Chapter 518: Shen Zongzhu Observes the Mountain

Given that the Seven Disciples of Yu Nanhong have had little contact with the outside world for so many years, calling them ignorant is not an exaggeration.

Yet even so, the several Dao Disciples immediately understood what mountain Yan Chongzhang was referring to.

Because that mountain had existed for such an incredibly long time, it likely stood there even before Hongze appeared.

The Banshan Sect did not give it a name, simply calling it "The Mountain."

The founding ancestor felt unqualified to bestow a title upon it, because the entire sect itself existed only because of its presence.

Other powers, for the sake of distinguishing it from other mountain ranges, called it the Nameless Mountain.

Rumor has it that the Nameless Mountain harbors Immortal Arts, which only those with great perseverance and exceptional talent can comprehend.

The reason it remains a rumor is that, to this day, this so-called Immortal Art has yet to emerge.

Others did not suspect the Banshan Sect of hoarding it.

Such a precious thing, its effects can be imagined; if it truly existed, the Banshan Sect would long ago have been a power of a different level.

What the Dao Disciples of Yu Nanhong did not expect was that, even now, the Banshan Sect's Dao Disciples still maintained the habit of observing the mountain.

Bai Wu glanced sideways at Yang Yunheng, then withdrew his gaze thoughtfully.

From the reaction of this Great Elder, even if the Nameless Mountain held no Immortal Art, it certainly hid something else.

"What do you wish to say?"

Yan Chongzhang looked at the Great Elder with slight confusion.

Inviting cultivators from other powers to observe the mountain together was not a rare occurrence within the Banshan Sect; after all, the things inside, unless one was a Body Tempering cultivator, could only be admired as a wonder.

"No... nothing."

Yang Yunheng's expression was complex; his own Dao Disciple had already issued the words, and there was no reason to take them back lightly.

He simply had not yet had the chance to report back to the other party, but among these guests from Yu Nanhong, there was indeed a quite capable Body Tempering cultivator.

Very well, it is just a glance; can one really see a flower from it?

There was no need to be so vigilant.

Moreover, even if that black-robed youth really saw something...

Thinking of this, Yang Yunheng's face suddenly brightened considerably; he knew well how great an allure the thing hidden in the mountain was for a Body Tempering cultivator.

If the other party tasted the sweetness and wished to continue looking, then matters of recruitment could be discussed.

"Since there is nothing else, let all of you follow me, Yan."

Yan Chongzhang had clearly realized something but said nothing more; he casually brushed his robes, turned, and walked ahead to lead the way.

To be honest, these cultivators of the Banshan Sect not only maintained that touch of the Jianghu in their attire and appearance, but even in their gestures and steps they did not seem like cultivators; such a towering mountain range, yet they intended to descend it step by step.

【27】 Wei Yuanzhou and others were somewhat unaccustomed, but they put away their teleportation techniques and followed slowly behind.

Wei Yuanzhou and the others were somewhat unaccustomed, but they put away their displacement technique and followed slowly behind.

They were not very interested in observing the mountain, but since they had urgent matters in West Hong this time, understanding the situation of the Banshan Sect better would prevent them from bumping around like headless flies.

"Daoist Yan, what about that Liangdaohuang Sect from before?"

"..."

Yan Chongzhang fell silent for a moment, did not turn cold, and smiled with slight weariness: "I heard they saw something on their stele, but the specifics are unknown; it was only about a year or so ago. Given their power, once they issued their words, we could not well refuse to save face for them."

Actually, inferring according to a normal person's mindset.

Even if the Liangdaohuang Sect was extremely powerful, they would absolutely not dare to provoke the anger of all and truly place themselves at the eye of the storm.

After all, their main opponent was still the North Long Gong, a family with great wealth and influence.

But there are exceptions to everything.

What if they made a move to kill the chicken to scare the monkey; no one would wish to be that wrongly killed chicken.

Moreover, this group's actions were indeed generous enough.

"So if you have come to request aid, you might as well stay at the Banshan Sect for a while; even our sect is in this state, let alone other sects..."

Yan Chongzhang shook his head: "When there is news, I will inform all of you as much as possible."

His words seemed somewhat arrogant, but they were not empty boasting.

Current West Hong, though much more prosperous than Yu Nanhong, has only sixteen or seventeen giants at the He Dao realm.

Plus, the situation is completely different from Yu Nanhong.

Many giants have established their own mountain gates, and they are not exactly harmonious with one another.

Unlike Yu Nanhong, where the Seven Disciples are of one breath and branch, and under their intimidation, other powers such as the Bao Hua Sect are implicitly attached to the Seven Disciples.

