Watching Iron Mask and the others go to capture his son, the old man stood still with his halberd, making no move to intercept them. He only kept his eyes fixed on Old Master Wu.
His primary target was Old Master Wu. If he went after Iron Mask and the rest, letting Old Master Wu escape, Wu Hei and the others would be in even greater danger.
The two brothers faced each other, neither seeing anyone else around them.
The group quickly bypassed the two of them and left.
The bubbling in the pool gradually subsided, and the water slowly churned. Suddenly, a black claw gripped the edge of the pool, and a pair of wings emerged from the surface. A demon that looked much like the three masters of Rift Valley Manor floated up, except it had a tail whipping chaotically behind it, slapping the water without rhythm.
The old man watched. Old Master Wu also slowly turned his head to look.
Seeing these two, the demon seemed somewhat terrified. It leapt up with all its might, its body in mid-air, wings flapping repeatedly, yet it could barely maintain balance. Clearly, it had never adapted to this before. It flew right over Old Master Wu’s head and flailed wildly, crashing toward the old man.
The faint glow of a fallen fluorescent stone on the ground illuminated the old man’s hand as he raised his golden halberd. With a single strike, he flipped the demon over and pinned it to the ground with the barbed blade.
“Aaah…”
The demon struggling on the ground let out a piercing, miserable scream. The halberd blade that pinned it became the centre as flames erupted from within its body. Soon, the screaming stopped, and it rapidly crumbled into a pile of ashes on the ground.
The firelight faded, but the faint glow of the fluorescent stones on the ground remained, illuminating the two brothers still facing each other.
The old man pulled out his halberd and pointed it at Old Master Wu across from him, his righteous aura imposing, carrying the weight of a life-or-death showdown.
His subordinate had been reduced to ashes, yet Old Master Wu did not so much as twitch an eyelid. He did not care in the slightest. Leaning on his halberd, he stood motionless and spoke, asking, “Must you make things difficult for your own elder brother? Are you ill?”
The old man retorted, “It is you who is making things difficult for all of us.”
Old Master Wu snorted coldly, “If I were making things difficult for everyone, do you think your son would still be alive out there? Do you think I truly could not find a way to capture him all these centuries?”
The old man replied, “That is because you know that even if you caught him, he would never reveal my whereabouts. Otherwise, do you think you could have resisted doing so?”
Old Master Wu said, “If you insist on thinking of your elder brother this way, I cannot help it. I only want to ask you, what will it take for you to stop?”
The old man gave his answer, “Hand over the halberd in your hand, leave Golden Ruins immediately, and never enter again.”
Old Master Wu slowly drew a deep breath, his eyes turning gloomy. “Are you determined to block my path today?”
The old man said, “I was the one who opened the entrance. I must take responsibility for my mistake. Elder brother, heed my words. No one can remain undefeated forever, and no one can stand above all living beings forever. Once you ascend, sooner or later, someone will appear to topple you. It will only bring you greater pain. This is the will of heaven!”
Old Master Wu said, “Right and wrong, truth and falsehood, everything is self-inflicted. There is no will of heaven! I ask you one last time today, will you step aside?”
The old man replied, “Hand over your halberd and withdraw from Golden Ruins!”
“Fine, then come and take it by skill!” Old Master Wu roared, his figure flashing out rapidly, his blue halberd striking with fury.
Boom! The deafening sound echoed through the palace.
The old man, blocking the strike with his halberd held horizontally with both hands, was sent sliding backward in a straight line, retreating five or six zhang before he steadied himself.
Old Master Wu’s cold laughter rang through the hall. “Little brother, it seems all that flying around in the sky has cost you quite a bit of strength!”
This was a deliberate remark. Due to the special nature of their bodies, both had been forced to slumber for many years. That was why he had the three masters of Rift Valley Manor carry his palanquin chair, all to preserve his strength.
The old man refused to concede. He flashed forward, swinging his halberd to attack actively.
Amidst rumbling sounds, the two brothers fought fiercely in a furious battle…
Flying through the air was indeed faster than traversing the land on foot. Despite setting out first, Yu Qing’s group was ultimately caught up to.
Wu Dao and Wu Heyun hovered in the air, wings flapping. They did not descend to tangle with them, merely circling overhead to keep watch and guide the pursuers on the ground.
Seeing they could not shake them off, there was no point wasting energy. The group on the ground simply stopped.
Before long, Iron Mask also led a group in pursuit, confronting Wu Hei and the others.
Wu Dao and Wu Heyun folded their wings and landed, standing to either side of Iron Mask.
Seeing that Iron Mask’s group had mingled with Rift Valley Manor again, contempt flickered in the eyes of Yu Qing’s group.
Wu Hei could not resist mocking, “Weren’t you allied with me?”
Iron Mask reached back and calmly pulled a sword from a subordinate’s waist. Suddenly, he spun around, sword flashing in a circle. Blood sprayed.
The heads of Wu Dao and Wu Heyun flew from their necks. On the tumbling heads, their eyes were wide open. The two seemed to have never dreamed that Iron Mask would suddenly attack them.
It was not just them. Wu Hei and the others in front were all dumbstruck. Bai Lan and the others behind were also stunned.
Everyone was baffled by Iron Mask’s actions. Had he really killed Wu Dao and Wu Heyun just like that?
