162: Chapter 162 Spiritual Energy Surges, Torrential Rain Pours Down

Two years was not a very long time. For many people, these two years in their life's journey did not even witness the completion of any significant events.

However, many small things could still change during these two years.

For instance, Lu Xingyun's son, Lu Zhixing, was admitted to the top academy of the Xia Kingdom with his school-best talent in the Talismanic Dao. At just fifteen years old, this kid's talent in the Talismanic Dao had already surpassed Lu Xingyun's, and he could even comprehend several lost Talismans of the Donghua Sect, drawing them without a single error.

Another example was that humanity had already embarked on interstellar exploration. The Xia Kingdom's Tiangong Skyship had already set sail into the vast sea of stars, and the military had seen its first seventh-Realm martial artist, who guarded the border. Just by standing there, he could deter many.

As the recovery of Spiritual Qi progressed, some pocket nations with weak national strength had been forcibly annexed. The major powers only offered verbal condemnation on the international stage without much interference.

Everyone knew that an internal conflict among humanity was already being prepared in the shadows.

Several persistent storms had appeared on the South Pacific Ocean, blocking all instrument exploration. It was rumored that Heaven And Earth Treasures were being nurtured within them, while others said the Bloodline of some ancient Vicious Beast was awakening.

While the outside world was undergoing turbulent changes,

the scenery of Yunfeng Mountain had not changed much; everything remained as it was yesterday.

Li Xiuyuan returned to Yunfeng Mountain alone without telling anyone. After becoming a Qiu Dragon, his state of mind had elevated once again, giving him a new perspective on all things.

Walking along a shaded path,

he looked not far away toward the foot of Yunfeng Mountain, which was also the former site of Lin Family Village.

By now, the collapsed houses of Lin Family Village had been completely cleared away, leaving only a few houses at the former site that still seemed to be inhabited.

"Xiaonan, where do you plan to do your internship during your senior year?"

"I haven't decided yet. Our advisor said my martial arts talent is quite high and suggested I join the military."

"Go to the military camp? That's so exhausting."

"Exhaustion is one thing, but my advisor said that at a conservative estimate, a battle concerning all of humanity will break out within five years."

"I heard online that we probably won't be affected. It's mainly because we've developed all kinds of advanced weapons and have plenty of strength, so others wouldn't dare provoke us."

"My dear, once a war starts, it's not a matter of whether they dare or not. Don't be so naive. Besides, I heard that ancient gods or angels have appeared in some places in the West."

"That video, I've seen it online. Although everyone says it was made by AI, it actually looked extremely real."

"Whether a war will break out, why not just ask Old Ding? Didn't he and Xiaoyu enter the same organization to tinker with mechas? It really turned out just as he said—one builds mechas and the other draws Talismans on them."

"They declined our classmate reunions several times. They're probably doing some secret experiments and can't leave. Let's not think too much about it. Out of the few of us, those two really have the brightest future."

On a small path in front of the former site of Lin Family Village,

three figures were walking together in a single file.

The one at the very front was still the girl with the high ponytail. Listening to the words of the two behind her, she also nodded and said with a smile that only those two had fulfilled their respective wishes.

Lin Xiaonan's return to Yunfeng Mountain this time was simply because she had nothing to do during the holidays, so she invited two old classmates to return to her hometown in Lin Family Village to have a barbecue and gather. After all, after this gathering, they would go their separate ways, and they might not have another chance to meet again in this lifetime.

A short-haired girl behind Lin Xiaonan raised her head to look into the distance. "Why is there someone standing at your doorstep, and he's looking at us?"

"Tsk, holy crap, this guy is so freaking handsome. Even as a guy, I have to admit it." The boy at the very back, carrying two large bags of things, also spotted the figure in front of the courtyard gate.

Lin Xiaonan also noticed him. She felt he looked somewhat familiar, but she couldn't remember where she had seen him.

The three approached with curiosity, and the short-haired girl greeted Li Xiuyuan, "Hi, handsome, did you also come to Yunfeng Mountain to look for the traces of the White Dragon?"

Li Xiuyuan was surprised to hear this. Traces of the White Dragon?

From the sound of it, others had been here before?

Hadn't Yunfeng Mountain been cordoned off as a restricted area? How could people still enter now? Moreover, it seemed more than one group of people had gone in. Where did Gu Xiao go?

"Yes." Li Xiuyuan nodded, not planning to explain too much.

The reason he stopped here was simply because he wanted to see how the girl with the high ponytail was doing now.

Sweeping his Spiritual Sense over her inconspicuously, Li Xiuyuan was somewhat surprised. Having not seen her for a while, she actually possessed the strength of a fourth-Realm martial artist.

At this age, to have such a Realm of strength, it was no wonder she was said to have talent in martial arts.

