Chapter 453: Red Robe

Here, this is truly the barbaric wilderness.

Long Lang stood on the bow of Wu Tie's flagship, his body trembling slightly, gazing at a towering mountain that pierced the clouds ahead.

The rocks were jagged and defiantly proud, like a long sword thrust straight into the thick cloud layer.

The mountain rose hundreds of li, its walls sheer, rising straight up and down; its slope was so steep it seemed almost wanton.

One after another, steep ridges like swords, sabers, spears and halberds rose hundreds of li high, standing there in solitary, peerless pride. Countless vines and ancient trees grew thickly on the mountainside; the higher one went, the darker their hue became, until near the clouds the vegetation was almost black.

Countless birds of many colors flew between the mountains.

The higher the mountain, the larger the birds' bodies. Occasionally a huge black shadow would slash swiftly through the clouds, hundreds of zhang wide—its size easy to imagine.

Wu Tie lifted his head, staring blankly at the majestic, boundless mountain range ahead, and sincerely praised: "Your Hall of Chancellors… not bad, really. In this godforsaken place, how did you manage to find people, how did you scout a route?"

"Fill it with human lives!" Long Lang muttered lowly: "Fill it with human lives, day after day, month after month, year after year, slowly, one, a hundred, ten thousand, a hundred thousand brothers' lives poured in, slowly we carved out a path and found people…"

"Then you made the wrong decision, rashly probing their important stronghold… and suffered heavy casualties!" Lao Tie sniped at Long Lang from the side with a sarcastic tone.

Long Lang flared with anger, gritted his teeth, and swung a fist at Lao Tie.

The few Soil Sprite Elders standing behind Long Lang were impolite, lashing out first with a flurry of punches at him.

Despite his injuries, Long Lang was knocked down in a few moves, lying on the deck groaning, unable to move.

Wu Tie waved his hand, stopping the Soil Sprite Elders' further beating: "Dragon Commandant, these are the vassal tribes I have just subdued; they are frank and good‑natured, sometimes impulsive, yet respectful toward us… so… watch your words and deeds."

Long Lang was so angry he rolled his eyes.

"Watch what you say and do?"

He hadn't said anything over the top; rather, Lao Tie had been sniping at him all along, poking at his wounds, and Long Lang was already fuming with rage… isn't this 'Old Master Tie' being excessive?

Wu Tie's massive fleet formed a dense defensive formation, like a pack of blood‑thirsty great sharks, stubbornly heading into the gale blowing between the two great mountains ahead, forcing its way in.

"Dangerous, truly dangerous!" Wu Tie looked at the mountain peaks hundreds of li high on either side of the fleet, their massive bodies unimaginable, and couldn't help shaking his head repeatedly.

Here the mountains are extremely high and perilously steep; each great peak seems ready to topple at any moment, crushing everyone to powder.

These tower‑ships, the largest flagship being about a thousand zhang long.

Yet compared to the towering mountains on all sides, these tower‑ships are incredibly tiny.

Flocks of large birds flew past the fleet; the fleet flew ten thousand zhang above the ground, and at that height the birds were tens of zhang long, with extremely fierce and overbearing auras.

These great birds' strength is not inferior to that of body cultivators at the Chonglou Realm; they occasionally let out a clear cry that echoes far between the mountains, leaving the five‑element spirits on the deck dizzy and light‑headed.

Between some mountains, huge stone beams are linked together.

Moreover, there are recklessly growing giant vines, each as thick as a dozen zhang, like monstrous pythons, somehow spanning dozens of li, growing from the waist of one peak to the flank of another.

From these giant vines hang many thin creepers, on which apes and similar creatures swing and play, occasionally letting out noisy cries.

Some fierce beasts, too, it's unclear how they build nests on these steep mountains.

Anyway, Wu Tie saw some saber‑toothed tigers and similar strange beasts several zhang long, leisurely walking back and forth on the natural vine bridges, occasionally hopping like the wind on protruding rocks of the mountains.

There are also herbivores such as elk, truly baffling how they reached this height of ten thousand zhang above the ground.

Herds of elk, goats and the like stood dazedly on protruding rocks between the mountains, blankly watching Wu Tie's massive fleet fly past beside them.

Sometimes a sudden depression or protrusion on a massive mountain creates a flat area of several hundred, even thousands of mu or more. Fertile soil there grows abundant grasses and trees, where many small birds and other creatures nest, forming self‑contained little worlds.

