You’re… you’re really Little Fatty.
Stunned at the sight of the person in front of him, Jian Chen couldn’t believe his eyes that this well-built person was the very same person he knew before.
Are you… are you really Little Fatty?
Even Xiu Mi was having second thoughts. With his hoe hefted on his shoulder, Xiu Mi stood there in stunned disbelief. Was this really his own son?
The Little Fatty of today was drastically different to the Little Fatty of before. Not only was his aura different, even his appearance and build had changed. Not a bit of fatty meat could be seen on him. He was extremely skinny compared to before. He wasn’t as straightforward looking anymore, he had gained a feeling of being a highly capable person.
Father, how did you change Little Fatty so much?
Xiu Mi smiled to elder Xiu.
Little Fatty, you’ve become so skinny! You must have suffered terribly outside.
Little Fatty’s mother wailed in despair before rushing out from the house to meet him.
Wow… Little Fatty, you’ve changed so much I barely recognized you.
Are you really Little Fatty? You seem more like a stranger.
……
The people from the village who were barely older or younger than Little Fatty muttered to each other in disbelief. Not a single one of them could believe their eyes at his transformation.
Little Fatty scratched his head with slight embarrassment when he saw just how shocked everyone was. With a chuckle, he said,
Even I don’t know what happened, but I’ve changed a lot over the past few months. Please don’t worry everyone, I’m still the same ol’ Little Fatty from before.
Looking to Jian Chen, he apologetically said,
Jian Chen, I’m really sorry. A year ago, grandpa took me to train so we had to delay our meeting. Sorry for keeping you waiting.
Jian Chen smiled in return,
No worries. I’ve only just arrived myself. Little Fatty, congratulations on becoming an Earth Saint Master. You are now one of the stronger people of the continent.
Jian Chen, I’ve finally become an Earth Saint Master.
Little Fatty laughed.
Grandpa will finally let me travel the outside world with you. When can we set off?
Little Fatty ended impatiently.
Thinking about how to answer the question, he finally responded,
The sooner the better. I have something to do back home, so we need to hurry back.
Jian Chen, why not leave tomorrow? Little Fatty and his grandfather must have gone through a lot in their travels. Let them rest well for tonight.
Little Fatty’s mother reluctantly suggested.
Ah, then let us go with aunty’s suggestion!
Jian Chen nodded.
Little Fatty’s sudden return delayed Jian Chen’s trip back home by one more day.
……
The next morning, everyone in the village gathered to send off Jian Chen and Little Fatty. They both left the valley after one final farewell.
The villagers didn’t go beyond the village entrance. Instead, they watched the two leave from afar. Some of the villagers revealed envious looks.
Ai!
The plain-robed elder Xiu heaved a heavy sigh to the sky.
I didn’t wish for Little Fatty to be entangled with the matters of the outside world. I wanted him to live a life of peace here, but Jian Chen’s sudden arrival brought him dreams of traveling. Whether this is a blessing or curse, I’m not sure.
Father, we should be approving of Little Fatty’s wish to travel the outside world. Little Fatty will become wiser with this trip. Remaining in the village will only stifle Little Fatty’s talent, and only with this journey will Little Fatty’s true potential will be drawn out. Perhaps Little Fatty will one day become strong enough to set down a basis of strength to replace even you, father.
Xiu Mi spoke.
Elder Xiu shook his head,
No. I won’t hand over my responsibilities to Little Fatty. This is only a cumbersome burden, and no matter how talented Little Fatty is, he is unsuited for this responsibility.
Why, father? It can’t be a matter of strength!
Xiu Mi protested.
Elder Xiu sighed with a bit of a pained groan,
Your mother died because of the Bloodsword sect. Before her passing, she made me swear to not interfere with the continent. So from then on, I sought a quiet place to hide away, like the rest of the hermit clans. A place to live out the rest of my life in peace.
No matter how strong a person’s cultivation becomes, they will still end up as skeletons. Nothing but a false name is left after that. Your mother was wise to say that an unordinary but peaceful life isn’t a bad one. One shouldn’t try to be so concerned about leaving a mark on the mortal world; instead, they should try to live a life without worry.
Elder Xiu sighed.
Father, how do you plan to deal with the Bloodsword sect then?
Xiu Mi asked.
Elder Xiu grew silent for a moment.
