Chapter 2507: 偶遇

Zu An did not answer directly. Instead, he counter-questioned, "May I ask, Goddess, before these past few days, did anyone in the world know who possessed the Immortality Elixir?"

The Goddess of Wushan shook her head slightly. "The Immortality Elixir is a supreme treasure between heaven and earth. People flock to it, but most return empty-handed because it is incredibly mysterious. Even though I am Baojiang's friend, I didn't know he possessed it."

"This time, Erfu and Yayu are fighting each other, likely stirred up by someone behind the scenes. But both are gods; a slight misstep could lead to their utter destruction. What is the intention of the person risking so much to incite them? It can't be simply because they dislike Yayu, can it?" Zu An did not directly state the conclusions he had heard from later generations.

Mainly, if asked, he could not explain how he knew so much. After all, this was a world with gods, and he worried that revealing his time-traveling could lead to unpredictable dangers. So, he answered vaguely, guiding the goddess to deduce the answer herself.

The Goddess of Wushan was not foolish; she quickly reacted, "Are you saying that the hidden person behind this wants to use this opportunity to discover where the Immortality Elixir is?"

"That's highly probable, especially now that Baojiang has left his cave and gone alone to the Heavenly Court to report. If the mastermind were to act, they would most likely choose this moment," Zu An said gravely.

The Goddess of Wushan's expression flickered several times. With a wave of her hand, a mirror formed by clouds and rain appeared before her, emitting strange fluctuations.

"I can't reach him," the Goddess of Wushan said, retracting her magic with a solemn expression.

Zu An looked with surprise at the space where the cloud-and-rain mirror had been, thinking it must be something like a communication mirror.

"Do we know which path he took? Is it still possible to catch up now?" Zu An urgently asked, also hoping to use this opportunity to gather information about the Heavenly Court.

The Goddess of Wushan paced softly in the room. Even the Saintess had to admit her grace was captivating. "God Baojiang mentioned to me that he recently needed to collect a special herb, which happens to be on the way to the Heavenly Court. If you pursue him, you might still catch up."

Realizing the implication of her words, Zu An was startled. "Are you not going, Goddess?"

She looked too much like Da Manman, and he instinctively felt a sense of closeness, wanting to understand if there was any connection between them. Hearing that she seemingly had no intention of going, he was naturally a bit disappointed.

"I cannot leave Wushan too far," the Goddess of Wushan stated indifferently, not explaining much.

Zu An found it difficult to press further, so he simply asked about Baojiang. "Then, by what route can we find God Baojiang?"

This world was too vast; searching blindly would be worse than looking for a needle in a haystack.

The Goddess of Wushan gently drew a few strokes in the air. Soon, clouds gathered, forming a simple map. "Follow this map, and you should be able to catch up with him near Kunlun Mountain."

"Kunlun Mountain?" Zu An instinctively glanced at the Saintess. She had also suggested going to Kunlun Mountain back then. He never expected that after all the detours, they would still end up going there. What a coincidence.

"Because Kunlun Mountain is the only path to the Heavenly Court," the Goddess of Wushan explained. "Everyone going to the Heavenly Court must pass through Kunlun Mountain."

A thought struck Zu An. So that's why Kunlun held such significant meaning in many cultures and myths. He seized the opportunity to ask about the Heavenly Court, but the Goddess of Wushan's expression turned cold. "I don't like that place, and I don't want to discuss anything related to it."

After saying this, she swept out of the room, leaving behind only a graceful silhouette.

Zu An was dumbfounded, wondering if she was angry because he had been impudent earlier.

The Saintess tugged his sleeve with a playful expression. "Stop looking; they're gone."

Zu An gave an embarrassed laugh. "Sister Ling'er, do you think there can really be two people in this world who look so alike?"

"There certainly are very similar people in the world, but this identical..." The Saintess fell silent, secretly adding in her heart: *There's only one possibility...*

Worried that Zu An would continue to question, she quickly changed the subject. "Let's hurry. If we're late, we might not catch up."

With that, she pulled Zu An and flew out of the mountain.

Feeling her urgency, Zu An was touched. Sister Ling'er truly cared for Xiao Xi, afraid they wouldn't find the Glazed Hairpin Flower to save her.

As the two departed, in the distance, at the peak of Wushan, a slender and beautiful stone peak loomed faintly in the mist.

Gradually, the stone peak transformed into a woman, her skirts fluttering. If Zu An and the Saintess had been there, they would surely have recognized her as Yaoji.

The Goddess of Wushan watched their retreating figures, her delicate brows furrowed slightly. "Strange..."

She couldn't understand why she felt a sense of familiarity with a man she clearly didn't know. And the girl beside him was also strange; she sensed an aura on her that she disliked.

As a wisp of cloud passed by, the woman's figure gradually faded, eventually transforming back into a slender and beautiful stone peak.

Zu An and the Saintess traveled tirelessly. Seeing the weariness in her brows, Zu An felt a pang of apology. "Sister Ling'er, you've really worked hard. You haven't rested these past few days; you've just been traveling."

It was somewhat ironic; they had rushed to Baoyuan Mountain, only to arrive and then immediately have to head to Kunlun Mountain.

Originally, they could both fly, and with their current strength, if they were careful, they didn't fear the aerial beasts. But no matter how fast they flew, they couldn't overcome the fact that this world was simply too vast. Even with Zu An's cultivation, he was starting to feel tired.

The Saintess pursed her lips and chuckled. "Brother Zu, there's no need to worry. I can still manage. We can't waste any more time now, or we might not be able to save Baojiang."

Zu An nodded slightly. "You're right. We need to speed up." He then showed a worried expression. "But at our current traveling speed, I'm afraid we still won't make it in time."

The distance to Kunlun Mountain was still too great. A teleportation array would have been most convenient. Unfortunately, Zu An had never been to Kunlun Mountain and didn't know the situation or coordinates there, so even if he wanted to set up an array, he couldn't.

"If only we had a vehicle..." The Saintess lowered her eyelids, seemingly hesitating.

Upon hearing this, Zu An took out the dragon boat that the Dragon King had given him. "Though this boat is slightly slower than our fastest travel, it excels in endurance. It can allow us to recover our strength; otherwise, even if we rush there, we might not have the energy to save anyone."

The Saintess furrowed her brows slightly, clearly somewhat displeased with the dragon boat's speed, but she knew what he said was reasonable and found no grounds to refuse. So, she boarded the dragon boat with him and rested in the cabin.

Zu An took out some spiritual pills for them both to take. While meditating to recover, he said in a deep voice, "Actually, I'm also worried about another issue. Judging by Erfu's strength that we witnessed earlier, these gods are very powerful. Even if we do arrive in time, can we really save Baojiang from the hands of a god?"

The Saintess chuckled. "Brother Zu, you're overthinking it. Baojiang himself is a god. Historically, he fell victim to an ambush. As long as we arrive in time to warn him, and with our assistance, it won't be difficult to save his life."

"What's more, he has the backing of the Heavenly Emperor, so those schemers wouldn't dare act recklessly."

Zu An couldn't help but admire her. "Sister Ling'er, your analysis is truly insightful. You've really grown a lot over these years."

A blush appeared on the Saintess's face. "This is all thanks to diligently remembering Brother Zu's daily teachings and applying them."

Seeing her momentarily charming demeanor, Zu An's heart stirred. Just as he reached out to caress her cheek, a deep male voice suddenly came from outside: "Friends on the dragon boat, could you offer us a ride?"