Chapter Sixty-Seven: Leaving the Valley of the Mystic Moon

“What? The way out is right beneath our feet?” Chu Feng stared at Xiao Yue in disbelief, thinking he must have misheard. He glanced down. “There’s only a platform for storing treasures here—where’s the way out?”

Xiao Yue smiled faintly. “Actually, this should be a teleportation platform.”

At first, Xiao Yue had also assumed the platform was merely for storing treasures, but upon closer inspection, he realized the runes carved around its edge were strikingly similar to those he’d seen on teleportation platforms before.

Most of the runes here, however, were more arcane and intricate. Still, he could more or less conclude that this was indeed a teleportation platform.

Chu Feng looked surprised. He’d heard about the uses of teleportation platforms, but never expected the very ground beneath his feet to be one.

“Can we leave through here?” Chu Feng asked the Golden Sun Ancestor Stone. Seeing the stone bounce up and down, Chu Feng immediately understood that it was possible.

At that moment, the gray-robed man who had been standing by the entrance seemed to receive a summons and flew straight to the platform.

The Golden Sun Ancestor Stone flashed and darted into Chu Feng’s arms.

Chu Feng hugged the stone, feeling a deep affection. “Do you want to leave with us?”

The Golden Sun Ancestor Stone floated into the air, decisively bobbing up and down.

Chu Feng frowned. It wasn’t that he didn’t want to take it along, but it simply wasn’t possible. The Lingzhan Pavilion was tightly guarded; the moment they passed through the main gate’s barrier, they’d be discovered, which would certainly spell doom.

Chu Feng looked to Xiao Yue for his opinion.

“Let it stay here,” Xiao Yue said. “With such a formidable guardian, it’s safe. Heading to the Sacred City would be a dead end.”

Chu Feng nodded; he had thought the same. He patted the Golden Sun Ancestor Stone. “Where I’m going is too dangerous for you. Stay here for now. When I leave the Sacred City in the future, I’ll come find you, all right?”

The Golden Sun Ancestor Stone remained motionless, as if in silent contemplation. After a moment, it slowly bobbed, agreeing to Chu Feng’s suggestion.

“Good boy!” Chu Feng said with a smile, stroking the stone. “By the way, my name is Chu Feng. I still don’t know what you look like, but since you dwell in the Golden Sun Ancestor Stone, how about I call you Little Jin?”

The stone bounced joyfully, clearly delighted to have a name.

“Well then, Little Jin, we’re leaving. Until we meet again!” Chu Feng said.

The Golden Sun Ancestor Stone touched Chu Feng’s cheek, then drifted away from the platform.

At that moment, the gray-robed man moved. With a few gestures of his hand, a green light shot into the teleportation platform.

In an instant, the runes around the platform flashed, and brilliant white light surged up, completely engulfing Xiao Yue and Chu Feng.

When the radiance faded, the two were gone.

Chu Feng and Xiao Yue felt themselves enveloped in a vast, overwhelming force, carried through a tunnel in space and time. Within a few heartbeats, they emerged into the real world.

All around them were endless verdant mountains. Xiao Yue pulled out a map and saw that they were now in the Golden Sun Mountains.

“That teleportation platform is extraordinary. With precise calibration, it could probably send one to any corner of the world,” Xiao Yue marveled inwardly. Such a device was only ever mentioned in ancient records; even among the entire human race today, there was nothing like it.

Ordinarily, a teleportation platform required a receiving platform at the other end, but evidently, the one that had brought them here was not of that kind.

Xiao Yue realized the gray-clad guardian had only set a random distance to send them away. Perhaps, after his mind was damaged, he could no longer use the teleportation array with precision.

Nonetheless, escaping from the Moonshadow Valley filled both men with immense relief—a true sense of having survived disaster.

Chu Feng was deeply moved. He hadn’t expected that what started as a simple mission would lead to such extraordinary events.

He glanced at the small box in his hand. He wanted to tuck it into his clothes, but it was a bit too large and cumbersome, so he simply handed it to Xiao Yue, who placed it in his storage pouch.

“I’ll keep it safe for you,” Xiao Yue said, storing the box away.

Seeing Xiao Yue use a storage pouch, Chu Feng felt a twinge of envy and muttered, “I wonder if I’ll ever get to use one of those. Carrying things like this is really inconvenient.”

“I don’t think you’re fated to use a storage pouch,” Xiao Yue shook his head with a sigh.

“No need to be so blunt,” Chu Feng replied, speechless.

Xiao Yue laughed heartily. “Don’t worry. Once we get back, I’m sure you’ll find a treasure that suits you even better.”

Upon hearing this, Chu Feng’s eyes lit up, but when he pressed for more details, Xiao Yue refused to say, leaving Chu Feng both exasperated and helpless.

It was nearing noon, and they hadn’t actually stayed long in the Moonshadow Valley. By Chu Feng’s counting, today was the eighteenth day of their mission period.

“Has the collection of Golden Sun Stones been completed?” Xiao Yue asked.

“Xu Yan should have more than a hundred jins by now,” Chu Feng replied.

“Then let’s head back. The sooner we leave, the better. Perhaps Xiao Fan and the others haven’t left yet,” said Xiao Yue. After so much had happened, he had no desire to linger outside. At the mention of Xiao Fan, a trace of pain crossed Xiao Yue’s face.

For Chu Feng, now that the mission was complete, there was no reason to stay. His thoughts were with Xu Yan and the others—he wondered how they were.

Seeing Xiao Yue’s expression, Chu Feng understood his feelings and offered comfort: “Since the bond of brotherhood has run its course, you must let go. No need to dwell on it. Besides, you’re not alone—you still have me, your brother, don’t you?”

