Journey

  According to Fatah Dio, they should carefully watch the Chinese folk scenery on both sides of the road, so he insisted on taking a very slow old-fashioned electric locomotive and gave up the magnetic levitation express that directly reaches Beijing and Shanghai. Seeing Yi Chen's puzzled gaze, Fatah Dio said with a smile: "The greatest pleasure for the President of the United States is to ride a steam train at a speed of no more than 50 miles per hour in the western wilderness to enjoy the scenery. We are now basically treated as US presidents."

  It's hard to put into words, and can only be attributed to Fattalio's eccentricity.

  Since the British government announced the Queen's abdication and the new King's accession, Yì Chén and others have cut off all contact with London. Even if they need to make a phone call back home, they have agreed to only say things like: "Ah ha, the weather is really great today... Yes, I've eaten."

  Fatadi still had his old temper, occupying a whole carriage, Phil and Goll sat at both ends of the carriage, scaring off countless people who wanted to come over and take their seats.

  Sitting in the middle of the car, Easy was pressed tightly against Feli, Fatadio sat opposite him, Jester and Sally were sitting on the sofa to the left of the aisle, Fatadio's two assistants had somehow managed to procure a batch of white wine and were happily drinking.

  Yi Chen saw a dozen or so people in black suits sparsely arranged on the platform, and he smiled, withdrawing his gaze. He glanced at Sally and found that she still had that wooden expression, but from the depths of her eyes, Yi Chen saw a deep-seated fear. Yi Chen slightly furrowed his brow - why would Sally, this specially trained killer, have fear? She had killed countless people and suffered the most brutal treatment in the world; what else could she be afraid of?

  "Easy does it, Philly," said Dusty. "The train is about to start, sit back, Juster, and come with me up to the head of the car for a smoke."

  Fatah Diouf gave Yichun a strange look, this car was all packaged up, what's the big deal about smoking? But Fatah Diouf looked at Sally, his mouth slightly curved upwards, and didn't say anything, starting to chat with Feili in a desultory manner.

  Jester followed Yichen to the link of the carriage, and Phil also came over, blocking them from another carriage.

  Yi Chen glanced at Sally: "Jester, what was Sally doing when you returned to your room this morning?"

  Jester thought for a moment, shrugged and said: "Her? She's like someone who hasn't slept all night sitting on the couch in a daze, I'm too lazy to care about her."

  Yi Chen said in a low voice, "She saw you and Feili dealing with those two guys last night. Because she saw it, but couldn't understand what was going on in her heart, so didn't you notice that she's now very afraid to look at you and Feili?"

  Jester was taken aback, muttering to himself: "Damn it, she's pretty fast, actually managed to get up to the rooftop so quickly... damn it. Boss, do you think she can also train with us?"

  "It's impossible, I won't allow my heart method incantation to fall into the hands of someone I don't understand, especially since her body is so severely injured that she'll die by the time she's 40. Even if she starts cultivating now, due to the severe damage to her meridians, it's unlikely she'll achieve any good results... Of course, looking at her skills, they're quite useful, which is why I allowed you to buy her for such a low price; otherwise, where would you find such a good deal?"

  Jie Si let out a helpless sigh. Yi Chen comforted him: "Just get to know her better, hmm... make her fear you, but also feel grateful and respectful towards you, and finally completely control her spirit. If you can do that, I can heal her injuries and consider giving her the incantation... But..." Yi Chen's voice suddenly turned icy cold: "If you dare to secretly give her the incantation, I'll take care of you together with her, got it?"

  The last three words, Yī Chén's strange and eerie voice directly shook into Jester's mind, Jester's whole body trembled, nodding slightly without any resistance.

  The train had started, Yi Chen and Jester each lit a cigar, and after finishing it, they returned to their seats. Phil returned to his own position, called for a bottle of red wine, and drank it mouthful by mouthful.

  Fatiao smiled and beckoned to Yichun: "Yi, come over and take a look. Isn't that your motherland outside the window?"

  Yi Chen looked out, the train had not yet left the Shanghai suburbs, everywhere was still houses, houses, houses, utility poles, utility poles, utility poles, and there was nothing that could move Yi Chen. A red sun slowly rose from the east, Yi Chen secretly absorbed a bit of the true fire's power, and immediately broke out in a fine sweat all over his body, while outside the window, white mist rose from the ground.

