Summit of the Old Gods

On Mo Gu Peak, inside a mountain cave.

In the corner, a young man sleeping soundly on a straw mat seemed to be having a nightmare, his brows furrowed tightly.

"Brother~"

The young man's sleep was restless, and he turned over groggily.

"Brother?"

Lu Ran suddenly opened his eyes wide.

The scene before him left him somewhat confused, the light of the setting sun seeped through the cave entrance and fell inside.

In the beams of light, dust could be seen faintly swirling.

Lu Ran's eyes gradually regained focus, finally recalling where he was.

For the past fifty or sixty days, he had been fighting everywhere, also wandering throughout the Mountain Realm.

Today, he camped in the snow forest with swirling winds and snow, tomorrow he would hide in the Soul-locking Mountains shrouded in gray mist.

In comparison, the place he visited the most was still the Northwest Desert.

This isolated Mo Gu Peak carried its own unique aura.

Melancholic, lonely.

There was no need to worry about seeing any living creatures.

That's why Lu Ran liked it here; if he couldn't see people, naturally he wouldn't see sad stories.

A bit self-deceptive.

Holy Spirit Mountain gradually returned to its former order.

Batch after batch of Human Clan disciples were thrown in, each small faction, each prestigious sect was rebuilt.

Only to be destroyed again, people dying in waves.

History repeating itself.

Compared to before, the survival conditions of Holy Spirit Mountain had worsened, because there were now patrolling executioners of the Heavenly Realm.

Such people were beyond reasoning.

Just like a person walking on the road, seeing a few ants crawling on the ground.

Unrelated to hatred or affection.

To step on them or not, a decision made in a moment.

Without resolving the dominating God Demon, without fundamentally changing the rules, there will always be people thrown into this slaughterhouse.

"Hah..." Lu Ran let out a deep sigh, holding his forehead with one hand, he sat up.

Having seen so much, shouldn't he be numb?

But why was he growing more and more resentful?

"Brother!"

"Hmm?" Only then did Lu Ran remember, as if someone was calling him in a faint voice, prompting him to wake up.

He searched within the Spiritual World, then set his gaze on an Evil Sculpture—the Black Lantern.

"Yuanxi?"

"Brother!" The girl's call became clear, "You finally responded to me."

"Hmm..."

"You haven't visited me for so long." She spoke softly, with a hint of grievance.

Lu Ran felt a bit guilty, yet didn't know how to respond.

Should he say he was busy?

Indeed.

But if he could rest on Mo Gu Peak, why couldn't he go back to the Ran Sect to rest?

Distance, to him, meant nothing.

So...

He just didn't want to go back, didn't want to face those eyes full of hope.

Everyone there revered him like a deity, so devout.

But this omnipotent deity was leading people to flee their homes, to a pitiful and desperate escape.

Lu Ran knew well what the disciples were hoping for...

"Brother, are you listening? Where are you... um, have you been doing well lately?" Qiao Yuansi cautiously asked.

"I'm in the northwest, on Mo Gu Peak."

"Mo Gu Peak? Is that the beautiful scenery Divine General Qin mentioned?" Qiao Yuansi seemed a bit interested, or perhaps she found a good excuse, as her tone perked up.

"Yes. Do you want to come over?" Lu Ran raised his eyes, looking at the sunset beams falling inside the cave.

"Yes, yes!" Qiao Yuansi quickly responded, her tone much more cheerful.

"Can the Tear Star Pendant teleport so far? I'll come to pick you up..." Lu Ran's voice transmission halted.

Beside him, a teardrop-shaped energy mass quietly appeared.

"Jingle~ Jingle~"

The girl in the black dress stepped out, the exquisite Heavenly Sound Bell at her ankle ringing with a clear and pleasant sound.

Lu Ran was full of praise.

The teleportation range of the Magic Artifact Tear Star Pendant was really this far?

Lu Ran was in the northwest of Holy Spirit Mountain, deep in the desert, while Qiao Yuansi was on a distant sea island far from the mainland, in the east.

