The master and disciple rode their giant beasts and landed on the ground one after another.

The Shatang Branch had already disappeared without a trace. Only the gravel beneath his feet reminded Du Yu that he had been thrown out here.

Apart from this small area of gravel, the surroundings were all solid rock.

"Crack!" Another bolt of lightning slashed by, illuminating the dim environment.

"Are we at the bottom of a canyon?" Du Yu spoke up.

In front and behind was a narrow passageway.

On the left and right, sheer mountain walls loomed.

Du Yu looked up, using his Extreme Eye Power, but couldn't see the mountaintop with a single glance!

The mountain walls were so rugged and uneven that, gazing up at the sky, Du Yu truly felt as if he was at "A Thread of Sky."

"Rumble..."

The dark clouds churned, thunder echoing across the sky, shaking one's soul.

"What do you think, Master Qing?" Du Yu looked at the woman. "Should we move forward, or climb to the summit?"

Yang Qingqing didn't take long to consider: "Climb the mountain."

"Alright!" Du Yu nodded in response.

Climb the mountain?

Four big words: right up my alley!

The perilous Thousand Blade Mountain—I've summited it twice already.

And beneath me, the Desolate Silver Lynx is none other than the Mountain Guardian Beast of Thousand Blade Mountain·North Peak; there's no reason we can't climb up here!

"Keep up," Yang Qingqing said softly, giving Bai Yujing a pat on the head.

"Nai~~~" The Dust Spirit Immortal Deer let out a cry, soaring upward.

"Meow!" Baojun was not to be outdone, leaping up after her.

Deer and lynx climbed the precipitous cliffs as if walking on flat ground!

Bai Yujing only leapt along one side of the cliff, agile and graceful.

The Desolate Silver Lynx, however, darted left and right between the two rock faces, as swift as lightning, charging ahead powerfully.

This truly was a "Thread of Sky."

The two mountainsides were only twenty or thirty meters apart—at the narrowest, not even ten meters.

Yang Qingqing lowered her head, looking at the silver streak dashing with an afterimage, and couldn't help but say, "Be more careful."

"Don't worry, Master Qing!"

"Meow!" The Desolate Silver Lynx also cried out, clearly displeased at the woman's distrust.

"Hehe." Yang Qingqing shook her head, smiling.

Ever since Du Yu awakened a year ago, Yang Qingqing had spent most of her time with her disciple.

You could even say she watched him grow up.

Even so, she had to constantly adapt to Du Yu's growth rate.

Just like this sudden Spirit Level Peak Divine Pet.

Even though Du Yu had told her beforehand that he wanted to obtain this Desolate Silver Lynx.

But when he brought the King of Heterochromatic before her, Yang Qingqing still needed time to adjust.

In her mind, her disciple ought to be dragged along by her, or riding together with her on one mount.

Yet, such ways had become a thing of the past.

Perhaps, they'd never happen again in the future...

Yang Qingqing's heart was a tangle of pride and complex emotion.

As she pondered silently, the deer and lynx had already climbed an unknown height, and the canyon floor vanished from their sight completely.

"Rumble..."

Lightning flashed, thunder roared.

This Mountain and Sea Bell·Mountain Realm was like an apocalyptic world, so oppressive.

"So much thunder, but no rain, huh?" Du Yu shouted, and the steep cliffs echoed back his words.

The Desolate Silver Lynx understood, pausing and coming to a steady halt on a protruding rock.

Du Yu leaned out and reached his hand to touch the mountainside.

No trace of dampness at all?

Has it never rained in the Mountain Realm?

"RUMBLE!!!"

Suddenly, the thunder became deafeningly loud. It was more violent than ever, making Du Yu shrink back his head.

He only looked up after a good while.

And saw, on the opposite cliff, the Immortal Master's half-smiling, half-mocking expression.

Du Yu scratched his head awkwardly. "Does the Mountain Realm have a spirit of its own? Can it hear my doubts?"

To this, Yang Qingqing was skeptical.

She said, "If it really wanted to answer you, the Mountain Realm would not just have thunder, but lightning as well."

