"Aahhh!"
An even more piercing scream rang out right beside Gu Zhao's ear.
"That was so cool!"
Jiang Shishi rushed forward and wrapped her arms around Gu Zhao. He only felt his arm sink deep into a patch of softness, as though it had been buried within.
Xiao Ya beside them was equally dumbfounded, her small mouth slightly open as she stared at Gu Zhao in disbelief.
They had heard Gu Zhao roughly introduce himself before. Since childhood, he had followed his grandfather in learning some Taoist Scriptures and martial arts. They knew he exercised regularly and was surely stronger and better at fighting than ordinary young men, but that was all.
How could they have imagined that Gu Zhao could display such speed and strength?
It was practically like something out of an action movie!
The surrounding crowd also burst into cries of shock. "Holy shit!" and "Awesome!" rang out without end. Only after they recovered did they cheer and applaud, showering Gu Zhao with praise.
No one suspected anything, because Gu Zhao had not displayed speed or power that completely surpassed human limits. He had merely seemed comparable to an expert in parkour.
In the eyes of the onlookers, Gu Zhao's reflexes and courage were even more precious.
"Xuanxuan!"
Only then did the child's family come scrambling over. The child's mother swept him into her arms, her entire body trembling with emotion.
"Waaah!" The child seemed to have finally processed what had happened and immediately burst into tears.
"Thank you, thank you, thank you..." Another middle-aged man grabbed Gu Zhao's hand and bowed repeatedly. Though he was trying hard to control himself, his trembling voice gave him away.
"It's fine." Gu Zhao comforted the man in turn, patting his hand. "Just be more careful next time."
"Absolutely, absolutely! I'm afraid I won't dare bring him hiking again for the next few years." The man shook his head with a bitter smile, still shaken to the core.
He was terrified in hindsight as well. In that instant just now, it had felt as though his heart had stopped beating. If Gu Zhao had not acted, he did not dare imagine the consequences.
The woman finally recovered somewhat as well. She brought the child over to thank Gu Zhao. She had originally wanted to invite Gu Zhao to travel with them, but seeing the two pretty girls beside him, she tactfully did not say it aloud.
But a life-saving debt could not be settled with a few words of thanks. The man insisted on adding Gu Zhao as a contact. "Little brother, you may not care, but if we don't properly thank you, we won't be able to live with ourselves!"
Someone nearby chimed in, "Send a banner to the young man's workplace."
"Right, right, right!" The man nodded repeatedly.
Gu Zhao shook his head and declined. "I haven't graduated yet."
The woman's eyes lit up. "Then even better—send it to your school!"
"No need, really, no need. It was only a small effort." Now that Gu Zhao had a cheat system, he did not want to draw attention. "Just treat me to a meal instead."
"Of course!" The woman's gaze shifted, and she pulled the two girls over. "You two young ladies should come too. Let's add each other as contacts so it'll be convenient to stay in touch."
After pulling the child over to thank Gu Zhao once more, they saw that he had been badly frightened. Though he had recovered a little, after discussing it, they decided not to continue up the mountain and instead turned back.
The crowd of onlookers gradually dispersed, but Jiang Shishi was still immensely excited. "You were way too amazing!"
"Basic stuff. Don't praise me." Gu Zhao made a cheeky remark before adding, "Mainly, it wasn't far, and it wasn't that dangerous."
Xiao Ya looked at the slope beyond the stone steps. Although grass and trees did grow near the steps, farther down it became extremely steep, and after a certain distance the bottom could no longer be seen. She truly could not see how it was "not that dangerous."
"Although it may not be appropriate to say this, you mustn't be so impulsive in the future. That was far too dangerous." Xiao Ya advised him with concern.
Gu Zhao appreciated her concern and nodded earnestly. "Thank you. I'll be careful."
Though he had not yet tried using martial arts to fight anyone, when it came to Lightness Skill alone, even the world's top parkour master would have to bow in defeat. As long as he was not falling directly from a skyscraper or a sheer cliff, his life should not be in danger.
