‘Moreover, the robber went directly for the jade pendant?
‘Could the robber be… a cultivator?
‘That doesn’t make sense! No modern cultivator would wear ancient clothes. Even the people from Sky Mountain wear Chinese tunics, which are considered modern clothes.
‘The heavenly masters of Dragon Tiger Mountain wear expensive suits, and the people from the cultivation families are also very fashionable.’
After pondering for a while, Tang Hao was very puzzled.
“Brother Liu, where is he in Inner Mongolia?” Tang Hao asked.
“What’s wrong?”
“There’s something unusual about this matter. I have to go there personally!” Tang Hao said.
Liu Dajun’s expression became solemn. “Then I’ll give you his number. You can contact him.”
“OK!”
After getting Liu Qiang’s number, Tang Hao called him, asked for his whereabouts, and immediately set off for Inner Mongolia.
It was already late at night when he arrived at the airport.
“Brother Tang!”
Liu Qiang had been waiting for a long time. When he saw Tang Hao, he warmly welcomed him.
He knew that the young man was an expert who handcrafted those magical life-saving jade pendants.
“Brother Tang, do you have the jade pendant? I don’t feel safe if I don’t wear it!” Liu Qiang said sheepishly.
“Here, take this!”
Tang Hao handed over a jade pendant.
“Thank you! Thank you so much! I’ll transfer the money to you later!”
Liu Qiang took the jade pendant and held it in his hand like a treasure.
“Did that person leave anything behind?” Tang Hao asked.
“Well… no! He snatched something from me. Why would he leave anything behind?” Liu Qiang said.
“Take me to see your car,” Tang Hao said.
When they arrived at Liu Qiang’s car, Tang Hao retrieved the compass and started to sense carefully.
He circled the car but did not sense any qi fluctuations.
When he opened the car door, the needle trembled and swerved violently, pointing to the north.
Tang Hao glanced around and found a scrap of cloth under the car seat. The man must have dropped it.
“Let’s go!”
Tang Hao got into the car.
“Where are we going?” Liu Qiang was stunned.
“Follow this!” Tang Hao showed him the needle on the compass.
“Oh!” Liu Qiang replied, got into the car, stepped on the accelerator, and sped away.
“When we find that bastard, Brother Tang, don’t hold back and give him a good beating!” He cursed from time to time as he drove.
They left the city and arrived at a barren mountain.
“Stop!”
Suddenly, Tang Hao shouted.
“Wait here!”
Tang Hao got out of the car and looked at the compass. The needle was pointing straight ahead.
He carefully walked into a valley. Then, he heard loud laughter in front of him. “Haha! Someone is here to die! I want to see how cultivators are these days!”
That tone was somewhat arrogant.
Accompanied by the laughter, a figure dashed out and landed not far from Tang Hao. He raised his face and looked over coldly.
The man was surprised when he saw Tang Hao clearly. Then, he laughed loudly. “Haha! You are still a young kid!”
His expression became more and more contemptuous.
“I have something to ask you, kid. If you answer me truthfully, I can grant you a quick death. If you don’t cooperate, then I won’t be so polite.”
Tang Hao stood there, holding the compass and smiling slightly.
“Is that so?”
“Dammit, brat, what’s with your expression? Are you itching for a beating? Looks like you won’t be honest if I don’t beat you up!” That person said angrily.
He was ticked off by that kid’s expression!
Chapter 754 - Preparing for War
Tang Hao’s expression turned cold. He took a step forward and brandished his qi aura. As he continued to step forward, the qi aura rushed forth like a raging wave and continued to grow stronger.
A violent gust of wind swirled around him, filling the sky with sand and pebbles.
His clothes fluttered in the wind, and his expression was ice-cold. It was an awe-inspiring sight.
That person’s body froze on the spot.
His eyes widened, and his old face became distorted with extreme shock and fear.
Then, his body started trembling.
“You, you, you…” He was tongue-tied, unable to speak a complete sentence.
Looking at the figure with the shocking aura walking toward him, he was about to faint.
That young kid was actually a Perfected Person!
‘Oh my god!
‘How can this be?
‘Am I losing my mind, or as the world lost its mind?
‘First, Artifacts are bought and sold on the open market. Now, the first cultivator I meet is a Perfected Person at a young age. Is this Earth? Have I gone to the wrong place?
‘The plot shouldn’t have developed this way!
‘I should have been the most powerful cultivator here, looting Artifacts, flirting with beautiful women, and having the time of my life!
‘This is a nightmare!’
Feeling the terrifying pressure in front of him, he wanted to faint and never wake up.
Tang Hao walked over and while cracking his neck. “You said you wanted to beat me up, right? Come on! I’ll stand here and let you beat me up!”
That person’s face twitched. His face turned into a deep red color.
‘You’re a Perfected Person, dammit! I’m only a half-step! I won’t be able to do anything to you!’
“You don’t dare?” Tang Hao laughed coldly. He swung his hand and slapped the man.
That person let out a miserable cry and was sent flying backward. His entire face collapsed, and fresh blood spurted out from his mouth and nose.
