As the smoke gradually dispersed atop Jade Emperor Peak, a figure became increasingly clear.
A lone man stood upright and tall, as though the terrifying explosion just now had not affected him in the slightest.
Even the hem of his clothes showed not a trace of damage, completely unsoiled by dust.
"King Lu! It's King Lu!"
"What? After dozens of intercontinental missiles bombarded him, King Lu is actually fine?"
"Th-this is way too terrifying! Can humans truly evolve to the point of withstanding missiles?"
At that moment, when everyone saw through the only surviving feed that Lu Yuan was still standing on Jade Emperor Peak, their expressions changed completely.
All of them wore looks of sheer disbelief; some were rendered entirely speechless.
No one had anticipated this.
That was a barrage of dozens of missiles!
The blast had shaken heaven and earth. Had it not been for the extraordinary nature of Mount Tai, half the mountain peak would likely have been obliterated.
Yet in the end, Lu Yuan was not hurt at all. This was no longer a miracle—it was a divine marvel.
Down below the mountain.
Ji Huaiyuan and the others, who had been on edge with their hearts in their throats, were completely stunned upon seeing the livestream feed.
Their scalps went numb, and their mouths ran dry.
Human power?
Could it truly contend with intercontinental missiles?
Just what level had Lu Yuan evolved to?
Was this truly only the strength of the Shackle Realm, or was he the only one capable of such a feat?
Yet just as they sought to observe more closely, the livestream feed cut out.
There was no helping it; the final camera drone had ultimately succumbed to the blast's shockwave and was now completely destroyed.
"Elder Ji, should we pilot more drones into the air?" Elder Yun asked as he recovered his senses.
"No need," Ji Huaiyuan said, shaking his head. "As long as we've confirmed King Lu is fine, the rest isn't that important."
He and Lu Yuan had an agreement: after settling the matters on Mount Tai, Lu Yuan would retrieve something from within. Though Ji Huaiyuan did not know what it was, he knew it was a secret.
In that case, they naturally would not send more drones up to intrude.
Moreover, Ji Huaiyuan's attitude toward Lu Yuan had shifted even further compared to before.
As for Zhu Qingyu, the Northern Emperor, the Ice Fairy, Young Celestial Master Chunyang, and the rest, that final livestream image remained etched in their minds.
Even after being bombarded by dozens of intercontinental missiles, Lu Yuan still stood proud atop Jade Emperor Peak, seemingly without a scratch.
Was he even human?
At this moment, these young people looked at one another, feeling as though they were in a dream.
Could the gap between humans truly be this vast?
***
Atop Jade Emperor Peak on Mount Tai.
The Blood-Qi Pagoda cloaking Lu Yuan had vanished, and his eyes grew sharp.
The weapons of mass destruction manufactured by humanity were indeed powerful; even he had to take them with utmost seriousness.
During the explosion just now, Lu Yuan had directly activated the Blood-Qi Pagoda to withstand the blow.
Even so, it had consumed a portion of his strength.
That had never happened since the Great Mutation.
"The West!"
He slowly spat out two words, his eyes cold and laced with a sliver of killing intent.
He had already resolved that once he left Mount Tai, this matter had to be settled!
Taking a deep breath, he turned to the Spirit Monkey beside him.
The monkey had also been shaken by that power just now. While it wouldn't have been fatal to it, it was still terrifyingly potent.
If it were repeated several times, especially when caught unawares, it would prove quite troublesome.
Involuntarily, the Spirit Monkey turned its head. "Is this also the power of you humans?"
"You could say that," Lu Yuan said, nodding.
Without elaborating further, he pointed toward the Nine-Color Altar atop the high platform and asked, "Has this thing been here since the Great Mutation?"
There was another one in Shennongjia, and now encountering one here, he felt it was far from simple.
"I'm not sure," the Spirit Monkey said, shaking its head. "Probably. My inherited memories only awakened not long ago. I only know that this altar seems to be some sort of passage, or an ancient road. I don't know anything beyond that."
Mutated beasts with powerful bloodlines generally possessed inherited memories. While dormant in the past, they would emerge after the Great Mutation.
Its situation was much like that of the Golden-Winged Great Peng—further memories required sufficient strength to unlock.
Hearing this, Lu Yuan narrowed his eyes slightly.
A passage?
An ancient road?
These words implied a great deal.
Were they related to deep space?
He could not help but ponder this.
Because Lu Yuan knew that before long, those mysterious extraterrestrial existences would descend.
In his previous life, those beings had appeared suddenly, with very little warning.
By the time humanity noticed them, many had already arrived in this world, including terrifying figures capable of surviving in the cosmos.
Could these Nine-Color Altars be connected to them?
Lu Yuan wondered, but he could not say for sure.
After all, this world harbored far too many secrets.
Even he could not fathom them all.
Shennongjia, the Mount Li Imperial Mausoleum... one by one, every single place hid great mysteries.
Some were linked to ancient figures, others to legendary Human Sovereigns...
Now, the same went for Mount Tai.
"Forget it."
Lu Yuan shook his head. Though he possessed considerable strength now, it was still not enough to probe into the ultimate secrets.
Perhaps only after those extraterrestrial visitors arrived would he truly understand.
Clearing his mind, he looked at the Spirit Monkey and said, "Rest here for now. I held back earlier, so your injuries aren't too severe. You should recover in a few hours."
Having said that, without waiting for the monkey's reaction, he turned and walked away.
The first matter was settled.
Next came his second purpose in coming to Mount Tai.
