"Damn it, you... But you better remember this: never let me go on any mission with him again~" Wang Gui had no choice but to compromise, but he made another condition.
“That’s not a big problem. You can go on missions with Feihua. That’s fine too,” Zhou Tong readily agreed.
"Is this how you decide our lives?" Li Yang walked in casually and said with dissatisfaction.
"What does this have to do with your life?" Zhou Tong said with amusement. The others also looked at Li Yang, not understanding what he meant.
"Of course it's related. People say, it's not the god-like opponent you should fear, but the pig-like teammate. Aren't you pushing Feihua into a fire pit?" Li Yang said, stroking his chin.
Shu Yi and Fan Xian both shrank back, thinking to themselves, "Dude, you're ruthless and brave to actually say something like that. That's Captain Wang Gui, a god-like figure in the army, the dream goddess of millions of soldiers!"
How could you call her a pig to her face?
"I'll kill you!" Wang Gui lost all his last shred of reason. He stomped his foot on the ground with a loud bang and threw a punch straight at Li Yang's face. Before the punch even landed, the sharp wind made Li Yang's nose sting and his hair stand on end.
"Stop!" Zhou Tong shouted, trying to stop him, but it was too late. Wang Gui's attack was sudden and too close; in the blink of an eye, he was in front of Li Yang.
With a crisp "smack," Wang Gui's fist landed squarely on Li Yang's face, producing a loud bang. However, Li Yang remained completely still, standing firmly on the ground.
"Too weak, not strong enough. But it's not bad either, more than enough to deal with ordinary people~" Li Yang pushed away the hand pressing on his face, shook his brow, and there wasn't a scratch on his face. With one hand there, Wang Gui's punch didn't hit Li Yang's face, but hit Li Yang's hand instead.
Wang Gui withdrew her hand, her fingers trembling. Her face paled slightly. She glared fiercely at Li Yang and sat down angrily. She rubbed her other hand incessantly. When she punched Li Yang's hand, it didn't feel like she'd hit flesh; instead, it felt like she'd struck something harder than steel or rock. Not only had it failed to injure him, but the impact had left her fingers numb and throbbing with pain. A full-force punch in her anger would have shattered even iron or rock, but she couldn't break Li Yang's hand and had even injured herself. She sat down angrily, silently cursing Li Yang to be impotent, a useless piece of trash forever, and immortalized in his memory.
“Li Yang, you’re wrong. I can’t agree with what you said. Were you just speaking up for me?” Fei Hua said.
"Oh, so what do you want to say?" Li Yang sat down and glanced at her before speaking.
"I want to say that I really enjoy going on missions with Director Wang. As for you guys, I look down on you all~" Fei Hua said disdainfully.
"Oh. So you've chosen this path of your own depravity, and I'm just being nosy," Li Yang nodded, remaining calm and unmoved.
"Alright, that's enough. Let Fan Xian tell us what's going on here. We're here on a mission, not to argue," Zhou Tong interrupted, frowning.
Fan Xian continued, "Alright, let me now introduce the situation here. Historically, Jiangbei City, Jiangnan City, and Jiangdong City are located between three mountains and two rivers. As everyone knows, the two rivers flow through the three cities. As for the three mountains, so far, we have only discovered two, one in Jiangdong City and one in Jiangnan City. However, we have been unable to find the third mountain, no matter how advanced the technology we use. Therefore, people now believe that the historical records are wrong, or that there is some problem with history, and that current maps and various topographical equipment only record two mountains. Thus, the three cities are now located between two mountains and two rivers."
"Such a miraculous thing? Is it a ghost, or are the ancients playing a joke on us?" Li Yang said in surprise. "Do you think there's something wrong with the ancients, or is it that our technology is not advanced enough to discover the third mountain?"
“We’re not sure either. It’s precisely because we’re uncertain that we’re curious, because according to historical records and our findings, there’s no other reason why Jiangbei City could attract superhumans and martial arts masters from Japan and the United States to gather there. Only this possibility exists. According to some top-secret documents, some foreign superhumans have been secretly investigating and searching for the lost mountain in Jiangbei City,” Zhou Tong continued.
Chapter 892: Legend
"Such a thing exists?" Li Yang was even more surprised. He never imagined that the world was full of amazing things.
“That’s right, but this is a state secret. Everything about this mountain has been sealed off, and the general public doesn’t know anything about it. Even we need approval from above to access information about this matter,” Zhou Tong said.
"What exactly is going on with that mountain?" Li Yang pressed.
“We don’t know either. All the records are very vague because it’s been so long, thousands of years. The records are all from ancient books, with only fragmentary information. But I think you’ve all heard of this mountain, but you’ve never believed it actually exists,” Zhou Tong said with a strange expression.
"Really?" Shu Yi was also surprised. He hadn't participated in Fan Xian, Zhou Tong, and Wang Gui's research this time.
“Of course it’s true. This mountain is very famous and has been mentioned in many books,” Zhou Tong nodded.
"Stop keeping me in suspense, just tell me!" Li Yang urged.
“Mount Penglai~” Zhou Tong said with a strange expression.
