Chapter 196: Chapter 172: Martyrs’ Mausoleum

“Congratulations, you’ve obtained a mysterious pet egg,” Ji Xiaoyu said seriously, spouting nonsense.

“It is quite mysterious.”

Chen Xing squatted down and looked at the egg in front of him.

[Species] Void Hunter

[State] Sub-healthy (Lacking energy)

The egg’s surface had a faint warmth to it; the temperature of the egg was still hot.

But judging from its state, the egg wasn’t in great shape.

“I’m not a human X-ray scanner,” Ji Xiaoyu said, then thought for a moment, “However, it’s pretty rare for an egg to hatch, especially since this one is from over six hundred years ago.”

“Over six hundred years ago…” Chen Xing pondered.

The principle behind the birth of Secret Realms was the collision of two worlds, and the collision between the two worlds started over six hundred years ago.

Six hundred years ago, this labyrinth shattered upon impact and became part of the Secret Realm that flowed into the stream of time, before descending today.

To say it was an egg that crossed over six hundred years wasn’t wrong.

However…

It’s said that in those six hundred years, before the complete descent, time within was at a standstill.

Only after the last anomaly in the descent of Secret Realms did the flow of time inside begin again.

So to be accurate, this egg only spanned “half a year” in time.

Ji Xiaoyu said, “It seems to be a relatively rare egg, you can tell just by looking at the shell.

Most common eggs only differ in size, but one with such an anomaly on the surface generally isn’t bad.”

Void Hunter… Chen Xing racked his brains but realized he had never heard of such a monster species.

Yet one could tell at a glance, both from its color and shape, that this egg screamed—”I’m expensive.”

Ji Xiaoyu reminded him, “Keep it, and it’s best to investigate it in private. After all, wealth shouldn’t be flaunted.”

“Someone over there is taking photos with a phone,” Ji Xiaoyu suddenly looked towards a distant passageway entrance.

Someone was using a phone to take pictures of the egg in front of Chen Xing.

The silent bodyguard who had been following Ji Xiaoyu moved, raising his hand.

The phone in that person’s hand flew up into the air on its own.

The phone soared through the air and finally landed in the palm of the bodyguard.

The bodyguard fiddled with it for a moment, thoroughly deleting the video on it.

Then the phone flew back into the hands of the dumbfounded person.

He looked at his phone as if he had seen a ghost, knowing these were not people he could afford to provoke. This was a Secret Realm; if they killed him here, no one would avenge him.

He quickly scurried away in resentment.

In the spot where the man had disappeared, a huge shadow finally emerged.

This was a chameleon that was five to six meters long; its back was covered with many crystal-like formations.

Its eyes were red, and its claws clung to the wall like suction cups.

[Species] Core Mimicry Dragon

[Energy Level] 100

[Energy Level Limit] 100

Good fellow, it’s a Beast Taming.

Chen Xing had thought this guy had awakened some sort of superpower.

Turns out it was a “stealthy” Beast Taming.

Such a beast was elusive; Chen Xing hadn’t even noticed it before it revealed itself.

“Want me to escort you out?”

“No need to trouble yourself.”

Chen Xing shook his head.

“Hey, kid, what kind of egg is your Beast Taming holding?” several Beast Tamers surrounded him, greedily eyeing the purple egg cradled by the Sìxiàng behind Chen Xing.

That egg was even glowing; it was obvious at a glance that it was no ordinary egg.

“Put the egg down, then you can get lost. You’re just a kid, so uncle is giving you a lesson,” an impatient man with triangular eyes demanded.

“Doesn’t this kid look kind of familiar?” mumbled a man wearing a hat standing beside him.

Three months had passed since the college cup; in this information age, three months was enough time to forget many things.

“Is he a relative of yours?”

“Not that, I just feel like I’ve seen him somewhere before…”

Before he could finish, a glaring bolt of lightning suddenly burst forth.

Bang!!

The triangular-eyed man’s Beast Taming was electrocuted and froze rigid on the ground.

The man with the hat slapped his hand, “Damn! I remember now, this kid seems to be the champion of the high school division of the college cup.”

As his words fell, he found that everyone around him was looking at him.

“Next time finish your sentence sooner.”

The others didn’t make a move; they all stepped aside.

Chen Xing rode on the Sìxiàng, which turned into a lightning bolt and rapidly dashed towards the exit.

Along the way, many people only saw a blur whisk by them.

Back at the breeding farm, Chen Lingya looked at the egg held in the arms of the Sìxiàng.

“Looks like you’ve made quite a catch this time.”

