King of Creation-Chapter 60 - Heroic Spirit Return

At that time, the news of the three Border Army camps being trampled flat spread, causing utter chaos in the Thirteen Counties of the Northern Land.

Countless people, dragging their families and aiding the elderly and the young, left to seek refuge in the south.

It seemed as though the entire Black Water Kingdom would fall into chaos.

Meng Chuan, who was a ranger at that time, gathered eight hundred martial artists and collected three thousand remnants of the defeated army.

They fought a bloody battle against the Southern Barbarians in Yin Mountain Gorge, a chokepoint the barbarians had to pass through when charging out of Yin Mountain, lasting for seven days and nights.

With only eight hundred martial artists and three thousand remnants of the defeated army, they somehow held up against the encirclement of one hundred thousand Southern Barbarians for seven days and nights.

Among the one hundred thousand barbarians, there were over a hundred Spirit Practitioners and more than ten Spirit Masters, and it was said that there was even a Spirit Sovereign overseeing the battle.

The Spirit Practitioners of the Southern Barbarians all possessed cultivation comparable to martial artists of the Spirit Summoning Realm, while the Spirit Masters were equivalent to martial artists who had reached the Spirit Transformation Realm.

In addition, the Spirit Practitioners of the Southern Barbarians could control Human-level Demon Beasts.

The powerful Spirit Masters might even be able to control Earth-ranked Demon Beasts.

Such a terrifying force would almost require the full strength of the Black Water Kingdom to deal with, let alone be held off by the eight hundred martial artists and three thousand remnants of the defeated army that Meng Chuan had gathered.

But Meng Chuan did stop them.

It is said that by the sixth day, all the eight hundred martial artists and three thousand remnants of the defeated army that Meng Chuan had gathered had perished, leaving only Meng Chuan himself.

Even so, Meng Chuan, fueled by his passion, continued to hold off the Southern Barbarians alone for one night, until the arrival of the Black Water Kingdom’s reinforcement forces.

It’s said that at the moment the reinforcement forces from the Black Water Kingdom arrived, Meng Chuan was seen standing with his sword at the entrance of Yin Mountain Gorge.

Within the gorge, tens of thousands of Southern Barbarian masses were densely gathered.

Yet, none of the tens of thousands of Southern Barbarian masses dared to take a single step forward, their hearts filled with terror and trepidation!

For within nearly a kilometer in front of Meng Chuan, there lay nearly a hundred exceptionally finely-dressed Southern Barbarian corpses, as well as hundreds of Demon Beast bodies strewn among them.

These bodies were from the Southern Barbarians’ elite—the corpses of Southern Barbarian Spirit Practitioners and Spirit Masters.

Upon seeing the reinforcement forces, Meng Chuan glanced back with a faint smile.

In a moment, his body turned to ash, leaving behind only a beam of Spirit Light that flew out of his body and headed straight for Yinshan County City.

At that time, the Black Water Kingdom’s reinforcement forces launched a major counterattack.

The Southern Barbarian masses scattered like startled birds, without even a chance to fight back.

They were pursued and killed for a thousand li, suffering countless deaths and injuries until they were completely driven over Yin Mountain.

It is said that the battle depleted the elite forces of the Southern Barbarian Tribe, resulting in years of stability for the Thirteen Counties of the Northern Land under Black Water Kingdom.

The once constant battles around Yin Mountain had, in these past few years, seen not a single major friction, so much so that the quietness had started to make the border soldiers curse in frustration.

Absolute peace—so peaceful that it was impossible to gain even a bit of military merit.

That battle spared the Thirteen Counties of the Northern Land from a huge calamity.

It also saved the Black Water Kingdom from the brink of annihilation.

In that same battle, Meng Chuan’s name became known throughout the land.

That battle also made Yinshan County City, a remote county close to Yin Mountain, known to everyone—because Yinshan County City was Meng Chuan’s hometown.