"You do need to be careful, but showing off is indispensable too!" Jiang Shishi still had her arms around Gu Zhao's left arm and stared at him. "I bet you usually never get chances to steal the spotlight. How did it feel?"
Feeling that soft touch, Gu Zhao put on a solemn expression. "Absolutely fantastic!"
Without making a fuss, Xiao Ya tugged Jiang Shishi away. "All right, all right. Let's keep climbing. Taishang Laojun Pavilion is still far away, and we need to get down early today for a feast."
Jiang Shishi let go accordingly and straightened her clothes. "Okay, okay, okay. Back to climbing."
They had already left the Ancient Celestial Master Cave. After walking a while, they turned toward the Patriarch Hall to look around.
"'Quanzhen Dao Spreads the Teachings.'" Jiang Shishi read the large characters on the plaque. "Another Quanzhen Dao site? Wouldn't that mean Zhengyi Dao is being attacked from both front and back?"
Gu Zhao shook his head. "All Taoist traditions under heaven are one family. Both Quanzhen Dao and Zhengyi Dao are orthodox Taoist lineages, supporting our native culture."
Jiang Shishi turned back with a baffled expression, only to see a middle-aged Taoist priest walk past the three of them. He first nodded to Jiang Shishi, then cupped his hands toward Gu Zhao with a smile. "May heaven bless you boundlessly!"
Gu Zhao returned the greeting with a smile.
Jiang Shishi, "..."
After the Taoist priest left, Jiang Shishi lightly punched Gu Zhao. "Did you do that on purpose?"
Gu Zhao spread his hands. "You were the one who said it. It wasn't something I taught you."
Jiang Shishi was speechless. "Wasn't it because you kept talking before about how Zhengyi Dao and Quanzhen Dao either debated scriptures or fought each other?"
Gu Zhao looked utterly bewildered. "Did I say that?"
Jiang Shishi clenched her dainty fist, only to hear Xiao Ya say faintly beside her, "I don't think he did."
"Aahhh! Xiao Ya, you've gone bad too!"
A string of laughter trailed down the mountain path, before turning into a chorus of panting breaths.
After that incident, the three of them had clearly grown closer and could now be considered friends.
"We finally made it. I didn't expect Qingcheng Mountain to be this hard to climb either." Jiang Shishi caught her breath and looked toward the Taishang Laojun Pavilion in the distance.
"It's not bad. Much easier than Dongyue." Xiao Ya was tired too, but she was clearly not as exhausted as Jiang Shishi.
Jiang Shishi looked at Xiao Ya's legs, then at her own chest. The other woman had an advantage, while she herself had a burden. Add one and subtract one, and that was a two-hundred-percent gap. How was she supposed to compete?
Gu Zhao rested outside with the two girls for a while before they burned incense and paid their respects outside Taishang Laojun Pavilion, lit lamps to pray for blessings, and then entered together to worship the Three Pure Ones.
Upon entering the pavilion, they found a statue of Laozi directly before them. A group of people who had reached the summit were lining up to kowtow. An old Daoist with graying hair and a face full of wrinkles sat behind a table beside the statue. With lowered eyes and bowed head, his expression was blank. He merely held a small mallet in one hand and watched the bronze chime on the table.
Each time a group of worshippers knelt and kowtowed, the old Daoist struck the chime once.
"Clang—"
The three of them lined up at the back. Jiang Shishi seemed to recall something and could not help observing the old Daoist closely for a while before finally discovering the clue.
"He's wearing Bluetooth earbuds!" Jiang Shishi whispered.
Xiao Ya lifted her head as well, sweeping her gaze across the table. "There's a phone propped up behind that sign on the table."
"You remember that news story too?" Jiang Shishi turned to look at Xiao Ya, and the two girls giggled.
Only Gu Zhao suddenly felt the Five Thunder Token in his mind twitch. The Thunder Seed beside it, whose purpose he had never known, abruptly became active and faintly pointed in a certain direction.
Gu Zhao's heart stirred. He suddenly raised his head, only to discover that the old Daoist striking the chime had also abruptly looked toward him.
Thanks to fellow cultivator 20180707144157515 for the 100 reward.
Before you continue