The grass reflected in his pupils which were overcome by the black flames. Lu Chen growled deeply before rushing quickly to the only wooden bed in the cottage and lied on it.
The wooden bed looked simple, but neat, and there was bedding laid over it. It wasn’t clear where Lu Chen had contacted the bed but following a low rumble, the entire bed flipped and it seemed he was sent down beneath the bed. In an instant, the straw cottage plunged into silence.
However, as he was still midair, Lu Chen who was in excruciating pain from the black flames couldn’t help but let out a deep roar. The man could not see anything but complete darkness. His body then fell downwards uncontrollably, and he struck his heart abruptly and violently with his right hand.
There was neither sound, nor motion. It was an unmoving darkness. The burning figure, about to hit the ground in the darkness, had magically disappeared.
Just like that, disappearing in midair!
※※※
The next instant, gray light illuminated Lu Chen’s sight. His body crashed heavily onto the floor and a muffled thump could be heard.
The black flame continued burning his mortal body relentlessly. Every single inch of his body was charred black and he was already on the very verge of being reduced to a pile of ashes. Unexpectedly, he reappeared in a mysterious chamber which was about six meters long and wide and three meters tall.
The interior surface was continuous and perfectly unbroken; it seemed like an incredibly thick and huge trunk. The trunk was mottled and its age was apparent, as though it had survived countless eons. At the same time, enveloped by a green mist, the wooden walls looked blur. The place seemed to be the inside of an ancient tree.
In this ‘hollow’, there was barely two meter square or so of empty space. A puddle of water which took up half the area, while the remaining area was solid ground. In the puddle of clear water, a glint of emerald could be noticed. The water was still, not moving in the slightest. It was difficult to gauge its depth with a simple look. The water was reminiscent of a crystal clear jasper stone. Moreover, an incredibly intense and refreshing aura of vitality seemed to be emitting from the puddle of clear water.
At this moment, Lu Chen fell on the ground not too far away from the puddle. Having been tormented by the black flames, he did not possess the strength to even stand up. Even then, lying on the floor, he struggled with all his might to roll his body. Turning two rounds, huala, his entire body fell into the water.
“Hu!”
The peculiar sound caught his ear, and it seemed to separate him from the rest of the world, as though there was no one but him left in the world. Faint ripples were created by his impact on the water. Countless bubbles of different sizes floated up before his gaze. A refreshing sensation gradually filled his body, suppressing the terrible burning sensations within.
The puddle was much deeper than expected. However, its width was exactly as it looked. Lu Chen could not even straighten his body. He huddled his body, just like a frightened child hiding, allowing the water to cleanse his body. It was as if gentle hands were consoling his wounded soul.
Even in the water, the black flames on Lu Chen’s body did not extinguish. However, as though subdued by the mystical vitality of this pond of water, the black flames began to wither before slowly reverting back into Lu Chen’s skin. It gradually diminished and weakened, until all of it disappeared without a trace into his body.
The water waves embraced him and at a pace visible to the eyes, the glaringly obvious wounds on Lu Chen left behind by the black flames started to recover back to its original form. Very quickly, it seemed as though nothing had happened, except that the man was overwhelming exhausted.
He huddled his body tightly as he hid in the pool of water, refusing to surface. In the silent water, his lips seemed to be trembling slightly.
He ground his teeth and his expression warped, revealing a face of sorrow and pain. Under the glimmer of light through the water, he seemed to be on the verge of tears, yet forcibly bearing it, suppressing his voice back in.
He slowly raised his head. Looking upwards at the light distorted by the ripples of the water, from the bottom of the puddle, there was another world, blurred, as though it would forever remain so, and the ends of it couldn’t be seen.
※※※
The morning of the next day.
The moon set and the sun rose. When the rays of the morning sun fell upon the quiet village once again, as always, the village seemed to suddenly wake and bustle into commotion.
Lu Chen yawned as he walked out from his straw cottage. He carefully shuts the wooden door before walking toward the village at the bottom of the mountain.
Old Yu was seated beneath the big chinese scholar tree yet again, trying for his big fishes that he seemed to have no possibility of catching. The crowds passing by walked in groups of two to three as they chattered and laughed loudly. Most of them discussed about the matter of the Thousand Autumn Sects sending personnel over to collect Spirit Tea Leaves and Spirit Grains. There were also some passing remarks about the slaughter that occurred yesterday by the village.
After listening for a moment, Lu Chen found it boring. His stomach also started to grumble, so he habitually walked toward the tavern.
Although he came slightly later than he did yesterday, Old Ma still didn’t seem to be starting business soon. The door to the tavern was shut. However, to Lu Chen, this wasn’t a problem. He walked to the door, peng peng. He knocked twice before laughing, “Old Ma, time to open up for business.”
After a short moment, footsteps resounded in the tavern as someone walked to the back of the door. Then, with a creaking sound, the door opened. Old Ma’s slightly plump body revealed from within.
Lu Chen smiled as he patted Old Ma’s shoulders. He said, “I am hungry. Cook something for me.” After which, he walked past him. However, from behind, Old Ma coughed lightly.
Lu Chen’s gaze solidified as he scanned the tavern. Then, he spotted another figure sitting by another table.
From his appearance, he seemed to be an elder in his fifties. His hair was white and there was a warm smile on his face. He even nodded his head upon eye contact.
Old Ma closed the door from his back and latched the bolt. He then walked to Lu Chen’s side and softly spoke, “Sentinel Liu arrived here this morning.”
Lu Chen nodded his head. He walked over to the elder and grinned. From the looks of it, they seemed to share a close relationship. He even patted the elder’s shoulders and said, “Old Liu, I thought you would only come once a year. I remember it has only been half a year since you last came. Why, do you miss me?”
“Hahahaha…” This old man surnamed Liu seemed very amiable. He smiled towards Lu Chen and said, “Little Lu, you sure know how to joke. However, I am here to conduct an inspection under the orders of Hall Master Xue, so I took this opportunity to come by and meet the both of you.”
…
For me, although it sounds weird, the author used 丈 -> 3.33meters.
For area, it should have been 平方丈.
But since he used length instead of area, I will stick with the author’s usage of words.
Level up:
Word grin unlocked
StarveCleric 
Thank you for the chapter 😀
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