Sage of Humanity

The murky large sun shone down in all directions, and four figures swept through mid-air.

It was none other than Lu Ye and Pang Huanyin's group.

Lu Ye brought Ying Wuji, while Pang Huanyin brought Veteran Siao. The group headed to Mount Sumeru totaled only four. Pang Huanyin had mentioned last night that too many people would not be good, so she naturally didn't make a large show of it.

The two led in the front, with Ying Wuji and Veteran Siao following behind.

However, unlike Lu Ye and Pang Huanyin, who were chatting and laughing merrily, the two behind were rather sullen and disheartened.

Ying Wuji didn't need to say anything. If he had the choice, he wouldn't want to act with Lu Ye. He could sense that this trip to Mount Sumeru was not going to be a pleasant task.

As for Veteran Siao…

Last night, when Pang Huanyin informed him of this, he had objected strongly.

The Dao Palace possessed calculations and methods for opening the portals to two other secret realms. This was an absolute secret, known only to Pang Huanyin and him within Ziwei Dao Palace, passed down orally through generations.

If this were to be exposed, the other two forces surely wouldn't be able to stay at ease.

Moreover, this time Pang Huanyin was personally leading the team to Mount Sumeru. If anything went wrong, it could provoke hostility between the two human race secret realms. If the other side became suspicious, the efforts of the Dao Palace over the past millennium would be in vain.

Yet, no matter how much he persuaded, Pang Huanyin remained unmoved.

Veteran Siao had no choice but to follow orders.

He could not understand why the Palace Master would act like this. Looking up, he saw the two ahead walking side by side, appearing quite close despite not knowing each other for long.

His heart skipped a beat…

Could it be that the Palace Master is…

But then again, what woman does not yearn for love? The Palace Master was at that very young age, and before, no one had caught her eye. This young man named Lu Yiye undoubtedly stood out more than anyone else. It was not surprising that the Palace Master might admire him.

If this were true, it wouldn't necessarily be a bad thing. At the very least, the Dao Palace would gain a strong ally!

With this thought, Veteran Siao felt somewhat relieved.

They hurried on without stopping.

Until noon the next day when they arrived before a large lake. Pang Huanyin stopped, looked around, and asked, "Veteran Siao, is this the place?"

Veteran Siao calculated silently, then nodded after a while, "This is the place, in two hours!"

"Just in time!" Pang Huanyin said indifferently, "Then let's rest for two hours."

Throughout the journey, everyone was exhausted. There might be some conflicts entering Mount Sumeru, as they were barging in uninvited, and even with Pang Huanyin leading, the Mount Sumeru side wouldn't ignore such an intrusion.

The group found a spot by the lake and began meditating and consuming pills to recover.

Seeing the high-quality elixir pills used by Lu Ye and Ying Wuji, Pang Huanyin felt even more convinced by what Lu Ye had said earlier.

Such elixir pills could not be concocted in the current Unparalleled Continent. In terms of quality and appearance, they were far superior to what the Unparalleled Continent could produce.

She couldn't help but feel a sense of yearning and envy. What kind of world was this Nine Provinces?

Unfortunately, she probably wouldn't have the chance to visit that world in her lifetime.

Soon, two hours passed, and the four of them came to the surface of the lake once more.

Veteran Siao looked at Pang Huanyin for the final confirmation, "Palace Master, if we act like this, the Mount Sumeru side might not let it slide."

Pang Huanyin clasped her hands behind her back, saying indifferently, "So what? I bet Liu Zhenguan would not dare to tear his face with me!"

These words sounded quite domineering. However, since Veteran Siao knew the Palace Master's thoughts, he said no more and took out an artifact resembling a round ring.

It looked like a bracelet, glittering with golden light.

Veteran Siao activated his spirit force, flicking lightly, causing a continuous, crisp ringing sound. He then tossed the golden ring onto the lake surface.

The ring spun rapidly as it landed. Instead of sinking, it sent out ripples of golden light, and in the blink of an eye, the ring seemed to enlarge significantly.

The spirit force vibrations caused incessant ringing.

At the same time, at the Mount Sumeru Secret Realm portal.

Many cultivators were gathered.

Contrary to the usual solemn atmosphere, today, it was quite festive, as if something joyous was about to happen.

Indeed, something joyous was afoot. In three days, their mountain lord was getting married—a piece of news that spread the day before, shaking the entire Mount Sumeru Secret Realm.

