Chapter 51: The Flaw of the Rat Talisman, the Ancestor of All Mountains: Kunlun

Ye Xuan should trust his luck.

As a transmigrator who awakened his past-life wisdom and obtained the Multiverse Fishing System, having fished out decent items three times in a row, his luck was no worse than anyone else’s.

But precisely because his luck had been too good, he could not gamble everything on such an elusive thing.

Who could guarantee that his luck would remain as favorable at that moment as it had been before?

So his choice remained the Hōgyoku.

But the current problem was that if he manifested the Hōgyoku using the Rat Talisman, he could not manifest a character; without a character, who in this world besides Zhong Lao could pose a threat of death to him?

He couldn’t possibly go to Zhong Lao, could he?

Ye Xuan had once manifested Doraemon into reality, hoping to see if any of his items could bypass this limitation, but it was useless.

Any rule-based item of moderate strength could not be used—only items like the Air Cannon or Bamboo Glider were functional; the Anywhere Door’s range had been reduced from ten light-years to just Blue Star, and the destination required a clear mental image.

But this was within his expectations—after all, it was Doraemon; if the Rat Talisman allowed Ye Xuan to use its items without restriction, that would be terrifying.

The fact that the Rat Talisman could only animate one item at a time was simply too limiting—if it could manifest two, Ye Xuan wouldn’t be this passive.

But this was merely because Ye Xuan’s desire to strengthen himself was too urgent.

In fact, this so-called “limit” could be broken over time even without facing death-threatening battles, guided by the Hōgyoku; it was merely that the speed would accelerate dramatically under the threat of death.

Ye Xuan currently did not lack time, given that the power of the Rat Talisman was already in place—no stronger human or mutated beast would emerge for a long time under the threat of a nation-destroying force.

His obsession with increasing his strength stemmed only from the belief that the Rat Talisman’s power was external, and he wished to elevate his own strength to match it.

“As for humans, aside from Zhong Lao, there is no opponent who can make me go all out—I must even consciously hold back to avoid killing them.”

“I’ll go hunt some mutated beasts instead—perfect for replenishing ingredients.”

Humans were of no concern: among known strong ones, no one besides Zhong Lao could threaten him, and in combat he had to deliberately restrain himself to avoid killing them;

As for unknown strong ones, even the Tian Shu Bureau had no information on them—Ye Xuan had no way of knowing.

So mutated beasts were Ye Xuan’s best choice.

After all, they were a future opposing race; the more he killed, the better—his flesh could be used for cooking; if he happened to acquire a Multiverse treasure from a mutated beast, he’d even feel a bit of delight.

The only problem now was where to hunt mutated beasts.

“The Mist Veil Mountains can be ruled out—almost all the stronger mutated beasts there have already been hunted down.”

“Moreover, they instinctively recognize my aura; the moment I enter their scent range, they flee without hesitation, with no thought of resistance.”

Ye Xuan had visited Hangcheng’s Nature Reserve many times; aside from the week he went with Lin Miao, whenever he ran low on ingredients, he’d go in to replenish.

So nearly all mutated beasts with strong spiritual energy had already been hunted—what remained were only ordinary ones, useless for his purposes.

He needed a place completely unfamiliar with his aura, and with far more mutated beasts.

Distance was no concern—he had the Emperor Steed and could travel anywhere on Blue Star at will.

“The Yunmeng Marsh and Shennongjia in Jingchu, the Kunlun Mountains on the Xiqiang Plateau, the Changbai Mountains in the northern snowfields, the Hengduan Mountains in southern Sichuan, the Taklamakan Desert in the Western Desert.”

Great Xia had many mountains and swamps, so Ye Xuan had no shortage of options—but too many choices could also be a nuisance.

Yet Ye Xuan did not hesitate long; he quickly decided on his choice—Kunlun!

The Kunlun Mountains stretch across the Xiqiang Plateau, about 2,500 kilometers east to west, averaging 130–200 kilometers north to south, with a total area of roughly 500,000 square kilometers;

Glaciers cover about 12,000 square kilometers, their meltwater forming eighteen major rivers with a combined annual runoff of approximately 60 billion cubic meters, while nurturing a high-altitude lake system spanning 3,200 square kilometers.

This vast land harbors countless biological resources and is among the most biodiverse regions in Great Xia’s territory.

After the spiritual energy resurgence, it naturally became one of the places with the most mutated lifeforms.

Though other places were no less impressive, as the legendary “Ancestor of All Mountains” in Great Xia’s myths, Ye Xuan was genuinely more interested in Kunlun than anywhere else.

Having made his decision, Ye Xuan no longer hesitated—he took out the Rat Talisman and manifested the Emperor Armor.

Golden light flashed; components—the dragon-shaped chestplate, eagle-wing armguards, tiger-head shoulder guards—emerged one by one, fully arming him in an instant; as the crimson visor ignited, Ye Xuan twisted the wheel beside his waist.

“Emperor Steed!”

With a roar like a dragon’s cry, a dazzling golden motorcycle materialized out of thin air—its sleek lines sharp as blades, its dragon-head front exquisitely lifelike, white-gold wing-like side panels extending outward.

Ye Xuan picked up Doraemon from the nearby cabinet, mounted the Emperor Steed, turned the throttle gently, and the engine let out a low growl as the bike shimmered with faint light.

“Departure—Kunlun.”

As his words ended, a black wormhole appeared before the Emperor Steed; Ye Xuan drove into it instantly, teleporting from inside the villa directly to a thousand meters above ground.

When the golden motorcycle reappeared, it had become a streak of light hurtling toward the heavens, its engine roaring like a dragon, its body blazing with brilliant golden radiance.

Mountains and rivers below receded at breakneck speed; within minutes, the towering Kunlun Mountains came into view.

Although the Shadow Steed could surpass the speed of light, that was the true Shadow Steed—what Ye Xuan manifested certainly hadn’t reached that level.

The Rabbit Talisman, though shown in the anime to traverse time and space, only achieved that after being struck by an ion wave—under normal conditions, it was merely supersonic, perhaps approaching it, but never reaching it.

The Holy Lord was the same.

The Emperor Steed slowed and finally hovered one hundred meters above Kunlun’s main peak; Ye Xuan gazed down at the endless snow-capped peaks, feeling spiritual energy several times denser than in Hangcheng, a faint smile touching his lips.

“Hunting begins.”

Ye Xuan leapt from a hundred meters above, the Emperor Armor reflecting dazzling golden light; with a deafening crash, his feet slammed into the snow, blasting a three-meter-wide crater into the ground, the shockwave hurling snow into the air and exposing the frozen earth beneath.

(End of Chapter)