Chapter 686: Homeland (2/2)

Meng Hao’s hair was gray bordering on white, and although he wore the robe of a cultivator, his features were elderly. No matter how you looked at him, he appeared to be nothing more than an ancient, mortal man.

“I wonder how far away I am from the Rebirth Cave….” he thought as he trudged up the beach, his feet sinking into the sand with each step he took. After a time, he reached the end of the beach, where it turned into forested mountains. He glanced around, then continued to walk.

He had not walked on foot through mountainous forests for a very long time. He thought back to the time before he reached Foundation Establishment, when he had often traveled through mountainous forests like this. After Foundation Establishment, however, he had always flown up above in the air.

The mountains were not easy to travel through. There were thorns and thistles everywhere, and the sun was already beginning to set by the time he passed over the top of the first mountain. He gasped for breath the entire time, and his body ached. As evening fell, he sat down cross-legged beneath a tall tree to meditate.

Meditation was something that had become a force of habit. Although he had no cultivation base to rotate, simply meditating left him feeling calm and relaxed.

The sky grew darker, and then black. It was at this point that howling drifted through the trees, along with an acrid odor. Next, a savage three-headed dog appeared in front of him. One of the three heads was withered, another emanated a chilling cold Qi, and the last appeared to be extremely foul-tempered.

Obviously, these mountains were the domain of this creature, and Meng Hao’s incursion caused its eyes to be filled with killing intent.

However, it did not near him, but merely circled around him. Its cultivation base was profound; it was already at the ninth level of Qi Condensation. It had the faint sensation that Meng Hao was filled with boundless danger. Yet, within that sense of danger, it could also sense that he was as weak as a mortal.

The contradiction caused it to hesitate.

However, it could only be so patient. It managed to restrain itself for the time it takes half an incense stick to burn, then let out a vicious howl and transformed into a beam of colorful light that shot toward Meng Hao.

The two non-withered heads opened their vicious mouths, and an acrid odor filled the air as they closed in on Meng Hao. It was at this point that Meng Hao’s eyes opened.

His body was weak, but when his eyes opened, they were filled with a cold gleam.

The cold gleam contained all of Meng Hao’s killing intent. In his years leading the Crow Divinity Tribes in their migration, he had killed countless numbers of cultivators. The killing intent that existed in him was something usually suppressed by his cultivation base. But now, there was no way to suppress it, and it exploded out fully.

“Screw off!” said Meng Hao with a cold snort. Although he was incredibly weak, some of his energy could still turn into a pressure that bore down onto the three-headed wild dog.

The wild dog trembled, and its fur stood on end. It stopped in mid-air, its expression one of terror. When it heard Meng Hao speak, it instantly turned and sped away.

After scaring the wild dog away, Meng Hao stood up. It might be evening, but he still wanted to hurry on his way.

He was exhausted, but within that exhaustion, he found power, despite the weakness of his body. That was the former power of his fleshly body.

Of course, he couldn’t utilize all of that former power. Because his life force was wasting away, he was incapable of supporting the previous level of power.

Even still, that made him like a strong, young man who caught a disease. Although he could only wield ten percent of his previous incredible power, it was still enough to give him hope. Of course, Meng Hao’s situation was far worse than some sort of disease. His life force was wasting away, and he knew that if he allowed the power of his fleshly body to explode out, then he would surely perish.

Traveling took great effort. However, regardless of whether the sun rose or the sun set, he continued onward. The hope he placed in the Rebirth Cave was as strong as ever.

One day, he reached the end of the mountain range. As he stood at the top of one particular mountain peak, he looked out and saw a huge lake. It was at this point that he gaped.

That lake was actually large enough to be called a sea.

It was impossible for Meng Hao to forget that this place… was his former hometown.

This was where the State of Zhao had once existed. When Patriarch Reliance left, it turned into a huge pit. By now, hundreds of years had passed, and it had turned into a lake.

“So, that ship delivered me here….” he murmured. He kept walking until he reached the edge of the lake, where he stood looking out at the water. Finally, he understood.

“I was born here, and this was my starting point….” He sat down cross-legged next to the lake, stared at the water, and thought of home.

There was a boat floating next to the shore, old and dilapidated. There was also a log cabin, ancient in appearance. It didn’t look like anyone had lived in it for a long time.

Dark clouds filled the sky; thunder rumbled and lightning flashed. Rain… began to fall.

Meng Hao walked over to the cabin, sat down under the eaves, and looked out at the rain. His back was stooped, his face ancient. The rain pattered onto the lake and tapped onto the roof of the cabin. Those were the only sounds he could hear.

When evening fell, the sky turned dark. The crescent moon was mostly hidden by the clouds; only a tiny corner was visible. As the sibilant rain continued, a cold wind sprang up, blowing across the lake and causing the old, dilapidated boat to rise up and down. When the wind brushed against Meng Hao, he tightened his robe and looked out over the lake. There, he saw a white-robed woman walking across the water.

The instant he saw her, his eyes went wide. Then, he lowered his head.