Iron Arm Ape Mountain

The Wildlands were sparsely populated, and the withered leaves on the ground had piled up, their decay making the air heavy.

Two figures cautiously moved through the forest, ancient trees growing for who knew how many years, blocking out the sky and sun, with only slivers of light falling to the ground through the gaps in the trees.

A black snake coiled around a dark tree. In a corner of the forest, a pack of forest wolves revealed their bloodthirsty gazes.

In a tree hollow in a tree trunk, a black and blue spider had a ghostly blue light shining in each of its eight eyes.

In the shade of the trees, outside a huge wasp nest, finger-sized wasps were searching for targets.

"It's getting dark!"

Gu Sheng looked up at the sky. The sun was moving westward, and the sky was a dim yellow. A layer of darkness had already enveloped the Wildlands forest. He carefully observed his surroundings, pointed to a desolate rocky mountain a short distance away, and said, "Let's speed up a bit and rest there tonight!"

Chu Xin turned her head to look, subconsciously furrowing her brows, but she didn't say anything in objection, just silently quickening her pace.

Before long, the two arrived at the foot of the somewhat desolate rocky mountain. Looking up, the mountain was full of steep peaks, with sparse vegetation on the ridges, giving it a lifeless appearance.

"This kind of place isn't suitable for creatures to inhabit. Few ferocious beasts choose to nest here, so it should be much safer at night."

Gu Sheng seemed to see Chu Xin's confusion and explained.

Gu Sheng and Chu Xin found a relatively clean cave, sprinkled beast feces purchased at great expense from the Myriad Manifestations Pavilion in Southern Barbarian City at the entrance, and carefully took some other measures. Only then did the two breathe a sigh of relief and relax.

The Wildlands were extremely dangerous. Even first-rate experts often faced life-threatening situations inside. The two were weak, one second-rate and one third-rate. Among the martial artists of the Nine Provinces, they were at the very bottom, not even ranking, let alone in the even more dangerous Wildlands.

"Ugh! The road here is too difficult to walk. We haven't even gone a hundred li in a day. When will we reach our destination?"

Chu Xin took off her boots, revealing her reddened little feet. While rubbing them to relieve fatigue, she said to Gu Sheng, "You perverted tiger, how much farther do we have to go?"

Chu Xin's soft and glutinous voice brought Gu Sheng back from his thoughts. He turned his head to look at Chu Xin, his gaze first attracted by those beautiful bare feet that seemed like works of art, and then fell on Chu Xin's somewhat flushed delicate face.

"We set off at noon, and we've traveled a hundred li in half a day, which is considered fast. Iron Arm Ape Mountain is nearly a thousand li away from Southern Barbarian City. If everything goes smoothly, we should be able to get there in about ten days."

Gu Sheng had some system deduction functions to seek good fortune and avoid disaster, allowing him to travel at the fastest speed while ensuring safety, without encountering as many unexpected situations as ordinary martial artists.

"Ten more days!"

Chu Xin was a little emotional. "Can't we go any faster? This place is terrible for eating and sleeping. I don't want to stay any longer!"

"No, the Wildlands are too dangerous. If we're not careful, we could be caught off guard, resulting in serious injuries at best, and death at worst."

Gu Sheng shook his head. "Our speed is already the fastest possible while ensuring our stamina and combat power. Ordinary first-rate martial artists don't even cover half the distance we do in a day."

"Is that so!"

Chu Xin pouted and didn't say anything else.

Seeing that she seemed a little deflated, Gu Sheng asked with concern, "Xin'er, what's wrong? Are you hungry? Or..."

"No, I ate a lot at noon, so I don't have an appetite now!"

Chu Xin shook her head, her little face drooping, and her mood seemed very low.

Gu Sheng said softly, "It's getting late. I'll keep watch tonight. You should go to sleep early!"

"Okay!"

Chu Xin nodded, turned over, and lay down on the thick blanket spread on the flat rock platform. Under Gu Sheng's gaze, she slowly fell asleep.

Under the shimmering firelight, Chu Xin's skin took on a yellowish glow, and the quietly sleeping beauty looked particularly lovely.

"Silly girl! You're tired after a day, so sleep well!"

Gu Sheng sat down beside Chu Xin, his right hand stroking her beautiful head, his eyes full of doting love. Gu Sheng knew that the main reason this girl had followed him deep into the Wildlands was for him.

With Gu Sheng's help, she had completed Li Jun's side quest, and her world completion rate had already exceeded one percent. Even if she ended the mission now, she could safely exit. The reason she stayed was entirely because she didn't want to break her promise to Gu Sheng and was worried about him venturing into the Wildlands alone.

The next day, just as dawn broke, Gu Sheng woke up the still-drowsy Chu Xin, and they set off on their journey again. There were no roads in the Wildlands, only thorny bushes, rampant weeds, and withered branches and leaves everywhere.

But once someone had passed through, they would definitely push aside the thorny weeds, or even cut off the thorns to move forward, allowing those behind to clearly see the traces. This became a 'road' that wasn't a road. Of course... after a long time, these 'roads' became difficult to distinguish.

The nights in the Wildlands were extremely dangerous, but Gu Sheng had planned carefully before coming, and each resting place was carefully selected, so he encountered very few dangers. The only two times were a ferocious beast black bear and two silver-scaled pythons.

Unfortunately, they chose the wrong target. Gu Sheng would set up poisonous traps at the entrance of the cave before resting each day. In addition, someone like him who had mastered internal martial arts did not sleep soundly at night, but instead sat cross-legged in meditation. At this time, his six senses were at their most sensitive, and he would notice any disturbance and react accordingly.

The black bear and the silver pythons were unlucky under Gu Sheng's actions, not only kicking an iron plate but also losing their lives. They contributed high-quality medicinal materials such as bear gall and snake gall, and their bear paws and snake soup also made Chu Xin's little beauty have a great appetite and eat a good meal.

Ten days later, Gu Sheng, with his clothes somewhat tattered, helped Chu Xin reach their destination—Iron Arm Ape Mountain. Iron Arm Ape Mountain towered into the clouds, and the highest point was surrounded by clouds and mist, as if they were in a fairyland.

Iron Arm Ape Mountain covered a vast area, but it was unusually steep. Gu Sheng had learned Teng Qingshan's skills, so climbing was not too difficult. But Chu Xin's cultivation was what it was, and following him up and down the mountains was likely to encounter many dangers.

"Xin'er! The mountain is dangerous. I'll find a safe place for you first. If you encounter a life-or-death situation inside, don't worry about me. Just return to the real world directly, and we'll meet again in the real world!"

Gu Sheng looked down at Chu Xin's slightly haggard delicate face. Ten days of Wildlands life, with its rough living conditions, had left her in a low state, completely unable to be linked to the energetic girl she had been before.

"Okay!"

Chu Xin was very well-behaved, or rather, she also knew that she was now a burden to Gu Sheng.

Gu Sheng took Chu Xin to a cave at the foot of the mountain that had been empty for many years. After leaving her with enough water and food, he sealed the entrance with a large stone slab, and then quickly climbed Iron Arm Ape Mountain, grabbing the protrusions and cracks on the mountain wall with both hands.