Refining the Mountains and Rivers

After making a decision, Shi Gan was the first to get up and leave. He said that he wanted to gather the tribe elders to make some arrangements and delegate some matters to them. He hurriedly left, and when the news had spread, very quickly, the tribe elders had gathered together.

“Today, Marquis Chongwu will make his move to help our tribe’s totem, the Divine Stone, complete its transformation and advancement,” Shi Gan went straight to the point as he looked at the elders in front of him. “Regarding this matter, I don’t have to say much about what this means to our Divine Stone Tribe.”

He got up and added, “Relay my orders. Mobilize the tribe’s forces and set up a defensive formation. Until the tribe’s totem completes its advancement, no one is allowed to enter or leave our tribe’s territory.

“All the elders are to assume your positions and appease the tribespeople. If there are any interruptions during the advancement of the tribe totem, without my orders, no one will be allowed to go near the Forbidden Land.

“From now on, no one in the tribe is allowed to make decisions or act without authorization…”

Orders were meted out one by one and enacted with the greatest efficiency. The huge and mighty Divine Stone Tribe was like a well-oiled machine that quickly came to life.

Everyone was understanding towards the Tribe Leader’s cautiousness and carefulness. The Divine Stone had been on the edge of advancement for over two hundred years, and if it succeeded in advancing, it would also be equivalent to a huge growth in their tribe’s power.

This involved the tribe’s future, and carelessness could not be tolerated!

……

There was something wrong with Rourou’s emotions. Other people would not be able to sense it, but Qin Yu could.

Using the excuse of needing some peace and quiet to readjust his body, he chased the Green Willow Tribe Leader away. He looked at Rourou and asked, “Does the Divine Dragon City have something to do with you?”

Rourou looked at him, “You’re indeed becoming smarter, now that you’re able to guess something so hidden.”

She finally admitted it!

Qin Yu’s heart was shaken as he thought about that rumored True Dragon…uh, I don’t mean to think this way, but I can’t control my thoughts either. I can’t help but think that this True Dragon has been…eaten by Rourou?

“Hmph! What gibberish are you thinking about?!” Rourou rolled her eyes, “I don’t feel like talking about this, so you can stop asking.”

Just one sentence was enough to make Qin Yu swallow all the words that he was about to say.

He had some understanding of Rourou’s personality now. As long as she was not willing to share, there was no point in trying to get something out of her.

After thinking for a while, Qin Yu asked, “Why did you choose today then?”

Rourou was expressionless. “You were the one who picked the date.”

Qin Yu was speechless.

He could only admit that he indeed did do such a thing, but why did he feel like he was being suffocated to a point where he was gasping for air?

However, at least there was something that he had gotten confirmation about. Rourou’s current mood was indeed not very good. Qin Yu turned around and sat down beside her, no longer bothering to ask any questions. Yet, in actual fact, he did not feel relaxed in his heart at all.

After half an hour passed, Shi Gan came over personally and greeted solemnly, “Marquis, Lady, my tribe has already made the necessary preparations, please come with me.”

The Green Willow Tribe Leader was not here at this time and this was to be expected. Since it involved the advancement of the Divine Stone Tribe’s totem, it was not good for an outsider to be present. Just because the two tribe leaders had a close relationship, it did not mean that he could act inappropriately.

The Divine Stone Tribe’s camp seemed to have been emptied out completely. As the Tribe Leader led the way, there was no one to be seen anywhere else at all.

Sensing the doubtful look in Qin Yu’s eyes, Shi Gan explained, “Due to its nature and cultivation needs, my tribe’s Divine Stone Totem has been integrated into the earth beneath our feet. Once it starts its advancement, there will be a huge phenomenon that happens, like a ground dragon rolling in the earth. Because of this, I ordered my tribespeople to stay inside to prevent any unnecessary injuries.”

Qin Yu nodded his head, “Divine Stone Tribe Leader, you are very careful indeed.”

Shi Gan laughed and cupped his hands, “Everything that is about to happen today is still in your hands, Marquis. When my tribe’s totem has successfully advanced, our Divine Stone Tribe will express our endless gratitude to you.”

Very quickly, the three of them arrived at the viewing point beside that mountain where a mirage could be seen at dawn. Shi Gan extended his arm, “My tribe totem, the Divine Stone, is cultivating in the mountain base. Marquis, Lady, please follow me.”

After a few moments of hesitation, there was some astonishment on his face, “Perhaps Marquis and the lady have heard some things about me from that old fart. Hehe, the rumors are not without basis…there are some formations inside; please follow me closely to prevent any accidents.”

They walked through an illusory formation, a trapping formation, and a maze formation. This took up quite a lot of time before the three of them arrived at a crack at the foot of a mountain. It was not very big. Whatever could be seen from the outside was not even the height of a grown man, and to enter this crack, one would have to bend down.

Shi Gan coughed lightly, “This is the tunnel that leads to the mountain base.”

Qin Yu glanced at the Divine Stone Tribe Leader who was leading the way in front and thought to himself, ‘Your cautious and careful personality is indeed quite extreme.’

In the cave, it felt like there was a whole new world on its own. The entrance was very narrow. If one did not enter in person, one never would have thought that there would be such a huge and hidden underground space.

Various crystals shone brightly, like the ‘mirage’ that they saw this morning. It was quiet all around, and they could only hear the sound of their footsteps.

Shi Gan continuously reminded them to avoid triggering the mechanisms in a soft voice. Their journey was smooth, and after half an hour, they finally saw the Divine Stone Tribe’s totem, the Divine Stone.

