Although many groups had entered the Sacred Mountains, everyone here knew they were probably the only ones who were still alive.
There might still be some survivors hiding in the wilderness of the mountains, but it would not be easy to get out of the Sacred Mountains alive. To leave this place, they would either have to walk through the canyon and get hypnotized again before finally dying of exhaustion.
Or feel their way out of it with their eyes closed and come face to face with those terrifying tarantulas.
Someone escaping from the tarantula horde again on their own would be practically impossible.
The heavy fog in the mountains might even trap them forever inside.
Otherwise, they could simply take the main road where Pyro Company troops were still stationed along. Although there weren’t many troops garrisoned there due to the encirclement plan, it was not a route that anyone could take. When Cheng Yu saw Vanilla and the Anjing House members, he quickly gathered them around, and they started sharing their experiences. It was as though he had been reunited with his family members.
Cheng Yu grumbled how tough it was that he had the misfortune to lead a team like his. There was absolutely no sense of seriousness in his team, and they still had to put on shows even though they were on the verge of death. Their team had been singing and dancing for the past few days and it did not look like they had come to the Sacred Mountains to thwart the Pyro Company’s plans at all.
When he finished relating this to everyone, Cheng Yu realized Vanilla and the others had fallen silent.
“What’s wrong with you guys?” Cheng Yu asked.
Vanilla hesitated for a moment before answering, “We went through the same thing too.”
Cheng Yu was stunned. When he recalled how the Pyro Company had appeared earlier, he realized Vanilla’s plight might not be any better than his.
However, a member of the Anjing House next to them said, “But have you all realized? At the very least, both your teams have managed to survive.”
This Anjing House member was named Wang Tianming, and he was previously on the same team as Wang Congyang. As the team leader, he did not make any mistakes and the team was also considered harmonious. There was no trouble at all.
Yet, his team members were all gone now!
He would rather have a troublemaker on the team. At least, they would have been safe.
They were all practical people. Carefully thinking about it, wasn’t it a good thing that they managed to survive even though they had to suffer a little?
During the conversation, Cheng Yu happened to glance at Ren Xiaosu. He thought to himself that it was indeed because someone had been secretly helping them that so many of them survived.
Although White Mask was missing again, Cheng Yu realized Ren Xiaosu and Yang Xiaojin had to be White Mask’s assistants. Without these three around, their team would probably not have as many survivors left.
However, Cheng Yu was surprised to find Ren Xiaosu staring fixedly at the box Si Liren was carrying. He did not even blink.
Li Shentan wanted to say something, but when he noticed Ren Xiaosu’s expression, he also fell silent and just sighed.
Ren Xiaosu turned and looked at Li Shentan seriously. “Is it him?”
“Yes.” Li Shentan nodded. He wanted to say something but did not know what to say. The people around them did not even know what game they were playing. Ren Xiaosu suddenly said to Yang Xiaojin, “Wait for me here.”
Then he turned around and said to Li Shentan and Si Liren, “Can you two come with me for a while?”
Li Shentan nodded.
Ren Xiaosu, Li Shentan, and Si Liren left the group. Ren Xiaosu kept heading up a mountain path until he reached the end of it. Moonlight shone down on the mountaintop. Li Shentan looked at Ren Xiaosu’s back and suddenly felt that he seemed both a little excited and lonely at the same time.
Ren Xiaosu turned around and looked at Si Liren. “Little Liren, can you put down the box you’re carrying? I’d like to see him.”
“Mhm.” Si Liren put down the box obediently.
When Ren Xiaosu was about to open the box, he suddenly hesitated as though he was afraid of something.
“Can the two of you step aside for a moment?” Ren Xiaosu looked at Li Shentan.
Li Shentan, who always enjoyed opposing others, was surprisingly cooperative at this moment. “We’ll wait for you on the hillside.”
After the two of them left, Ren Xiaosu slowly opened up the box.
The moment before seeing Chen Wudi, he felt he was mentally prepared and could bear any grief in this world.
