Chapter 145: Sir, the weather is cold; let me add a layer of clothing for you

[You share the truth of the world with Wu Yingxue]

[Wu Yingxue falls into a state of immense shock]

[You initially thought the young girl would be disheartened for a long time because of this, but she proves to be far more resilient than you imagined]

[She quickly accepts the cruel reality and follows your instructions to seek out more clues]

[With a clear objective, the girl's search for clues goes very smoothly]

[From various parts of Great Qian and even from within the Hundred Thousand Mountains, you obtain various disparate clues, leading you to the conclusion that the world outside truly exists]

[Great Qian is not a pure land of sanctuary, but a feeding ground for demons]

[Even the Yangyuan Technique, the most widely circulated Cultivation Technique, is likely the handiwork of demons, intended only to make the human body more 'nutritious']

"Sir."

"What is it, Yingxue?"

"What should we do next? Are we really going to force our way through the Hundred Thousand Mountains?"

"We have no choice; there is no second path."

For so many years…

The reason the people of Great Qian never discovered the truth…

Was not only because the Great Qian Imperial Court kept it strictly blockaded, but more importantly, the terrifying danger of the Hundred Thousand Mountains cut off any possibility for anyone to leave.

Death after death had completely sealed away people's curiosity.

But now.

The Qiuhuo Army has no other way out.

If they maintained the original plan and continued attacking Great Qian, the end result would be becoming high-grade ingredients, devoured completely by the long-waiting demons.

Even if they managed to survive by luck, they and their descendants would live in the fear of demons for generations, repeating bloody tragedies over and over again.

Unless they were like the Emperor of Da Qian.

Willingly loyal to the Azure Dragon or other powerful demons.

Could that kind of path, that kind of way of living, truly be considered living?

Xu Xi felt that, for the most part, it could not.

…

[Your plan undergoes a change]

[Your primary objective is no longer to seize other provinces or to overthrow the rule of Great Qian]

[You know that doing so is meaningless; you would never see the day of success because the true enemy is not Great Qian, but the demons within the Hundred Thousand Mountains]

[This is a false world]

[This is a world of lies]

[Scraping by is meaningless; the cruelty of the demons dictates that it is difficult for people to survive, and even if people were willing to surrender, the demons would not accept it]

[You do not wish to see such a sight—watching familiar people die in the mouths of demons]

[You are determined to change everything]

[You decide to lead the Qiuhuo Army to truly break out of the enclosure, to leave the prison that is Great Qian, and head beyond the Hundred Thousand Mountains]

[The young girl is not optimistic about this; she feels the Hundred Thousand Mountains are too perilous, with endless demons inside, making it nearly impossible to walk out]

[She complains to you, once again calling you a Big Fool]

[You smile and continue to bury yourself in research on what to do and how to do it to allow the people of the Qiuhuo Army to reach the lands beyond the mountains]

…

[You send people to continuously scout the Hundred Thousand Mountains, hoping to gain insight into the patterns of the demons]

[You send people to continuously observe the Imperial Capital of Great Qian, paying close attention to the movements of the Emperor of Da Qian]

[You slow down the offensive of the Qiuhuo Army]

[The goal of the Qiuhuo Army is no longer the Great Qian Dynasty; continuing the battle is meaningless and would only result in the senseless loss of soldiers and supplies]

[If not for the fear of the demons noticing, you would even intend to stop the offensive entirely; but for now, you can only continue to play along with the act, minimizing losses while building up strength for a future explosion]

[You practice your boxing day and night without stopping; your fists become slower day by day, and the wind they kick up becomes smaller day by day, moving toward a profound and mysterious state]

[You persist in circulating your Internal World; amidst the roaring eruption of Qi and blood, your Internal World becomes increasingly perfect and flawless, as if a true world were providing the power of heaven and earth]

[You polish yourself over a long period…]

[You work hard and diligently…]

How can one walk out of the Hundred Thousand Mountains?

There are no shortcuts.

Secret passages are even more non-existent.

The Hundred Thousand Mountains are not a single peak, but an endless succession of overlapping high mountains, forming a towering spectacle that isolates heaven and earth.

With such exaggerated terrain, one can only tread across it step by step, traversing those nearly infinite peaks.

Xu Xi had no other choice.

He could only continuously strengthen himself, hoping to Breakthrough to the Human Immortal Realm soon, to lead the people of the Qiuhuo Army with greater strength to break through the overwhelming demons of the Hundred Thousand Mountains.

His daily routine, which was already admirable, gradually became something that would shock any ordinary person who saw it.

Either practicing boxing, or handling the affairs of the Qiuhuo Army.

Or summarizing and organizing intelligence on the Hundred Thousand Mountains.

Preparing for the future Breakthrough.

"It's not enough; just this is far from enough. I don't have much time left."

"Human Immortal Realm… sigh."

Xu Xi never spoke of exhaustion, but the haggardness on his face was something that even his Xiantian Third Realm cultivation could not entirely erase.

It wasn't physical exhaustion, but mental urgency.

He was worried.

Worried that the demons in the Hundred Thousand Mountains would be unable to resist their bloodthirsty cravings and suddenly launch an attack on the Qiuhuo Army.

Even though Xu Xi knew he was currently disguising things well and hadn't let anyone notice anything wrong.

"Let's stop here for tonight."

Half a year later.

Inside the room.

The silence of the late night was broken by the silver glow of the moonlight.

Xu Xi lightly set down his brush, looked at the planning documents covering the paper, and sighed softly.

"The intelligence on the Hundred Thousand Mountains is still too sparse. I hope I can summarize more useful patterns later and choose to Breakthrough at the most appropriate time."

"As for strength…"

"The number of Xiantian Martial Artists in the Qiuhuo Army still needs to be higher."

"Individual power is ultimately limited; even if I successfully promote to Human Immortal, I cannot protect everyone."

"What allows people to survive is always the people themselves."

A light breeze blew past.

Bringing a chill to the tip of his nose.

Xu Xi shook his head and stopped overthinking. He had stayed up for a long time consecutively; it was time to rest.

Without a soft bed or comfortable bedding, Xu Xi lay down where he was, falling asleep on the floor of the room where he handled administrative affairs.

The moonlight was like water, and the starlight was lonely.

Without the rustling sound of Xu Xi's brush writing.

The room appeared even darker.

It wasn't until half an hour later that a new sound rang out. A hurried young girl entered the room, holding a robe in her hands.

"Sir, the weather is cold; I've come to add a layer of clothing for you."

Time always flies by.

Spring and summer gave way to autumn and winter, and the bitterly cold snowy days arrived once more.

Wu Yingxue, holding a thick fur coat, walked from the dim corridor, but after pushing the door open, she only saw Xu Xi's sleeping figure.

"Sir?"

Is he asleep?

The girl thought to herself, subconsciously lightening her footsteps.

She tiptoed, and under the faint candlelight in the corner of the room, she paced to Xu Xi's side and gently placed the fur coat over him.

Although with the Realm of a Xiantian Martial Artist, he likely didn't need it for warmth.

But the girl felt…

Sir has been so tired lately.

Adding an extra layer of clothing could never be wrong.