"Nonsense. Penglai Immortal Mountain? That's a legendary mountain, and all the records say it's an overseas immortal mountain. How could it be on the mainland? Although Jiangbei City is also near the sea, it's still considered part of the mainland, right? I might believe you if you said it was Penglai Island~" Li Yang said with a laugh. Indeed, there are many records about Penglai Mountain in books, but everyone believes that it is the author's fabrication, made up out of thin air, and that Penglai Mountain does not exist in reality.
"Then can you find where Mount Shu is? Can you find the real Mount Kunlun? It is said that there is a Kunlun Wonderland in the world, do you really know where it is? Does it really exist? And there are Mount Mao and Mount Longhu, you know they are famous Taoist mountains, and there are Taoist monks and nuns on them, that is, cultivators. But can you see them? Have ordinary people seen them?" Zhou Tong's series of questions made Li Yang feel annoyed and frustrated.
"Feihua, aren't you from a prestigious sect? Where exactly is the Kunlun Mountain sect?" Li Yang asked Feihua.
"This is a secret of our sect, we can't tell you~" Fei Hua wrinkled her nose and snorted.
"Do you know about Kunlun Wonderland?" Li Yang pressed.
"I know," Fei Hua nodded.
"Do you know where it is?" Li Yang asked.
"I don't know~" Fei Hua shook her head.
"Tch—do you know about Penglai Immortal Mountain, and those other places Director Zhou mentioned?" Li Yang pressed.
"I know. Both Maoshan and Longhushan are protected by immortal formations. Ordinary people can't detect them at all, and even cultivators, unless they are experts, can't detect them. Even if they do, they can't get in. Those formations are passed down from our ancestors; they are true immortal formations with immense power. Even experts at the Qi Refining and Spirit Transformation level wouldn't dare to provoke them easily. My master said that only those who reach the Earth Immortal realm can glimpse them~" Feihua said proudly. Seeing everyone's wide eyes and focused expressions, she felt very satisfied.
"Does Kunlun also have a powerful formation protecting it?" Li Yang deduced.
"Huh? I won't tell you!" Fei Hua immediately realized she had said the wrong thing and glared at Li Yang.
"Alright, we won't ask anymore. Then tell me, what are Earth Immortals? Do they still exist on Earth?" Li Yang changed the subject.
"I don't know. The world is too vast, hiding countless masters. Even my master doesn't dare say he knows the truth, so I know even less. As for the Earth Immortal realm, it's a title of respect for true masters. It's an unattainable realm, but there were many such people in ancient times. Not to mention Earth Immortals, there were even Golden Immortals and Chaos Daluo Golden Immortals. It's a title for those who are above the Qi Refining and Spirit Transformation stage, having reached the Refining Spirit and Returning to Emptiness stage, thus escaping the six realms of reincarnation and achieving immortality. The early stage of Refining Spirit and Returning to Emptiness is Earth Immortal, the middle stage is True Immortal, and the late stage is Celestial Immortal. However, improving to each realm is extremely difficult; it's quite normal for some to not be able to break through for thousands of years. Moreover, the strength difference between realms is very obvious; an Earth Immortal encountering a True Immortal is basically a death sentence."
"That's incredible! It must be incredibly difficult. By the way, has anyone reached the Refining Void and Merging with the Dao realm?" Li Yang gasped. Damn it, his cultivation level had stagnated ever since he absorbed Chi You's blood essence and reached the late stage of Qi Induction, and his second primordial spirit was the same. Reaching the Refining Spirit and Returning to the Void realm was simply wishful thinking.
"Of course, there were people who reached the Refining Emptiness and Merging with the Dao realm in ancient times. Our ancestors from Kunlun, as well as the patriarchs of several famous mountains such as Maoshan, Longhushan, and Shushan, all reached the Refining Emptiness and Merging with the Dao realm. They were true Golden Immortals. The early stage of Refining Emptiness and Merging with the Dao is a Golden Immortal, the middle stage is a Great Luo Golden Immortal, and the late stage is a Chaos Great Luo Golden Immortal. They are truly figures who have merged with the Great Dao of Heaven and Earth. According to the beginning of the world, only Dao Ancestor Hongjun has reached this realm. These are all what my master said, not something I made up myself~" Seeing the distrustful look in Li Yang's eyes, Fei Hua immediately brought up her master.
As for Zhou Tong and the others, it was practically like hearing a legend; they had virtually no chance of getting involved.
"I'd better not think about it anymore, it's too unrealistic. I'd rather just be an ordinary person," Li Yang said with a shrug. But deep down, he couldn't let go of the thought. To die one day and live forever, to escape the cycle of reincarnation—how amazing would that be?
"So, after all that you've said, are you trying to tell us that Mount Penglai really exists?" Li Yang asked again.
"I don't know either. It probably exists; Master has mentioned it occasionally. I didn't pay attention at the time, and I don't know much more than you do," Fei Hua said helplessly.
"Holy crap! But it's better than knowing nothing at all. According to you, how powerful are Earth Immortals?" Li Yang asked.