Liu Mei felt a mix of amusement and disbelief upon hearing Mu Jinyu's words.
What was her status again? Carrying the General's Star, whenever she stepped outside, leaders would always respectfully attend to her, yet Mu Jinyu treated her as if she were a nanny.
However, she also understood Mu Jinyu's prestigious position within Xiang Mantang, so despite finding it funny and inevitable, she wasn't really bothered by it.
Liu Mei hesitated for a moment before saying, "Alright, but I must warn you that the food I cook may not be very tasty and might not suit your taste. Perhaps, I should find a professional chef instead?"
It wasn't that she was too proud to serve Mu Jinyu, but she genuinely feared that her cooking might make Mu Jinyu feel sick.
Mu Jinyu's eyebrows twitched involuntarily upon hearing her words, and he quickly asked, "How bad… can it be?"
Liu Mei replied somewhat sheepishly, "It might be hard for a normal person to swallow, but if one were starving for several days, it would still seem delicious."
Mu Jinyu fell silent for a while, then sighed lightly and spoke, "Then trouble Sister Liu to find someone with decent cooking skills."
With a secret chuckle, Liu Mei nodded and replied, "Yes, of course."
After finishing, she took out her mobile phone and sent a text message.
Someone would then make the arrangements for her.
...
Xiang Mantang bid farewell to Mu Jinyu and then, under the arrangements of his subordinates, boarded a plane bound for Kunlun.
Sitting in first class, Xiang Mantang asked the stark young man next to him, "Are you sure Chen Wudao is coming out?"
"Yes," the stern young man replied, "With his strength, after all the Chen Family People died, he must have sensed something. However, since Kunlun Ruins is vast and there are restrictions at the entrance, it will take him at least five hours to get out, which is enough time for us to ambush him at the exit!"
Xiang Mantang nodded slightly, "Good, a family should embark on their final journey together to prevent any crazed harm to society once they get out!"
After speaking, he closed his eyes and began to cultivate.
Xiang Mantang didn't have the same natural talent as Mu Jinyu, so he had to continuously squeeze time for cultivation, never allowing himself to falter, gradually nearing Mu Jinyu's level of cultivation over time.
The subordinates who had booked the entire first class knew that Xiang Mantang wasn't just resting his eyes but was adjusting his state in preparation for the upcoming battle through continuous cultivation.
Watching Xiang Mantang, they looked at him with respect, then likewise stopped worrying about what was to come and started to cultivate themselves.
...
More than two hours later.
The plane carrying Xiang Mantang and his entourage finally landed at the airport.
Several military vehicles roared into the airport and came to a stop at the landing spot before the plane had even touched down on the runway.
The plane finally stopped.
Then, Xiang Mantang, who was sitting in first class, slowly opened his eyes with a flash of sharpness, got up, and disembarked from the plane.
Surrounded by an entourage, Xiang Mantang walked down the gangway, under the awe-filled glances of the other passengers, and headed towards the military vehicles.
The drivers of the military vehicles had already stepped out and opened the doors, waiting respectfully. After ushering Xiang Mantang and his people into the vehicles, they shut the doors, returned to their seats, started the engines, and with a roar, drove off, leaving no trace!
The fellow passengers watched them leave until they could no longer see them, and only then did their heartbeats start to slow.
...
After more than an hour had gone by.
Xiang Mantang finally arrived at the entrance to the Valley of Death in Kunlun Mountain.
Kunlun Mountain's Valley of Death, also known as the Gate of Death, is said to be scattered everywhere with wolf fur, bear skeletons, hunter's steel guns, and desolate graves—every sign sending a chilling breath of death to the world.
Few dared to venture into this haunted place.
Yet, Xiang Mantang led his people here.
This was because it was an entrance to the Kunlun Void; Chen Wudao would inevitably appear here if he were to exit from the Kunlun Ruins.
Xiang Mantang was here to wait for the rabbit!
At this moment, Xiang Mantang was holding a wooden box, not knowing what was inside, nor did he seem to intend to open it immediately. He closed his eyes, quietly waiting for Chen Wudao to appear.
An hour later.
Sitting alone at the mouth of the Valley of Death, Xiang Mantang seemed to sense something and suddenly opened his eyes.
He saw a strange change at the entrance of the valley, where the void was continuously distorting and undulating, just as if someone was skimming stones across a calm lake surface.
Only, what was being skimmed was not the lake, but the void itself.
Seeing this, Xiang Mantang knew Chen Wudao was about to appear, his eyes flashed, and he began to unpack the specially made wooden box, revealing two iron rods and a spear tip inside.
He took them out, and not flustered by the changes before him, or worried about Chen Wudao appearing at any moment, his hands were very steady, quickly assembling them together.
He assembled a spear, seven feet, seven inches, and seven parts long, weighing seventy-seven pounds, seven taels, and seven cents—the Overlord Spear.
This Overlord Spear was Xiang Mantang's weapon, forged from Mysterious Iron and Meteorite Iron Beyond, crafted by the country's most famous Grandmaster blacksmith, taking nearly a year to forge.
And with Xiang Mantang's campaigns, it had drunk the fresh blood of countless enemies.
Today, it would drink the blood of another Grandmaster.
"Buzz..."
Xiang Mantang had just assembled the Overlord Spear when the void before him suddenly twisted violently, emitting a burst of sonic boom, followed by a figure that abruptly burst through the twisting void.
It was indeed Chen Wudao.
Chen Wudao had just come out from the Kunlun Ruins, and was in a rush to head to River City to find out who had annihilated his Chen Family.
He saw Xiang Mantang standing alone, one hand behind his back, the other holding the spear slanting towards the sky, blocking his path, with a killing intent skyrocketing into the skies.
Chen Wudao's eyes showed a wary color, and he spoke, "Who are you, and why do you block my path?"
Xiang Mantang looked up, his eyes indifferent as he stared straight at Chen Wudao, lightly said, "You've taken the wrong path, I've specially come to direct you."
"Oh?" Chen Wudao raised an eyebrow, his tone cooling down as well, "Then tell me, which path should I take?"
"Underworld!"
As soon as Xiang Mantang's words fell, his figure suddenly moved like a released rabbit, covering a hundred meters in a breath, instantly closing to a distance of seven feet from Chen Wudao, spear picking and slashing horizontally, dancing out dozens of spear flowers in a second, directly thrusting towards Chen Wudao's vital parts including the heart, throat, eyes, abdomen, and below the navel… among others.
Seeing this, Chen Wudao's eyes couldn't help but reveal a hint of shock, completely unexpected that this young man, looking no more than twenty, would possess such terrifying skills!
However, he, Chen Wudao, was fearless!
"Clang!"
Chen Wudao raised his hand, choosing to clash directly with Xiang Mantang's Overlord Spear with his bare hands in a rush.
Palms meeting the spear, Chen Wudao did not fall behind but even emitted bursts of gold-iron clashing sounds, as if his body had long been tempered like molten iron cast.
…