The helicopter’s cabin door was open, and Chen Nan and Dou Wolf leapt into the craft one after the other.
The flight pilot inside was a young lieutenant who, after greeting them, closed the cabin door, and the helicopter took off.
The speed of a helicopter couldn’t compare to that of fighter jets or commercial airliners; it only reached about two to three hundred kilometers per hour. Still, it was far faster than traveling by car.
After all, roads are winding, whereas the flight path of an aircraft is straight.
About six hours later, the helicopter arrived above the Qianzhong Mountain Range.
In the meantime, it had refueled at two military bases.
"Gentlemen, within the Qianzhong Mountain Range, a perennial poisonous fog pervades, so we can only land on the periphery," said the young lieutenant.
Although he did not know the identities of Chen Nan and Dou Wolf, he knew they must be important figures to warrant his special conveyance, so he felt it was surely right to address them as leaders.
"Can’t we go any deeper?" Chen Nan asked.
"I’m afraid not, it’s said that there’s an extremely strong magnetic field within these mountains; any further and the helicopter might lose control. Moreover, the dense poisonous fog in these mountains blurs visibility even during the day, not to mention at night."
Chen Nan nodded, "Then alright, let’s land on the outskirts."
Upon agreement, the lieutenant controlled the aircraft to land.
"You should have brought some food," Dou Wolf said as they waited. "We’ll be back before it gets dark."
After instructing the young lieutenant, Dou Wolf and Chen Nan jumped out of the aircraft together.
The two walked several hundred meters into the mountain range when Dou Wolf took out a map.
"This is what my teacher gave me; according to him, if we follow this line inside, we can find the Tree of Life." By the moonlight, Dou Wolf pointed at a red line marked on the map.
Chen Nan nodded, "This must be over a hundred miles wide, we need to quicken our pace."
Dou Wolf responded, "Indeed, let’s hurry!"
The brothers quickened their steps.
The surroundings were silent, apart from the sound of their footsteps and the crunching of dry branches and leaves underfoot, there was no other sound. Not even the chirping of insects and birds.
The two always kept within a meter of each other, moving side by side.
Gradually, they both began to feel a chill, as if the temperature around them had suddenly dropped by more than ten degrees.
"It’s a bit eerie, be careful."
Chen Nan stopped and glanced at Dou Wolf.
Dou Wolf nodded, his alertness heightened, and said, "Let’s not get too far apart. From what I know, many strange incidents have occurred in the Qianzhong Mountain Range. During the war of resistance, a troop of five hundred entered these mountains and mysteriously disappeared without a trace. Later, more than a hundred people went in search of them, and only one came out alive but had gone mad. Similar incidents have happened many times throughout history, making this an unsolved mystery, which is why no one dares to live within a hundred miles of this mountain range."
Chen Nan nodded, and the two continued forward.
Moonlight filtered through the leaves, casting patches of light on the ground, and the whole forest exuded a cold, sinister chill.
The two heightened their alertness. After about thirty miles and past five in the morning, the cold and bleak aura around them grew even stronger, feeling almost as if they had entered the Netherworld, and they could even sense a strong presence of death.
Suddenly, a shadow flitted behind them; they quickly turned around but saw nothing.
"There’s something strange."
The two exchanged glances, silently circulating True Qi within their bodies, ready to strike at any moment.
After advancing another two to three hundred meters, the strange shadow flitted by their side once more, but both were still unable to make out what it was.
"Let’s go, as long as it doesn’t attack us, we should ignore it," Chen Nan said.
The Poison Wolf nodded, and the two continued walking forward.
They had walked about a mile or so when the shadow didn’t reappear, but at that moment, they heard the sounds of fighting ahead.
"It seems there are people ahead."
"Let’s go and take a look."
Thirty meters away, Chen Nan saw two groups of people fighting.
One group consisted of three people, and the other of two.
From the True Qi fluctuations they emitted, in the group of three, two were at Qi Dao Seventh Heaven and one at Qi Dao Ninth Heaven. The other group consisted of two at Qi Dao Eighth Layer Heaven.
The group with two people was clearly at a disadvantage, with one of them severely injured.
"They must also be here for the Life Essence Fruit; let’s not get involved and just pass by," the Poison Wolf proposed.
Chen Nan nodded, just about to agree, but then he recognized someone among the group of three—a familiar face or more precisely, an enemy—Jiang Yifei.
The successor of the Desire Palace!
"Wait, there’s someone here I need to kill."
Staring at Jiang Yifei, a murderous intent burst from Chen Nan’s eyes.
That night, Huo Xinya was abducted by this beast, and she was nearly violated by him; a grudge he must avenge.
"Is it that guy at the Ninth Heaven?" Poison Wolf asked.
"I’ll go take him down for you."
The Poison Wolf said and charged towards them.
Chen Nan didn’t stop him; after all, they were pressed for time, and since Poison Wolf was stronger than him, he could kill Jiang Yifei faster than Chen Nan could.
Before the Poison Wolf charged in, he threw a punch, sending a white Qi trembling through the void like flames, illuminating the Heaven and Earth, and slamming towards Jiang Yifei.
Jiang Yifei, who was about to strike down the severely injured Eighth Layer fighter, suddenly sensed a mighty force approaching and, in fright, his heart clenched, a cold sweat breaking out as he hurriedly turned around, mobilizing all his True Qi in defense.
Their fists and palms met, the sound thunderous.
The Poison Wolf’s Qi Dao Ten Layers Heaven power shattered Jiang’s Hand Power instantly.
Jiang Yifei let out a piercing scream, so harsh in the eerie forest, as he was thrown back, coughing up blood, and flew dozens of meters away before crashing heavily to the ground.
"Fuck, meddling fool!"
Jiang Yifei cursed, jumping up furiously and then... without looking back, he fled like flying.
"Think you can run? It’s not that easy!"
The Poison Wolf stomped his foot on the ground, just about to pursue, but at that moment, the other two Seventh Realm Martial Artists actually pounced to block him, striking with their hands and shouting, "Brother, run! Avenge us later!"
Facing their block, the Poison Wolf showed no mercy. His overwhelming Hand Power surged, his indestructible True Qi instantly shattered their palms, striking harshly on their chests.
The two spat out blood mixed with pieces of their shattered organs.
Blood stained the ground, and they died instantly!