Chapter 592: Ancestor of the Huanggu Clan
In order to cure the wound in You Yue’s heart, Jian Chen had no other choice but to explain everything he had hidden from the world — even his parents had never heard this information. Jian Chen knew that if he hiding his secrets like this would only serve to confirm the worries in You Yue’s heart, dealing another blow to it. That was something Jian Chen wanted to avoid.
You Yue had completely stopped her tears as she listened to Jian Chen speak. The two glistening eyes on her beautiful face stared at Jian Chen in silence. She finally understood, this very moment, the tremendous amount of pressure Jian Chen had always talked about and just what great dangers were waiting ahead of him.
A Saint Ruler was an unfathomable entity in the eyes of You Yue. They were people that belonged to the legends of old. Only a few people on the continent were able to come face to face with them.
Jian Chen on the other hand, had managed to not only make enemies with a single Saint Ruler, but possibly two or even three of them! The fear You Yue felt in her heart was outweighed by the deep worries she had for Jian Chen.
He clenched his hands tightly over You Yue’s. It was a first for him to really realize just how smooth and tender her jade-like palms felt to the touch. The sensation was very soft indeed, but Jian Chen didn’t pay too much attention to the details. Instead he stared back at You Yue with a stern expression. “You Yue, I have not told even my parents of this, so I hope you will safeguard these secrets of mine. Do not let my mother know at all costs. A Saint Ruler is far too strong for the Changyang clan to weather as it stands now, I don’t want the clan to worry for me.”
Dazed, You Yue continued to stare at Jian Chen. The grief and sorrow she had felt before had completely disappeared, but now, worry and concern had replaced it.
“I-I’m sorry, Jian Chen. I didn’t know… about just how large this scale was.” You Yue lamented.
Giving a small smile, Jian Chen shook his head, “You Yue, it is fine as long as you understand. The hatred between those two families and me is irreconcilable. Without that matter resolved, I really do not wish to waste time trying to start a family of my own.”
You Yue was placated for now. She was now feeling better than when she had first entered the room, allowing Jian Chen to return to his own room in peace. However, as soon as Jian Chen walked into his drawing room, his entire figure grew rigid and a sharp light glinted in his eyes as if it was reflecting the light of a sword being drawn.
Seated in the room was a blue-robed elder with his back facing Jian Chen. Seated by the table, he drank a single cup of tea with only his own company to converse with.
This man had long, black hair that went down his back without a messy spot to be seen. At a glance, he appeared to be just a regular person with no outstanding traits.
However, this seemingly unimportant person made Jian Chen stare at him seriously as if prepared to take action at any moment against an enemy. This person was practically undetectable to even Jian Chen, and if it were not for his own eyes seeing the man, Jian Chen would have overlooked the man entirely.
The only ones capable of managing such a feat were hermits of the Saint Ruler level.
Having a Saint Ruler suddenly appear in his very own room was something that made Jian Chen nervous.
“Who are you?” Jian Chen questioned as he shifted his right hand behind his back to clench the jade piece in his hand. Since he could not fight against a Saint Ruler, then his only option was to ask for the assistance of the Huang patriarch.
“Haha, little brother, do not be nervous. This old man came for an impromptu visit. If I disturbed you, then please forgive me.” An elderly voice came from the mouth of the blue-robed man. Yet, he remained seated at the table with his back still facing Jian Chen.
Sensing no hostile aura around the man, Jian Chen eased up slightly while staring at the back of the man, “Senior, who might you be?”
“If you wish to know even that, then I’ll tell you this. That girl Huang Luan has already told you about her having a teacher. That is me, I am her teacher.” The man replied.
Jian Chen was astonished, and the look in his eyes reflected that astonishment. “Could you be the patriarch of the Huanggu clan?”
“Correct, that is I!”
With his identity confirmed, Jian Chen let out a mental sigh of relief. Although a Saint Ruler was undoubtedly a tremendous source of pressure to him, at least this one was no enemy to him.
“Little brother, come sit and let us talk.” The man suggested.
Easing back into the calm and easygoing nature of his, Jian Chen strode to the seat on the other side of the man and sat down. Straight away, Jian Chen could see the man’s face. It was a very ordinary-looking face that was filled with wrinkles due to age. The only difference was that a single blue seal sat in the middle of his forehead, but it was hard to make out the picture in full clarity because of the wrinkles.
The elder leveled a meaningful glance at Jian Chen, “Little brother, should I be calling you the Imperial Protector of the Qinhuang Kingdom or the fourth master of the Changyang clan? Or perhaps — Jian Chen!?”
