Chapter 128

Ahead is the Six Paths Gate; the burly men under it are disciples of the Six Paths Palace.

The Six Paths Gate is the entrance to the Great Dragon Realm; entering it proves you have stepped onto the Six Paths Palace's territory, and you must obey the rules set by the Six Paths Palace.

Those who obey live.

Those who defy die.

Straightforward, overbearing, ferocious, unreasonable—this is the Six Paths Palace, which claims to suppress the Six Paths.

Along the way, when Wu Tie and the caravan guards communicated, these warriors who frequently came and went in the Six Paths Palace's territory also introduced the characteristics of those palace disciples they knew.

From Foundation Establishment to Perceiving the Profound Realm all the way to Chonglou Realm, the Six Paths Palace disciples focus purely on physical strength and overbearing physical defense, seeking nothing else in external arts.

They ignore any spells or secret arts; they are extreme, perverse, unreasonable, madly tempering their flesh, honing their strength—tendons, bones, skin, viscera, brain and marrow nerves—using every means, even taking deadly poisons to stimulate bodily instincts to strengthen themselves.

Their fighting style is also……moving.

No matter how you blast with spells, they charge forward headlong.

After they rush up to you, you strike him, he strikes you, you strike again, he strikes again—whoever can't hold out first dies. And the Six Paths Palace disciples' bodies are formidable, their defense akin to bronze walls and iron bars; often it is their enemies who first fail to endure.

Because of their formidable bodies, these fellows sprint like a pack of mad beasts—speeding fast, leaping like flight, even able to hang upside down by their heads from the ceiling and sprint forward.

Thus they can often swiftly charge to the enemy's face and then fight desperately, tooth for tooth, eye for eye.

Never try to reason with Six Paths Palace disciples.

Never engage Six Paths Palace disciples in close combat.

Only the Changsheng Sect disciples, mortal enemies of the Six Paths Palace, have accumulated experience from countless bloody lessons. If you have a dispute with any Six Paths Palace disciple, then the next time you see one, say nothing, keep your distance, draw your blade and attack—this is your only option.

Over a hundred burly men, generally over two meters tall with bronze-colored skin, bare-chested and hugging bears, glaring with wide eyes ferociously at the stone gate—this scene is very intimidating.

Besides the stone gate, there are spacious passageways on both sides for travel, but merchants and passersby prefer to go a little slower; everyone obediently forms two long lines, walking in order left and right beneath the stone gate.

Inside the stone gate, which is several meters deep, dozens of bare-chested men wielding metal bars wander aimlessly, occasionally lifting cargo from carts or pinching someone's chin to scrutinize their appearance.

Wu Tie's group slowly advanced toward the stone gate.

Suddenly a miserable cry came from beneath the stone gate: "I'm not, I'm not, I'm not a Changsheng Sect disciple..."

Four bare-chested burly men violently dragged a slender youth from the line and brutally kicked him into a steel-rebar cage as thick as a fist outside the stone gate.

"He's so handsome, there's a good chance he's from the Changsheng Sect." A burly man nearly 2.5 meters tall, his bronze skin tinged with silver, exhaling an aura that definitely reached Chonglou Realm, growled in a deep voice: "Better to kill by mistake than let him go—handsome pretty boys all deserve to die."

A girl of ordinary appearance from the caravan cried out and chased after them, clutching the large metal cage tightly, wailing the youth's name.

The Chonglou Realm burly man shook his head and slapped the girl's shoulder: "Hey, open your eyes and see people clearly. A handsome pretty boy likely is a Changsheng Sect demon; you girl, after being toyed with by him, might end up drained."

"If you want to marry, you should find a Six Paths Palace disciple—honest, simple, straightforward, no ill intent. Tall and sturdy, they can handle household chores, no one dares bully them outside, especially those vigorous as dragons and tigers; in bed they can satisfy their wives comfortably."

The burly man seized the sturdy man standing by the cage: "Here, look—my junior disciple, only thirty, at the peak of Perceiving the Profound Realm, possibly about to break through to Chonglou Realm. Once he does, the Six Paths Palace will give him a monthly settlement fee of five hundred gold dragons—enough to support ten women."