This?

"Brother!" Qiao Yuansi smiled, her eyes curving, sweetly calling out.

But then, her smile faded, as she looked around the dusty little cave, then down at the worn-out straw mat under Lu Ran.

Qiao Yuansi furrowed her brows: "Why are you resting here in such poor conditions... why not return to the Ends of the Earth?"

Ends of the Earth,

The collective term for the area where the seven islands of the Ran Sect are located.

It was said that this name was also related to Lu Ran.

Ever since he named the east sea cliff of Ranmen Island "Heaven's Edge," the name "Ends of the Earth" had gradually spread among the disciples of Ran Sect.

"The desert, there's bound to be some sand and winds." Lu Ran smiled, gesturing toward the cave entrance not far away, "Go look at the sunset."

However, Qiao Yuansi wasn't concerned about the scenery.

She half-knelt down, carefully examining Lu Ran's face: "You look more haggard."

Lu Ran: "..."

The intensity of his tasks was indeed very high.

To date, those activated Evil Sculptures in his domain, all had ascended to the Heavenly Realm.

Lu Ran, of course, wasn't idle, continuing to slaughter other Evil Demon Races, preparing for future activation, indeed seldom rested.

No matter how resilient a Sea Realm body was, he couldn't withstand such wear and tear.

"Hmm." Qiao Yuansi's eyes were full of heartache, as she reached out a small, tender hand, placing it on Lu Ran's face.

In her hand, black flames ignited, gradually spreading to cover Lu Ran's entire body.

"Have you advanced to the next level?" Lu Ran broke the silence, changing the topic.

"Yeah, that's why I dared to take this opportunity to bother you." Yuanxi pouted.

"What do you mean bother, you can come to me anytime." Lu Ran chuckled.

Yuanxi continued to pout, looking at Lu Ran.

Indeed, the two were spiritually connected, making communication even easier than a phone call.

However, after Yuanxi bonded with the Stone Sculpture, private exchanges with Lu Ran weren't as frequent.

There's no difficulty in making a phone call.

The real challenge is that moment where you look at the number in your contacts and make that decision to dial it.

The cave was enveloped in silence.

Yuanxi adjusted her posture, sitting on her knees, constantly releasing Cage Fire from her hands, nourishing Lu Ran's body and soul.

After some time, Lu Ran softly said, "If you don't watch the sunset now, you'll miss it."

"Then I'll watch it next time."

Lu Ran was slightly speechless, opened his mouth, and then searched for words: "How is everyone doing?"

"Sister Deng and Sister Ruyi both advanced last month," Yuanxi muttered discontentedly, "They prepared a surprise for you, but you still haven't returned."

"Surprise?"

"Mmm." Yuanxi realized she had slipped, covering her mouth with her hand infused with Black Fire.

"Haha." Lu Ran couldn't help but laugh out loud.

Compared to the Cage Fire, this adorable girl in front of him was even more heartwarming.

Yuanxi quickly changed the subject: "Many in the Ran Sect have also advanced. With so many Fake Gods gathering together, carpooling is practically one after another..."

Previously at the Cloud Sea Cliff, the high-ranking officers of the Ran Sect often advanced in groups during a certain period.

Now, the leaders of many affiliated sects of the Ran Sect, along with numerous Stone Sculptures, all gathered at the ends of the earth, truly helping each other out.

"By the way! Sister Yingying and Niutou also advanced to the Sea Realm!"

"Impressive! How about Yutang?"

"Kuaila-ge has made progress as well, but he's still struggling in the River Realm," Yuanxi couldn't help but smother a laugh with her hand.

Lu Ran also laughed.

Poor Deng Shao, his reputation precedes him.

"Kuaila-ge is quite pitiful, every time he sees Sister Deng, he wishes he could bury his head into the ground..." Yuanxi seemed to recall an image, and a bright smile spread across her face.

Lu Ran, on the other hand, had different thoughts.

