Goddess Peak is located deep within the Qinling Mountains, stretching for over five hundred miles and teeming with venomous insects and fierce beasts.
Even fully equipped hikers would not dare to set foot there.
Yet, in such an extremely harsh environment, a handsome young man suddenly appeared.
He had a withered piece of foxtail grass dangling from his mouth, and in his right hand, he carried a freshly prepared "wild duck."
Noticing that there was no one around, the young man sneaked a crafty look, then skillfully pulled a complete set of pots and pans from his backpack.
Clearly, he intended to cook for himself and live in comfort.
"You brat! What is that in your pot?!" An angry shout rang out.
Not far away, a classical-looking woman dressed in white palace robes was walking gracefully toward him.
Her stunning face was filled with poorly concealed fury.
"Oh, First Master, you're here."
"Here, have a taste of my cooking."
The young man smiled cheerfully, as if completely unaware of the anger of the woman in the white palace robes.
He casually took the roasted "duck" off the bamboo skewer, and then, acting with the utmost filial piety, tore off a "duck leg" and handed it over.
The woman in white palace robes glared at the young man, her full, perky chest heaving continuously as she took deep breaths.
Her heart was bleeding. This was a celestial bird that she had spent years searching for across famous mountains.
In all likelihood, there was only one such creature left in the entire world.
Never had she expected that today, due to a momentary lapse in concentration, this scoundrel of a boy would get the chance to roast it. It was simply an absolute tragedy.
"It smells so good! What delicious food is this?"
Three more peerless beauties walked over, drawn by the aroma.
They stood side by side, all of them breathtakingly beautiful, yet each possessed a distinct temperament and aesthetic appeal.
"Little Yezi, hasn't Third Master been good to you all this time? When you have something delicious, you don't even think to call Third Master to join you. Third Master truly pampered you in vain."
The beauty standing on the left spoke with dissatisfaction.
Her name was Zhuque. She had a crop of fiery red short hair and purplish-blue pupils, giving her an enchanting and exotic beauty.
The other two beauties were the young man's Second Master, Miaoyi, and Fourth Master, Duyu.
One was well-versed in Buddhism, while the other excelled in Daoism; their temperaments were transcendent and refined, making them seem truly like immortals among mortals.
As for the young man's First Master, the woman in white palace robes, her real name was Jiang Ruxue.
Back in the martial arts world, she was known as the Peerless Medical Immortal, leaving behind numerous legendary tales.
"My three beautiful masters, why have you all come? There's only this little bit of meat, it's not enough to eat," Ye Wushuang complained with a grievance-filled expression, looking at the peerless beauties who had followed the scent as his lips jutted out high.
"Wait, something's wrong. Why does this roasted duck's head look exactly like Big Sister's little crane? And the firewood underneath... it looks like I've seen it somewhere before."
Third Master Zhuque rubbed her chin, a strange expression suddenly appearing on her face.
"Th-This... isn't this my Guqin?"
Fourth Master Duyu was no longer transcendent and calm; her voice trembled slightly.
In her life, she loved only a sword and a zither. Her sword never left her side, but her zither had been missing for a very long time.
Because of this, she had nearly turned the entire Qinling Mountains upside down, yet she never expected that it would be chopped up into firewood by this obnoxious boy.
Miaoyi could not help the twitch of the corner of her mouth.
Burning a zither to roast a crane—this brat really had some tricks up his sleeve.
The gazes of the four peerless masters converged on him, making Ye Wushuang instantly feel as though needles were pricking his back.
"Four Masters, I'm still young. Can you go a bit easy on me?" Ye Wushuang asked, looking awkward and fidgety.
"Go easy on your head!" First Master Jiang Ruxue was the first to erupt.
With a cold face, she said, "Wushuang, normally we spoil you, and your little antics are one thing, but I never expected you to be so willful and reckless that you'd even dare to roast my little crane."
"Return my zither!" Fourth Master Duyu gnashed her teeth.
Ye Wushuang offered a sheepish smile.
Things had reached this point; he could no longer afford to compensate for the little crane and the guqin, so he could only try to appease them with a smile.
