System Update

After returning to the Golden Courtyard, Li Ming felt much more relaxed all over. Though his body still ached, that feeling of anxiety was gone.

When Su saw Li Ming return, he knew Li Ming had gotten what he needed from Aponia.

"Haha, Su, I'll help you find a wife someday!"

Seeing Li Ming like this, Su knew he was getting a little carried away. "Do you think you're completely safe now?"

"Huh?" Su's sudden question left Li Ming baffled. "Didn't you say that if I found Aponia..."

"Discipline is not omnipotent. Do you think a single sentence can completely solve the problem?"

Su's words made Li Ming reflect. Indeed, although he still had not figured out how Discipline worked, Li Ming felt that such a single sentence was far too flimsy.

It was merely a membrane wrapped around the defensive line, not something indestructible.

"I'll still discuss solutions to your condition with Mobius and the others. Preparations for the fusion surgery also need to begin, so you should start gathering the things Mobius told you to prepare as soon as possible."

"Huh?" Just thinking about the items on that list made Li Ming's head hurt. He had never even heard of most of them, let alone knew where to find them.

"Forget it, forget it. We'll talk about it later. It's not urgent right now." In the end, Li Ming chose to lie flat.

As long as I don't think about it, I don't have to know. I'll idly watch flowers bloom and fall before the gate, leisurely observe clouds gathering and dispersing beyond the sky.

So during his free time, Li Ming mostly recuperated from his injuries, then learned Cunxin Fist Technique: Mountain Shatterer and Cunxin Fist Technique: Heaven Render from Hua.

And the best punching bag for practice was naturally Canned Food. Really, Canned Food was the one who kept coming to pick fights with Li Ming whenever he had nothing to do, so sparring with him was simply unavoidable.

Since Li Ming had been continuously cooperating with the research and was not going out to search for materials, Mobius had no interest in paying him any attention at all.

It was only after Li Ming agreed to be Vill-V's assistant in her next magic show that he obtained the blueprint for his first piece of armor.

What else could Li Ming say? He could only smile through his tears. Yes, no matter what happened, games were meant to be played with a smile.

After ending his month-long journey through the Elysian Realm, Li Ming returned to the original starting point. Standing blankly before the mirror, he felt somewhat dazed. "So it's still nighttime. Honestly, I don't even know how long I stayed in the Elysian Realm these past few days. It feels kind of strange."

The last time he came out of the Elysian Realm, a month had passed as well, but his experiences had not been as eventful as this time. It was like returning to school after having the time of his life during a two-month summer vacation.

That was how Li Ming felt right now. After thinking it over carefully, he said, "I think I'm taking Yae to Mount Taixu tomorrow. I'd better get some more sleep now."

With that, Li Ming lay down on the bed and went back to sleep. The next day, Raiden Ryoma brought Li Ming and Raiden Yae to the geomantic treasure land that was Mount Taixu.

Before they even reached the scenic area, merely looking at it from afar was enough to make them feel its boundless majesty.

"It truly is a land of excellent feng shui. Fine mountains and clear waters—it's no wonder it could produce a hero like Immortal Chi Yuan." Looking at the magnificent scenery, Raiden Ryoma could not help sighing in admiration.

Though Li Ming did not know much about this Shenzhou, he could still say a thing or two about the stories of Immortal Chi Yuan and Mount Taixu. "Mount Taixu and Immortal Chi Yuan were never a case of one side making the other what it was. It would be more accurate to say that Mount Taixu was already magnificent to begin with, while Immortal Chi Yuan's existence made it more famous. And only Mount Taixu could truly complement Immortal Chi Yuan's character."

"I didn't expect you to have such insight, little brother Li Ming." Raiden Ryoma gave Li Ming an approving look.

But at the mention of Mount Taixu, Li Ming felt some sorrow in his heart. The matter of those seven traitorous disciples murdering their master was already an unchangeable fact.

Li Ming clenched his fists and let out a helpless sigh. Raiden Ryoma thought he had suddenly sighed because the sight of this land had moved him.

"Come on, let's admire the vastness of Shenzhou. Oh, Yae, do you want to ride on Daddy's shoulders?" Raiden Ryoma looked at Yae, his eyes full of anticipation.

Yae glanced at the crowded Mount Taixu. One hand held the Yae doll Li Ming had given her, while her other little hand fidgeted awkwardly. Though she looked eager too, she thought for a moment before saying, "It's okay, Daddy. Yae has grown up. I don't need Daddy to carry me anymore."

Wuwuwu, I still wish Yae hadn't grown up.

"Yes, Yae has grown up too." Raiden Ryoma looked deeply gratified on the surface, but his heart was full of sorrow. Then, the way he looked at Li Ming beside him grew increasingly displeased.

Li Ming did not notice Raiden Ryoma's resentful gaze at all, because he was currently staring blankly at the system interface.

"New map resources detected. Resources are being updated. Estimated time: 180 days. During the update, the deployment interface will be unavailable. All other interfaces will function normally."

Huh?!

