Chapter 655: Chapter 90: Cold Inch? Are You Serious (Third Update)

The High Priest lifted his eyes to look at the group and sighed, "However, I’ve been away from the Divine Demon Continent for too long, and my power as one of the Heavenly Paths keep being weakened by the Law of the realms. I’m afraid I won’t be able to support it for long."

"How much time do we have?" Mu Qingge asked solemnly.

"At most, seven days." The High Priest provided a precise timeframe. He took out a short incense stick from his sleeve and handed it to Mu Qingge. "Young Master, the time inside Cold Inch is different from that of the Middle Ancient Realm. Once this incense stick enters Cold Inch, it will ignite itself. It has no fragrance, no flame, and no smoke, but it will gradually diminish over time. When you see it has almost burned out, you must immediately return to the spot where you set off from and leave. If you miss the timing, you might be trapped in Cold Inch forever with no way out."

Such a result caused a hint of gravity to appear on the brows of everyone present, except for Yuanyuan.

Mu Qingge carefully put away the short incense stick and said to the High Priest, "Will you be alright alone outside? Do you need someone to come and protect you?"

The High Priest shook his head, "Young Master need not worry about me. The place I’ve chosen is desolate and uninhabited; no one will disturb me. There’s space turbulence there, which suggests there might have been a Teleportation Array destroyed there, which works to our advantage, as it allows for a better chance to connect with Cold Inch."

He then continued, "Young Master, once you are inside, follow the map instructions and quickly find the Divine Strategy Middle Volume. Then, don’t linger—exit as quickly as possible. Though I said I could last for seven days, it’s better to be early than late."

"I understand." Mu Qingge nodded.

After a day’s journey, everyone finally reached the place the High Priest had mentioned.

Indeed, it was a desolate place, devoid of people.

On the overgrown ground, there were chaotic mounds of rocks, but these stones bore signs of having been artificially carved.

"If you’re ready, I’ll start now." Under the canopy of night, with stars twinkling, the High Priest looked at the group.

The five surrounded Mu Qingge, and the High Priest instructed the other four, "You must protect the Young Master’s safety." Then, he specifically addressed Jiang Li, "Miss Jiang, I know you and the Young Master share a close bond, but I must stress that the Young Master’s safety is of utmost importance. Please take care of him."

"Alright, I’ll be careful. There’s no need to worry too much about me." Mu Qingge interrupted the High Priest.

Jiang Li glanced at her and promised the High Priest, "Don’t worry, even if I die, I won’t let anything happen to her."

"Jiang Li!" Mu Qingge frowned.

She didn’t especially want to hear Jiang Li say such words right before their departure.

"Boss, I’ll protect you too!" Yuanyuan assured from the side. His beautifully exquisite face held a rare sternness, as if he had instantly grown from a boy into a man. The bright vermillion on his brow seemed to reflect his determination.

"Mu Chen, Mu Peng, please come with me for a moment." The High Priest suddenly called both Mu Chen and Mu Peng aside.

Mu Chen and Mu Peng followed him to a distant spot and asked, "Heavenly Path, what do you wish to instruct?"

The High Priest frowned, "I’ve previously calculated that the Young Master will face a life-threatening calamity. I have a feeling this calamity might be related to this mission. What I want to tell both of you is to stay vigilant on the journey. If any unexpected events occur, it might be better to abandon the Divine Strategy Middle Volume to ensure the Young Master returns safely."

"A life-threatening calamity!"

Mu Chen and Mu Peng exclaimed in surprise. It was the first they had heard of it.

The High Priest nodded, "The Young Master is aware of this. However, knowing the Young Master’s nature, even aware of the danger, he probably won’t give up easily. At that time, it will depend on the two of you."

This admonition led Mu Chen and Mu Peng to exchange wry smiles.

Mu Chen said, "With the Young Master’s temperament, if something indeed happens, he won’t follow our plans. But rest assured, Heavenly Path, we two will ensure the Young Master’s safety, even at the cost of our lives."

