Chapter 0740 The False Moon

Chapter 0740: The Fake Moon

After escaping from the group of savages, Qin Yun wandered aimlessly through the forest.

He had no idea how to leave this Dark Moon Wilds.

"Yun'er, last time I used the power of the Dark Sun Martial Soul to enter the Celestial Beast Wilderness. Can I use the same method to get out of this cursed place?" Qin Yun asked.

"No, the spatial fabric of this Dark Moon Wilds is much stronger than the Celestial Beast Wilderness!" Ling Yuner replied. "When we entered, I was so afraid of Yue You that I went dormant. Otherwise, I would have remembered the way back!"

Qin Yun had no choice but to think of another plan.

"Xiao Yun, there must be other things in this Dark Moon Wilds. A place this vast couldn't possibly be empty!" Ling Yuner said. "There might even be other people here! If you can find them, you might be able to leave!"

"I wonder where the Sect Master and the others went," Qin Yun sighed. "Aunt Xiao should be safe, right?"

"Since Yue You didn’t kill you, she probably won’t harm Aunt Xiao either," Ling Yuner said.

Qin Yun wandered through the forest for several days without encountering anything, though he did notice something strange about the moon.

At night, Qin Yun flew high into the sky and gazed at the moon. He sent his mental energy into the third bead of the Nine Suns Divine Pendant and sent a message: "Sister Yao Fang, I think there’s something odd about this moon. Can you come out and take a look?"

As soon as he finished speaking, black mist swirled forth, and Yao Fang quickly appeared.

She also wanted Qin Yun to leave this place as soon as possible, so she was eager to help.

After studying the moon, Yao Fang frowned. "There is indeed something strange! You’ve been here for days, but the moon has always been full. That’s not natural for a moon."

Qin Yun thought carefully and realized she was right.

"Then... what kind of moon is this?" he asked.

"The Dark Moon Wilds should have a Dark Moon, which usually coexists with a normal moon. The Dark Moon appears during the day, while the normal moon appears at night. A normal moon wouldn’t always be full!"

Yao Fang continued, "That means this moon is fake!"

Qin Yun frowned. "This moon has always looked shrouded in haze. I thought it was just fog, but it turns out it’s fake!"

Yao Fang added, "During the day, there’s no black moon in the sky, which means the Dark Moon here has already been seized. This fake moon is likely a large star!"

"Could Yue You have taken control of the Dark Moon?" Qin Yun suddenly felt that Yue You was even more formidable than he'd realized.

"No, if she had control of the Dark Moon, she would have already gone to the Immortal Wasteland for revenge!" Yao Fang said. "There must be other formidable entities in this Dark Moon Wilds!"

Qin Yun grumbled. "Well, they’re not someone I can deal with. I just want to get out of here!"

"If you want to leave, investigate that fake moon. You may find clues there!" Yao Fang said before returning to the Nine Suns Divine Pendant.

The Dark Moon Wilds was vast, and Qin Yun had no idea where to find an exit. He could only follow Yao Fang’s suggestion and fly toward the fake moon in the sky.

"Yun'er, this fake moon doesn’t seem fake at all!"

As Qin Yun drew nearer, he chuckled. "I can even sense the moon's energy from it!"

"If that’s the case, then the Dark Moon is likely hidden there!" Ling Yuner added.

"Could the Dark Moon be concealed inside this fake moon?" Qin Yun grew excited and flew faster.

While flying, he detected another presence nearby.

"There's someone nearby!" Ling Yuner shouted.

Qin Yun quickly rendered his body transparent.

Sure enough, there were people nearby—many of them, marching in formation.

The group rode winged giant tigers, dressed in silver armor and carrying long spears, flying by in formation.

"Are they training soldiers?" Qin Yun wondered.

"Probably! There must be something on that fake moon!" Ling Yuner said excitedly. "Quick, let's check it out!"

The moon was indeed fake, not actually large, but appearing big and round due to its proximity to the ground.

The surface of the fake moon was covered in rocks.

Qin Yun maintained his invisibility and moved cautiously.

"I wonder if those patrolling earlier belonged to Yue You," Qin Yun mused as he explored the fake moon.

Occasionally, he encountered the silver-armored patrol soldiers, but none detected him.

He even stealthily followed a group of them.

After trailing them for a while, he saw the silver-armored soldiers fly away and gave up.

During the day, the fake moon was covered in thick fog, making it hard to detect.

Qin Yun finally realized why there was always so much fog during the day.

"The ground is shaking!" Qin Yun stopped immediately, listening carefully.

After a moment, he realized the tremors were still ongoing.

"Great! I can follow the source of the vibrations to see who's fighting!" Qin Yun had been frustrated by not seeing anyone.

