Chapter 23 : Ancient Ruins
Chapter 23: Ancient Ruins
Mount Zhangwei.
From afar, it looked like a mountain, but once inside, it felt as if one had stepped into another world. Its size was far beyond what Longevity Temple and Tao Mountain Island could compare with.
High peaks, low valleys, forests, sky, and lakes—everything existed here. Yet, the light here came from a rift in the distant firmament, which stretched across the heavens like an aurora.
At first glance, it looked like a colossal eye upon the sky, gazing down at the ants below.
On a low slope cliff.
Several Extraordinary Ones gazed toward the void extending from the cliff’s edge, as though they could directly see something.
Some others raised mobile phones and cameras, photographing into the distant void from the cliff. On the screens, one could faintly make out a celestial peak shrouded in mist, and on the peak stood structures that seemed to be a Daoist temple.
At this very moment.
A large group of people was establishing another Daoist temple here, and the entire valley resembled a massive construction site.
“Hurry up, connect all the wires.” From within the void, cables stretched over from the other side. A group of people quickly connected these wires to the equipment that had long been prepared.
“Faster.” At first, the project moved slowly. But as more machinery was transported out of the void and landed on the cliff edge—especially once power was connected—the speed increased greatly.
Whether it was this wilderness domain, the eerie cables that appeared out of thin air, the machines that descended from the sky, or the mingling of Daoist priests in ancient garb with modern people—the entire valley radiated a sense that transcended reality.
“If the work isn’t finished on time, there will be punishment from above. Don’t say I didn’t warn you then,” the foreman wearing a safety helmet shouted.
“The earlier this place is built, the earlier everyone can rest and live a little more comfortably.” At this moment, Zhang You appeared.
Zhang You had received Zhou Shentong’s order to establish a base here, then find a way to link this place with Longevity Temple and the human world.
As for Zhou Shentong, his goal was to transform the two peach trees at Longevity Temple into a gateway linking the three realms, then continuously draw in outsiders to call upon the Candle Dragon and pull Mount Zhangwei from the void.
They would control the gateway, control those who had transformed into Candle Souls, and even use these Candle Souls to explore the unknown within. Truly, it was killing several birds with one stone.
However, after entering here, Zhang You made a discovery.
While an excavator dug into a hillside, it accidentally caused the entire slope to collapse. A great mass of rubble slid down with a crash, and countless boulders tumbled toward the cliff below.
“Careful, careful!”
“What happened?”
“Watch out, don’t cause an accident!”
The slope fell into chaos, but it caught Zhang You’s attention. He quickly rushed over and looked up at the collapsing hillside.
At first, he worried about delays to the project. But soon, someone discovered that something had been revealed within the landslide.
“There’s something inside!”
“What is that?”
“Not sure. Looks pretty big, it’s stone.”
“Aren’t mountains full of stone?”
“This is clearly carved by man.”
Climbing over the rubble to the top, Zhang You placed his hand upon the rock wall and slowly brushed away the dirt.
He realized this was no ordinary rock—it clearly bore marks of human carving, with faint patterns etched upon it.
Yet, what he saw was only the upper half of the object. Much more remained buried beneath.
After coming back down, Zhang You said no more about deadlines. Instead, he called for more manpower.
“Keep digging!”
“Clear it all out, but don’t damage what’s underneath.”
In truth, Zhang You was overthinking—they had no means of damaging what lay below.
As the excavation deepened, the thing gradually revealed itself. It was a colossal stone gate, slanted and descending into the earth.
It was simply enormous. The part of the slope they had cleared revealed only the middle section of the gate. Its upper and lower halves remained buried within the mountain.
The place was somewhat dark. A few lamps lit the slope, but visibility was still poor.
Even so, it was already breathtaking enough.
Zhang You stared at the colossal stone gate.
He could not imagine who had created such a thing. And what purpose did it serve to bury such a massive gate underground?
Step by step, he approached. Walking toward the gate now felt completely different than before. The closer he drew, the more insignificant he felt.
But with the meager lamps insufficient to show its full form, Zhang You spoke behind him.
