Luck taken away? It doesn't matter, I quietly become a god

Despite their playful banter, Lu Zhuo and Duan Yuyan knew their limits and didn't waste much time.

Every move of the eight finalists was under the watchful eyes of Rong Shu and his team, secretly monitored by the divine senses of the Nascent Soul stage cultivators. If any situation arose, they could arrive at the scene in an instant.

"Be careful not to reveal your Nascent Soul stage strength..."

"There's not much danger in the back mountain. Some forbidden areas that can't be entered are sealed off by formations..."

"Some flowers, plants, birds, and beasts that live on Junque Mountain, nurtured by the dynasty's fortunes year after year, will undergo a transformation..."

Of the six, only Rong Shu and Duan Yuyan had never been to the back mountain.

One reason was that she didn't need to come to the back mountain to collect herbs herself, as Di Chuchen had already sent someone to give her her share of the champion's reward.

The other one... isn't even good enough to be among the top eight, so they have no chance of making it in at all.

Lu Zhuo waved his fan and introduced the place to the two of them: "Look, in that direction, if I remember correctly, there's a strange tree growing there. Its trunk is connected to another vine-like plant, in a delicate symbiotic relationship. When I went there, I almost tripped over the vine and got hung up by it..."

"Afterwards, I asked the guards of the Kamikaze Army stationed there, and learned that it was the perverse pleasure of those two plant spirits. They wanted to hang any living thing that passed under the tree and 'swing it'..."

Before Lu Zhuo could finish speaking, a loud shout came from the direction he was pointing.

"...What is that? Ah—"

"Huh?" Lu Zhuo scanned the area with his divine sense and saw some unlucky guy being hung up. "Look, that's what happened."

The two plant spirits had no intention of harming anyone; they simply enjoyed playing occasional pranks, so the Kamikaze guards stationed there did not attempt to eliminate them.

Lu Zhuo appeared in a flash under the tree and gently tapped the trunk of the strange tree with his fan: "Quickly put the person down."

The next second, Qin Chengce, who was hanging in mid-air, felt his feet loosen and he fell down.

He flipped over in mid-air and landed steadily on the ground.

"Thank you," Qin Chengce said to Lu Zhuo.

They couldn't arbitrarily harm any of the plants or trees living on the back mountain, and their Nascent Soul cultivation was useless. If Lu Zhuo hadn't come to their rescue, they probably would have had to wait until the strange tree got tired of playing with it before letting him down.

"It's a trivial matter, nothing to mention." Even without Baili Xuanfeng present, Lu Zhuo still maintained the demeanor of a refined and noble young master from a prominent family, smiling without revealing his teeth.

"Be careful. Although there is no danger in the back mountain, the spirits of the plants here are very mischievous. If you delay a few more times, your efficiency in collecting spiritual herbs will be greatly reduced."

"Okay, thanks for reminding me."

Qin Chengze didn't say anything more and turned around to continue collecting medicinal herbs.

Some of the medicinal herbs here can 'run away on their own,' so you can only catch up with them by using your agility or by using special methods to trap them and make them escape.

Qin Chengce was chasing after a long-legged spiritual herb when he accidentally stepped into a trap of strange trees and vines.

"...No! Don't go any further! I'll get rough with you!"

Rong Shu and the others followed the sound and saw Bei Murui Xue surrounded by a group of monkey-like spirit herbs. Some of the little monkeys were curiously tugging at her clothes and jewelry.

"Go away...all of you, leave!"

Rong Shu released his divine sense without making a sound. The monkeys were a bunch of clever bullies who preyed on the weak and feared the strong. Sensing the threat, they jumped away and disappeared back into the jungle.

After seeing that the monkeys had all been driven away, Bei Muruixue, while tidying up the group, gritted her teeth and cursed, "A bunch of beasts! Lustful! Vulgar!"

Rong Shu coughed lightly: "Ahem, Princess, they are indeed a bunch of 'beasts,' but they are not lustful. It's probably that the jewels on your body are so dazzling that they attracted them to snatch them."

"...It's understandable that a stinky monkey would try to flirt with pretty girls, but why wouldn't he even spare a grown man like me?!"

A man emerged from the stream, covered in dust and grime, and complained bitterly, "That stinky monkey ripped my outer robe off! That robe was worth three thousand spirit stones!"

Rong Shu checked the list of the top eight contestants and found that Ren Xiaoyao was in third place.

Rong Shu guessed, "Maybe your robe is too beautiful, so they snatched it back so they could wear it and show it off themselves."

On Zhanming Mountain, among the spirit beasts raised by the second senior sister, there is also a group of monkeys who like to steal people's clothes.

Ren Xiaoyao: Is that even possible??

Do you really need a bunch of pointy-nosed, hairy-cheeked, red-bottomed monkeys to steal people's clothes? Isn't that just ridiculous? Like monkeys wearing hats?!

Rong Shu looked Ren Xiaoyao up and down several times before suddenly speaking, "Brother, you look familiar... Haven't we met somewhere before?"