“Marquis, Lady, today is the day when the Divine Stone recycles its aura. Please wait for a moment; I will go and wake it up.”

Shi Gan bowed and walked to where the Divine Stone was, however, he did not stop and continued to walk up even nearer to it.

Then, his whole body became like a shadow as it integrated into the Divine Stone and instantly disappeared.

Qin Yu’s expression changed slightly, and he was pulled back by Rourou in the next moment so that he was now standing behind her.

Buzz –

The Divine Stone Totem started to tremble. A yellow halo was produced from it and it swept across the whole cave, covering everything in it.

On the ground, the pebbles also started to tremble. They moved to assemble around the Divine Stone until its whole body was covered by these pebbles.

Rourou stepped forward and rushed in front. The yellow halo instantly dissipated and formed a square, blank space of over a hundred square meters.

She raised her head to look at the Divine Stone with an icy gaze, “I guessed that there was something wrong with you, but you dare to make a move against me all by yourself?”

“Of course he does not dare to,” another voice rang out in the air. “Your Excellency is incredibly mysterious and your abilities are not within our comprehension. We will use whatever methods we have against you today. Sorry to be rude.”

Rourou scoffed, “Are you trying to hide yourself in front of me? Are you sure you won’t die?” She raised her hand and pointed at the space in front of her. The space shattered and instantly, a black hole appeared.

A pained groan came out from the black hole, followed by an angry growl, “Take action! Kill him, and you guys can be free.”

Whoosh –

Whoosh –

Whoosh –

One by one, figures appeared out of thin air. They were all wrapped in black robes and only their icy and indifferent eyes could be seen.

Without any hesitation, these people all took action at the same time…rushing towards Qin Yu!

That’s right, their attacks directly evaded Rourou. It was extremely clear that their goal was to kill Qin Yu.

Light rays were produced from the use of various Divine Ways and they covered the whole space. The weakest cultivator was at the Ruler level, and there were two people who were high-level Rulers, stronger than the assassin Qin Yu encountered previously outside the Marshal Tent.

Even though back then, Qin Yu managed to inflict heavy injuries upon that assassin, it was only one person that he had to deal with. Now, there were at least ten people in front of him.

Quantitative changes would eventually lead to qualitative changes. There were more than ten Rulers who had joined forces; it would not be difficult for them to kill a peak Ruler.

Qin Yu’s face was ashen and he thought to himself, ‘Something is wrong. Rourou clearly felt that something was off beforehand, but why are these people going after me instead?’

However, evidently, no one was going to explain themselves to him.

At this moment, the gauze that had been covering Rourou's eyes suddenly disappeared. She could finally see through the causes and effects of this whole situation.

“It looks like not eating you back then was the wrong decision.”

Mumbling to herself, Rourou did not hesitate and waved her sleeves, causing a big tidal wave to suddenly appear, shattering all the Divine Ways that were rushing towards Qin Yu.

Those assassins that had appeared out of thin air were like big fish in the ocean that were forced backwards.

She did not kill anyone.

It was not because she did not want to, but because she could not.

The other party already knew about her ‘flaws’, so now their best choice was to leave this place. However, since they had already dared to let Rourou understand the whole situation, it would be hard for them to get out of this easily.

But they would still have to try.

Rourou stomped down heavily and the whole grotto started to shake violently. A violent force hit the ground.

Bang –

Bang –

Bang –

The stone monsters that were surrounding the Divine Stone instantly shattered into powder.

Ka-cha –

A crack formed on the Divine Stone’s surface and Shi Gan’s face appeared, with a pained expression. However, with the surging of the yellow halo once again, the crack quickly disappeared. The stone monsters, which had been shattered into powder, condensed once again and went back to their original positions.

Rourou looked at Shi Gan’s face on the Divine Stone that was twisting and turning. His eyes were shut as he cried out in pain, fresh blood flowing out of his eye sockets.

At this moment, the assassins that were forced to retreat rushed towards them once again.

Rourou stomped heavily on the ground once more. The cave started to tremble and the assassins flew back again. This time, the injuries that they sustained were not as heavy as before. It could even be said that they were not hurt at all by Rourou’s attack this time, as they were wrapped by a gentle energy.

“I’m not going to kill people, what can you guys do?”

She raised her head to look at the Divine Stone, “I’ll see how long you can hold on for!”

Hong –

She stomped heavily on the ground again!

The stone monsters were shattered and a crack appeared on the Divine Stone again. Shi Gan howled angrily, “Hurry, make your move!”

He realized that he had underestimated the power that Marquis Chongwu’s wife had. If this went on, the whole cave and the restraints that he had arranged would be smashed with just three to five more stomps.

If that happened, he would also die!

Suddenly, the black-robed assassins’ eyes turned red and their violent auras exploded from their bodies.

“Ah!”

They howled in anger and pain.

However, very quickly, there was only destruction and extinction, and they went into a mad craze.

While they roared, they widened their red eyes and rushed towards Qin Yu.

Rourou’s gaze became even colder. She extended her arms and wrapped them around Qin Yu. In the next moment, a terrifying rumble sounded, like continuous thunder.

Qin Yu could not even think of enjoying Rourou’s warm and gentle touch. He only felt dizzy and there was a very uneasy feeling in his chest.

All fourteen powerful Ruler cultivators had self-destructed!

Rourou’s face turned pale and she did not move. She had an indifferent expression as she said, “What does their self-destruction have to do with me?”

A soft sigh sounded from beside Rourou’s ears. A woman dressed in a black robe appeared where the assassins had self-destructed and said, “Whether you say it has anything to do with you or not, I’m afraid it does not matter.”