Chapter 181: Mount Buzhou, Wuli’s Backup Plan
Chapter 181 – Mount Buzhou, Wuli’s Backup Plan
“Sir, are you truly a founder of this era?”
“Genuine and guaranteed.”
“Though to be precise, I am only one of the founders.”
“And while I may be a founder of this era, do not let that swell your head.”
“After all, your talent is utterly abysmal. I could grab a handful of people off the street stronger than you.”
Watching Chen Changsheng stand with his hands clasped behind his back, Chen Shisan’s eyes swam with doubt.
“Sir, since you are a founder of this era…”
“…then why must we sneak into Mount Buzhou to steal their teachings?”
Confronted by Chen Shisan’s blunt question, Chen Changsheng’s expression stiffened awkwardly.
“Ahem!”
“I may be a founder, but to stand at the absolute pinnacle, one must gather the wisdom of a hundred schools.”
“Attending the banquet at Mount Buzhou is merely an opportunity to discuss the Dao with fellow cultivators.”
“Oh, so that’s how it is!”
Chen Shisan nodded thoughtfully. “But since it is just to discuss the Dao, why did you have to steal the invitation, sir?”
“Based on your own grand tales, the sword cultivators of Mount Buzhou should have been begging you to attend.”
“Sir, you couldn’t possibly be…”
Smack!
Before Chen Shisan could finish, a heavy hand cuffed the back of his head.
“Children should mind their own business. Hurry up and change your clothes.”
“Once you’re dressed, head to the Mount Buzhou banquet by yourself. I will follow shortly.”
“And do not forget the cover story I taught you.”
“If you slip up, do not blame me when they beat you to death.”
Seeing Chen Changsheng’s flustered irritation, Chen Shisan rubbed his stinging scalp and scurried off.
The moment Chen Shisan faded from sight, the exasperation vanished from Chen Changsheng’s face, replaced by an ancient, fathomless calm.
“One hundred and eighty years. None of you have shown yourselves. What exactly are you waiting for?”
Muttering to the wind, Chen Changsheng’s thoughts drifted back a century and a half, returning to the blood-soaked Road to Heaven.
That desperate, all-or-nothing assault on the Road to Heaven… it had never fit Wuli’s cautious style.
At that time, Wuli had only borne Heaven’s Mandate for a millennium or two. His accumulated foundation was completely insufficient.
To strike then was far too hasty.
At this thought, Chen Changsheng flicked his right wrist. Two cultivators, bound tightly in shimmering ropes, materialized out of thin air.
He swept a cold glance over their terrified eyes and spoke with chilling indifference.
“From this moment on, I ask, and you answer.”
“Not a single word of nonsense. Not a single question.”
“Do you understand?”
The two cultivators nodded frantically, terrified that a second’s hesitation would invite immediate execution by this monstrous entity.
“First question. How did Mount Buzhou come to be?”
“Answering the Senior, Mount Buzhou was personally moved here by the Desolate Heavenly Emperor.”
“Legends say that after the Desolate Heavenly Emperor assumed Heaven’s Mandate, he found the scenery here breathtaking, so he plucked a great mountain from the earth and settled it here.”
“This place served as one of the Desolate Heavenly Emperor’s temporary palaces.”
Chen Changsheng gave a curt nod and pressed on.
“Second question. When the Desolate Heavenly Emperor Ascended back then, did he truly take everything with him?”
The two captives froze.
It was a question so rooted in common knowledge it bordered on the absurd.
The Desolate Heavenly Emperor Ascending with the entire Violet Palace Holy Land in tow was an event witnessed by the whole world.
After his departure, countless experts had scoured the ruins of the Violet Palace Holy Land, desperate to unearth any ‘trash’ the Desolate Heavenly Emperor might have left behind.
Given his earth-shattering might, his discarded trash would be a world-shaking Fated Chance to anyone else!
Yet, nearly a thousand years had passed, and the scavengers hadn’t found a single loose thread.
Although they could not fathom why this terrifying Senior would ask such a rudimentary question…
…considering he had suppressed them both with a mere flick of his wrist, they answered with absolute obedience.
“Senior, when the Desolate Heavenly Emperor Ascended, he indeed took everything.”
“Afterward, many ventured to the ruins of the Violet Palace Holy Land to seek a Fated Chance.”
“But to this day, they have found absolutely nothing.”
Chen Changsheng absorbed this, his eyes narrowing in thought.
“Good. I am satisfied with your answers.”
Swish!
With a casual wave, he laid down a Formation, burying the two men roughly sixty feet underground. He then turned his gaze toward the towering silhouette of Mount Buzhou.
“Brat, what exactly did you hide?”
“If I hadn’t passed through here, I never would have realized that you pinned down the dragon vein of the Western Continent.”
“And back then… when you went out of your way to visit the Nether Forest for one final meeting, what was it you wanted to tell me?”
As he spoke, a heavy crease formed between Chen Changsheng’s brows.
For the past one hundred and eighty years, he had wandered the mortal realm like a ghost.
His sole purpose was to wait for those ancient existences to show themselves once more.
The cataclysm on the Road to Heaven had been too monumental; it was impossible for those entities to remain blind to it.
Yet nearly two centuries had bled away, and the world remained sickeningly peaceful. It defied all logic.
He had meticulously analyzed this anomaly for decades.
It wasn’t until today, upon accidentally laying eyes on Mount Buzhou, that the century-old knot in his mind began to unravel.
There was nothing inherently mystical about this ‘Mount Buzhou.’ It was just a colossal slab of rock.
But when viewed as part of the Western Continent’s grand topography, the mountain acted like a ruthless iron nail, driven straight through the beating heart of the dragon vein.
Clearly, Wuli’s assault on the Road to Heaven wasn’t his only play. He had woven fail-safes into the very fabric of the world.
And this Mount Buzhou was one of those countermeasures.
A predatory, almost nostalgic smile curled the corner of Chen Changsheng’s mouth.
“You little bastard. Playing hide-and-seek with me from beyond the grave.”
“Fine then. Let’s see what kind of surprise you buried for me.”
Tossing his sleeves, Chen Changsheng sauntered toward the distant peak of Mount Buzhou.
……
Mount Buzhou.
Swish!
Streaks of iridescent light danced violently across the summit. The radiant trails clashed mid-air, occasionally unleashing explosive shockwaves capable of cleaving mountains and pulverizing stone.
Every cultivator who had gathered at Mount Buzhou was eagerly flaunting their martial prowess.
Yet, unnoticed at the edge of the dazzling spectacle, a solitary figure crouched in the shadows, lazily cracking melon seeds.
“Sir, you pull your weapons out of a storage Dharma Treasure, but they spit theirs right out of their mouths.”
“You’re all immortals. Why do you do it differently?”
Hearing Chen Shisan’s innocent query, Chen Changsheng shot a dismissive glance at the flashy cultivators.
“Let me teach you a basic truth of the cultivation world: over ninety percent of cultivators who spit weapons from their mouths are dead broke.”
“If you ever cross paths with that kind of enemy, just walk right up and beat the living daylight out of them.”
Chen Shisan: ???
“Why?”
Chen Changsheng ignored the boy’s blatant confusion. He simply cracked another melon seed and offered a slow, drawling explanation.
“To understand that, you must first understand the fundamental concept of a life-bound Dharma Treasure.”