Since then, Meng Chuan had become the hero of the entire Black Water Kingdom.

Ye Zhen was only around ten years old at the time and was greatly excited upon hearing about Meng Chuan’s heroic deeds.

After that battle, including Ye Zhen’s Wusan County, the people of the Thirteen Counties of the Northern Land began to enshrine Meng Chuan in their family shrines.

In the incense hall of Ye Zhen’s home, for example, an ancestral tablet for Meng Chuan was placed.

Afterward, more and more legends about Meng Chuan circulated among the people.

Some said he was the reincarnation of a Heavenly God, others claimed he was the embodiment of Black Water Kingdom’s Guardian God….

Ye Zhen was now standing, travel-worn, at the grand entrance to Yinshan County City.

The four silver-hook, iron-stroke characters “Heroic Spirit Return” above Yinshan County City, even under the oppressive dark clouds, still shone brightly, as if imbued with a strange power always catching the attention of those who glanced at it.

It’s said that these four characters were penned by the current Sect Leader of Qiyun Sect, Guo Qijing, in a moment of tearful sorrow upon hearing the tragic news of Meng Chuan’s fate.

Now, seven years had passed, and yet the four characters “Heroic Spirit Return” had not faded in the slightest, still shining brightly.

At the time, Meng Chuan was still an Inner Sect Disciple of the Qiyun Sect.

As for why Meng Chuan, as an Inner Sect Disciple of the Qiyun Sect, was able to hold off such a powerful enemy for seven days and nights, Ye Zhen found it somewhat unbelievable.

But seven years had gone by.

Eight hundred heroes and three thousand brave soldiers had all turned to dust, and it was difficult to verify what had happened.

With a mix of emotions, Ye Zhen rode into the city.

The seven years of stability had made Yinshan County quite prosperous.

The streets were bustling with carts and horses, the markets were lined up neatly, and people’s faces showed satisfaction and calm.

All of this was brought about by Meng Chuan.

From Wusan County to Yinshan County, over more than a thousand li, Ye Zhen had galloped all the way on his Silver-horned Horse.

Due to the rugged mountain roads, it took three days to arrive.

Entering the city, Ye Zhen was in no hurry to find the Meng Family but planned to first stop at an inn to wash away the road dust before paying a visit to Meng’s Mother.

The mother of a hero is certainly deserving of Ye Zhen’s respect.

Ye Zhen casually walked into a slightly imposing tavern, tossed over a silver ingot weighing ten taels, and the waiter excitedly ushered Ye Zhen into a private room.

Before long, hot water was delivered.

After comfortably taking a hot bath and washing away all the dust on his body, Ye Zhen used a sharp knife to cleanly shave the new stubble that had grown at the corners of his mouth.

The seventeen-year-old Ye Zhen had, without noticing, allowed a whisper of a beard to emerge.

After he had tidied up and was feeling fresh and clean, Ye Zhen, dressed in new clothes, stepped onto the second floor of the tavern and ordered a large table full of food and drinks.

After a satisfying meal, Ye Zhen snapped his fingers to summon the waiter.

“Waiter, let me ask you something, how do I get to Old Madam Meng’s house?”

“Old Madam Meng’s house?” The waiter was taken aback, then immediately said, “I don’t know.”

This response also stunned Ye Zhen; the handful of small silver coins he had just taken out of his bosom to tip the waiter stayed in his hand.

Ye Zhen had intended to reward the waiter for giving him directions, but he didn’t expect the reply to be “I don’t know.”

Instructor Liao had said that inside Yinshan County City, everyone would know the address of Old Madam Meng’s residence if asked.

“You don’t know Old Madam Meng’s house?”

“I don’t know!” The waiter shook his head like a rattle-drum, and then after a moment, he added, “In Yinshan County City, there’s no shortage of people with the surname Meng, and there are even more Old Madam Mengs.”

Ye Zhen’s brow furrowed, “You must certainly know of Hero Meng Chuan, right?

