The Portal of Wonderland

The bursting white flame started spreading across Shi Mu’s left arm, burning his green robe away into ashes and exposing his upper torso.

His body glowed a faint light as if there was a plate of metallic luster, giving off the impression that his skin was made out of steel. His once-bulging muscles had now become much more compact and tight, giving the appearance of a metal-like endurance while simultaneously making him look a lot beefier and taller.

Those endowed with acute sensitivity would have easily sensed the undercurrent of an unrelenting power. All it needed was proper guidance to unleash that power like an eruption of a volcano.

Shi Mu’s left arm had turned completely scorched-black as white flames blazed through its surface until new scarlet glyphs started forming through the flames like streams of flowing, searing lava.

Shi Mu raised his left arm and a surge of terrible heat—even more potent than the lava around him—radiated from it. Even the air around the arm was starting to boil as new ripples formed.

It was then when he opened his eyes slowly, and as he watched his ablaze left arm, Shi Mu mumbled some incantations under his breath. In response, arcs of red light escaped from the lava lake below him before melting into his left arm.

As the flames on his hand blazed more intensely and the heat it emanated increased, his hand glowed proportionately brighter.

A look of solemnity crossed Shi Mu’s face.

Throughout his two years of austere cultivation, he had finally been able to use the integrated White Ape Blood Essence to completely refine the sealed Bone Worm’s fire energy. Using that power, he reached the maximum limit of the Nine Revolutions Mysterious Art’s first level. Just one small push and he would reach consummation.

The flame on his left arm suddenly flickered before it ceased to absorb the fire energy perforating the surroundings. Its glow dimmed rapidly as the heat it had been radiating a few moments ago subsided.

Shi Mu sighed quietly as he watched the crimson glyphs on his arm disappearing together with the flames as the complexion of his arm slowly reverted to its original color.

He had been stuck at this plateau for a long time. There was always something missing at the very end preventing him from achieving perfect completion of the first level.

In fact, it felt like his arm was already saturated with fire energy to the point that it absolutely could not take in any more.

Shi Mu stood, retrieving a green robe from his storage ring and putting it on. His foot tapped against the ground before he soared into the air and across the lake, landing on a passage before the cave.

Boom!

Immediately, the large black monolith he had been on shuddered as the entire cave quaked together. The lava in the pool beneath rocked and thrashed uncontrollably onto the walls, creating a flurry of a racket.

Seeing that, Shi Mu’s dismal expression relaxed a little as a realization dawned on him.

Perhaps due to the integrated White Ape Blood Essence, his progress in training as per Book of the Flaming Red Ape had improved so exponentially that he was getting close to Mid-rank Earth Stage. He may have reached the absolute limit of the Art of Accumulating Spirit Power, but he still trained earnestly with the Moon-Swallowing Art every full moon night, which improved his magical powers to a whole new level of purity.

However, he made the most headway in the Art of the Almighty Ape Rebirth.

With the aid of the Heaven-rank Demon Ape Blood Essence from the Azure Ape King, Shi Mu had broken through two ranks in the Art of the Almighty Ape Rebirth, allowing him to achieve the True Completion stage out of the Ninth Level. As a result, his brawn had improved by several folds, which indirectly helped lessen the burden of his dense left arm.

Now he could carve a deep mark on a spirit tool with his bare hand; he could shake a mountain or rock a riverbed with just a punch or a kick. Another case in point was how, just by lightly leaping forward, he had managed to cause the entire cave to quake while the gargantuan monolith he was sitting on had almost tumbled.

His physical body had become so devastatingly strong that a low-rank spirit tool like the Golden Pound Blade couldn’t possibly make a dent on his skin even if it was imbued with Real Qi.

Combined with his first level of Nine Revolutions Mysterious Art—which was unconsummated but nonetheless near completion—Shi Mu wouldn’t even need any special technique or spirit tool to face any enemy or demon beasts—he could even overwhelm a Heaven-rank demon beast with just his physical prowess.

As Shi Mu was musing about his current progress, he had unknowingly exited the underground cave. He looked up at the sky and summoned his Green-Winged Flying Carriage before flying a distance toward the horizon.

A few moments later, the same Green-Winged Flying Carriage was parked outside the entrance of a cave.

Shi Mu walked into one of the chambers of the cave and sat cross-legged on a stone bed, his hands folded together close to his abdomen, his mind calmed and focused as he started to meditate on the discourse of the first level of the Nine Revolutions Mysterious Art.

Why was it that his left arm cannot seem to absorb Absolute Yang energy, hindering his progress in practicing the Nine Revolutions Mysterious Art? After all, every necessary criterion—the amount of blood essence from a heavenly beast like the white ape integrated into his body, the amount of Absolute Yang fire energy absorbed, and the condition of his left arm—had been fulfilled.

There was no reason why he continuously failed to achieve perfect completion.

Just as Shi Mu was still racking his brain, Cai’s voice suddenly came blaring loudly, “Shi Tou, a representative from the Flame Counsel requested to see you. I know you’re busy with your cultivation, which is why I refused his request to come in.”

“Good,” Shi Mu replied.

“Well, I’m sending him away then,” Cai said.

Shi Mu thought for a while and said, “No, let him in. Tell him to wait for a while.”