"Indeed, the works of heaven and earth are unfathomable." Wu Tie sighed from the heart: "To be frank, I've never seen a place like this in my life—such lofty mountains, such complex terrain, such wondrous and splendid creatures… if you want me to lead an army here to wage war, heh!"

"You don't dare?" Long Lang shivered on the deck, struggling to his feet after a while, having just taken a few healing pills.

Upon hearing Wu Tie's words, Long Lang instantly sneered: "As a soldier of the Great Jin… a full‑rank third‑grade general, you actually dare to say…"

"Thud."

The hot‑tempered Tu Ba Pi punched Long Lang, sending him sprawling to the ground.

He stepped on Long Lang's body, Tu Ba Pi brandished his fist and roared: "If you dare be disrespectful to the Holy Ancestor again, I'll throw you off this place!"

Long Lang was beaten so hard he nearly passed out, unable to regain his senses for a long while.

Wu Tie waved his hand, signaling Tu Ba Pi to release Long Lang: "All right, he's injured; you lot of rough fellows, don't go throwing violence around like that… well, we still need Dragon Commandant to show us the way."

After a sigh, Wu Tie spoke softly: "If we really can earn merit this time… forget a princely title, even being made a duke would be… hey!"

Tu Ba Pi shook his head, slowly lifted his foot, and let Long Lang go.

Wu Tie looked at Long Lang's swollen, bruised face and suddenly furrowed his brow.

"Wrong, Dragon Commandant—you said you three days ago fought your way out after being chased all the way? Your men suffered heavy casualties on the escape route? Yet we've been in here quite a while, so why is everything so calm?"

"Did you misremember the route, or… have they already fled?"

Wu Tie looked around cautiously.

"It's also possible we've already been surrounded." Lao Tie held a standard-issue spear, its tip tilted crookedly against the deck, gripping the shaft's end with both hands, chin resting on his hands, eyes gleaming, glancing around furtively.

"I have a bad feeling. It feels like someone could jump out anywhere around here." Lao Tie rubbed his nose, pulled out a wine gourd, and took two swigs.

Long Lang's face also turned solemn.

He said in a low voice: "We fought our way out after being pursued all along; the enemy is strong, and… their methods are very mysterious."

After a silence, Long Lang instinctively lowered his voice: "It shouldn't be this quiet… such a large fleet, following the path we fled, they couldn't have missed us."

Wu Tie raised his right hand high, his fingers swiftly tracing a circle.

The surfaces of the 1,001 warships simultaneously blazed with dazzling light; the defensive formation, which had been maintaining only basic output, now unleashed about half its power.

A shield of light about a zhang thick, like an eggshell, enveloped all the warships securely.

The shimmering, colorful light curtain illuminated the surrounding peaks, the vast energy within it stirring the air with a low 'hum', causing the mountains to echo back wave after wave of hum that carried far along their slopes.

Countless large birds and apes were startled, scattering in all directions away from the fleet.

Between the two great mountains ahead, on a straight stone beam, a hundred‑zhang horned giant python dangled half its body lazily, baring its teeth as it gazed toward Wu Tie and company.

Lao Tie suddenly opened his mouth and let out a loud 'howl' at the great python.

Wu Tie and Lao Tie had received the blessings of the Peacock Ming King and the Great Peng Ming King; Lao Tie still retained a trace of the Great Peng Ming King's aura. Since the Great Peng is the natural nemesis of all flood dragons, the trace of aura Lao Tie deliberately released frightened the lazy giant python into a strange 'ang' cry, its whole body convulsing as if cramped, it flailed wildly along the stone beam, quickly scrambled over it, and plunged into a cavern in the distant mountains.

The fleet gradually rose, passing above that stone beam.

A mountain ahead, shaped like a screen and several hundred li wide, blocked the way. Long Lang pointed, and the fleet turned right, preparing to go around this slightly curved screen‑shaped mountain.

After skirting the mountain for about half an hour and traveling several hundred li, a stone pillar a thousand zhang tall suddenly jutted out from the mountainside.

The stone pillar's surface was covered with large and small depressions, which held plenty of rich soil. Clumps of gorgeous rhododendrons grew wildly, and bunches of fiery‑red rhododendrons blossomed splendidly.

Located tens of thousands of zhang high, the fierce upper‑level winds howled. These rhododendrons were clearly not ordinary; despite the blade‑like gales, their supple branches swayed wildly, yet each petal remained intact and undisturbed. The frantic swaying actually gave the flowers a hundredfold surge of vitality, like clusters of lively heavenly fire.

