“You are also going?” Elder Hong Tian raised an eyebrow and asked as soon as he heard the other party’s intention.
As soon as he finished speaking, Ji Yuan nodded and said, “Zhao Yuansong is my good friend. Since his whereabouts have been discovered, I naturally have to go and bring him home.”
He was in seclusion when the other party disappeared that day, and he received the news too late.
Now, after several years, he finally had news of Zhao Yuansong and naturally had to make the trip himself.
Upon hearing the word “home,” Elder Hong Tian immediately showed a meaningful smile.
“Then let’s go together.”
He nodded with a smile.
Ji Yuan was confused by his demeanor but soon stopped caring.
Given the current situation in Feiyun County and various needs, it was impossible to deploy flying mounts for this trip.
Therefore, Elder Hong Tian had to work harder and personally piloted a flying artifact, carrying everyone to Chongyuan Prefecture.
Fortunately, with Ji Yuan’s addition, the two could take turns piloting the flying artifact on the way, greatly reducing travel time.
Even though the flying artifact was extremely fast, it still took them nearly three months to reach Chongyuan Prefecture.
This was Ji Yuan’s first time traveling across prefectures. The journey was incredibly novel. If not for the urgent matter at hand, he would not have been able to delay even a moment and would have thoroughly experienced the exotic customs.
Given the vast territory of the Great Yu Dynasty, the customs and traditions of each county differed greatly, let alone between prefectures.
If Lingyang Prefecture was characterized by overlapping mountains and deep forests, then Chongyuan Prefecture was flat and uniform in its terrain.
Upon entering Chongyuan Prefecture, Elder Hong Tian put away the flying artifact. Although it was fast for travel and they needed to make the most of their time, due to the existence of the Shenxuan Sect, the cultivators in Chongyuan Prefecture were extremely fierce. If they had openly piloted a flying artifact, someone might have taken offense and simply shot it down.
Such incidents had occurred frequently in this region, and over time, few people chose to travel in overly conspicuous ways.
Thus, the group had no choice but to each purchase two excellent horses and travel by changing mounts to maximize speed.
The horses were worth eight hundred taels of silver, and with the addition of cultivators’ spiritual energy, they could cover a thousand miles a day.
However, as soon as they set off, Ji Yuan realized his thoughts had been too naive. After a full day of urgent travel, they had only covered a few hundred miles.
“This is how it is in Chongyuan Prefecture,” Chen Rong said helplessly that evening as they rested by the roadside.
He was from Chongyuan Prefecture and had been an inner disciple of the Shenxuan Sect, understanding this place better than everyone else present.
According to him, in Chongyuan Prefecture, one could encounter cultivators fighting or various forces clashing almost every other day.
In this place, a fight breaking out over a trivial matter was almost as common as eating.
If one was unlucky, encountering four or five waves of fighting cultivators in a single day was not impossible.
Ji Yuan and the others had been somewhat unlucky today, encountering three waves of fighting cultivators on their journey, one of which was a large-scale battle between two forces.
When they accidentally intruded, they were naturally mistaken for reinforcements by one side and were forced to fight, thus greatly delaying their progress.
“If it continues like this, we will be delayed quite a bit on this journey,” Ji Yuan said with a somber tone.
They were currently in Jinyang County, and Zhao Yuansong’s whereabouts were in Liufeng County, with half of Fengming County in between.
If they traveled in a straight line according to the map, it would be over three hundred thousand li!
Not to mention that they could not travel in a straight line the entire way. With detours, the journey would be at least four to five hundred thousand li.
Even a third-realm cultivator, with seemingly infinite spiritual energy, would have to fly non-stop for three to four months to achieve this.
After all, this was almost equivalent to traversing almost an entire prefecture!
“If Zhao Yuansong and the others are not in danger and everything goes smoothly,” Elder Hong Tian said slowly, looking at the map spread on the ground, “we should be able to meet in Fengming Prefecture.”
If that were the case, it would save nearly a third of the journey.
And since Zhao Yuansong and the others could transmit their whereabouts back to the Jiuxuan Sect through some means, they should be temporarily safe.
As long as they were not in danger or entangled with any troublesome matters, they would definitely try their best to move closer to the direction of the Jiuxuan Sect.
However, despite what was said, Ji Yuan was deeply skeptical. Given the customs of Chongyuan Prefecture, it was almost impossible for everything to go smoothly.
“I only hope their identities are not exposed,” Elder Hong Tian suddenly sighed, a melancholic expression appearing on his face.
Seeing this, Ji Yuan felt puzzled. Although this was not Lingyang Prefecture, with the strength and reputation of the Jiuxuan Sect, even if their identities were exposed, no force should deliberately target them, right?
Unless it was someone who had a feud with or harbored animosity towards the Jiuxuan Sect.
“Does Chongyuan Prefecture have enemies of the Jiuxuan Sect?” Ji Yuan asked in a deep voice.
The strength of anyone who could form an enmity with the Jiuxuan Sect and not be annihilated could be imagined.
If that were the case, this trip might encounter many twists and turns.
However, as soon as he spoke, Elder Hong Tian looked at him strangely, his repeated attempts to speak and stop leaving Ji Yuan muttering to himself.
“To be precise, it is the enemy of your Xuantian lineage.” Elder Hong Tian sighed deeply and said with a troubled expression, “However, even if the Xuantian lineage migrates and establishes its own sect, it cannot escape the fact that they share the same origin. This debt will naturally be counted against the Jiuxuan Sect.”
Upon hearing this, Ji Yuan’s eyebrows shot up, and a bad premonition suddenly struck him.
“Shenxuan Sect.” After a long pause, Elder Hong Tian slowly uttered a name.
As soon as the sound fell, not only Ji Yuan but also Chen Rong, who was beside him, looked confused, let alone the surrounding inner disciples.
“What feud does our Xuantian lineage have with them?” He twitched the corner of his mouth, his heart sinking. Although he couldn’t help but hold onto a sliver of hope, given Elder Hong Tian’s expression, it seemed that their ancestors might have truly offended the Shenxuan Sect severely.
Ji Yuan suddenly recalled that when the Xuantian Temple was at its peak, it had three great powers and seven Golden Core realm cultivators simultaneously.
“In the past, your Xuantian lineage forcefully killed one of the great powers of the Shenxuan Sect!” Elder Hong Tian said slowly after a long silence, “And five Golden Core great cultivators!”
He added that the eldest great power of the Shenxuan Sect today was besieged by the ancestors of the Xuantian Temple. Although he managed to escape back to the sect, he was severely injured, and his lifespan was reduced by two hundred years. Otherwise, his remaining lifespan would have been at least another three hundred years.
“…” Ji Yuan opened his mouth and only managed to recover after a long while, a wry smile appearing on his face. His own ancestors… were truly formidable…