All at once the youth had earned fifty thousand copper coins. When one was virtuous, one would be blessed by the heavens!

The youth was practically bursting with happiness as he nodded enthusiastically. After he sat down and had lunch with them, they all left the Southern Mountain Cluster Bazaar. The youth led Ning Xiaochuan to the place where he had obtained the Blood-toad Tree leaf.

Just as they were exiting the bazaar, someone shouted from behind, “Hey, Gousheng. You still f*cking owe me eighty copper coins. How long before you repay me?”

It was a middle-aged man dressed in a yellow gown who looked to be around fifty. This man had a long beard and sat next to the bazaar. A shabby wooden table was set up next to a pole, which bore a white canvas stating “One finger to foretell your fate, two fingers to foretell your luck, three fingers to foretell your life and death.”

The middle-aged man’s eyes were white. Only the sclera could be seen, not the pupils. Evidently, he was blind.

The youth who was walking with Ning Xiaochuan spat viciously on the ground. “Three-finger Lin, are you actually blind or just faking it? I’m dozens of meters away from you, yet you know it’s me. Clearly, you’re not blind. And let me warn me, don’t call me Gousheng ever again.” (TN: “Gousheng” is literally translated as “a dog’s leftovers”, and is thus used as an insult.)

Three-finger Lin sat in his chair and propped up both his legs with a laugh. “Heh heh! If it’s someone who owes me money, I can smell them even if they’re a thousand miles away.”

“You can even sniff out our emotions? I’d thought that it’s something you learned through divination,” the youth named Gousheng said.

“Well, if those debtors are ten thousand miles away, then I’ll use divination to determine their location.” Three-finger Lin was full of confidence.

Ning Xiaochuan carefully sized up the blind diviner, thinking that this was rather inconceivable. If he was truly blind, how was he able to identify people who were dozens of feet away?

Based on Ning Xiaochuan’s many years of experience as a doctor, he could tell that the eyes of this diviner were truly blind. This man was not pretending.

If this was real, it was incredible!

Truly, experts were everywhere since ancient times.

“Bang!”

Gousheng dug out a large silver coin and slammed it loudly onto Three-finger Lin’s (TN: Author made a typo here. We’ve corrected it from the context.) table. “Old man, today I’ve hit the jackpot. Here’s what I owe you plus interest, and you can keep the change.”

Three-finger Lin slowly stretched out a hand from his sleeve. There were only three digits attached to his palm: the thumb, the index finger, and the pinkie. The other two had been broken off many years ago.

Three-finger Lin twirled the silver coin around before slipping it into his sleeve, and a smirk flitted across his lips. “Many thanks! As for the extra twenty copper coins, I’ll keep them.”

Yu Yan said in a low voice, “This person is really shameless.”

Gousheng also felt that Three-finger Lin’s skin was too thick. Just because Gousheng told him to keep the change, he actually kept the change. Gousheng was thinking darkly to himself, today he had earned a huge sum, so he would not bother with a few copper coins. Next time, he must not be so generous. Generous people were huge fools!

“Rumble!”

The ground started to tremble.

“Roar!”

“Roar!”

Two dragon roars rang out, shaking the heavens.

The dragon roars reverberated throughout the entire Southern Mountain Cluster, causing a massive disturbance.

Boom! Boom!

The ground quaked even more violently.

Ning Xiaochuan, Yu Yan, Gousheng, and Three-finger Lin fell to one side of the street, watching the soldiers who wore crimson battle armor marching past.

At the front, there were twelve Dragon Elephants.

The Dragon Elephants were as tall as houses, their legs as thick as pillars. Their bodies were covered in scales and consisted of an elephant’s body and a dragon’s head. The cries they unleashed were like a dragon’s, causing even the martial artists of the Southern Mountain Cluster to tremble in fright.

A crimson-armored warrior was riding atop each of the twelve Dragon Elephants. Immense Combat Qi flowed within the warriors, who held pikes that were as wide as a bowl. They exuded a powerful pressure, causing timid people to kneel down immediately and kowtow to the Dragon Elephants without stopping.

“Heavens! What’s going on? They’re sending twelve Dragon Elephant Warriors and six thousand Crimson-armored Camp soldiers. Is a war starting?”

“Didn’t you know? The Dragon Elephant Divine Camp is going to storm the lair of the Dark Emperor City. The Crimson-armored Camp is simply there as support.”

“According to legend, the lair of the Dark Emperor City changes constantly and drifts around erratically, just like a shadow in the night. No one knows where they’re hiding.”

“The Dragon Elephant Divine Camp is first amongst the three major Divine Camps of the Yulan Empire. They must have obtained the specific location of the Dark Emperor City’s lair. Otherwise, they would not send out an army with such great fanfare.”

…

The surrounding martial artists were in heated discussion. The young talents came out of the restaurant to stare at the twelve Dragon Elephant Warriors, feeling endlessly excited.

