"Bang! Bang!" The two old men suddenly shrunk in size and changed their direction in mid-air before increasing their speed abruptly. With that, they instantly disappeared into the forest at a speed almost as fast as that of the Imminent Skyline.

Chu Li raised an eyebrow at this and realized that the Zheng Dynasty's martial arts should not be underestimated as well. These two men's secret skill had been extraordinarily powerful.

He could have caught up with the two old men but he decided not to do so.

Elder Su said gravely, "We can't allow them to escape!"

Chu Li replied, "Never mind. We can deal with them next time!"

"Next time…" Elder Su shook his head and said, "We might not be able to ward them off next time. It's time to pick up our pace!"

Those two old fellows had deep and profound cultivation levels, yet Zhao Dahe had managed to drive them away. Nonetheless, if Mysterious Pavilion happened to dispatch a few more people with such high cultivation levels the next time, they might not be able to survive such an attack regardless of how confident Zhao Dahe was.

Since those old fellows had been cultivating for more than a hundred years, it would be too dangerous to go up against more of them, especially when Young Master was here. He could be fatally injured by enduring just one blow from them.

Sun Yucheng said, "Elder Su, there's no point in being so anxious."

Liu Di pursed her lips and thought about this for a moment before she suggested, "Young Master Sun, we can perform our secret skill to hurry on our journey."

"That won't work," Sun Yucheng quickly replied. "If they really managed to catch up to us, none of you would have any strength left to defend yourselves."

"This is our only option right now," Liu Di said. "In any case, we won't be of any help even if we could fight."

They should use their light-body techniques if they wished to travel faster. It was because of the four girls that the men were forced to travel so slowly. Seeing as the situation was taking a bad turn, the girls had to take a risk and see if they were lucky enough to get out of this situation alive.

Sun Yucheng frowned and gave this some thought before he turned to look at Chu Li.

He felt that Chu Li was kind-hearted. He was also capable of handling matters calmly and steadily, so he found Chu Li more trustworthy.

Chu Li said, "It may not be a bad idea to hurry back to Ascending Dragon Mountain as soon as possible."

Next time, they might find themselves facing martial arts masters who had lived past two or even three hundred years. If too many of such martial arts masters showed up in one go, Chu Li might not necessarily be capable of protecting all of his companions. Thus, he did not want to put their lives at risk even though this was a good opportunity for him to weaken Mysterious Pavilion's powers.

"Okay then. Let's use our secret skills!" Sun Yucheng replied.

Liu Di and the other young girls smiled.

With that, they abandoned their horses and performed their light-body techniques immediately to hurry on their journey. 

After activating their secret skills, the four girls glided ahead at a remarkable speed and seemed as though they were moving with the wind. They had managed to travel over ninety miles at a stretch before they withdrew their secret skills in exhaustion. 

Following that, Chu Li let Liu Di and another girl hold onto his arms, whereas Elder Su and Elder Ren each let one girl hold them by their arm as they continued to travel. The three men provided support to the four girls throughout the rest of their journey while Sun Yucheng carried on gliding ahead by himself. At that point, their speed was not as fast as when the four girls were using their secret skills, but this method was still much quicker than traveling by horse. 

On the evening of the next day, they had arrived at the foot of a towering and majestic mountain.

This towering mountain was located within a vast, dragon-like mountain range where many more tall mountains were stretched out in an endless row before them. The summits of these mountains were hidden from view by clouds and mists.

The four girls looked pale and sickly. Although they had been holding onto Chu Li and the two elders for support and had already taken some spirit pills, they were still suffering from the aftermath of using their secret skills twice in a row. After this, the girls would have to rest and recuperate for a prolonged period to fully recover.

Liu Di pointed at the lush bamboo forest in front of them and said with a smile, "This is Ascending Dragon Mountain, where Vast Cold Palace is located."

Sun Yucheng sighed in admiration and exclaimed, "Ascending Dragon Mountain looks impressive indeed!"

"Young Master Sun, please wait here and rest for a few moments while we go in and inform the others of your arrival," Liu Di said and smiled. "Men aren't allowed to enter Vast Cold Palace, so I need to explain the situation to my palace leader, asking her to make an exception." 

"Thank you." Sun Yucheng gave a fist salute.

Then, Liu Di gave Chu Li a smile and a nod before she disappeared into the lush bamboo forest along with the three young girls. 

The entire Ascending Dragon Mountain range was covered with bamboo forests. As a gust of wind rose around them, the bamboo leaves rustled like waves surging endlessly in the sea. The place seemed to overflow with greenery and vitality.

At that moment, it was already wintertime in the Li Dynasty. Nonetheless, it still felt warm and cozy here. The bamboo forest, in particular, appeared to be growing luxuriantly. 

Around an hour had pa.s.sed when a young girl in white clothing appeared above the bamboo forest and glided over to them with graceful steps as though she was walking on water. Her body seemed to give off a faint delicate fragrance as she landed in front of the four men.

