Chapter 43 – He said, His Name Is Gu Wenzhu
The scenery of Tengxiu Peak was indeed beautiful—layer upon layer of peaks, waters as clear as mirrors, and mountain tips breaking through the clouds like small islands. Milky-white mist clung to the mountain tops, connecting them like strands of silk.
Xia Yi walked leisurely up the stone steps, admiring the strange trees and plants along the way. Cheng Ming followed behind him, still dazed from the overwhelming sight of the Tianling Fruit pile.
Suddenly, the sound of a woman’s voice scolding playfully came from up ahead. A large swarm of colorful butterflies burst from the bushes, their vibrant wings covering the sky.
Among them flew several women dressed in flowing, light chiffon dresses.
Xia Yi nudged Cheng Ming. “Xiao Ming, is this the beautiful scenery you brought me to see?”
“Hmm?” Cheng Ming snapped out of his daze, absentmindedly following Xia Yi’s gaze.
He gave a half-hearted nod, muttering a couple of vague sounds before staring blankly at a nearby rock. Clearly, his mind was still fixated on the Tianling Fruit.
“179, are these my senior sisters?” Xia Yi noticed Cheng Ming looking distracted and decided to chat with the system.
“Yes, Host. Don’t you feel a bit happier? Look at this azure sky, colorful butterflies, clouds, and beautiful women. It’s like a fairyland. No, it is a fairyland,” 179’s mechanical voice carried a hint of excitement.
It’s okay, but I’d rather watch Brother Zhu farm.
Thinking of Gu Wenzhu brought Xia Yi down again, and he started picking at the bark of a nearby tree.
“No matter how beautiful these senior sisters are, they can’t compare to the charm of Brother Zhu plowing the fields.”
“I really miss him. Hurry and urge your main system to send me back.”
The two attracted the attention of the group of female disciples, who stopped their practice and began whispering among themselves.
“Elder Tianquan has come to watch us practice again, and this time he brought an unfamiliar senior brother.”
“This senior brother is quite handsome.”
“Doesn’t he realize how old he is? Calling him senior brother is pushing it; he could be called a junior nephew.”
“Senior brothers always love watching us practice. Sisters, let’s perform well today and make this first-time visitor dumbfounded.”
“Alright, alright!”
The female disciples covered their mouths and giggled, sneaking glances at Xia Yi, who was still staring down at the tree bark.
“Still shy? So cute.”
Then, the group of heavenly-looking Tengxiu Peak female disciples began an enchanting performance.
They set up mirrors like the Liuhe Mirror and Haotian Mirror, reflecting dazzling rainbow lights. A few mountain spirits were summoned to play music nearby. They donned layers of gauzy fabric, looking increasingly graceful instead of complaining about being cumbersome like at first.
Preparation complete.
Begin!
They made sure to simultaneously launch thousands of colorful butterflies into the air.
Faster, even faster, weave through the air!
Sisters, this is how you dance gracefully.
The entire valley was a spectacle of colors, with celestial music playing and gauzy fabric swirling in the sky.
Meanwhile, on a nearby rock, Cheng Ming and Xia Yi sat, dazed, one looking up at the sky and the other still scratching the tree bark, completely disconnected from the situation.
“179, what if I can’t go back?”
“Don’t worry, Host. Don’t you trust our system’s solid expertise? We’ll definitely fix the glitches quickly and get you home.”
“Right, I should trust you. It’s probably not something you can fix in a short time, so I might be going home soon.”
After hearing this from 179, Xia Yi felt slightly more hopeful, regaining some confidence about going home.
After the female disciples gave it their all in performance, they noticed their two audience members were completely lost in thought. Annoyed, they stopped, rolling their eyes at them before dispersing in frustration.
Are they blind?
Get lost!
“Xiao Ming, let’s head back,” Xia Yi said, bored, as he stood up to call Cheng Ming.
They can dance all they want, but I don’t get why they had to set up mirrors. The light keeps flashing, making it hard to see.
The music was too loud, making it impossible to quietly miss Brother Zhu and sink into his thoughts.
These senior sisters seemed to be making quite a disturbance with their dance.
Not fun at all.
Cheng Ming snapped out of his daze when Xia Yi called him and looked around in confusion. “Aren’t there usually a lot of disciples practicing here? Why is it empty today?”
Xia Yi shot him a strange look. “Didn’t you notice all that noise earlier? What kind of eyesight do you have?”
“Oh, oh, oh,” Cheng Ming nodded absently. “I didn’t pay attention; I was too focused on the Tianling Fruit.”
After that, he fell silent again, staring blankly ahead, a foolish smile on his face.
Xia Yi had to wave his hand in front of Cheng Ming’s eyes, exasperatedly shouting, “Xiao Ming, let’s go back!”
Cheng Ming was jolted awake and quickly composed himself. He summoned the compass, which floated steadily in the air.
As soon as Xia Yi saw that thing, he felt uneasy; he really didn’t want to experience the thrill of bouncing around at ten thousand meters again. He couldn’t help but ask, “Do you have any other magical tools? Something that can fly? I’m not picky, just any shape as long as I can sit safely.”
He thought for a moment and added, “As long as it can stay still.”
“None left. Isn’t this one good enough?”