But once he saw Chen Wudi, he nearly broke down. Tears could not stop flowing down his cheeks and dripping off his chin.
Ren Xiaosu once told Yan Liuyuan that this world did not believe in tears. No matter how difficult things got, he would never let himself be vulnerable.
But during the battle that day, he did not even manage to say goodbye to Chen Wudi nor got to see him one last time. By the time he woke up again, all the bones in his body had been broken, and Wudi had already died in that stronghold.
Later on, Ren Xiaosu did not even have the courage to go and see this disciple of his and just calmly continued living his life. He had taken his revenge calmly and came to the Central Plains to find his family. However, Ren Xiaosu never went back to the Southwest to look for Chen Wudi.
He would always tell himself, “Right, isn’t this how the world is? Everyone is just living pathetically like they might not get to see the next day.”
It was already very tough for those who were still alive, so why dig up memories of the dead to make yourself feel sad?
Everyone knew Ren Xiaosu was very upset, but he was unwilling to admit it.
Just like when he had found out about Chen Wudi’s death, he rather used the pain of fixing his broken bones to hide his emotions than admit that he really was sad.
After all, wasn’t this how he got through his difficulties since childhood?
But at this moment, he admitted it was not so.
When he saw Luo Lan’s superpower, Ren Xiaosu swore he was really jealous Luo Lan could actually awaken such a superpower. Therefore, he desperately wanted to copy his power even if he had to waste two additional Perfect Skill Duplication Scrolls in the process.
When he realized there was a glimmer of hope, Ren Xiaosu finally understood his desire. Actually, that memory had never been erased from his mind. He felt like there was still someone addressing him as master even while lying in bed in the middle of the night.
Ren Xiaosu’s body started to glow with a golden light. It was just like how Luo Lan looked when he summoned his martyred spirits.
Ren Xiaosu sat across Chen Wudi and said seriously, “Actually, I’m not qualified to be your master, right? I lied to you and said that if you constantly feel like you’re being devoured by the darkness, then it meant that you were the light. When I said this, I didn’t even believe it myself. However, you took my words to be true because you were so naive.
“At that time, I even silently mocked you for being such a gullible disciple. But later on, I realized that I should be the one who needed to reflect.”
It was like a child asking their father, “Dad, are there any immortals in the world?”
The father would smile and say jokingly, “Yes.”
And the child would reply, “Then take me to them.”
As such, the father took the child to the top of the mountain as though he was teasing his own child. Then he smiled at the child and said, “Go on, shout for the immortal to open the Gate of Heaven for you.”
Aere
The father did not even believe the Gate of Heaven would open that day, or that there were really immortals in heaven. His fantasies about gods when he was young had been worn out by this world, leaving behind a determined but worldly heart. He started learning how to be tactful, how to get along with others, and how to eke out a survival in a secular world.
But he had never thought that when his child shouted for the Gate of Heaven to be opened, it would really open!
This was only a story, but it was just like the talk Chen Wudi had with Ren Xiaosu. “Master, should good people really exist in this world?”
Ren Xiaosu said, “Yes, and you’re that ray of light.”
But when Ren Xiaosu thought nothing would ever come out of this, Chen Wudi really became the most brilliant light in the world, engraving his goodness in many people’s hearts.
Ren Xiaosu was like most people.
He was used to a world without any fairy tales, used to a world that was not fair, and also used to not being a good person. But when he looked back, he realized he had just missed out on the beautiful moments. It was not that they did not exist.
When one braved the snow, one could see the mountains. Because there was light, people dared to dream.
This was the cause and effect of the world.
Ren Xiaosu said, “Maybe I wasn’t a good master in the past, but I’m willing to start afresh. Come back, Wudi.”
The moon hung bright and clear in the sky, casting a silvery radiance on Chen Wudi’s damaged golden armor. Although the armor had turned into stone, its former brilliance could still be seen.
Ren Xiaosu looked at Chen Wudi with much anticipation and thought he would walk out of the statue like Luo Lan’s 12 martyred spirits. But in his trance, he heard someone whisper in his mind, “Master, I’m sorry.”