The two heads thudded to the ground. The two corpses, gushing blood and evil qi, thumped to the ground one after another. Little Black, who had awakened and was clinging to his father’s back, quickly hid his face behind his father’s head, not daring to look.
Shaking the blood from the sword, he returned it to the scabbard at his subordinate’s waist. Only then did Iron Mask reply to Wu Hei, “Are we not allied?”
Wu Hei was somewhat speechless, then asked, “How did you end up mixed with them?”
Iron Mask said, “If I had not mixed with them, how could I have killed them so easily? An alliance does not always require standing together in open confrontation. It can be one in the open and one in the dark, or working together from within and without. Now, I have pledged allegiance to your uncle. I am still on your uncle’s side. When you return, do not reveal anything amiss.”
Wu Hei was silent for a moment, then nodded slightly. He understood the other’s meaning: working together from within and without.
Iron Mask said, “What are you still dawdling for? Go do what you need to do. Hurry, before your uncle arrives. I will pretend to pursue you.”
Having killed Old Master Wu’s trusted subordinates in public, with such leverage in hand, Wu Hei and the others had no further doubts about him. They immediately pressed on.
Iron Mask briefly dealt with the bodies on the ground, then continued following behind the group.
Bai Lan and the others behind him, however, kept exchanging glances. This Iron Mask’s reversals were so swift that their minds could not keep up.
Of course, after such a reversal, they also secretly found it strange. They did not know what Old Master Wu and the two masters of Rift Valley Manor were thinking, why they had suddenly trusted Iron Mask so much.
They only knew that after being separated from Iron Mask for a time, when they met again, Iron Mask seemed to have gained Old Master Wu’s trust.
They did not know what had happened in between, nor how Iron Mask had won the trust of Old Master Wu and the others…
The high mountain, the only stone mountain in the Immortal Palace, was indeed very conspicuous. It was not hard to find.
The group that climbed to the cliff top looked at the river of gold flowing out from the mountain’s belly, all greatly amazed.
Nan Zhu stared at the opening in the mountain, clicking his tongue in wonder. “Legends say that within Golden Ruins lies a spring of flowing gold. I always wondered, how could gold flow like liquid? So this is what the so-called spring of gold is all about.”
Having reached their target, there was nothing to hesitate over. After a brief observation, the group eagerly charged inside.
Entering the mountain’s belly, they saw a crisscrossing landscape of pits and hollows everywhere, with bubbling springs of gold boiling and churning, scorching hot and roasting, as if they had entered a massive furnace.
From some of the ruins, it was evident that this place had once had a certain architectural layout. But it was unclear what destruction it had suffered. The original orderly roads, stone pillars, bridges, and houses had all collapsed, ruined into pits and hollows, charred into scorched stone wasteland. The bright, gleaming place instead gave off a gloomy, oppressive feeling.
None of that mattered. What they most wanted to see were the other two springs of the Three-Life Spring.
The group searched high and low. In this place of jagged, charred stones and hanging fangs, they searched everywhere but found no sign of anything resembling an earthly spring or a human spring. The problem was, they did not see a single drop of water. Instead, they found something frightening.
“Over here.”
Nie Pinlan’s sudden shout rang out.
The group searching throughout the mountain’s belly immediately rushed toward the sound. They all thought she had found the Heavenly Spring or the Human Spring, only to discover she had found a golden orchid plant bearing three golden fruits. Of course, they also found the Thief Mandarin Duck couple tensely staring at something in the darkness opposite them.
The gathering group followed their gazes and saw the golden giant sitting against the wall in the darkness, half-hidden, sword in hand. Each and every one of them was startled.
Anywhere else, one might have thought it a sculpture. In Golden Ruins, they first thought of it as a living creature.
Whether Wu Hei or Iron Mask, at this moment, they were all cautious and careful.
Among the group gathered on the scorched stones, it was still Nan Zhu’s gaze that first returned to the golden orchid plant. He muttered, “What is this? I’ve seen plenty of golden animals in Golden Ruins, but this is the first time I’ve seen a golden plant.”
As he spoke, he reached out and touched it. He even pinched one of the golden fruits and twisted it, finding it quite resilient. He then used both hands, channelling his inner power, and with a pop, forcibly plucked off one of the golden fruits.
The group tensed slightly at the sight, then all subconsciously looked at the golden giant with its eyes closed in rest, worried something might happen.
In the end, the golden giant showed no reaction for a long time. Instead, the red-gold liquid churning in the crisscrossing channels around them reacted. The boiling grew more intense…
Beneath the ice on the sea surface, rumbling sounds came from time to time, and the ice layer trembled.
Big Head, lying on the leather bag of spirit rice, had just finished eating the last grain. With his belly bulging, the sudden movement made him quickly let out a black-smoke fart, then flapped his wings and flew into the air, circling overhead and staring down at the commotion below.
Wave after wave of massive rumbling came from beneath the ice. Cracks even began to form on the ice surface, as if something was trying to break out from below. However, the ice layer was simply too thick, and the frozen range was truly too vast. The immense weight made it impossible for whatever was below to break free of the ice. It could only produce some sounds or cause some cracks on the surface.
The group inside the mountain’s belly knew nothing of this. In any case, they all stared at Nan Zhu in unison. Many of their eyes even held anger.
Nan Zhu, clutching that golden fruit in his hand, looked at the abnormal surging all around, then at the angry eyes of the group. He shrank his neck, feeling utterly guilty and embarrassed.