The Geared Immortal

 Chapter 642

(Unedited)

…

That night as the family settles down in their new home. A black figure suddenly came rushing out of the middle-sized courtyard. The direction where the figure is going is towards the town's practice hunting ground.

This figure in black is Shin Jiao. Tonight he decided to investigate that unusual feeling he is having towards the area on the western side of the town.

From what he has learned with his talk to Uncle Tong, Shin Jiao learned the practice area is protected by a powerful array, and to go there, one must travel underground.

From the city towards that place, there is 1 kilometer spacious stone tunnel which was created by the ancestors of the people of the town. They didn't know how it was created but it is said that a powerful being made the tunnel and the hunting ground for some unknown purpose.

However, as time went by the town council decided to turn that place into a practice hunting ground. And from then on it holds a significant part of the town which trains the youth in the way of fighting the desert creatures and also how to track and hunt beasts.

Plus there are also some medicinal herbs that are growing in that hunting ground, hence it also holds great significance to the alchemist in the town.

The tunnel is being patrolled by the town soldiers to ensure that there were no trespassers and would let the hunting ground prosper for a year before the annual hunting. Plus there are also overseers that check the hunting ground so ensure that it has abundant herbs and beasts which would also provide a good supply for the town.

Because of the heavy security in the tunnel, Shin Jiao decided to go to the hunting ground through the desert.

As he flew over stealthily, he scanned his surroundings using his normal senses. Though it is not as powerful as his absolute sense or spiritual sense, it is still enough for him to at least detect anything within 200 meters in radius.

Shin Jiao is trying to look for forest-like scenery. However, as he scanned his surroundings all he could see are sand dunes and more sand for miles away. This made him frown.

"This is where the practice ground is supposed to be." Shin Jiao muttered as he continues traveling for about 500 meters.

Then upon looking around and seeing no one, he began to levitate above the sandy ground. Not long later, when he was about to reach around 50 meters, he soon discovers that the gravitational force suddenly began to change.

"Damn… don't tell me, that the gravity does not only exist in the mountains but also in this desert?" Shin Jiao muttered as he slowly scanned his surroundings.

Thanks to his vantage point he suddenly saw a large crater.

"That must be it."

Shin Jiao did not ascend higher and just flew directly to the direction of the crater. But as soon as he reached the 300 meters distance, he suddenly feels a great pressure coming from the crater. It was like a mental pressure of a powerful being trying to invade his mind.

If Shin Jiao is in the 'prison land' he would surely fall and die with this kind of powerful mental pressure. However, with his current physique and unsuppressed ability, it was easy for him to overcome it.

Soon he reached the strong fluctuation of Qi from the array formation protecting the hunting ground.

Shin Jiao did not hesitate and immediately landed on the sandy ground and began studying the array even though the mental pressure is still present.

Then not long later, he began forming another array to counteract the array formation and create a small window for him to enter the crater.

Shin Jiao found himself in a lush forest.

Although it is dark, he could still see clearly and can even see the beasts inside the forest.

"This is like a large farm." He muttered upon noticing his surroundings.

Shin Jiao began following the array formation as he tries to look for the eye of the formation.

Suddenly he heard a few rushing footsteps coming towards his direction.

Shin Jiao immediately activated his camouflage suit and hid above the trees. Not long after he disappears five people suddenly arrive.

"Did you see the intruder?" a man asked while holding a bo staff.

"No, we should split up and search every direction. We should not alarm the elders. We should fix this as soon as we can."

"I agree… let's go."

The people began to fan out and search everywhere.

"Wow, their detection system in this area is good." Shin Jiao thought as a smile crept on his face.

Then suddenly he vanished from where he stood. Shin Jiao began to explore the area and scanned his surroundings, but he could still not find the eye of the formation. He has a gut feeling that the eye of the formation is where he could find the dangerous feeling that he is having currently.

…

While Shin Jiao is exploring the area of the practice hunting ground, hundreds of feet below him, there is a huge underground facility that exists. In the center of this underground facility, there is a figure of a man floating inside a murky glass tank with many thin plastic tubes connected to his body.

The man has his eyes closed and even his chest is not moving. The only indication that the person inside the glass tank is alive is the beating of his heart which is about 1 beat per 5 minutes and the Qi flowing around the glass tank.

He is calmly floating inside the glass tank in a fetal position.

The people around the glass tank did not do anything as they all just sit in a lotus position while surrounding that figure.

If Shin Jiao is here he would recognize two of the young people inside this room. They were the young people leading the group of recognized young geniuses of the town, Mengyao Xian and Lihua Xian.

In an overhead area, there is a monitoring room where people could watch what is happening inside the room.

In that area, there are seven people discussing something.

"We have already started the plan. If we succeed then we can create a path from this place to the outside world." an old man said as he reads a parchment.

"This is good. We have waited this long, if we could go back to the Qi rich land of the San kingdom then we can improve our cultivation."

"If we do this, what would happen to the town and our families?"

"You worry too much, they have a good life in this place, the scavengers are doing good in supporting the supply and the hunting ground also supplies food. They will be able to live here for a very long time. But for us, our lifespan is already at the limit. If we could not leave this place and improve our cultivation, then we would die here." Another old man said.

"Sigh… you are right. If only this place could have abundant Qi and resources then we would not do this."

"What would happen to that guy if we activate the portal?"

"Well, he would become weak and would take at least around 300 years before he could regain his strength back."

The group continues to discuss their plans and what to do next. As their plan progresses these old people felt the excitement to be able to leave this barren place and go out to the world.

This group of old men has the cultivation level of nascent realm 1st level, and this is the reason why they are able to live for a very long time. They are the foundation of the clans and schools in the town of Vermillion Gem.

…

The next day…

As the festivity continues, a piece of news suddenly spreads throughout the town. The news is about a small family that suddenly went missing in just a day. Although the piece of news is nothing worth looking into, as small families would sometimes go missing or would suffer some tragedies. However, the thing about this family is that they seem to have offended the Si clan.

The Si clan is one of the main clans in the town and controls the alchemy products within it. And due to this issue, the people are thinking that the Si clan will make trouble for the Yu clan where the Tong family belongs to.

Inside the Yu clan estate

The figure of Ling Hu Yu could be seen walking towards the main hall of the clan. He has an angry expression on his face. And those servants who see him would immediately lower their heads in fear of his imposing aura.

Bang!

Ling Hu Yu pushes the large double door forcefully that almost unhinge the two brown wooden doors.

"Father… what is the meaning of this?" Ling Hu Yu shouted as soon as he enters the room.

Then suddenly everyone inside pauses as their attention turned towards the tall and handsome young man with an angry and dark aura.

"You… What do you want?" Guan Yu wanted to scold his son, but held himself back and just ask in a calm manner.

"Where is cousin Jin Tong? What happened to his family? Why is their house in ruin?" asked Ling Hu Yu.

Guan Yu looks at his son then shifted his gaze to the middle-aged man sitting on the side. The middle-aged man has a complacent look on his face, as he meets the eyes of the clan head of the Yu clan. He then shifted his gaze with a teasing look at the young man standing by the door.

The others inside the room have a brooding look on their faces.

Seeing the awkward atmosphere in the air and the challenging look from a middle-aged man, Ling Hu Yu felt a bit confused. But deep inside him, he knew that this unknown man is the cause why the clan heads are feeling this way.

"Who are you?" Ling Hu Yu asked with a knotted brow.

He didn't want to back down from the annoying gaze of the middle-aged man. But he also didn't want to offend anyone as he could see that the clan leaders are having a serious discussion at this time.

"You really are a promising young man… Good… good…" the middle-aged man said with a grin.