Chapter 129. Live Broadcast of the Mount Tai Expedition, Ruins of the Southern Heavenly Gate

Lu Yuan had just alighted from the aircraft, but a crowd immediately surrounded him.

The deans of the other four Aurora Academy branches stood with Zhu Qingyu, Northern Emperor, and Ice Fairy. Even Master Chunyang and Huikong had come.

"Mount Tai is exceedingly dangerous, but it contains golden opportunities for these people," Ji Huaiyuan explained with a smile. "They can help you deal with the weaker mutated beasts at the beginning of the expedition. This can also be considered training for them."

If one wanted to become a powerful Awakened, one needed experience in combat. These youngsters were the future of the nation, and this provided a perfect opportunity to train them.

Mount Tai was too dangerous for these youngsters, but Lu Yuan was here, so he believed nothing would go wrong. Of course, the youngsters would only accompany them partway. Once the danger outpaced their abilities, they would descend rather than become burdens.

Zhu Qingyu and the others faced Lu Yuan and bowed slightly.

Back then, they could treat each other as equals, but now? Not anymore. Lu Yuan was an Unfettered Realm expert who had single-handedly crushed the Southern Sea Kraken. At this point, they could only gaze at his back.

Everyone showed Lu Yuan utmost courtesy; they all respected the powerful.

"It seems the foundations of the top echelons are far deeper than I thought," Lu Yuan mused, shaking his head with a smile. He expected to see Ice Fairy and Northern Emperor here, but to think that Chunyang and Huikong from Mount Jiuhua were also affiliated with the top echelons.

Even with ten years of memories from his previous life, he hadn't known any of this. On reflection, though, it made perfect sense. The top echelons were the top echelons, after all. Without terrifying foundations, how could they reach the apex of the nation?

"Surely you jest, King Lu." Elder Yun said, walking over with a smile. "We've announced that the plan to seize Mount Tai will be broadcast live."

"I know, and it's fine." Lu Yuan nodded.

Dean Zheng had already informed him of the plan, and he had consented. He understood the officials' goal; they needed to show everyone that he, the King of Humanity, would stand with them when it mattered.

This was a deterrent against those with ulterior motives, so Lu Yuan didn't mind it at all. In fact, a powerful deterrent was necessary in the initial stages of the New Era.

Soon, beings from the Outer Cosmos would descend, and responding to such a level of threat demanded powerful leaders, as individuals alone couldn't defeat them.

In Lu Yuan's eyes, the best choice was to let the officials stand at the helm.

"Thank you, King Lu."

Elder Yun exhaled in relief, his mind at ease.

If Lu Yuan were to disagree, the broadcast wouldn't proceed. Even the top echelons had to think about Lu Yuan's feelings.

"Alright, time is short, so let's get down to business." Ji Huaiyuan gathered everyone for a meeting. "Mount Tai has become extremely mysterious and bizarre after the Global Awakening, and it is now teeming with powerful mutated beasts.

"We sent scouts and obtained some valuable intelligence from inside.

"According to the reports, there are ruins of unknown palaces inside, along with an underground palace that can appear out of nowhere. A special energy fluctuation has also been detected from the summit of Mount Tai, and it has attracted numerous mutated beasts.

"We also heard reports of foreign Awakened intruding into Mount Tai, but it can't be helped. Mount Tai is just too big for us to monitor every inch of it.

Ji Huaiyuan proceeded to give everyone a list of the known dangers in Mount Tai, including powerful mutated beasts, foreign Awakened, and the unknown palace ruins.

Of course, the mission itself wasn't that complicated. Their goal was to carve out a path to reach the peak of Mount Tai and deal with the extremely powerful mutated beasts there.

Once those extremely formidable mutated beasts were dealt with, the government could handle the rest.

"There's one more thing," Ji Huaiyuan turned to Lu Yuan, looking solemn as he said, "There's something wrong with Mount Tai's peak, and we can't probe it, but our satellites managed to zoom in close enough to make out some ruins along with some characters that say, 'Southern Heavenly Gate.'"

He had revealed everything the top echelons knew. In his eyes, only Lu Yuan could reach Mount Tai's peak.

"Southern Heavenly Gate? Does the Celestial Court actually exist?" Ice Fairy said, her face filled with astonishment.

As Ji Huaiyuan's junior, she had the freedom to speak. The others also showed shock and curiosity. After all, only the fabled Celestial Court would have a Southern Heavenly Gate.

