Chapter 357: Chapter 27: Gathering in One Place, The Thatched Cottage on Taishan (Part 2)

He looked down again, his gaze sweeping over the old farmer and the young man in front of the thatched cottage. ’Hmm, two mortals.’

’That’s a bit strange... Someone definitely made a move just now, and they were incredibly skilled. They tore apart my Sea of Blood and Mountain of Corpses manifestation without a sound!’

After a moment of contemplation, the Wu’an Monarch collected himself and looked at Yan Huang, who had been forced back by the sea of blood and could not escape. He said coolly:

"Will you surrender without a fight, or shall I cut you down right here? Speaking of which, it has indeed been many years since I’ve killed a Grand Grade."

Yan Huang’s eyelid twitched. He glanced around; the sea of blood had sealed off the area completely...

His gaze shifted, and he chuckled.

"Then we’ll have to see what the Wu’an Monarch is capable of..."

As soon as he finished speaking, Yan Huang’s figure shot toward the sky. But with a turn of Bai Qi’s copper sword, the sea of blood descended from above, forcing him back down.

Yan Huang didn’t dare to pause. With his surroundings and the sky above blocked by the sea of blood, he abruptly fled down toward Taishan. The sea of blood moved to block his path again, but this time, something unexpected happened once more. An imperceptible ripple spread through the void!

In front of the thatched cottage, Lu Xuan uttered a soft word:

"Split."

At the same time, the sea of blood split in two again. Yan Huang darted out from the gap. The Wu’an Monarch’s expression hardened. Now truly angered, he unleashed a torrent of sword light down upon him!

The sword light had not yet arrived, but its sharpness already made Yan Huang’s skin prickle with pain. His expression changed again. Just as the sword light was about to strike,

Yan Huang escaped into the boundary of Taishan, and the sword light stopped right along with him.

He froze for a moment, then stopped in his tracks and looked up at the sky. The Wu’an Monarch, a figure of fearsome renown even in the fractured annals of history, wore an utterly chilling expression as he stared at Yan Huang and said, word by word:

"Taishan is the sacred site of His Majesty’s Feng Shan ceremony. There can be no mistakes, no mishaps. Come out!"

Yan Huang was stunned. ’The site of the Feng Shan ceremony?’

A thousand thoughts raced through his mind. Then, he let out a soft laugh, landed on the ground, and looked up, saying:

"I’m not coming out."

"You!" The Wu’an Monarch’s brows knitted together, his eyes filled with overwhelming killing intent. "Three breaths. If you do not leave Taishan, then don’t ever think of leaving."

Glancing at the terrifying sword light hovering at Taishan’s boundary, Yan Huang became thoughtful. ’The site of the Feng Shan ceremony...’

’Recalling the grand sight of the Nine Dragons Pulling the Coffin descending in the Current World, I’m certain that Taishan’s mystique far exceeds my imagination. Does this mean that even someone as notoriously deadly as the Wu’an Monarch doesn’t dare to strike within Taishan or use his Slaughter Technique?’

’All the more reason not to go out!’

At this thought, Yan Huang decided to shamelessly stay put. He ambled cheerfully to the front of the thatched cottage, ignoring the enraged Wu’an Monarch in the sky.

Instead, he nodded at the old farmer and the young man named Xuanhuang, wiped the sweat from his brow, and said with a calm and collected air:

"Old sir, little brother, I’m back again."

The old farmer smiled but said nothing. Beneath his mask, Lu Xuan’s face twitched. He glanced at the mountain of corpses and sea of blood in the sky and shook his head.

"It seems our lay brother will be lodging here for a while longer."

"Indeed, indeed." Yan Huang shrugged, sat down properly in a chair, and smiled. "Well, little brother, this is a perfect opportunity for me to guide your cultivation for a while. You could say this is your good fortune."

Lu Xuan replied with a sigh of resignation.

Meanwhile, Bai Qi, still in the sky, stared coldly at Yan Huang and said flatly:

"I will station myself here and see how long it takes for you to come out."

"As long as the Wu’an Monarch doesn’t leave, I certainly won’t come out!" Yan Huang responded loudly. "I’ll be at ease teaching this little brother cultivation, and the Wu’an Monarch can be at ease waiting in the sky!"

