Chapter 231. Nüwa Mends the Heavens (4) Climb the Kunlun Mountains

     Back at the Yanzī tribe, the celebrations for the new chieftain Nüwa’s inauguration lasted until dawn.  

     The wilderness at night was breathtakingly beautiful, with a sky full of brilliant stars; by day, the first sight to greet the eyes was an endless expanse of green grassland, evoking the majestic scenery described in the lines, “The sky is vast, the wilds boundless, as the wind blows the grass low, revealing cattle and sheep.”  

     Ye Mo had already learned the location of the Yanzī tribe on Earth, the Kunlun Mountains and the surrounding glaciers, deserts, grasslands, rivers, lakes, and jungles.  

     Even on Earth, this region spanned four provinces: Sichuan, Xinjiang, Tibet, and Qinghai, boasting abundant natural resources such as freshwater lakes, arable land, pastures, forests, minerals, petroleum, wildlife, plants, and jade.  

     Such treasures were undeniably alluring, which explained why so many other tribes from the Nine Provinces coveted this land.  

     In this vast territory, the chieftain naturally resided in its core mountain range – the Kunlun Mountains.  

     When the feast finally concluded and the crowd dispersed, the Wū zhù led Ye Mo toward the Kunlun Mountains.

     Their pace was comparable to that of a Tibetan antelope. Neither too slow nor too fast. They could have moved quicker, but the primary purpose was to introduce the new chieftain to the Yanzī tribe’s people.  

     It was also an opportunity to acquaint the new chieftain with the full scope of the Yanzī tribe.  

     Though Nüwa had been born and raised here, her understanding of the tribe had been limited to its reputation as the strongest. She knew nothing about the number of spirit mines, spirit springs, sacred mountains, celestial fires, mystical plants, or spirit beasts within the territory.  

     With the Wū zhù’s guidance, Ye Mo gained a fresh understanding of these resources. Compared to the tribe’s vast wealth, the energy resources in her storage belt were a drop in the ocean, making her preparations seem useless.

     With questions and answers, and the ability to infer from one instance to many, the Wū zhù was highly pleased with her comprehension, frequently praising her. Little did she know, Ye Mo had already drawn up a plans in her mind for how to reform the use of these resources. It was a case of the well-fed not understanding the hungry – the Yanzhi tribe’s usage methods were far too wasteful.

     “Chief Wa.”  

     Along the way, they encountered many who had not been present at the previous night’s gathering.  

     Not everyone had been qualified to attend such an important meeting. Even in this mythical era, ordinary people made up the majority. Human strength followed a pyramid structure, the higher one climbed, the fewer there were.  

     Ye Mo noticed that a select few among them had particularly lively eyes, gazing at her with a mix of astonishment, admiration, delight, and even more expressions of disbelief and inevitability.  

     These individuals were undoubtedly the lucky survivors who had been assigned to the Yanzī tribe.

     Survivor A: …Nüwa? This dungeon was practically tailor-made for the Chief Survivor.

     Survivor B:…Nüwa mending the heavens? If the Chief Survivor clears this dungeon, she might just ascend to godhood.

     Survivor C:…Maria has already defeated the six primordial gods of ancient Egypt—no wonder she’s Nüwa. How is the gap between people this vast?!

     Survivor D:…Whatever, I’m clinging to this big boss no matter what. Looking forward to being carried by Queen Wa!

     Among these survivors, Ye Mo spotted two from the Supernatural Investigation Bureau. A silent exchange of glances confirmed they were temporarily trustworthy allies.  

     She inquired about their clan names and also memorized the faces and professions of the other survivors.  

     The Wuzhu natural tallent made her highly sensitive to shifts in reputation, and she noticed that along the way, they encountered about twenty people who showed harbor a natural reverence and dependence toward Nüwa.  

     This wasn’t just the usual reliance on a powerful figure, but something deeper, akin to the devotion the Yanzī tribes people had for the Yanzī lineage. It was truly surprising.  

     A pleasant surprise, at that.  

     The Wuzhu made no move to restrict Ye Mo’s words or actions, effectively granting her full authority.  

     But Ye Mo understood that no matter how many plans she had in mind, they would remain futile if her own strength did not improve. Weapons and equipment, even divine artifacts, were ultimately just supplementary tools.  

     Moreover, she couldn’t rely forever on the Wuzhu’s authority to force the tribespeople into carrying out tasks they knew nothing about. In a mythic world teeming with powerhouses, that simply wasn’t sustainable.  

     Thus, Ye Mo only made minor adjustments, reassigning two ordinary tribesmembers to more suitable positions and refrained from issuing any major new directives.  

     —  

     After nearly half a day’s journey, they finally arrived at the foot of Kunlun Mountain.  

     Here, the spiritual energy was so dense it condensed into mist. Even without active cultivation, simply lazing around at the mountain’s base day after day would naturally enhance one’s strength. This was why the Yanzī tribe boasted so many formidable warriors.  

     The Yanzī lineage’s growing dominance was undoubtedly tied to this as well. Especially since their matriarch resided year-round at Kunlun’s summit.  

     The shaman halted, watching as Ye Mo—now in her half-human, half-dragon form— began her ascent. This was a trial every chieftain underwent: only the tribe’s strongest could conquer Kunlun’s peak.  

     The moment Ye Mo stepped onto Kunlun Mountain, within just three steps, she could feel overwhelming waves of spiritual energy engulfing her. Countless currents of raw energy surged chaotically into her meridians.  