"What do you think? Consider it. Our Six Paths Palace men are the most down-to-earth; to find a woman, any woman will do—we never consider looks. Heck, marrying a Six Paths Palace disciple means you'll never lack food or drink, and you won't have to risk danger in the caravan."

The girl and the youth in the cage cried until their faces were streaked with tears; amidst the many passersby in the caravan, nobody dared to speak.

The Six Paths Palace and the Changsheng Sect have been mortal enemies through the ages; anyone the Six Paths Palace suspects of being a Changsheng Sect disciple meets no good end. Whoever meddles in this is suspected of being a Changsheng Sect spy.

"Being handsome means you're a Changsheng Sect spy." Shi Fei lightly stroked his round face, then sighed heavily: "See, a layer of fat is a good thing… otherwise, Young Master Shi II, with his handsome, graceful charm back then… tsk tsk, dangerous."

Lao Bai touched his two prominent front teeth and smiled with satisfaction.

Lu Ji and Yan Hanlu remained silent; just by appearance, they are still far from resembling Changsheng Sect disciples.

Wu Tie also said nothing; he now looks thin and tall like a bamboo shoot… his formerly handsome face is now somewhat elongated and deformed, really not good-looking.

Only the squad's Mozhang Wang stared for a moment, then secretly smeared some black ash from a campfire onto his face.

"Being handsome, what's wrong with that? It's not my fault… if it is wrong, I'd rather be wildly wrong." Mozhang Wang hummed softly: "Back then, if I hadn't had such a handsome face, those lovely ladies and misses wouldn't have flocked to my bed like moths to a flame."

Mozhang Wang stared, dropped the handful of black ash, and sighed deeply yet lightly.

The girl continued weeping beside the iron cage while that Six Paths Palace uncle kept pitching his junior disciple to her; the youth in the cage had cried himself hoarse, he truly was wronged.

Is being handsome a crime?

Finally, at the rear of the caravan that had seized the youth, several sharp-looking elders ran out, reached the cage, grabbed the Six Paths Palace uncle's arm, and earnestly explained that the youth inside was not a Changsheng Sect disciple but their young master, this being his first time leading a trade convoy, familiar with family affairs.

The elders even produced official documents and travel permits issued by the Six Paths Palace, proving they were not only not Changsheng Sect spies but actually the Six Paths Palace's most loyal supporters, their caravan accounting for thirty percent of the Palace's share.

A dozen or so Six Paths Palace burly men gathered and surrounded this group of wailing elders, youth, and girl.

Wu Tie looked on speechless; the Drifting Zero troupe had already arrived beneath the stone gate.

The Six Paths Palace disciples didn't hassle the troupe either; they merely rummaged through a few carts, found only broken daily goods, glanced at the elderly and young in the convoy, and let the troupe pass smoothly.

After passing through the Six Paths Gate, the passageway became increasingly level, walking speed increased considerably; on both sides of the spacious passage, every seven or eight li, or ten-odd li, there were large and small branches extending in all directions, leading to various regions of the Great Dragon Realm.

The Drifting Zero troupe continued forward along the central main passage, after passing six fortresses built by the Six Paths Palace, the view ahead suddenly opened up.

The passage lay on a 'hillside', descending gently for several kilometers; the vast Great Dragon Cavern, seven or eight hundred li long and wide, came into view. Above a dome nearly ten thousand meters high, six false suns each over a kilometer in diameter spewed immense light and heat.

Within the Great Dragon Cavern, water systems abound; what Wu Tie saw alone was a major river and several small tributaries winding through.

The abundant false-sun heat caused water vapor to rise from the waterways, condensing into mist beneath the dome; thick mist drifted with the wind, casting dark shadows on the ground, the vapor nourishing the cavern's flora into lush greenery—vast expanses of verdant green interspersed with brilliant patches of color.

Well-planned farms were neatly arranged beside orderly fields, with a farm guaranteed every five li.

And in the center of the Great Dragon Cavern, far off, a wall-less castle cluster could be seen—that should be the Great Dragon City of the cavern, i. e., the headquarters of the Six Paths Palace.

The Six Paths Palace is an extremely interesting power; it clearly controls several great realms' territories, yet it built its headquarters, the most vital core, directly at the outermost, frontline edge of the realm group it controls.