"Good! With your assurance, I feel much more at ease," the High Priest said.

After this conversation, the three returned.

Mu Qingge could roughly guess from their expressions what they had discussed and pressed her lips together. She chose not to say much. At this time, saying not to worry seemed to hold little weight.

The knot in the High Priest’s heart was nothing other than her life-threatening calamity, wasn’t it?

What’s inevitable cannot be avoided; since that’s the case, she might as well face it head-on! Death? Hah, it’s not like she hasn’t died before.

"I’m going to start now." The High Priest said in a deep voice.

The five retreated a few steps to let the High Priest cast his spell.

The High Priest sat cross-legged on a broken boulder, chanting continuously. Gradually, a silver light wound around his fingertips. That force seemed to resonate with the stars in the night sky, drawing the Star Power down and concentrating it in his hand.

In no time, the light in the High Priest’s hand grew brighter, as if a small sun was held within.

The ancient language spilling from his mouth was raw and hard to understand, and his speech grew faster and faster.

Suddenly, a compass made of jade flew out from his bosom, hovering before him.

"What is that?" Mu Peng asked curiously.

Mu Chen whispered, "I heard the High Priest mention yesterday that he used a Secret Method to create a Star Road Compass with the calculated coordinates of Cold Inch. I wonder if it’s this item."

Star Road Compass?

The term was new to Mu Peng.

Suddenly, the starlight gathered in the High Priest’s hand shot like a sword into the floating Star Road Compass, and the compass buzzed and vibrated under the stimulation of the starlight.

Suddenly, the compass projected a beam of light into the night sky, which dissipated to reveal many mysterious and profound characters. These characters combined to form a very large compass, with circles of runes continuously rotating on it.

To Mu Qingge, this scene was reminiscent of a familiar mechanical combination lock from her previous life.

Those circles of runes had to be rotated to the correct position to unlock the mechanism.

Click—!

A soft sound came from the rune array in the sky, as if it had finally aligned properly. The round door in the middle slowly opened, revealing a mysterious passage.

An ancient aura emanated from the passage, as the starlight within paved an unknown road.

"Quick! Now’s the time. Follow this road down to enter Cold Inch!" The High Priest shouted suddenly.

Mu Qingge glanced towards him to see his pale face, with veins protruding on his forehead.

"Let’s go." Wasting no more time, Mu Qingge was the first to leap into the air, stepping into the opened Star Realm Gate and onto the starlit path.

As she moved, the others naturally wasted no time, leaping up to enter the ancient star path one after another.

The figures of the five people gradually walked inside and disappeared in front of the High Priest.

He let out a small sigh of relief but did not dare to relax at all.

He had to hold on here for seven days to give Mu Qingge and the others as much time as possible.

...

It was as if they were shuttling through the starry sky, with endless starlight flowing past on both sides. Mu Qingge and the others didn’t know how long they had been walking on the ancient star path when suddenly a white light flashed before their eyes, enveloping them.

Instantly, a strong pulling force rose from beneath their feet, and abruptly dragged them down.

The feeling of weightlessness was terrifying.

In another enclosed space in the sky, a deep, dark rift suddenly appeared. After five figures fell one after another, the hideous wound slowly healed.

"Ouch!" Jiang Li fell awkwardly to the ground and couldn’t help but rub her sore backside.

Looking at Mu Qingge again, this fellow had used the branches to adjust his angle during the fall and landed lightly beside her.

"Are you alright?" Mu Qingge extended a hand to Jiang Li.

Jiang Li placed her hand in his, allowing Mu Qingge to pull her up and shook her head, "I’m fine, just landed on my butt."

Mu Qingge nodded, looked around, and found that Mu Chen, Mu Peng, and Yuanyuan had all fallen not far away.

Once the five quickly gathered together, they carefully examined their surroundings.

"The forest here is so dense!" Mu Peng looked around in amazement.

