Liang Chen suddenly jolted awake, almost knocking over some boxes that were next to him. He swept the alley with his eyes, his mind still mostly asleep. He didn't know exactly when he passed out, but it seemed like no one had done anything to him while he slept.
His mind slowly woke up, his stomach releasing a loud growl. Liang Chen clutched his stomach, sweeping the alley with his gaze once more. Since there were a lot of boxes in the alley, it seemed like it was used as a place to dispose of trash. Because of that, Liang Chen was able to spot a few rats that were gnawing on the boxes, seemingly trying to dig their way into the boxes.
Liang Chen did not like the idea of eating rats, but he had no other choice. If he went without food for much longer, he would be unable to keep himself going. He slowly reached out with one of his arms, sparks of golden lightning dancing around his fingers. After he stretched out his arm, the lightning shot out and crashed into three rats.
With the lightning hitting them, they quickly died as their organs were roasted, smoke escaping from their ears and eyes. Liang Chen quickly stood up and walked over to the rats, picking up the scorched bodies before he returned to the spot where he had sat. He sent more lightning into the bodies, somewhat roasting the meat.
Liang Chen grimaced as he looked at the rats in his hand, his nose stinging with the stench of their burnt hair. He took a deep breath and then bit into one of the rats, quickly tearing off a piece of meat and swallowing it. The taste was foul, a mixture of burnt and raw meat. But Liang Chen needed the food, so he could only make an effort to not vomit the food out again.
Liang Chen quickly finished the three rats, somewhat sating his hunger. After throwing away the remains, he stood up and stretched his body. He had been leaning against a stone wall as he slept, so his body was somewhat sore. Liang Chen left the alley and retraced his steps, returning to the plaza in front of the Eternal Dragon Pavilion.
It was still quite early, the sun just barely having risen above the horizon, so the plaza was rather empty, only a few vendors peddling their wares. Liang Chen walked through the plaza, heading towards a small fountain located on the left side of the plaza. The fountain was maintained by a small array, so the water was almost crystal clear. Liang Chen cupped his hands and used them as a bowl, allowing him to drink the water, which was quite cool but tasted a bit stale.
Looking at his own reflection in the water, Liang Chen felt like letting out a bitter laugh. His house had been torched and he was forced to flee, now he was even forced to eat rats and drink water from a fountain just to get through the day. His eyes hardened as he looked at his own reflection. The only reason all these things happened to him was because he was weak. If he had been strong, who would dare torch his house? Who would dare use his parents as scape-goats?
He needed strength not only to kill Qing Lan Yong but even to live in peace, it all required strength. Liang Chen took another sip of water before turning around and walking away from the plaza, heading towards the location where he would meet the caravan he would hitch a ride with. His first step to increase his strength was to enter the Mystic's Hidden Realm.
Liang Chen followed the directions he had been given, arriving at the massive wooden gate that served as the east entrance after walking for almost an hour. Despite it still being early, the area in front of the gate was bustling with activity, a plethora of carriages and wagons slowly being stocked up with wares that were to be sold in other cities. The people who were loading up the wagons either wore chains around their neck or had a burn mark on their neck that showed that they were slaves.
Liang Chen studied the people in front of the gate, looking for a person that matched the description he had been given. After a short while, he found a tall and somewhat chubby man with a full brown beard that matched the description he had been given. The man stood next to a small caravan of seven wagons, shouting orders at a few slaves that were carrying bags that seemed to be filled with grain. Liang Chen walked over to the bearded man, tapping him on the back as he spoke up.
"Excuse me, are you Du Gengxin?"
The bearded man closed his mouth and stopped shouting orders, slightly turning his body to face Liang Chen. When he saw Liang Chen, he raised an eyebrow, looking Liang Chen up and down with an appraising gaze. After a short moment, he gave a slight nod of his head.
"That'd be me. Yer the one that Lang Bai told me about?"
The bearded man's voice, Du Gengxin's voice, was rather deep and husky. Liang Chen was uncertain who this Lang Bai was, but it did not require much thought to guess at who he was probably talking about. But just to be certain, Liang Chen decided to ask.
"Lang Bai? Is he the tall and handsome man who works at the Eternal Dragon Pavilion?"
Hearing his description, Du Gengxin gave a nod of his head, his lips curling into a somewhat amused smile. He gave Liang Chen another look-over, his eyebrows furrowing slightly.
"That's the guy. Yer a bit scrawnier than I expected, but you'll only be working as a backup guard, so I guess it'll do."
