Who in this world could live forever?
No matter how peerlessly graceful you were, how unrivaled your beauty throughout the realm, in the end you would still become nothing more than fair bones; no matter how brilliant a prodigy you were, ruling over vast lands, in the end you would still become nothing more than a mound of yellow earth!
Immortality was what everyone desired, yet there were no beauties who never aged, nor emperors who never perished. Beauties, prodigies, and the countless common folk were all alike: none could escape birth, aging, sickness, and death. No one could live forever in this world.
Yet legends of immortality had always been passed down through the ages.
Laozi, Zhuangzi, Chen Tuan, Bodhidharma, Zhang Sanfeng...
These names, renowned for millennia, were like ancient curses that endlessly inspired later generations. They made people believe that the realm of immortality was not entirely absurd, and that some people could indeed reach it.
But time was the most merciless of all. As the years passed, even those once-undying legends gradually faded away in the river of time.
Until, after countless silent years, a miracle erupted once more amid the ordinary!
On the night of the full moon on the fifteenth, Goddess Lan Nuo would sever her worldly ties at Kunlun Mountain's Red Dust Peak and Shatter the Void. For a time, cultivators across the land were all stunned, and immortality once again became a hot topic.
Kunlun Mountain had always been known as the ancestral vein of the myriad mountains of Jiuzhou, with countless legends circulating about it.
Yet because of its towering, perilous terrain, nearly impossible to cross, along with the savage demons and ferocious beasts hidden within, Kunlun had always existed only in Jiuzhou's legends, rarely bearing human traces.
But a recent piece of news shattered Kunlun Mountain's tranquility. Goddess Lan Nuo would sever her worldly ties atop Kunlun Mountain's Red Dust Peak and Shatter the Void!
For a time, countless people throughout Jiuzhou flocked toward Kunlun. From imperial nobles to merchants and laborers, regardless of status, all sought to witness that spectacle unseen for centuries and behold the legend closest to immortality!
Kunlun Mountain lay in a remote region, and its countless branches stretched on without end, like towering walls enclosing the entire Kunlun range. Therefore, anyone wishing to reach Kunlun had to cross the only branch passable on foot—Black Mountain!
Though Black Mountain could be traversed by people, that was only relative to Kunlun Mountain's other bizarrely perilous branches.
Black Mountain was still covered in incomparably dense Primeval Forests, home to countless venomous insects and ferocious beasts.
Without an experienced hunter to guide them, or a highly skilled martial arts expert to escort them, crossing Black Mountain was nothing but a fool's dream for ordinary people!
At this moment, atop Black Mountain.
"Here, take it, little brother Bai He!"
Inside an abandoned, dilapidated mountain god temple, a group of people sat around a bonfire burning within the temple.
There were men and women, old and young, Scholars and wandering heroes, merchants and laborers. Their occupations differed greatly, yet they sat together in harmony, an oddly surprising sight.
Inside the temple, a burly, powerfully built middle-aged man dressed in coarse cloth and carrying a bow on his back tore off a roasted rabbit leg and handed it to Bai He.
"All right, thank you, Brother Tie Shan."
Bai He accepted the rabbit leg and began eating.
The burly man named Tie Shan then distributed the other roasted rabbits in his hands among the rest of the people in the temple.
Then, carrying the remaining rabbit, he walked over to the entrance and sat down.
Although Tie Shan was an excellent archer with abundant hunting experience and had caught three rabbits in the mountains, there were nearly a dozen people in the temple. Once divided among them, there was little rabbit for each person.
Fortunately, everyone in the temple had come well prepared for this journey and carried dry rations. The rabbit was merely an after-dinner treat, so the amount did not really matter.
"By the way, Brother Tie Shan, how much longer until we reach Kunlun Mountain?"
After finishing the rabbit leg in his hand, Bai He looked at the pitch-black forest outside and could not help asking.
"We still have a day's journey. We'll probably arrive by tomorrow evening, but that isn't too late. We'll be able to see Goddess Lan Nuo Shatter the Void that night."
Beside Bai He, a woman dressed like a female hero, her face veiled in gauze and a three-foot sword in hand, smiled and answered his question.
"Oh, so that's how it is. Thank you, Sister Qing Ping!"
Bai He nodded, thanked the woman beside him, then fell into thought.
Ah! One more day? I still haven't run into him. Do I really have to wait until Kunlun Mountain to meet Xiao Chen? If so, my plan will be ruined!
Bai He could not help sighing inwardly.
A few days earlier, his projection had successfully awakened, and he had discovered that he seemed to have arrived in an ancient martial arts world.
As for his identity after projection, he was an inn waiter. Fortunately enough, the proprietress was his elder sister.
