A Truly Enormous Appetite! A Queue to Enter the Mountain? True Person Yu Ding?

No sooner had East King Duke finished speaking than Daoist Jieyin's lips curled into a meaningful smile.

The next moment, Jieyin swept his sleeve once more.

Brilliant golden light burst forth from beneath his robe.

The golden ring Jieyin had cast out earlier

rapidly began to expand.

In less than a few breaths, the original golden ring swiftly enlarged above Zifu Prefecture, transforming into a colossal ring that blotted out the sky and covered the sun.

Boom! Boom!

After that, the enormous golden ring descended directly over the Zifu Thirteen Prefectures.

Such a tremendous disturbance immediately drew the attention of every living being in the Zifu Thirteen Prefectures, and all of them raised their eyes toward the heavens.

Looking closely, they saw the great golden ring descending slowly with supreme pressure, as though the sky itself were collapsing.

For a time, mountains and rivers trembled, while great rivers surged.

Countless beings were thrown into panic at the sight, and discussion erupted everywhere:

"What?"

"What is going on?"

"Could heavenly punishment be descending?"

"What terrifying pressure!"

"What's happening?"

"..."

The many beings could not make heads or tails of it, their faces filled with alarm.

At the same time, within the Immortal Court.

"Hmm?"

When East King Duke saw Jieyin's actions, a glint of cold severity flashed imperceptibly through his eyes.

"Jieyin's appetite truly is not ordinary!"

Earlier, when Jieyin had sent down his magic power, the golden ring had covered no more than one or two prefectures.

But now, with another infusion of his great magic power, the area covered by that golden ring had expanded all the way to the Zifu Thirteen Prefectures.

East King Duke greatly wished for Jieyin and Zhun Ti to join the Immortal Court.

For that, he was willing to pay a tremendous price.

But for Jieyin to make the entire Zifu Thirteen Prefectures into a place to spread his Dao intent was going too far.

"This Sovereign Lord has managed Zifu Prefecture for so many years."

"If I hand over all thirteen prefectures to those two from the West, would that not mean I had made a wedding dress for another?"

With that thought, East King Duke did not hesitate. With a sweep of his wide sleeve, a streak of azure light shot into the sky from within it.

Whoosh!

In the blink of an eye, beneath the veil of azure light, a Dragon Head Crutch appeared.

This treasure had been bestowed upon East King Duke by Dao Ancestor Hongjun after his second sermon, when he appointed the Heads of Male and Female Immortals in the Primordial Wilderness. It served as a token of East King Duke's status as Head of Male Immortals.

Roar! Roar!

As the Dragon Head Crutch appeared, dragon roars resounded between heaven and earth. Auspicious energy spread out, instantly covering the Zifu Thirteen Prefectures and crashing against Daoist Jieyin's golden ring.

Boom...

Two forces of Quasi-Saint power clashed at once.

In an instant, space shattered inch by inch, and the countless beings caught within felt as though the end of days had arrived.

Some cultivators brought out magical treasures to protect themselves, only for them to be shattered by the aftershocks.

Many cities crumbled beneath the pressure.

The East Sea raised waves ten thousand zhang high, while West Mountain collapsed into an abyss.

Fortunately, the violent upheaval did not last long.

In the end, the two forces intertwined and merged. The enormous ring of light that had covered the Zifu Thirteen Prefectures rapidly shrank, finally settling over an area of three prefectures.

At this sight, Jieyin and Zhun Ti narrowed their eyes slightly.

Both understood that yielding three prefectures was already East King Duke's utmost sincerity.

After a brief silence, Daoist Jieyin pressed his palms together and said:

"Sovereign Lord, from this day forth, these three prefectures shall fall under the jurisdiction of our West."

East King Duke nodded lightly. With a casual gesture, the Dragon Head Crutch floating above the Nine Heavens transformed into a streak of azure light and returned to him.

"Everything shall be as Fellow Daoist Jieyin says."

Jieyin nodded and gave Zhun Ti a look.