  Fatah Dio enthusiastically fetched a bottle of brandy, poured a large cup for Yichun, and then took a swig from the bottle himself. Wiping the foam from his mouth, Fatah Dio praised: "China is an ancient and great nation. I have to say that China is one of the most difficult nations to conquer. Look, when the People's Republic of China was founded last century, it was basically a country on the verge of collapse, but now, hey, in less than sixty years, China has surpassed Russia, my beloved homeland, and become the strongest presence in the East."

  Yi Chen looked at Fattadio: "Are you very familiar with the situation in China?"

  Fatadio proudly said, "Of course, I used to minor in Chinese at Moscow University. I admire Chinese culture so much, it's profound and broad, only you true Chinese people can really understand it."

  Yi Chen smiled bitterly: "But I don't have much understanding of my own country... Hmm, I only know a bit about the history that's almost two thousand years old. As for other things, regarding China, whether it's history, culture, or customs and people, I basically know nothing."

  Fatadi stared at him in amazement: "How is it possible, dear Yi? Aren't the Chinese a nation with the strongest centripetal force? Aren't they a nation that attaches the most importance to blood ties and kinship in the world? Oh God, you really surprise me often."

  He took out his own jade pendant and turned it around a few times on the small table in front of him, saying helplessly: "I'm probably what they call an orphan. I don't know who my parents are or what my name is... I was brought to their monastery by some... um, ascetic monks from the Western world when I was three or four years old. They started reciting scriptures similar to those of the Western Bible, and since they didn't care about worldly affairs, I naturally didn't know these things either... Fatadi, tell me, is there anything in China that's worth being proud of?"

  Fatah Diouf looked like he was about to faint, dramatically clutching his chest: "Oh God, dear Chinese Yi, you've left me speechless. Is there anything in China that can make you proud? Heaven, I don't know how to answer your question... Just grab a handful of dirt from anywhere on Chinese soil and it's likely that something worthy of all Chinese people's pride has existed there... You really need to study up."

  Jester, who was whispering to Sally, also drew over, plopped down beside Fattalio, snatched the wine bottle from his hand, drained half of it in one gulp, and handed it back saying: "Well, find something interesting to tell us."

  Fatiao didn't mind Jester's movements, grabbed the wine bottle and took a big mouthful, with a somewhat pretentious tone: "So, where do we start? Hmm, let's start from the most ancient legend, dear Yi. Do you know why Chinese people are also called 'descendants of Yan and Huang'?"

  Yi Chen was stunned, hastily shaking his head to indicate he didn't know. Fei Li had already laughed so hard she was leaning on Yi Chen's body, secretly pinching him hard, and Yi Chen gently patted her forehead.

  Fata Dio smiled, speaking in a mysterious low tone: "The so-called Flame Emperor refers to the very ancient era of China, where two great emperors with unimaginable powers each led a powerful nation and fought for control over the most fertile land in the Central Plains... As for the specific process, let's just say that after the Flame Emperor was defeated, the Yellow Emperor began another war with a great demon who was either a subordinate or an ally of the Flame Emperor, in order to thoroughly conquer this world..."

  That demon god is called Chi You.

  Jester sneered and said: "Demon God? How powerful is he?"

  Fatiao chuckled and said, "Well, to be honest, this is just a legend, I don't know how powerful he really was. But it seems that in the last battle, which was related to the plum blossom deer, Chi You used magic to fill the sky with fog, while Huang Di received help from the heavenly gods and got a chariot that could accurately indicate direction, and as a result defeated Chi You."

  Yi Chen said in a low voice: "The most primitive compass?"

  Fatadiou rolled his eyes: "This myth happened at least ten thousand years ago... At that time, there was a compass, my God..."

  Yi Chen was stunned. Fatadi continued, "Finally, the Yellow Emperor used a treasured sword to dismember Chi You, because Chi You could revive infinitely. To prevent him from reviving again, his body was dragged to the farthest places in all directions and discarded."

  Yi Chen's heart was shocked, a person who can infinitely revive? A powerful cultivator indeed can infinitely revive, because as long as the primordial spirit exists, it can constantly reincarnate and rebirth, even to the point where if the primordial spirit still exists, the body has no significance at all, he can directly extract the spiritual energy from heaven and earth to instantly form a new body. Yi Chen's heart turned cold with sweat, what was being said about the body being torn apart by five horses? It was actually the primordial spirit being thoroughly scattered, the three souls and six spirits being separated and dispersed, a thorough soul scattering death method. This is clearly the bloody war between cultivators in ancient times, no wonder there's talk of divine assistance.