When Shi Mu walked out of his chamber, he found himself in the audience of an elderly bearded man in a brown robe. Shi Mu stared at him, frowning a little though he remained quiet.

From the looks of the embroidery pattern on the man’s chest and sleeves, he did seem to look like a representative from the Flame Counsel—one of the most prominent forces governing the Twenty-two Isles of West End. Indeed, the island that Shi Mu currently inhabited belonged to one of the few isles under the Flame Counsel.

For a sect touted to be the largest among the isles, the Flame Counsel only had about a hundred-odd disciples with them. Compared to the famous sects in the Dongzhou and Western He continent, they were small fries. Still, on these isolated islands, they were considered quite eminent among the locals.

The volcanic islands boasted an abundance of fire-attribute crystals and raw materials. Indeed, it was through the business of selling and trading rarities like Soaring Flame Crystals that the Flame Counsel managed to become such a prominent force.

Using both his devastating powers and a hefty sum of spirit stones, Shi Mu managed to achieve a mutual agreement giving him ownership of that single volcano from before, as well as the additional requirement that no one from the Flame Counsel should disrupt him as long as he was staying there.

The elderly man bowed respectfully as soon as he saw Shi Mu. “Master Shi, long time no see. I hope you’re well.”

“If there’s any reason for your being here, sir, please be forthcoming with it. This lowly one had a deal with your respected president. I’m sure you know the details.”

“Yes, this lowly one understands. The reason for this visit, however, was that someone had requested you to see him,” the elderly man answered.

“Who would that ‘someone’ be, sir?”

“He said he is one of your old friends, and said that you are dying to see him.”

“How pretentious. Not interested,” Shi Mu’s eyebrows furrowed as he replied instantly.

The old man hesitated upon hearing this, and after being quiet for a while, he started again, “That man… He, er, he said he had news you would most desire to know, which is why you would be excited to see him. Oh, and he mentioned something about ‘Heaven Ascension Peak’, I believe.”

Shi Mu’s heart skipped a beat. After thinking for a while, he replied, “Take me to him.”

Fifteen minutes later…

With the brown-robed representative’s guidance, Shi Mu reached a neighboring island. Unlike the one where Shi Mu was staying, this island was covered with lush greenery and beautiful buildings.

He followed the man through a small path in the woods and then into a passage made from snipping away shrubs on the ground. Soon, he and the elderly man reached a quiet court.

Once they had gotten there, the representative turned to Shi Mu, giving him a respectful salutation, and left.

“Cai, stay outside. If there’s anything fishy going on, alert me at once,” Shi Mu said to the parrot.

After seeing Cai fly into the distance, Shi Mu pushed open the wooden gate and entered the court. It was not a very large area—beautiful meadows filled with beautiful flowers adorned a meandering path leading toward a wooden multi-story building.

As Shi Mu trudged along the path, he released his spirit sense and scanned his surroundings cautiously. Finally, he found himself standing before the building.

He stood still for a while before finally extending his hand and pushing the vermillion red door. With a creak, the door opened and he entered.

Inside the room was an elderly man in a green robe—eyes shut and white hair covering his scalp—sitting behind a table opposite the door.

“Alas, you’re here.” the instant Shi Mu had entered the door, the elderly man’s eyes bolted open as a half-smile hung on his lips.

“Sir has referred to yourself as my old friend, yet this lowly one recognizes you not. What is the impetus of your invitation, sir?” Shi Mu asked candidly.

Hearing his words, the elderly man in green smiled even wider despite not answering Shi Mu.

Suddenly, an ominous feeling of danger snuck into Shi Mu’s mind, prompting him to immediately be on his guard. He was just about to say something more when a strange thing happened!

The green-robed man bolted up suddenly, his eyes flashing with glints of green while his wrinkled arm extended toward Shi Mu at an even speed as if he was about to slam some sort of force downwards.

That arm looked not unlike an average person’s arm, yet at the moment it was about to cup over Shi Mu, the surface of the hand had turned green before enlarging more than tenfold!

The next second, a ten yard-wide green palm mirage flew out of his hand, kicking up a thick shroud of dust as it aimed at Shi Mu. The attack had an aura of Heaven-rank prowess.

Shocked, Shi Mu leaped backward with a tap of his foot but soon discovered that this green mirage was too fast for him to dodge.

A thought flashed into his mind. He stilled his body, eyes blazing with golden lights, and a fire-like glow radiated from his body before the winged Crimson Ape appeared instantly.

Shi Mu lifted his arm and the Crimson Ape Energy Construct did the same, raising its arms blazing with fiery-red flames to hold off the green palm.

Boom!

The Crimson Ape Energy Construct bared its teeth as the flames on its arms roared. It seemed to shake under the pressure, its body shrinking at a speed visible to the naked eye.

The force of the green palm mirage seemed to have subsided a little, though it continued its downward motion.

Shi Mu’s face was red, his body bending as his feet dug deep into the ground. Cracks were starting to form around his legs like cobwebs to all sides before spreading to the walls surrounding them.

The elderly man seemed to be surprised that Shi Mu could actually hold himself against his attack. He smiled even harder, and the hand he had extended started to glow more before he pushed it downward once again.

The gigantic green palm mirage became even more blinding as the pressure from it spiked.