Journey to the West: The Mountain Shaker

Chapter 98 Battle of Rotten Peach Peak 2

Faced with this critical situation, everyone quickly calmed down.

"Did the old elder witness the Great Sage rescuing Cai Fei with his own eyes while he was at Flower Fruit Mountain?" someone asked.

"Of course!" The old elder recounted the events of that day to everyone, especially the part where Cai Fei dodged the Hundred-Burning Rat's spears high in the air. He spoke with great enthusiasm, gesturing with his hands, as if he had returned to that thrilling moment.

The old man's eyebrows and beard twitched, as if he had fallen into some kind of frenzy, and he exclaimed, "Such skill is truly astonishing and awe-inspiring. The son of Aolai lives up to his reputation. The Great Sage's appearance to save him is indeed for a reason."

"Has Cai Fei reached the seventh level of Qi Refining?" Chu Huihui couldn't help but ask.

"Such a drastic maneuver clearly indicates a late-stage Qi Refining realm cultivator." The old elder looked at Chu Huihui with a puzzled expression. "What do you mean by that, Huihui?"

"When I went to Wujialing last month to discuss the Great Wilderness Journey, he was only at level six. Either he suddenly advanced recently, or, hehe..."

Chu Huihui recounted how Cai Feineng could conceal his strength during combat, and added, "I've seen his agility technique before; it's a unique skill he created himself, called 'Cockroach Dance.'"

"The Cockroach Dance!" the elder exclaimed in admiration. "It really does resemble a cockroach! To create one's own martial art at such a young age is truly a source of pride for the Chu clan!"

Hearing the elder call Cai Fei "the pride of the Chu clan," Chu Huihui felt deeply gratified. The elders and stewards below were also discussing among themselves. It was truly a cause for celebration that such a strong person came from the Chu clan, but it seemed too much to risk the lives of the entire clan for him.

"If that's what the elder says, we're naturally willing to help. But given the current situation..." someone hesitated before speaking, "Blood Hand, Wind and Rain Pavilion, the Thirteen Families, Ghost Sail... our Chu Clan is truly no match for them. If we rashly step forward, I'm afraid we might face the calamity of extermination..."

"What do you think I've been doing these past few days? Why do you think I delayed returning to the mountain until now?" Chu Zhengshan sneered. "Zhiyin has already led some men to infiltrate Rotten Peach Peak, and more reinforcements are on their way. At this moment, countless people in Sushanfang are watching the battle. The stronger we resist, the more reinforcements we will receive. In short, I'm determined to protect Xu Ping'an, the Mountain Master. I'll bury this old bone of mine on that mountain."

The crowd below was still suspicious—it seemed the old elder was really serious?

"Snow weighs down the bamboo branches, yet they do not touch the mud. When the red sun rises, they will still reach the sky." The old elder suddenly recited a poem and proclaimed loudly, "Our Chu clan takes bamboo as its root, and the Great Sage is still here. How can we kneel before our enemy! I'm going now. Zhiyin is already over there; you can decide what to do!"

As soon as the elder finished speaking, he turned and left, striding out the door like a shooting star. In the blink of an eye, he had disappeared from sight.

Is this the elder?

Chu Zhengshan, that old fox who has been lurking in Aolai for 117 years with the mantra of "patience"?

Did I get possessed after going to Flower Fruit Mountain?

Inside the bamboo hut, a dozen or so people looked at each other in bewilderment. Several of them had already informed Blood Hand and Wind and Rain Tower that today was a must-win situation, but this turn of events was completely unexpected.

For a moment, they were all at a loss.

Chu Huihui seemed lost in thought, because Chu Zhengshan had left her a message via telepathy before leaving, instructing her on how to handle the situation that evening.

"So, shall we fight?" Chu Huihui stood up and asked the people who were still in a daze.

There was no response, and Chu Huihui didn't give any feedback either. After a moment of surprise, she nodded and said "okay," and then stepped out the door.

"Huihui..." Someone raised their hand to stop her, but then they remembered that Chu Zhengshan and Chu Zhiyin were already with Xu Ping'an, so they couldn't bring themselves to say anything to stop her.

"We'll fight!" Chu Huihui took one last look at everyone, resolutely walked out of the bamboo gate, and raised her hand to send out a signal talisman.

The signal talisman soared into the sky, its sharp whistling sound shattering the silence of the night. The people inside the bamboo house were jolted awake and rushed out of their houses.

The signal talisman had already exploded, and a white-haired ape with scarlet limbs appeared in the sky above the main peak. It pounded its chest with its hands, roared into the sky, and disappeared into the air after three loud roars. It was the divine beast symbolizing war - Hua Yan!

A saying goes in Aolai: "When the splendor of the sky is overwhelming, we will fight to the death."

The roar of the white-haired ape resounded thousands of meters in the sky, echoing for dozens of miles. Thousands of people on the main mountain of the Chu clan heard it. Amidst the shock, the expressions of the two sides facing off on Rotten Peach Peak were quite different.