What the hell was this? Why did it start loading map resources the moment he arrived at Mount Taixu? He had wandered all over the place before without seeing it do anything, yet the instant he came to Mount Taixu, it pulled this crap.

Fortunately, the equipment interface had not been shut down. Otherwise, Li Ming really would have coughed up blood.

As for the shop, Li Ming honestly did not care much about it. It only accepted money and never gave any back. Apart from the Moon God's Protection from the first top-up bonus, Li Ming had nowhere to use anything else.

There was also the panel that displayed his status during battle. He had no idea whether that had been shut down too.

"Ow."

Li Ming was not paying attention and nearly tripped.

"Li Ming, be careful!" Yae reached out with her other hand and caught Li Ming, who was a little unsteady on his feet. Their height difference looked almost comical.

But Raiden Ryoma, standing nearby, was already dying of jealousy. He could now clearly feel what it was like to invite a wolf into his home.

Forget bringing Li Ming to Anti-Entropy in the future—even ME Company would never let Li Ming through its doors again.

Raiden Ryoma ground his teeth in fury.

Li Ming shook himself awake. This was not the time to think about that. The update had already begun—what was he supposed to do, uninstall it? Forget it.

Li Ming relaxed and treated the trip as pure sightseeing.

Once he relaxed, Li Ming instead felt an inexplicable sense of transcendence. His heart became incomparably calm, as though nothing had happened at all.

And when he looked toward Mount Taixu, every flower, every leaf, every blade of grass, and every tree stirred ripples in his heart, yet those ripples settled again whenever the mountain wind blew.

Li Ming felt that his martial arts had improved greatly. His understanding of the Cunxin Fist Technique had deepened another level. Of the several forms in Azure Dragon Emerging from Water that he had never mastered before, Li Ming now possessed a shallow understanding of one move in particular: Rock Breaker.

"I didn't expect coming here would bring me some other gains too. How amazing."

"Li Ming, hurry up and catch up!"

"I'm coming!"

Li Ming smiled and hurried after them.

An hour later, Raiden Ryoma looked at Li Ming ahead of him, who had Yae sitting on his shoulders and still wore an utterly relaxed expression. Raiden Ryoma's composure was starting to crack.

"Little brother Li Ming, your stamina is truly incredible. No wonder you weren't afraid at all back at the airport."

"Ha, not really. Well, I just graduated from college, so maybe I'm benefiting from that college student energy? You know, college student commandos?"

The two young people beside Li Ming, panting heavily from the climb, quietly moved a little farther away from him. Raiden Ryoma clearly did not believe him and asked the two young men beside them.

"Young men, is everything my friend just said true?"

Raiden Ryoma's somewhat awkward accent immediately told them he was not a local. The two exchanged a glance, then smiled.

"Hehe, yes. If I hadn't missed it by just a little back then, I could have gotten into college too. Then I wouldn't be where I am now..."

"The two of us came to climb Mount Taixu today to admire the scenery left behind by those before us. Next year, I'll surely rise with the wind..."

Raiden Ryoma watched the two of them speak with such confidence, his face full of disbelief. Why did he feel like they were fooling him? This did not match what he had seen at all.

Then a group of neatly equipped elderly hikers came up from behind, clearly experienced climbers. Seeing Yae sitting on Li Ming's shoulders while he still looked completely at ease, they immediately praised him. "This kid is still in college, right?"

"Young people really are full of energy."

"College students sure are something!"

With so many elderly people suddenly joining in to praise him, Li Ming felt a little embarrassed and hurriedly nodded. Listening to Li Ming chat with them, then seeing the envious expressions of the two young men from before, Raiden Ryoma suddenly wondered whether ME Company should recruit more college students from Shenzhou in the future.

After nearly another hour, the group finally reached the summit. Looking at the plaque bearing the two large characters "Heaven's Gate," the towering and majestic entrance, its vermilion lacquer and bluestone, Raiden Ryoma was suddenly seized by soaring ambition. He had finally made it up!

"I will not let this sky block my eyes any longer!"

Raiden Ryoma shouted in Japanese, and no one around him understood. Only Li Ming looked somewhat surprised. Could it be that chuunibyou was truly carved into the bones of Japanese people?

"Daddy is so slow. If Daddy hadn't kept refusing to let Brother Li Ming carry me, we would've arrived long ago!" Yae pouted, feeling a little unhappy. Especially after hearing her father's shout just now, she felt utterly mortified.

"Sorry. Daddy didn't try hard enough and let Yae down." Raiden Ryoma, having been roasted by Yae, instantly froze. He dropped to his knees, tears streaming down his face.

The two young men far behind them looked at Li Ming, who still had strength to spare and remained perfectly relaxed, then swallowed hard. Good lord, they could never call themselves college students when going out again. I'm just too weak—I've embarrassed everyone.

After finishing the climb, Raiden Ryoma finally stopped being stubborn on the way down. He obediently bought a cane, then descended the mountain with Li Ming supporting him.

And the result of this mountain climb was that the three of them did not leave the house for three days. All one could say was: they were just too pathetic.