Chapter 1410: Shaoxian Mountain

After thinking about Zu An’s past experiences, Yun Jianyue couldn't help but say with a sigh of amazement, “I didn’t really think much of it when I heard you talk about it before, but only now that I’m going through it myself do I realize just how difficult it was for you to safely leave those Unknown Regions.”

“And you have even unsealed several Unknown Regions,” Yan Xuehen said, looking at him with a conflicted expression. When she had first met this fellow, she’d just felt that he was a pervert with flowery speech. And yet, the longer she stayed at his side, the more she understood just how outstanding he was. The only flaw was that he was already her disciple’s man…

“Haha, praise me more! I’m shameless, so I can take it all,” Zu An said. He felt amazing when he saw the three women’s looks of admiration.

“Hmph!” Yan Xuehen harrumphed. This guy was still just as shameless as always.

“Ah Zu, I still feel that it’s too dangerous this time. The powerful figures that person mentioned all seem as if they could ascend to immortality if they wanted to. Not even Zhao Han or the Fiend Emperor would necessarily be able to complete this kind of trial…” Yu Yanluo said worriedly.

“Unknown Regions are quite special. It isn’t necessarily possible to pass through by relying on one’s own strength. Instead, it’s necessary to rely on wit and luck,” Zu An said. He looked at the three women and continued with a smile, “The Fiend Emperor has a dunce of a Golden Crow Crown Prince at his side, while I have clever and resourceful beauties at my side. That’s already enough to cover the difference in strength.”

The three women blushed. They sighed inwardly, thinking that this guy’s words really were slathered with honey. No wonder so many women liked him.

Yun Jianyue was the first to snap out of her daze. She harrumphed and said, “Of course we’re smart, but are you really that confident in your luck?”

“Of course. If I had bad luck, how would I have been able to meet such stunning female friends?” Zu An replied, looking at the three with a gentle expression.

Now, not even Yun Jianyue could take it. She reached out and pinched his ear, saying, “Damn brat, you even dare tease your master? Did you eat a bear’s heart or something?”

“Ah ah ah, it hurts! Big sis master, please spare me!” Zu An quickly pleaded.

Yu Yanluo couldn't help but grin when she saw Zu An lean forward while having his ear pinched ‘painfully’.

Yan Xuehen’s expression was strange. She thought to herself, This witch is still treating Zu An as a junior? One day, when she ends up being bullied by him, she’ll know just how much of a rude and domineering man he is. Ah… What kind of nonsense am I thinking…

Just like that, the group entered the vast mountains. They encountered some beasts along the way, but with their strength, they were able to deal with them easily.

Soon afterward, they arrived at a bare mountain. Let alone trees, there wasn’t even a single stalk of grass growing on it.

“This really is strange… Just then, this mountain was clearly full of life when we saw it in the distance earlier. It was greener and more lush than any other mountain. Why are there no plants at all now that we’re close to it?” Yun Jianyue wondered.

“It’s probably because of this.” Yu Yanluo raised her dress and kneeled down, picking up a dark green rock.

“What is that?” Yan Xuehen asked, taking the rock from her and looking at it. Even though there were strands of ki in it, it wasn’t a ki stone and couldn't be used for cultivation.

“Judging from the color and shape, these should be made of the legendary Green Jadestone, a material for weapon refinement. Apart from that, they’re rumored to be able to help some special cultivators break through,” Yu Yanluo explained.

The others knew that Yu Yanluo had once been the leader of the number one gemstone clan, so her knowledge of that field was definitely exceptional.

“Oh, so these are Green Jadestones! They’re all good stuff. Collect as much as you can! They’ll be useful once we get out of here,” Yun Jianyue said. Her eyes began to burn fervently as she looked around. She discovered that there was quite a large amount of them, and a big smile appeared on her face as she collected them.

“Look at that greedy appearance of yours,” Yan Xuehen said with a frown. She clearly felt that such behavior was unbecoming of a grandmaster.

