A man from the Big Dipper, starting his charlatanship at Mount Tai.

"Did such an ancient era truly exist?"

"If it really existed, Mount Tai would undoubtedly have been a sacred place during that period."

As Ye Fan sighed, a gentle, refined voice sounded from behind him:

"Young friend, do you mean that you think Mount Tai is no longer a sacred place?"

"No, I didn't."

Ye Fan hurriedly denied it, saying that he had just made a casual remark, so how did he suddenly get accused of "disrespecting Mount Tai"?

Turning his head to look behind him, Ye Fan saw a young man in a Taoist robe with an ethereal air, and he immediately narrowed his eyes.

It feels so familiar, so very familiar.

However, the next second, the Taoist priest, who looked like a reclusive master, changed the subject.

"Actually, I think so too."

"It's all that bastard Emperor Zhenzong of Song, Zhao Heng,' who ruined the sacredness of the Fengshan ceremony at Mount Tai, making subsequent emperors afraid to go up Mount Tai. Otherwise, Mount Tai's reputation would definitely be much greater than it is now."

The more Ye Fan listened to the tone and voice, the more familiar it seemed. After thinking for a moment, Ye Fan took the initiative to speak:

"Master, why do I feel like we've met before?"

Lin Xiu lightly waved his whisk and performed a Tai Chi-style cupped-hand salute.

"The Heavenly Venerable Who Blesses and Helps Others Cross Tribulations".

"My Taoist name is Zhengchun. I had a brief friendship with the believer when we were young and naive."

"Ok?"

After hearing the Taoist's answer, Ye Fan became even more puzzled.

"The Heavenly Venerable Who Blesses the One Who Transcends Tribulation? Shouldn't it be the Heavenly Venerable Who Blesses the One Who Grants Boundless Blessings?"

"And... a friendship across the window? I've only ever heard of a friendship between classmates."

Lin Xiu shook his head helplessly, and had no intention of teasing Ye Fan any further, resuming normal communication.

"Alright, my secular name is Lin Xiu. Ye Zi, do you understand now?"

"Lin Xiu...Lin Xiu?"

"You're Master Lin!"

Ye Fan suddenly realized and finally recognized Lin Xiu's identity. There was no way around it; three years had passed since graduation, and it was really difficult for him to recognize a classmate who wasn't exactly a close friend back then.

If Lin Xiu hadn't been so peculiar, Ye Fan probably wouldn't have recognized him for a while longer.

During his high school years, Lin Xiu was given the nickname "Lin the Half-Immortal" for various reasons.

First, Lin Xiu has an outstanding appearance and a very refined temperament, truly giving off a bit of an immortal vibe.

Secondly, Lin Xiu often sleeps in class. Of course, according to him personally, he is practicing Taoism.

Third, Lin Xiu often does some superstitious things, and even frequently takes leave to go out. The reasons he gives for taking bereavement leave are enough to make the family genealogy go through three rounds of extinction.

If Lin Xiu hadn't had such good grades, he would have been expelled from school long ago.

Of course, Lin Xiu didn't care about that at the time. Back then, Lin Xiu had just discovered how to make money using his cheat system and was frantically earning money to help with his cultivation.

Is being expelled from school a big deal? At worst, you can just buy a private school and continue your studies.

.......

"Hahaha~ Lin Banxian, I didn't expect it to be such a coincidence that I ran into you on Mount Tai."

"What, did you come to Mount Tai to seek immortality and enlightenment?"

Ye Fan laughed heartily, but it wasn't because he looked down on Lin Xiu.

On the one hand, he genuinely believed it.

On the other hand, he felt that Lin Xiu's temperament was more refined than before, and perhaps he had really found some way.

"Indeed, I have come to Mount Tai to witness a momentous event that is rare throughout the ages. I wonder if my young friend Ye Fan would be willing to accompany me for a while?"

"Traveling together for a while? No problem, no problem, meeting is fate~" Ye Fan was just feeling bored at the class reunion when Lin Xiu, this interesting person, came to his door.

"Master Lin, please?" Ye Fan smiled and gestured for him to enter.

"Young friend Ye, please?"

Lin Xiu raised his hand slightly, signaling Ye Fan to go first.

The two exchanged a smile and began their tour of Mount Tai together.

.........

"Master Lin, what important event have you come to witness?"

"Mount Tai is the place where the Heavenly Emperor originated. This humble Taoist has come here specifically to deceive...and protect the Heavenly Emperor!"

Ye Fan didn't know why Lin Xiu recited "protect" twice. Could it be that... Lin the Half-Immortal often travels to areas inhabited by ethnic minorities, and his Mandarin has become slurred?

However, Ye Fan didn't pay too much attention to it and continued to ask:

"Is the Heavenly Emperor that Lin Banxian mentioned referring to the Jade Emperor?"

"No, no, I, the Heavenly Emperor, am not surnamed Zhang."

"Oh? Not surnamed Zhang? Then what is your surname?"

"If I said my surname was Ye, would you believe me, young friend?"

"Oh? Surname Ye? Does Lin Bansian mean... me?"

"Yes."