  Yi Chen revealed a smile: "Fata Dio, your story is too wonderful, are there any other similar legends?"

  Fata Dio took a sip, thought for half a day, and prepared to think of some strange and wonderful meng material to show off. He suddenly laughed and said: "Ah ha, there's a great legend. In your history, there was a very famous and good fighter named Zhang Liang. When he was young, he was a rogue or a hooligan, but later he met an old man..."

  Fatadio slowly told the legend of Zhang Liang, and Jester widened his eyes and asked him: "What's the name of that old dead man? Hmm... it's too mysterious."

  Fatadio thought for a moment: "It seems to be called something yellow stone? Ah, yes, the Duke of Yellowstone."

  Yi Chen burst out laughing: "Huang Shi Gong means Huang Shi old man, not some duke." Yi Chen's scornful laughter was directed at Fatadi, but his smile suddenly froze, and the cold sweat on the back of his heart flowed again. In the Tianxing Sect's scripture storage building, he had once flipped through the records of the past thousand years and found that among the cultivators who had successfully ascended to immortality, there was a predecessor from the Dao De Sect named Huang Shi Dao Ren.

  Yi Chen's facial expression eased a bit, and he couldn't help but bitterly smile to himself: "How is this possible? How does it sound like all these people and things are related to the cultivators? Never mind, just treat it as listening to a story."

  All the way talking and talking, Fatiao's belly about China's ink is limited, the train has not yet reached Beijing, he can't find words to say.

  Yi Chen gazed out the car window at the vast plains outside, with fields and villages stretching out in every direction. People were coming and going, and occasionally the sounds of chickens clucking and dogs barking drifted into Yi Chen's keen ears. As he watched and listened to all this, his heart felt a deep sense of confusion. What had his ancestors done? What had they accomplished? Despite listening to Fatadiou, Yi Chen still couldn't get even the faintest impression. Deep down, Yi Chen knew that his bloodline came from China, but the only Chinese people he had ever really interacted with were his fellow disciples and the masters of the Dao De Zong, Wu Xing Zong, and Dun Jia Zong sects. He couldn't muster up even a hint of a sense of belonging to China from the bottom of his heart.

  It feels as if you clearly know that a kind and loving woman is your own mother, but when you yearn for her affection, there is inexplicably a layer of estrangement, leaving you feeling bewildered and unfulfilled.

  Sun Ke's office, he lit a cigarette and furrowed his brow: "This trouble-prone Yidun has come to Beijing?"

  His two subordinates nodded, one of whom replied: "Yes, Director Ke, Mr. Yicun and the current Russian trade delegation, led by Deputy Director Plov, have come to Beijing together with Fatadio. According to our analysis, he is not harmful at all. The Shanghai incident was entirely a case of Director Longfei taking personal revenge and abusing his power."

  Sun Ke's eyebrows furrowed even tighter: "What kind of grudge could Yī Chén and Lóng Fēi have? You probably know too, that Lóng Fēi and his group are simply figures like the gods in Chinese mythology. Do you think an ordinary person would have a chance to make enemies with them?"

  Two subordinates were stunned for a moment, the office door had been pushed open, and Tian Fengzi walked in with an expression as calm as water, without a ripple, saying: "Director Sun? The matter of Yi Chen, let us handle it. He was once the junior apprentice of our humble Taoist, and our Tiān Xīng Zōng should take on this responsibility."

  Director Sun's head immediately buzzed with thoughts, oh dear, how could he not have thought of this? Yi Chen, a dust speck, damn it... Director Sun sighed and said seriously: "Tian Feng Dao Zhang, I hope you can understand our policy. For any truly friendly individuals, we must take responsibility for their safety no matter what. We don't want anything unpleasant to happen, do you understand?" This was the first time he spoke to Tian Feng in such a serious tone.

  Tianfeng fell silent for a long time, and then said faintly: "Sun Kechang, as far as we cultivators are concerned, the way of handling things is not very different from yours... Of course, we were also ordered to assist you, and didn't want to cause any trouble for you. However, many things have complex causes and effects, which you probably can't understand."