In West Hong... no, one should say in Hongze, when sects fight each other, it may even be more ruthless than between cultivators and demons.

Giants at the He Dao realm have not failed to perish.

For instance, the cluster of He Dao treasure lands of the Liangdaohuang Sect were not all developed by them slowly over time.

Raising one's own power to form a contract with Heaven and Earth is not as convenient as directly seizing someone else's.

In any case, the total number remains unchanged; when one He Dao giant perishes, another cultivator from Bai Yujing immediately takes his place, without affecting the standoff situation with the Long Gong.

It is merely a matter of the sect changing its title.

"Then you really have to rely on luck to slowly search for those demon prodigies?"

Wei Yuanzhou frowned; this was not a good sign.

The West Long Gong clearly had the capacity to help the South Long Gong only because it discovered the actions of the Liangdaohuang Sect; no wonder they acted so boldly and carelessly, unconcerned about problems arising within their own domain.

But for the Seven Disciples of Yu Nanhong.

The Long Gong has already taken up a formation, yet they now seem unable to respond effectively.

Truly relying on their own six Shen Zongzhu and the other He Dao elders to fight against the two Dragon Palaces... the family assets painstakingly accumulated would likely be shattered by more than half, and the chances of victory are extremely limited.

"I can understand the Daoist's thoughts."

Yan Chongzhang stopped his steps and closed his eyes: "I am indeed somewhat tired."

When those eyes opened again, a restless intensity had surged within: "Since they want something better, I do not mind fighting for it, as long as they can pay the price."

"There are many good things around Banshan Sect, but they are a bit hard to crack."

A demon or monster that even the Dao Son of Banshan Sect finds formidable cannot be considered a minor power anywhere.

Wei Yuanzhou and the others exchanged glances, secretly forming a plan.

"..."

Shen Yi quietly followed behind the group, silently memorizing all this information.

Demons and monsters are ownerless things; if the Liangdaohuang Sect can fight for them, I certainly can too.

Although in this place of West Hong, without the reputation of the Seven Sons of South Hong, there are fewer conveniences, but likewise, there are fewer worries.

One must simply be even more cautious and careful when acting.

If something goes wrong in West Hong, there is no chance to flee back to the safe haven of South Yang.

I originally thought that with the assistance of Senior Xuan Qing's purple qi, plus a full eleven layers of Heavenly Palaces, such a rich foundation, within Bai Yujing, I should count as an extremely excellent existence.

I never expected that just coming out would open my eyes.

The methods of that Liangdaohuang Palace earlier were not particularly domineering, but extremely bizarre; Shen Yi could not even capture the aura of the opponent's true body, could not even see the person, and no matter how strong the Formless Palm was, it had no place to be used.

It is still a bit too specialized; facing these evil methods, it feels somewhat strained.

Shen Yi pondered, then suddenly raised his head.

In his line of sight, a plain and unremarkable mountain peak had appeared at some unknown time; it was not steep, and compared to the other mountain ranges, it looked slightly low, like a young child standing next to a strong man.

But for some reason, it could inexplicably attract attention.

Shen Yi looked closely twice, then suddenly realized where this feeling came from: that was the Liangdaohuang Palace earlier, the figure on the meditation cushion, and that painting of Jiangshan were all similarly out of place.

The mountain before his eyes similarly did not belong to this place.

"Little brother has good eyes."

Yan Chongzhang turned to look at Shen Yi, but did not notice that as soon as he uttered this address, the faces of the other three Dao Sons became slightly strange.

"This mountain indeed is not part of the He Dao treasure land; it was forcibly moved in by our sect's founder after achieving He Dao, consuming a full eighteen thousand years."

"Counting through the entire Hong Ze, I'm afraid no one can make a contract with heaven and earth to obtain ownership of this mountain."

"Please follow me!"

Even though Yan Chongzhang had roughly guessed Yang Yunheng's concerns earlier, at this moment he still extended his hand to invite them openly and generously.

This included his character of speaking once and meaning it, but also inevitably carried some other factors.

Since Yan Chongzhang entered the Soul Transformation realm, he has been observing this mountain; now he has opened three cities of the realm, consuming at least fifty or sixty thousand years, and the harvest can only be described as barely adequate.

But it was precisely this barely adequate harvest that established his Dao Son position as stable as a rock.

Yan Chongzhang did not return at the right time; he did not know what happened within the sect that made Elder Yang almost lose his composure in front of these distinguished guests and also wanted to stop him.

But I suppose the problem should not be too big.

"This is the Nameless Mountain."

Bai Wu also put away his usual sarcastic tone, looking forward to the low mountain ahead with great longing.

Things like this, born before Hong Ze, every single one is worth treating seriously.