Ren Xiaosu looked at Chen Wudi in disbelief. He was completely unable to accept this fact. He had worked very hard to complete his quests in order to bring Wudi back. But in the end, he still failed.
He could not tell who was talking in his mind just now. He did not know whether it was a hallucination or if it was really Chen Wudi answering him.
Li Shentan, who had come back to Ren Xiaosu’s side, said, “Don’t be too upset.”
Ren Xiaosu looked up at Li Shentan. “Why? Why did it fail?”
Li Shentan looked at Ren Xiaosu. He had never seen the young man in front of him lose his cool before. Ren Xiaosu did not even realize he had walked up to him.
Li Shentan said, “Are you trying to use Luo Lan’s power to summon him back? But Luo Lan’s power is only used to summon the dead. Have you ever considered that Chen Wudi is actually not dead yet?”
Ren Xiaosu was shocked. He looked at Li Shentan in surprise and did not know what else to say.
But Li Shentan already knew this.
Back when he entered the stronghold and sat across from Chen Wudi, he started mumbling many things to Chen Wudi for some reason. In the end, when he said he would protect his master for him, Chen Wudi clearly emitted a golden light that circulated around his body. It was like there was a dragon swimming underneath the stone sculpture.
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At that time, he was stunned by that sight. Si Liren even asked him what was wrong back then, but he just said it was fine.
From that day onwards, Si Liren started carrying a huge box everywhere. Li Shentan insisted that they needed to take Chen Wudi with them wherever they went, to the ends of the earth if need be.
So, even though Ren Xiaosu had painstakingly copied Luo Lan’s power, it was absolutely useless when used on someone who was still alive.
Ren Xiaosu said with difficulty, “Then do you know how I can wake him up?”
“He’s the one who’s unwilling to wake up,” Li Shentan said in a low voice.
Back on that day, Chen Wudi had lost all hope. Like that monkey born from a stone, he finally became disheartened after experiencing the world of humanity and turned himself back into stone.
From that day on, he no longer believed the world needed any goodness, heroes, or even himself in it.
Li Shentan said dejectedly, “If it weren’t for me, he would not have died that day. That’s why I always wanted to do something for him, but I didn’t know where to start. As such, I brought him along and crossed mountains and rivers to see the beautiful sights of this world.
“Let me continue to take him around. I am the most villainous person in the world, while he’s the nicest. The nicest person died because of this villain. Right now, I want to show him the world still needs him, because even the demon has been changed by him.”
If it weren’t for Chen Wudi, Li Shentan would have hypnotized Vanilla and the others.
If it weren’t for Chen Wudi, Li Shentan would have stayed behind at Luoyang City and tormented everyone before letting them die in that stronghold.
If it weren’t for Chen Wudi, Li Shentan might have turned into a real demon. He was not someone who knew the difference between good and evil.
Therefore, since Chen Wudi was unwilling to wake up, Li Shentan wanted to show Chen Wudi how important he was to the world.
If even the most villainous demon in this world could be changed, what was there that couldn’t be changed by this ray of light?
“Ren Xiaosu, do you believe me?” Li Shentan said softly, “One day, I’ll convince him to return to this world willingly and continue being the Great Sage. On that day, the demon will also get his salvation. This is his destiny, as it is mine. So, please, go and be that ray of light to others too. He’l be very pleased if you do.”
That very night, Ren Xiaosu sat with Chen Wudi on the mountain. He shared a lot about what he had been through during this period.
For example, he mentioned the bloody fatty, Benbo’erba, had actually awakened his superpower.
How he got separated from Yan Liuyuan.
A new friend he met named Jiang Xu, who was both a good teacher and close friend, and how he also persisted in walking down his own path like a ray of light.
There were also the Riders, who were a group of honorable friends who stood up for others but they weren’t very good at card games. Ren Xiaosu shared many more things, but he said to Chen Wudi in the end, “Come back quickly. Your master is very lonely.”