  Sun Ke's face turned red with rage as he slammed his fist on the table: "I can understand, and all I can understand is that even if you are a true god from the nine heavens descending to earth, you must still obey our laws. Yi Chen doesn't care what kind of person you were before or what happened between you in the past, as long as you still acknowledge yourselves as Chinese people, you must act according to Chinese law. Whether you're a celestial being or a demon, if you want to run amok, then step over my dead body first."

  Tianfeng's eyes narrowed, and the pressure in the entire room suddenly increased. An invisible sword aura had already approached Sun Kechang. Sun Kechang stood up straight, staring dead at Tianfeng. His two subordinates silently pulled out their guns and aimed at Tianfeng's head.

  The sky wind increased its oppressive feeling bit by bit, and the strange sound waves surged out layer by layer: "Director Sun Ke, do you think this kind of weapon is useful to us? You are responsible for your own affairs, we handle our internal matters, both sides do not interfere with each other."

  Sun Kechang was already drenched in sweat, with a tiny bead of blood oozing out from his Adam's apple, caused by the gradual approach of Tian Fengzi's invisible sword energy. He said slowly and solemnly: "Tian Feng Daozhang, treating all friendly people with kindness is our system, it is also our law. No matter how strong you are personally, you cannot cover up the principles that are commonly followed by the 100 million land and 1 billion people. What can you do to oppress me? Naturally, there will be someone more capable than me to deal with you. What does individual ability explain?"

  The heavenly wind suddenly retracted its sword energy, and the tense atmosphere in the office was relieved. He smiled faintly: "It's really strange, you're just an ordinary person, yet you can resist my aura for so long. I underestimated you... Hmm, you're a real man... Don't worry, I'm just going to clarify some things with Yī Chén Zǐ (One Dust). I hope Sūn Kē Zhǎng (Sun Ke Zhang) will understand. According to my understanding of Yī Chén Zǐ, if he knew about some things from over four years ago, it would likely cause a huge commotion. I've never dared to underestimate this junior brother of mine."

  Sun Kezhong pressed him for an answer: "What do you mean? If he doesn't know about those things now, it's very likely that he will never know in his lifetime. What exactly are you talking about?"

  The wind was blowing gently as he walked out of the house door: "I won't tell Yizhen those things, but my other six fellow disciples, alas... Director Sun, would you please arrange a car to send me to that train station? I don't want to fly with my sword in broad daylight like my fellow disciples."

  Director Sun's mouth fell open, and he let out a silent groan in his heart. These monks were too arrogant! In broad daylight, they... He helplessly signaled to two subordinates to prepare the vehicle, then sat down shakily in his own seat, his clothes completely soaked through. Just a few words had passed, but Director Sun felt like he had aged three years.

  An hour's drumming is three points more tiring.

  Under the urging of Tianfeng, the Audi car with a special license plate rushed out all the way, and at this moment, Yangzi and the other five had already arrived at the train station.

  Yi Chen smiled and hugged Feili, following Fatahdi to get off the car. More than a dozen people who came to greet from Plov had been waiting on the platform, Yi Chen spoke a few words with them in a very smelly Russian accent, feeling uninteresting, switched to English.

  Phil, Gorthok lugged the dusty luggage of Fili and Kili closely behind, Jester still had that lazy attitude wandering around the periphery with a swaggering gait, Sally seemed like a ghost following him closely.

  Yi Chen smiled and said to Fatah: "Is this Beijing? There are so many people in the station."

  Fatadi shrugged and said: "Now for the Olympics, the station has been expanded. If you came before, that person would have scared you to death."

  Yi Chen smiled and looked around, but suddenly his body shook violently and he stood frozen on the spot. Feili, who was close to him, was the first to sense that something was wrong with him, and she quickly followed his gaze to see what had caught his attention.

  Fata Dio also found something was off, looking in the direction that Yi Chen's face was pointing, six young men were standing there, and within a five-meter radius around them, there was no one coming or going. Long black hair scattered down, with similarly calm and gentle expressions, similarly deep and mysterious eyes, and similarly spotless black clothes, it was as if they were six copies of Yi Chen standing there...

  "Damn it, Yee, another enemy of yours from China? Damn, they've actually come to your doorstep..."

  Yi Chen smiled faintly: "Not an enemy, but my brother." He walked over.