Chapter 20: Ascending the Mountain
\n“Greetings, Master!”
\nYoung Hero Zuo dropped to his knees without hesitation, having long abandoned any pretense of dignity. He had joked to himself – wasn’t this exactly why he’d fled down the mountain? To avoid getting caught in the ‘protagonist’s halo’ of his Junior Sister and master that might endanger his life? His obsession with becoming stronger was just for survival, and now that a powerful patron offered protection, why not cling to it?
\n“Good.”
\nThe Black Wind Lord showed no surprise at Zuo Meng’s decision.
\nHaving achieved his purpose for descending the mountain, the Black Wind Lord simply gathered Zuo Meng and two others before returning to Heifeng Fort.
\n“To the mountain.”
\nHalf a day later,
\nZuo Meng’s carriage halted before a mist-shrouded peak. Alighting, he gazed up at the massive stone mountain where a winding path disappeared into swirling fog. The black windstones composing the mountain wailed under the wind’s touch like grieving spirits, making his skin crawl. The legendary Heifeng Fort crowned this ominous peak.
\nAfter disembarking, the Black Wind Lord began ascending with his group.
\nZuo Meng followed.
\nThe temperature plunged as they climbed. By mid-mountain, freezing winds carried black snowflakes that bit through clothing. Zuo Meng noted the three figures ahead moved effortlessly, their pace quickening despite the harsh conditions.
\n“Strange energy permeates this mountain,” he muttered, catching a black snowflake. When the others nearly vanished ahead, he hurried after.
\nPast the midpoint, winds eased but fog thickened. Within hundred paces, Zuo Meng lost sight of both path behind and companions ahead. Only the mountain’s mournful wails and snow’s whisper remained.
\nForced onward, he walked half an hour.
\nHalf an hour later,
\nNo visible path fore or aft. Only mist and three stone steps remained in sight. By elevation, he should’ve reached the summit long ago, yet the peak stayed hidden. The others had disappeared completely, leaving him alone in the entire world.
\nAnother half hour passed.
\nUpon stepping off the 13,000th stair, clarity suddenly returned. The mist vanished, revealing a celestial realm above the clouds.
\n“Indeed superior to Liuhe Sect. Worthy of a Lord’s sanctuary.”
\nBelow, clouds veiled the mountain while above, structures floated ethereally amidst an otherworldly aura.
\n“Test your aptitude.”
\nThe gruff boatman who’d followed Human Respect spoke.
\n“How should I address you, Senior Brother?”
\nZuo Meng clasped hands. As fellow disciples, names should be known.
\n“I’m no Lord’s disciple. Call me Boatman.” The cold-faced man gestured to a test stone. “First rule – aptitude test.”
\nThe stone offered no clues. Zuo Meng shrugged and pressed his palm down.
\nTwo vibrations. Silence.
\n“Lower Second-Class.”
\nThe Boatman frowned, then pulled out a booklet from his robe and tossed it to Zuo Meng\u2014a cultivation method matching his low-tier talent.
\n“This is your cultivation method.”
\nWith that, the Boatman turned to leave.
\n“Wait, senior brother Boatman! I\u2019ve got a question.”
\nTalent? Since when had Young Hero Zuo ever relied on such things? Second-rate or third-tier ratings meant nothing to someone surviving by his golden finger. Unfazed by the assessment, he casually grabbed the Boatman\u2019s sleeve.
\nThe Boatman blinked at this odd reaction. Ordinary people would wallow in despair after receiving a second-rate rating, yet this one acted as if hearing tomorrow\u2019s weather forecast. Remembering Zuo Meng\u2019s earlier display of skill aboard the boat, the Boatman paused. Even without talent, such martial prowess could carve a path in the jianghu.
\n“What is it?”
\n“Does Heifeng Fort produce dust powder?”
\nNow inside the fortress, Zuo Meng cut straight to the point. Everything else could wait. Find the dust powder source, absorb its energy, modify his internal strength by ten millennia\u2014then no Human Respect or Heavenly Lord could withstand his slap. Invincibility awaited.
\n“Dust powder? It\u2019s indeed our specialty.”
\nThe Boatman\u2019s confirmation lit a fire in Zuo Meng\u2019s eyes. “Where\u2019s it from?”
\nAfter brief hesitation, the Boatman relented\u2014Zuo Meng was technically part of the fortress now.
\n“The Lord\u2019s alchemy room. Every failed pill leaves heaps of it. What outsiders buy as treasure is just our Lord\u2019s discarded dregs.”
\n“Dregs?!”
\nZuo Meng\u2019s jaw dropped. External alchemists fought over this \u2018treasure\u2019, yet here it was mere trash from Black Wind Lord\u2019s failures. But why did waste contain energy? He\u2019d investigate the alchemy room tonight\u2014maybe the Dream World\u2019s energy hid in certain materials.
\n“Any dust powder here now?”
\nPriorities first. Explanations could wait.
\n“Check the storage room. Unsold stock piles there.” The Boatman walked away without another glance.
\nZuo Meng headed straight for storage. Typical Black Wind Lord\u2014accepting disciples then abandoning them with a manual and no lodgings.
\n“You\u2019re master\u2019s new rat?”
\nA human-shaped boulder blocked his path\u2014thick as a black bear with vise-grip fingers, radiating primal menace. Strangely, no internal energy pulsed from the mountain of muscle.
\n————<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Chapter 20: Ascending the Mountain “Greetings, Master!” Young Hero Zuo dropped to his knees without hesitation, having long abandoned any pretense of dignity. He had joked to himself – wasn’t this exactly why he’d fled down the mountain? To avoid getting caught in the ‘protagonist’s halo’ of his Junior Sister and master that might endanger his life? His obsession with becoming stronger was just\u2026<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","template":"","categories":[3],"tags":[],"fcn_genre":[],"fcn_fandom":[],"fcn_character":[],"fcn_content_warning":[],"class_list":["post-1398","fcn_chapter","type-fcn_chapter","status-publish","hentry","category-dreaming-to-become-a-creator"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/tmp.gravitytales.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/fcn_chapter\/1398","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/tmp.gravitytales.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/fcn_chapter"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/tmp.gravitytales.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/fcn_chapter"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tmp.gravitytales.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tmp.gravitytales.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1398"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/tmp.gravitytales.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/fcn_chapter\/1398\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/tmp.gravitytales.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1398"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tmp.gravitytales.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1398"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tmp.gravitytales.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1398"},{"taxonomy":"fcn_genre","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tmp.gravitytales.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/fcn_genre?post=1398"},{"taxonomy":"fcn_fandom","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tmp.gravitytales.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/fcn_fandom?post=1398"},{"taxonomy":"fcn_character","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tmp.gravitytales.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/fcn_character?post=1398"},{"taxonomy":"fcn_content_warning","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tmp.gravitytales.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/fcn_content_warning?post=1398"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}