The young girl's face was covered with a white veil, so only her eyes could be seen. She had a cool and calm demeanor as she gave a fist salute and asked, "Are you Young Master Sun?"

"Yes, I am." Sun Yucheng returned the fist salute while he scanned her from head to toe.

He wished he could remove the girl's white veil and get a clear view of her face. Judging by her slender figure and graceful manners, she should be a stunning and outstanding beauty.

The young girl in white seemed to find Sun Yucheng's piercing gaze off-putting as she frowned. She then gave him a sideways glance before she muttered, "Come with me."

She turned around gracefully and leaped into the air, gliding over the bamboo forest and moving up the mountain.

Ascending Dragon Mountain was tall and steep. After entering the bamboo forest, they noticed that the height of this mountain was far beyond their imagination. Compared to this enormous mountain, they seemed like tiny ants.

Chu Li felt a slight fluctuation from a formation. Although this was just a Soul-bewitching Formation that could only be used to fool people by confusing their senses, it could produce quite an extraordinary effect when it was used in this mountainous terrain. 

They trailed behind the young girl in white for fifteen minutes before they arrived in front of a row of bamboo cottages hidden within the bamboo forest.

"This is the outer courtyard of Vast Cold Palace," the young girl said while she pointed at the row of bamboo cottages. "Distinguished guests, please stay here for the time being. Palace Leader will come and meet you soon."

"What a tasteful and refined place." Sun Yucheng examined this row of bamboo cottages. He found that this quiet and secluded atmosphere could easily make him forget about the outside world.

Following that, the young girl in white went to the front of the bamboo cottages and gestured for them to take a seat at a stone table before she used a small furnace to brew a pot of tea. Soon after, when she served the tea to them, a delightful aroma wafted through the air. Then, the young girl in white left in a graceful and quiet manner.

Elder Su stared after her retreating silhouette with a frown and said, "The people at Vast Cold Palace seem rather rude!"

They had indeed saved the lives of a few Vast Cold Palace disciples, so it seemed rather unreasonable for them to be treated in such a discourteous way. This made them feel very uncomfortable and out of place.

Sun Yucheng took a small sip of tea and gasped in admiration. "Ah, what a fine tea! What a fine tea!"

As the tea aroma infused his vital organs, Sun Yucheng felt as though his body had become somewhat lighter. This tea was truly of the highest quality. Even he, as a prince, had never tasted such a fine tea before.

He laughed and said, "With this cup of tea, our efforts at saving them have all been worth it!"

Chu Li took a small sip and nodded to himself. This was a rare type of spirit tea that possessed great health benefits. He had found some of such tea in the Hundred-Thousand Hills but he had never expected to see it here too. 

Elder Su lifted his cup and took a sip as well before he smiled. "Indeed, this is no ordinary tea." 

He knew that this tea should be exceptionally precious and valuable. It seemed like Vast Cold Palace was very kind and generous despite their cold demeanor since they were willing to serve such a fine tea to their guests. 

The four men had just finished with their tea when they heard the sound of clothes fluttering in the wind. With that, they saw a woman in her thirties gliding over to them, accompanied by two young girls.

One of the young girls was Liu Di while the other girl appeared to be slightly older than Liu Di who carried herself in a cold yet elegant manner.

The three of them were dressed in spotless white tunics which made them look like fairies from another world.

Liu Di smiled sweetly and said, "Young Master Sun, Young Master Zhao, seniors, this spirit tea can wash away your travel fatigue. Does it suit your tastes?"

"Thank you," Sun Yucheng replied with a smile. "It's indeed a fine tea."

Then, Liu Di smiled and said, "This is my Palace Leader, and this is Senior Sister Mo." 

"I'm Sun Yucheng. Greetings, Palace Leader!" Sun Yucheng gave a fist salute while beaming.

He was delighted to meet this gorgeous palace leader. 

The palace leader of Vast Cold Palace, Xu Miaozhu, returned the fist salute and replied, "I thank you all for saving my disciples."

Sun Yucheng chuckled and said, "You're very welcome, Palace Leader. It's not a big deal." 

"Getting into trouble with Mysterious Pavilion is no small matter," Xu Miaozhu replied. "You're welcome to stay at our outer courtyard for a while to lie low until the fuss dies down. Their people won't dare to come here."

"Thank you, Palace Leader." Sun Yucheng hurriedly nodded and took up her offer.

Elder Su looked at Sun Yucheng in resignation. He then opened his mouth to say something but closed it again.

"You said that you were on your way to Ascending Dragon Mountain too. May I know what brings you here?" Xu Miaozhu asked.

Sun Yucheng laughed and replied, "We heard that the Heavenly King Palm has been hidden in this place more than two thousand years ago."

"Young Master!" Elder Su exclaimed.