Liang Chen could only give a bit of a wry smile at Du Gengxin's words, he was only 12 years old, so of course, he was bit scrawny. Du Gengxin turned his eyes away from Liang Chen, shouting towards a man standing at the very rear of the caravan.
"Oy, Huang! This kid'll work as a backup guard on half the trip, bring him to the rear wagon and give him a quick introduction, will ya?"
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The man who was shouted at was a bit short, but his body was rippling with muscles. He wore a type of leather armor that revealed his bare chest, showing that it was filled with scars. He had rather tanned skin and short black hair, his eyes carrying a sharp light. The man gave a slight nod to Du Gengxin's words, his eyes landing on Liang Chen.
"Alright, boss. Kid, I'm Yi Huang. I work as the leader of the guards, so you can just ask me any questions you have. Let me give you the grand tour if you can even call it that."
Yi Huang spoke with a shrug of his shoulders, raising his chin to indicate that Liang Chen should follow him. The two of them started walking past the wagons, Du Gengxin returning to shouting orders at the slaves. The wagons of the caravan were all made out of polished wood, an arched piece of tarp covering the wagons and preventing people from seeing what they contained. While walking, Yi Huang pointed at the wagons, giving a short introduction of them.
"The caravan consists of seven wagons, five filled with wares, one for the boss and his entourage, and one for the bulk of the guards. There will always be two guards present on the six other wagons, they are responsible for keeping an eye on the surroundings. The remaining four guards will rest in the rear wagon, ready to switch with the other guards at any time. You're only a backup guard, so unless things go really south, you should never have to leave the rear wagon."
Yi Huang could easily see that Liang Chen had a very low cultivation, he had most likely just started cultivating. There were other guards in the caravan who had the same cultivation level, but he was worried that Liang Chen most likely had too little experience to be truly useful. The two quickly reached the rearmost wagon, which was the largest of the seven wagons.
Yi Huang pushed aside a bit of the tarp that covered the wagon, revealing the large group of people that were sitting inside the wagon and chatting. They all turned towards Yi Huang when he pulled aside the tarp, their conversations stopping. Yi Huang placed his hand on Liang Chen's shoulder, speaking out in a loud and stern voice.
"Alright boys, listen up! This little one is gonna tag along for half of the road, he'll work as a backup guard. You're all adults, so you better behave, I don't wanna see you bully a child!"
The men sitting in the wagon gave a loud and quick confirmation, their eyes landing on Liang Chen as they looked him up and down. One of the men, a somewhat older man who had a head full of graying hair and a face that was starting to fill with wrinkles, was the first one to break the silence.
"So what's your name kid, why are you tagging along? Tell us a little about yourself."
The other guards perked up their ears slightly after hearing the old man's question. After all, seeing someone as young as Liang Chen tagging along was rather rare. They could also tell that he was not just some poor beggar, as Du Gengxin would not have let him tag along if that was the case. Liang Chen lightly shrugged his shoulders, giving an honest response.
"My name is Liang Chen, I am tagging along because I have a mission from the Eternal Dragon Pavilion, I am going to check out the Mystic's Hidden Realm. Other than that, there really isn't anything interesting about me."
A light silence descended on the people in the wagon after they heard Liang Chen's reply, their eyes looking at him with a strange light in their eyes. The old man who had asked the question raised an eyebrow, looking at Liang Chen with a dubious expression.
"You're heading to the Mystic's Hidden Realm, with your strength? Kinda suicidal, aren't you? Why would you accept a mission like that?"
The Mystic's Hidden Realm had a very high mortality rate, even people at the peak of the Soaring Immortal realm could die when they entered it. To them, it was nothing but suicidal for Liang Chen to enter it. Liang Chen gave a noncommittal shrug of his shoulders, Yi Huang speaking up for him.
"That's his business, we shouldn't put our noses into it. Old Fen, I don't think the kid can handle a spear, so get him a sword he can use."
The man Yi Huang referred to as Old Fen was the same old man Liang Chen had spoken to. Old Fen gave a nod of his head, standing up and heading deeper into the wagon, the sound of him rummaging through boxes ringing out shortly after. Yi Huang leaned to the side, checking out the other wagons for a short moment before he spoke up again.
"The loading is almost complete, so it's time for us to take up our positions. Let's hope the trip is nice and uneventful."
The guards gave a loud affirmation, twelve of them climbing out from the wagon and heading towards the other six wagons. With twelve people leaving, the only people left in the rearmost wagon were Liang Chen, Yi Huang, Old Fen, and two other middle-aged men. Yi Huang and Liang Chen entered the wagon, ready for the caravan to leave at any moment.