263: Now is now, later is later

He descended from high altitude.

Yang Dian had just landed and was surveying the surrounding area—the relocated mountains and the hundreds-of-meters-tall steel city walls—when he saw Old Daoist Qingfeng approaching and scrutinizing him.

Yang Dian felt a bit uncomfortable under the Old Daoist's gaze and couldn't help but speak first:

"Old Daoist, what are you looking at?"

"I'm looking at how you used such a fine hair-thin needle to pierce that hundred-meter giant lizard," the Old Daoist didn't hide his thoughts. "How did you know that big fellow's weakness was in that spot?"

Yang Dian extended his right hand, pointed to his heart, then to his head:

"Listen with your heart, perceive with your spirit."

The Old Daoist showed an expression of speechlessness:

"'Listen with your heart, perceive with your spirit'...

Are you cultivating Immortality?"

Yang Dian smiled.

There wasn't much difference between his current state and cultivating Immortality:

"Old Daoist, a Martial Immortal is also an Immortal. Let me show you something fun."

He extended his hand, palm open. Qi and blood surged from Yang Dian's palm, condensing into the yellow mark embedded in the panel.

The moment the Old Daoist saw the mark, an inexplicable anger began to rise within him. He subconsciously reached for his sword hilt, wanting to draw his sword and slash something to vent his frustration.

But the instant his hand touched the sword hilt, he came back to his senses.

"Fushou Wuliang Tianzun."

The Old Daoist, who rarely uttered a Daoist mantra, took a deep breath and looked again at the golden mark in Yang Dian's palm.

Yes, it was golden.

Under the influence of some mysterious power, the Qi and blood that formed the mark had turned golden, exuding an angry intent that yearned to fight against heaven and earth, to obliterate everything.

Yang Dian was also affected by the mark; a tiny golden mark condensed deep within his pupils.

However, Yang Dian, having entered the state of 'Heart Mirror, Constant Stillness,' directly subdued his 'Heart Ape' and 'Will Horse,' entering an extremely calm state, completely unmoved by this surge of anger.

In other words, he reaped all the benefits of the anger mark's power boost, while none of its downsides affected him.

"Old Daoist, what do you think? Do you want to learn it?"

The Old Daoist let out a deep breath:

"Forget it, forget it."

"My temper isn't well-cultivated. If I learned your technique, I'm afraid the sword in my hand would never rest."

Yang Dian dispersed the anger mark, then asked curiously:

"If you won't learn this or that, Old Daoist, what do you want to learn? How to reach the Martial Dao Seventh Realm?"

Old Daoist Qingfeng glared at Yang Dian:

"You brat, do you think I haven't read 'Journey to the West'? Are you indirectly calling me a monkey?"

At this, he sighed again:

"I, this Old Daoist, have still fallen into a narrow way of thinking. After practicing Martial Arts to a certain extent, I want to cultivate Immortality."

"Heh, Yin, Yang, Yuan, Yu, Sheng..."

"I, this Old Daoist, want to cultivate divinity, I want Immortal Ascension!"

As he spoke, the Old Daoist took down the emerald jade wine gourd from his waist, took a swig, then gestured to Yang Dian:

"Want some?"

Yang Dian shook his head:

"Old Daoist, you know I'm not fond of alcohol."

"How boring," the Old Daoist stoppered the gourd. "Yue Shan is more straightforward."

No sooner had he spoken than an elderly man with an ethereal demeanor, riding a crane, arrived from the east and landed beside them.

"Young Yang doesn't want it, but I do."

"You old geezer, weren't you cultivating in seclusion on Zhongnan Mountain? How could you bear to come out?" Seeing Tang Shichang reach for the wine gourd, Old Daoist Qingfeng couldn't help but slap his hand away. "Go away, go away! Two years ago, when I asked you for some red-crowned crane to brew wine, you refused. Now you have the nerve to ask me for wine?"

Hearing Old Daoist Qingfeng mention the red-crowned crane, the crane, which had stood like a statue beside Tang Shichang since landing, finally spread its wings and pecked at Old Daoist Qingfeng with its sharp beak.

"Heh, you little thing, you dare to peck me? Believe it or not, I'll light the stove and stew you?"

Watching Old Daoist Qingfeng and the red-crowned crane bicker—reluctant to fight, yet unwilling to stop their verbal sparring—Yang Dian couldn't help but smile.

After he finished smiling, he looked at Tang Shichang, who was also smiling as he watched the man and crane squabble, appearing somewhat ethereal:

"Old Master, weren't you cultivating in seclusion on Zhongnan Mountain? Why have you come down the mountain as well?"

Old Master Tang stroked his beard:

"I, this old man, am merely cultivating in seclusion, not dead."

"In the past, those matters, if I was in seclusion and didn't see the information, then so be it."

"But since I've seen it this time, how can I, this old man, quietly cultivate on the mountain?"

At this point, the old man, who was a bit stubborn, added:

"Cultivating also requires resources."

"I, this old man, am prepared to go with you all into the ground and see what treasures are down there."

After speaking, the old man looked at Yang Dian again:

"The world changes, ah~"

"I, this old man, was only in a few months of death-seclusion, and how did a Prodigy like you emerge on the Martial Dao path?"

"Heh, it's just ridiculous."

Yang Dian smiled:

"It's just using a bit more resources, that's all."

"Young man, too humble, no vitality at all," the old man grumbled. "Not like us back then. If we were powerful, we were powerful. If you dared to say I wasn't powerful, I'd fight you every day until you admitted I was powerful..."

Amidst their idle chatter, the scorching sun had already begun to set in the west.

Seeing that it was almost time for the operation to begin, Old Master Tang couldn't help but look enviously in another direction:

"Awakened, truly a gathering of talents!"

Yang Dian followed Old Master Tang's gaze, then nodded:

"Indeed, there are more of them than us."

Since Earth devoured the Alien Planet dimension and the second wave of Qi Revival began, the strength of the first batch of Awakened improved, and the second wave of Awakened began to surge.

In less than a hundred days, the number of City-Level Awakened within China's borders had nearly doubled.

Excluding two Awakened who were severely injured in previous beast-extermination operations, two who went to guard newly appeared underground passages, and one Special Administration Bureau director who had never left the capital.

There were still 5 Awakened with City-Level combat power gathered here.

In other words, the total number of Awakened in China reached 10, more than double the number of Martial Artists.

Seeing the Old Master looking a bit downcast, Yang Dian said again:

"However, now is now, and the future is the future."

"Previously, resources were insufficient, and we didn't even dare to widely spread Martial Arts."

"Now, with Martial Arts being promoted nationwide and high-energy nutritional substances soon to be supplied in full, Martial Artists should also usher in a surge."

"Not to mention one in a hundred, or one in a thousand Martial Arts Geniuses."

"Even if it's one in ten thousand Geniuses, our China will produce 140,000."

"For Prodigies, where one appears in a million, our China has 1,400."

"Even for peerless Prodigies, one in a hundred million, we have more than 10!"

"I refuse to believe that we Martial Artists can still be weaker than the Awakened."

Old Master Tang smiled and added:

"And we still have to add your territory map."

Yang Dian didn't act humble this time:

"Indeed."

"If my territory map can really be produced, a Prodigy appearing once in a million people could be used as a peerless Prodigy, one in a hundred million..."

While daydreaming about the future, the communication bracelet that Yang Dian had just taken from his spatial ring trembled.

As he tapped the bracelet, a light screen projected in front of him.

"Sinkhole Passage Activation Countdown: 3:00:00"

...