The white fox leapt onto Ye Chu’s shoulder. Ye Chu reached out to stroke its head, but the fox proudly turned its face away, refusing to let Ye Chu touch its body.
This white fox was exceptionally arrogant, and Ye Chu had long grown accustomed to it. Yet he simply loved petting it. He reached out, grabbed it, and vigorously rubbed its head a few times. Its warm body felt very pleasant to the touch.
“Hiss…”
The white fox bared its fangs and brandished its claws, raising its tiny legs as if to tear Ye Chu apart. However, its delicate posture lacked any real intimidation, instead coming across as rather endearing.
The fox’s fur was sleek and incredibly soft. Ye Chu held it tightly and was reluctant to let go. The texture of this white fox was truly excellent.
Its gem-like eyes stared at Ye Chu, full of vivid expression. The look conveyed clear displeasure, showing obvious resistance to his actions.
“Little fellow! Since you are following me, you had better get used to being manhandled!” Ye Chu laughed loudly, rubbing its body vigorously. He even poked a few times under its belly. This action made the fox react as if pricked by needles, causing the fur all over its body to stand on end. A hint of bashfulness appeared on its delicate and adorable fox face before it leapt away, leaving Ye Chu’s shoulder.
That is exactly what it was. Bashfulness, a beauty usually only seen in peerless women, left Ye Chu momentarily stunned. It made the white fox seem even more enchanting and beautiful.
Ji Die watched from the side and was equally amazed. Even for a demon beast, such an expression was remarkably lifelike. That fleeting moment of bashfulness actually made her lose her train of thought for a second.
“Bloody hell! This young master actually finds a white fox bashful and extraordinarily charming. When did I develop such heavy tastes?” Ye Chu muttered a few curses at himself and shook his head. Yet whenever his gaze met the fox, he could not help but feel its truly bewitching allure.
Ye Chu exhaled lightly. Just as he prepared to grab it and give it a good rough handling to ease his strange feelings, he saw the white fox that had just jumped down open its mouth slightly and suddenly blow a breath towards the barren mountain in front of them.
Both Ye Chu and Ji Die were startled, for they witnessed a highly shocking sight. As the fox exhaled, an endless stream of white mist poured out. The mist swirled like clouds, wrapping around the entire barren mountain.
The barren mountain was incredibly vast, yet with just that single breath from the fox, the mist instantly hovered above it in a matter of moments.
“What a terrifying ability!”
Regardless of what the mist actually did, the mere fact that it could produce such a massive volume from a single breath, and cover an entire mountain in an instant, was enough to send chills down one’s spine.
Only someone who harboured a universe within themselves could achieve such a feat. And anyone capable of harbouring a universe within themselves was invariably a world-shaking figure, destined to become a peerless existence.
Yet this white fox before them could actually do it as well. Was this an innate ability, or had it cultivated it through practice? If it was the former, that was acceptable. If it was the latter, it was simply too terrifying.
Just as Ye Chu and Ji Die were still grappling with their awe, the hovering mist suddenly shifted. Strands of white mist seeped into the barren mountain as if carrying a corrosive power, and the mountain actually began to fade away.
“An illusion!” Ji Die stared blankly at the mountain slowly vanishing before her, a look of surprise in her heart. She never expected the barren mountain to be an illusion.
Illusions were a mystical skill. When cultivated to the extreme, they could pass for reality. Yet the barren mountain before them was precisely that. As the white mist continuously seeped in, the mountain began to distort, and finally vanished in large sections.
Watching the mist cover the entire mountain, Ye Chu and Ji Die exchanged a glance, their gazes falling upon the white fox. This little creature was truly miraculous. It actually possessed the divine power to shatter an illusion.
Illusions themselves were no trivial matter. Ordinary people would struggle to spot a standard illusion. As for illusions cast by supreme experts, they were virtually undetectable. This was evident from the fact that even Ye Chu and Ji Die had failed to notice it.
Yet the white fox had not only detected it, but had also used its own method to directly break it.
The barren mountain soon vanished completely, replaced by a vast expanse of white. It was all the mist expelled by the fox. However, after taking a deep breath, the fox instantly drew all the mist back into its mouth. The scene before them instantly became crystal clear!
Ye Chu and Ji Die recovered from the astonishment caused by the fox. Ye Chu looked at the little creature, which had returned to his shoulder, and realised it was far from as simple as he had imagined.
Ye Chu looked ahead. With the mountain illusion completely gone, a massive boulder now stood before them. The stone towered like a sword, piercing the clouds. It was enormous, reaching thousands of zhang in height.
Within the entire area where the barren mountain had been, there was nothing else. Only this single bluish-grey boulder remained, standing silently, majestic and magnificent.
Ye Chu and Ji Die walked towards the boulder, looking up at its surface. Several large characters were outlined in blood red on the stone. Each character was hundreds of zhang in size, strikingly conspicuous.
The characters were carved in a vigorous and elegant calligraphic style, appearing blood red and awe-inspiring.
“Let the mortal realm be divine. I only envy mandarin ducks, not immortals!”
These were the words inscribed on the boulder, filling Ye Chu and Ji Die with awe. They were profoundly shaken by them.
A god? What a terrifying existence. It was purely legendary, a realm no one had ever reached. Even a Supreme Being would eventually turn to dust. Only a god was eternal.
Yet now, someone claimed they would make the mortal realm divine. What an overwhelming display of domineering ambition?
Ye Chu stared blankly at the stone face before him, took a deep breath, and fixed his gaze on the large characters. They were incredibly grand. The vigorous calligraphy carried an extremely profound artistic conception.
Ye Chu tried to merge his consciousness with it, but he could not perceive the underlying meaning.
“It really is the ruins of the Female Saint of the Mortal Realm!” The fat man watched blankly from the side, his heart shaken. He never expected their luck to be this good. The directions indicated by the three Prodigy Charts had led them straight to the ruins left by the Female Saint of the Mortal Realm.
The Female Saint of the Mortal Realm. What a legendary and formidable figure. Anything connected to her was enough to drive people mad with desire.
The fat man gazed at the majestic boulder soaring into the clouds and read the large characters, utterly speechless with amazement.
“I only envy mandarin ducks, not immortals!” Ji Die murmured softly beside him. “Rumour has it that although the Female Saint of the Mortal Realm was a Supreme Being, she treated the mortal world as a playground. She believed that transcending the world was not the Dao, but that the mortal world itself was the Dao. Anyone who reaches the Supreme level has already transcended, becoming like an immortal untouched by worldly dust. Yet the Mortal Realm Sovereign was an anomaly. She remained in the mortal realm, never detaching herself from it!”
Ji Die sighed in admiration. “She was an exception. Only after reaching the Supreme level could she utter such unique words, declaring that the mortal realm is the true divine land.”