"Uh, that makes sense."

Compared to intimidating with thunder, wouldn't it be more straightforward for Heaven to strike with a bolt of lightning?

But then again, who knows.

Maybe the Mountain Realm prefers winning people over with virtue~

Yang Qingqing speculated, "The Mountain Realm should be the same as the Sea Realm—just natural scenery, not truly spiritual.

Come on, let's keep climbing.

The Shatang said the Mountain Realm also has Guardian Mountain Demonic Plants, standing tall atop the mountains."

"Huh?" Du Yu urged the lynx onward and shouted, "When did it say that? How come I didn't hear?"

Yang Qingqing gripped the snow-white deer antler, sitting sideways on the deer's back, riding along with the wind.

She looked down at him, and said softly, "At that time, you were probably communicating with the Shadow Gu Tower, or with other Demon Pets inside you."

Du Yu asked, "What's the name of the Guardian Mountain Demonic Plant? What does it look like?"

"Jia Rong Grass. More than three meters tall, red flowers and red leaves."

Du Yu's gaze sharpened, and he pointed upward. "Master Qing, do you mean that one?"

"Hm?" Yang Qingqing looked up.

At last, the two saw a broader sky, about to get out of the narrow mountain corridor.

But the sky was dark and clouds pressed low. Yang Qingqing couldn't see the demonic plant at the summit.

She narrowed her eyes and tried to look closer, but her eyesight wasn't as keen as Du Yu's.

"Crack!"

The sky lent a hand!

Bolts of lightning like chains streaked through the heavens, spreading everywhere.

By the flash, Yang Qingqing finally saw the demonic plant atop the mountain, though the scene flickered and vanished at once.

With a clearer target, both deer and lynx sped up, surging upward.

In an instant, the Desolate Silver Lynx could no longer leap side to side.

The left cliff wall had reached its end.

Suddenly, it opened up wide!

Du Yu gaped, seeing the general shape of the Mountain Realm.

He knew what he saw might be only the tip of the iceberg, but a glimpse was enough to get the full picture.

Beneath pitch-dark clouds, mountains stacked upon mountains, stretching on forever.

As far as his eye could see, there were bizarre peaks and strange ridges, in infinite shapes and sizes.

Du Yu finally saw woods and trees, covering the tall mountains everywhere.

In the distance, he spotted wisps of fog—or was it firelight?

"Fire! Master Qing!" Du Yu cried in surprise.

Could that be Team Two?

In such gloom, firelight was the most attention-grabbing thing of all.

"Crack!"

Yang Qingqing had no time to answer before another bolt slashed down!

In an instant, Du Yu's hair stood on end as he watched the lightning strike just a few hundred meters away.

In the face of nature's wrath, he didn't even have time to react!

In his view, a giant tree was split in a flash, bursting into flames.

"Fire..." Du Yu's heart plummeted.

So, it wasn't Team Two setting a fire on purpose, but a naturally occurring wildfire?

"Meow~" The Desolate Silver Lynx leapt onto the summit.

A sea of deep red filled his eyes!

The Jia Rong Grass, towering two or three meters high, submerged the lynx's mighty form, with only Du Yu, riding atop, showing above his chest.

Du Yu quickly looked around; the deep red grass formed a carpet that blanketed the entire cliff.

Incredibly magnificent!

The red blossoms amid the grass seemed to mock the impotence of lightning.

Mountain Grass·Jia Rong!

They stood tall atop the peak, facing lightning and thunder unflinching!

"Nai!" Bai Yujing suddenly let out an urgent cry.

Du Yu hastily turned his head to look.

Bai Yujing was already taller than the lynx, and her slender neck let her head stay exposed.

Because of that, Du Yu noticed the panic in her eyes.

"Deviant."

An old voice suddenly resounded, shaking Du Yu's mind.

This sudden voice clearly came from the Jia Rong Grass!

Yang Qingqing was ready for this. She pulled a Shatang Fruit from her sleeve. "We come from the Sea Realm, brought here by the Shatang Tree."

