Chapter 847: The Gate to Immortality

"Xi Quanqiu?" Zu An was startled. How could he not be familiar with that name? The Qin Emperor's lingering soul in the secret realm had told him to go to Xi Quanqiu as soon as possible, but he had searched every information channel without finding a single clue. He never imagined he would arrive here by such a coincidence.

He immediately realized something and quickly looked at Mi Li: "No wonder you've been so distracted lately. Is it because you're revisiting an old place?"

A hint of nostalgia appeared in Mi Li's eyes. "Seeing familiar things always unintentionally brings back some unpleasant memories."

Zu An recalled that she had been sealed by the Qin Emperor, and there must have been a fierce conflict between them. On one hand, seeing these familiar places would evoke nostalgic memories of the past, but thinking of the Qin Emperor would likely trigger other negative emotions.

"Have you been here before? Does that mean I'll have an easy time now?" Zu An chuckled.

Mi Li rolled her eyes. "You wish. This place was painstakingly managed by successive Qin kings; generally, only the king could enter or exit, not even the empress or crown prince. I only had some peripheral knowledge of it from reading many books when I was empress, but my understanding is limited. It was pure luck that I managed to figure out the path to the island just now. We might not be so fortunate next time."

Despite her words, her mood had lightened. After being together for so long, how could she not see that Zu An was deliberately teasing her to cheer her up? While touched, she also thought he was a bit of a scoundrel; not only his enemies, but even she sometimes wanted to hit him.

"Having you as a guide is better than me guessing blindly," Zu An said with a smile, then led Bi Linglong further forward. Suddenly, an exotic fragrance wafted towards them, and they followed the scent.

Turning past a massive rock, the view suddenly opened up. A shimmering, large lake appeared before them, its surface like a captivating aquamarine gem, arguably the most beautiful blue they had ever seen.

The lakeside was abloom with flowers, and many fruit trees grew there, mostly peach trees. Each peach tree was laden with heavy, ripe peaches, each one blush-pink with a white hue, several times larger than ordinary honey peaches. Their exotic fragrance could be smelled from afar.

"Are these the legendary Jade Pond and Peaches of Immortality?" Bi Linglong's heart pounded. She instinctively took a step forward, unable to resist the temptation. Having severely depleted her vitality earlier by using forbidden techniques, her body now instinctively craved such a restorative.

Zu An's brows furrowed slightly. He felt something was off, but couldn't quite put his finger on it.

Just then, a sinister laugh came from behind them: "You little brat, I've finally caught you!"

Zu An's hairs immediately stood on end. Even Bi Linglong, who had been walking forward, shivered in fright and quickly turned around, the terror of the voice clearly overriding everything else.

Zhao Ruizhi stood nearby, sneering at them. He didn't attack from behind; given his status, he disdained sneak attacks. He wanted to torment them face-to-face, to watch them break down with remorse and regret, then plead tearfully.

He Li followed behind him, looking on as if watching a show, thinking how the adulterous pair had been flaunting their affection, infuriating everyone, and that today, they would see how they died.

Zu An shielded Bi Linglong behind him and asked in a low voice, "How did you get up here?"

The floating islands on both sides clearly had different movement patterns, which was why he hadn't worried about them seeing how he got across.

"Mere positions based on the I Ching's eight trigrams. A bit of deduction was all it took to figure it out; it couldn't possibly stop me," Zhao Ruizhi said proudly.

Mi Li couldn't help but exclaim, "This emperor is truly a heaven-sent genius! No wonder he became the most powerful person in this world."

Only she truly understood how profound and complex the patterns derived from the I Ching's eight trigrams were. She never imagined that he could decipher them in such a short time and even adapt them to the path leading to the island.

Just then, one of the King of Qi's assassins suddenly shouted, "Peaches of Immortality! The legendary peaches from the Jade Pond!"

Clearly, they had also spotted the peach trees by the lake. Remembering the mythical legends, their eyes reddened. Disregarding the emperor's imposing presence, they rushed towards the lake, picked the peaches, and stuffed them into their mouths, instantly eating them so that juice flowed freely.

Zhao Ruizhi had also smelled the exotic fragrance in the air, but his mind had been so consumed by hatred and rage towards Zu An that he only now noticed the beautiful lake and the peach grove beside it.

His breathing quickened. Other things might not have affected him much, but the legendary peaches of the Jade Pond were said to grant immortality.