He flew for a full eight meters before landing. He whimpered and spat out another mouthful of blood.
Thud! Thud!
Tang Hao strolled over and said coldly, “Speak! Who are you? Don’t you find those shabby clothes embarrassing?”
The man gritted his teeth and sat up. He wiped the blood from the corner of his lips and revealed a ruthless expression.
“Haha! Who am I? You’ll never guess! I’m from Yin Mountain!” He cackled.
“Yin Mountain?”
Tang Hao frowned. He had never heard of Yin Mountain before.
“Hmph! Of course you’ve never heard of it before. Yin Mountain has been hiding in seclusion for almost a thousand years, living in a demi-world!
“Back then, the qi in the nine regions was increasingly exhausted. To preserve qi, many large sects retreated to their respective demi-worlds. Only the weaker sects like yours remained in the mortal world.”
“Now, Yin Mountain is about to make their return, and I am the trailblazer. If you dare lay a finger on me, you’ll die horribly when Yin Mountain returns!
“So what if you’re a Perfected Person? Yin Mountain has more than ten Perfected Persons! Killing you would be as easy as slaughtering a dog!”
As he spoke, he became more and more arrogant.
“F*ck you!” Tang Hao rolled his eyes and kicked him.
“How… how dare you kick my face!”
That person trembled all over and was about to go mad.
Tang Hao grimaced and kicked him again. Then, he fed him a Pill of Truth and got him to spill everything.
Then, he blew him up to beats.
“Yin Mountain… can be quite troublesome!”
Tang Hao stood there with a solemn expression.
According to that guy, many sects from the past had hidden themselves in secluded demi-worlds. Tang Hao had heard of legends of such demi-world before, such as
the story of the Peach Blossom Spring. They were connected to this world but did not belong to it.
Those sects were very powerful with dozens of Perfected Persons each. Mao Mountain only had two.
If all of them returned, the world would be plunged into chaos.
Yin Mountain would be returning soon. No one knew when the others would return too.
If they were a righteous sect like Mao Mountain, he would certainly welcome them. However, he could not guarantee that they would not do evil, so he had to guard against them.
He had to prepare for the worst-case scenario, which would be starting a war with all those ancient sects!
“This’ll be tricky!”
Tang Hao pondered for a moment. He felt worried.
With so many ancient sects, he did not know how many Perfected Persons there were in total. The entire Union only had several powerful people. That was not enough.
“Right! There’s still the Agency. They have missiles and fighter jets! At worst, we can blow them up with a nuclear bomb.”
Tang Hao was happy when he thought of that.
“I’ll talk to them about it!”
Tang Hao muttered and walked away.
“How is it, Brother Tang?”
When Tang Hao appeared again, Liu Qiang got out of the car and asked anxiously.
“I killed him!”
Liu Qiang was shocked. “You… you killed him?”
Tang Hao did not answer and directly sat in the car. “Oh, right, you don’t have to pay me for the new pendant. You’ve been a great help, so consider the pendant as a gift. Also, this one’s for you!”
As he spoke, Tang Hao threw the jade pendant that the man had snatched from him.
If not for Liu Qiang, he would not have found out about the return of Yin Mountain. The knowledge gave him time to prepare.
“Thank you!”
Liu Qiang took the jade pendant and beamed with joy.
“Let’s go!”
He stepped on the accelerator and set off happily.
Tang Hao flew to Province J. On the way, he informed the Taoist masters and asked them to spread the news. Then, he called General Bai.
“Damn! What’s going on in the middle of the night?”
General Bai yawned and said in a daze.
“This is something serious!”
Tang Hao’s tone was grave.
On the other end of the phone, General Bai shivered and immediately became much more awake.
“Something serious? What is it?”
“We’re going into a war!”
“With whom?” General Bai was at a loss. There was nothing much going on in the country. Nanyang had been demolished, Dongying was about to be crippled, and Merrica was currently in an amicable relationship with that kid.
Who else could it be?
He thought that the world was finally at peace, and he could enjoy his vacation. Now that the kid said that they were going to war again, that was such a bother!
“A hidden sect! It will be a tough battle if we go to war with them. It will require the full involvement of the military. We don’t have enough people in the Agency.”
Tang Hao briefly described the situation to him.
On the other end of the phone, General Bai was silent for a long time.
“Sigh! That’s indeed something serious! I’ll have to report it to the Higher-Ups,” General Bai said.
“Okay! We’ll meet at Mao Mountain!”
It was seven o’clock in the morning when he arrived at Mao Mountain.
Dragon Tiger Mountain and the people from the cultivation families had also arrived. Everyone was waiting for him in the main hall.
“President Tang!”
Everyone stood up and greeted him respectfully when they saw him arrive.
“Please sit down! We have to discuss this matter with the utmost seriousness!”
Tang Hao walked to the head seat and sat down.
Chapter 755 - Digging Around the World
In the main hall, everyone’s expressions were somewhat solemn.
General Bai sat next to Tang Hao, representing the Agency and the military.
He frowned and said, “This situation is quite serious! Those people have been living in seclusion for so long. To put it bluntly, they’re illiterate!