At the tip of the stone pillar stood a tall girl with loose long hair, wearing a red dress, silently.

Those rhododendrons were already extremely gorgeous, but the sudden flash of red almost stabbed everyone's eyes.

But upon seeing the red‑dressed girl, the red on the flowers seemed to be drained by her flowing gown, as if only that red dress remained in heaven and earth, with no other color.

Gorgeous, blinding, overbearing beyond compare.

That red dress was like a vast red flood, roaring into everyone's vision, filling the field of view, bursting the soul, and imprinting in the Life Pool an unbounded, domineering red.

"Wow! You didn't lose unjustly!" Lao Tie, upon seeing the red‑dressed girl, instinctively straightened his body, clenched his fingers, and directly twisted the shaft of his standard spear out of shape.

"What a pretty little lass!" Lao Tie first admired the girl's overbearing strength… then he unconsciously praised her peerless beauty.

Unlike the solid black‑flame Pei Feng, the girl's face was like a spirit nurtured by this splendid mountain range.

Graceful and pure, she was truly 'autumn waters as spirit, jade as bone'; her aura merged with the boundless wild mountains, the heavens and earth becoming her backdrop, while she was the sole 'spirit' of those mountains.

Just seeing her gave people a tingling scalp and a strange sensation as if their whole body were struck by electricity.

The girl's red dress, with its overbearing force, flooded everyone's souls with red.

But compared to the girl's touch of pure red lips, her dress looked dim. The dress's overbearing nature is wild, barbaric, and unreasonable.

Yet the girl's red lips gave the illusion of being the core of all things.

She bears heaven's mandate; her words become law!

Wu Tie suddenly had this strange thought in his mind.

"Monster!" Wu Tie muttered involuntarily.

"Who are you talking about?" From over ten li away, the girl standing at the stone pillar's tip, hands behind her back, asked Wu Tie in a chilly tone.

After a moment of silence, Wu Tie pointed straight at the girl and said, "You!"

"You say I'm a monster?" The girl's slender brows furrowed slightly, her deep‑pool eyes locking onto Wu Tie.

"Yes!" For no reason, Wu Tie felt a creepy chill run down his back, a bone‑deep dread sweeping over him. He instinctively donned the Linked Mountain Pattern Armor and placed before his chest a Nine‑Refined Immortal‑Weapon shield he had extorted from Sima You and others.

The next moment, half‑powered defensive formation on Wu Tie's flagship shattered with a boom; the six‑zhang‑thick light curtain broke into countless specks of light that sprayed out dozens of li like fireworks.

The thousand‑zhang‑long flagship trembled violently; countless sealing sigils and circulating formations on the hull cracked, the ship groaned under the strain, and Wu Tie heard the keel tearing.

The red‑dressed girl appeared before Wu Tie like a ghost, and her pale, slender, perfect hand—soft as a water‑plant—lightly pressed onto the Nine‑Refined Immortal‑Weapon shield.

The six‑cun‑thick Immortal‑Weapon shield, like foam, was silently pierced through by that delicate hand.

The girl's palm pressed against Wu Tie's chest.

Earth‑shaking dragon roars echoed in Wu Tie's soul; the Linked Mountain Pattern Armor's plates exploded one after another, and the full set of Nine‑Refined Immortal‑Weapon armor burst into dust like fireworks.

Wu Tie's battle robe under the armor shattered, his inner armor broke, and the girl's hand, breaking through like bamboo, pierced all his defensive treasures and lightly pressed on his chest.

Wu Tie's chest underwent obvious deformation.

All the ribs on his chest were pressed downward by a terrifying force, bending and sinking; Wu Tie opened his mouth, feeling his viscera almost about to spew out.

If Wu Tie's body were not extraordinary, his bones—having undergone multiple mutations and already surpassed mortal flesh—he would believe this palm could crush his entire upper half to pieces.

A flash of surprise crossed the girl's deep‑pool‑like cold eyes.

"Nine Turn Mysterious Technique? Flesh‑body sanctity? What a lackey!"

"Peng!" A faint fragrance came, the girl kicked up, her toe whistling shrilly as she slammed it hard into Wu Tie's chin.

Intense pain struck; Wu Tie shot up like a sky‑rocket, screaming as he instantly soared tens of thousands of zhang into the heavens.

Wu Tie's mind went numb.

He now wanted to chop Long Lang into mincemeat with a thousand cuts.

That red‑dressed girl is so strong…… Long Lang, tell me clearly—how did you bring a handful of defeated troops to escape alive?