Chapter 91: Jade Emperor Peak, the Ruins of the Heavenly Palace, the King Upon Mount Tai!

The ordinary level of the shackled realm could never reach such a height.

Unless one had broken more than ten genetic shackles.

Zhou Yunqiong muttered to herself, her expression grave.

Thinking back to what had happened before, when Lu Yuan had directly suppressed the giant demon of the Southern Sea, her conviction deepened: this man was perhaps even more formidable than she had imagined.

In this new era, he could almost be called invincible.

The trouble was, she had failed to notice it before.

Moreover, she could not see how Lu Yuan had reached this point at all; by all rights, he should not have possessed any special bloodline.

Still, whatever the case, Zhou Yunqiong felt he was worthy of her full attention. If he could be brought under her command—

"Miss."

At that moment, Steward Zuo hurried into the room, his expression somewhat anxious.

Seeing him, Zhou Yunqiong withdrew her thoughts at once. "Found him?"

The man nodded, but said nothing.

"It seems this will not be easy. I’ll have to make the trip myself."

She saw what he meant immediately. After a brief consideration, she added, "Also, Yi is about to come out of seclusion. Go speak to him and have him set aside his resentment toward Lu Yuan. If necessary, tell him to compromise. Let him know this is my order."

With that, Zhou Yunqiong paid no further attention to Steward Zuo and strode out of the room.

On the summit of Mount Tai there was a ferocious beast even stronger than the giant demon of the Southern Sea.

Though she would have liked to see Lu Yuan battle it.

There were more pressing matters now.

Steward Zuo remained where he was, his expression faintly stunned, because he understood what the young lady was thinking.

She wanted to win Lu Yuan over, so she was making Yi yield, unwilling for the two sides to clash.

"It seems that in the young lady's heart, that Lu Yuan is very important."

He murmured softly and shook his head.

Of course, Steward Zuo knew full well that the young lady was a woman of far-reaching ambition. Winning over Lu Yuan was merely for the sake of later plans.

Without giving it more thought, he too left the room.

Mount Tai.

Lu Yuan had already passed the mountainside and was advancing steadily toward the peak.

When he had climbed two thirds of the way up, he suddenly noticed something.

The beasts around him were growing fewer and fewer.

At the same time, a series of white jade steps had appeared before him, leading all the way to the summit.

That mysterious power had also become far denser than before, as though it had fused with Mount Tai itself.

Still, Lu Yuan did not stop. He continued upward.

For him, there was no difference whether beasts were present or not.

After all, at this stage, only a small number could reach the king-beast level.

As for those in the awakened realm, regardless of their bloodline strength, he could crush them with ease, simply by stirring the blood-and-qi pagoda within his five viscera, without expending the slightest effort.

Very quickly, as he continued his ascent and drew ever closer to the summit, a massive archway appeared ahead.

There were three gates, but two had already collapsed; only the middle one still stood.

It looked ancient, steeped in the aura of time, with cracks running everywhere.

It possessed a peculiar charm that drew the eye.

But what Lu Yuan cared about was not that.

It was the three large characters engraved upon the archway. Written in archaic Chinese script, they revealed their meaning upon closer inspection: the Southern Heavenly Gate.

And with the summit already near, clouds and mist swirled everywhere, hazy and unreal.

He could not help wondering whether he had truly arrived in the sky.

Meanwhile, the drone behind him had caught up and was broadcasting the scene live.

The viewers were all stunned by what they saw.

On Mount Tai, there was actually a Southern Heavenly Gate. Could the summit be the heavenly palace?

Many people knew that in the old era, the highest point of Mount Tai was called the Jade Emperor Peak. No one could misunderstand the meaning of those two words.

Lu Yuan looked at this supposed Southern Heavenly Gate from myth and legend, said nothing, and continued climbing upward.

Here, there were already few beasts to be seen, only clouds and mist everywhere.

That mysterious aura had also become increasingly distinct.

Especially the surrounding cliffs and rock walls, which were extraordinary in their own right: some flowed with rainbow light, some bore ancient trees, and others were laden with spirit fruits and rare herbs, many in number, all brimming with boundless heavenly and earthly spiritual energy.

These were all broadcast live by the drone, causing everyone to flush with excitement. They knew that even obtaining one of them would be a tremendous fortune.

Especially those ancient trees; one glance was enough to tell they were far from ordinary. Unfortunately, no one could even reach them.

Lu Yuan, however, paid them no mind. He had his own objective.

For him, if he wished to gain great power in a short time, ordinary spirit fruits and herbs were useless unless they were divine treasures.

Not long after, Lu Yuan finally reached Jade Emperor Peak.

It was a flat expanse, vast beyond imagination and utterly open. The surrounding mist had grown even denser, making it seem as though he had entered another world, utterly unlike Mount Tai as it had been before. Everywhere were broken walls, collapsed stone, and rubble, and farther away stood many ancient palaces.

Yet as if too much time had passed, all the buildings had fallen into ruin, utterly chaotic.

But if they could be rebuilt...

They would surely be magnificent beyond measure.

"Could it really be... the heavenly palace?"

At the foot of the mountain, Zhu Qingyu and the others were stunned into silence when they saw the live broadcast.

Ji Huaiyuan and Elder Yun exchanged a glance as well, each seeing the other's disbelief.

First the Southern Heavenly Gate, and now a vast ruin of buildings.

None of this had existed on Mount Tai in the old era.

And yet now it stood before them, wondrous beyond words.

Still, none of them spoke. They simply watched in silence.

Jade Emperor Peak.

Lu Yuan observed carefully, and as he moved forward, he too grew somewhat curious.

But soon afterward, he stopped, a look of astonishment appearing in his eyes.

At this moment, he had reached the very center, and not far ahead stood a high platform.