“I can’t get used to it.” Xia Yi gritted his teeth and began to climb onto the compass, thinking, I have to hold on; otherwise, I won’t get back.
“Why don’t you ride the divine beast?” Cheng Ming looked at him in disbelief. “Aren’t you the one who likes my treasure so much that you prefer riding the compass over the Qilin?”
Who likes this? Who would want to ride this spoon? Wait a minute, does that mean I can ride the Qilin?
“Of course you can ride a divine beast,” Cheng Ming said enviously. “Who wouldn’t want one? Over the years, I’ve only heard that Demon Lord Jieshang has a Qilin. I wonder how it compares to yours.”
After thinking for a moment, he asked with curiosity, “Could yours be Jieshang’s?”
“This Qilin is mine, okay? It’s just a pup; I brought it home when it was little and raised it myself,” Xia Yi said, raising his voice in caution.
Then he turned to call for the Qilin, which had run off somewhere, “Son, son, let’s go back.”
In a bit, they saw the Qilin bouncing back down the mountain path, its tail swinging and sending rocks flying everywhere.
“Good boy, can I ride you back?” When it reached him, Xia Yi stroked its horn and cautiously asked.
Hearing this, the Qilin immediately lowered its front hooves and knelt on the ground, looking at Xia Yi with its golden amber eyes, calm and obedient.
Xia Yi noticed its not-so-large size and confirmed with Cheng Ming again, “I can really ride it? I won’t crush it, right?”
“Don’t worry. With your small frame, even if you brought ten, a hundred, or a thousand more, as long as there’s room to sit, the Qilin can carry you all effortlessly.”
Xia Yi felt a surge of excitement and rubbed his hands together. He had seen videos of people riding pigs in his previous world but had never seen anyone ride a dog.
Well, I won’t hold back!
As Xia Yi climbed onto the Qilin and steadied himself, the Qilin’s luminous hooves began to glow, and it took off smoothly into the air.
The speed increased gradually, providing a very comfortable experience as it started.
Having flown several times before, Xia Yi finally felt the joy of soaring through the sky.
The Qilin flew remarkably steadily, adjusting its flight angle to match Xia Yi’s posture, ensuring he wouldn’t slip off its back.
Gradually, Xia Yi loosened his grip on the Qilin’s neck, relaxing completely and enjoying the scenery below.
“Hahaha! Hahaha!” He laughed wildly above the clouds.
Cheng Ming watched in envy as the Qilin flew towards the main island on its own, feeling like he could cry.
After a short while, the Qilin slowed down, beginning to descend gently. As it sank, it turned its head and let out a soft sound, as if to remind Xia Yi.
“Son, let’s go to Feiyu Island first and drop Xiao Ming off at his home.” Seeing that the landing spot was the main gate of Qishan Island, Xia Yi patted its head and instructed.
The Qilin made another sound in response and then glided toward Feiyu Floating Island.
Cheng Ming watched from behind, nearly in tears.
After dropping the lost Cheng Ming off at his own courtyard, Xia Yi rode the Qilin back toward the main island.
Just as they landed outside the mountain gate, a familiar voice called out from above, “Junior Brother Xia!”
Xia Yi looked up to see a silver UFO.
“Senior Brother Qinghui!” he called back warmly.
Though he couldn’t see Qinghui, the voice sounded somewhat anxious. “Junior Brother Xia, have you seen Elder San?”
Liu Zhiqian? Xia Yi shouted back, “I haven’t seen him. What’s wrong?”
“Someone is destroying Elder San’s medicinal field in Juxia Valley, just at the foot of the mountain,” Qinghui’s voice sounded frantic.
“Ah? Is it someone from the Demon Realm?” Xia Yi asked warily.
In the novels, people from the Demon Realm are often twisted and cruel; it sounded like they were ruining a part of Qishan’s flowers, which might be a deadly poison for them.
Who knows what their reasons are? Maybe they just can’t stand it.
How else could they be called the Demon Realm?
Not hearing Qinghui respond, he probably was shaking his head or nodding.
Then, Qinghui’s voice came again, “I don’t know if they are from the Demon Realm, but when I saw him, he was destroying the field with a hoe.”
“This person has a high level of cultivation. I tried to grab him, but he didn’t budge at all. When I tried to attack, he didn’t retaliate, but my spells hit him like stones sinking in the sea—totally ineffective.”
At this point, Qinghui’s voice became filled with anger. “I know I’m not as skilled, but while using my spells, he mocked me for being weak.”
“That’s outrageous!” Xia Yi felt a flicker of anger. “Ask for his name; get a few elders to stand up for you.”
“I asked. He said his name is Gu Wenzhu.”
What???
“What did you say?” Xia Yi’s heart raced, doubting he hadn’t heard correctly.
“Gu Wenzhu. It seems our sect hasn’t offended anyone by that name; it’s unfamiliar to me.”
Before Qinghui could finish, a dark beast shot past him like an arrow, heading toward the sky, with four glowing fireflies dancing around its feet.
That’s Xia Yi riding on its back!
“What’s wrong with Junior Brother Xia? Why did he leave so suddenly? And what was that he was riding?” Qinghui looked astonished at Xia Yi’s disappearing figure, trying to recall details about the beast he just saw.
Four hooves on fire, horns on its forehead, a horse’s body, dragon scales…
Could it be a Qilin?!
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