It wasn't because of anything else. Despite having many women around him over the years, their mountain lord never showed any inclination to marry anyone.

The mountain lord had even boasted that he would never marry unless Pang Huanyin of Ziwei Dao Palace was willing to marry him. Otherwise, no one could catch his eye.

But everyone knew this was impossible. After all, Pang Huanyin was the Palace Master of Ziwei Dao Palace. How could she be willing to come to Mount Sumeru, not to mention that her strength was overwhelmingly powerful? Even if she did marry over, the mountain lord might not be able to handle her.

So when news of the mountain lord's wedding came out, many were happy, and others found it unbelievable. They wondered what kind of woman had made the mountain lord give up on his obsession with Pang Huanyin.

"I saw that woman once before. She is indeed a rare beauty," a cultivator said during casual conversation.

"Oh? Brother Zhao has seen our future mountain lady? Do tell, which family's daughter is it?" someone asked.

The situation at Mount Sumeru was similar to Silver Snake Valley. Its legacy had been broken for a long time, not organized as a sect but controlled by various families.

Unlike Silver Snake Valley, however, there weren't five great families. Only one family, the Liu family, held the greatest power.

For many years, the Liu family had controlled Mount Sumeru. Liu Zhenguan, whom Pang Huanyin mentioned, was the current family head and the mountain lord of Mount Sumeru.

If Liu Zhenguan wanted to marry, he would surely choose from other families, using marriage to consolidate his power—an old Liu family strategy.

So everyone speculated about which family's daughter it was. However, high-ranking members kept it a tight secret, with no clear information leaking out.

Brother Zhao shook his head, "She isn't from any particular family. She came from outside, one of the two women who were brought into our secret realm recently. Brother Shih also saw them when we were on guard duty here the other day."

Beside him was a sturdily-built man, Cultivator Shih. He looked at Cultivator Zhao, "Two women were brought in that day. Which one is the mountain lord going to marry?"

Cultivator Zhao replied, "The gentle, serene one, from what I know."

Someone asked in confusion, "How extraordinary is she that the mountain lord wants to marry her?"

Cultivator Zhao shook his head, looking wise, "If she were just a beauty, the mountain lord wouldn't act this way. His side has always been full of beauties." He seemed to have information others didn't, knowing more.

He glanced around warily, then lowered his voice, "Brothers, this is just between us. Don't spread it around."

The cultivators gathered showed great interest.

Someone urged, "Brother Zhao, we trust each other. No one will gossip. Who would dare? We'd never let it happen."

"Indeed, indeed."

Cultivator Zhao continued, "I heard from my elder that the woman has an extraordinary ability in detoxification!"

The group was stunned.

Someone laughed, "That's no big deal."

Another pondered and asked, "Brother Zhao, what kind of toxins does she detoxify?"

Cultivator Zhao said solemnly, one word at a time, "Primordial Corpse Poison!"

Everyone fell silent, the only sound being the wind howling.

All eyes incredulously turned to Cultivator Zhao.

"Brother Zhao… you must be joking, right?" someone said, unsure.

Cultivator Zhao shook his head, "I thought it was impossible too. Everyone knows Primordial Corpse Poison is incurable. Once infected, people are transformed into corpse race. So whenever one of our brothers is infected, we must end our lives immediately and secure the body. But this seems to be true!"

"How is that possible?" someone doubted. With no solution for so long, even the Ziwei Dao Palace was helpless. How could an outsider woman solve this problem?

"Do you know why those two women were brought into our secret realm?" Cultivator Zhao continued, "Because one of our people was infected with Primordial Corpse Poison outside and saved by that woman. They then brought them here! The mountain lord ordered more corpse poison for testing, confirming the woman's ability. Without that, the mountain lord wouldn't consider marriage. We lost many due to Primordial Corpse Poison over the years as it's incurable. But if there's a solution, we'd be less cautious against the corpse race."

"If so, the mountain lord marrying her makes sense," someone mused.

Rare talent like this couldn't be missed. To keep her loyalty to Mount Sumeru, marrying her would bind their interests. Besides, she's a beauty, naturally attractive to the mountain lord.

"So, the mountain lord's marriage isn't just personal but for Mount Sumeru's good.

"Exactly."

While chatting, the mountain lord's marriage was seen as a strategic move for Mount Sumeru's future, earning respect and curiosity about the future wife.

Fortunately, the wedding was in three days, and they would soon find out more.