An attractive girl with pigtails gawked at the gigantic Dragon Elephants, her shiny, dark eyes darting around constantly. In a voice of admiration, she exclaimed, “It’s the Dragon Elephant Divine Camp, one of the legendary three major Divine Camps. They’re actually sending twelve Dragon Elephant Divine Soldiers.”

A young man wearing a jade-green wizard’s robe stood on a roof by the side of the street, his eyes filled with longing. “The fighting capability of a single Dragon Elephant Divine Soldier is equivalent to three thousand ordinary soldiers. With twelve Dragon Elephant Divine Soldiers working together, their fighting strength definitely surpasses an army of fifty thousand.”

“The destructive power of a Dragon Elephant Divine Soldier is incomparable. They’re a true fighting machine. A fight between ordinary soldiers and Dragon Elephant Divine Soldiers isn’t a battle, but a massacre!”

…

Dragon Elephant Divine Soldiers had always been mysterious. Now that they finally appeared in the public eye, many martial artists were excited and earnest.

Ning Xiaochuan also sensed the colossal aura coming off the Dragon Elephant Warriors. Each scale of the Dragon Elephant was as large as a palm. It was an astounding sight. At the same time, it fueled his aspirations. He was itching to own and ride a majestic creature like this.

A Dragon Elephant was extremely strong. Its head could bash down the walls of a small city, and its leg could crush a large bridge.

On the battlefield, a Dragon Elephant Divine Soldier could kill thousands of troops, leaving no armor intact. One of them alone was enough to guard a strategic pass and hold off ten thousand enemies!

Of course, Dragon Elephants were few in number. Only extremely impressive geniuses had a chance of being selected to join the Dragon Elephant Divine Camp. In the future, they would become a Dragon Elephant Divine Soldier who was revered by countless people.

Ning Xiaochuan watched the twelve Divine Soldiers riding the Dragon Elephants closely. Each of them had exceptionally intense Combat Qi fluctuations as if a great torrent of blood was surging within their bodies.

Amongst the twelve Dragon Elephant Divine Soldiers, there were two beautiful female Dragon Elephant Divine Soldiers. They were around twenty years old or so, but their gazes were piercing.

One of them, a blue-haired, blue-eyed female Dragon Elephant Divine Soldier, looked at Ning Xiaochuan. Their eyes only met briefly, but Ning Xiaochuan felt as if the blood in his body was frozen. A cold sweat broke out all over his body, and he violently took two steps back.

How formidable!

A single glance could knock him back!

“What terrifying, aggressive force! This is a true martial art expert!” Ning Xiaochuan realized his own palms were slick with sweat. Moreover, the sweat was frozen. He suspected that the power of this female Dragon Elephant Divine Soldier could knock down a city wall in one blow.

The twelve Dragon Elephant Divine Soldiers and six thousand Crimson-armored Camp soldiers soon exited the Southern Mountain Cluster Bazaar and gradually faded into the distance.

“Roar!”

A dragon roar rang out in the sky.

A gigantic shadow emerged, passing over the Southern Mountain Cluster Bazaar. Its body was colossal, blocking out the sun, and the sky darkened.

It had a pair of enormous wings. In one flap, it stirred up a gale on the ground.

Compared to this gigantic shadow in the air, the Dragon Elephants appeared much smaller, as if they could be swallowed by the tremendous shadow in one gulp.

Outside the Southern Mountain Cluster Bazaar, the twelve Dragon Elephant Divine Soldiers halted, looking up at the enormous shadow. It looked as if lighting was flashing amongst the clouds, and a gigantic claw would emerge from the clouds. It was merely a claw, yet it was much bigger than the Dragon Elephant’s body.

“Let’s go on!” That blue-haired, blue-eyed female Dragon Elephant Divine Soldier gave a command.

An hour passed before the Southern Mountain Cluster Bazaar calmed down completely.

Ning Xiaochuan let out a long sigh. “What was that massive shadow in the clouds just now?”

“It must be the legendary dragon!” Yu Yan said.

“Dragon?” Ning Xiaochuan had never seen such a colossal creature. Although that beast was flying through the clouds, he could still sense the immense power emanating from the creature, as if it could blow away the whole Southern Mountain Cluster Bazaar in one breath.

Heavens!

The legendary dragon!

Was there really such a creature in this world?

Gousheng said, “According to legend, the Yulan Imperial Palace has mysterious Divine Dragon Warriors who’d transcend all types of soldiers. Each Divine Dragon Warrior is an existence who can turn the tide of the battle. However, it’s rare to see a Divine Dragon Warrior in action, unless it’s a rather significant battle. Wiping out the Dark Emperor City would surely require such a huge fuss. Even the Dragon Elephant Divine Soldiers and the Divine Dragon Warriors are dispatched.”