Jiang Chen had done his best to coax Su Huanzhen's mood into something marginally better.
Su Huanzhen was, after all, a woman of keen intelligence. Seeing Jiang Chen searching for the Wanyuan Island outpost, she had her suspicions and couldn't help but ask, "Young Master Jiang Chen, you're looking for the Wanyuan Island outpost — are you planning to go to Wanyuan Island?"
Jiang Chen sighed softly. "Director Su has guessed correctly. I must ask you to keep this matter confidential."
Su Huanzhen nodded quickly. "I'll absolutely keep it secret."
Then, curiosity getting the better of her, she pressed on: "How do you plan to get there? Is there a teleportation array here? Or some kind of entrance?"
Su Huanzhen was genuinely curious. As the sect master of a first-rank sect, once the initial shock had passed, her emotions had settled considerably.
Jiang Chen smiled. "I'm still researching it. Finding this entrance won't be easy. Director Su, let's call it here for today. If you have urgent matters, you're welcome to return to your sect. The texts and formation diagrams I gave you — study them thoroughly, and I guarantee you'll be in for a wonderful surprise."
Su Huanzhen giggled. "Well, that's a polite way of telling me to get lost. Fine, I suppose I'm just in the way here anyway — I can't exactly be of much help! I heard your companion, Lady Huang'er, is from Wanyuan Island. Are you planning to go rescue your wife?"
Su Huanzhen did have a playful streak in her personality.
Before Jiang Chen could respond, she giggled once more, transformed into a streak of rainbow light, and vanished into the cloudy sky.
Only after Su Huanzhen had departed did Jiang Chen begin to channel his secret arts and commence his search.
If there was an outpost here, it would be absolutely invisible to the naked eye. Even divine sense might not be enough to locate it — certain secret techniques were required.
Once he had homed in on a relatively specific area, he could use additional means to force the teleportation array to reveal itself from the void.
Fortunately, while this posed some difficulty, at least Jiang Chen had a lead and a clear train of thought to follow.
Along the winding river, Jiang Chen ventured onward, probing the area.
Suddenly, his divine sense stirred. His body halted mid-air at a particular spot, and a spark of joy lit up in his heart. "Right here — reveal yourself!"
Jiang Chen channeled wave after wave of qi, continuously churning the void around him, driving the spatial turbulence into a frenzy.
Boom!
The roiling turbulence spread wider and wider, encompassing ever more space.
Without warning, an enormous waterspout erupted from the depths of the river with a thunderous roar. The towering column of water shot skyward before crashing back down.
A colossal whirlpool appeared on the water's surface — deep, unfathomable, and suffused with an aura of mystery.
"This is the place."
Without a moment's hesitation, Jiang Chen dove straight into the massive whirlpool.
The whirlpool seized him and swallowed him whole in an instant. The next moment, not a single ripple remained on the water's surface — everything was calm again, as if what had just transpired were nothing but an illusion.
Within the whirlpool, Jiang Chen remained perfectly composed. The violent tossing and turning placed enormous strain on his physical body.
However, having cultivated the Divine Devil Golden Body, such turbulence was hardly a serious problem.
He had no idea how much time had passed before the jostling subsided to a more manageable degree, and his divine sense gradually regained its awareness.
Jiang Chen opened his eyes to find himself lying on a hillside.
The slope was a vivid, painterly green — so beautiful it was almost surreal. Jiang Chen gazed outward: verdant mountains and clear waters stretched in every direction, a landscape of breathtaking splendor.
This picturesque scenery lifted his spirits immediately. He clambered to his feet, brushed the grass and debris from his clothes, straightened his collar, and began to take stock of his surroundings.
He could now confirm with near certainty that he had entered Wanyuan Island.
As for the exact mechanism of that whirlpool — how it transported him, what rules governed its path — Jiang Chen was still completely in the dark.
But one thing was certain: he had passed through the passage and set foot on Wanyuan Island's territory.
"Easier than I expected, it seems!"
Jiang Chen was in high spirits. He began walking leisurely around the hillside.
This expedition had turned out far more satisfactory than he had anticipated. He had braced himself for countless near-death ordeals before reaching Wanyuan Island, yet a single teleportation array had delivered him straight here.
The journey through the array had certainly tested him body and soul, but the ordeal had been considerably milder than he had feared.
Jiang Chen breathed in the fresh air, felt the powerful fluctuations of spiritual energy in the region, and for a moment his heart was filled with calm delight.
"Truly, this place is no ordinary spot. I really have arrived at Wanyuan Island. In terms of cultivation alone, this place rivals the Peacock Sacred Mountain of the Glazed Tile Kingdom. And yet it appears to be nothing more than an unremarkable little corner of the world!"
Jiang Chen clicked his tongue in admiration.
As he was strolling along, his divine sense suddenly prickled. Instinctively, he shifted several steps to the side. Out from beside the path, three figures materialized.
The three figures landed before him. The one in the center was tall and massive as an iron tower. Flanking him were one fat and one thin — both wore expressions dripping with cunning as they sized Jiang Chen up.
The iron-tower of a man burst into hearty laughter. "Would you look at that — it's our lucky day, brothers! It's been ages since a newcomer showed up on Winter Prolong Island, and we're the ones who run into him. Splendid, just splendid!"
The fat one let out a sinister cackle. "Kid, strip off those clothes first!"