"Are you planning to go into the mountain without bringing anything? Yunfeng Mountain doesn't look high or steep, but because of the influence of Li Xiuyuan's Mirage Qi inside, it's very difficult to navigate. If you want to reach the summit, it will take at least two days of climbing. Given your situation, I wouldn't recommend you go up."

The boy looked at Li Xiuyuan, and seeing that he carried no supplies, kindly advised him.

With a slight stir of his mind, Li Xiuyuan found an excuse and said tactfully, "I saw it online. Everyone said Yunfeng Mountain is a breeze, just like the Aotai Route, so I came."

"Nonsense! People online just talk big. Although Yunfeng Mountain is not as tough as Aotai, it's still very easy to get lost, and once you go in, there's absolutely no way to call for help."

"In the future, watch fewer of those bizarre travel guides online. Many of them are scams."

As the boy spoke, he handed Li Xiuyuan a bottle of juice rich in Spiritual Qi.

"While there are still buses, hurry back."

Li Xiuyuan took the bottle of juice, thanked him, and then asked, "I really don't know much about this place, but I remember Yunfeng Mountain used to be classified as a restricted area. Why is it accessible again now?"

"It was indeed a restricted area two years ago, after all, it was the place where Li Xiuyuan resided. But two years ago, Li Xiuyuan sacrificed himself to fill the river to suppress the Yellow River flood. Not long after, the restriction on this area was temporarily lifted. There used to be an uncle guarding this place, but later, for some reason, he disappeared too."

Just as the boy was speaking,

suddenly,

*Rumble!*

A clap of muffled thunder resounded in the sky. Immediately after, a mass of thick dark clouds hung in the sky from out of nowhere. A sultry, humid sensation surged from the ground; clearly, a heavy downpour was imminent.

"What's going on? Why is it about to rain? You should hurry back, don't miss the last bus."

As the boy spoke, he was about to walk into the courtyard gate, but a pattering sound rang out, and the torrential rain had already arrived.

Lin Xiaonan, who had already entered the courtyard, turned back to Li Xiuyuan and said, "Why don't you take shelter from the rain here first? If the rain still doesn't stop tonight, you can stay overnight and squeeze in with Li Fei."

"Thanks for the trouble."

Li Xiuyuan nodded and stepped into the courtyard.

The boy named Li Fei didn't mind either. He had an inexplicable good impression of Li Xiuyuan, this stranger he was meeting for the first time, and didn't suspect him of being a bad person at all.

It was hard to tell whether this was the naive innocence unique to college students, or a genuine sixth sense.

"It just so happens we plan to have a barbecue today. Come on, come on."

...

It was raining on Yunfeng Mountain again.

This rain was not brought by Li Xiuyuan; it fell without any warning and also caught Li Xiuyuan's attention.

Entering the courtyard, he looked up at the gloomy sky. This heavy rain, just like the one in Lin Family Village years ago and the one in Wudu not long ago, was a Spiritual Qi downpour.

However, Li Xiuyuan had deliberately used his Spiritual Sense just now to inspect the entire area within a fifty-mile radius and found no trace of any Formation. Unlike the previous two times, this Spiritual Qi downpour had formed naturally.

Moreover, this Spiritual Qi downpour seemed to have no effect on humans.

This was because the three innocent college students in the courtyard felt absolutely nothing.

Li Xiuyuan did not have much to chat about with the three of them either. However, due to the unintentional influence of the Mirage Qi, the three of them also subconsciously refrained from deliberately striking up a conversation with him, not even asking for his name.

Just like that, they finished the barbecue in a bit of a daze, and the three went back to their respective rooms to rest. Li Xiuyuan, on the other hand, quietly left the courtyard and walked up Yunfeng Mountain.

While her two classmates went back to their rooms to rest, Lin Xiaonan stood by the window, watching the figure that had left the courtyard. She seemed to have guessed his identity, but she did not disturb him.

The torrential rain was still falling,

and the temperature in the mountains had dropped significantly.

Walking along the mountain path, Li Xiuyuan gathered his Mirage Qi, transforming into his majestic Qiu Dragon form.

This naturally falling Spiritual Qi downpour was a blessing from heaven for the Rising Beingss in the mountain. He could feel all things in the mountain reveling in the heavy rain.

Regarding Gu Xiao's whereabouts, Li Xiuyuan had asked Qing'er, but Qing'er was also clueless. She only knew that Gu Xiao had suddenly left Yunfeng Mountain one day. At the time, she thought he was returning to the Jiantian Bureau to write a report as usual, but who would have thought he would never return.

Furthermore, Li Xiuyuan had also tried to transmit his voice to Gu Xiao, but after several attempts, there was still no response.

...

The torrential rain finally ceased before dawn.

The moment the rain stopped, the eastern horizon was just beginning to turn the color of a fish's belly. The sky, washed clean by the rain, was as spotless as an uncarved piece of jade.

