Chapter 7: The Ninth-Grade Official Road, Hound Bugs, and Grinder Bugs
Stepping onto the ninth-grade yellow stone official road, Wu Yuan couldn’t help but marvel at the incredible power of the Tianyuan World, even though he had seen it countless tis in his dreams.
This ninth-grade road was twenty zhang wide, its surface entirely paved with massive yellow stones. Each stone spanned several zhang in length and width, fitted together so tightly that the road appeared almost seamless at a glance, no less impressive than the highways of Blue Star.
Even more astonishing was the faint glow of runes flowing within the stones, accompanied by an ethereal mist rising from the road, giving it an extraordinary aura.
When they first stepped onto the road, the passage runes had not yet been activated, and everyone felt their bodies grow heavy, making each step laborious. But once the group assembled and Chen Yong ordered everyone to activate their runes (including the passage talismans for the yellow rhino carts), their bodies lightened as if they could almost fly.
With yellow light swirling beneath their feet, each step carried them ten zhang forward. In monts, they had already covered several li. It was nothing short of miraculous.
“The ninth-grade official road, ten thousand li in a single day is no exaggeration,” Wu Yuan thought in awe.
From what he knew, the official roads of the Tianyuan World were not built through ordinary ans but through divine power. The most crucial participants in their construction were the relay stations, especially for high-grade roads, which could only be established by spirit-source stations—much like the one he had acquired.
These roads were embedded with permanent formations: the Star-Source Energy Storage Array, the Identification Array, the Indestructible Vajra Array, and the Swift Shadow Array. Not only were they nearly impossible to destroy, but they also absorbed the power of the sun, moon, and stars to enhance the speed of those traveling upon them; be it humans, beasts, or vehicles.
A ninth-grade road could amplify speed a hundredfold. With the passage runes, traversing ten thousand li in a day beca possible. Without them, walking on the road felt like trudging through mud, requiring several tis the effort while drastically reducing speed.
This system was far harsher than Blue Star’s highway tolls, compared to this, toll booths ought to weep in sha.
Wu Yuan and his group had set off during the day, and by the ti they reached their destination near the Demon Bug Hills, it was still dayti. In truth, they had traveled for a full day and eaten three als. But in the Tianyuan World, the lengths of day and night were unpredictable, leading to such peculiar occurrences.
Fortunately, whether it was Wu Yuan, Chen Yong, or the newly recruited n, all possessed so level of cultivation, allowing them to stay awake for two or three days without fatigue. The natives, especially, were accustod to the irregular day-night cycles and could adjust their sleep schedules accordingly.
Standing on a small slope a few li from the official road, Chen Yong pointed toward the distant hills shrouded in swirling red, black, and gray mists:
“Boss, look. This place is three hundred li from the Demon Bug Hills and one hundred twenty li from Red Leaf Cliff. If a road were built here, we could march straight in. Unfortunately, aside from the occasional demon-hunting rcenary groups, no one has any interest in this area—let alone building a relay station nearby.”
“Precisely because others overlook it, I’ve set my sights here,” Wu Yuan said aningfully. “Tis are changing. The Demon Bug Hills might beco very lively in the future.”
Though he didn’t elaborate, Chen Yong sensed boundless confidence in his employer’s words. He found it sowhat strange, but considering Wu Yuan’s background as a wasteland immigrant who had amassed considerable wealth in such a short ti, perhaps he had more hidden advantages.
With that thought, another layer of Chen Yong’s unease faded away.
Wu Yuan then declared, “No ti to waste. Let’s move out!”
Here, there was no turning back.
The remaining one hundred twenty li to Red Leaf Cliff would be treacherous, with scattered human demons and vicious bugs posing constant threats. Wu Yuan had no intention of delaying—ti was precious, and hesitation would only invite danger. Now was the ti to press forward.
Chen Yong bowed in acknowledgnt and quickly organized forty station guards, distributing weapons and armor: twenty spearn and twenty archers. He took the lead with ten spearn at the front, his disciplined deanor earning Wu Yuan’s silent approval.
This man was both brave and resourceful. During recruitnt, he had already considered personnel allocation, and when purchasing equipnt, he matched it to future needs and individual skills, ensuring a smooth transition into an ard force. Without such foresight, even the best gear would be useless in untrained hands.