“Bring more lights here, turn on all the headlights.”
“Shine them all on it.”
“Boom… boom… buzz… buzz…”
One by one, giant lamps lit up behind him, their beams piercing past Zhang You’s body to illuminate every corner of the stone gate, making the slope as bright as day.
At last, Zhang You saw clearly what was carved upon the middle section of the gate.
It was tens of thousands of figures kneeling upon the ground, each raising a candle flame high above their heads.
As though in reverent worship of something—or welcoming someone into the depths beyond.
“This is a ruin.”
Standing before the gate, Zhang You’s thoughts drifted far and wide.
Who had left this behind?
It could never have been ordinary humans. How could ordinary people construct such a massive stone gate—especially within this mountain belonging to the ancient god Candle Dragon?
Gazing at the stone gate, Zhang You’s eyes gradually revealed a look of obsession. He paced back and forth along its face, staring at the figures kneeling and raising their candle flames.
“This was left by the ancestors of the wilderness era. But what were they bowing to? What were they welcoming?”
“Could it be… the gods and demons from the ancient myths?”
In that distant age, what kind of power did they wield? What legendary tales had they lived?
At last, Zhang You stood at the very center of the gate. Pressing close to the crack, he peered inside, eyes full of curiosity and longing—yet he saw nothing.
“There must be something beyond… but how can it be opened?”
Not long ago, his only thought had been survival.
But now—having witnessed the true extraordinary world, and personally glimpsed ruins left from ancient myth—his heart felt as though it had grown wings and soared above the clouds.
At this moment, from the pile of computers placed on the cliff edge behind him, a laptop suddenly stirred.
Someone immediately called out to Zhang You, telling him:
“The Immortal Master seeks you.”
In an instant, Zhang You sobered up.
He hurried to the computer, knelt upon the ground, and saluted before connecting the video. The rules for disciples of Longevity Temple were strict, and punishments far harsher than most could imagine. Zhang You had experienced them firsthand.
When the video opened, he saw a Daoist seated within a grand hall, horsetail whisk draped upon his shoulder, his eyes half-closed as he spoke to Zhang You.
“Some people have infiltrated. Eliminate them all. I have issued a decree for all disciples of Longevity Temple to aid you.”
Zhou Shentong had not mentioned Li Jun, clearly treating them as pawns in a trial.
Zhang You dared not object and immediately kowtowed.
“Your disciple accepts the decree.”
Just as Zhou Shentong finished speaking, Zhang You hurriedly stopped him and reported what had just occurred.
“Immortal Master, we just unearthed something in Mount Zhangwei.”
Zhou Shentong’s eyes opened, seeming to radiate light.
“What did you find?”
Lifting the laptop, Zhang You aimed the camera toward the massive stone gate slanted into the earth.
Zhou Shentong immediately rose, leaning close to observe. After a careful look, his face could no longer conceal his ecstasy.
“Hahahahahaha!”
“Hahahahahaha!”
“Good, good, very good. You have done well.”
Yet, even as Zhou Shentong rejoiced, his thoughts turned to Lu Gang, who had already opened a gate—and to Li Jun behind him.
“Hold those people back at all costs. Do not let them come near here.”
“I will come immediately… cough, cough, cough…”
At that moment, Zhou Shentong suddenly broke into a violent coughing fit. His face turned deathly pale.
Zhang You even saw Zhou Shentong’s figure begin to blur, becoming somewhat illusory.
It seemed his condition was not good. Everything he had done before, and all the plans he had continuously carried out—
Every one of them required the use of power, and every use of power came at a price.
In the end, Zhou Shentong sat cross-legged and formed a hand seal.
“Help me hold them back. I will come shortly.”
After that, the video was cut off.
Li Jun was watching Lu Gang.
The feeling was somewhat like playing a video game. His perspective followed Lu Gang and the exploration team step by step, as they ventured deeper into another bizarre and fantastical land, searching for an ancient hidden place lost to countless ages.
Lu Gang and the entire exploration team were staring at the enormous rift in the heavens, glowing like an aurora.