With his Tremor Martial Soul, he was highly sensitive to even the faintest vibrations, allowing him to track the faint vibrations to their origin.

Keeping his body transparent, Qin Yun ran for hours before finally spotting a palace.

"I wonder if this is Yue You's territory!"

Qin Yun was a little afraid of Yue You—if caught, she would surely throw him into danger.

As he approached the palace, he encountered more patrol soldiers.

These patrolling soldiers wore black armor and radiated powerful energy—they were at the Martial King level!

"Who goes there?" the leader suddenly bellowed.

Whoosh!

They threw a large net over him.

Qin Yun quickly used the Piercing Mystic Art, but he couldn't escape the net.

"Ah—" He let out a pained cry as a searing agony shot through his body.

Qin Yun was now completely visible.

"Looks like we’ve got a fish that slipped through the net! Grab him and throw him into the dungeon!"

The leader shouted. This leader was incredibly strong, radiating the aura of the Martial Emperor realm.

"This guy’s got some nerve, sneaking all the way in here!" A middle-aged man in black armor walked over, stuffing Qin Yun—still wrapped in the net—into a cage.

Once locked inside, Qin Yun knew resistance was futile.

The cage was rock-solid, etched with mystical inscriptions to block any escape.

"Xiao Yun, this cage is built to imprison Immortals! You won’t be able to break free for now!" Ling Yuner said. "Don’t worry, Yao Fang is still here!"

At the thought of Yao Fang, Qin Yun steadied himself.

Before long, Qin Yun was taken into the ancient palace. The structures inside were ancient and worn by time.

He was led to a large chamber on the western side of the palace, where a deep hole led underground.

"Enjoy the ride!" The middle-aged man hurled the entire cage into the abyss.

CRASH! The cage slammed into the ground.

Qin Yun was jolted but unhurt.

After landing, several people came to open the cage.

To Qin Yun’s astonishment, two of them were Martial Emperor realm experts, while the rest were Martial Kings.

"This Dark Moon Wasteland is no joke!" Qin Yun marveled silently.

The cage opened, and Qin Yun, still tangled in the net, was hauled off, unable to escape.

The dungeon was shadowy, yet Qin Yun’s eyes pierced the gloom.

What blew him away was its sheer scale—it resembled an underground palace, filled with cages of various sizes. Some massive cages held beasts dozens of meters long.

This dungeon held nothing but beasts!

Ling Yuner named many—ancient beasts now nearly extinct.

"Why’s this place crawling with beasts?" Qin Yun’s skin prickled.

"They were all snatched up! Locked away for ages!" Ling Yuner said. "This dungeon’s charged with energy that keeps the beasts alive."

"Is Dark Moon powering this place?" As Qin Yun and Ling Yuner conversed, he was thrown into a small cage.

Next to the giant-beast cages, it was tiny—but plenty big for Qin Yun.

With Yao Fang here, Qin Yun knew he’d break free.

Now, one question burned in his mind: What was this fake moon hiding?

HOOOWWL! A cry erupted from the dungeon’s shadows. A shadowy shape exploded from the straw.

Qin Yun took a closer look and saw that it was a mid-sized black pig.

"Is that how pigs sound?" Qin Yun thought it was strange and chuckled while shaking his head as he observed the pig.

"You're the pig!" The pig spoke!

Qin Yun stared in shock for a moment, then laughed. "You can talk? Then tell me, if you're not a pig, what are you?"

"I am the Celestial King's father!" the black pig boomed.

"The Celestial King's father? And who is that?" Qin Yun said with a dismissive laugh.

"You stupid mortal, you wouldn’t understand even if I told you!" The black pig sneered before approaching Qin Yun.

Though the place was dim, the pig’s eyesight was keen. Its eyes—not at all pig-like—widened in shock as it stared at Qin Yun.

"It’s you!" the pig squealed. "You got caught too? This can’t be!"

"You know me?" Qin Yun frowned.

"Little brother, I’m your big brother! Don’t you recognize me?" the pig yelled.

"You’re my brother? Don't mock me!" Qin Yun couldn’t help but laugh as he looked at the black pig.

"Floating Clouds Celestial King, it’s me! I’m your Celestial King big brother! Don’t you remember?" the pig shouted. "Brother Yun, I’d recognize that scowling face of yours anywhere—it has to be you!"

Qin Yun’s brow twitched as he suddenly recalled his past life.

He had never known his past identity, but now that the pig called him the Floating Clouds Celestial King, he realized that this might actually be true.

"I... really know you?" Qin Yun frowned.

"Brother Yun, it really is you! This is incredible, haha..."

The pig stuck out its tongue and excitedly lunged forward, only to be kicked away by Qin Yun, crashing against the cage bars.