Where is his family home?”

“Hero Meng, of course, I know of him.

But, as for where Hero Meng’s family home is, that, I don’t know.” As Ye Zhen intently watched the waiter, he suddenly noticed a flash of peculiarity in the waiter’s eyes.

Just as Ye Zhen was about to press further, the waiter excused himself with a quick response and hurriedly left.

“That’s not right!”

Ye Zhen thought that perhaps this waiter was new or too young.

The older generation would surely know the location of the Meng family estate.

“Shopkeeper, you’re a local here, right?

I see you’ve been running your business here for quite some time?”

“Sir, you have good insights; I’ve been operating this establishment for fourteen years,” the shopkeeper said to Ye Zhen, giving a thumbs-up.

“That’s great, shopkeeper.

I’d like to inquire about something,” Ye Zhen politely chatted with the shopkeeper before posing his question.

“Sir, whatever it is, feel free to ask,” the shopkeeper responded.

“Here’s the thing, I wish to pay a visit to Old Madam Meng and would like to know where the Meng family’s old mansion is located,” Ye Zhen inquired.

FInally, Ye Zhen added, “The one belonging to Hero Meng Chuan.”

Upon hearing Ye Zhen’s question, the shopkeeper’s expression suddenly changed, and without a second thought, he gestured with his hands and said, “Sir, you should ask someone else about this; I really don’t know!”

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“Seven years ago, Hero Meng sacrificed his life on Yin Mountain, and the Eldest Prince from the Empire personally visited Yinshan County City to console Old Madam Meng, making such a commotion.

And yet you, a true native, don’t know about this?

Speak, what’s really happening.”

Feeling that something was amiss, Ye Zhen suddenly gripped the shopkeeper’s neck and hoisted him into the air, angrily demanding answers.

“Sir, sir, I…

I really don’t know…

truly don’t know…”

While the shopkeeper was being choked to the point of gasping for air by Ye Zhen, four martial artists dressed in combat garb loudly ascended the stairs.

At that moment, the shopkeeper’s eyes lit up as if he had seen a savior.

“Sir, you can ask those gentlemen; those four are the local patrol officers of the city, they roam the streets every day, they must know, they must certainly know what you’re asking about.”

Ye Zhen eyed the shopkeeper suspiciously, feeling that something was not quite right.

However, the shopkeeper was correct in suggesting that the patrol officers of Yinshan County would likely know of the matter.

Ye Zhen let go of the shopkeeper and went straight to greet them.

“Gentlemen, the shopkeeper pointed out that you’re the local city patrol officers and are extremely familiar with the situation in Yinshan County.

I have a matter to consult with you,” Ye Zhen said.

The four men before him were clothed officially, each with bulging temples and eyes that emitted a piercing light, faintly showing a flow of sparkling light.

Judging from this, the cultivation of the four was likely to be at the Fifth Stage of Blood Training.

Ye Zhen was somewhat astonished.

Those at the Fifth Stage of Blood Training, at the very least, could hold the position of a Centurion or even a Chiliarch in the army.

Why would they serve as minor patrol officers in a county city, and all four at once no less?

“Indeed!” The leader-sized up Ye Zhen and nodded.

“Old Madam Meng, the Meng family old mansion, specifically the residence of Hero Meng Chuan, could you gentlemen enlighten me with its location?”

As soon as Ye Zhen said this, the expressions of the four patrol officers changed immediately.

Instead of answering Ye Zhen’s question, they made eye contact and began to communicate silently with their gazes.

**********

PS: I apologize for yesterday; I didn’t anticipate it would take two days, as I had only prepared for one day’s worth of drafts.

The two chapters I owed you yesterday will be made up over the next two days.

Which also means there will be three updates today and tomorrow.

Finally, I must shout out again, it’s a new week, and I need to beg for some recommendation tickets from you, brothers.

Today’s recommendation tickets are in dire straits.

Have mercy!