Chapter 313: The Master of the Immortal Mountain

"I wonder if Fellow Daoist Ye's ancestor has arrived here?"

Without waiting for the young woman to speak, Zhang Nuo asked.

"The ancestor has already arrived, but he is not here!"

Caught off guard by Zhang Nuo's question, the young woman reacted quickly and immediately guessed his thoughts; it seemed the timing for her to win Zhang Nuo over was not yet ripe! With a slight shift in her thoughts, she dismissed the idea.

The only ancestor of the Ye Family that Zhang Nuo knew of was Ye Bufan, and he did not know the specific details. Now that he had no major backing on the Xianhuan Continent, he could not afford to offend anyone from any side; maintaining neutrality was the only way to preserve himself.

"I just learned at the tavern that the Chen Jie Xian Shan has been occupied. Do you know which sect it belongs to?"

Zhang Nuo was genuinely concerned about this matter. Being able to guard an Xian Mountain under the noses of numerous factions was no easy feat! It was enough to prove their strength!

"It is the Su Family from the Central Continent. This family has always been known for their arrays, but I don't know where they obtained a powerful spirit beast called a 'Ferocious Spirit'! Borrowing the power of this beast, they repelled many cultivators who tried to seize the Xian Mountain! After they took over the Xian Mountain, the Su Family's various complex arrays were set up almost overnight; even if several Nascent Soul Stage cultivators joined forces, they would be helpless! I heard that the Su Family recently found the location of the Purple Mansion Immortal Cave and is currently working on breaking the Cave Abode's Restriction!"

A faint bitter smile appeared on Ye Yuemiao's beautiful face; she also envied the Su Family's divine abilities! Upon hearing this, Zhang Nuo showed no reaction on the surface, but he was astonished inwardly! He had not expected Su Haizhen's family to be so powerful that they could be the first to occupy an Xian Mountain. At this rate, once the Purple Mansion Immortal Cave was opened, their future prospects would be limitless!

As for that 'Ferocious Spirit Beast', Zhang Nuo was even more familiar with it; he had even contributed a bit to the Su Family's successful capture of the beast back then!

Seeing that Zhang Nuo had remained silent, Ye Yuemiao's lively eyes turned, and seemingly guessing something in her heart, she smiled faintly:

"Does Fellow Daoist Zhang happen to know some expert from the Su Family?"

"Hehe! Fellow Daoist Ye is joking. I am merely a Foundation Establishment cultivator; how could I know anyone from the Su Family?"

With a laugh, Zhang Nuo covered up the matter.

"Since that is the case, if you have nowhere to go for the time being, Fellow Daoist, you are welcome to stay here with me!"

"Then I shall trouble Fellow Daoist Ye!"

Almost without any consideration, Zhang Nuo agreed immediately, which greatly exceeded Ye Yuemiao's expectations. As long as she could keep Zhang Nuo here, it was a good start! Distance tests a horse's strength, and time reveals a person's heart; perhaps through long-term interaction, Zhang Nuo would gradually feel the strength of the Ye Family and join them.

Zhang Nuo had other plans in mind. First, he had just come out of Jian Moli's underground Cave Abode and did not know the details of outside affairs; learning more about the actual situation would do no harm! Second, the Ye Family was a massive clan; if he refused easily, it would greatly lower Ye Yuemiao's favor toward him! Who knew what might happen in the future? Perhaps one day, he would have a use for the Ye Family!

The two got what they wanted and hit it off immediately. That very day, Zhang Nuo moved into the third floor of the small building! Over the next few days, he wandered around this temporary encampment and truly heard some useful information.

The piece of information that interested him most was that a group from the Nanxuan Sect was continuing to head deep into the Xianhuan Continent in search of an Xian Mountain where they could establish a foothold. At the same time, many other factions were developing mineral veins around the continent!

In just over a dozen years, sects from various continents were spreading their influence deep into the Xianhuan Continent!

"Nanxuan old dog! I hope you don't die just yet! You must wait for me to slaughter you with my own hands!"

Gritting his teeth, Zhang Nuo cursed angrily in his heart. Just then, a clamor suddenly erupted outside the encampment!

"It seems something has happened!"

"Hurry over and take a look!"

"Could it be that more spirit beasts have come?"

The voices of several nearby cultivators reached Zhang Nuo's ears. He raised his eyebrows slightly; since he had nothing to do anyway, he walked toward the gate of the encampment!

When he was still over a mile away from the gate, he heard the sound of 'Boom—' explosions echoing incessantly! At the same time, the light screen shrouding the encampment emitted waves of tremors, and five-colored rays of light spread rapidly like oil slicks on water.

It seemed something had truly happened. Thinking of this, Zhang Nuo quickened his pace. A moment later, he arrived at the gate, only to see many cultivators gathered there, each with a look of shock, staring intently outside the Restriction.

Outside the Restriction, a spirit beast with a flood dragon's head and a human body was waving its fists, attacking the Restriction with all its might. The booming sounds from earlier had come from it.

When Zhang Nuo's gaze fell upon the spirit beast, his heart suddenly gave a start! This spirit beast was the water flood dragon he had fought on the deserted island!

