142: Chapter 143 Ten Years

Ten years of time flowed quietly over the land of Yunmeng Marsh.

For the natives of Yunmeng Marsh, ten years was enough for a child to grow into an adult.

For Jiang Feng, ten years was merely a journey across this strange continent.

During these ten years, the legend of a white-haired man spread throughout the entire Yunmeng Marsh.

Some tribes, such as the Shenfeng Tribe, revered him as a supreme deity, praying day and night, hoping for his return.

Some tribes, once on the verge of extinction due to blood feuds, had been mediated by him single-handedly, turning hostility into friendship, and honored him as a savior.

But for most tribes, when the name "Jiang Feng" was mentioned, the emotions were complex—a mix of love and hate.

This was especially true for the Ice and Snow Tribe in the northern territory.

At that time, Jiang Feng, in order to collect the eighth fragment of the Holy Tower, had come to the coldest northern territory of Yunmeng Marsh.

The queen of the Ice and Snow Tribe, known as the greatest beauty of Yunmeng Marsh, possessed beauty that surpassed all others, with suitors lining up from the tribe's entrance to the foot of the snow mountain.

The queen established a rule: any man in Yunmeng Marsh who could defeat all the male slave warriors in her tribe would become her royal husband.

Jiang Feng heard the news and, feeling playful, immediately defeated everyone without a word.

His unrivaled Physical Body strength left the entire Ice and Snow Tribe in awe, and the Ice and Snow Queen was instantly captivated, her beautiful eyes shimmering with strange light.

She immediately issued an order to appoint Jiang Feng as the royal husband of the Ice and Snow Tribe, with a status second only to her own.

On the day of the grand wedding, the entire tribe was decorated with lanterns and streamers, celebrating all night long.

Everyone thought that this powerful white-haired man would stay in the Ice and Snow Tribe forever, becoming the fiercest man by the queen's side.

Who would have thought that the queen waited in the bridal chamber all night, until the bonfire extinguished and the aroma of wine dissipated, without ever seeing her royal husband.

The next day, the clansmen searched the entire tribe, only to find that their royal husband had vanished.

All that was left was a Holy Tower with its gate wide open, and ten motionless Puppets.

This act, however, caused the Ice and Snow Queen to harbor deep resentment; she, the greatest beauty of Yunmeng Marsh, had suffered such a great humiliation on her wedding night.

She immediately issued an order: whoever in Yunmeng Marsh could capture Jiang Feng and bring him to the Ice and Snow Tribe would become her royal husband, regardless of gender.

...

When Jiang Feng, travel-worn and weary, arrived at the Snake-Person Tribe with the seven fragments, there was no longer any trace of snake-people activity.

In their place were the totems and warriors of the Chilian Tribe.

Jiang Feng was not surprised by this; he just didn't expect to see a familiar figure in front of the ruins.

Shangguan Wuqing stood there quietly in a red dress, as if she had been waiting for a long time.

She had added a bit more heroism and composure compared to years ago, but her brows were knitted with an indelible sorrow.

"You've come."

Seeing Jiang Feng, she only said these three words faintly, though the hands behind her back were trembling slightly.

"Did you kill the Snake King?" Jiang Feng knew that with Shangguan Wuqing's Aptitude, coupled with the Small Golden Body Art he had given her, even if she only cultivated it to the entry level, it would be more than enough to slay the Snake King. He just didn't expect Shangguan Wuqing to be waiting for him here specifically.

"Yes, this is all thanks to your help." Shangguan Wuqing could not suppress her emotions; she walked up to Jiang Feng, her eyes moist, filled with his reflection.

From then on, Shangguan Wuqing followed behind Jiang Feng.

She didn't say why, only that she wanted to see the wider world of Yunmeng Marsh and pursue a higher Dao of martial arts.

Jiang Feng did not refuse.

He knew that this woman had waited for him for a long time at the Snake-Person Tribe.

