Chapter 67: Snow Mountain, Long Time No See

Chapter Sixty-Seven: Snowy Mountain, It’s Been a Long Time (Fourth update—please subscribe!)

Last night, the intelligence division scattered outside the Spirit Realm dispatched three messenger disciples to deliver an urgent report back to Spirit Realm KAN.

Once again, the upper echelons of the Spirit Realm, including Hua Queyue, spent a sleepless night. The unfolding events had far surpassed anyone’s expectations.

According to the intelligence, seven days prior, the Xuanwu Divine Tortoise surfaced in the Southern Wilds and was seized by the Beast Sect. That very night, the Beast Sect launched a surprise attack against the Nan Feng Clan, openly announcing their break from the Alliance and their allegiance with the Demon Clan.

Although the Nan Feng Clan had been on guard, they never anticipated such decisive betrayal from the Beast Sect, and thus suffered heavy losses. Fortunately, as a top-tier sect with deep foundations, after the initial panic and shock, the Nan Feng Clan quickly demonstrated the strength befitting their status, managing to regain partial control of the situation. The Beast Sect’s advance from the Southern Wilds into the Central Plains was halted. However, this meant that the logistics and supplies originally under the Nan Feng Clan’s purview could no longer be guaranteed. Countless soldiers and cultivators at the frontlines, locked in direct conflict with the Demon Clan, now faced the grave danger of supply shortages.

Another piece of intelligence revealed that, almost simultaneously with the Beast Sect’s rebellion, the Demon Clan also took action. Having been stalemated with the Allied Human Army for so long, the territory under demon control had been stripped bare of food. Confronted with a choice between a desperate advance or a full retreat to their own lands, the Demon Clan made a wild gamble: dispatching an elite corps to ascend Mount Maze from the east—territory formerly controlled by the Sword Sect—in a bid to join forces with their reserves and strike directly at the Spirit Realm.

Currently, eighty percent of the Spirit Realm’s forces were already deployed to the front. According to the original plan, Ling Youzi would soon head to the frontlines to support the other four elders, Tianxing would continue his covert investigation into the mysterious Paradise Organization, Jin Buhuan would remain to hold the Spirit Realm, and Hua Queyue, injured, would recuperate. Thus, there simply were no spare hands or strength to spare.

The western road, traditionally defended by the Spirit Realm, only required a handful of disciples to hold the array due to the terrain—a single man could stand against ten thousand demons. But now, with the Demon Clan planning to attack via Mount Maze, a powerful combat team had to be dispatched to block this demon army.

Mount Maze was the most perilous terrain in the world. Ordinary armies could never hope to fight there, and even ordinary demon beasts would find their combat abilities greatly diminished. Therefore, the demon force planning to cross Mount Maze was undoubtedly composed of elite beasts, perhaps even led by demon kings.

As for the Spirit Realm, they had no choice now but to rely on this group of transmigrators. They were the last and only hope.

Admittedly, even combined, these transmigrators could not compare to Ling Youzi, Tianxing, or even Jin Buhuan and a healthy Hua Queyue. But with the Alliance’s first secret counterattack battle imminent, Ling Youzi had to participate. The Paradise Organization’s power and influence were simply too vast and had to be investigated as quickly as possible. The Spirit Realm needed at least one top-tier stronghold. With Hua Queyue wounded, only Jin Buhuan could hold the fort.

As Jin Buhuan put it during the meeting: now they could only “try desperate measures for a desperate situation” and send these transmigrators to hold back the demon army for as long as possible. If word spread that the Spirit Realm was under attack before the Alliance’s counteroffensive, the morale of the entire army would be shattered. So the transmigrators had to hold the line—at least until the battle began.

Meanwhile, things were equally dire for the Nan Feng Clan. The Beast Sect’s rebellion was long in the making; they had prepared everything but the sacred beast. Now, with the divine beast in their grasp, their power and morale soared, forcing the Nan Feng Clan into a steady retreat.

Though the Nan Feng Clan managed to withstand the assault, their losses were immense. If this continued, defeat would be inevitable. Should the Nan Feng Clan fall, the Allied Army would find itself beset on all sides—a perilous predicament indeed. Thus, they had no choice but to send reinforcements as well.

With fatigue lining his eyes, Hua Queyue explained the severity of the situation and the gravity and importance of the transmigrators’ mission to block the demon army.

“You may choose not to go—that is your right. If you do, humanity in this world will be wiped out. Perhaps a few among you might survive, but you would live like rats in a warehouse, forever burdened by a heavy sense of guilt.”

“At the same time, if you choose to go, I must be honest with you: we have no detailed intelligence on this demon force. No one knows how strong they are, but they must be formidable. Weak demons cannot cross Mount Maze; weak demons could never march there at speed.”

“What I mean is, if you choose to go, I cannot guarantee that all of you will return.”

Having said these words with utmost seriousness, Hua Queyue fell silent, waiting for the transmigrators’ decision.

The room was silent. Everyone understood the gravity of the crisis. No one thought Hua Queyue was joking, and no one would joke with their own life. So they all pondered in silence.

“You say the demon beasts will be strong. Does that mean they’ll all have demon cores?” Zhou Yu broke the silence with his question.