“Hmph, stone cold woman, do you think everyone is like you, better than the common people? I didn’t live a life as pampered as yours, with the White Jade Sect’s people to help you with everything. Our Holy Sect has always been on the poor side. Of course I have to be a bit stingy in order to grow the Holy Sect…” Yun Jianyue said as she stroked the Green Jadestone in her hand. Her smile affected her normally sharp eyes to the point that they resembled crescent moons. She continued, “...let alone the fact that this stuff is worth quite a bit.”

Zu An moved over to Yan Xuehen and said, “You should take some. Even though there’s quite a bit of Green Jadestone here, it’s extremely rare outside.”

“I do not need any,” Yan Xuehen said indifferently. At any other time, she would likely start collecting them, but after being mocked by Yun Jianyue, she really couldn't bring herself to do it. If she collected some now, wouldn’t she be just as shameless? Who knew what Yun Jianyue would do to hold that over her.

Zu An laughed. This woman normally acted all cold and aloof, but she actually had such an adorable side to her.

“Hmph, stone cold woman, you’ll regret this sooner or later. Don’t come looking for me if you ever need these Green Jadestones, because I won’t give you any.” Yun Jianyue harrumphed.

Yan Xuehen thought, Why would I look for you? Wouldn’t Zu An have some? She was alarmed as soon as that thought emerged in her mind. A pink blush appeared on her fair cheeks, making her look even lovelier.

Yun Jianyue gave her a strange look, thinking to herself, Why is this stone cold woman suddenly acting all cute?

Still, she had to admit that the woman was ridiculously pretty. If I were a man, I definitely wouldn’t be able to resist her temptation.

Soon afterward, Yun Jianyue collected her fill. Even though she was a grandmaster, her storage space was limited. However, Yu Yanluo didn’t seem to be stopping. Yun Jianyue quickly realized that it was the effect of the World Painting! They had even been able to collect the spiritual spring on Feather Mountain, so collecting some Green Jadestones naturally wasn’t a problem. Even though there weren’t really endless mountains and seas inside the painting, it was much larger than normal storage spaces.

Yun Jianyue couldn't help but say with a sigh, “The libationer’s skills in the field of spatial research really are terrifying.”

Yan Xuehen’s expression was grave. They naturally knew that with Yu Yanluo’s current strength, there was no way she could create something like that. That meant it could only be the libationer’s work.

Yu Yanluo blushed and said, “This is a treasure that I found in my early years in an ancient secret dungeon. Later on, my master helped me improve it a bit, and that was how this World Painting was formed.”

Only then did Yan Xuehen and Yun Jianyue feel relieved. So it was an ancient treasure! If it really had been the libationer’s work, it really would make others feel despair towards their own lack of talent.

Zu An suddenly thought of something, saying, “This should be the Shaoxian Mountain Shun talked about before.”

They remembered the mysterious voice mentioning ‘Shaoxian Mountain, devoid of grass, full of green jade’. Wasn’t that the exact description of this place?

“Everyone, be careful. This is already the Yayu’s domain,” Zu An reminded them.

They stopped collecting the Green Jadestones and began to look around vigilantly.

“Did you all notice? Ever since we entered this mountain, we hadn’t run into a single monster,” Yu Yanluo said.

“That’s normal. Other creatures often avoid the territory of powerful creatures,” Yun Jianyue said. She also looked around with her divine will, but she didn’t sense the Yayu there.

“Huh? There is a temple over there!” Yan Xuehen called out, pointing in a certain direction.

When the others followed her beautiful finger, they saw a secluded little temple halfway up the hill. They quickly rushed there, and saw that the temple was extremely run-down. There were holes everywhere, and it looked as if it could fall apart at a moment’s notice. It was almost as if the temple would collapse from a light breeze.

“There are words written up there,” Yu Yanluo said, looking up at the temple gate.

They saw a slanted board overhead. Perhaps it had been too long and the board had already degraded, or it had been broken by something, but there was less than half of the sign left. It hung in place diagonally, and only a single character was visible. The second character was incomplete and only had some fragmented strokes. They couldn't guess what it was at all.

“Er (贰)?” Zu An exclaimed, recognizing the first character. He was puzzled.

Who would write the character for ‘betray’ for the first character? Why did it feel as if the sign were mocking or cursing someone?