In Wu Tie's view, this is undoubtedly a provocation.

This seems like a silent challenge to the Changsheng Sect—we are here, waiting for you; if you have the guts, come fight us; if not, we'll go fight you—just that simple.

Really a bunch of straightforward folks.

Amid the cheers of all the Drifting Zero troupe members, the large convoy of wagons and horses slowly descended the slope and arrived outside the nearest farm.

Many strange 'goods' were turned out from cart after cart—for example, a pair of leather boots, a finely polished bone dagger, a small jar of homemade inferior liquor, a gemstone picked up by chance on the road, and so on…

Members of the troupe entered the farm in twos and threes, greeting the serfs inside while hawking their various wares to the masters, either bartering or directly trading food.

Naturally, direct food trade was more common, since the troupe has always lacked food.

Unlike the Cangyan Realm, the Cangyan Realm's territory is barren, its clan power structure simple, its forces weak; each clan meticulously manages its tiny domain.

As for the Great Dragon Realm side, a single Great Dragon Realm alone has several dozen vast plains like the Great Dragon Grotto; setting aside the other medium and small stone caves, the total area of the Great Dragon Realm is five to six times that of the Cangyan Realm.

Moreover, the Great Dragon Realm possesses a False Sun; a False Sun with a diameter of one kilometer can provide more energy and heat, making the land's yield more abundant and crops mature faster, so a unit area of land can support more people.

Therefore, in such a vast realm as the Great Dragon Realm, there are many free citizens.

They formed families and farms; each household of free citizens either raised three to five serfs, or dozens of free households jointly raised hundreds of serfs. The relatively abundant agricultural production determined that they could carry out an effective social division of labor.

With a rich social division of labor, material wealth grew, giving rise to consumption drive and desire, so societal wealth became far greater than that of the Cangyan Realm, and the overall strength of the entire Great Dragon Realm naturally far surpassed that of the Cangyan Realm.

On an open space outside the farm, a troupe of gorgeously dressed theater girls began to sing and dance; they played cheerful tunes on simple instruments, their vibrant, youthful bodies moving wildly in dance, sparkling sweat flying off as they freely brought joy to those around them.

Somewhat more mature women carried small handicrafts, weaving through the gradually gathering crowd.

Sometimes they successfully sold these small handicrafts, receiving one or two, or two or three, altogether a meager amount of the copper coins minted by the Six Paths Palace; sometimes they made eye contact with a 'customer' and slipped away from the crowd to the dense vegetation outside the farm.

All sentient beings have their own survival rules…… In this era, for many people, just staying alive is enough.

As for other matters, any means are acceptable; there is no distinction of high or low.

Wu Tie rode on the back of a giant wolf spider, gazing into the distance at Long Dragon City.

He noticed that even in such a remote farm, there was a squad of twenty Six Paths Palace disciples who had reached Foundation Establishment, stationed there; these burly men also mingled laughing in the crowd, enjoying the girls' song and dance.

Song and dance are luxuries; even Six Paths Palace disciples might hear only one or two tunes in a lifetime and see only one or two dances.

They generously threw coins at the dancing girls; their giving far outstripped that of the farm's free citizens, mostly tossing silver coins, and Wu Tie occasionally caught glints of gold.

Long Dragon City lay ahead, but the troupe clearly needed to rest outside the farm.

Wu Tie also didn't disturb the troupe; he greeted Shi Fei, Lao Bai and the others, then quietly left the camp and headed straight along a broad road toward Long Dragon City.

All the Primordial Grass had been exhausted; Wu Tie needed to replenish some Primordial Grass in an attempt to break through to the Chonglou Realm.

At the same time, he also needed to inquire about the nearest route to Nüwa Valley; if he could encounter a group heading to Nüwa Valley, that would be even better.

The Demon Chapter King led a group of children, standing outside the camp, blankly watching the retreating backs of Wu Tie and the others.

"Fate is like clouds…… Occasionally they meet in the sky, but ultimately they must part."

"Wishing you luck and health…… My friend…… My…… Teacher."

The Demon Chapter King bowed deeply, offering a deep salute to the retreating backs of Wu Tie and the others.