Although he harbored some doubts, as a person approached old age, the fear of death would grow stronger, eventually dominating all other thoughts. He wouldn't let go of even the slightest possibility of achieving immortality.

Seeing the King of Qi's assassins frantically eating the peaches, Zhao Ruizhi secretly fumed. These things were his; how could these people spoil them?

He temporarily disregarded Zu An, thinking that now that they were on the island, killing him would be effortless. It was better to focus on immortality first.

With a single stride, he instantly appeared beside the largest peach tree in the grove. This tree was dozens of people thick, clearly extraordinary. He leaped onto it, plucked one of the largest peaches, and put it into his mouth.

"Mmm~"

Even though his imperial life had accustomed him to all sorts of delicacies, at this moment, he felt every pore of his body trembling with delight.

It was incredibly delicious!

More importantly, a warm current spread through his stomach, and he could even feel the vibrant life force within it.

"It really grants immortality!"

Zhao Ruizhi's pupils contracted slightly, and his expression suddenly became excited. For so many years, he had searched relentlessly, sending countless experts across mountains and seas, all to no avail. Yet, heaven had not let down the diligent; today, he had finally found the method to eternal life!

Seeing the group descend into a frenzy, Zu An quickly pulled Bi Linglong and ran. "Let's go!"

He immediately activated his 'Great Wind' technique, teleporting in a different direction as they escaped.

Their actions did not escape Zhao Ruizhi's notice, but his mind was now entirely consumed by thoughts of immortality, leaving him no time to care about anything else.

As long as he could achieve immortality, what did it matter if he gave away one woman, or even all the women in his imperial harem?

Zu An ran quickly, specifically choosing dense forest areas to conceal their movements.

After running for an unknown distance, he finally breathed a sigh of relief when he saw that Zhao Ruizhi hadn't pursued them.

Bi Linglong couldn't help but say, "It seems those really are the legendary Peaches of Immortality from the Jade Pond; they must grant eternal life. Otherwise, given his nature, he would never have let us escape."

Zu An chuckled. "Who cares if they're Peaches of Immortality or not? The most important thing is that we're still alive."

"True," Bi Linglong smiled. If one could truly live forever, but were killed today, that would be truly infuriating.

Yet, despite this, her face was filled with regret. "A'Zu, I truly admire you. Faced with something that grants immortality, even an emperor can't avoid its temptation, yet you treated it as nothing. There are probably few people in the world who could do that."

"I'm different from most people." Zu An didn't know how to explain it. He had cultivated the 'Hongmeng Primordial Scripture,' which had not only strengthened his body but also made him immune to illness and disaster. Back then, Qiao Xueying had also shared half of her elven life force with him. Furthermore, he had practiced the 'Phoenix Nirvana Scripture,' which was rumored to grant immortality when cultivated to its peak. Therefore, he didn't have such a strong desire for eternal life.

However, he immediately thought that while he didn't need them, he had so many confidantes. He should have picked some for them to take back. Thinking of this, he felt a pang of regret.

At that moment, Mi Li sneered, "You actually thought those were the Peaches of Immortality from the Jade Pond?"

Zu An was stunned. "They weren't?"

"Of course not," Mi Li scoffed. "The Qin Emperor pursued immortality his entire life but never achieved it. If he had found the Peaches of Immortality, he would surely still be alive, and I wouldn't be here."

Zu An realized that since the Qin Emperor was dead, he naturally hadn't found the elixir of immortality. So what were those peaches they had just seen?

Meanwhile, back at the lakeside, after Zhao Ruizhi had swallowed three of the largest peaches, he felt three flowers slowly blooming atop his head.

A thrill ran through him. Was this the legendary "Three Flowers Gathering at the Peak"?

Legend said that three flowers atop one's head were a sign of an immortal.

At that moment, strains of celestial music drifted through the air. Clouds gathered and dispersed in the sky, flashing with brilliant light, as a majestic immortal gate slowly opened.

Countless fairies and celestial youths waved to him from beyond. In the depths of his being, a voice told him that merely by stepping through that immortal gate, he would officially join the ranks of immortals.

Eternal life, becoming a true immortal!

Zhao Ruizhi swallowed hard and walked irresistibly towards the immortal gate. With each step he took, a floating cloud appeared before his feet, as if the gate were specifically ushering him upward.

Ascending the steps, he quickly reached the immortal gate. As he extended his foot to step inside, he suddenly froze.