Cultivating Immortality in the Winter Wasteland.

Chapter 886 Scholar
Chen Wang's target had always been the deity holding the pipa.

After some calculation, Chen Wang unleashed the full power of the Thirty-Three Heavens Golden Exquisite Pagoda, an extremely powerful and fierce spiritual treasure, to instantly kill it.

Soon, Chen Wang and the beautiful woman fled to the central fairy mountain.

The sword-wielding deity was taken aback at first, then immediately gave chase.

But then Chen Wang suddenly stopped.

He actually put away all his magical treasures and fought the god with his bare hands.

In the blink of an eye, he was slain by the god's sword, his body and head separated.

This unexpected turn of events surprised even the gods.

Too weak!?

But soon, the real Chen Wang, using a stealth technique, embraced the beautiful woman and rushed madly toward the central immortal mountain beside the jujube tree.

In the instant before, he had used a variety of supernatural abilities such as shielding the heavenly secrets and creating invisible clones, and the process was very smooth and without any sluggishness.

At this moment, Mo Yurou arrived at the Central Immortal Mountain, and the two of them looked very nervous.

This place may be a curse rather than a blessing; it could be an even more terrifying and perilous place, or even a more powerful deity residing here.

However, when the two arrived at the Central Immortal Mountain, they found it peaceful and serene, with monkeys and deer everywhere, babbling springs, and lush vegetation, a scene brimming with life, completely different from the dangers of other places.

Chen Wang turned around and saw that the sword-wielding deity and other deities were keeping a distance from the central immortal mountain and had not come up.

Upon seeing this, the beautiful woman said, "It seems there is truly a glimmer of hope here."

Chen Wang nodded and said, "No matter what, we've come this far, so why not go in and explore? Perhaps the legacy of this Bronze Immortal Palace is located in the Central Immortal Mountain."

Mo Yurou couldn't help but admire Chen Wang's decisiveness and quick judgment. She nodded and said, "Okay."

Then she made a hand seal, her fingers like scallions, and her clothes slipped down, revealing her fair and jade-like wrists.

Her hands formed afterimages in the air, and soon her somewhat withered face regained its vitality, as a surge of life flowed through her body to her limbs and bones.

The jujube tree trembled slightly before falling silent.

As Mo Yurou continued to form hand seals, the jujube tree gradually shrank, eventually becoming three feet in size, and burrowed into the back of Mo Yurou's head.

Chen Wang said, "Your treasure is indeed powerful, but it is difficult to activate and retract, and it seems to cause some harm to the body."

Mo Yurou nodded and said, "That's right, fellow Daoist has sharp eyes. I wouldn't have used this jujube tree unless I was forced into a truly desperate situation."

Chen Wang smiled.

Mo Yurou said, "Thanks to you, fellow Daoist, for protecting me."

Chen Wang said, "No need. Do you trust me enough to show such a remarkable treasure to others? Aren't you afraid I'll kill you to steal it?"

Mo Yurou said, "Cultivation is about fighting against fate. I dared to enter this Bronze Immortal Palace, and I was prepared to die here. Either way, I'm going to die, so the outcome doesn't seem to matter much."

Chen Wang was taken aback upon hearing this.
"It's quite interesting that he has such a strong personality."

Chen Wang smiled and said, "That's interesting. He still has a gambling spirit, so he's not completely inhuman."

The two stepped into the immortal mountain one after another. Mo Yurou's face turned a little pale and her steps were slightly unsteady.

Although she had put away the jujube tree, she was not in particularly good condition, so she took out a lot of resources to refine.

Seeing that Chen Wang had no intention of traveling with her, Mo Yurou breathed a sigh of relief, but at the same time felt a little disappointed.

She certainly wanted to travel with a powerful expert like Chen Wang.

However, the two of them were complete strangers before. After joining forces in a battle, they arrived at the Immortal Mountain. It was already a rare occurrence that Chen Wang did not kill her or steal her treasure. Mo Yurou did not dare to have too many excessive expectations.

At that moment, she thought to herself, "This person seems to be a ruthless guy, but he didn't take the opportunity to attack me. His character seems to be acceptable."

Chen Wang had initially observed the jujube tree without much thought, but when Mo Yurou shrunk it to three feet in size and then hid behind his head…
Chen Wang clearly sensed that the jujube tree seemed to have its own consciousness; it was a living thing, not an ordinary spiritual treasure.

Moreover, the fact that this jujube tree could force a Transcending Tribulation expert into such a state, almost draining him dry, made Chen Wang feel that this jujube tree was somewhat strange.