Xiao Yue nodded, a smile spreading across his face. He clapped Chu Feng on the shoulder. “That’s right. Compared to you, my brother through life and death, what does Xiao Fan amount to? If we meet again, we’ll settle things as we must. As for brotherhood, there’s none left.”

“If there’s ever a fight, how could I not be there? We’ll get justice, sooner or later,” Chu Feng said earnestly.

Xiao Yue was moved. He patted Chu Feng’s shoulder again and said, “Between us brothers, there’s no need for formality. From now on, just call me big brother, if you don’t mind.”

“Oh, big brother, isn’t that a bit much?” Chu Feng said with a laugh.

Xiao Yue shot him a look and pointed at him. “Brother, I think you’re actually quite comfortable with it.”

The two looked at each other and burst out laughing.

Without further delay, they soon left the Golden Sun Mountains and headed straight for the Sacred City.

With their stamina, making it back before nightfall was no challenge.

However, something unexpected happened. Half an hour later, on the way back, they ran into Xu Yan and her group.

It turned out that after fleeing the previous afternoon, Xu Yan and the others had not returned to the Sacred City. Worried for Chu Feng’s safety, after hiding for a while and parting ways with Sun Xuan’s group, they retraced their steps to look for him.

Meeting again, both groups were naturally overjoyed.

But after the initial happiness, Xu Yan was suddenly disappointed, both surprised and suspicious, for the large Golden Sun Stone in her storage pouch had vanished without a trace.

As for the Golden Sun Ancestor Stone and their adventure in the Moonshadow Valley, Chu Feng said nothing. He and Xiao Yue even decided not to mention it to the elders of the human race for now. News of such a momentous event would stir up a storm, potentially endangering many lives, and they didn’t want any powerhouses to threaten Little Jin’s safety.

Meeting up with Xu Yan and the others slowed their journey a bit, but traveling together made it much more enjoyable—and actually, they moved faster than they had before.

Thus, three days later, the group returned to the Novice Camp. There were still nine days until the grand competition between the twenty camps.

Upon returning, everyone handed in their tasks and collected their points using their iron identification tokens. Chu Feng went to wash up and discovered something astonishing: the small black sword mark on his chest now bore a fine crack.

“When did that appear?” Chu Feng wondered, recalling the events atop the stone dais in the great hall.

“Could it have happened then?” he mused. He remembered that when he touched the bronze door, the little sword had emitted a sword cry unlike any before.

“Was that not just a warning?” Chu Feng speculated again, for the sound had been markedly different.

He couldn’t make sense of it, so he let it go for now.

After bathing, Chu Feng tidied up his dorm and made a trip to the Heaven-Rank Camp. He knew Long Yue couldn’t possibly be back yet, but he went anyway. As expected, she was still absent.

Nor did he see Murong Qiuxue or Liu Yantao; he heard they’d gone far away on missions.

At the Qin family estate, in Qin Yuancheng’s study, the man sat at his desk with Qin Hao facing him. At this moment, Qin Yuancheng was imparting his knowledge of business to Qin Hao.

After Chu Feng had crippled his right hand, Qin Hao was all but ruined for the Lingzhan Pavilion, and had given up on that path. He stayed home to cultivate and study commerce, preparing to inherit the family business.

When the lesson ended, Qin Hao asked, “Father, is there any news from the Golden Sun Mountains?”

Qin Yuancheng took a sip of tea and calmly set the cup down. “His fate is already sealed; there’s nothing to worry about.”

“I heard Xiao Yue isn’t in the Lingzhan Pavilion either—he must have gone with them,” Qin Hao said.

“If he’s courting death, let him have it,” Qin Yuancheng replied coolly.

“Damn Chu Feng—my only regret is not killing him myself,” Qin Hao said.

“As long as the goal is achieved, why care about the process? Remember, that’s the essence of business,” Qin Yuancheng said.

“You’re right, Father,” Qin Hao replied respectfully, though in his heart he longed for news of Chu Feng’s demise.

Suddenly, the communication talisman in Qin Yuancheng’s robe vibrated. Qin Hao’s eyes lit up at the sound.

“It must be Third Uncle bringing good news!” Qin Hao exclaimed.

Qin Yuancheng smiled slightly. “With your uncle’s arrangements, how could anything go awry? Even if there were several more Xiao Yues, they’d still be dead.”

He spoke with great confidence and activated the talisman. Instantly, Qin Zhang’s voice came through: “Second Brother, it’s failed. The three fourth-rank Earth Spirit Warriors and one seventh-rank sent by our elder brother are all dead. Chu Feng and Xiao Yue have already returned to the Sacred City.”

Shock filled the voice—clearly, Qin Zhang had been deeply astonished when sending the message.

At that moment, the faces of Qin Hao and Qin Yuancheng turned so dark that water might drip from them, as if they’d been slapped. They had imagined a thousand ways Chu Feng might die at the hands of those experts, but never expected the pair to make it back alive.

“How could this happen!” Qin Hao seethed with frustration.

“Consider yourselves lucky!” Qin Yuancheng said coldly, bringing his palm down and shattering the desk.

That night, Chu Feng, Xu Yan, and the other six gathered at the gate of the Novice Camp. Not long after, Xiao Yue arrived.

This time, Xiao Yue played host and invited everyone to a grand feast at the Guest Pavilion. They still weren’t able to book a private room, so they had to sit in the main hall.

The group ate and drank heartily. Now that Xiao Yue had fully recovered, he and Chu Feng toasted each other freely, reveling in their joy.

In the midst of the merrymaking, nine people entered through the main doors. At their head was a man in flowing white robes, dignified and imposing, followed by eight men and women in black, each exuding an extraordinary aura.

The man in white quickly spotted Xiao Yue. His pupils contracted, and his expression turned grave.