I can tell that Jian Chen isn’t a bad choice. He’s outstanding in almost every aspect, and his potential is quite terrifying to say the least. If he’s able to become a Heaven Saint Master at that young age, then I can say that he won’t be inferior to me in the future.
……
Flying over the mountains, Jian Chen carried Little Fatty through the sky, quickly bypassing the Cross Mountains. The tiger cub on Jian Chen’s shoulder had already long since woken up. It glanced around with great bright eyes.
Mrrrr…
Suddenly, the cub let out an excited cry as it unfolded its wings. Leaping off of Jian Chen’s shoulder, it disappeared into the verdant forests down below. Not even a moment later, it came flying back to Jian Chen’s shoulder with a fruit in its mouth.
Jian Chen was rather startled by what the cub did, but he laughed in the end,
I had thought that your wings were just for decoration, but it seems that flight with them is possible, that’s a first.
Little Fatty looked at the tiger cub on Jian Chen’s shoulder.
Jian Chen, I can tell that this cub is very strong. Is it a Class 5 Magical Beast already?
Correct. It became a Class 5 Magical Beast cub several days ago. Little Fatty, I recall that you’ve never seen a high class Magical Beast before. How were you able to tell the cub’s strength?
Jian Chen asked curiously.
Little Fatty laughed,
At one point grandpa took me to some strange place where I had to kill all sorts of magical beasts time after time. I’m familiar with a Class 5 Magical Beast now, so it’s only natural that I know how strong it is.
At that moment, Jian Chen’s face grew grim and his body came to a sudden halt in the middle of the air. His face also darkened for some strange reason.
The reason for this strange occurrence was because his blood had suddenly started to bubble as if it was boiling water. This abnormality quickly spread throughout his body, causing his body temperature to increase.
Jian Chen, what’s wrong?
Little Fatty was at a loss of words. He had no idea why Jian Chen was acting this way.
Jian Chen did not respond since even he didn’t know what was going on with his body. It was the first time he had experienced such a sensation.
Could there be a problem with the Chaotic Body?
Jian Chen thought, but even as he finished that thought, the two sword spirits immediately answered him.
Master, the blood within your body has the anti-venom factor from the Golden-Striped Silver Snake. This is a reaction caused by that anti-venom. Since the Golden-Striped Silver Snake is a rare being, the two sides definitely have an attraction to one another. There has to be one of those snakes nearby. Presumably a strong one, Class 7 Magical Beast at a guess.
Ziying spoke.
A change over came Jian Chen’s face, but he did not say a second word about it as he immediately left the area. A Golden-Striped Silver Snake was extremely strong. It was also hard to come by. He had Little Fatty with him, so Jian Chen didn’t wish for some sort of conflict to happen.
Quickly leaving the Cross Mountains, Jian Chen headed straight for Mercenary City without pause. After two days, they finally arrived.
As soon as he entered the city, Jian Chen headed straight to the inn where Wang Yufeng and patriarch Jiede were residing.
Exchanging several words with Wang Yufeng, he introduced everyone to one another. However, he did not divulge Jiede Tai’s identity and gave a careless introduction when it was his turn.
After the introductions were made, Wang Yufeng and Little Fatty became quick friends. Soon enough, they were laughing and chatting with one another as if they had always been friends.
Jian Chen took Jiede Tai to another room to talk. After giving several heavenly resources to the tiger cub to let it fall asleep, he said to Jiede Tai,
Come with me to the Cross Mountains.
What? the Cross Mountains!
Jiede Tai cried out loud with great fear. Refusing Jian Chen, he said,
Out of the question. That is a forbidden zone to even the strongest of the continent. One couldn’t go there unless one was a Saint King.
Knowing that Jiede Tai was afraid, Jian Chen explained,
Rest assured, we won’t be going deep inside; it’ll only be the outside perimeter. I know the dangers of the mountains, so we won’t be going to our deaths.
Knowing that they wouldn’t be going to the depths of the mountains, Jiede Tai sighed in relief,
As long as we don’t go too deep in and don’t cause too much trouble, that’s fine. But what in the world are you going there for!?
There’s no time to waste. Come with me for now. You’ll understand when we get there.
Jian Chen placed the sleeping cub on the bed and turned around to leave the room with Jiede Tai right behind him.
After leaving the room, Jian Chen mentioned to Wang Yufeng and Little Fatty that he and Jiede Tai would be leaving Mercenary City. After that, they rushed to the Cross Mountains.
