chsdbacks Chapter 164 The Confirmed Map
Chapter 164 The Confirmed Map
Zhang Ping did not stop along the way and traveled day and night towards the Southern Prince's Mansion.
Just as he was on his way, bad news came again from the front lines of the Great Wei's battle against the demons.
Following the attack on Stone City, several other major cities on the main battlefront were also besieged by demons, and none of them could withstand the onslaught!
All the warriors inside the city were forced to break out and retreat, and the battle line was pushed towards the interior of the Great Wei.
The entire territory of Taiwu Prefecture was lost, and Lanjiang Prefecture was reduced to only a small area.
The other prefectures at the eastern and western ends were also lost in this war, and the Great Wei effectively lost four of its thirteen prefectures.
What worries the family more than the loss of the state capital is a recent rumor.
"Have the officials of the Demon Extermination Bureau found a way to escape?"
"The southern border is gone, where can we escape to? The northern plains are too cold, ordinary people simply cannot adapt to living there."
"Could it be that a new human kingdom has been discovered beyond the East Sea?"
The news leaked from the capital and spread to other prefectures along the way.
Apart from a few forces that knew the truth about the former territory of Wei and Zhao, the rest of the forces did not believe the news and even thought it was a rumor spread by demons.
In their minds, only the Great Wei was the most suitable place for human habitation; the Southern Frontier was merely a remote and barren land, and the Western Poison Forest was teeming with poisonous afflictions.
Beyond the East China Sea lies a vast ocean!
The rumor was dismissed as a joke by most, but in the eyes of those who were interested,
The Great Wei was already seething with undercurrents.
Chu King's City.
The mansion was unusually lively today. Leng Ruxue and Hua Cheng had been coming here often when they had nothing to do. After learning that Zhang Ping had left, they guessed that he might be going to the front line, so they stayed here, hoping that he would bring back news.
When Leng Ruxue discovered that Nangong Feiyan was living in the mansion, she was shocked for quite some time.
After all, although Zhang Ping appears honest on the surface, he is a popular figure and his popularity is already quite high.
The rumors that had been circulating in Lanjiang Prefecture had already reached Chuwang City. Now, who doesn't know that the prodigy Zhang Ping favors another man's wife?
In the past, some people might have questioned it, and even Leng Ruxue just thought it was a coincidence and laughed it off.
But now that Nangong Feiyan has moved into the mansion, even if Leng Ruxue is unwilling, she has to admit the fact.
Shocked, she was also secretly glad that she was not yet married. If she were to get married in the future, it would be best to have less contact with Zhang Ping.
Besides the two of them, Chu Batian also came to visit from time to time. However, he seemed to have important business to attend to, and each time he would leave shortly after sitting down and ask if Zhang Ping had returned yet.
Today, the two groups of people happened to meet.
In addition to them, another person returned from the front lines, bringing back a lot of news.
A small courtyard, a pavilion, and the edge of a fish pond.
The wind gradually grew cold.
"Nephew Xu, is Old Master Wen really...?"
Inside the pavilion, Fu Huiying and Lu Wanrou were both present, with Nangong Feiyan sitting beside them.
In the corner, Xu Rulin was wearing a black robe, with only his right hand exposed.
Everyone was waiting for him to speak.
Xu Rulin shook his head painfully and said, "I don't know. Since then, Master has never sent back any news."
The others looked somewhat somber upon hearing this.
Wen Gaoyang and the others all knew that he was an elder of the Demon Extermination Division and a master of the Marrow Refinement Realm. They never expected that such a person would also disappear without a trace while being chased by demons.
A long silence fell over the pavilion.
Hua Cheng, seeing everyone's low spirits, withdrew his hand that had reached out to take the pastries.
He had just learned from Xu Rulin that his sister was alright, and his appetite, which had been low for several days, finally returned. He wanted to eat more.
Just then, a streak of light fell from the clouds, suddenly changed direction in mid-air, and headed towards the courtyard.
"Zhang Ping!"
Upon seeing who had fallen, Fu Huiying and the others immediately stood up happily.
Zhang Ping was still dressed in red, looking travel-worn. Seeing so many people gathered together, he couldn't help but smile: "What day is it today? Why are you all gathered here?"
"I was just waiting for you to come back," Fu Huiying replied with a smile.
Once Zhang Ping sat down, everyone else couldn't help but gather around to inquire about the news.
Xu Rulin was the first to speak, asking if he knew anything about Wen Gaoyang's situation.
Zhang Ping recounted how he rescued Wen Gaoyang and offered a few words of gentle comfort.
Chu Batian then took out an envelope from his person and solemnly handed it to Zhang Ping.
Although Zhang Ping didn't understand why, he didn't hide it from others and opened it to check on the spot.
After reading the letter, he was stunned and speechless for a long time.
"What's written inside?" Fu Huiying, standing a few seats away and unable to see the contents of the letter, asked curiously.
Zhang Ping didn't speak, but exchanged a glance with Chu Batian, both of them seeing solemnity in each other's eyes.
He placed the letter on the table, and Fu Huiying immediately picked it up and read softly, "After investigation, the map is genuine? In Fallen Valley, the Land of Cold Winds, a sealed rift will appear on a sunny day? Can one reach the Sunset Marshland through the sealed rift?"
"this……!"
Fu Huiying looked on in disbelief, and the others looked as if they had seen a ghost when they heard her words.
They all knew that the map was deliberately released by the Demon Lord, and before, everyone thought that this was a scheme set up by the Demon Lord to divide the Demon Extermination Bureau.
How could it possibly be a real map?
If that's true, why doesn't the Demon Lord just leave the old territory of Wei and Zhao himself?
Doubt instantly filled everyone's minds.
Chu Batian said with a heavy expression, "The matter of the sealed rift was investigated by the Ancestor himself. According to him, even if the other side of the rift is not the legendary Sunset Marshland, it must be somewhere in the Myriad Spirits Domain."
"Other senior members of the Demon Extermination Division have also confirmed this after consulting all the ancient books."
"So, if this passage really can allow people to leave..."
At this point, Chu Batian looked around, his unspoken meaning clear.
However, apart from Hua Cheng, none of the people present were fools. Instead of showing joy, they were full of vigilance.
Zhang Ping was the first to ask, "Has anyone come back through the gap?"
After all, if someone goes in, no one knows what the other side is, and it's even possible that there's nothing there at all, and it's not the Great Domain of Myriad Spirits at all—just a trap set by the Demon Lord to kill his opponents.
"Not yet. However, the higher-ups sent some people over on the first two days of the lunar month. It's estimated that they'll only be able to return when the gap reappears on the next first day of the lunar month," Chu Batian replied, shaking his head.
Upon hearing this, everyone reacted with varying expressions.
Xu Rulin's face was extremely grim. He asked, "Who knows about this? If the Demon Extermination Bureau members are all gone, what will happen to the people?"
"Is the road to the crevice easy to travel? Can ordinary people get out?"
Hearing his barrage of questions, Chu Batian couldn't help but smile bitterly and said, "Nephew Xu, if we can't stop the demons, we'll be lucky to save our own lives. How can we care about the common people?"
His tone was completely indifferent. In his view, having a way to survive was already a great blessing; why think so much?
As for ordinary people, if the other side is truly the Great Domain of Myriad Spirits, are they afraid of not seeing each other again in the future?