Chapter 326 Death!
The Great Zhou Dynasty, the northernmost of the three major dynasties in the Central Region. The northern part of the Great Zhou Dynasty is directly bordered by the extreme north of the Barbaric Wilderness Continent.
Falling Frost City is an ordinary small city in the northern part of the Great Zhou Dynasty. The only notable feature is that this city is the closest to the entire Great Zhou Dynasty's most mysterious boundary—the Nine Nether Pond.
Once, due to the exploration of the Nine Nether Pond, Falling Frost City had also been quite lively for a while.
However, since even late-stage Heavenly Saint Realm powerhouses had failed to explore the secrets of the Nine Nether Pond, the adventures to the pond had been stagnating for years, and few people approached it now. Falling Frost City had once again returned to its former tranquility and remained a common small city in the north.
Due to its proximity to the extreme north, Falling Frost City is cold all year round, covered in ice and snow; the city lives up to its name, filled with frost and snow.
One day, in a small tavern north of Falling Frost City, Liu Yingying was constantly sizing up a customer seated at the innermost table by the window from her spot at the counter.
Liu Yingying, the granddaughter of the tavern's owner, was fifteen years old. She wore a snow-white fleece jacket, her small face ice-clear and snow-white, and was quite beautiful. The snow outside the tavern and her white jacket made her appear even more delicate and charming.
What was even more remarkable was that this beautiful girl, at the mere age of fifteen, had already reached the eleventh level of the True Qi Realm. Such a cultivation level was quite rare in the small Falling Frost City.
It is worth noting that the most formidable sect in Falling Frost City was only a sixth-grade sect with a mid-stage Spinning Dan powerhouse. In the entire Great Zhou Dynasty, it was a very common small city.
Following Liu Yingying's gaze towards the tavern's innermost table by the window, one could see a sixteen-year-old youth tasting the dishes and wine. Next to the youth, there lay a gray monkey about the size of two hands on his shoulder, dozing off.
"This little brother doesn't seem to have the slightest fluctuation of True Qi, but I have a feeling that he's quite extraordinary," Liu Yingying mused, her big eyes filled with curiosity as she watched the youth.
"And that little monkey, so cute. I've never seen such a spirited little monkey before," she recalled the monkey's curious look when it had followed the youth into the tavern before dozing off, her face filling with affection.
Liu Yingying rested her small hands on the counter, stealthily glancing at the youth and the little monkey from time to time.
The youth to whom Liu Yingying was paying such attention couldn't help but smile wryly to himself, "I did not expect that this small city in the north of the Great Zhou Dynasty would have such a rare sense of tranquility."
This youth was, of course, Ye Chen, who had traveled north from the Heavenly Sacred Palace to embark on an adventure to the Nine Nether Pond. The monkey dozing on his shoulder was the golden monkey that had awakened after completing its cultivation; however, after waking up, it had once again concealed its extraordinary golden fur underneath an ordinary gray coat.
During the days of travel, Ye Chen had been flying on the "Heavenly Origin Boat"; only when he was close to the Nine Nether Pond did he retrieve it, and, while concealing his powerful aura, he transformed into an ordinary traveler. He took this opportunity to rest a bit in Falling Frost City—the city closest to the Nine Nether Pond—to recuperate from the exhaustion of the journey and prepare to step into the mysterious realm of the Nine Nether Pond.
Originally, Ye Chen thought he would enjoy the rare tranquility of the Northern Region during his half-day in this ordinary city, but after drinking half a pot of wine, he suddenly furrowed his brows.
Even the monkey dozing on Ye Chen's shoulder unwittingly opened its eyes, its bright black eyes seeming to look outside the tavern.
"Ye Chen, a large group of people is heading this way towards the tavern," the monkey whispered to Ye Chen.
Ye Chen also nodded, "According to the Nine Nether Pond exploration map, there are few powerful individuals in Falling Frost City. Surprisingly, among this group of people, there are two martial artists at the early stage of the Spinning Dan Realm. They don't look like sect martial artists; instead, they resemble the rumored bandits."
The other people, of course, were unaware of Ye Chen and the monkey's whispering, and even the commotion outside hadn't been noticed by the patrons in the tavern.
It wasn't until several minutes later that a thunderous sound of hooves resounded, getting closer and closer to the small tavern. Only then did the people inside start to realize something was amiss.
"What's that noise?" At the counter, Liu Yingying too became unconcerned with sneaking peeks at Ye Chen and the monkey. She walked out from behind the counter, lifted the tavern's curtain, and looked outside.
As soon as she looked out, her face changed dramatically.
Looking outside through the door curtain, one could see a group of fifty to sixty riders charging straight towards the tavern on the edge of the small city. At the head of the group was a youth in a black fleece jacket. By the youth's side were two bare-chested men, both emitting the aura of early-stage Spinning Dan warriors.
"The Heavenly Tiger Gang! Oh God, it's the Heavenly Tiger Gang!"
"The Heavenly Tiger Gang has come to town again!"
When the patrons recognized the approaching group, they cried out in horror and panic. Explore more at empire
"The Heavenly Tiger Gang? Who are they?" Ye Chen, holding the monkey, asked a patron nearby in a calm voice.
The patron's face was filled with panic, "Young master, you are not from Falling Frost City, are you? The Heavenly Tiger Gang is the largest force outside of Falling Frost City, even more powerful than the city's largest sect, the sixth-grade 'Falling Snow Sect'! It's said that the Heavenly Tiger Gang has three leaders. The third and second leaders are all mid-stage Spinning Dan Realm powerhouses, and the boss is even a late-stage Spinning Dan Realm powerhouse!"