Deng Yuxiang was already at the Sea Realm Peak, and most people upon seeing her would lower their heads very low.

"Bro~ are you coming home with me?" Yuanxi suddenly asked.

"Home?"

"Sister Ruyi said, by counting the days, you should be retreating to seek a breakthrough," Yuanxi quickly replied.

"What day is it today?" Lu Ran closed his eyes, silently sensing his physical condition.

"It's already June 23rd!"

"Oh." Lu Ran nodded lightly.

Seems about right.

However, his cultivation progress might not have reached little Ruyi's calculated standard.

The reason was simple—high-intensity task deployments still affected Lu Ran.

Indeed, Lu Ran had long gotten used to cultivating in battle, but since embarking on a path of assassination, he sometimes had to halt absorbing Divine Power to prevent fluctuations.

You win some, you lose some.

The already activated Stone Sculptures in the garden can be checked for their realm. Many of the unactivated key Stone Sculptures should also be at high realms.

For instance, Yin Flower Dan, the other side of the Martial Emperor; the Fisherman, the other side of the Luoshen General.

The Nine Nether Sparrow is the arch-nemesis of the Huang Que Sect.

In the future, Lu Ran plans to incorporate the Pavilion Master of the Sky Sparrow Pavilion, Golden Sparrow, to become the Evil God Nine Nether Sparrow.

"Bro~ go back and rest, you're too tired," Yuanxi hugged Lu Ran's arm, softly pleading.

"Mm, alright."

"Eh, let's go back, I miss you... eh?" Yuanxi was taken aback for a moment, then her face lit up with joy, "You agreed?"

Lu Ran reaffirmed by nodding.

He never wanted to refuse little Yuanxi.

Looking back, when he fought against the Blood Skull Clan at the Galaxy Waterfall of Nine Heavens Cliff, it seemed it was also little Yuanxi who chased after him and brought him home?

Behind the scenes, wasn't it also Jiang Ruyi's orchestration?

What a Ran Sect Lady!

She does know where to hit where it hurts...

Thinking of this, Lu Ran couldn't help but have a peculiar expression.

Actually, little Ruyi could have transmitted the message personally. Lu Ran believed he would find it hard to refuse her request as well.

"Hehe~" Yuanxi happily swayed Lu Ran's arm.

"Let's go watch the sunset then." Lu Ran was also affected by her smile, leading her to stand up.

The sunset is truly beautiful.

Too bad we can't see it.

The siblings came to the cave's entrance, unable to see a bloody red sunset, but they did catch sight of strands of afterglow.

"Wow~" Yuanxi's big eyes sparkled brightly.

"I'll bring you back at twilight tomorrow," Lu Ran said softly.

"Mm-hmm! Oh right, bro, you've seen all the Seven Views of the Holy Spirit General Qin mentioned, haven't you?" Yuanxi turned, raising her eyes to Lu Ran.

Lu Ran slightly raised an eyebrow: "Seven Views of the Holy Spirit?"

Yuanxi reached out her slender jade-like finger, listing them with familiarity: "The sea of flowers and sunrise of Qianhua Ridge, the sandstorm and sunset of Mo Gu Peak;

the light snow of Ice Heart Lake, morning fog of the Hidden Thousand Mountains, stars and moon of Moon Shadow Heavenly Pool;

the delicate rain of Mist Rain Lake, the Galaxy Waterfall of Nine Heavens Cliff..."

"You remember them more clearly than I do." Lu Ran understood in his heart, smiling as he shook his head, "I haven't been to the middle three."

"Great!" Yuanxi's eyes lit up, "Ice Heart Lake reserving for me... no, Moon Shadow Heavenly Pool reserving for me! Let's go see it together!"

"All are reserved for you," Lu Ran directly said.

"No, no, can't be so greedy~" Yuanxi shook her little head like a rattle.

"Why can't you be greedy?"

"Mom will make me kneel as punishment."

"I won't punish you."

"Um... right~"

...