"You..." The Spirit Monkey stared at Lu Yuan's back, speechless for a moment.
It scratched its fur and bared its teeth, looking thoroughly frustrated.
The reason was simple: Lu Yuan's remark just now made it clear that he hadn't even gone all out.
Without using full power, he had suppressed it—and while being an entire realm lower, at that.
The Spirit Monkey had its pride, but facing Lu Yuan, there was nothing it could do. It simply couldn't beat him.
In the end, it set down the black iron staff and sat cross-legged on its own.
Seemingly aware that Lu Yuan still had business on Mount Tai, the monkey shut off its senses to the outside world as it sat. Then, like a human, its chest rose and fell as streams of white vapor repeatedly drifted from its nose and mouth before slowly dissipating.
With each breath, the golden fur across its body radiated light, looking extraordinary.
Deep within its body, its internal organs pulsed steadily, emitting humming resonances.
Clearly, the Spirit Monkey possessed its own breathing method, and an immensely powerful one at that.
Seeing this scene, a smile appeared on Lu Yuan's face.
The Spirit Monkey: one of the few mutated beasts harboring goodwill toward humanity.
Though it appeared hot-tempered, it was not unreasonable. Possessing human intelligence, it was easy enough to get along with.
In his previous life, it had even fought against extraterrestrial beings on behalf of this world.
Thus, Lu Yuan had merely subdued it without any further designs.
In future situations, he could not manage everything alone.
He needed allies by his side, which was also why he had agreed to cooperate with the authorities.
Next, Lu Yuan turned his gaze toward the vast Jade Emperor Peak before him.
It was immense, spanning the size of a small city, covered in ruined palaces and colossal boulders weighing tens of thousands of tons.
Trying to locate the divine object he sought here was like looking for a needle in a haystack; even the Ziwu Heaven-Mending Furnace wouldn't suffice.
Fortunately, he had prepared long in advance.
With a slight turn of his hand, the Fuxi Bagua Diagram appeared and slowly unrolled.
The sun, moon, and stars depicted on it emitted a faint glow, drifting in steady circulation.
Soon, Lu Yuan drew his sword core, sliced his fingertip, and let a drop of blood merge into the diagram.
Buzz, buzz, buzz.
The celestial bodies depicted within the Fuxi Diagram vibrated.
The bagua symbols on it also began shifting slowly, until finally, a dazzling dot appeared—serving as a locator.
"As expected of an artifact left behind by Human Sovereign Fuxi," Lu Yuan mused, his eyes brightening.
The Fuxi Diagram was like a navigation system, capable of pinpointing items of divine rank with precision.
Hardly any time had passed, and it had already located the object.
Had he used the Ziwu Heaven-Mending Furnace, it would not only have taken far longer, but would also have produced many errors.
What was more, its functions were not limited to this.
Unfortunately, it could only locate divine-rank items; ordinary spiritual fruits, anomalous herbs, or ancient trees were beyond its scope unless they were like the Ancient Bodhi Tree.
Still, he was quite content. How vast were the opportunities under heaven? One could not expect to claim them all.
Confirming the location, Lu Yuan held the Fuxi Diagram and headed toward the brilliant dot.
Gradually, he ventured deep into the palace ruins.
Broken walls and shattered pillars lay all around.
For a moment, it felt as though he had stepped out of the mortal realm and into the Heavenly Palace.
Yet this Heavenly Palace had collapsed into ruins, desolate to the eye.
The so-called gods and immortals were nowhere to be found.
Aside from a mysterious lingering force, the place felt rather lifeless.
"Huh?"
As he continued forward and observed his surroundings, a strange sensation crept over Lu Yuan.
These sprawling palace ruins didn't seem to have been built atop Jade Emperor Peak; rather, they looked as if they had plummeted from the heavens.
That was why everything was in such disarray.
On certain walls, there were even scars left by sabers, spears, swords, and halberds.
It was as though an earth-shattering war had taken place here in the distant past.
If this truly was the legendary Heavenly Palace, how had it fallen?
Had a war of the gods erupted?
And had it been struck down from the sky?
The thought crossed Lu Yuan's mind, but he felt it sounded too extravagant, perhaps even preposterous.
Hum—
Just then, the Fuxi Bagua Diagram trembled slightly.
Lu Yuan noticed that he was now very close to the dot—the divine object he was searching for.
Judging from the surrounding ruins, this must have been a great hall. Flanking it stood eight colossal stone pillars, pure white and carved with coiled dragons.
Yet due to the endless passage of time, they were covered in fractures, as was the rest of the area.
Finally, Lu Yuan walked over to a massive inscribed board.
Only half of the board remained, and the characters carved on it had worn away, rendering them illegible.
Yet the Fuxi Bagua Diagram showed that the divine object lay beneath it.
Taking a deep breath, Lu Yuan gripped the board with both hands without hesitation.
It was astonishingly heavy, like a miniature mountain. By his estimate, even an ordinary cultivator in the Shackle Realm wouldn't be able to lift it.
Lu Yuan, however, was different. With the beating of his heart, the aura throughout his body surged, and golden light wrapped around his arms as an overwhelming strength burst forth.
Creak, creak, creak—
The half-board was hoisted up, stirring up a cloud of dust.
Beneath it lay an ancient, simple token gleaming with a purple-gold luster. Its entire body radiated light, though it was gentle rather than dazzling.
What truly commanded attention was the supreme, inviolable majesty emanating from the token. And there, Lu Yuan saw the two characters inscribed upon it:
Heavenly Emperor!
Chapter 94