“Senior, please just call me Jian Chen.” He smiled.
The old man nodded his head just slightly, “Then I shall do so. Jian Chen, I am not one that enjoys beating around the bush, so I shall get to the point.”
He paused for a brief moment to take in a breath of air, “Jian Chen, I came here specifically because of Huang Luan, so the matter we will be discussing will relate to Huang Luan herself.”
Jian Chen could feel his heart sink, “Could this be about the betrothment between your Huanggu clan and the Huang family?”
Shaking his head, the elder replied, “That matter has already been settled and dealt with. I won’t even bother to try and harangue the matter any longer. Instead, I came here today to talk about her future.”
“Senior, what might you mean by that?” Jian Chen asked, mystified at what the elderly figure was getting at.
Humming, the elder thought for a moment, trying to find the best way to describe his thoughts, “Huang Luan has a very particular body that comes once a thousand years on the continent. If she were to train with a water affinity cultivation method, her growth would be exponential. For that reason, I bequeathed the Saint Tier Cultivation Method to her so that she could learn twice the amount for half the effort. Becoming a Saint Ruler wouldn’t be difficult for her at all, but there is a single taboo she must not commit. Until she becomes a Sixth Cycle Heaven Saint Master, she must remain pure at all costs. Otherwise, the effects she will receive will be irrevocably disastrous for her.” The elder spoke with an increasingly grim voice.
Jian Chen had been listening on with the utmost seriousness, but when he heard what the patriarch said, he could not help but blush a little. Giving an embarrassed smile, he said, “Senior, you may rest assured. The relationship between Huang Luan and I is nowhere near such a situation.”
“That is good then.” The man nodded his head in satisfaction. “Jian Chen, you should know that for the sake of Huang Luang’s future, you must uphold her purity.”
“This junior understands!” Jian Chen scratched his nose in embarrassment. He couldn’t help but ask himself, was he really a person that wanted nothing but lust?
With that said and done, the patriarch stood up from his stool, “This old man has said all that he wanted to say, until we meet again then!” The next moment, the patriarch disappeared from the room without a trace.
Looking left and then right, Jian Chen could see that the windows and doors to the room were still tightly shut. There was virtually no way to escape from this sealed space, and no crack or crevice to be seen. With those factors to be considered, Jian Chen had to truly wonder how the patriarch had left.
“A Saint Ruler is truly powerful. The powers they possess are far beyond what I can imagine.” Jian Chen muttered with a twinge of jealousy.
“So Huang Luan’s talent stems from her body itself. No wonder she was able to become an Earth Saint Master at such a young age…”
Several kilometers away, the patriarch of the Huanggu clan materialized out of thin air as if he had been a mirage. No longer teleporting here and there, the elder chose to instead fly the rest of the way at incredible speed.
“Now that I’ve told him that, he will most likely not see Huang Luan as a wife for now, leaving her body completely intact. Though, even if he wishes to do something unbecoming to her, the restriction I’ve placed on her will not let him get away.” The elder smiled darkly as if he was plotting something.
……
In the blink of an eye, a year passed. In that year, the Flame Mercenaries had grown spectacularly and without ever stopping. The stronger factions of the several surrounding kingdoms had been completely annexed, including the factions from the Qiangan Kingdom, the Qianlong Kingdom, the Andreas Kingdom, the Pingyang Kingdom, and even some of the other kingdoms that had once nursed a grudge with the Gesun Kingdom. This made the Flame Mercenaries into a hegemon to be feared. Their members had exploded to over a hundred thousand with over five hundred Earth Saint Masters. Even several Heaven Saint Masters had been coerced into it, making the comparison to the past a very shocking one.
The Flame Mercenaries explosive growth made them a household name that everyone knew about. Practically every mercenary or mercenary group would talk about the Flame Mercenaries with either eyes of envy or admiration.
The Flame Mercenaries had exploded in power so fast that the scale today could practically be considered a miracle made in real life.
Within a desolate piece of land, a group of people riding on mounts could be seen resting. Buildings could be seen all around them, and not too far away, several hundred fumes of fire spiraled into the air. Mercenaries sat around each of the fires in groups of threes or fours as they talked to one another over a piece of magical beast meat.
Hoisted overhead was an emblem of a ball of fire; this was the emblem of the Flame Mercenaries.
Seated at the very center of all the banners and tents was Jian Chen and the others who were currently discussing matters.
“Jian Chen, as of today, the Flame Mercenaries have reached a very definite scale of over a hundred thousand members. The time is ripe for us to create a city of our own.” Dugu Feng spoke.