Chapter 1091: Chance at Life (1/2)

“This is a sea chart of the Heavenly Starry Ocean and all the great ominous lands that contain Holy Spirit Veins. With your current insight, you cannot make out the real from the fake. If you meet just one of these, you will find yourself in an extremely dangerous situation.”

Xiao Chen did not say anything. As he continued looking, he felt some gooseb.u.mps. Given his time pressure, he would definitely end up making misjudgments. All it took was one, and he might really lose his life.

“We four great Geomasters draw up Spirit Vein distribution charts when we travel the world. How many you can subdue will depend on your own ability.”

Then, Jiang Tian handed Xiao Chen another sheet of vellum. Like the one before, it indicated the locations of many Holy Spirit Veins in detail. The information was all clear with one glance.

Within an instant, Xiao Chen understood the value of the second sea chart. It was simply a priceless treasure.

Xiao Chen felt suspicious. “Why are you helping me?”

Jiang Tian replied calmly, “It’s the same as I said before. Only you can handle that Hou ghost. Ten thousand years ago, the Azure Emperor killed its physical body. Now, ten thousand years later, you have to be the one to eliminate its soul.

“We are true Geomasters, masters of the land. We guard the balance of the world. That is forever our most basic responsibility. The Hou ghost is an uncertain variable that threatens to destroy this balance.”

It was really hard to imagine that this repulsive old man before Xiao Chen could say such words.

Xiao Chen thought for a while and said, “Senior, since you mentioned the Hou ghost, I have something to say about it. I feel that there is someone controlling the Hou ghost from behind.”

This statement stunned Jiang Tian when he heard it. Then, he laughed and said, “What is the Hou? That is an ancient mutated beast. It kills dragons like killing earthworms. Even if it is dead and has only a soul, it cannot possibly be controlled.”

Jiang Tian’s words sounded extremely certain. When Xiao Chen thought things over, they made sense. The Hou ghost was already so strong. If someone could control it, then how terrifying was the master behind it?

However, even so, Xiao Chen remained dubious in his heart. Earlier, when the Hou ghost was chasing him, he saw what looked like an internal struggle in the eyes of the Hou ghost several times. He was very sure of it.

If it was not someone controlling the Hou ghost and ordering it to consume that evil dragon, clas.h.i.+ng with its decision to kill Xiao Chen, what other explanation could there be?

Jiang Tian said indifferently, “Don’t overthink this. It is better for you to focus on how to become a Martial Emperor in five years.

“Before I leave, let me give you some advice: fortune and disaster are hard to differentiate from each other. The matters of the world are like geomancy, where there is no such thing as a fixed outcome. Auspicious and ominous are unpredictable and change frequently.

“I will not beat about the bush but will tell you directly. You look like you have been pushed into a dead end. If you do not advance to Martial Emperor in five years, you will be like a meteor, disappearing after a flash, turning into dust and vanis.h.i.+ng.

“In reality, even if there were no issues with your physiological lifespan, you still have to advance to Martial Emperor within five years. Otherwise, you will still end up dead.”

Xiao Chen’s expression changed slightly. He gave the old man a strange look and asked, “Can you explain further?”

Jiang Tian said slowly, “How long do you think the Thunder Sovereign can live? There is no Martial G.o.d in the world; no one can achieve immortality. The Thunder Sovereign has already lived for over ten thousand years. Every day he continues living is already in defiance of the heavens and s.n.a.t.c.hing fate.

“If the Thunder Sovereign is no longer around, how can the Supreme Sky Emperor s.h.i.+eld you by himself? Before a true major character, killing you would take only a finger.

“Now that such a situation has cropped up, you have a sense of urgency. Now, the odds of you advancing to Martial Emperor within five years have improved slightly. Whether this issue is fortune or disaster, no one can say.”

Xiao Chen’s heart sank. He said with a smile, “I never thought about it this way before. Thinking about it now, it is indeed as Senior says. Fortune and disaster are hard to differentiate from each other.”

“Goodbye!”

Jiang Tian left at the drop of a hat, not hesitating or dragging things out; he instantly vanished from Xiao Chen’s sight.

Xiao Chen unfurled the two sheets of vellum. One represented life, recording all the Holy Spirit Veins that the four great Geomasters had discovered on their travels.

The other represented death, mapping all the great ominous lands that could kill Martial Emperors, filled with all sorts of unpredictable situations guaranteeing demise.

After a while, Xiao Chen tightly grasped the two sheets.

Regular Geomasters were restricted by their own cultivation. They would find it difficult to subdue the dragon and would not be able to deal with the various hidden ferocious beasts.

Xiao Chen possessed the combat prowess of a Great Perfection quasi-Emperor. Furthermore, he had the Dragon Fixing Needles and Dragon Revealing Mirror. With these two dragon-seeking Secret Treasures, he could subdue Spirit Veins single-handedly.

In the many possibilities, forty-nine out of fifty led to a dead end. However, there was no such thing as a complete dead end; there would definitely be a path to life. This was Xiao Chen’s chance at life!

Xiao Chen’s figure wavered, and he vanished from the vast sea. With this, he disappeared for a very long time.

There was no news of Xiao Chen in the Heavenly Starry Ocean. No one knew where the Azure Dragon King went. The Cyclic Astral Palace and the Divine Dragon Palaces of the four seas sent out many scouts. However, they failed to find any clues to his location.

Many different rumors spread all over the place.

Some people said that Xiao Chen had gone to the Penglai Sea, which no one knew the way to, to find medicine to solve his problem.

Some people claimed that Xiao Chen went back to the Kunlun Continent to seek the Thunder Sovereign for help.

Some people insisted that Xiao Chen had already scattered his cultivation and become an ordinary person, for the sake of living past a hundred years. He already completely vanished and would never appear again.

However, as time moved on, everyone stopped talking about Xiao Chen. After all, he was just a genius past his prime. There was no point in continuously discussing him.

This was especially so after news came from the Cyclic Astral Palace: the Sun Palace’s Holy Son and the Moon Palace’s Holy Daughter both broke through to quasi-Emperor at the same time. This made everyone forget about Xiao Chen’s existence.