When the first rays of sunlight radiated down onto the mountaintop in the morning, Ren Xiaosu carefully wiped off the dust on Chen Wudi’s body. He said to Li Shentan, “I believe what you told me, and I’ll be waiting for that day to arrive.”
After that, he turned around and descended off the mountain. Si Liren put the box onto her back again and floated next to Li Shentan.
When Ren Xiaosu came down from the mountain, Yang Xiaojin walked towards Ren Xiaosu. She stood on her tiptoes and hugged Ren Xiaosu gently in front of the others. This was probably the first time that Yang Xiaojin and Ren Xiaosu had hugged each other.
“I’m here for you,” Yang Xiaojin said.
“Mhm,” Ren Xiaosu grunted with a smile.
No matter what happened last night, it was at least better than before. That was because he had thought Chen Wudi was dead. But now he knew Chen Wudi was actually still alive.
As long as he was not dead, anything could be possible.
Zhou Yingxue, who was sitting next to the campfire, said obediently, “Master, Madam, breakfast is ready.”
Ren Xiaosu looked at Zhou Yingxue in surprise, then at Yang Xiaojin. He could not understand how the situation ended up like that in the matter of a night.
Six hours earlier.
While Ren Xiaosu was talking to Chen Wudi up on the mountain, Yang Xiaojin turned to look at Vanilla and the others.
However, her gaze landed on Zhou Yingxue as she stared past the crowd.
“You, come with me.” Yang Xiaojin headed out of the camp.
Zhou Yingxue curled her lips. “Why should I listen to you?”
But even though she grumbled, she still obediently followed Yang Xiaojin…
The group who had just successfully joined up a while ago was a little confused by this series of unexpected events. Why were those people leaving one after another?
They had already witnessed how powerful Li Shentan was, but he was suddenly no longer crazy like before when facing Ren Xiaosu. Instead, he felt even more normal than a normal person.
As for Zhou Yingxue, that woman was always yelling at everyone on the team and ordered them to look for exotic plants on her behalf.
After being in the Sacred Mountains for a few days, everyone was well aware that this woman was also a being at the top of the pyramid in the supernatural world.
Therefore, nobody dared to say anything despite being ordered around by Zhou Yingxue. This was especially so when they realized Zhou Yingxue and Li Shentan seemed to be on rather good terms.
So why did Zhou Yingxue suddenly become so obedient after that girl in the cap said something so casually?
Moreover, Zhou Yingxue had been walking at the front of their group all this time. But just now, she actually fell to the back of the group.
What the fuck was going on? Could someone explain this?!
Yang Xiaojin just kept walking forward and did not say anything. Instead, it was Zhou Yingxue who could no longer hold it in. “I’m not afraid of you…”
The moment she uttered that, Yang Xiaojin finally turned around and stood still. Meanwhile, Zhou Yingxue regretted her words so much she wanted to slap herself in the face. That was because the sentence itself showed she was scared!
Zhou Yingxue cursed in her head at how useless she was. Why should she be afraid of a mere lass when she was so powerful? The other party was even several years younger than her!
Yang Xiaojin sized up Zhou Yingxue. “I heard you wanted to treat your mother’s illness?” Zhou Yingxue nearly cried. Oh no, her master must have found out she had lied again!
However, Zhou Yingxue was not going to admit defeat here. “Wh-What’s wrong with telling some lies to protect myself? I’m just trying to survive in this world! Haven’t you told a lie before?”.
“Yes, I have.” Yang Xiaojin nodded as though it was not something she was ashamed to admit. She had once said she would give her dagger to Ren Xiaosu. But in the end, she took it back without feeling embarrassed at all.
It seemed that this girl was born with no sense of shame.
Yang Xiaojin asked again, “How long has it been since you became his maid?” “About half a year…” Zhou Yingxue felt that something was not right. How could she always get intimidated by Yang Xiaojin’s imposing manner? This wouldn’t do. She had to retaliate! If Yang Xiaojin tried to intimidate her again, she would fight back!