Lu Gang kept feeling as though someone was watching him. When he gazed at the rift of light, like an eye in the sky, he suddenly realized.
“No wonder.”
This mountain was vast and deep, with no end in sight.
The forest was dense and dark. On closer look, the bark of those trees resembled dragon scales. Each tree was gnarled and twisted, at first glance appearing like writhing flood dragons or giant worms rising from the ground, roaring toward the heavens.
Only one steep and treacherous mountain path led deeper inside. Lu Gang ran along it, following the figures holding candles. But strangely, their speed was unnaturally fast.
In no time, they vanished into the path.
“Where did they go?”
“How are they so fast? Did they float away?”
“Did you forget they were just shadows before?”
At this moment, a drone lifted off. Very quickly, they located the candle-bearing figures again—they had already crossed the hill ahead and reached another.
Lu Gang was about to give the order to pursue when Zhao Nange, with her keen eye, noticed something else.
She said: “Look, in the distance—is that light?”
Lu Gang looked over: “It’s lamplight. Signs of human activity.”
He immediately realized it should be people from Longevity Temple. Judging by their location, it was precisely the destination toward which those candle-bearing figures had been running.
“Keep moving forward. Be careful.”
They advanced cautiously. But even so, they still fell into an ambush.
The attack was fierce and merciless.
Flames burst in the darkness along with gunfire. Bullets rained down from afar, and within moments two people collapsed to the ground.
Yet Lu Gang’s team were all battle-hardened. The two sides clashed in a firefight across the slope.
But soon—
A power not belonging to this age appeared. Both sides unleashed Extraordinary Ones.
Lu Gang and Zhao Nange rushed into the forest with their guns. In the pitch-blackness, Lu Gang closed his eyes and used another vision to sense the hidden enemies.
“There!” Lu Gang quickly detected one person hiding not far ahead.
“Bang!” His bullet seemed to have eyes. At the instant the shot rang out, the man fell.
Another two men—one hidden in a tree, one lying prone on the ground—launched attacks. Yet Lu Gang’s sharp intuition evaded them. He shot the one on the ground dead, then leapt into the air, drew a dagger mid-flight, and stabbed the one in the tree, flipping down in a somersault like an assassin’s instant kill in a film.
The entire sequence was fluid and swift, with no hesitation. For the first time in his life, Lu Gang felt this strong. His super vision allowed him to sense enemies instantly, no matter where they hid.
His vision was 360 degrees, with no blind spots, able to penetrate obstacles.
His body was coordinated and powerful, especially in the dark forest.
This forest was his perfect battlefield.
On the other side, Zhao Nange was the same. The two of them together slaughtered the attackers like leopards hunting prey, easily killing every enemy hidden in the darkness.
But soon—
The enemy’s Extraordinary Ones appeared.
Their powers were entirely different from Lu Gang and Zhao Nange’s. Theirs were stranger and more direct—fire.
Lu Gang kept killing enemies, while the opposition seemed to care nothing for the lives of ordinary people. They used these deaths to lure Lu Gang and Zhao Nange step by step into a trap.
But at the instant he neared the trap, Lu Gang sensed something was wrong.
On the slope.
He looked at the gunmen charging like fanatics. He was about to mow them down when suddenly a chanting voice sounded in his ears. Instantly, he snapped out of the blood-soaked frenzy.
“Something’s wrong.”
He shoved Zhao Nange aside. But at that very moment, Zhang You, waiting high above, gave the order.
“Do it!”
The charging men opened their mouths wide. Inside their mouths were not human tongues—but candle wicks, burning with flame.
As they opened their mouths, fiery serpents spewed out, surging toward Lu Gang.
In their eyes reflected raging firelight, full of ecstasy and arrogance in wielding such power—
And fervent devotion to the one who had bestowed it upon them.
For if death was no longer the end, if life itself was only the beginning, and if one could wield such power and authority—then countless would gladly offer their lives.
“Whoo!”
“Woooo…”
The fiery serpents converged, fusing into a towering pillar of flame. From afar, it looked like a thick crimson candle burning upon the earth.