Most importantly, Chen Wang's earlier glance gave him a sense of familiarity with the jujube tree, such as the Ancestor Duanmu and the old man in green. This also meant that the jujube tree might be a being in the Ascension stage, or more accurately, it was at least related to a powerful being in the Ascension stage.

Chen Wang quickly left the woman, not because he didn't want to kill her and steal her treasure, but because he feared that the jujube tree was not something easy to deal with.

Chen Wang didn't want to get entangled with another Ascension Stage being after just getting rid of Ancestor Duanmu, thus needlessly causing trouble for himself.

At this moment, the two quickly separated, both wary of each other and somewhat admiring of one another.

Chen Wang didn't care how beautiful Mo Yurou was or how graceful her figure was. He was used to seeing beautiful women. What he found interesting was Mo Yurou's tenacity and the crazy persistence that emanated from her.

Of course, given the current situation, the two of them also need to enter the immortal mountain.

Spiritual fruits are everywhere here, but while they are very useful to ordinary cultivators, they are of little use to someone like Chen Wang who has reached the Great Perfection of Tribulation Transcending.

Chen Wang casually picked some small fruits to try. They tasted good, and he ate them with gusto.

Some of the fruits here look like peaches, and some look like persimmons. He ate a few, and then picked a few more that tasted good.

The animals in these mountains are quite afraid of people. Whether it's a monkey, a white deer, or some other animals, they all scatter when they see Chen Wang, as if he were an extremely terrifying being.

Chen Wang didn't mind. The animals in the mountains had received spiritual energy but hadn't taken human form, which made him increasingly interested in this central immortal mountain.

Chen Wang quickly reached the mountain path. Here, none of the gods caught up, and he felt much more relaxed.

Or perhaps Chen Wang was deliberately trying to relax.

He controlled his speed as he climbed the stone steps, which were very ancient and had been carved out at some unknown time.

As time went by, he slowly walked up the mountain path, eating the fruit in his hand while looking at the surrounding scenery, with white clouds swirling below.

As Chen Wang ascended, the clouds grew heavier and heavier, and their unpredictable changes made them appear quite mysterious.

Soon, Chen Wang arrived at a corner where there was a platform. On one side of the platform grew an old pine tree, its branches and leaves sprawling and lush.

Beneath the old pine tree are two blue stones, one large and one small. The larger blue stone is like a table, extremely smooth, with a chessboard carved on it, with nineteen lines in each direction, but there are no chess pieces on the board.

Seeing this, Chen Wang couldn't help but take a few more curious glances. There was only a blue stone used as a stool, and the blue stone was polished very smooth, obviously someone often sat here.

Chen Wang was also somewhat surprised. Was there no one else playing chess, and only one person was playing chess by himself?
Just then, Chen Wang suddenly saw a figure hanging down under the old pine tree. The appearance of this figure was quite abrupt; the figure was dressed as a scholar, but it was unclear which era the clothes belonged to, as they were quite different from what Chen Wang was wearing.

Even Chen Wang, whose nerves were as strong as steel, couldn't help but feel a slight startle and took a half step back.

The scholar was hanged under the old pine tree, a rope still tied around his neck, his head drooping downwards, looking quite eerie.

The old pine tree, the bluestone, the hanged scholar, and the empty chessboard—Chen Wang felt that everything before him exuded an eerie atmosphere.

Chen Wang thought to himself, "I am already a cultivator who has transcended tribulation. What kind of ghost or monster could possibly contend with me?"

However, the hanged scholar was indeed somewhat strange.

Chen Wang carefully examined the scholar, who seemed to have been thrown from the tree and was now back to a state of hanging.

But just as Chen Wang got closer to him, he suddenly opened his eyes, his protruding tongue retracted, and he returned to normal.

Although he was hanged from a pine tree, when he opened his eyes and saw Chen Wang, he said gently, "What are you looking at, my friend?"

Chen Wang said, "It's nothing, just looking around."

Although he was somewhat surprised, he had already gripped the magic weapon in his hand, but on the surface he remained calm and composed.

The scholar smiled and said, "If there's nothing wrong, why are you secretly watching me in this desolate wilderness?"

Chen Wang's lips twitched; he had been watching openly and honestly just now.

Chen Wang said, "I thought you were dead, but it turns out you are just hanging here and not dead."

The scholar shook his head, and with that movement, he swayed all over the tree.

The scholar sighed and said, "Look at my wretched appearance, I am definitely dead, and very dead indeed."

