Not only Tsunade.
As two men in black robes walked past Jiraiya, Jiraiya instantly perceived the faces beneath the black robes.
"Orochimaru?!"
At this moment, no one in the tavern expected that the legendary Sannin would be reunited.
Orochimaru and Kabuto Yakushi were still sitting in the corner. The two were preparing to visit Su Mu after he finished his storytelling today, and had specially stayed in Short Sand Street for a day for this purpose.
"How did Tsunade end up working in a place like this..." Jiraiya drank the clear sake in his cup, feeling a bit lost.
Suddenly, the door to the room on the second floor was pushed open. Su Mu, holding a folding fan, walked out with an air of grace. At this moment, everyone couldn't help but cheer and shout.
"Host Su is so handsome! Almost as handsome as me!"
"I traveled a thousand kilometers just to listen to your story today!"
"I didn't expect Host Su to be so young!"
"Can't wait, Host Su, please start quickly!"
Su Mu smiled slightly, opened his folding fan, and sat on the high platform. The tea was already prepared on the table, and the story was about to begin.
"Everyone, please be patient."
"Today, the story I will tell is called 'Eternal Life'."
Su Mu paused, and the entire tavern fell silent. In the corner, Orochimaru's snake-like eyes suddenly widened: "E-Eternal Life?!"
Su Mu continued, "It is said that the protagonist of the story is named Zhong Shan, an ordinary person."
"From the Blue Star, he arrived in a small world and learned of the opportunity for eternal life."
"Alas, his aptitude was poor. By the age of eighty, with near-demonic intelligence, he built a vast fortune through commerce."
"He adopted over a hundred godchildren, hoping they could enter the immortal path and obtain elixirs for him to reach the Xiantian realm."
Hearing Su Mu narrate such a story, the people below could no longer use shock to process their expressions. In their world, there were only ninjas and ordinary people. Ninjas could refine the power within their bodies to form chakra or absorb natural energy to form chakra. Ordinary people, on the other hand, could do nothing. However, after hearing about the opportunity for eternal life from Su Mu, many ideas began to sprout.
If you think that's all, you are greatly mistaken. Su Mu's next words almost made Orochimaru in the corner lose control.
"What is eternal life?"
"To comprehend the secrets of heaven and step into Qi Refinement is to attain eternal life."
"In 'Eternal Life,' there is a group of cultivators who seek immortality, they are called Qi Refiners."
"In every world, besides naturally occurring forces, there is also an inexhaustible amount of spiritual energy."
"They, by absorbing this spiritual energy, attain eternal life and comprehend the laws of the Heavenly Dao."
"Each time they break through a realm, their lifespan can increase by tens, hundreds, thousands, or even tens of thousands of years!"
As soon as he finished speaking, there was an immediate uproar of doubt and disbelief from the audience. This sounded too much like a dream, and the customers simply didn't believe it.
Su Mu completely ignored their skepticism. "Not only that, cultivators can ride swords and fly. A Mahayana cultivator could travel the entire ninja world in a single day."
Orochimaru was completely beside himself. The eternal life Su Mu spoke of was exactly what he desired! Previously, he had researched methods for achieving immortality. However, it was only through transferring bodily functions to achieve a semblance of immortality. Over time, he felt increasingly tormented. Each transfer provided a progressively shorter lifespan. In Orochimaru's laboratory, a blueprint lay on his desk, clearly marking the functions and roles of various human organs.
"I once researched that indeed, there are two types of power in this world..."
"Unfortunately, I could not find any way to utilize them..." Orochimaru shook his head with regret. At that time, he did not know what the other power was.
Beside him, Kabuto Yakushi was beyond words to express his inner shock. If it were true, as Su Mu said, then ninjas would be nothing, and all ninjutsu would be trash!
"Host Su, your story is getting more and more unbelievable. If this were true, what's the point of being a ninja!"
"I traveled all this way, expecting to broaden my horizons, but instead, it's so absurd! I'm never coming back!"
"A living person can live for tens of thousands of years? Are you fooling us?"
At once, the customers below started to heckle, demanding refunds. But Su Mu calmly sipped his tea, completely unfazed.
"Host Su, according to your words, Qi Refiners would eventually become gods, right? Can you give an example of some powerful ones?" Orochimaru, from the corner, suddenly stood up and asked. The entire tavern fell silent again.
Facing Orochimaru's question, Su Mu unhurriedly put down his teacup and said, "Deities were born into the world at the dawn of heaven and earth. Among them, I know of two that I can briefly mention."
Orochimaru's eyes lit up with joy: "Please, Host Su, enlighten us."
"Beyond the Northwest Sea, at the edge of the Great Wilderness, lies a mountain that does not coalesce, named Buzhou."
"Thus, it is called Buzhou Mountain," Su Mu said faintly, opening his folding fan.
"The deity Gonggong, the God of Water, controls all the waters in the world, and is one of the great deities of the Primordial Era."
"The deity Zhurong, the God of Fire, controls all the fires in the world, also one of the great deities of the Primordial Era."
"These two deities have lifespans of millions of years and are still alive today."
"Gonggong's power was even capable of smashing Buzhou Mountain, creating a great hole in the sky."
As Su Mu's words fell, a man wearing a red cloud black cloak suddenly burst into laughter at the entrance. The customers looked over and saw a man with deep blue hair and a shark-like face, carrying a bandage-wrapped greatsword on his back. On the ring finger of his left hand, a ring with the character "South" was conspicuously displayed.
"Kisame Hoshigaki?" Jiraiya's mind instantly recalled a piece of information. He had investigated the Akatsuki organization in order to protect Naruto. At the same time, Jiraiya continued to scan the crowd for another figure: Itachi Uchiha. Akatsuki usually worked in pairs, specializing in capturing Tailed Beasts. Since Kisame was here, it meant Itachi was nearby!
"How did they appear here, this is bad..." Jiraiya looked at Naruto beside him with a headache. Kisame Hoshigaki slowly walked from the entrance into the crowd of customers, then looked up at Su Mu and laughed coldly, "God of Water?"
"Ridiculous, does the Gonggong in your story know Water Style?"
A large number of crows suddenly flew out from the roof. The customers, startled, scrambled to escape.
Su Mu smiled slightly and waved his folding fan: "Disperse!" A powerful chakra erupted from Su Mu's body, and the crows in the room were instantly blown away, leaving not a single feather.
In a daze, a figure with crimson eyes slowly emerged from behind the crows: "What powerful chakra..." Jiraiya also felt the immense power and his face showed surprise.
"What, Host Su knows ninjutsu?!"
"Which eye of yours saw Host Su using ninjutsu? That's pure chakra power!"
"So... so amazing!" Tsunade looked at Su Mu on the high platform in astonishment. She had thought this guy was just an ordinary storyteller, but she didn't expect him to possess such abilities.
"I really can't see through him anymore..."