Ren Xiaoyao's face stiffened, and he immediately patted his behind and left: "Oh well, never mind, I'm magnanimous, I won't argue with a bunch of baboons. The elixir, the elixir—where is it?"

Rong Shu stared at Ren Xiaoyao's retreating figure, stroked his chin, and asked Duan Yuyan, "Little Duan, don't you think this person looks familiar?"

"Really? Let me think..." Duan Yuyan frowned and pondered.

“…I remember now! Isn’t this the only one who could silently pass through the formation when we were breaking through to the Golden Core stage in the Big Dipper Secret Realm, and he almost succeeded?”

"That person is also from Suixin Academy!"

With this mention, Rong Shu's memories gradually became clearer.

When Ren Xiaoyao managed to sneak in unnoticed, Rong Shu sensed that he was quite capable. Little did he know... he was incredibly skilled! He actually became one of the top eight in this year's competition, and even ranked third.

"The world isn't that big, yet I actually ran into an 'acquaintance'."

Duan Yuyan covered her mouth and laughed: "Rong Shu, is that guy scared of you, that's why he avoids you?"

"It seems like when we first arrived, this guy was hiding behind everyone, never showing his face or saying a word."

Rong Shu shrugged.

How can you blame her?

She's not some monster.

“…Help!”

"What is this……"

Another exclamation came from above, and Rong Shu, no longer able to reflect on his own actions, went to check the situation.

Over the course of three days, all sorts of chaotic, hilarious, and absurd farces unfolded.

After the third day, the eight finalists had all suffered some losses, and after learning their lessons, they became more cautious in their actions.

Gradually... Rong Shu and the other six people were no longer involved.

A table, a tea set, and several plates of pastries.

The six sat leisurely under the shade of a tree, drinking tea. They took turns in pairs to divert a portion of their spiritual energy to pay attention to the movements of the top eight contestants.

"…To steal half a day of leisure from a busy life is truly one of life's greatest pleasures." Lu Zhuo sipped his tea and couldn't help but sigh.

Duan Yuyan: "Lu Kongque, don't make it sound so high-class. It's not fun to slack off normally, it's fun to slack off at work!"

Lu Zhuo: "Slacking off at work? Where are the fish here?"

Duan Yuyan: "It was Rong Shu who said that it means slacking off while working, which is equivalent to getting paid for doing nothing."

Rong Shu tossed a piece of pastry into his mouth and muttered, "...I didn't say the last part. What I clearly said before was that I would use half of my working time to complete the task, and the other half of the time would be free and at my disposal."

"If you don't slack off, and the supervisor sees you finish your work so quickly, next time you'll get the same pay but work time cut in half..."

Beside them, Feng Qianli and Lu Zhuo listened in a daze, and at first glance it seemed to make a lot of sense.

"...This is a forbidden area, you are not allowed to enter." Xing Xue's unique, clear and cold voice came from inside.

Rong Shu glanced over and saw that Xing Xue, who had left sometime earlier, was blocking two women—Ao Hanzhu and Feng Qingyun—in front of a canyon in the distance.

"Sorry, we were chasing after a top-grade Heavenly Heart Flower so fast that we forgot where we were going..."

"..."

By the time Rong Shu and the other four arrived, the situation had already been resolved.

The supreme Heavenly Heart Flower escaped into the forbidden area. No matter how unwilling Ao Hanzhu and Feng Qingyun were, they could only give up and go to find other spiritual herbs.

"This place is a forbidden area?"

"There are several forbidden areas in the back mountains. I wonder what's hidden inside?"

With nothing to do, Rong Shu and the other six strolled around outside the forbidden area.

Suddenly, Duan Yuyan sent a mysterious telepathic message: [I have some inside information, do you want to hear it?]

[Yes, yes, yes!]

[Tell me a short joke!]

[Could there be some treasure inside the forbidden area?]

Duan Yuyan continued to transmit his voice: [It's not really a treasure. The only 'great treasure' enshrined on Junque Mountain is the divine artifact, the Sun-Chasing Bow, but as everyone knows, it was taken away by Crown Prince Shenfeng, who is also Rong Shu's fifth senior brother.]

[I heard my master mention this when he was drunk. Legend has it that long, long ago, there were not only the Four Wildernesses of the Central Plains, but also other continental realms. However, those places were too far from the Central Plains to be reached by human power.]

The only 'bridge' between these two is the legendary ancient teleportation array, said to have been left over from antiquity, capable of traversing thousands of miles in an instant, crossing the void!

"Wow~" the group exclaimed in surprise.

"Is there really an ancient teleportation array here that has been passed down from ancient times?"

"Beyond the four wildernesses of Central Plains, are there truly other continental realms?"

"Could there be even stronger beings on the other continent? Could there be immortals?"

Countless questions came at him, and Duan Yuyan shrugged helplessly: "You're asking me? I don't know either. All I know... is this much."

"Cut~"

"It's boring."

"Hey kid, your reputation as a know-it-all isn't all that great, is it?"

"Exactly, it's completely fake!"

The group scattered, leaving Duan Yuyan standing there bewildered and jumping up and down.

"Hey! Wait for me!"

"I'm telling the truth!!"