"Oh?" The Jia Rong Grass sounded full of doubt. "Sea Tree·Shatang?"

"Yes, this is a fruit it gifted us," Yang Qingqing said, picking up the yellow-and-red Shatang Fruit and handing it toward a deep red bloom.

Jia Rong: "You two..."

Du Yu added, "We stumbled into the Mountain and Sea Bell, and could not find a way out of the Sea Realm. The Shatang Tree sent us here to the Mountain Realm.

It said, maybe there's a way out here."

"Crack!"

The gloomy sky lit up; a lightning bolt struck almost skimming the edge of the cliff!

Du Yu felt his hair stand on end, and even Yang Qingqing's face stiffened. Both looked back over their shoulders.

For the first time, lightning had struck so close by!

Was it really a coincidence?

Jia Rong Grass: "Why did the Sea Tree help you?"

Du Yu pressed his lips together and quickly explained the situation as clearly as he could.

While thunder muttered, the Jia Rong Grass fell silent. The endless deep-red blooms stopped swaying entirely.

A wind rose, blowing the scent of flowers and grass.

Yet this deep red ocean didn't move one bit.

In this apocalyptic world, that only sharpened the uncanny feel.

After a long time, the Jia Rong Grass slowly spoke: "I have not seen the one you are searching for—your kin have not come to the Peak of All Mountains."

Du Yu's face was complicated; he looked at Yang Qingqing.

The woman seemed mentally prepared, quietly sighed.

"Unless the Celestial Gate opens and the Sea Abyss appears, the Mountain and Sea cannot be left."

"Right," Du Yu roused himself, answering, "That's exactly what the Shatang Tree told us."

Jia Rong Grass: "That is the law of the Sea Realm."

Du Yu: "What about the Mountain Realm?"

"Unless the Celestial Gate opens and the dark clouds collapse, the Mountain and Sea cannot be left."

Du Yu looked up at the sky. "You mean, we have to drive away the clouds above us?"

The sky grew bright once more!

As soon as Du Yu spoke, from the churning clouds above, lightning stretched into a dense, sprawling web.

At that moment, Du Yu felt utter despair.

How was that any different from diving deep to seek the Sea Abyss? Wouldn't it just mean certain death?

Yang Qingqing knitted her brow. "Collapse—what does that really mean?"

Jia Rong Grass: "The dark clouds must fall beneath your feet."

Yang Qingqing sighed inwardly. "So, for us to leave, we must pass through the clouds and fly above them."

Du Yu realized he was mistaken. "Wouldn't the lightning just blast us to smithereens?"

Soon a cluster of tiny fruits emerged from the deep red leaves. "Consume these—within a day, thunder and lightning will not harm you; it shall stay away."

Du Yu: "Uh…"

Jia Rong Grass: "Compared to lightning, what you should really worry about are the demon beasts guarding those clouds."

On hearing this, Du Yu's face stiffened.

No need to ask—whatever lives in those clouds must be of at least the same level as the raging Sea-devouring Dragon Turtle from before!

Du Yu seldom cursed, but at this moment, he was falling apart inside!

He let one word slip from between clenched teeth, without thinking, venting pure emotion: "Fuck!"

Jia Rong Grass: "What's wrong?"

Yang Qingqing glanced at Du Yu, a trace of reproach in her eyes.

Du Yu's face was ugly; he lowered his head.

The woman urged the deer to approach and gently placed her hand on Du Yu's shoulder, soothing his irritable heart.

Du Yu's feelings were a jumble. He really couldn't imagine what Master Qing's life had been like.

All along, her emotions would rise and fall, but never wildly, and never with a hint of despair.

The woman softly spoke, her voice gentle: "Before, when you insisted on exploring the Mountain and Sea Bell with me, you told me something."

Du Yu: "..."

He had stubbornly accompanied Master Qing on her search, and said: If anything happens, at least we have each other's back.

"So, pull yourself together."

Yang Qingqing looked up at the clouds, murmuring, "There will always be a way..."

Her voice was as light as a feather, but her grip on Du Yu's shoulder tightened slightly, making it almost hurt.

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