Chapter 333: Journey to the Blood Leaf City
Chapter 333: Journey to the Blood Leaf City
" Damn, sometimes I wish I had a car here." Jia Hao sighed as he rode the horse. Since he already has a destination in his mind, he didn’t bother to use the agility technique.
The horse ran at a moderate pace, letting Jia Hao enjoy the surroundings. ’ Sometimes I forget that I am a sucker for scenic beauties.’
The forest path widened as one could see the main road used by the travellers. Jia Hao slowly rode the horse; his next destination was the Blood Leaf City. With his pace, it will take him a week.
However, despite the good natural scenery, Jia Hao got bored and tired. When the next small town appeared, Jia Hao took one whole day of rest in an inn.
’ This won’t do. I need to stick with my schedule.’ Jia Hao pondered inwardly. Lucky for him he noticed a caravan heading for the Blood Light City.
" Fellow Brother, will you allow me to travel with you?"
The merchant was stunned when he saw Jia Hao. Judging from his looks, he is definitely a noble.
" Uhhh, Young Master, you wish to travel with us?" The merchant felt skeptical. Jia Hao nodded, " Yes, and I am willing to pay." Jia Hao explained, " It’s just too hassle to travel alone."
The merchant was unwilling at first. However, when Jia Hao showed him two gold ingots, his expression turned pleasant. " Hoho, good good, There is certainly some space in the main carriage. Young Master, you can travel with us."
The caravan consisted of five carriages, two for living accommodation and three for goods. The merchant’s name was Luo Bin.
" Brother Luo Bin, It should take three days to reach Blood Leaf City, I believe?" Jia Hao asked, but the merchant shook his head, " Five days. We are taking a detour."
" Detour for what?" Jia Hao was surprised, but Luo Bin explained.
" Currently, there are bandits who are hiding in the forest. Usually, one needs to give them some money for letting the goods pass." Luo Bin’s eyes narrowed, " But heaven knows from where these new fuckers came. They are directly killing and looting."
" Why doesn’t the City Administration or Scaled Dragon Guards doing anything?"
Luo Bin gave a wry chuckle, " Brother, who do you think Scaled Dragon Guards are? These small bandit activities is nothing for them. At most, someone will put bounty on the bandits and some guild might take action."
" As for Blood Leaf City, most of their forces were concentrated on the Red Maple Forest. So, they don’t dispatch these guards this far."
" Our town arranged the guards to go out and fight with the bandits. However, the bandits are martial artists. Though both sides faced losses, the bandits escaped with ease."
" Tsk, now they must be more vengeful." Jia Hao chuckled as he rubbed his chin, " Well, I hope they get dealt out soon."
" Indeed, I also hope." Luo Bin nodded, " Goodness, taking a detour is the same as losing money. Those motherfuckers! I hope those bastards rot in hell."
" Hell, huh?"
Jia Hao suddenly fell into a deep thought when he heard it. " What do you know about hell? I mean, the netherworld?"
" The netherworld?" Luo Bin was stunned as he thought, " There are many stories, though?"
" Most popular one is... In ancient times, a great unholy beast appeared, bringing calamity on the land. Every force gathered to defeat that beast and its minions."
However, the more they fought, the stronger the beast and its army became, creating a sense of despair. However, someone noticed that...The monsters contain memories of fallen soldiers!"
Luo Bin shuddered, " It turned out that the beast captured the souls of dead soldiers and turned them into its slaves. So the more the soldiers died, the stronger its army became."
" From here, the story deviates a lot." Luo Bing chukcled, " Some say the Bodhisatva appeared, crushing the beast with his palm and releasing all the souls. The corpse of the beast was turned into the realm of the netherworld, a sanctuary of departed souls."
" But some other people say that some wandering immortals appeared, fighting against the beast. After they slayed the beast, they found its body was linked to another realm. They went there and created a space where souls can reside."
" But I heard the otherworld people’s theory about hell is a bit different."
Jia Hao became interested, " Is that so?"
Luo Bin shrugged, " But I don’t know. There have been some books published in the Great Yan Kingdom, a collaboration between the Imperial Li Family and a few of the otherworldly factions to integrate the cultures. But I have never read them."
Jia Hao lost in thought when he thought about it. After all, he is a person who lived in the Netherworld for many lifetimes. He almost knows it like the back of his hand.
’ Hmm, I recall a few magical tricks of the netherworld. I wonder if they’re gonna work here too? If they do, that means I can still be under the rule of Yama King?’
’ Hehe, I wonder what expression that old bastard will make seeing me again.’ Jia Hao gave an evil grin.
As the evening fell, the caravan stopped, making a camp to rest. Jia Hao sat cross legged, circulating the Golden Arhat Vajra Body Art.
Since he reached the realm of an Enlightened Monk, he can freely manifest his internal energy. A mist of white cloud swirled in his dantian, spreading through his meridians.
His foundation was like an unblemished floor made of gold, with specks of starlight seeming to scatter over it.
’ Hehe, I have accumulated quite some Virtuous Energy. I wonder what I should use it for?’
Since his foundation was established, Jia Hao has also had free control over the Virtuous Energy. He sat in meditation, pondering his future plan.
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" Your Majesty, these are this month’s intel. Among all, I have sorted three memorials that need your attention."
The eunuch bowed with a smile, " However, there has been an interesting development regarding Prince Li Yuan."
" Li Yuan? What happened? Didn’t he go to the banquet?" The Emperor raised his brows.
" Well..." The eunuch cleared his throat, " First of all, Governor Wu and his son, both are dead. They were killed by assassins."