Chapter 3716: Lin Mu’s Birthday! |
Lin Mu’s suspicion only continued growing as the dwarf elder hurried him to return.
The old dwarf refused to answer any direct questions and instead kept muttering vague things about "timing" and "not ruining the surprise." That alone made Lin Mu even more certain something unusual was happening within Mantleheim.
Still, he did not sense any danger.
There was no killing intent.
No instability in the formations.
No signs of battle.
Thus he simply followed along quietly.
The elder finally took out a specially engraved talisman and activated it. Spatial runes spread through the air before a silver gate opened in front of them.
"Come on, quickly!" the elder urged.
The next instant, space folded around him and he arrived within Mantleheim once more.
Though immediately he realized something was strange.
This was not the hall they had originally departed from.
Instead, he found himself standing inside a completely enclosed stone chamber lit by glowing rune lamps embedded into the walls. The place looked ceremonial rather than functional.
Lin Mu glanced around.
The room was empty besides the dwarf elder beside him.
"We arrived somewhere else?" Lin Mu asked.
"Ahem. Slight coordinate adjustment," the elder replied while refusing to make eye contact.
Lin Mu narrowed his eyes slightly.
Definitely suspicious.
Still, before he could ask further questions, the elder suddenly hurried toward the large stone doors at the end of the hall.
"Go on, go on!" he urged excitedly.
Lin Mu stepped forward and pushed the doors open.
The moment he walked outside, the entire world exploded.
BOOOOM!
A deafening blast echoed through the air.
Lin Mu’s instincts reacted instantly.
Immortal Qi surged through his body.
His hand almost moved toward Collapse before he forcibly stopped himself.
The sky above Mantleheim erupted into gigantic torrents of fire.
For a split second, Lin Mu truly thought the city had come under attack.
Several enormous pillars of flame shot high into the dark skies above the lava sea, illuminating the entire kingdom in brilliant reds, golds, blues, and white.
The flames twisted through the air before suddenly stabilizing.
Then the fire transformed into glowing words that stretched across the heavens like a divine proclamation.
"Glory To The Twin Void Pillars!"
"Honor To Lin Mu On His Birthday!"
"May The Pillars Stand Eternal!"
Lin Mu froze.
For several seconds, he simply stared upward blankly while the massive fiery letters burned across the sky above Mantleheim.
Then realization finally struck him.
"...Birthday?" he muttered softly.
Only now did he actually think about the date.
After calculating briefly, Lin Mu realized he had indeed crossed his hundredth year nearly a month ago while remaining occupied within the ring and the Dao Forge.
He honestly had not even noticed.
Cultivation had distorted his sense of time far too much.
Before he could think further though, the entirety of Mantleheim suddenly erupted into cheers.
Thousands upon thousands of dwarves poured out from every district of the massive island kingdom.
The celebration instantly began in full force.
Massive rune lanterns floating through the skies activated simultaneously, releasing colorful lights that reflected against the rivers of lava flowing throughout the city. Huge metal banners unfurled from towers and bridges, each engraved with symbols representing the different dwarven races.
Some banners even carried stylized depictions of the two spears.
Entire avenues had been transformed.
The streets were lined with giant stone tables overflowing with food, roasted beasts, glowing fruits, barrels of ale, immortal wines, and every kind of liquor imaginable. Decorative braziers burned with colored flames while floating runic formations projected enormous illusions overhead.
At the center of the city, several mountain dwarves had actually carved a gigantic statue of Lin Mu into one of the cliffs surrounding Mantleheim. .
Though unfortunately, the proportions were terrible.
The statue’s shoulders were nearly wider than a fortress gate.
Its arms looked capable of uprooting mountains barehanded.
And somehow the face resembled a furious bear more than a human.
Lin Mu stared at it silently for a few moments.
"...Why am I so wide?" he finally asked.
The nearby dwarves looked deeply offended.
"That is heroic width!" one of them declared proudly.
Another nodded immediately.
"A warrior needs broad shoulders!"
Lin Mu decided not to argue.
Meanwhile, the celebrations only became more chaotic.
Huge anvils had been placed throughout the city, and groups of dwarves began striking them rhythmically with specially enchanted hammers. Different tones rang through the air, combining into surprisingly complex music.
Other dwarves joined using swords, axes, chains, shields, and forge tools to create metallic symphonies that echoed throughout the lava island.
Several fireforge dwarves spun flaming chains through the skies.
Rune dwarves activated formations that created massive fireworks resembling dragons, wolves, spears, furnaces, and stars.
Mountain dwarves competed by lifting absurdly huge boulders while already being drunk.
One particularly enthusiastic dwarf tried juggling molten metal.
The resulting explosion destroyed three tables and launched him directly into a fountain of ale.
The crowd applauded anyway.
And before Lin Mu could even process half of it, a familiar figure suddenly shot toward him at terrifying speed.
"LIN MU!"
Cattaleya reached him first.
Then before he could react, the giant woman scooped him up effortlessly and threw him straight into the air.
Lin Mu blinked in confusion as he flew upward several hundred meters.
The entire city cheered below him.
Cattaleya laughed loudly.
"HAPPY BIRTHDAY!"
Lin Mu landed back down lightly while rubbing his forehead helplessly.
"You people really planned all this?" he asked.
"Of course!" Cattaleya grinned.
Soon the others arrived as well.
Meng Bai hurried over excitedly.
"Master! Happy birthday!"
Daoist Chu smiled while raising a cup.
"A proper birthday," the handsome daoist chuckled. "We’re finally getting to celebrate."
Elyon gave a respectful nod as well.
Even Shrubby and the twins rushed over excitedly.
The black and white twins immediately climbed onto Lin Mu while chirping happily.
Shrubby pressed his massive head against Lin Mu affectionately, nearly knocking over several nearby dwarves in the process.
Lin Mu smiled warmly while petting them.
Then finally Jing Wei approached calmly through the crowd while carrying a large mug of ale.
"Happy birthday, brat," the old man said with a grin.