The more than forty young men who returned from Haixing were overjoyed. They all gave a thumbs-up to the heroes of the Chu family and clamored to stay and help the Chu family guard the mountain.

The ordinary people of Wujialing were already reluctant to leave, and suddenly fifty or sixty of them stood up. Without even asking Kong Fande's opinion, they turned around and ran back to Lantao Peak.

Those left behind were all women, children, and the elderly. The monks from the Kong family tried their best to appease them, shouting loudly, "Don't go back and drag us down!" Only then did the group manage to stay together.

The four cultivators who were besieging the Chu family were all a bit bewildered at this moment.

After talking about surrendering for several days, it turned out to be a scam?

The heads of the three organizations, Blood Hand, Ghost Sail, and Wind and Rain Tower, were flashing with white light, and more than a dozen signal talismans converged upon them.

Among them were Chu family cultivators who had secretly contacted him and explained the situation—reporting that Chu Zhengshan was acting as if possessed, ignoring the opinions of others and insisting on protecting Wujia Ridge.

There were also four hidden sentries alerting the authorities—takers appeared in the east, west, and north. At this time, most of the cultivators gathered at the south gate archway, leaving only about fifty hidden sentries in the remaining areas. The test-takers easily made it to the main mountain of the Chu clan.

The group finally realized: they had been tricked by Chu Zhengshan!

The old man was running around not to beg for mercy, but to find reinforcements!

As the group gritted their teeth, an Ironwood Eagle flew in from the direction of the main peak. Fluorite shone on the Ironwood Eagle, and standing on it was a vigorous old man wearing a battle robe, who was none other than Chu Zhengshan!

The old elder clasped his hands in a fist salute towards the south gate archway and said loudly, "Many thanks to Steward Zhang, Elder Kong, and all my friends for coming to help!"

Dozens of teenagers also summoned paper kites and soared into the air, shouting at Chu Zhengshan, "Well done, Chu family! We are willing to help the Chu family guard the mountain!"

Before he finished speaking, a cold light flashed in the night, and the head of the paper kite of the leading boy suddenly fell off. The boy cried out in surprise and fell to the ground with the paper kite with a "bang". Fortunately, the height he flew was only five or six zhang, and he only suffered a minor flesh injury.

"Kids, don't get involved. Your parents are waiting for you to come home for dinner," the Foundation Establishment cultivator from Bloodhand said sinisterly, as he brandished his sword in a show of force.

The hawk's head is the key to the aerial formation. Although it is made of spirit bamboo, it is also wrapped with magic iron and refined sand, and is equipped with a sturdy magic array, making it stronger than gold and iron.

This Foundation Establishment cultivator severed the hawk's head with a single sword strike from afar; if it had been slightly off-center, it could probably have cut the paper hawk and the person in one swift motion.

Immediately, the group of young people who had returned from Haixing fell silent, and those still in the air quickly landed on the ground.

Perhaps it was only then that they realized what kind of people they were facing today—especially Blood Hand and Ghost Sail. The infamous reputations of these two families were accompanied by countless bloody stories. Once reminded, these young people were no longer as frivolous and unrestrained as before, and immediately became restrained.

Chu Zhengshan bowed again towards the hillside, saying, "I am deeply grateful that you all took the women and children away. My family will protect my ridge, so please rest assured!"

How can I not feel at ease?

There are four Foundation Establishment cultivators standing here, and over sixty Qi Refining cultivators in the late stage. Who knows how many more are hidden behind them? Just based on the strength and resources of these four families, the entire Sushanfang district combined wouldn't be enough to defeat them.

However, at this point, all they could do was clasp their hands in response. The younger generation dared not speak, and the members of the Kong family remained even more silent. Only the old steward stepped forward and said a few words.

Women and children from Wujialing lined up and flew out, a few people per paper kite. After they all got on, they took off into the air. The young people were in the middle, with the Kong family protecting them in four circles, and the Heavenly Court officials and clerks escorting them from the front and back, and they headed towards Sushanfang.

After all the women and children had left, it was past midnight and the night was deep. Dozens of magic lamps lit up on the main mountain of the Chu clan, and the Rotten Peach Peak lit up with a pale yellow light, indicating that the protective magic array had been activated.

News kept coming from all directions that at least a dozen people had broken through the barrier in that short time. This was the number of people who had forced their way in by flying vehicles; there was no guarantee that some had not sneaked in through the mountains and forests.

According to reports, most of those who managed to pass through were old cultivators in the late stage of Qi Refining. It was obvious that these people were the friends Chu Zhengshan had invited to help him.

"That old bastard has quite the connections!" Bao Xingqian, sweat beading on his forehead, stared in the direction of Rotten Peach Peak and said hatefully, "While we're all here, let's rush up and chop Xu Ping'an down, shall we?"

With the Three Foundation Establishments present, he asked a fair-skinned young man beside him—Xu Xiaolin of Xingyue.