The water flood dragon came from the Sea Flood Dragon Clan, and Zhang Nuo only learned of its powerful background later, especially that the leader of the Sea Flood Dragon Clan, a spirit beast known as the 'Baijiaowang', had cultivation that had reached the Seventh Rank!

'Boom!'

Another heavy sound came. Zhang Nuo frowned; the encampment's Restriction seemed strong, but it wouldn't be a solution if the spirit beast kept pounding on it like this. To increase the Ye Family's favor toward him, he decided to go out and deal with the water flood dragon!

Thinking of this, his figure flashed, and he rushed directly outside the Restriction. The water flood dragon was attacking the Restriction unscrupulously and did not expect a cultivator to fly out from within. It immediately retreated, its pair of malicious eyes sizing Zhang Nuo up.

The moment Zhang Nuo flew out, Ye Yuemiao, standing at the top of the small building, her figure graceful and her dark hair dancing in the breeze, watched everything with her lively eyes. She did not stop Zhang Nuo; she would use this opportunity to see just how far his divine abilities had improved!

"Hmm! You are..."

The moment the water flood dragon saw Zhang Nuo, it felt this person looked very familiar! But it couldn't remember where it had seen him for a moment!

"Have you forgotten what happened on that deserted island?"

Zhang Nuo stood with his hands behind his back, a faint smile on his face, his tone calm and without a trace of killing intent!

"Deserted island... Roar! So it's you!"

Squinting its eyes, the water flood dragon tried its best to recall the events on the deserted island, then suddenly let out a long howl, and deep within its eyes, intense killing intent erupted!

"That's right, it's me! I wonder why Fellow Daoist Water Flood Dragon is attacking the Restriction here?"

Clearly sensing that the other party wanted to tear him to shreds, Zhang Nuo still spoke calmly.

"Hmph! You lowly humans actually dare to forbid me from entering this place!"

"This is a human encampment; naturally, spirit beasts are not allowed in. You should go find a spirit beast encampment instead!"

Seeing the water flood dragon hopping mad, Zhang Nuo said deliberately.

In fact, generally, only human cultivators would build such encampments; spirit beasts only needed a place to stay! Zhang Nuo said this just to humiliate the spirit beast! Because whenever he heard the words 'lowly human', he felt very unhappy! Humans were the most intelligent of all creatures; being looked down upon by a spirit beast was truly unreasonable!

"You..."

The water flood dragon shook its large head, sprayed two wisps of faint white mist from its nose, and let out an angry roar:

"I didn't manage to slaughter you on the deserted island back then, but today I will swallow you alive!"

The water flood dragon had a violent temper and could not take this; it immediately lunged forward, pouncing toward Zhang Nuo!

"A flood dragon is just a flood dragon! You will never become a dragon! Let me show you what a real dragon is!"

Seeing the water flood dragon charging, Zhang Nuo was not flustered. With a wave of his sleeve, a high-pitched dragon roar rang out, followed by a Silver Dragon flying out from within.

Because the 'Nine Dragon Sword Case' had been repaired with the Black Profound Crystal Stone, the spirit-transformed Flying Sword now looked even more like a real dragon! As its body moved, the dragon's appearance was lifelike!

The Silver Dragon was over a zhang long, charging toward the water flood dragon with bared fangs and brandished claws. At first glance, the water flood dragon thought it was a real dragon! But it soon recognized it; compared to over a dozen years ago, Zhang Nuo's spirit-transformed Flying Sword was even closer to a dragon! Even so, the water flood dragon did not stop.

As it charged, it slammed its hands together. With a soft 'boom', dazzling green light erupted from its two fists, and it threw two punches, colliding directly with the spirit-transformed Flying Sword!

In the water flood dragon's view, Zhang Nuo's Flying Sword had only changed its appearance, and its power should not have increased much; even if it had increased, it could not compare to its own strength. But the moment its fists touched the giant dragon, the water flood dragon's face changed drastically, for it felt a powerful pressure!

'Boom!'

The Silver Dragon did not give the water flood dragon any time to hesitate, blasting its body over twenty zhang away. It then turned and flew back to Zhang Nuo's side. The Silver Dragon did not revert to its original form after this strike! The zhang-long Silver Dragon protected Zhang Nuo within, looking very fierce!

Zhang Nuo stood beneath the giant dragon with a smile on his face, his green robe fluttering in the wind, truly looking somewhat like an expert from beyond the world! In contrast, the Water Flood Dragon was in a rather miserable state!

Steam was rising from its pair of fists, and where they had made direct contact with the giant dragon, the skin and flesh had split into many small gashes, through which white bone could be faintly seen! Had it not been for its formidable physical body, if it were an ordinary cultivator, they would likely have been severely injured long ago!

It looked up at Zhang Nuo with a grave expression; was this still the same cultivator it had encountered on the deserted island before? Had a dozen years or so really allowed him to grow to such a terrifying level? A single strike had been enough to force it back!

The Water Flood Dragon found it hard to believe! It glared at Zhang Nuo with hatred, its body suddenly rolling on the ground, and in an instant, green light enveloped its body. With a strange 'Awoo' cry, the green light dissipated, revealing the Water Flood Dragon's true form! A ferocious green flood dragon, exhaling Spiritual Qi from its mouth, stared at Zhang Nuo ahead with a murderous glint in its eyes!