After a brief silence, First Master Jiang Ruxue exchanged glances with the other three.
"Wushuang, in a month, you'll be turning eighteen years old, right?"
"Yes, First Master." Ye Wushuang clearly still had not realized the severity of the situation.
Sighing, Jiang Ruxue quickly spoke again: "In that case, you should head down the mountain right now."
As soon as these words were spoken, Ye Wushuang's smiling face instantly froze.
"No, I know I was wrong... I promise I won't roast things randomly in the future, nor will I chop firewood carelessly, and even less will I ever peek at you masters bathing again! Please don't drive me down the mountain, wuu wuu wuu~"
"Rebellious disciple, what did you say? You even peeked at us bathing?!"
Originally, Second Master Miaoyi had a soft spot and wanted to intercede for him.
Yet upon hearing these words, Miaoyi instantly flew into a rage, her face flushed with shame and anger.
With a sudden sinking feeling in his chest, Ye Wushuang wore a thoroughly dejected expression.
Damn it, he had let it slip.
He had still stood a chance of staying on the mountain, but now it was completely ruined.
"Rebellious disciple, take my sword!" the four beautiful masters shouted in unison.
In the end, Ye Wushuang was driven down the mountain by the four masters acting together, and he didn't even have time to take a single piece of luggage.
"Mind your own business and stay out of trouble. Down the mountain, Martial Grandmasters are everywhere and Martial Grandmasters are as common as dogs. Your meager strength is only slightly better than a little chick."
At the moment of parting, Third Master Zhuque warned him with these words.
This made Ye Wushuang, already immersed in the sorrow of parting, panic even more in his heart.
Martial Grandmasters are everywhere, and Martial Grandmasters are as worthless as dogs?
Are the people down the mountain really this strong?
He'd better keep a low profile to avoid getting beaten to death right after descending the mountain.
At the highest point of Goddess Peak, Second Master Miaoyi assumed a solemn expression.
She looked at Ye Wushuang's departing back and sighed, "Do you think Wushuang will hate us for being heartless?"
Jiang Ruxue's gaze was profound. "Perhaps, but he truly needs to go down the mountain and face the world."
"Five years... I just wonder if it will still be in time," Duyu sighed.
"We do our best and leave the rest to fate. In the end, if it doesn't work out, then we can only..."
Jiang Ruxue did not continue, but Zhuque and the other two understood her meaning instantly.
In a flash, a blush appeared simultaneously on all of their faces.
"You're letting that brat off easy."
The figures of the four peerless beauties flickered and instantly vanished on the spot.
"Cai Kun, President of the Jiangnan Chamber of Commerce."
Once out of the Qinling Mountains, Ye Wushuang fished a yellowed piece of paper out of his back pocket.
This was something Third Master Zhuque had sneaked into his pocket, telling him that the person written on it was an old friend of hers from back in the day.
If Ye Wushuang couldn't make a living after descending the mountain, he could go find this person, who would arrange everything for him.
At this, Ye Wushuang curled his lips in disdain.
He considered himself a proud, upstanding man; even if he were to starve to death outside, even if he were to jump off Goddess Peak from hunger, he would absolutely never live a life of dependency under someone else's roof.
Puting the note away, Ye Wushuang headed all the way east.
According to what his four beautiful masters had said, the most prosperous region in Huaxia was none other than the eastern coastal cities.
Since he had descended the mountain, naturally he had to go and experience it.
A day later, Jinling City in Jiangnan Province.
A sloppy-looking young man appeared here—none other than Ye Wushuang.
At this moment, his heart was filled with resentment toward Third Master Zhuque.
Originally, he had several hundred yuan in his pocket, which would have been enough to sustain him for quite a while.
Yet once he hit the road, he discovered that those few red bills had mysteriously vanished.
Without even having to think, Ye Wushuang knew it was Third Master Zhuque who had played a dirty trick.
She was the only one who loved buying things on impulse.
From the Qinling Mountains to Jiangnan, a journey of over two thousand kilometers—
he had managed to survive relying solely on the two coins in his pocket just to barely make it to Jinling.