Under Yan Chongzhang's lead, the group quickly walked along a mountain path to the front of that low mountain; when they, having obtained permission, gently touched the rough mountain wall with their palms.

Wei Yuanzhou raised his eyes slightly, Su Hongxiu lightly tapped twice with her fingertips, and Bai Wu shook his head.

Indeed, there is a reason why this treasure mountain has always belonged to Banshan Sect.

Ordinary people really cannot discover the mystery within.

It is not to say they were disappointed; after all, this stone wall that seems to have no abnormalities has experienced years far beyond ordinary people's imagination; being able to touch it with one's own hands is also a special experience.

Su Hongxiu's feeling was obviously different from the others.

Perhaps the people of Banshan Sect do not know even now that if Shen Yi had not acted earlier, even without opening Xiancheng, she would not have feared those few people.

Although the Reincarnation Sword Body is not for killing, her body-refining realm is far superior to those few direct disciples.

However, Su Hongxiu still withdrew her hand.

The heavy meaning contained within this mountain body conflicts with her sharpness.

If the sword is too heavy, it is not light and quick enough.

This method does not suit her; there is no need to force it.

"No wonder she is the Dao Son of Tianjian Sect; she always knows exactly what she wants."

Yan Chongzhang sighed softly, inevitably feeling a bit more appreciation for this woman whose appearance was no worse than many Baohua Xianzi, yet who kept a cold, pretty face and did not hide her sharpness at all.

When the Seven Sons of South Hong were born back then, Tianjian Sect only needed to bear the responsibility of killing; through all the changes of the world, it never changed, never bothering with other things.

This Tianjian Dao Son before us, however, inherits the lineage, quite having the style of the predecessors; who knows how firm her Dao heart is.

Moreover, with just a light touch, she could distinguish the mystery of the Nameless Mountain, which is enough to show how deep her attainment in body-refining is.

"Tsk."

Yang Yunheng couldn't help but raise an eyebrow; earlier he was too busy paying attention to that ink-robed young man and almost overlooked this Tianjian Dao Son.

The Seven Sons of South Hong have not appeared for many years; just as they have come out, they are somewhat surprising.

By the way, where is that ink-robed young man?

Thinking of this, Elder Yang instinctively turned to look back, but saw Shen Yi standing with hands hanging by his sides, standing not far away, with no intention of approaching further.

Seeing this, he was stunned for a moment.

I didn't see it coming; this young friend is quite aware of when to advance and retreat; he probably saw the taboos of Banshan Sect; even facing the temptation of the Nameless Mountain, he could remain true to his original heart.

"What is your honorable surname, Daoist friend?" Yan Chongzhang also noticed the anomaly.

"No need for honorifics, Shen." Shen Yi gazed calmly at that mountain.

"Daoist Shen, why not reach out and try?" Yan Chongzhang invited again; he did not want others to think he was a hypocritical villain who says one thing and means another.

Wei Yuanzhou and Bai Wu also turned to look; they were also very curious whether Shen Zongzhu could detect the mystery of this Nameless Mountain.

Su Hongxiu didn't pay it much mind; whether one could attain enlightenment wasn't the issue—after all, such things couldn't be accomplished overnight. Simply sensing this nameless mountain, if she could do it, then Shen Yi certainly could. But since the other cultivated the same Sword Body, he likely also strongly resisted this weighty essence.

At that moment, she turned back in surprise.

She saw Shen Yi still gazing at the mountain, slightly shaking his head: "Wait a moment—I'm not ready yet."

"Ready?"

Bai Wu reached out again and patted the mountain wall, puzzled—what was there to prepare for? Just touching this nameless mountain wouldn't bite.

Wei Yuanzhou's attention, however, fixed on the two from Banshan Sect.

"..."

Yang Yunheng's corner of the eye twitched slightly, as if recalling something wildly absurd.

Yan Chongzhang stood silent in place, his piercing eyes locked tightly on Shen Yi's Bai Xi face, his breathing heavy with tension.

He had just said "observe the mountain."

"Observe" meant no physical action.

Of course, this didn't mean merely looking with one's eyes—it meant establishing some connection with the nameless mountain while observing.

This was not something one could achieve upon first seeing the nameless mountain. Even in his own youth, he had carefully caressed the mountain wall for three full days before growing slightly familiar with it—and only then had he begun true observation.

And now Shen Yi said he needed to prepare...

This could only mean one thing.

That the moment he saw the nameless mountain, he had already established a connection and sensed its trials!

Yan Chongzhang's eyes narrowed slightly, and at last he looked toward Yang the Elder.

He now finally understood what his Grand Elder feared.