“Got an egg,” Chen Xing said. “Not too bad, I guess. I’ll look up what species it is when I get back.”

As she spoke, Chen Lingya suddenly asked, “Are you preparing to go to university?”

“Yeah, I’ve been talking about the Exotic Region for so long, I really want to see it,” Chen Xing said softly.

With the opening of the Secret Realm, this area would soon become bustling.

It wouldn’t be safe to leave the Twin-fiend Dogs here, better to take them to Jiuzhou University where there are mentors who can help look after them.

His Beast Taming within the Great Xia had reached a bottleneck in its development.

After heading to the Exotic Region, he would have to return midway to participate in the Qinghai competition in July, as he had promised to Senior Qiu.

Time was indeed quite pressing.

…

“Next stop, Iron Rock Pass. Passengers who are getting off at Iron Rock Pass, please disembark in an orderly fashion, and do not crowd…”

The announcement sounded over the loudspeaker.

Chen Xing looked out the window to see a gigantic iron stronghold, somewhat familiar, appearing behind the glass.

In the midst of the huge walls, there was an area of bricks markedly different in color from the rest of the wall.

As the high-speed train stopped at the platform, Chen Xing picked up his luggage and got off.

With the change of times, Iron Rock Pass was no longer the northern metropolis it once was; now, it was merely a third-tier city.

Coming out of the station, all around were drivers calling out for passengers.

“Anyone for Martyrs’ Mausoleum? Just two spots left for Martyrs’ Mausoleum.”

“Battlesite memorial, anyone going?”

Someone who saw Chen Xing not heading straight for the bus platform but pulling out his phone while standing still hurried over to ask, “Young man, heading for Martyrs’ Mausoleum?”

“How much do you charge?”

“Fifty Yuan per person.”

Chen Xing didn’t haggle. He just turned and walked away.

“Hey, forty, I can do forty.”

“Thirty,” Chen Xing said.

That was the price he had looked up before he came.

“Okay, okay, we’re just missing you. But once you get on the vehicle, don’t mention it, just scan and transfer the money to me, that’s it.”

The driver pulled Chen Xing towards the vehicle.

“Wait a minute.”

Chen Xing went to the nearby convenience store and bought a few bottles of alcohol.

The driver didn’t say anything when he saw the alcohol Chen Xing was carrying.

However, when chatting idly in the car, the driver mentioned he was a local, his ancestors were survivors of the battle at Iron Rock Pass.

Originally from Guandong, they rooted themselves here after the battle.

And he had lived here generation after generation.

When they got off, the driver kindly reminded, “The restaurants at the foot of the mountain sell overpriced food, eat in the city instead.”

Half an hour later, Chen Xing arrived at Martyrs’ Mausoleum.

The mountain in front of him was flanked by a straight staircase leading all the way to the top.

On both sides of the staircase, monuments stood in the mountains like forests.

In the most central area, there was a memorial several dozen meters high, towering above, with the words “Martyrs’ Mausoleum” written in red.

There were some people in Martyrs’ Mausoleum, mostly tourists who had come to pay their respects.

At the foot of the mountain, there were several long walls, engraved with the names of every martyr.

They also marked the location of each martyr’s tombstone.

Chen Xing began to search patiently, which was actually not difficult.

Because the names on the wall were arranged according to the rank held at the time of sacrifice, from left to right.

Chen Xing saw the names Zhang Tianlin, Qian Peiquan, Dong Fang, Wang Tao.

Climbing up the small mountain, Chen Xing saw Zhang Tianlin’s grave at the most conspicuous place on the summit.

Beside it stood a bronze statue of Xiaoqiang.

The statue’s abdominal muscles had been touched so often by visitors that they shone with a polished brightness.

Chen Xing left a bottle of alcohol in front of Zhang Tianlin’s grave.

Qian Peiquan’s grave, compared to Zhang Tianlin’s, was located somewhat further back.

But the size of the two graves was comparable.

Chen Xing also left a bottle of alcohol in front of Qian Peiquan’s grave.

In a descended position nearby, Chen Xing found Dong Fang’s grave.

In fact, compared to the others, Chen Xing actually had more interaction time with Dong Fang.

They “fought shoulder to shoulder” for over a week in the Illusion Realm.

Sìxiàng and the Snow Bamboo Swordsman were coordinating their efforts.

Chen Xing stood in front of his grave for a long time, wanting to say something, but since they had never met in reality, he remained silent for a while before placing down the alcohol and turning to leave.

As he descended the mountain, a light, misty rain began to fall.

A cold breeze blew from behind him.

A white bamboo leaf drifted onto his shoulder.