As the cultivator’s clone died, a big fight was nearing its conclusion in the sixth region belonging to the Firemoon Darkheavens, which was some distance away from Xu Qing and the Captain, in a forbidden region in the third region.1

The combatants were Firemoon Darkheaven cultivators. Both were dozens of meters tall, with golden hair and golden eyes that made them seem very holy. Both of them had three forbidden mountains each hovering above them, pulsing with strong mutagen. As they fought amidst wind and snow, the sound of their combat drifted far and wide, and the surrounding natural and magical laws seethed.

There were members of Firemoon Darkheaven subsidiary species in the area, watching the fight play out.

A muffled thump could be heard as one of the combatants exploded. Blood sprayed everywhere as the other combatant grabbed the head of his defeated foe and glared at it.

“You knew full well that I staked a claim to that forbidden region. Yet you still dared to take the forbidden mountain from it?”

The surviving head looked back and growled, “Sir Cloudmortal, you can have this clone of mine. But my true form will track you down as you make your way to God Mountain. Make sure to keep all my forbidden mountains safe until then.”

The cultivator who had been referred to as Sir Cloudmortal didn’t react visibly other than to throw the head onto one of the forbidden mountains overhead. The mountain rumbled, and the pressure coming off it caused the head to start crumbling into ash. However, the ash didn’t drift away. Instead, it and the chunks of flesh below all teleported away.

Sir Cloudmortal didn’t pay any attention to that. He clenched his hand into a fist, and the three forbidden mountains that had previously belonged to his opponent now flew over to him. From a distance, it was possible to see six mountains, all of them producing mutagen so strong it manifested as pulsing black clouds.

All of the onlookers bowed their heads. None of the subsidiary species qualified to engage in combat with actual Firemoon Darkheavens.

That was especially true during the Great Hunt.

When it came to the Firemoon Darkheavens, it was no exaggeration to say that every member of their species was outstanding, talented, and had shocking techniques at their disposal. That was one of the reasons why, over the years, the subsidiary species who acknowledged allegiance to them did so from the depths of their hearts.

Sir Cloudmortal looked around at his surroundings. He didn’t even bother studying the members of the subsidiary species. After scanning the area, he turned to leave. But then he suddenly lurched to a halt and looked off into the distance. His expression flickered as he sensed that his clone in another forbidden region had suddenly ceased to exist.

Normally speaking, when a Firemoon Darkheaven’s clone died, it would automatically return via teleportation, just as had happened with the flesh and blood of the opponent he had just defeated. It was a tacit understanding between members of their species. Unless there was some deadly animosity between opponents, they would hold back from using full force. In most cases, they would save strength like that for going all out in the god domain round of the Great Hunt. For a clone to be wiped out of existence during the first round was relatively rare.

“Who’s responsible for this?” growled Sir Cloudmortal as he started moving in the direction of his lost clone.

***

Xu Qing and the Captain were flying through the air in a location a few regions away.

The Captain seemed to be in a bad mood, and though he would occasionally cast a glance in Xu Qing’s direction, he wasn’t talking at all.

At first, Xu Qing didn’t think much of it. But after he realized the Captain kept looking at him, he took a tangerine out of his bag of holding and tossed it over.

“Feel like a tangerine, Eldest Brother?”

The Captain instinctively caught the fruit. However, he couldn’t suppress the feeling of grievance in his heart. Finally, he gravely said, “Little Ah Qing, as a man, you need to rely on your own skills and abilities. Do you really think a true man needs to depend on a woman to succeed? Do good looks put food on the table?”

Upon hearing that, Xu Qing couldn’t help but correct the Captain. “Shē’s not a woman. Shē’s a High God.”

The Captain took a deep breath and then disdainfully replied, “High Gods aren’t that amazing. I banged one once! Nothing special at all!”2

Xu Qing had no response to such biting words.

The Captain was still in a bad mood, so as they continued on their way, he would frequently say some very shocking things…. freēwēbηovel.c૦m

And thus, half a month went by.

Xu Qing and the Captain had now laid eyes on the interior of Firemoon Darkheaven lands. Their quick rate of travel was thanks to the teleportation portals in the regions. Ordinary cultivators couldn’t use such portals. They were only available to people with special qualifications, for instance, those participating in the Great Hunt.

According to the Captain’s original plan, it was supposed to take much longer to reach the interior. But all Xu Qing had to do was take out a certain identity medallion….

That was another reason for the Captain’s sour mood. When they reached the interior, he was still bloated and swollen. Forcing out a sigh, he produced a peach and took a vicious bite. Then, before he could take another bite, his expression flickered and he looked up into the sky.

Xu Qing also looked up. Even with the naked eye, it was possible to see that the dome of heaven over the interior was turning bright red. Terrifying pulses rolled out as the red color spread. Off in the distance, which was the source of the redness, there was some colossal object flying along at top speed. Before long, that enormous object became visible to Xu Qing and the Captain.

It was a nonhuman head. It had brown skin, two horns, an oval face, and a prominent nose ring. There were seven eyes on the face, gray and withered, and within each it was possible to see a cultivator seated cross-legged in meditation. Each cultivator was a shocking Firemoon Darkheaven.

The head was as large as an entire city, making it easy to see even from a great distance. As for the red glow, it came from the top of the head.

