain anything. He just continued to hurry on his way as if impatient to quickly arrive back at the Changyang clan to prove Yun Lian’s identity.
It took six hours before Jian Chen finally arrived at the Gesun Kingdom. Without even stopping, he rushed on toward Lore City.
After a single hour, the two of them finally arrived outside of Lore City. From far away, plenty of tents could be seen set up away from the city walls. Above each tent was a banner with the “Qin” symbol emblazoned on it.
After such a long travel time, Yun Lian had already regained some semblance of tranquility. Seeing the barracks over there, she asked out of curiosity, “Is that the army from the Qinhuang Kingdom?”
“Correct. There is about half a million soldiers from the Qinhuang Kingdom. With the name of the Eastern Deity Swords, they are one of the strongest armies of the Qinhuang Kingdom.” Jian Chen explained.
“Then this city must be Lore City. The rumors are true then. The Qinhuang Kingdom and the Changyang clan have a connection between the two if the army is stationed here.” Yun Lian muttered with admiration. The Qinhuang Kingdom was one of the Eight Great Powers on the continent, and with their support, the name of the Gesun Kingdom had been established as the dominant power over this area with no other equal.
Continuing to fly into the city like a bright bullet made of azure light, the two of them entered Lore City before Yun Lian could even properly study it. In seconds, they finally touched down in front of a giant compound, the Changyang Manor.
“Follow me in!” Jian Chen released Yun Lian’s shoulder, and called out for her to follow him into the grounds.
Surveying the compound, Yun Lian’s eyes subconsciously hovered over the giant signboard on top of the gates where the three words, “Changyang Manor” had been carved out in fancy calligraphy. At this sight, Yun Lian immediately turned pale.
Although she had lived her entire life in Fengyang City, she was aware of the events that had occurred in the Gesun Kingdom. The matters relating to the Changyang clan were especially clear to her.
The Changyang clan was once a rather low-profile clan within the Gesun Kingdom. After the war between the four kingdoms and the Gesun Kingdom, the might of the Changyang clan was brought forth for the whole world to see. Hence, they became well known as a result. Even after that, when the ten Heaven Saint Masters from the Heavenly Eagle Kingdom attacked, they were forced back by the clan and had lost several of their members as a result. Such a battle had further increased the Changyang clan’s name. They deserved to be recognized as the strongest in the Gesun Kingdom. Completely replacing the Huayun Sect as the strongest power, not even the royal family could stop them.
The extremely high status that the Changyang clan had obtained couldn’t even be compared to the Yun family who was insignificant in Fengyang City. They were ants in comparison to the three major clans in that city, but similarly, those three clans would be insects in comparison to the Changyang clan who was already heads above the royal family in might.
Yun Lian had never expected to see herself stand outside the gates to the Changyang clan; this was a clan that she regarded favorably.
Hurriedly pulling at Jian Chen’s robes, she said with worry, “This is the Changyang clan. Why did you bring me here? Are you sure we didn’t fly to the wrong place?”
Smiling, Jian Chen replied, “Don’t worry, there’s no problems here. Follow me.” With that, Jian Chen pulled Yun Lian through the doors.
Upon Jian Chen’s entrance, the two soldiers guarding the entryway had snapped to salute with the utmost amount of respect they could muster. As Jian Chen grew closer, the two of them bowed down at the same time, “We pay our respects to the fourth master!”
The loud shouts of the two frightened the timid Yun Lian who was right beside Jian Chen. Suddenly, her mind registered what had been said which caused her to snap her head back to Jian Chen. “Fourth master? Are you the famous fourth master of the Changyang clan, Changyang Xiangtian?”