“They’re seriously out of touch with society, yet they have superhuman abilities. It’s very easy for them to cause damage and affect the stability of our modern society.
“Look, the moment that guy came out, he started robbing. That isn’t right!
“Our society is harmonious and stable. We can’t allow those people to disrupt our society.”
Clap clap clap! After General Bai finished speaking, there was a round of applause below.
“Well said, General Bai!”
The people from the cultivation families clapped hard.
General Bai smiled, waved his hand, and said, “That’s why the higher-ups have decided to solve this problem at all costs. We can mobilize all troops and equipment from all five military regions.
“When the time comes, all the military regions will cooperate with us. Ahem, of course, we still have to be cautious about nuclear weapons. It’s not that we can’t use them, but we shouldn’t unless it’s absolutely necessary.”
At that point, he looked at Tang Hao and said, “That’s all I have to say. Next, let’s invite President Tang to speak.”
Clap clap clap!
There was another round of enthusiastic applause.
Tang Hao coughed lightly and said, “The situation is still unclear, but we have to prepare for the worst-case scenario. If that happens, we’ll have to fight them to the death!
“Huaxia’s peace has not come easily. We can’t let those people wreak havoc on our society. If they cause trouble, kill them! If they don’t listen to us, kill them too!”
As he spoke, Tang Hao’s tone of voice turned cold.
“That’s right! Those who don’t listen, kill them all. We won’t let them fight with us for control!”
“Well said, President!”
The group of people below started clapping excitedly again.
“However, we also have to recognize the difference in strength between us and them. There are more than ten Perfected Persons in Yin Mountain alone,” Tang Hao added.
In an instant, the crowd quieted down, and everyone seemed a little worried.
The cultivation world was stronger than before, but they were nowhere as strong as a hidden sect from ancient times.
Mao Mountain had two full Perfected Persons from the previous generation and a half-step, Dragon Tiger Mountain had a Perfected Person from the previous generation, and there was President Tang.
Among the four Perfected Persons, three were from the previous generation. They were reaching their mortal limits, so they could not hold on for long.
On the other hand, Yin Mountain had more than a dozen!
If several sects attacked at once, they would not be able to fight back.
They immediately felt tremendous pressure!
“We’ll have to prepare for war in the next two months. Mao Mountain, you’ll need to plant more ginseng and lingzhi to raise everyone’s cultivation base.
“Also, we need to craft more jade talismans. I’ll be crafting more and giving them out so that each of us can have at least a few dozen.
“Then, we shall send more people out to the wilds to collect medicinal herbs and look for rare and exotic beasts. I shall reward whoever finds anything with alchemical pills.”
The eyes of the crowd lit up with excitement.
“What… what kind of alchemical pills?”
When they heard about the reward, they almost drooled.
“There is quite a variety. I have medical pills, and I also have pills that can increase your cultivation base. It depends on what you need!” Tang Hao said.
They gulped hard, and their eyes were sparkling.
After the meeting
ended, they rushed out impatiently.
“Hurry, hurry! Let’s send those whelps out as far away as possible! If they don’t find anything, they don’t need to come back! They can stay in the mountains for the rest of their lives!”
They all picked up their phones and called home.
Soon, only the Taoist masters and General Bai were left in the hall.
“Brother Tang, do you think we need to wake up the two seniors from our Mao Mountain?” Taoist Master Qian Ji asked.
“Well…”
Tang Hao was hesitant. He thought for a moment and said, “Not for the time being. It’s just Yin Mountain. I think we can handle them ourselves.”
“That’s fine!” Taoist Master Qian Ji nodded.
Then, Tang Hao looked at General Bai. “Yin Mountain is in Inner Mongolia, so they should be appearing there. We can prepare for battle now. Deploy troops around Yin Mountain and establish an early-warning mechanism.
“It’s said to be two months, but it’s hard to say if they’ll appear sooner.”
General Bai nodded and said, “No problem. I’ll go to the northern military region later to coordinate that matter!
“We need at least a hundred tanks! Then, we need all kinds of missiles and artillery. Also, we need the latest models of fighter jets and helicopters!
“And drones, too, we’ll need a few hundred to blow them up. Let them experience the power of technology!”
His tone of voice became vicious as he spoke.
After the discussion, General Bai left in a hurry.
Soon, everyone became busy.
It was a bustling scene on Mao Mountain.
Almost all the Taoist masters rolled up their pants, carried their hoes, and cultivated the wasteland on the mountains. They were very dedicated to the task.
Previously, the land around Mao Mountain had been cultivated. Now, they were expanding outward, eventually converting the entire mountain range into plantations.
They buried leyline gathering formations and planted ginseng and lingzhi.
The matured medicinal herbs were harvested and transported to Mao Mountain. Shabby Taoist Priest worked day and night to produce the Liquid of Spiritual Condensation.
Some Taoist masters went around the country to buy jade and transport them back in trucks so that they could craft jade talismans.
The crafters worked day and night, and the jade talismans gradually piled up into small mountains.
The Mightiest Little Peasant c1-799 Page 333