Morning light seeped from below the horizon, casting a light golden outline over the distant mountain ranges.

Li Xiuyuan drew in the mountain mist and perched at the summit. His Qiu Dragon body shimmered with a golden-white light in the morning glow as he looked down at Yunfeng Mountain and the forests nourished by the heavy rain.

In just one night, the vegetation in the mountains had grown a bit taller. In addition, the auras of the creatures in the mountains were also much stronger than before.

Some creatures that were still stuck at a Bottleneck broke through their shackles during this downpour.

Their primitive, ancient Bloodlines, mixed with their boiling Qi and blood, surged continuously, their auras climbing step by step.

This Spiritual Qi downpour was a blessing from heaven for them.

Li Xiuyuan withdrew his gaze and sank his Spiritual Sense deep into his mind, waking up Qing'er to mention this Spiritual Qi downpour.

"Spiritual Qi downpours like this have occurred many times over the past two years. Just in the vicinity of Yunfeng Mountain, they have fallen in four different places,"

Qing'er said.

She believed that this sudden Spiritual Qi downpour was related to the surge of Spiritual Qi.

A Spiritual Qi surge was a heavenly grace for all Rising Beingss. Originally, people speculated that the first Spiritual Qi surge would take a long time to appear, but the Spiritual Qi over the past two years had entered another rising and high-tide phase.

This was highly likely a prelude to the Spiritual Qi surge.

For those ancient existences that had been dormant in the dark for thousands of years, this surge was their alarm clock, their summon order, and the first ray of dawn for their return to the mortal world.

Hearing this,

Li Xiuyuan immediately expanded his Spiritual Sense to its limit. Having become a Qiu Dragon, his Spiritual Sense coverage now reached a full five hundred miles, making him equivalent to a giant radar.

Moreover, as this giant radar, he could directly sense the transformation times of those Rising Beingss.

With a little sensing, Li Xiuyuan discovered that the Rising Beingss in several places had undergone the baptism of the Spiritual Qi downpours. Many had achieved Bloodline evolution, and even those that did not evolve benefited greatly.

"According to this trend, perhaps the Spiritual Qi surge really is arriving early,"

Li Xiuyuan thought to himself.

In the first few decades of the recovery of Spiritual Qi, excluding Li Xiuyuan, the strongest recorded Rising Beings within the Xia Kingdom had only reached the fifth Realm.

There were many voices online arguing that Rising Beingss were too weak and not as terrifying as imagined. Even a fourth-Realm Rising Beings could be eliminated by hot weapons like missiles.

However,

the true terror would only come after the Spiritual Qi surge.

Withdrawing his Spiritual Sense, Li Xiuyuan did not leave Yunfeng Mountain but chose to cultivate here, because he could also feel that the spirit of this mountain was quietly being born.

Perhaps due to the Spiritual Qi downpours, not only Yunfeng Mountain but also some other mountains and great marshes were nurturing their own 'spirits'.

As for Gu Xiao, Li Xiuyuan did not go looking for him either. Since the traces of Spiritual Qi left by Gu Xiao on Yunfeng Mountain had not completely disappeared and had not been washed away by the rain, Li Xiuyuan could feel that Gu Xiao was still alive based on tracking his Spiritual Qi.

Furthermore, Gu Xiao was after all a member of the Jiantian Bureau. If any accident truly occurred, the Jiantian Bureau would be the first to object.

After staying on Yunfeng Mountain for several days,

next,

an unexpected person arrived to see Li Xiuyuan.

Jiang Xinhan.

He returned to the courtyard at the foot of Yunfeng Mountain. The moment he appeared, Li Xiuyuan found him and asked about Gu Xiao, as well as why the two of them had suddenly disappeared.

The reply Jiang Xinhan gave, however, left Li Xiuyuan extremely surprised.

"Mr. Gu is recuperating in a sanatorium. I came back here to help him fetch some things."

It turned out that the reason Gu Xiao had disappeared was because one day a year ago, as a Half-demon, he suddenly felt his internal Bloodline undergoing a mutation. Sensing that something was wrong, he immediately contacted the Jiantian Bureau and explained the situation.

In an extremely serious tone, he told his superior that if he could not return to the Jiantian Bureau, he would very likely die on Yunfeng Mountain.

His superior did not take it lightly, immediately communicating with the higher-ups, and then had Gu Xiao brought back.

On the very next day after Gu Xiao returned to the Jiantian Bureau, he collapsed to the ground and fainted without any warning, unable to be woken up.

However, Gu Xiao's vital signs were still stable; he had simply fainted completely and could not wake up.

Furthermore, the Jiantian Bureau conducted strict tests on him every day, ultimately finding that the Half-demon Bloodline in Gu Xiao's body was gradually suppressing his other half of human Bloodline.