Chapter 1351: Long Time No See  

General Yan Long had been startled by what was going on outside. Cthaat's son had brought down thunder and lightning for three whole days, but never had there been a commotion of this sort. Even deep within the cavern, they could hear the thunder rumbling from afar, as though the sky itself were about to be torn asunder.

Very quickly, however, the sound stopped. Silence reigned once more. Even the persistent thunder had stopped.

One human hunter asked, "General, what do you think is happening outside?"

General Yan Long rolled his eyes. "How should I know?"

A Milky Way hunter said, "Listen up! It sounds like someone's calling out!"

"I'm Zhang Lie! The highest authority of the united world federation sent me. I've dealt with Cthaat's son, the enemy outside. If there are still genetic hunters within, you can relax."

The mountain was filled with caves and cellars which spread throughout its bulk. Anyone unfamiliar with the terrain would easily get lost—unless you demolished it all like Cthaat's son.

Zhang Lie was naturally unaware of the interior structure of the mountain, and he didn't intend to step inside. He shouted a few times deep into the mountain to inform any hunters still within, then prepared to leave.

When General Yan Long heard the voice, he was instantly overjoyed.

"Did you hear that? It's Zhang Lie! He's dealt with Cthaat's son outside!"

The hunters of the Milky Way all grabbed hold of General Yan Long. "Hold on, General!"

General Yan Long frowned. "What's the matter?"

The hunters replied, "I know you must be growing tired of the endless darkness after three days of being trapped here, General, and we feel the same way—but do you really think Zhang Lie can take down Cthaat's son?"

General Yan Long frowned. "You think this is a joke?"

Another hunter added, "Even if Zhang Lie could chase Cthaat's son away, wouldn't it take a prolonged fight? Think about how long you heard the commotion for!" General Yan Long seemed perplexed. "Do you think this is a ploy, then?"

The Milky Way hunter replied seriously, "It might be a ploy from Cthaat's son."

Zhang Lie shouted again, "I'll be leaving now!"

General Yan Long shouted, "Hold on, Zhang Lie!"

The remaining hunters hurriedly clamped their hands over his mouth.

They thundered, "What are you doing, General? Didn't you hear that this might be a ploy?"

General Yan Long broke free. "Of course I did—but if Zhang Lie really has taken down Cthaat's son for us, then we have to thank him in person. He was a hunter that I looked very favorably on in the past, and I'm willing to take that risk. Or do you think we should skulk like cowards without even thanking our savior? This isn't the style of the Chinese people."

The hunters of the Milky Way looked at General Yan Long as though he were an idiot.

"I don't understand you Chinese at all. You'd prioritize custom over your life?"

"My second point," General Yan Long continued, "is that Cthaat's son is clearly one for brute force. It's been trying to demolish our mountain for days, enjoying the feeling of toying with us. Why would it suddenly change its strategy?"

The hunters of the Milky Way still seemed doubtful. "Just in case..."

General Yan Long held up a hand to cut them off.

"All of you can stay here. I'll go have a look at the situation."

He stepped toward the face of the mountain through a hidden path, from which he could see clear blue skies. The storm clouds had dissipated, and General Yan Long's thumping heart was finally at ease once more.

Zhang Lie smiled. "Since you've come, you might as well show yourself." magic

General Yan Long climbed out from the hidden tunnel. "Long time no see, Zhang Lie."

Zhang Lie gaped at General Yan Long.

"You?!"

General Yan Long sighed. "How time passes. I remember that, the first time I saw you, you were nothing more than a hunter from the first realm who was just starting to make a name for yourself. In the blink of an eye, you became known across the galaxy for your exploits in the second realm, for becoming the king of Limit, and then the savior of the third realm. Now, I too have been saved by you."

Zhang Lie smiled. "To think you would be in the gathering point that Heavenly Monarch Hong Tianqi once built..."

He had interacted with General Yan Long quite a bit when he first handed the recipe for the limit-breaking potion to China. General Yan Long replied, "Thanks to the Heavenly Monarch's blessing, I'm currently in charge of this gathering point."

"No wonder. Of all the hunters in the fourth realm, only a handful would be trusted by the highest authority of the united world federation, and you're surely one of them."

General Yan Long replied, "Would you like to have a tour of the gathering point?"

Zhang Lie thought for a moment. "Why not? I do have time at the moment."

General Yan Long led him into the mountain, half of which had been sloughed off by Cthaat's son.

From the outside, it looked like a mountain within which countless tunnels had been excavated. From the inside, it looked far more complex, with interconnected routes and tunnels all over, which would cause anyone unused to the gathering point to lose their way.

Zhang Lie praised, "This really is a good location for a gathering point."

Since entering the fourth realm, Zhang Lie had been to two different gathering points, one underground and one mainly aboveground, but neither was higher than Hong Tianqi's gathering point up in the mountains.

"This sort of labyrinthine design prevents any large lifeforms from entering and small lifeforms from leaving. Even with a beast stampede, we'd be able to weather them by turtling down within the mountain. Considering the twisty and branching paths, even the largest group of lifeforms would have to split up. At that point, with a concentrated defense, you'd easily be able to handle the entire stampede."

General Yan Long explained, "The Heavenly Monarch discovered this mountain in the fourth realm, when it was being occupied as a lifeform's lair. The Heavenly Monarch expended great effort and sacrifice in clearing it out. Back then, very few understood why he chose to do so."

In this sort of complicated terrain and environment, the lifeforms that had made this mountain their home would be far more accustomed to their surroundings than Hong Tianqi and his party of hunters.

General Yan Long continued, "Back then, the Heavenly Monarch stated that, as long as we could take down this mountain, we genetic hunters would be able to establish a firm base of operations henceforth, that nothing would stymie us again. We wouldn't have to worry about beast stampedes, and we would have the ability to start trying to resist the aliens in the fourth realm."

Zhang Lie replied, "Without a doubt, Hong Tianqi was right."

General Yan Long laughed bitterly. "But now..."

Half the mountain was gone.

Zhang Lie could sense a few auras coming from within the mountain. Evidently, the genetic hunters of the gathering point were coming out to check on the disturbance.

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