But as soon as he walked out of the desolate land, Ning Beichen encountered a sky-covering swarm of crows. These crows attacked him frantically, as if Ning Beichen were their mortal enemy.
They were just some crows, and Ning Beichen didn't take them seriously. It was only when he killed these crows that he discovered they were all just feathers, leaving no corpses behind. He guessed they were crows conjured by witchcraft again.
However, did the Black Dragon King underestimate him too much?
Did he think that a few wretched crows could deal with him?
That was too dismissive of a person.
Ning Beichen continued to walk forward. Having these crows actually served as a good thing for him, as they could point him in the right direction.
Although it seemed like he was dealing with these crows, he was actually observing the direction from which they appeared.
However, when the crows became numerous, they would cause some trouble for Ning Beichen, but this trouble was negligible for him.
Ning Beichen also did not use the item that Haitang had given him. This item was something he intended to use against the Black Dragon, so there was no need to waste it here.
Moreover, Ning Beichen had prepared a huge surprise for the Black Dragon King.
The Black Dragon King, through witchcraft, saw Ning Beichen unstoppable advancing towards his location, which made him somewhat flustered.
Ning Beichen effortlessly killed these crows, which he found simple and posed no threat.
However, Ning Beichen was blinded by his own strength, completely disregarding his inherent power. After all, he was Ning Yanwang, the King of Darkness, and his combat prowess was ingrained in his instincts.
If it were any other ordinary person without Ning Beichen's combat awareness, they would have struggled to deal with even a single crow.
In other words, it wasn't that these crows were not formidable, but rather that Ning Beichen's combat consciousness was too potent, leaving the crows with no opportunity to get close to him.
These crows were not ordinary crows. Their accurate name was Wū Yā (Witch Crows), a type of witchcraft favored by most Western sorcerers. Sorcerers cruelly used the skulls of crows, applying witchcraft to create these semi-undead beings.
To create such a Wū Yā, its entire skull had to be removed while the crow was still alive. Furthermore, the crow could not die during this process, or the attempt would fail.
These Wū Yā would not truly die. After being killed, only a feather, used for casting witchcraft, would remain.
As long as the crow's skull remained in the sorcerer's possession, the sorcerer could revive the Wū Yā after a period of time.
These Wū Yā were powerful, serving as sorcerers' thugs, henchmen, pets, and eyes, among other roles.
If a sorcerer wished to kill an ordinary person, controlling just one Wū Yā would suffice. This was because as long as the Wū Yā got close enough to the target, the sorcerer could use it as a medium to cast simple witchcraft upon the target.
However, Ning Beichen gave the Black Dragon King no such opportunity. The Wū Yā were eliminated by him before they could even get within three meters of Ning Beichen.
Ning Beichen himself might not know witchcraft, but Li Haitang did. Ning Beichen had learned a great deal about witchcraft from Li Haitang.
This naturally included these Wū Yā, known as the sorcerer's minions. How could Ning Beichen allow such feathered beasts to get close to him?
The Black Dragon King, unaware that Ning Beichen knew, attempted to kill him with Wū Yā. It could only be said that he was daydreaming.
Furthermore, not only could these witchcraft spells not harm Ning Beichen, but they also revealed the Black Dragon King's location to Ning Beichen.
Soon, Ning Beichen arrived at the Black Dragon King's location, an old castle hidden deep within the jungle.
The castle was gloomy and overgrown with various vines. Some ivy climbed directly from the ground to the top of the castle.
Ning Beichen stood before the castle.
With a "thwack,"
His composite bow was placed on the ground to his right, and a quiver was set to his left. Ning Beichen looked up at the castle, unsure if he was admiring it or observing his surroundings.
"Black Dragon King, crawl out here and face your death!"
Ning Beichen roared at the top of his lungs. He had come here to kill, not to have tea, so there was no need for pleasantries.
As for sneaking in, Ning Beichen hadn't even considered it. From the moment the Wū Yā appeared, Ning Beichen knew that the Black Dragon King was already aware of his arrival.
He also had a premonition that Mu Ye had been captured by the Black Dragon King and might be held within this castle.
"Ning Beichen, I never expected you to have the guts to come looking for me."
Soon, a hoarse voice echoed from within the castle, but only the voice was heard, not the speaker.
"Black Dragon King, you're hiding your head and tail, not even daring to show your face. What are you afraid of?"
"I came alone, without any backup. Are you so scared you don't even dare to come out and meet me?"
Ning Beichen taunted loudly, exuding an aura of facing an army by himself.
"Hehehehe..."
The Black Dragon King's laughter emanated from the castle. He then said to Ning Beichen:
"If you want to see me, then come into the castle."
"Heh, Black Dragon King, you're so afraid of me alone. You're a renowned figure, yet your courage is so meager?"
Ning Beichen sneered.
"Ning Beichen, if you have the guts, come into the castle to find me. If you don't, stay outside."
The Black Dragon King did not seem to take the bait, refusing to come out no matter how Ning Beichen provoked him.
The scene was like two people conversing from a distance.
One said, "Come in, if you dare, come in!"
The other said, "Come out, if you dare, come out!"
Ning Beichen shouted outside for a long time, but the Black Dragon King remained unmoved. No matter how loudly Ning Beichen yelled, he simply would not emerge.
Ning Beichen had killed his disciples and many of his death warriors. Even Tala had died at his hands. While the Black Dragon King wanted revenge for his disciples, he wasn't a fool.
He was a sorcerer, naturally one who hid and ambushed. Ning Beichen was a warrior. If he, a scholar, were to go out and engage in a straightforward fight with a warrior, that would be sheer madness.
Did Ning Beichen truly not dare to enter?
Of course not.
He was stalling for time.
He was waiting for aerial positioning. He hadn't brought people, but he hadn't said he wouldn't bring fighter jets.
This was not the ancient Eastern kingdom, and Ning Beichen wouldn't be so low-key.
Only after receiving a message from someone did Ning Beichen say with a smile, "Alright, I'll go in now. I hope you won't regret it."
"Ning Beichen, I will definitely kill you, flay your skull, and ensure you never find peace, not in this life nor any other!"
The Black Dragon King's enraged voice boomed from within the castle.
"Don't bother. I've lived enough in this life. Forget about the next. I beg you, kill me now."
Ning Beichen said with extreme disdain.