Xu Qing wasn’t sure what species this head represented, but based on the pressure it radiated he could sense the lingering will of a Smoldering God. From the look of it, this was the head of an actual Smoldering God!

Of even greater significance was that there was also something about it that reminded him of actual gods, which caused fear to linger within him.

At the same time, the head seemed to have been turned into a magical treasure. There was some withered hair drifting about the head, but there was one section on the very top of the head with no hair at all. In that spot, there were numerous buildings, plus crowds of bustling people. It was like some sort of market. In fact, people would occasionally fly off the head and disappear in bright beams of light that shot off over the horizon.

As the head neared, it caused a strong wind to blow across the lands surrounding it. Xu Qing and the Captain had no choice but to drop to the ground and stop flying.

“I can’t believe we ran into a darkmoon ward,” the Captain said, his eyes gleaming, first with reminiscence, and then with delight.

“Darkmoon ward?” Xu Qing asked, looking at the Captain.

Upon hearing the question, the Captain stuck his chin up. “That High God of yours didn’t tell you?”

Xu Qing blinked a few times. He was aware that his Eldest Brother had been in a sour mood during their travels. He shook his head apologetically.

The Captain felt a bit better when he saw that facial expression. Sounding pleased, he said, “The darkmoon wards are a special kind of marketplace unique to the Firemoon Darkheaven people. Their species don’t settle down and live in one specific place. Instead, they live nomadic lives as they follow the three ‘steward tents’ that form the basis of their culture.

“As for the darkmoon wards, they’re special commercial operations devoted to trade with other species. The head you’re looking at has the aura of a god on it. I’d say it’s highly likely it originally came from a god domain.

“The Firemoon Darkheavens have a beloved custom of raiding god domains during their Great Hunt. You might call that suicidal, but it always works out for them. And if you think it’s not suicidal, well, we’re still talking about god domains.

“You never know when one of their three gods of sun, moon, and star might accidentally provoke some unprovokable entity and end up getting slapped to death.” The Captain sighed. “If that day comes, I hope one of them slaps that shrew Moonfire to death, and another puts that slutty Starfire to death.”

Xu Qing didn’t say anything.

The Captain was feeling better now that he could vent. “You have a Great Hunt identity medallion, so we can go in. Let’s go. Maybe we can find something useful.”

With that, the Captain shot toward the darkmoon ward. Xu Qing followed.

It was a loud, bustling place. Even from a distance, Xu Qing could spot the numerous shops and vendor stalls. It reminded him of the ghost wards. There was a head. There was a marketplace. There were definitely similarities between the two. Xu Qing wasn’t sure if it was just a coincidence or if there was a deeper meaning to it all.3

He took a moment to check Little Shadow. Back in that ghost ward years ago, that severed head had seemed interested in the shadow. After absorbing that forbidden region recently, Little Shadow was focused on digestion and was in a state of hibernation.

And thus, Xu Qing and the Captain got closer and closer to the darkmoon ward. When they were only about 3,000 meters away, a shocking roar erupted from the place, loud enough to split metal and rock.

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At the same time, a bizarre beast shot out from the darkmoon ward. It wasn’t very large, only about 300 meters long. But the pressure it emitted was on the same level as the head itself. An ordinary cultivator who encountered it would be shaken to the core and feel like their soul was being ripped out of them.

The beast had the body of a wolf, was greenish-black, and had a turtle shell on its back. It had the face of an evil ghost with a head of long white hair. It looked very much like a grue of some sort. What was more, it didn’t just have one evil ghost face on it. It had six. There were faces on each of its four kneecaps, and one at the tip of its tail. All of them were fear-inspiring in appearance, and all of them were howling loudly. What was beneath its feet was even more shocking; it was a sea of ghostly souls. Shockingly, the beast flew along on top of that sea, as if everywhere it went, it brought death and catastrophe.

There was a person standing amidst the white hair on the beast’s head. He was tall and burly, wore a suit of violet-gold battle armor, and had flowing golden hair. His eyes were like torches, as if a look from them could immolate all living creatures.

He pulsed with Smoldering God fluctuations, and was surrounded by the rumbling of thunder. Steering the beast by its head, he led it away from the darkmoon ward and off into the distance.

The Firemoon Darkheavens in the darkmoon ward who saw all of that play out bowed their heads, their eyes burning with reverence.

As Xu Qing reeled in surprise, the Captain lowered his voice and said, “Do you know what that beast is called? It’s a ‘ghost chariot.’ I’ve never seen the guy riding it, but considering he’s wearing violet-gold battle armor, he can only be one type of cultivator. A darkheaven general!”

1. I have to point out that it was an oversight on my part to use “region” in this way. The region from forbidden region and the region

/county

/prefecture geographical distinction are different. I try my best to avoid doing this, but sometimes I’m either not paying close attention or just run out of synonyms to use. IIRC, when I originally came up with the two translation choices, they weren’t used in the same context, so they had already become translation “canon” by the time I noticed how they interacted. ☜

2. There is some wordplay here that doesn’t translate directly. The character I’ve rendered “high” from High God is a very versatile character that can also serve as a verb. By separating “high” and “god,” and then adding another character to turn “high” into a past tense verb, it changes it into a somewhat vague but also clearly vulgar phrase that carries the meaning indicated in the translation. ☜

3. Ghost wards were first mentioned in chapter 246.1, and came up in a few chapters after that. We also saw a ghost ward in chapter 388. ☜