It was familiar, exactly like the ones in the Ancestral Dragon Hall and the Shennong altar. More importantly, atop this platform there was also a nine-colored altar, carrying the aura of the ages.

This was the second time he had seen one.

Then Lu Yuan steadied his mind and moved to approach.

"Stop!"

But just then, a thunderous shout rang out.

At the same time, an incomparably powerful aura erupted across Jade Emperor Peak.

Even Lu Yuan sensed a trace of danger.

He said nothing more.

His body flashed aside, then he looked up.

Before him stood a spiritual monkey, about the height of a human, its entire body covered in golden fur that flickered like fire.

Most striking were its eyes, which bore none of the wildness of a beast but instead shone with intelligence. Beside it lay a black iron staff, forged from some unknown material, its surface covered with mysterious patterns.

"Human, this is not a place you should come."

The monkey spoke, its tone deep and carrying warning.

The aura it exuded was extremely heavy, utterly surpassing that of the giant demon of the Southern Sea.

Clearly, this spiritual monkey was the true king-beast of Mount Tai.

Because on the entire Jade Emperor Peak...

Only it was here.

"Even if I shouldn't, I've already come," Lu Yuan said with a smile. "I came here to discuss something with you."

Before climbing the mountain, Ji Huaiyuan had secretly told him that if necessary, he could first talk to the king-beast of Mount Tai. Allowing humans to enter would also count as achieving the goal, because the other side understood that humans and beastkin were not mortal enemies. As beings of the same world, if they could coexist, that would be best.

Lu Yuan agreed with this as well, which was why he did not immediately attack.

"There is nothing to discuss."

"If you won't leave, then I'll help you leave!"

The spiritual monkey did not grant him that chance. Its temper was extremely fierce, and the moment it finished speaking, it chose to strike.

It did not use the black iron staff. Instead, it charged straight forward, its whole body radiating brilliant light.

Layer upon layer of formidable aura surged from it. Its golden fur stood on end, and without any flashy movement, it simply sent out its fists in direct, straightforward blows.

"Very well."

Lu Yuan narrowed his eyes.

Since it did not want to talk, then he would beat it into talking!

He stepped forward, golden blood and qi surging around him like a tidal wave.

The same as his opponent, he threw a punch.

Boom!

Their fists collided with a thunderous crash.

Under the impact of the two forces, the air trembled, and the clouds and mist within a radius of several hundred meters were blasted apart.

Yet Jade Emperor Peak was peculiar, seeming exceedingly hard. In such circumstances, the surrounding boulders and buildings actually withstood the force and did not shatter.

"How is this possible?"

After that exchange, Lu Yuan remained exactly where he was, unmoving.

The spiritual monkey, by contrast, was blasted back several hundred meters, and its arm went numb. It could not help showing a look of shock.

It knew very well that its bloodline was incomparably powerful, and its physical body was as strong as that of a true dragon.

Even its realm had already reached the golden body stage.

Setting aside anything else, among beastkin it could almost be considered one of the strongest.

And yet now, at the hands of a human, it had fallen into the inferior position—despite the fact that the human's cultivation realm was still below its own.

As for Lu Yuan, he too was slightly surprised.

His physical body had been strengthened by the fusion of several divine treasures, and had long since reached an inconceivable level.

Though he had not fully displayed its power just now, he had been able to meet the spiritual monkey head-on.

Could it be that it was...

A memory from his previous life surfaced in Lu Yuan's mind.

"You are very good. You are qualified for me to use my true means."

After a brief moment of daze, the spiritual monkey immediately shouted, opening its palm.

Thunk!

In the next instant, the black iron staff standing not far away vibrated.

In an instant, it appeared directly in the monkey's hands.

It did not choose to advance further. Holding the staff, it let out a long howl and swung down with a force as if cleaving Mount Hua in two.

And the staff actually lengthened at that moment, reaching a hundred meters. It burst with radiance, descending straight toward Lu Yuan's head.

Buzz, buzz, buzz...

The entire Jade Emperor Peak was trembling.

The spiritual monkey's power was immense, its strength terrifying beyond measure.

With a single strike, it seemed capable of smashing an entire mountain apart!

Seeing this, Lu Yuan's expression also turned solemn.

He planted his feet on the ground, clenched his right fist, and the blood-and-qi pagoda rose from his chest.

Thunk...

The pagoda trembled.

Like the resonant toll of a great bronze bell, its sound rang out through the heavens.

Then Lu Yuan faced the black iron staff and met it with his bare fist once more.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

The area exploded with deafening blasts, as though even heaven and earth had been shaken.

Under that punch, Lu Yuan remained as majestic as ever, while the staff bent slightly.

But the spiritual monkey did not stop. It roared again, and one end of the staff suddenly swelled to the size of a millstone before striking once more. This time, its force was even more terrifying, as though Mount Tai itself were crashing down. Its power was dreadful enough to smash a small mountain to pieces without effort.

Such methods, such strength...

Left everyone shocked.

The king of Mount Tai truly surpassed all imagination.

Yet Lu Yuan still faced it head-on, while golden rays draped down from the blood-and-qi pagoda.

In an instant, the entire Jade Emperor Peak was engulfed in light.

An earth-shaking battle between human and beast king had already begun.

And the viewers watching the live broadcast were all utterly stunned, speechless.

They were astonished by the strength of Lu Yuan and the spiritual monkey.

But what they found even more curious was this:

That staff could actually stretch and shrink freely, growing larger and smaller at will, and its wielder was a spiritual monkey. The scene seemed somehow familiar...

By the way, we're already at three hundred thousand words now.

My target for this month is five hundred thousand in total.

Only more, never less. Brothers, keep me honest!

End of chapter.