But Yang Xiaojin suddenly asked, “Does he eat on time?”
Zhou Yingxue was dumbfounded. ‘Why did you suddenly ask that question? You’re totally unpredictable!
The maidservant thought for a moment and answered, “He still eats his meals on time. Master has a very regular routine and usually spends most of his time reading.” The moment Zhou Yingxue said that, she felt like slapping herself again. Why was she answering the questions so honestly?!
However, Yang Xiaojin continued asking, “Then did he encounter any dangerous situations?”
Zhou Yingxue replied, “It was quite dangerous back at Stronghold 74 as he nearly got injured by the Experimentals. And the other time in Luoyang City…”
At this moment, Zhou Yingxue remembered Yang Xiaojin was also in Luoyang City at that time. Moreover, her master left her behind and ran off with Yang Xiaojin. Thinking of this, Zhou Yingxue got angry and suddenly said, “Master and I used to stay in the same room!”
Yang Xiaojin made a sound of acknowledgment.
Zhou Yingxue felt as though the heavy punch she threw had ended up hitting air. She asked in disbelief, “Why did you only say ‘ah’? Aren’t you curious about what happened?”
However, Yang Xiaojin looked at her strangely. “What could possibly happen between the two of you? It’s not like he likes you.”
Zhou Yingxue nearly cried. Could you not be so blunt?
However, Yang Xiaojin understood Ren Xiaosu the best. With Ren Xiaosu’s cowardly behavior whenever it came to the critical moment, it would be a surprise if he did any hanky panky behind her back!
Zhou Yingxue was really unable to accept this. “14”
“Alright, stop speaking. I’ll only believe what he tells me himself,” Yang Xiaojin cut her off.
Zhou Yingxue was completely defeated. “Actually, you’re the only person in Master’s heart. Even when he had to hold hands with me when we entered Stronghold 61, he specifically went to look for gloves to wear. Also, when that female celebrity named Li Ran confessed to him, he flatly told her he already has someone he likes. The same thing happened when we were in Luoyang City. He called out your name once when he spoke in his sleep. I wonder how there can be such an innocent man in this world. He’s the first one that I’ve met.”
Zhou Yingxue thought that since she was unable to intimidate Yang Xiaojin, she should say something nice. At the very least, she could fight for better treatment in the future or something
Yang Xiaojin finally revealed a smile at that. “Anything else?”
“And his favorite hobby is reading. There was one time when I wanted to see what book he was reading while he was out. In the end, I discovered they were even annotated, and one of them was filled with your name on the title page,” Zhou Yingxue answered.
“Anything else?”
“Also, when he went back to Luoyang City for the second time to look for you at Qinghe University, that was the first time I saw him look so anxious. In the past, no matter how great the danger he might encounter, he would still be very calm. It was only that one time that I felt his anxiety,” Zhou Yingxue said feebly.
Yang Xiaojin nodded in satisfaction. “That’s about enough. Now tell me about your powers.”
Zhou Yingxue was downtrodden. Why did she have to come to the Sacred Mountains? Wouldn’t it have been better if she went to the Northwest and started making plans for her master’s seizing of leadership in the future? Why did she have to come here to get intimidated by others? If she knew something like this would happen, she would have run off long ago!
Yang Xiaojin said, “I’m a little hungry now. Go and make some food for me. It would be best if you can cook a pot of porridge so that Ren Xiaosu can have some when he comes back down from the mountain tomorrow morning.” Zhou Yingxue said obediently, “OK…” Yang Xiaojin said nonchalantly, “Let’s see how good your culinary skills are first. If it’s good enough, you can come to the Northwest with us after we’re done with our business in the Sacred Mountains.”
Zhou Yingxue beamed. “Oh, that’ll be great. Just wait and see. My culinary skills are excellent!”
With that, Zhou Yingxue went to do her work. She was scolding herself while cooking, “Scum, what is it that you’re after?!”
However, Zhou Yingxue furtively glanced at Yang Xiaojin and got dismayed again. Why would a young girl like her have such a strong aura?