Chapter 558: Holy Mountain

After three days of rest, Long Ao managed to suppress his injuries.

It was all thanks to the Ninth Transformation Reincarnation Technique.

“Master, are you all right now?”

Inside the inn, Long Heng asked eagerly the moment he saw his master appear.

Waving his hand, Long Ao smiled and said, “My injuries are no longer a major issue.”

Just then, Long Ao noticed Long Heng’s expression was a little off. Curious, he asked, “Long Heng, what’s wrong?”

“Master, three days ago, your battle with Wang Hao sent the entire Cloud Island into an uproar. Everyone is talking about you.”

Long Ao had already guessed as much.

But Long Ao knew things weren’t that simple; otherwise, Long Heng wouldn’t look so worried.

“Master, the Holy Mountain already knows about you.”

“The Holy Mountain? What’s that?”

This was the first time Long Ao had heard the name “Holy Mountain” since arriving on Cloud Island. His intuition told him it was no ordinary power. ‘Does the Holy Mountain rank above the three great families?’

As expected.

“Master, I’m sure you’ve guessed it. That’s right, the Holy Mountain is the true hegemon of Cloud Island, ranked above the three great families. Legend says that many Void Saint Martial Artists reside within it, which is how it got its name.”

‘So that’s how it is,’ Long Ao thought. ‘But even so, what does that have to do with me?’

Seeing his master’s indifferent expression, clearly not taking the Holy Mountain seriously, Long Heng grew even more worried. “Master,” he said, “we should try to keep a low profile for a while. The news that you’re from Kyushu has already spread throughout Cloud Island, and the Holy Mountain will instinctively be hostile toward you.”

“Bullshit.”

Long Ao retorted, clearly displeased. “They’re sticking their noses where they don’t belong. Whether I’m from Kyushu or not is none of the Holy Mountain’s damn business. Besides, who decided Cloud Island belongs to them in the first place?”

Hearing his master’s bold words, Long Heng jumped in alarm and immediately whispered, “Master, the walls have ears! Be careful not to be overheard. If the Holy Mountain finds out, we’ll be in huge trouble.”

Seeing Long Heng’s extreme caution, Long Ao was left speechless.

Long Heng wasn’t mocking Long Ao.

In Long Heng’s eyes, although his master was powerful—even able to fight Wang Hao to a draw—he was still too young. ‘Everyone is reckless in their youth,’ he thought.

‘Besides,’ Long Heng believed, ‘Master has only just arrived on Cloud Island; he doesn’t understand the situation here. If he knew how terrifying the Holy Mountain’s power is, he wouldn’t be acting this way.’

With just a glance, Long Ao knew what Long Heng was thinking.

“Tell me about this Holy Mountain.”

Long Ao didn’t voice his thoughts. He knew that no matter how low a profile he kept, if the Holy Mountain wanted to cause trouble, it would find a way, regardless.

‘In that case, why should I fear the Holy Mountain?’

“Master, Cloud Island is dominated by three great families, but above them all is the hegemon, the Holy Mountain. It is rumored that a Celestial Saint resides there, but no one knows if that’s true.”

The Eighth Realm of Void Saint is, in order of ascending power, divided into the Semi-Saint Realm, Saint Realm, Earth Saint Realm, Celestial Saint Realm, Saint King Realm, Saint Emperor Realm, Saint Venerable Realm, and Saint Emperor Realm.

‘A Celestial Saint is already an incredibly powerful being,’ Long Ao thought. ‘If it’s really as Long Heng says, and there’s a Celestial Saint presiding over the Holy Mountain, then things are going to be very troublesome.’

He knew very well that, let alone a Celestial Saint, he would be no match for the experts in the Holy Mountain even if there were only Saints or Earth Saints there.

Because of this, Long Ao re-evaluated the power of the countless islands in the Outer Sea.

‘If a minor place like Cloud Island is already this powerful, I can only imagine how terrifying the collective strength of all the countless islands in the Outer Sea would be,’ he mused. ‘Kyushu can’t even compare. They’re not on the same level at all.’

“Long Heng, are you trying to tell me that the Holy Mountain has likely already taken notice of me?”

“Exactly, Master. You may not be aware, but for many years, the Holy Mountain has been suppressing the three great families, especially the Wang Family. Since you come from Kyushu, the Holy Mountain will naturally be opposed to you.”

‘Suppressing the Wang Family?’

Long Ao couldn’t wrap his head around this. ‘If the Holy Mountain is filled with powerful experts, why don’t they know that Wang Hao is a Reincarnation Martial Artist?’

‘Even if Wang Hao hid it so well that the Holy Mountain never found out he was a Reincarnation Martial Artist, he’s still incredibly high-profile and exceptionally talented. Would the Holy Mountain truly ignore such a potential threat?’

‘Something doesn’t add up.’

Long Ao didn’t voice these doubts to Long Heng.

He knew that if he couldn’t figure it out, Long Heng certainly wouldn’t be able to, even though he was a native of Cloud Island.

“I won’t go looking for trouble with the Holy Mountain, so they’d better not come looking for trouble with me.”

Long Heng didn’t grasp the full meaning behind his master’s words and simply asked, “Master, what should we do next?”

“Alchemy.”

“Alchemy?”

“That’s right, Long Heng. I won’t be staying on Cloud Island for long, as I still have many things to take care of in Kyushu. Therefore, I plan to teach you everything I know about the Alchemy Dao as quickly as possible. How far you go with it will be up to you. However, with your comprehension and talent, you should at least be able to become an Emperor Level Alchemist.”

An Emperor Level Alchemist—a realm countless Alchemists dreamed of reaching.

But at this moment, Long Heng felt no happiness at all.

“Master, when are you planning to leave?”

“I don’t know. At the very least, I have to wait until my injuries are fully healed. In the meantime, you focus on your Alchemy. If there’s anything you don’t understand, just ask.”

“Master, will you take me with you when you leave?”

“I don’t know,” Long Ao said, and he truly didn’t. This was the Outer Sea, a vast distance from Kyushu. Forget taking Long Heng with him; he wasn’t even fully confident he could make it back to Kyushu safely on his own.

“Long Heng, even if you can’t leave with me this time, you must continue to cultivate diligently, especially in the Alchemy Dao. Your master needs you. I will definitely come back for you in the future.”

Although he was reluctant to see his master go, Long Heng knew he had his own burdens to bear. He didn’t press the issue and instead asked, “Master, should we continue staying here, or return to the family estate?”

“We’ll go back to the Long Family.”

The Alchemy Dao required tranquility above all else. All sorts of people came and went from the inn. If they were unlucky enough to run into an expert, it could lead to major trouble.

Long Heng nodded without objection. The two immediately got up and headed for the family estate, taking great care as they went. After all, Long Ao was now a celebrity on Cloud Island, and many eyes were surely on him. Long Heng, for his part, was already famous.