But this following lasted for seven years.

Over the seven years, the two traveled to every corner of Yunmeng Marsh, comparing the eight fragments to find the place indicated by the map.

"Brother Feng, this must be it."

At the peak of a towering snow mountain covered in snow all year round, the cold wind was like a knife.

Shangguan Wuqing panted, her pretty face, frozen red, was filled with excitement.

After seven years of searching and finding too many similar places, only this one matched the map's description most closely.

It was just that the stone gate that should have been there was missing.

Jiang Feng looked at the huge mountain wall covered in ice and snow before him and nodded.

He turned around and looked at the woman who had silently accompanied him for seven years, his heart filled with mixed feelings.

"Wuqing, thank you for these years."

He said this "thank you" with particular heaviness, but with a hint of detachment.

How could he not know Shangguan Wuqing's feelings?

But he could not give any response.

Shortly after leaving the Snake-Person Tribe, the Purple-Skirt Woman in his Sea of Consciousness had awakened once.

"Don't waste your efforts." The Purple-Skirt Woman's voice carried a hint of gloating laziness, "Yunmeng Marsh is a place of exile independent of the Spirit Realm. The people here carry the brand of this realm in their Bloodline. Once they leave Yunmeng Marsh, they will be instantly crushed into powder by the heaven and earth Dao of the outside world, and their Divine Soul will be extinguished."

Originally, Jiang Feng had wanted to wait until he found the Dragon-Elephant Tyrant Body Technique to take Shangguan Wuqing with him and join his small Family in the backyard, but alas, things did not go as planned.

From that day on, Jiang Feng completely gave up that thought.

He knew that he and Shangguan Wuqing were ultimately people from two different worlds; blindly enjoying her tenderness would only cause her to fall into a deeper abyss.

So for these seven years, he deliberately kept his distance, and even if her gaze was burning, he just pretended not to understand.

Shangguan Wuqing seemed to sense the distance in his words; her eyes dimmed for a moment, but soon regained that persistence.

She smiled and shook her head: "Brother Feng, what are you saying? If it weren't for you, my Chilian Tribe would have been destroyed long ago. Being able to follow you and see this world is Wuqing's honor."

In her heart, there was no room for any other man.

This man was an existence she could not reach even if she looked up to him for a lifetime.

Being able to accompany him like this was enough.

Jiang Feng said no more. He turned around and faced the huge mountain wall.

He took a deep breath, circulating the Small Golden Body Art to the extreme, his Qi and blood surging.

"Open!"

With a violent shout, he threw out an ordinary-looking punch!

Boom!

The entire snow mountain trembled because of it!

The thick layer of ice and snow on the mountain wall was swept away by the wind of this punch, revealing the blue-black rock body underneath.

And in the center of the rock body, a huge stone gate ten zhang high appeared clearly.

Shangguan Wuqing's eyes lit up, and she hurriedly took out the animal skin map she had pieced together countless times from her bosom to compare it carefully.

She stepped forward quickly and groped along the edge of the stone gate.

For seven years, she had known this map by heart.

Soon, she found a slightly protruding stone in an extremely hidden corner.

She looked back at Jiang Feng, and seeing him nod at her, she did not hesitate and pressed it with all her might!

"Click—"

A dull mechanical turning sound came from inside the stone gate.

Immediately following, accompanied by a "rumbling" loud noise, the huge stone gate that had been sealed for who knows how many years began to rise slowly.

A desolate yet incomparably domineering aura leaked out from the crack in the door.

Just a wisp of this aura made Shangguan Wuqing's face turn pale, and she retreated several steps, almost unable to breathe.

Jiang Feng, however, advanced instead of retreating, blocking in front of her.

Feeling this familiar yet strange aura, his blood began to boil uncontrollably!

The stone gate rose higher and higher.

A deep passage, seemingly capable of swallowing all light, appeared before the two.

Deep in the passage, something seemed to be faintly glowing.