The sight drew everyone’s gaze—especially Zhang You’s side, who had caused it.
Zhang You looked at the massive “fire candle,” his eyes filled with longing.
“Behold, this is the power of the gods and demons of the ancient age.”
“We are no longer human, but are drawing closer to the gods and demons of old.”
“We are shedding our old selves. We are evolving…”
Meanwhile, Zhao Nange led the others charging into the flames, shouting:
“Team Leader Lu!”
They tried to pull Lu Gang out of the fire. But seeing their panic, Zhang You only sneered.
“Wood Guests are weak to fire, yet you dare to charge into it.”
To Zhang You’s side, Lu Gang was certainly doomed. With only Zhao Nange left, there was no way she could oppose them, especially when their power “restrained” hers.
Yet in that very moment, something strange occurred within the raging fire.
Lu Gang stood within the blaze, completely unharmed. The chanting voice in his ear grew louder, and his body and the space around him twisted and blurred.
At the Divine Wood phantom in the center of Tao Mountain Island.
Li Jun once more raised his hand and recited the chant. The power of the Divine Peach Tree gradually enveloped Lu Gang.
Before coming here, Lu Gang had “invited the god” into his body. And now, there truly was a “god” watching over him.
Then—
Before the eyes of all, a figure burst forth from the fire, not a single hair singed.
At this sight, Zhang You, immersed in the so-called “god-demon” power, let out a cry of disbelief.
“Impossible!”
“He’s not dead?”
Lu Gang fired twice, dropping two men. To be safe, he shot each of them in the head.
Then with his other hand, he drew his dagger and slit another man’s throat.
And indeed, his earlier caution proved right—though his throat was cut, the man did not immediately die, even retaining much of his strength to counterattack.
Retreating while firing, the man’s tongue writhed. It was not a human tongue at all, but a serpent’s tongue, spewing fire outward again.
At last, Lu Gang clearly saw the man’s tongue—
It was a snake’s tongue.
But no matter whether it was the bullets fired at Lu Gang, or the surging fire serpents—
At this moment, they all passed straight through Lu Gang’s body, having no effect whatsoever.
“What kind of joke is this?”
“How did he do that?”
Lu Gang charged into the flames toward his opponent, shoved his gun into the man’s mouth, and pulled the trigger.
Brains and blood burst from the back of the man’s head, and Lu Gang immediately rushed toward another.
A chaotic battle broke out across the slope. The others quickly reacted and began to attack Lu Gang again, while Zhao Nange brought people up to support.
But it seemed that Lu Gang alone was already enough to crush them.
All attacks passed through Lu Gang, leaving him the only one able to strike others, while ignoring everyone else’s attacks entirely.
When the fourth Extraordinary One died, the others could no longer endure. They dared not face Lu Gang head-on.
“What kind of monster is this?”
“What’s going on with him? Why can’t we hit him? What’s wrong with his body?”
“Could he be a ghost?”
Wherever Lu Gang charged, the enemies there dared not meet him directly, retreating instead.
And Lu Gang slaughtered his way upward, radiating the aura of “if gods block, kill gods; if buddhas block, kill buddhas.”
Lu Gang raised his head, finally seeing Zhang You high upon the hill. For a moment, Zhang You himself felt a trace of fear at the sight of Lu Gang drenched in blood.
At the same time, doubt arose in his heart.
“What’s going on? The Immortal Master never said this Lu Gang was so powerful.”
“Didn’t he say he was just a first-stage Extraordinary One?”
Those following behind, including Zhao Nange, were even more astonished. They were shocked beyond words—it was their first time realizing Lu Gang was this strong.
“Did Team Leader Lu awaken a new ability?” The group grew excited, morale surging.
“We’ve never seen this before!” Zhao Nange said with some doubt.
“Maybe he exploded with potential in the face of crisis.” There were many young people in the team, and to them, the scene was vividly familiar.
In the end, Zhang You no longer knew how to deal with Lu Gang, and gave the order to retreat.
“Withdraw.”