     Had the Survivor app still been able to scan her physical stats, it would have undoubtedly spammed +1+1+1 incessantly—no less frantically than when she embraced the World Tree at the climax of the World Tree dungeon.  

     Yet this wasn’t purely beneficial. The body’s capacity to contain spiritual energy was ultimately limited by one’s strength.  

     Ye Mo activated the Five Elements Technique, methodically channeling the turbulent spiritual waves into orderly cycles within her body. Each cycle expanded her energy capacity by an imperceptible sliver, a minuscule but tangible breakthrough.  

     This was why her ascent was painstakingly slow, even slower than an ordinary person climbing a mountain.  

     While residing on Kunlun was the chieftain’s privilege, any tribes member of the Yanzī tribe could attempt the climb. However, those with insufficient talent or strength risked catastrophic bodily rupture if they forced their way beyond their limits.  

     In a display of petty immaturity, Daiqing and over twenty others chose this exact time, on the very day Ye Mo was ascending, to “challenge” Kunlun themselves.  

     They seemed to have coordinated it: one after another, they streaked past her, racing up and down the mountain path in a blatant mockery of her “unworthiness” for the summit.  

     Ye Mo ignored their provocations.  

     Unlike the unruly mythological figures, people of later eras understood the critical importance of a solid foundation in cultivation. Steady, step-by-step breakthroughs were far superior to building castles in the air.  

     Even within the same tier of power, strength varied, often determined by one’s foundation and experience, much like how ordinary people could still be ranked in athletic competitions.  

     Regardless of how Nüwa had cultivated, Ye Mo was determined to become the strongest within her power tier.  

     Thus, she resolved to rebuild the foundation Nüwa had laid, brick by brick, partly to familiarize herself with this body.  

     After an hour, Ye Mo halted her ascent and sat cross-legged. The accumulated minor breakthroughs had now coalesced into a noticeable improvement, one she could clearly perceive.  

     √ The foundation for her breakthrough was now rock-solid.  

     Yet instead of continuing upward, she began practicing spells right where she was, cycling through every familiar technique in her arsenal.  

     It had to be said, the potency of magic was significantly enhanced in this spiritually abundant world.  

     Only then did she resume her climb.  

     The higher she ascended, the denser the spiritual energy became, slowing her pace further.  

     Three hours later, she stopped again.  

     This time, it wasn’t just about breakthroughs and practicing spells. Ye Mo found herself embroiled in fierce combat with a group of snow hare spirit beasts after stumbling into their territory.  

     Since her goal was to strengthen her foundations, she deliberately refrained from using psychic powers. She even kept Hawk-Eye hidden to avoid using detection, forgoing weapons like swords, arrows, bows, puppets, and beast armor, relying solely on spell combat.

     This battle clearly exposed her reliance on weapons and mental energy.

     Facing a group of over a hundred snow hare, the weakest on Kunlun Mountain, Ye Mo carelessly let two or three escape – a mistake she shouldn’t have made.

     So, Ye Mo skinned a hare in three seconds, sprinkled five-spice powder, chili powder, and pepper in another three seconds, precisely roasted it with a fire-element spell in half a minute, and devoured a spicy, crispy roasted rabbit in three minutes.

     Daiqing and the others weren’t surprised by the disappearing hares (they knew Nüwa had spatial abilities), but the sight of those saliva-inducing, stomach-growling phantom hares left them baffled.  

     With the roasted hare fueling her, Ye Mo adjusted herself before continuing her ascent.  

     This journey continued directly from day to night, and then into the deep night, eventually leading her into the pastoral grasslands.  

     The terrain here was gentler, ideal for thriving ecosystems and there were many diverse spirit beasts. They were much stronger than the spirit hares, not on the same level at all.

     These spirit beasts and magical plants served as excellent test subjects for her spellcraft. Thus began Ye Mo’s days of striking fear into foxes and sheep alike, progressing from occasional injuries to instant kills.  

     Every day, Daiqing group would show up seeking attention. Outwardly polite, their words dripped with veiled mockery, implying that Nüwa only dared battle “insignificant insects” rather than face them.  

     Ye Mo responded with a light chuckle and kept fighting. After each battle, she continued her ascent.  

     Time flew.  

     With countless stops to meditate and days spent amidst breathtaking landscapes, she finally reached a snow-covered plateau above Kunlun’s midpoint—an emerald grassland encircled by eternal glaciers.  

     This was the highest point Nüwa had ever reached.  

     The original Nüwa had struggled immensely to get here, barely able to endure the environment before retreating. Yet when Ye Mo stepped onto this land, she showed no strain whatsoever, as if it demanded no effort. She even had energy to spare, immediately challenging the plateau’s spirit flora and fauna.  

     She lingered here for a long time, meditating over a dozen times.  

     Amusingly, Daiqing’s group stubbornly remained too, making daily appearances. Did the elites of the Yanzī tribe have nothing better to do?  

     Apparently not.  

     In this world, life revolved around combat and cultivation. Even tribal conflicts stemmed from competition over resources.  

     Back when Zhīnǚ ruled, the Yanzī tribe had been just as idle. Now, a pack of troublemakers still hadn’t matured their sense of crisis remained dull. Until blades pressed against their throats, they’d never grasp the meaning of “dying in comfort.”  

     At least compared to their initial taunts, they’d begun acknowledging Nüwa’s progress. Beyond mockery, they actually started cultivating in earnest.  

     Then, on a night when the North Star burned especially bright, Daiqing’s crew arrived for their routine provocation, only for Ye Mo, invoking her authority as chieftain, to stop them.  

     And then she challenged one of them to a duel.