Chen Wang smiled and said, "But I see that your complexion is rosy and you have no trace of death, just like a living person."

The scholar smiled, and with that movement, he began to sway on the tree again.

The scholar clapped his hands and laughed, saying, "This friend speaks so well; it's been a long time since I've met someone as interesting as you."

Chen Wang's heart skipped a beat, and he keenly grasped the meaning behind the other party's words. He glanced at the ancient-looking scholar, who was smiling and seemed to have no ill intentions.

Chen Wang tentatively asked, "Have you seen other people before, friend?"

The scholar nodded and said, "Of course."

He paused here, as if trying to recall something.

The scholar said, "Being stuck here for so long has made my brain a bit rusty. Someone did come here before."

Chen Wang wondered if the legends about the Bronze Immortal Palace were all true.

Chen Wang quickly asked, "Who are they?"

The scholar smiled and said, "There are men and women, but my friend, we haven't exchanged names yet. You keep coming up to ask questions, shouldn't you also consider that I'm just a dead man, how would I know so much?"

Chen Wang smiled and quickly cupped his hands in greeting, saying, "My name is Qin Qiong, and I come from Wagang Mountain. May I ask how you should address me, my friend?"

The scholar was overjoyed to see Chen Wangyu exchange names; his whole body was shaking violently, trembling with excitement.

This joyful expression made Chen Wang suspect that the other party intended to take his life and make him a scapegoat, hanging himself from a tree in his place.

However, before Chen Wang could develop more suspicions, the hanged scholar said, "My name is Wang Xiaohua, and I am from Qingyu Mountain."

Upon hearing this, Chen Wang's lips twitched involuntarily.

Wang Xiaohua,
He looked at the scholar, who, though hanged, was neatly dressed and had an elegant demeanor. Although his words were not particularly refined, he never expected that the scholar would have a name like Wang Xiaohua.

Chen Wang had never heard of Qingyu Mountain before. After a moment of silence, he smiled and said, "So it's Brother Wang. Brother Wang, could you tell me who has been here before?"

Wang Xiaohua said with a smile, "You can just call me Xiaohua. I don't remember the specifics. I only remember that a monk came here, and recently it seems that a woman came."

Chen Wang frowned. He hadn't heard of any legends about monks, but as for this woman, he had heard of a woman who stole a celestial book and came down from the celestial realm to the mortal world.
Of course, the version of stealing the immortal book is widely circulated, and she is not the only one.

Chen Wang asked curiously, "What treasures are inside that would make these people risk coming here?"

Upon hearing the word "treasure," the scholar chuckled, "What treasures could there be in this desolate wilderness? It's nothing but scrap metal."

Chen Wang's eyes lit up: "Scrap metal?"

The scholar said, "That's right, they're all just scrap metal, worthless junk."

Chen Wang was very interested in what the hanged scholar had said, and quickly asked, "Xiao Hua, where is this kind of thing? I want to see it too."

Wang Xiaohua was stunned at first, then couldn't help but laugh and said, "Is Wagang Mountain particularly poor? I already told you it's just scrap metal, and you're still so concerned."

Chen Wang's lips twitched, and he couldn't help but give an awkward laugh.
“It’s true that we’re not very well-off in the mountains. You don’t know the situation. There are orphans and widows everywhere, and they often can’t even afford to eat. They’re so poor that they’re urinating blood. So even if there’s some scrap metal, I don’t mind taking it. The more the better.”

The scholar couldn't help but show a look of sympathy, and said, "It's a bit too pitiful. If you go up the mountain road from here and turn three bends, you'll see a temple. There are some broken copper and scrap iron in the temple. If you don't mind, you can carry them down the mountain. But you have to be careful of the women in the temple."

Chen Wang said, "Be careful of the women in the temple?"

The scholar nodded: "Women are troublesome things. Once you encounter one, they'll stick to you like glue. Remember not to mess with them."

Then, to Chen Wang's astonishment, he began to shake his body violently, like he was swinging on a swing.

While others sit on the swing, he tightly tightens his neck around the rope when he swings.

As his movements became more and more exaggerated, he plunged headfirst into the old pine tree.

The old pine tree is so lush and leafy that a person could disappear instantly if they stuck their foot on it.

Chen Wang tried to probe with his divine sense, but was surprised to find that the old pine tree could block his divine sense.

Recalling the scholar's words, a thoughtful look appeared in Chen Wang's eyes.

"Does the temple have any scrap metal?"

His gaze followed the mountain path upwards.

(End of this chapter)