Then, without further delay, the two rode Auspicious Clouds down toward those three prefectures.

For a time, Golden Lotuses covered the ground, and Buddhist chants filled the skies.

At this moment, at Buzhou Mountain.

Two figures descended from the clouds.

They were none other than Qin Mu and Daoist Duobao.

In truth, the region Qin Mu and Duobao had explored for treasures before was also part of Buzhou Mountain, though it counted only as its outer region.

The place they had now reached was the core region of Buzhou Mountain.

Looking ahead, they saw a divine mountain rising in the distance, holding up the heavens, reaching through heaven and earth, and shrouded in treasure light.

Chaos aura coiled around the entire mountain.

By its middle, clouds and mist already swirled thickly, while its peak pierced straight into the heavenly vault, inspiring awe in all who beheld it.

"Is this Buzhou Mountain, formed from Great God Pangu's spine?"

Qin Mu inwardly sighed in wonder, his eyes filled with shock.

Daoist Duobao stared fixedly at Buzhou Mountain, his face brimming with excitement.

"Fellow Daoist Qin Mu."

"Buzhou Mountain must be filled with countless fortuitous opportunities. There may even be heavy treasures hidden within."

"Do not worry. With me accompanying you, we will surely return laden with gains this time!"

As he spoke, Duobao's face was full of certainty.

Over the past thousand years, he had traveled alongside Qin Mu, and the two had found quite a few treasures along the way.

After consuming and refining the Yellow Middle Plum, Duobao's cultivation had risen directly from the Mystic Immortal realm to the Golden Immortal level.

Hearing Duobao's words, Qin Mu smiled faintly.

He had long since witnessed Duobao's unique talent for treasure hunting.

"Let's go! We're going in!"

With that, Qin Mu and Duobao wasted no time and flew toward the entrance of Buzhou Mountain.

Before long, the two had arrived at the entrance at the foot of Buzhou Mountain.

Glancing around, they saw countless figures at the mountain's base.

Many beings had formed a long queue, each craning their necks in anticipation.

"Damn?"

"What is this?"

"Why is there even a long line?"

Qin Mu muttered to himself, looking rather caught off guard.

Daoist Duobao was likewise dumbfounded when he saw it, utterly baffled.

"Fellow Daoist Qin Mu, what is going on?"

"Do we need to queue up to enter Buzhou Mountain?"

Just as the two hesitated in confusion, a figure walked toward them.

The newcomer wore a moon-white Daoist robe. His features were refined and handsome, an ancient sword case hung at his waist, and clear aura swirled around him, giving him an immortal, transcendent bearing.

Upon approaching, the Daoist bowed to Qin Mu and Duobao in greeting.

"Greetings, fellow Daoists."

"This humble Daoist is Yu Ding. You two look unfamiliar; I presume this is your first time at Buzhou Mountain?"

Hearing the Daoist's words, Qin Mu was startled.

"True Person Yu Ding?"

Others might not know, but he knew all too well.

True Person Yu Ding was Yuanshi's disciple, one of the Twelve Golden Immortals of the Clarify Teachings in the future, and Yang Jian's master.

At this moment, Duobao returned True Person Yu Ding's greeting.

"Fellow Daoist, you have keen eyes."

"It truly is our first time here."

"I am Duobao, and this is Fellow Daoist Qin Mu, a disciple under the Three Pure Ones of Kunlun."

At Duobao's introduction, True Person Yu Ding's eyes lit up. He could not help but examine Qin Mu several more times before smiling.

"So you are the Three Pure Ones' outstanding disciple! No wonder you possess such extraordinary bearing."

At this point, Yu Ding paused slightly. He then looked toward the many beings lining up and explained:

"Recently, the aura of Numinous Treasures has appeared faintly within Buzhou Mountain. These fellow Daoists have all come in search of fortuitous opportunities."

Qin Mu and Duobao nodded lightly. They had come here to seek treasures as well.

They simply had not expected that entering Buzhou Mountain would require lining up.