Mu Qingge silently agreed. The forest seemed untouched, very primitive and dense, much like the tropical rainforest she had visited before.

"The High Priest said we must remember the place of arrival and return through here on our way back," Mu Chen murmured to Mu Qingge, "Young Master, should we mark this place to avoid losing our way?"

"Alright." Mu Qingge nodded.

Just as Mu Chen and Mu Peng were about to make their move, Yuanyuan said, "No need to trouble yourselves, watch this." With that, he launched a ball of Eight Desolations Void Flame at the ground.

The transparent flame instantly burned a large pit into the ground.

The sudden appearance of the large pit made it incredibly noticeable here. Even from afar, spotting this pit would lead them back.

"Let’s set off now," Jiang Li said.

"Hold on a moment," Mu Qingge closed her eyes. In her mind appeared the map of Cold Inch, depicting the location of the Divine Strategy Middle Volume.

Suddenly, she opened her eyes sharply and said to the others, "Something’s strange."

"What is it?" Jiang Li asked.

Mu Qingge furrowed her brow and closed her eyes again. "Wait a little longer," she saw the map again but found a few extra dots compared to before.

She opened her eyes and said to Mu Chen, "Head ten miles north now."

Not understanding why, Mu Chen still followed her instructions and swiftly moved ten miles north.

Mu Qingge closed her eyes again, and indeed, one of the dots on the map moved some distance north.

"I get it now!" Mu Qingge opened her eyes, a burning light reflecting in her clear eyes.

"What did you understand?" Jiang Li asked with a frown.

Mu Qingge smiled slightly, and just as Mu Chen returned, she said to them, "I discovered that after entering Cold Inch, we appeared on the map. Moreover, as we move, the black dots representing us also move."

"So you can always track our coordinates? Even if we get separated, there’s no need to worry," Jiang Li’s eyes lit up, understanding immediately.

"That’s right." Mu Qingge nodded. "With this, finding the Divine Strategy becomes much easier."

"Young Master, how far are we from the Divine Strategy’s hidden location now?" Mu Peng asked.

Mu Qingge shook her head slowly, "The map doesn’t show distance, but I know the Divine Strategy is now located to our northeast."

"In that case, what are we waiting for!" Mu Chen got excited too.

Finding the Divine Strategy soon would allow them to leave here earlier, ensuring Mu Qingge’s safety.

"Let’s go," Mu Qingge nodded.

Leading the five towards the map’s marked location of the Divine Strategy. To save time, they flew, using Flying to pass through the dense branches.

As they flew, Yuanyuan mumbled, "Since the boss can see our location, wasn’t my mark pointless?"

"Not entirely. This forest is so vast, and even with a map, Qingge couldn’t easily pinpoint our landing spot. With your pit, it will be much easier for us to find our way back," Jiang Li smiled beside him.

The six of them flew northeast for half a day when an endless expanse of snow fields and glaciers appeared. On the glaciers, various bizarrely-shaped exotic beasts were lazily walking.

Even the skies occasionally had birds swooping past.

At once, the five descended from the sky, hiding their bodies within the woods.

"What kind of Spirit Beasts are these? I’ve never seen them before?" Mu Peng whispered, his tone filled with shock.

Mu Qingge was even more shocked than he was because she recognized these exotic beasts...

’Winged Dragon, Snake-necked Dragon, Tyrannosaurus, Triceratops, Sword Dragon...’ The more she identified their identities, the wider Mu Qingge’s eyes grew.

Internally, she couldn’t help but curse, ’Damn! Is this Jurassic or Cold Inch space?’ What’s even more absurd is, how are dinosaurs living on these snowy plains?

’Have all the dinosaurs that disappeared on Earth over 60 million years ago come here?’ Mu Qingge couldn’t help but roar inwardly.

Suddenly, she sensed something and closed her eyes, with the map of Cold Inch appearing in her mind.

In a corner diagonally opposite to them, five new dots had appeared. And their position was now closer to the Divine Strategy’s...