Chapter 2685: Chapter 2685: Making Trouble
Gant wasn't listening to the man; instead, he was looking at Zen cautiously.
He couldn't care less about what the man was talking about because he knew he wasn't strong enough anyway. He was just waiting for what Zen would say and how he would react.
He had followed Zen to Blue Cloud City because he wanted to find someone and at least know how the person was doing. No matter what the result was, he was ready to accept it.
But Zen was different; he came to Blue Cloud City to obtain merit points.
All the Alliance Chiefs of Dragon City had the opportunity to become one-star Oneness Guards.
With his full strength, Fergus was definitely on par with the Alliance Chiefs who had become Oneness Guards, and yet he was no match for Zen.
Based on that alone, Zen could probably defeat one-star Oneness Guards.
Gant narrowed his eyes, as he gave the Oneness Guard in front of them a searching look.
He glanced at the Oneness Token hanging from his waist, where a single star was carved.
In terms of strength, this guy was not necessarily Zen's rival, but he was going to kick Zen and Gant out of his team because of their low cultivation levels. Gant wondered how Zen was going to deal with the situation.
As soon as the Oneness Guard finished his words, he pointed at the other eight people and said, “You can go with me.”
He proceeded to ignore Zen and Gant and turned to leave. Zen raised an eyebrow and said to the Oneness Guard, “It's not fair for you to judge us simply by our cultivation levels. Don't you think so?”
The Oneness Guard, who was about to leave, turned back in surprise when Zen said those words. He gave a mocking smile at Zen and asked, “Huh? You are only in the first stage of the Other Shore Realm. You are courting death by coming to the Mountain Viewing Province. I don't think you'll be of any help on the battlefield.”
In the eyes of the Oneness Guard, the warriors who came to the Mountain Viewing Province were all cannon fodder.
Although these warriors were at the Other Shore Realm, most of them had poor Other Shore Tokens, and their actual combat experience was next to none.
This particular Oneness Guard was in the fifth stage of the Other Shore Realm, but he was able to defeat people in the sixth stage or seventh stage of the Other Shore Realm.
On the other hand, Zen had barely reached the first stage of the Other Shore Realm, and thus, he was hardly worth mentioning in the Oneness Guard's eyes.
He saw them as burden, and he didn't want to bring them, lest they just pull the whole team down.
He was aware that there were a few geniuses in the Oneness Sky Palace who were extremely powerful despite their low cultivation levels, but the thought that Zen was one of them didn't even touch his imagination. He thought that the Oneness Sky Palace wouldn't send geniuses to the dangerous front line.
And he was very wrong. Zen was indeed an exception.
“I won't leave,” Zen suddenly said. “And according to the rules, you have no right to refuse me.”
As he spoke, he raised the token in his hand as if in reminder.
Military orders were imperative. Zen received the task according to the token, and the Oneness Guard had to bring these warriors who had taken the task with him. Even though he looked down on Zen and Gant, he had no reason to chase them away.
If he left them behind, and Zen reported this to the Oneness Sky Palace, the Oneness Guard could be severely punished.
The Oneness Guard looked at Zen in surprise, grinned and said, “If you offend me, I have thousands of ways to put you to death. Are you sure you still want to follow me?” ȒἈΝǑβÈş
“I only know that I need to complete my task,” Zen insisted calmly.
The other eight people stared at Zen with strange expressions on their faces. They couldn't understand what he was doing.
It was a dark and dangerous path that Zen decided to traverse when he angered the Oneness Guard. If he was smart, he would know when to shut up, but since he insisted on his way, the others decided that he must be pretty stupid or insane.
“Do whatever you want,” said the Oneness Guard grumpily. He turned his back on Zen harshly and left without a backward glance.
Without saying anything more, Zen fell into line behind the others.
In front of the line, the Oneness Guard introduced himself with pride.
His name was Maxim Lin, and he was not originally from Dragon City. He was a member of the Five-Color Sword Sect, and he became a member of the Oneness Guards when he succeeded in the qualifying exam.
Through his life vitality, Gant informed Zen that the sects affiliated with the Oneness Sky Palace were also qualified to select outstanding people to join the Oneness Guards. The Five-Color Sword Sect was well-known in the Bloom Divine Province.
“During the next few days, as we guard the Blue Cloud City, I expect that all of you will obey my commands. If you do otherwise, I assure you that you cannot possibly survive,” Maxim Lin warned as he continued walking forward.
His words intimidated everyone, and their hearts fell to their feet. Only Zen kept pace with brisk steps.
Not long after, they arrived at their destination and a few flying ships appeared in front of them, along with other Oneness Guards who were waiting by the ships. Of course, these Oneness Guards had also brought their followers.
One of the Oneness Guards whistled at Maxim Lin and said with a mocking smile, “Your team looks good, Maxim! They look powerful.”
As he spoke, he eyed Zen and Gant, and it was obviously that he was being sarcastic.
A wry smile appeared on Maxim Lin's face, and he said helplessly, “I have no choice. I can't drive them away, right? I'm also wondering how warriors who have barely reached the Other Shore Realm received such a task!”
The task of guarding the Blue Cloud City was not the most difficult one for the Oneness Guards, but it was one of the most difficult ones in Dragon City.
Except for the Oneness Guards, all the other warriors were in the third or fourth stage of the Other Shore Realm.
This made Zen and Gant stick out like sore thumbs.
Fortunately, the Oneness Guards just joked with Maxim Lin, and the latter soon ignored Zen and Gant.
While they waited, the Oneness Guards had gathered together and started talking about the war in the Mountain Viewing Province's frontier. They finally received the notice two hours later, and they quickly ordered their followers to board the flying ships.
With the Cage of Heaven and Earth, even the flying ships were unable to enter the space channels.
The only thing they could do was drive the flying ships and maintain a high speed, which meant that it took them a long time to travel from the Grand River Fortress to Blue Cloud City.
With the way they were flying, they could be attacked by the Sun Crow race at any time, and so no one dared to cultivate on the Other Shore during this time. Everyone was paying full attention to protect themselves from potential dangers.
Four days later, the flying ships finally arrived at their destination.
A dilapidated city loomed in front of them like a gigantic shadow.
It was a dead city, ruins and collapsed buildings lurked at every corner. Pillars of black smoke rose at the distance.
Zen glanced subtly at Gant, who had stood up at the sight. A flash of excitement and grief crossed Gant's face, just long enough for Zen to notice, and then it quickly disappeared.
Zen had long figured out that Gant must have come to Blue Cloud City because of something personal, but he never probed. In his mind, he knew that Gant would tell him about it when he was ready and willing to talk.
They both looked out when the flying ships descended lower and were met with the sounds of wailing and grief.
When the flying ships finally landed on the ground, they saw numerous old women and children that loitered around. They were gathered together and were begging the Oneness Guards to bring them out of the city.
Blue Cloud City, who had been flourishing years ago, was now a dangerous and ruined land. All its citizens were scrambling to leave at once.
The Oneness Guards didn't even deign to look at them, and they left with their own followers without even a backward glance.
Not long after, Maxim brought Zen and the others to the southern corner of the city. He hurriedly commanded them to wait and then left.
While they waited for the Oneness Guard to come back, they wandered on top of the city wall and looked outside. The sight of corpses piled high outside the city walls met them, and the smell of rotten flesh wafted from below.
Quack! Quack!
Five black Sun Crows were hovering like vultures over the dead bodies, and they dived periodically, pecked, and feasted on the bodies.
The Sun Crows looked up intelligently at them, their weird glass-like eyes studied them, only to turn back and feed on the corpses. It felt like a provocation, as the crows stared at them and fed.