But after a moment's hesitation, Yan Chongzhang stepped aside and said softly: "The first observation is crucial. Don't rush. Take your time... but don't be overly cautious either. When you can no longer bear it, you'll be expelled automatically. At worst, your soul will feel weak—no serious consequences."

After speaking, he turned to Yang Yunheng and ordered: "Go fetch the soul-nourishing treasure pill. Bring the kind I use daily."

Yang the Grand Elder's face stiffened slightly.

Great. Not only must he let outsiders see the nameless mountain, now he had to give away such a precious treasure pill.

He wasn't stingy with things.

But if he treated Shen Xiao so well now, how much more would he have to pay later to recruit him?

But the Daozi's command ranked just below the Zongzhu's.

And though Yan Daozi had excellent character, he wasn't some fool who gave away his own treasures to outsiders.

Probably just this once.

"I'll go right away."

Yang Yunheng strode directly into the air, leaving only the group staring at each other.

"Can he see things we can't?" Bai Wu widened his eyes, straining to discern something from the mountain wall—until Wei Yuanzhou yanked him back.

From Yan Chongzhang's shifting expression, Wei Yuanzhou could easily deduce that Shen Zongzhu had likely touched upon Banshan Sect's true secret.

He just didn't know how much benefit Shen Zongzhu would gain from it.

Thinking of this, even Wei Yuanzhou's composure couldn't help but be shaken.

This was too terrifying. With such talent, one truly walked everywhere with treasures scattered at every step—no wonder he could remain so calm...

If this got out, every major sect would watch Shen Zongzhu like a thief, fearing their cultivation methods would be stolen.

"Huh."

Shen Yi exhaled softly, feeling others had misunderstood something.

He had indeed seen the mystery of the nameless mountain at a glance—but only because he'd immersed himself in body tempering for so long, it had become instinct. Plus, the mountain's very nature... truly resembled his own panel's simulations.

Impossible not to recognize.

It seemed to contain another world, one permitting only the soul to sink in.

Shen Yi's "preparation" was simply that he'd suddenly realized he couldn't bring his demon soul inside—he was still trying.

To rely solely on himself to attain enlightenment...

Never mind. Even without demon soul crystals, he'd walked this path before—and had even unlocked the Subduing Demon True Yang Blade. Who didn't have some talent?

【Remaining Demon Soul Lifespan: 1,180,000 years】

Shen Yi glanced at the demon soul lifespan on his panel, his confidence rising.

Fortunately, he'd had some left after opening two cities, and had gained more from the Long Gong emissary.

Now that he'd seen a treasure mountain with his own eyes, how could he not enter and take a look?

With this thought, Shen Yi sat cross-legged, finally ceasing resistance to the nameless mountain's pull, the brilliance in his eyes slowly fading.

Watching this, Yan Chongzhang nearly couldn't resist wiping his forehead—if not for the need to preserve some dignity before these esteemed guests.

To sink one's soul into the mountain on the first observation—and so smoothly... Thank heavens he'd only agreed to one viewing. If he'd let this man observe endlessly, in just twenty or thirty thousand years, the cultivation method he'd painstakingly uncovered would become the collection of the Seven Sons of Nan Hong.

Thinking of this,

Yan Chongzhang forced a strained smile toward the others: "Though I've made no progress in years, I've never abandoned the habit of observing the mountain. Perhaps I'm still unwilling to give up, pinning hope on some elusive fortune, praying for a sudden awakening... Forgive my foolishness. Please, make yourselves at home."

With that, he sat down as well.

His once-familiar soul-sinking now felt unsettled—he needed time to steady himself.

The Seven Sons of Nan Hong did not leave.

Bai Wu and Wei Yuanzhou wanted to know what lay inside—whether it was the legendary Immortal Art—and how much Shen Zongzhu could perceive.

Su Hongxiu recalled Bai Wu's earlier words—that Shen Zongzhu, relying on his talent, acted without restraint. She'd been displeased then, but now she found herself somewhat agreeing.

How arrogant must one be to completely disregard method conflicts, wanting to see everything, learn everything?

Could one even learn it all?

Before her thought had fully faded, she suddenly saw Yan Chongzhang tremble slightly—his soul-sinking had failed.

The reason was that this disciple of the Banshan Sect had suddenly noticed a bead of sweat oozing from Shen Yi's forehead.

That bead of sweat slid down his handsome face and drifted lightly to the ground.

To Yan Chongzhang's eyes, it was heavier than a mountain!

He not only entered, but actually attained enlightenment?!

What kind of joke is this?

Only he, who had experienced it firsthand, understood just how terrifying this was.

That old bastard Yang Yunheng—what kind of demon did he bring in?!

(End of Chapter)