The group advanced cautiously for sixty li.
The path was littered with rocks and weeds, dotted with low thickets and skeletal remains. Faint footprints suggested sporadic passage, but no proper road existed, making the journey arduous. Fortunately, there were no dense forests, swamps, or lakes, and the open terrain allowed for good visibility, helping them avoid danger.
After this relatively “easy” stretch, the landscape grew more hazardous, with frequent sinkholes and ponds, pri ambush spots for human demons and vicious bugs.
Wu Yuan repositioned the archers at the center of the group, flanked by spearn, ready for any sudden threats.
Sure enough, before long, two large, dog-like bugs burst from ponds dozens of ters apart.
These “hound bugs” had compound eyes, fanged mouths, six spiked legs, and armored shells. Lacking tails, they moved with terrifying speed.
Chen Yong, experienced in such encounters, imdiately dispatched five spearn while he provided support. Wu Yuan, no stranger to these creatures, knew the best way to handle them and simultaneously ordered five archers forward to cover the spearn.
The decision proved wise. Though the spearn were all at the Tendon-Tempering Realm, their movents were slightly outpaced by the hound bugs. But with the archers’ deadly iron-tipped arrows forcing the bugs into hesitation, the spearn soon finished them off.
The two hound bugs yielded over a dozen strands of blood essence. As they died, faint red mist rose from their corpses, drawn by an unseen force toward the combatants’ waist-mounted identity plaques, including Wu Yuan and Chen Yong’s, as if so rule acknowledged their roles in the battle.
Wu Yuan pressed his plaque to his forehead and confird that his blood essence count, previously zero, had risen to “one.”
This blood essence could be directly absorbed during cultivation to rapidly boost strength. However, Wu Yuan had no intention of using it now—not because of the amount, but because absorbing blood essence carried hidden risks. While it accelerated growth, it also planted unseen flaws.
That was a matter for another ti.
After the battle, Wu Yuan contributed his dagger to harvest the bugs’ six legs and shell fragnts, which were loaded onto the carts. Each leg sold for five copper coins, and even broken shell pieces fetched one copper apiece. With twelve legs and twenty shell fragnts, the total ca to one hundred copper coins.
“At least we’re not operating at a loss anymore,” Wu Yuan remarked with a smile as Chen Yong approached to discuss their next steps.
“Boss, don’t underestimate these hound bugs. Alone, they’re manageable, but in packs, they can wear down even Bone-Forging Realm constables,” Chen Yong warned.
“You’re right. We must stay cautious. I hope we reach Red Leaf Cliff without losing anyone. Skilled hands aren’t easy to co by.”
“Exactly. I was only able to recruit so many capable n from the refugee camp through connections. Anyone else would’ve been lucky to bring back three or five, and at a much higher cost.”
Wu Yuan recalled the scene and grew curious. “So, you’re saying you knew the clerk and the garrison captain?”
“Boss is sharp! We’ve been friends for years. Otherwise, they wouldn’t have released so many decent recruits. Of course, it also helped that you’re employing them for a relay station, the governnt secretly supports station expansion.”
“What if we need more hands later?” Wu Yuan probed.
“We’d have to wait until the station upgrades, with at least a second-tier formation, before it’s feasible,” Chen Yong mused.
Wu Yuan nodded, satisfied.
Chen Yong hesitated, as if wanting to ask or clarify sothing, but seeing his employer’s confident deanor, he ultimately held his tongue.
The journey continued.
From then on, vicious bugs appeared more frequently. Aside from hound bugs, they encountered “grinder bugs”—turtle-like creatures with rotating saw-toothed shells. Fortunately, they never appeared in large groups, allowing the team to eliminate them all with only injuries and no deaths, though they expended over a dozen healing ointnts.
During so encounters, Wu Yuan deliberately had his clone participate to familiarize himself with its control.
Overall, manipulating the clone felt like playing a first-person ga. The clone’s vision appeared naturally in his mind alongside his own. Focusing on the clone’s perspective even created the sensation of physically shifting into its body—a bizarre yet fascinating experience.
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