However, Ji Huaiyuan shook his head, indicating that he didn't know.

In any case, this expedition was going to be far from simple.

"I'm ready on my end. We can begin anytime," Elder Yun said after arranging everything.

The products of the modern era stood behind him, including but not limited to attack helicopters, drones, and fighter jets. There were also quite a few soldiers standing at attention.

With a single command, they could instantly unleash devastation upon their target.

Just then, everyone stared at Lu Yuan, awaiting his next move.

Lu Yuan smiled and turned to Mount Tai. Its peak remained elusive.

Then, without further ado, he said, "Let us begin."

Whiiir!

A myriad of drones took flight, and the government's official livestream went online.

"I can finally see it now! I've been waiting for this!"

"Look! It's King Lu! Northern Emperor and Ice Fairy are with him. They're about to go up!"

"I have a feeling that there's going to be an earth-shaking battle today on Mount Tai."

As soon as the official livestream began, a massive crowd instantly inundated the channel. There was no doubting it; this was the biggest news in recent years, and it definitely deserved everyone's attention.

Everyone had acknowledged Lu Yuan as the King of Humanity, while Mount Tai harbored numerous powerful mutated beasts. With that in mind, everyone believed that they might never witness something like this ever again.

In Hu City, Zhou Yunqiong promptly opened the livestream. Her curiosity about Lu Yuan had intensified, and this offered the perfect opportunity to understand how he had become so powerful.

Lu Yuan led Northern Emperor and over twenty others on their journey up Mount Tai. Elder Yun's group had already formulated a plan, allowing them to make a beeline for their destination.

The moment they walked through the mountain's boundary, they were struck by a peculiar, bone-chilling aura. Zhu Qingyu and the others instantly became wary as they observed their surroundings.

Among them, quite a few had battled mutated beasts before, but the mutated beasts in Mount Tai were a different story altogether.

Above, attack helicopters and drones circled them, providing support while broadcasting the events live as well as relaying to the team what was ahead.

Lu Yuan walked at the helm, extending his senses to detect Mount Tai's mutated beasts. They seemed different from those outside, far surpassing their outside counterparts in strength.

The mutated beasts at the mountain's base, however, posed little threat. They were like experts at the first or second tier of the Foundation Realm. The attack helicopters and drones bombarded them into oblivion.

After all, the goal was to preserve the team's strength for later.

As they gained height, the number of mutated beasts increased.

Zhu Qingyu, Ice Fairy, and the others were eventually forced to fight.

Lu Yuan's gaze remained on Mount Tai's peak. He was reminded of Elder Ji's words about the so-called "Southern Heavenly Gate," and his eyes gleamed as he murmured to himself. "It seems this trip to Mount Tai won't be so easy."

This was his first time climbing Mount Tai. He knew little about it, but his heart was filled with anticipation.

On one hand, he wanted to know just how powerful Mount Tai's strongest beast was, and if it could give him a satisfying battle. On the other hand, he knew that he would surely seize that divine artifact on the summit.

Lu Yuan emptied his mind and looked ahead.

Zhu Qingyu and the others were fighting a horde of mutated beasts. Though the creatures were all at the Awakened Realm, their sheer numbers meant that even with the support of artillery from above, they couldn't eliminate them in short order.

Lu Yuan said nothing, but his heart pounded, and a wave of golden energy rushed out of him like a tidal wave.

Swoosh!

Over a hundred mutated beasts exploded into bloody mists, and their blood dyed the surroundings in a crimson hue.

Zhu Qingyu, Ice Fairy, and the twenty-plus young "seeds" of the top echelons turned toward Lu Yuan in astonishment.

Chunyang and Huikong exchanged glances, sharing a look of mutual understanding.

It ended after just one move, and technically, it wasn't even a "move," as he hadn't moved an inch. At this point, how could they even train?

However, Lu Yuan paid no attention to their reactions and simply asked them to pick up the pace. Though the top echelons wanted to train these youngsters, Lu Yuan didn't want to waste any more time.

Just like that, everyone steadily climbed Mount Tai.

Meanwhile, on the summit of a mountain extremely far away, a few Westerners in camouflage observed Lu Yuan and the others through their binoculars.

Just then, the middle-aged leader grabbed his radio and said, "Report. Target spotted. Proceeding to the target location. Over!"