"Hahaha~ Lin Banxian, you're really joking~ If I were the Heavenly Emperor, wouldn't you be Laozi, the Supreme Lord Lao?"

"Haha~ It's not impossible, young friend Ye. You may not know, but I am a Taoist priest."

"Very well, very well, since that's the case, Supreme Lord Lao, shouldn't you present me with this month's elixir?" Ye Fan asked with a smile, rubbing his hands together like a fly.

"No rush, no rush~ Once the Heavenly Emperor embarks on his journey west to protect Tang Sanzang on his pilgrimage to the West, this humble Taoist will present him with the elixir of immortality~"

Hearing Lin Xiu ask him to go on a journey to the West, Ye Fan felt something was off: "Huh? Lin the Half-Immortal, have you switched roles? What happened to the Heavenly Emperor? How did you become Sun Wukong?"

"Why? Because only Sun Wukong would be so eager as to ask Laozi for the elixir of immortality, right? Hahaha~"

"Wonderful! Wonderful! I see! I see!"

The two looked at each other and smiled, pointing at each other in the air, mimicking the smiling faces of Laozi and Sun Wukong.

Ye Fan only felt that Lin Xiu's skills in deceiving people were getting better and better, but little did he know that Lin Xiu was not actually deceiving him.

Chapter 3 Ye Fan: My car!

Lin Xiu and Ye Fan climbed the mountain while discussing the strange tales of ancient sages.

As they were talking, Lin Xiu heard a system notification in his ear.

【ding~】

[The favorability rating for the special character "Ye Fan" has reached 60 points, meeting the criteria for a change in destiny.]

"Sigh~ Ye Hei was quite easy to fool when he was young."

Lin Xiu smiled happily because, according to the system's judgment, the stronger one's strength, the more important one's role in the plot, and the stronger one's power of destiny, the higher the reward one would receive after changing one's destiny.

Lin Xiu was really looking forward to seeing what good stuff Ye Fan, a protagonist-level character, could give him.

.......

Meanwhile, in the other mountaineering group, Ye Fan's classmates were also having a lively discussion.

"Wang Ziwen, I heard you're doing quite well in Beiping? Perfect timing, I'm in Beiping too, let's keep in touch when I get back!"

Wang Ziwen has a refined appearance and is skilled at socializing. She was one of the organizers and initiators of this class reunion. She was a very active person in college, and it is said that she has been doing very well in another city for the past three years, and her assets are already quite substantial. Therefore, many classmates gathered around Wang Ziwen.

"Alright, Liu Yunzhi, don't be discouraged. It's just a Mercedes-Benz. Who knows if Ye Fan rented it?"

Liu Yunzhi had some conflicts with Ye Fan during their university years, and last night he deliberately pointed out in front of their classmates that Ye Fan had arrived by taxi, wanting to embarrass him. Ye Fan didn't refute this, but simply drove off in his Mercedes-Benz, a silent retort.

"Li Xiaoman, you brought this blond handsome guy here this time, you wouldn't be planning to introduce him to everyone, would you?"

The girl named Lin Jia, with bright eyes and white teeth, asked Li Xiaoman, who was standing next to her, with great gossip.

Li Xiaoman is Ye Fan's ex-girlfriend. After graduating from university, she went abroad to study. This time, she rushed back and brought a foreign man with her, which inevitably makes people think that she deliberately brought him back to show off to her ex-boyfriend.

"No, Lin Jia. I just brought him here to experience the local customs and culture."

Li Xiaoman smiled slightly, her long black hair fluttering in the wind, and naturally took over the conversation.

"His name is Cade. He is currently learning Chinese. Please be kind to him if he encounters any difficulties."

“Mud… pull… I, Shikade, this mountain… is very good.” The blond youth, Cade, was very cheerful. Although they couldn’t understand each other’s language, everyone could feel his curiosity and enthusiasm.

Lin Xiu turned his head and glanced at her, his eyes meeting Li Xiaoman's.

However, Lin Xiu knew that Li Xiaoman wasn't looking at him, but rather pretending to glance at Ye Fan beside him.

Lin Xiu coughed a few times and nodded with a sigh:

"Yes, learning a foreign language is good; we really need to learn one!"

"Cough cough!...Cough cough cough cough!!~"

Upon hearing Lin Xiu's reply, Ye Fan couldn't hold back any longer and started coughing tactically. Of course, he knew what learning a foreign language meant.

However, he didn't think Li Xiaoman would be so casual.

.......

Before long, Lin Xiu and Ye Fan arrived at the summit of Mount Tai with the main group.

On the summit of Jade Emperor Peak.

Ye Fan looked at the other classmates who were still flattering Liu Yunzhi, Wang Ziwen and other successful classmates, and a hint of displeasure and helplessness flashed in his eyes.

It wasn't that he was jealous of people who were doing well; he just didn't really like this kind of class reunion format.

Ye Fan was not an opportunist and valued relationships highly. Before meeting Lin Xiu, he had been actively communicating with some of his classmates who had been neglected.

However, after Lin Xiu arrived, Ye Fan found him so interesting that he continued to travel with him.