Hua Queyue sighed softly, giving Zhou Yu a grateful look before replying, “Yes, these beasts will all have demon cores. Consuming them will make you stronger—there’s no doubt about that. In other words, each beast you slay, each demon core you consume, will make you stronger and better able to slay the next one.”

“Also, if you choose to go, all resources of the Spirit Realm will be at your disposal. We will do everything possible to guarantee your supplies and safety.”

“I’ll go!” Abu Li suddenly spoke up. “I want to go home, so I must go—defeat the demons and gain strength!”

Jack shrugged, stuck out his tongue at Zhou Yu, stepped forward with a righteous air, and declared, “For all humanity.”

One after another, several transmigrators stepped forward, though more remained hesitant.

Hua Queyue sighed, deeply conflicted—regretting that he’d told them the truth, yet feeling he’d done the right thing. He looked at the dozen or so who had volunteered and reminded them again, “I’ve said it before: I can’t guarantee you’ll all come back.”

“Sir! We know the way home ourselves!” Zhou Yu suddenly shouted, striding forward boldly.

As if infected by Zhou Yu’s spirited enthusiasm, several more transmigrators stepped forward.

Turning to those still wavering, Zhou Yu shouted with all his might:

“Fight, and you may die; run, and at least you can eke out an existence, year after year, until the end of your days. But are you willing to trade all those years of cowardly survival for a single chance—a single chance!—to return to the battlefield and tell the enemy: they may take our lives, but they will never take our freedom!”

This classic line ignited the courage in the transmigrators’ hearts, and one by one, more people stepped forward.

Jack muttered under his breath, “It’s not exactly the situation, but it fired everyone up.”

Zhou Yu continued, shouting, “I think you all know, all understand—ten years—no, nine and a half years from now, Earth will suffer catastrophic destruction. Only we can save Earth, save all humanity, and prevent the disaster! Is this the moment, in the face of these insignificant demon beasts, that you, bearers of such glorious destiny, will begin to retreat?”

“If you shrink back now, I promise, you’ll live—but you’ll never get home! Never return to Earth! And those we love, and who love us, will fall into doom because of your retreat and your cowardice. Is that the outcome you want?”

“No!” the transmigrators shouted in unison.

“We are men who would be kings—how can we retreat?” Zhou Yu roared.

“To be kings!” they all answered.

“Tell me—will we survive?”

“We will!”

“Tell me—will we make it back alive?”

“We definitely will!”

“Tell me—will we return alive and save the world?”

“We will! We will! We will!”

“Tell me—will you ever retreat, ever choose cowardice?”

“Never! Never! Never!”

“Now, tell me: should we take that so-called demon army of lowly beasts and reptiles as the very first stepping stone on our journey to save the world?”

“Yes! Yes! Yes!”

“And finally—tell me, with all your might—what should we do now?”

After a brief silence, the crowd erupted with thunderous cries.

“Kill! Kill! Kill!”

As night fell, the echoes of those midday battle cries seemed to linger throughout the Spirit Realm.

Tianxing and Ling Youzi sat together on a grassy knoll, gazing at the outline of Mount Maze in the darkness. Sharing a jug of old wine in the evening breeze, Tianxing passed the flask to Ling Youzi, rubbing his round belly and saying, “That was a bit unexpected.”

“Indeed, there’s a kingly aura about him,” Ling Youzi replied after a gulp of wine. “Youth is truly a wonderful thing.”

The old man stared at the empty house. Zhou Yu had already left, but the memory of Zhou Yu’s smiling promise to return soon, urging him to stay well in the Spirit Realm, brought tears streaming down his cheeks.

All feasts must come to an end.

Packing his belongings, the old man recalled every moment with Zhou Yu—from his initial intent to use Zhou Yu to catch the demon fox, to their eventual mutual trust, their battle with the Celestial Wolf King, watching Zhou Yu ambushed by Zuo Hao, seeing Zhou Yu endure immense pain to train relentlessly, and even helping Zhou Yu open his meridians.

Stepping outside, the old man gently closed the door of the house he’d shared with Zhou Yu for over three months. He stood outside for a long time before turning to head into the night, moving toward a part of the Spirit Realm still ablaze with light.

In silence, he accepted the waist token handed him by a disciple and fastened it securely. After ten steps, he received a set of clothes from another disciple. Another ten steps, a bundle of elixirs. Another ten steps, and he entered a vast armory, where he chose a sword even larger than the one he’d had Zhou Yu carry—a massive blade he now slung on his back.

At dawn, the old man had joined a company of itinerant cultivators gathered at the Spirit Realm gates. He glanced back toward Mount Maze and whispered, “Farewell, my disciple.”

This party would journey far to the Southern Wilds.

At the head of another group, Zhou Yu and Hua Queyue led the transmigrators toward Mount Maze. They had marched all night, aided by Wind Talismans provided by the Nan Feng Clan, and arrived at the mountain’s foot before dawn.

When they had last descended, the grass was just sprouting and the peach blossoms were in full bloom. Now, the entire base of Mount Maze was a lush green, the branches that had once borne beautiful pink flowers now heavy with ripe, fragrant peaches.

Zhou Yu gazed up at the mountain, its peak lost in the clouds, and murmured, “Snowy Mountain, it’s been a long time.”

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