Chapter 2501: Heavenly God

“Shushu Mountain?” The Goddess’s expression changed, and she quickly lowered her head to conceal it. However, the hand hidden in her sleeve was clenched into a tight fist. Was she too late? Was she still too late?

Zu An found the name somewhat familiar but couldn’t recall where he had heard it. He simply asked, “What kind of place is that? Who are the guards, and what is their strength and number?”

Wu Peng pointed to the tall mountain not far away. “That mountain about ten miles from here is Shushu Mountain. As for the guards, they are mainly snake-shaped attendants. These ordinary guards aren’t too strong; you should be able to handle them. However, there are also several powerful monsters: an Earth Bat, a Fire Boar, and possibly a Swallow Woman. The Swallow Woman has the highest cultivation among them, so you must be extremely careful…”

Listening to the detailed information, Zu An felt increasingly uneasy. “This sounds no different from a suicide mission!”

Wu Di, standing beside him, replied, “It’s fine; you’re not meant to engage them in direct combat. You just need to create some commotion there to attract the guards’ attention. Your priority is to preserve yourselves; if you encounter danger, run away quickly.”

At this point, the Goddess spoke. “We’re going to attract attention, which means we’re covering your actions, right? What exactly are you trying to do?”

Wu Peng shook his head slightly. “We can’t tell you that, but you two can rest assured, we have no intention of harming you.”

The Goddess scoffed, “We are currently in a合作, a partnership. If we don’t clarify what’s going on, we might die without even knowing how. Of course, you don’t have to tell us, but then, to save our own lives, we might only slightly attract the guards’ attention from the periphery, and we might not actually be able to help you much.”

Zu An secretly admired her. Miss Ling’er had completely shed her previous gentle, sheltered demeanor. He mused that this must be a skill honed over the years as the Demon Race’s Saintess, fighting against the outer demons.

Wu Peng and Wu Di’s expressions shifted; they were clearly worried they wouldn’t put in the effort. After some thought, Wu Peng spoke. “Very well, we can tell you the truth. We intend to use the chaos to steal a corpse from the mountain. The owner of this mountain is extremely powerful. Although it’s highly unlikely you’ll attract his attention, just in case, take this. If he truly focuses on you, this item should buy you a sliver of hope.”

After speaking, he handed them an object: a piece of tortoise shell, intricately carved with strange patterns that resembled a spell.

Zu An’s expression changed. “Could that owner be someone who can take our lives with just a glance?” He had encountered such beings before and knew that the gap between them was not something human strength could contend with. If that were truly the case, he would have to back out. Fighting these six Witches would be far better than going to his death.

“It’s not to that extent,” Wu Peng explained. “The master here is named Erfu, a celestial deity with a serpent body and human head. Although he is powerful, he cannot take a life with just a glance. With this tortoise shell protecting you, as long as you are careful, there shouldn won’t be much of a problem. Besides, the probability of him noticing you is very small.”

“A deity!” Zu An was shaken. This was the first time he had encountered a legendary god. And finally, he understood why the name Shushu Mountain had sounded so familiar. It was because during his last visit to this secret realm, he had heard the Ten Witches of Mount Ling speak of this very lineage. He had encountered a monster named Yayu near the Weak River, who was originally a deity and a brother to this Erfu. Because Erfu envied Yayu’s reputation, coupled with the instigation of his subordinates, he killed Yayu. Later, the Heavenly Emperor sent people with an elixir of immortality to try and revive Yayu. Although his life was restored, his soul was not. Yayu eventually became a monstrous zombie-like creature and fell into the Weak River, turning into a man-eating, dragon-headed beast. The corpse these Witches were going to steal was most likely Yayu’s.

Zu An had been quite moved by that story, but he never imagined that one day he would personally be involved. Crucially, a casual agreement to a request had dragged him into such a massive conspiracy. Zu An was already regretting it.

As if sensing his thoughts, the Goddess spoke first. “This matter involves a deity. How can we possibly be a deity’s opponents? No, we’re not going!”

The hot-tempered sorcerer, who had been silent until now, finally couldn’t restrain himself. “You already know this secret. You must go, whether you want to or not, otherwise, there’s only death!”

Wu Peng, the leader, raised his hand to stop him, then continued to speak to the two. “You two seem to be human, which explains your fear of deities. In truth, there’s no need to deify them too much. Deities are merely powerful beings. With your strength, you are not entirely defenseless.”

“Of course, if you are afraid, I won’t force you. You simply need to keep today’s matter a secret.”

Suspicion flickered in Zu An and the Goddess’s eyes. Would they truly be so accommodating?

Just then, Wu Peng continued, “Oh, by the way, I forgot to tell you earlier. Throughout the world, I am probably the only one who knows where the Glazed Hairpin Flower is. If you miss this opportunity, you might never find that flower.”

Zu An was speechless. This guy was truly full of cunning schemes.

The Goddess secretly sent a telepathic message to Zu An: “Brother Zu, perhaps we should try. We can’t let this be little Xi’s only hope.”

Zu An nodded slightly. He actually wanted to try as well. Besides obtaining the Glazed Hairpin Flower, he also wanted to get close to the deity named Erfu. He wanted to understand the difference between gods and humans, and how mortal beings could break through and become gods.

“Alright, does the deity Erfu have any particular skills we need to watch out for?” Zu An hesitated, choosing not to reveal that he knew the story of Erfu and Yayu. From their recent interaction, these Witches were not purely benevolent, so he needed to remain cautious.

Seeing him agree, Wu Peng was overjoyed. “The most important thing to note is his extraordinary speed. He is even said to be the fastest runner in the world.”

Zu An was speechless. *Damn it*, if he’s the fastest in the world, how will I ever escape?

As if guessing his thoughts, Wu Peng reassured him, “The tortoise shell I gave you can help you block one of Erfu’s attacks. You must seize that opportunity to escape. Additionally, once we successfully steal the corpse, he will undoubtedly sense it immediately and come after us. Your crisis will naturally be resolved then.”

“Of course, there will certainly be danger, but it’s up to you to decide if it’s worth the risk.”

“Okay, we’ll take this risk,” Zu An said gravely. “But afterward, how can we be sure you’ll tell us the information about the Glazed Hairpin Flower?”