Chapter 888 - 886: Reaching the Summit
"Yes, yes, yes, Mengting is the best, so shall we continue?" Chen Tianlong deliberately said.
Unexpectedly, Wu Mengting stood up immediately and said coldly, "Continue then, let’s see who gets to the top first. Whoever loses is a puppy."
Chen Tianlong chuckled bitterly, knowing he would definitely be the puppy because Wu Mengting couldn’t lose, and he dared not win.
Indeed, in the following time, Wu Mengting pushed herself to the limit. To be fair, this girl was incredible, climbing the mountain as if she were walking on flat ground, her stamina was impressive.
No wonder every time they did ’that’, it wasn’t over until he was exhausted; turns out this girl had abundant stamina.
"Mengting, slow down a bit, don’t fall," Chen Tianlong deliberately said, always following behind Wu Mengting, keeping a distance of no more than five meters.
Wu Mengting, being a bit stubborn, used all her strength to climb to win against Chen Tianlong. Watching her, Chen Tianlong felt a pang of heartache.
But the most frustrated person was Shi Xiaohong.
Initially, when he saw Chen Tianlong glance back, he hid, but in just a moment, he realized they were gone.
Damn, did they discover us? Otherwise, why did they suddenly run so fast?
Shaking his head, Shi Xiaohong signaled everyone to move forward, Lao Jiu and Lao Shi then poked their heads out and started walking uphill.
There were two paths up the mountain, a small path and a larger one. To avoid being discovered by Chen Tianlong, Shi Xiaohong chose the smaller path; after all, both led to the summit.
If his guess was correct, Chen Tianlong must be heading to the Ancient Wu Family’s relics.
He had researched this relic, it was created by the Celestial Pill Sect over ten years ago, but they hadn’t found the Jade Pendant back then, which was frustrating. Now, unexpectedly, Chen Tianlong brought Wu Mengting here. According to Hao Shuai, Wu Mengting had the Sponge Physique, so if they also possessed the Jade Pendant, it would be a great advantage.
Clearly, Chen Tianlong and the others would reach the summit first.
"Wow, Chen Tianlong, this place is so grand and beautiful," Wu Mengting looked at the scenery before her, as if entering a palace, and from the mountainside, gazed into the distance with a view that gave a sense of scaling the heights and seeing all the mountains beneath.
"Yes, such beautiful scenery, but it’s a pity about the ruins. Just imagine how prosperous this place once was," said Chen Tianlong as he looked at the already destroyed buildings.
"Hmm, this place must have been like a palace before, very beautiful and majestic," Wu Mengting had no memory of this place. At such a young age of three or four when she was sent here, her memories were blurry, even if they existed, she had forgotten them.
After expressing their emotions for a while, the two headed towards the summit that resembled a palace.
Looking at the towering structures flanked by vines on both sides, giving a touch of a primeval forest feel. Occasionally, a small snake would peek out and Wu Mengting would cling onto Chen Tianlong in fright.
"Haha, it’s just a little snake, no need to be scared," Chen Tianlong casually gave her a princess lift, holding her in his arms, while Wu Mengting gently embraced Chen Tianlong’s neck.
This scene was somewhat akin to those in TV dramas where a heroic swordsman accompanies a beautiful woman.
Just missing a sword...
Along the way, they often saw ruined stone pavilions and some already damaged unrecognizable buildings, all of which showed the former glory of this place!
This was a crucial site for an ancient sect, yet the ancient sects have vanished, turning this place into ruins. This is actually a small part of the cultivation world, devastated by a disaster during a past war, making it unrecognizable. Meanwhile, new factions had long since relocated.
Of course, Chen Tianlong was not the slightest bit relaxed; although it appeared quiet here, with no birds or beasts, Chen Tianlong always remembered what Professor Wang Tian had said — this was once a gathering place for experts!
"Is this truly an ancient sect?" Wu Mengting pondered, feeling sad upon seeing the dilapidated condition of the road.
"It should be,"
Chen Tianlong nodded and said, "Otherwise, why are there so many ruins?"
"Alright, to find the exact location on this map, we must reach the peak. Only by standing on the summit can we overlook the entire mountain’s landscape!" Chen Tianlong said, looking at the map in his hand.
This map was procured by Lin Kaifeng with someone’s help; after all, this was Ice City, where Lin Kaifeng had significant influence. Getting a map of the Southern District Mountain Range was not difficult.
"Hmm..." Wu Mengting nodded.
Wu Mengting’s stamina was indeed good; the two hardly took any breaks and continued forward, starting in the morning and now approaching noon, nearly reaching the summit.
Of course, Chen Tianlong had intentionally slowed down, considering a girl’s pace; otherwise, he would ascend much faster alone.
When they stood atop the mountain, it was afternoon, looking ahead at the grand walls and dilapidated palaces. Chen Tianlong and Wu Mengting’s hearts were filled with emotions!
Back then, there might have been a fierce battle here, leading to this destruction, with the originally magnificent structures now in ruins...
Chen Tianlong sighed, wondering what immense and terrifying force could have annihilated an ancient sect? Ancient sects should be the strongest martial arts forces of the time, shouldn’t they?
Even among the ancient levels, there’s a hierarchy, but overall, the disparity shouldn’t be particularly large. A sect that’s been established for centuries must be quite large.
But to be wiped out so suddenly, it’s always inexplicable!
Moreover, the most terrifying thing was that even such a powerful Fire Lion didn’t know the ins and outs of the event! Did he really not know or simply refuse to disclose?
Thinking of this, Chen Tianlong slightly furrowed his brow; even the one who wiped out this ancient sect, no matter how formidable, couldn’t have pursued a Jade Pendant for so many years.
"This place... from the surface alone, it shows how glorious it once was, to be reduced to ashes is unexpected." Wu Mengting commented.
"Professor Wang Tian mentioned before that the rise and fall of sects is a common occurrence in the world, so there’s nothing too lamentable," Chen Tianlong consoled.
Wu Mengting nodded, and the two entered the sect’s gate, where they saw all sorts of ruins — houses, residences, palaces, all lying in destruction and disorder. It didn’t quite seem like damage from neglect over time, since the annihilation of the sect was only a decade or so ago.
This level of dilapidation couldn’t have happened without neglect for a century.