Chapter 144: Farther North

The Gu clan had once been one of the Eight Supreme Forces of Tianfeng Continent, ten thousand years ago.

With the Sky Azure Sword and the Heavenly Desolation Frost Art, it was no exaggeration to say that the former glory of the Gu clan had been enough to make the entire Tianfeng Continent tremble.

Then, however, certain upheavals occurred. The Liu clan, the supreme power of fire, suffered a sudden catastrophe and was destroyed overnight. Like a fuse being lit, several families closely connected to it were struck by disaster in succession and began to decline. The Gu clan bore the brunt of it.

As for the history of ten thousand years ago, although Liu Pan was its author, he understood it only vaguely. In other words, aside from the Liu clan, which was directly connected to the protagonist of his novel, Liu Kuang, everything else remained a complete mystery to him.

There was only one thing he could be certain of: the Martial God Realm.

All those old monsters wanted immortality. They all wanted to survive.

Could the human heart truly be so unfathomable?

Liu Pan fell silent. At that moment, countless thoughts passed through his mind.

As for the inconsistencies in his book, he was now able to face them calmly.

Ultimately, it came down to experience. After all, many people and many things could be truly understood only after one had personally lived through them.

He walked slowly across most of Desolate City. About fifteen minutes later, Liu Pan saw the largest manor in the city.

Extreme Origin Manor.

When he saw the name, Liu Pan paused.

In the end, the Gu clan truly was a pitiable one. It was bad enough that they had retreated to the utterly insignificant Desolate City in the Northern Plains; they did not even dare reveal their true family name to the outside world. It was genuinely tragic.

And if people knew that the former supreme power of ice had used those words as the name on its gate, they would surely be left speechless with astonishment.

Liu Pan did not enter the manor. After circling its outskirts once, he found an inn nearby and settled in.

He had no idea what condition the Gu clan was in now. Moreover, he was not Liu Kuang, and this was not an episode from his novel. If he went in at this time, he might well be treated as an unwelcome intruder, and nothing good would come of it.

Over the next several days, Liu Pan spent nearly all his time wandering through Desolate City. Without drawing attention to himself, he made inquiries about Extreme Origin Manor from every direction. He even used indirect methods to ask about the graceful young woman.

Yet despite his deliberate efforts, the information he obtained left him speechless—or rather, he had learned virtually nothing useful.

Everyone gave the same answer: the people of Extreme Origin Manor were extremely discreet and almost never associated with outsiders. As for the graceful young woman, no one had even heard of her.

With no useful information to show for his efforts, Liu Pan suddenly found himself caught in a dilemma. If he had not been uncertain about the teleportation array, he would have secretly infiltrated the Gu clan and investigated it himself.

However, the fact that the mental mark he had left in the young woman’s hair had been discovered and erased was deeply troubling. If the person responsible was inside Extreme Origin Manor, then it was impossible for him to sneak in without making a sound.

And because he could not infiltrate the manor—and because the Gu clan never dealt with outsiders—he had no way to come into contact with its people. Without that, naturally, he could not investigate the clan’s current situation.

Liu Pan felt a headache coming on. He wished Liu Kuang were here. With Liu Pan’s identity and the Great Wilderness Blade, he could have walked straight in openly, without the slightest hesitation.

He wondered how Liu Kuang was doing now. Without realizing it, his thoughts turned to him.

If events were unfolding according to the plot of his novel, Liu Kuang should currently have been surrounded and hunted by the Burning Heaven Sect, fleeing from place to place.

But now Liu Kuang had joined the Burning Heaven Sect, and everything had changed. Most importantly, whether the Burning Heaven Sect would even make a move against him had become an open question. Nothing that followed could be predicted.

In truth, the person Liu Pan cared about most was Li Feiyang of the Burning Heaven Sect, who possessed the title of Vice Sect Master without actually wielding any authority.

There was no doubt about it: aside from Liu Pan himself, Li Feiyang was the person who knew the most about the secrets of Liu Pan’s body.

Liu Pan did not know whether Li Feiyang would eventually discover anything through his research. But whether he did or not, Liu Kuang was extremely likely to become his next target.

If Liu Kuang remained within the Burning Heaven Sect’s headquarters, all would be well. But once he left, there was no guarantee that Li Feiyang would not secretly follow him and do something behind everyone’s backs.

“I hope nothing too serious happens,” Liu Pan muttered.

Liu Pan could not judge Liu Kuang’s situation in the Southern Commandery. But once Liu Kuang left the Southern Commandery and headed for the Central Plains, Liu Pan could more or less guess the route he would take afterward.

At the very least, he was certain that Liu Kuang would come to the Northern Plains. And after reaching this Desolate City, he would continue north.

Continue north?

Suddenly, Liu Pan thought of something. He raised his head and looked toward the sky farther north. After sensing the condition of his body, a strange light flickered in his eyes.

The Gu clan was difficult to investigate for now. Perhaps he could head farther north first.

After considering the matter carefully, Liu Pan confirmed his decision.

Once he had a decision and a direction, he no longer wished to waste time in Desolate City. After gathering what he needed, he set off toward the far north.

North of Desolate City, such a place would certainly be classified as a forbidden zone for humanity if it existed on Earth. An ordinary person who came here, no matter how thoroughly prepared, would face certain death.

The law of survival in the cultivation world was far more bloody than ordinary people could imagine. To put it simply, in the extreme environment north of Desolate City, even the weakest creatures were beings ordinary people could never hope to resist.

He flew northward on his sword, but after less than half an hour, Liu Pan no longer dared continue. His body was impervious to the cold, but the violent astral winds in the sky were something he could not withstand for long.

Although absorbing the essences of the sun and moon had made his body terrifyingly powerful, his cultivation was still only at the Martial King Realm. And the astral winds were not the only thing he had to face.

A thousand miles of ice, ten thousand miles of drifting snow. The sky was dark and gloomy, as though sunlight would never again fall upon the world. Such an environment and such an atmosphere made it impossible for anyone to feel cheerful.

Thanks to his powerful mental strength, Liu Pan was able to sense danger and avoid misfortune. Though he spent a great deal of time taking detours, he encountered no real danger along the way. This pleased him greatly.

After all, mental strength at the True Lake Realm could genuinely be called formidable in an era when there were almost no resources with which to cultivate it.

Beyond the True Lake Realm lay the Heavenly Sea Realm. But setting aside how many people or beasts possessed mental strength of that level, one had to consider the environment here. Surely no creature with such power would willingly remain in this wretched place.

Three days later, Liu Pan casually tugged at his collar, surprise appearing in his eyes.

He had suddenly experienced a sensation he had not felt in a very long time.

Cold.