“Boom!”

All of a sudden, a violent wind arose. This was the natural wind of heaven and earth, forming a great cyclone that swept up countless stones and sand into the air—an extremely rare hurricane disaster even in this harsh environment!

The eye of the storm reached from the sky to the ground, with no end in sight. Everything in its path, whether sand, stones, plants, or animals, was drawn in, creating an astonishing spectacle.

The True Beast Brutal Bear was furious because the sandstorm was headed straight for it. As the king of this territory, it would never avoid a natural disaster like this, even if it could!

“Roar!”

The Brutal Bear let out a sky-shaking roar that overpowered the hurricane’s howling. The bear rose up on its hind legs; its massive paws lifted high, then violently slammed down on the ground.

“Boom!”

The earth trembled tremendously. An invisible wave spread out, shaking the ground within dozens of miles as if a major earthquake had struck. A force field spread forward, causing the ’crack, crack’ sound of the collapsing ground beneath it.

“Boom!”

The distant, sky-reaching hurricane collapsed under the Brutal Bear’s furious blow. The hurricane swept away in all directions, rustling the bear’s fur with a whistling sound.

But after the storm dissipated, all was calm again. At the center, where the Brutal Bear stood, a crater several miles in diameter remained permanently in the earth, resembling a vast meteorite impact site!

“Is this the ’Violent Bear Shakes the Earth’? Too terrifying…”

Su Changkong, with his extraordinary potential and insight, touched the essence within the painting and realized the fearfulness of the Brutal Bear. He too was shaken, truly worthy of being a creature of ancient myths that could command the weather!

Su Changkong focused his thoughts. Behind him, a phantom of a golden-furred giant bear appeared. He kept recalling and imitating the Brutal Bear’s posture, trying to integrate its essence into his Five Animal Frolics as he had done with the Ape Demon Star Picking Picture.

With Su Changkong’s current potential and insight, he would be able to achieve this within a maximum of three months!

A few days later, Su Changkong temporarily stopped his cultivation, tidied up, and informed Helian Yuan that he might need to take a trip before setting out towards Feiyun City.

In that tavern in Feiyun City, in the same room, Su Changkong met the son of the Lord of the Demon Suppressing Department.

He was a handsome young man, seemingly about seventeen or eighteen years old, with bright eyes.

“May I ask if you are Senior Blade Dao Wufeng? My name is Duanmu He.”

The good-looking young man greeted Su Changkong politely, introducing himself.

“Hmm, I will ensure your safe arrival within the Wuji Empire territory. The journey is long; if you’re ready, then let’s set out.”

Su Changkong nodded slightly.

Although Duanmu He seemed harmless, Su Changkong had found out through his own probing that Duanmu He was a martial artist, an Innate Martial Artist with more Heavenly Pulses awakened than Su Changkong himself! And Duanmu He’s Martial Arts Realm was above Su Changkong’s!

However, it was not surprising. Duanmu He was the son of the Lord of the Demon Suppressing Department, naturally gifted, a flower grown in a greenhouse, bestowed with abundant resources from childhood. His rise in Cultivation Realm was simple and easy.

On the other hand, Su Changkong started from Black Iron Manor and worked his way up by his own strength.

Given that Duanmu He had a foundation in martial arts, there was no need to worry he would slow Su Changkong down or be a drag on the journey!

“Senior Blade, let me help you carry those bags!”

Duanmu He was very considerate, helping Su Changkong with a package of scrolls as they began their journey.

But in Duanmu He’s heart, he couldn’t help being curious: “Is this Senior Blade the one who killed Qi Gang? He doesn’t look so fierce on the outside!”

Duanmu Tao had specifically requested Su Changkong to take his son along on the trip, trusting that with the latter’s capabilities, even if dangers arose on the road, they would be well handled!

Su Changkong and Duanmu He did not use transportation means such as carriage. As Innate Martial Artists, their pace was faster than any swift horse; otherwise, based on an average person’s travel time, reaching the Wuji Empire would take several years.

The two traveled in silence most of the way, stopping only occasionally to rest in some inns they passed by.

The speed and agility they displayed on their journey were enough to caution any small-time thief to stay clear, knowing them to be people not to be trifled with.

While on the road, Su Changkong didn’t forget to practice his cultivation. His mind constantly envisioned the True Beast Brutal Bear as he trained his Five Animal Frolics with intent.

Unbeknownst to Duanmu He, this silent and somewhat difficult-to-approach ’Senior Blade’ was, in fact, cultivating while they traveled!

Two months later, Su Changkong and Duanmu He crossed several states such as Central State, arriving at the Great Flame Empire’s border checkpoint.

“Once we pass through the Heavenly Wolf Pass ahead, we will have left the territory of the Great Flame Empire.”

Duanmu He had a complex look on his face. He didn’t know when he would be able to return after leaving the Great Flame Empire.

Ahead stood tall city walls and checkpoints stretching for a thousand miles. There were plenty of soldiers stationed there, and people being inspected as they entered and left the borders.

This was the Heavenly Wolf Pass, marking the boundary of the Great Flame Empire. Inside the pass lay the empire, and outside, a completely lawless area!

Despite the Great Flame Empire’s interior having its fair share of chaotic places, the area beyond its borders was far more chaotic by tenfold—a true no man’s land teeming with bandits and local warlords claiming to be kings. Some might barely rule for a few days before getting overthrown by someone else.

The wastelands between the Great Flame Empire and the Wuji Empire were a perilous path for commoners to traverse. Unless extremely lucky, most would perish long before completing the journey.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by Madara Web Novel