Revered as a Deity

"What... what was that sound?"

The members of the herb-gathering team were returning along the same route when they faintly heard the Snake Mother's furious roar.

Their minds trembled, and for a moment, they didn't know what to do.

That was despite the fact that they had already put some distance between themselves and the valley. If they had heard the roar up close, they would probably have collapsed to the ground, unable to control themselves.

It was the pressure of one life form's very essence bearing down on another.

Compared to a level-one life form like the Snake Mother, even a Huajin Grandmaster would struggle to withstand such pressure.

"Hurry back."

Zhou Yu had a suspicion. He knew the sound had something to do with Ten Thousand Ravine Snake Valley—or had come from that terrifying Snake Mother herself.

He even knew why she had roared like that.

Zhou Yu touched the jade box in his arms and quickened his pace.

"Don't be afraid. It won't come out."

Just then, Su Yuan's voice came through the Miniature Earpiece in Zhou Yu's ear.

From the moment he began planning to obtain the Blood Lingzhi, Su Yuan had already known how things would end. The reactions of the countless giant snakes in Ten Thousand Ravine Snake Valley and the Snake Mother had all been within his expectations from start to finish. As long as Zhou Yu and the herb gatherers followed his instructions, nothing unexpected would happen.

Hearing the familiar voice, Zhou Yu calmed down again.

That was right. What did he have to fear?

The Snake Mother had been completely played by "Mister." She had only just realized that the Blood Lingzhi was gone.

All she could do now was rage helplessly.

After the Snake Mother burst out of the underground depths, her terrifying aura spread beyond Ten Thousand Ravine Snake Valley. In the end, she let out an unwilling, furious roar.

At the Southern Frontier Observation Bureau.

Several staff members looked at the instruments on the screens in front of them.

"An energy fluctuation exceeding the limit has appeared deep within the Hundred Thousand Mountains."

The screens suddenly began to flicker. The staff immediately got to work. "Locating the source of the energy fluctuation. It's Ten Thousand Ravine Snake Valley. The two Snake Mothers there are showing signs of movement!"

Before long, the bureau's director walked in.

He stared at the screens with a grave expression.

"What's the situation? Do either of the Snake Mothers show signs of leaving the valley, or even the Hundred Thousand Mountains?"

The director immediately asked.

The Observation Bureau had naturally been monitoring beings like the Snake Mother, who were comparable to a Grandmaster of Baodan.

If a life form like that left its lair and entered an area where people lived, the destruction it could cause would be catastrophic.

That was especially true of human cities. Tens or even hundreds of thousands of people could be forced from their homes.

Therefore, as soon as the authorities confirmed that one of these beings was about to leave its lair, the Xia Kingdom would strike without hesitation. It would first blanket the area with firepower, then send in experts to surround and kill the target.

Why not eliminate these life forms in advance?

It was difficult to do so.

Take the Snake Mother in Ten Thousand Ravine Snake Valley. She usually slept underground. How could they kill her in an environment like that?

"No. The Snake Mother shows no sign of leaving the valley."

After watching the screens for a while, the staff member saw that the energy fluctuation had not moved beyond Ten Thousand Ravine Snake Valley and replied.

"The energy fluctuation exceeding the limit has disappeared. The Snake Mother should have gone back."

Half an hour later, the staff member spoke again.

"She went back?"

The director breathed a slight sigh of relief.

Although the Xia Kingdom's authorities had long since prepared to deal with these terrifying life forms, it was still better to avoid a fight if possible.

There was no way to fight beings like these without suffering any losses. And there were two Snake Mothers in Ten Thousand Ravine Snake Valley—one weaker and one stronger. The stronger one was even more terrifying.

Half an hour later, after confirming there were no more energy fluctuations beyond the limit, the director was almost certain that the Snake Mother of Ten Thousand Ravine Snake Valley would not come out. At last, he felt at ease.

"Can you tell why the Snake Mother released an energy fluctuation beyond the limit?"

The director asked.

Normally, a life form like the Snake Mother would only release energy on that scale if her life were threatened or she were extremely angry.

"We can't tell."

The staff member rolled his eyes. How was he supposed to know why the Snake Mother had done it?

It wasn't as if he could go ask her.

"Fair enough."

The director nodded, realizing that the question was difficult to answer.

At least the outcome was good. The Snake Mother of Ten Thousand Ravine Snake Valley had no intention of coming out. The energy fluctuation she had released earlier was probably an accident.

Southern Frontier High-Speed Rail Station.

After Zhou Yu led the herb-gathering team out of the Hundred Thousand Mountains, he immediately followed Su Yuan's instructions, bought high-speed rail tickets to Magic City, and set off with the Blood Lingzhi.

"The high-speed rail?"

Zhou Yu was rather puzzled.

In terms of speed, flying was undoubtedly the fastest way to get there. It would take only a few hours to reach Magic City.

Even if he wanted to be cautious and avoid taking a crowded, conspicuous commercial flight, Zhou Pharmaceutical could arrange a private plane. He could reach Magic City in three hours.

But the high-speed rail?

Compared with a plane, it was much slower. It would take around ten hours to reach Magic City.

Still.

Following Su Yuan's orders to the letter without asking why had become second nature to Zhou Yu.

He would take the high-speed rail to Magic City without complaint. Even if he were told to walk there, he would set off at once.

Soon, Zhou Yu was on the high-speed rail to Magic City.

As he watched the buildings flash past the window, he didn't relax at all. Instead, he remained extremely alert.

He was carrying the Blood Lingzhi, the item "Mister" needed. There was only one last step before he could deliver it to "Mister."

This was exactly when he had to be most careful.

Two hours later.

Zhou Yu was still on his guard, keeping an eye on his surroundings.

Suddenly, he noticed a passenger to his front left scrolling through short videos on a phone.

As he kept scrolling, he came across a "Weather Alert."

Extreme weather had appeared in the airspace between Southern Frontier and Magic City. All flights to Magic City had turned back...

Staring at the "Weather Alert," Zhou Yu fell silent again.

If he had chosen to fly to Magic City two or three hours earlier—

Whether on a commercial flight or a private plane—

He would probably have been forced to turn back by now.

That would have cost him half a day going there and back.

Even if he then took the high-speed rail to Magic City, he would have lost half a day.

In other words, two or three hours earlier, the fastest way to reach Magic City had not been by plane, but by high-speed rail.

"Did 'Mister' know all along that extreme weather would appear? Was that why he told me not to fly?"

Zhou Yu couldn't help wondering.

The Xia Kingdom's meteorological bureau existed to forecast the weather in advance.

But it was clear that the bureau hadn't predicted the extreme weather in the airspace between Southern Frontier and Magic City. Otherwise, it wouldn't have issued an alert mid-flight, forcing every plane to turn back.

Yet "Mister" had known about weather the meteorological bureau hadn't predicted, and had known in advance with ease.

"Mister..."

At that moment, in Zhou Yu's eyes, "Mister" was no different from a deity.