The corner of Bai Qi’s eye twitched, and he felt a dull ache in his teeth. But he quickly returned to normal and spoke with a hint of profound meaning:

"I hope you can still speak so confidently in seven days."

"Seven days?" Yan Huang paused. ’What about seven days?’

He shrugged, deciding to take things one step at a time. He stopped paying any mind to the murderous star in the sky and simply sat outside the thatched cottage. Waving his hand, he said:

"Brother Xuan, regarding the Cultivation Technique I gifted you just now, is there anything you don’t understand?"

Lu Xuan was silent for a long while before shaking his head.

"I understand it all."

"Oh?" Yan Huang was taken aback, then said with admiration, "It seems your comprehension is quite remarkable."

After a pause, he smiled.

"There’s a guy blocking the door outside, so I’m stuck here. I might as well give you some extra pointers. It seems our fateful connection is quite deep indeed."

As he spoke, Yan Huang glanced sideways at the old farmer and smiled.

"Isn’t that right, Old Li?"

The old farmer chuckled and nodded.

"Yes, yes, a deep connection, a very deep connection."

Only then was Old Yan satisfied. He shot a sidelong glance at the Wu’an Monarch in the sky, whose face was ashen with rage, before looking back at the young man called Xuanhuang. He couldn’t help but feel a little emotional.

’Yes, if I put myself in his shoes, this masked kid must have profound fortune. Only through all sorts of lucky coincidences could he end up being personally taught by a Grand Grade like myself.’

While mulling this over, he chatted idly with the old farmer, probing for details about Ancient History and casually asking about ’Lu Zi.’ Soon, night fell.

Time flew by.

Over the next few days, Yan Huang would sometimes chat with the old farmer and sometimes ’guide’ Lu Xuan in his Body Tempering techniques, maintaining his image as a master. In the blink of an eye, six days passed.

...

"Brother Liu."

Zhang Jifeng, pushing Wang Zhiyao’s wheelchair, asked curiously:

"Where exactly are we going?"

A few days ago, after learning this man’s name and the current era, he and Wang Zhiyao had naturally guessed his identity.

After all, even with the fractures in history, many deeds of this ’Han Gaozu’ had still been passed down...

Liu Bang! The man who overthrew the First Emperor’s Unification and established the Great Han!!

By deliberately trying to get on his good side, the two had become quite familiar with this yet-to-rise ’Han Gaozu’ and were now traveling with him.

Liu Bang sat on a short, thin horse and pointed to the Heaven-Reaching Divine Mountain not far ahead, smiling.

"Taishan. We’ve arrived."

"Oh, Taishan... Taishan?!" Zhang Jifeng and Wang Zhiyao exclaimed in unison, as if having a traumatic reaction.

"What’s wrong?" Liu Bang was a bit surprised.

"Nothing..."

Wang Zhiyao had a strange expression on her face as she recalled her trip to Taishan in the Current World. She then asked:

"If I may ask, Brother Liu, what business do you have at Taishan?"

"Ah, I forgot you two were isolated from the world before."

Liu Bang chuckled.

"Tomorrow, His Majesty the First Emperor will be performing the Feng Shan ceremony at Taishan. I thought I’d come take a look. Who knows, I might even get to know some important people."

As he spoke, a fire ignited in his eyes.

"And I’ll also get to see just what the Emperor looks like."

Zhang Jifeng and Wang Zhiyao’s expressions shifted slightly. ’Taishan? The Feng Shan ceremony? The First Emperor?’

’The First Emperor is coming here tomorrow?’

As they talked, they reached the foot of Taishan. Liu Bang dismounted and waved his hand.

"Come on, let’s go up and have a look! This is the legendary Taishan!"

Zhang Jifeng and Wang Zhiyao exchanged a glance. Their expressions grew serious, but they didn’t say much and began to climb the mountain with the future ’Han Gaozu’.

It wasn’t until the Great Sun was about to sink in the West that the group finally made it near the summit.

"I can’t go on..."

Liu Bang, sweating profusely, panted:

"Is that a thatched cottage up ahead? Let’s go rest there for a bit!"