While serving dishes to guests one time, Bai He had accidentally overheard some news—on the night of the full moon on the fifteenth, Goddess Lan Nuo would sever her worldly ties atop Kunlun Mountain's Red Dust Peak and Shatter the Void!
In an instant, Bai He knew where he was: Jiuzhou from the Realm of Longevity!
Although Bai He had become somewhat hazy on the Realm of Longevity's complete plot, he still remembered that stunning opening sequence with perfect clarity.
According to what the system had told him, due to the time-flow ratio between the Main World's Super God Academy world and the Realm of Longevity, Bai He could only live in the Realm of Longevity for a little over four months without affecting tomorrow—one hundred and twenty-five days, to be precise.
But his time projected into the Realm of Longevity was only a little over four months. How could he obtain the greatest possible benefit? Bai He pondered it for a long time before finally making a decision: he would take Xiao Chen as his master!
Unlike the protagonists of many other Web Novels from that era, Xiao Chen was not the sort of genius-type protagonist. His aptitude could only be called excellent, and he had never possessed any grand ambitions. After arriving in the Realm of Longevity, all he wanted was to return to Jiuzhou and see his family and beloved women again.
Yet through his extraordinary opportunities, he accomplished countless great deeds—killing Half-Ancestors, destroying false gods, sealing demonic wells, battling the hundred races...
He had repeatedly faced death, fighting in blood for Jiuzhou and for humanity. He was a hero who valued loyalty and affection, so Bai He was more than willing to take Xiao Chen as his master.
Moreover, the cultivation method in Xiao Chen's possession, derived from the Yellow River Heavenly Tablet, was also an extraordinarily powerful cultivation art. Compared with the other powerful cultivation methods in this world, which Bai He had no idea how to obtain, the Heavenly Tablet Mystic Skill was undoubtedly the best choice.
And if he successfully became Xiao Chen's disciple and followed him to the Realm of Longevity, then with Xiao Chen's protagonist's fortune, he might be able to gain quite a few benefits himself.
But the greatest problem now was how to find Xiao Chen, and then how to successfully become his disciple.
Although Bai He knew that Xiao Chen's home was Ancestor Dragon Village by the Yellow River, Xiao Chen must have already set out for Kunlun Mountain. With only a little over four months available to him, Bai He's only way to find Xiao Chen now was to head for Kunlun Mountain as well and try his luck.
If all else failed, he would force himself to follow Xiao Chen to the Realm of Longevity. At worst, his true body would be weakened for a while if the projection died. But if he returned empty-handed from this world, Bai He would be depressed to death!
Just as Bai He was lost in thought, a sudden noise came from outside.
"Who is it!"
"Who's there!"
Inside the temple, Tie Shan swiftly took the powerful bow from his back, nocked an arrow, and pointed its sharp tip directly toward the pitch-black woods outside.
Beside Bai He, Qing Ping, the sword-wielding female hero, also drew her sword. Everyone in the temple immediately went on guard.
Whoosh, whoosh...
Amid the rustling of shaking branches, a figure gradually approached and emerged in the firelight of the temple.
The person who approached was a young man dressed in black.
The young man had long black hair, handsome features, eyes as bright as stars, and an air of determination between his brows. Yet for some reason, faint bloodstains marked his black clothing.
"My name is Xiao Chen. Night has fallen, and ferocious beasts roam Black Mountain. Seeing firelight here, I came over, hoping to borrow shelter for the night. I will leave immediately tomorrow!"
The young man named Xiao Chen wore a stern expression as he clasped his hands toward Tie Shan and the others.
"Come, come, Brother Xiao Chen. There's plenty of room in the temple. Meeting in this wilderness is fate. Come on, get inside!"
Seeing that it was only one person, Tie Shan let out a long breath of relief. He quickly put away his bow and arrows and welcomed Xiao Chen inside with a smile.
"Then I thank you all!"
Xiao Chen smiled faintly, clasped his hands in thanks to everyone, then stepped into the temple, found an empty space, and sat down cross-legged.
Tie Shan smiled as well and returned to his seat at the entrance. After watching Xiao Chen for a while and finding nothing amiss, he finally closed his eyes to rest.
Among the people in the temple, most had no fighting ability, just like Bai He.
The only ones capable of fighting were Tie Shan, the female hero Qing Ping, and a servant brought by a Young Master in the temple.
On Black Mountain, anyone capable of making it here at night ought to be an expert, in Tie Shan's opinion.
The reason Tie Shan had invited Xiao Chen in so warmly was also because he hoped to draw Xiao Chen into their group and strengthen their safety.
But no one noticed that beside the bonfire, a raging storm had arisen in Bai He's heart.
"Xiao Chen? Could it be..."
Before you continue