South Mountain

After arriving at South Mountain, Chu Danqing had the coachman return first.

There was no point in staying here. South Mountain was not small, and he had already inquired about the relevant information.

South Mountain was simply a deep mountain range that had barely been developed. Other than a temple atop the mountain named South Mountain Temple, only hunters, herb farmers, and the like went up the mountain.

Thus, tigers, leopards, wolves, jackals, venomous snakes, and fierce beasts were plentiful. Aside from the road leading to South Mountain Temple, few people traveled through the other areas.

Chu Danqing did not know when he would come down the mountain, so he did not make the coachman wait. It was not as though he had no legs to walk back on.

With a Constitution of 6, climbing the mountain was not particularly strenuous for him. He even had the leisure to admire the scenery.

Speaking of ancient times, not everything was inferior to modern times. The environment and air, for instance, were indeed far better than the steel city where Chu Danqing had lived.

"Person." After climbing for roughly an hour, Da Bao suddenly pointed at the snow nearby.

"An ambush?" Chu Danqing immediately became vigilant. Who would hide beneath the snow for no reason? His first thought was bandits planning to attack passersby.

But Da Bao shook his head. "Fainted. Drag out?"

"Drag him out." Upon hearing that, Chu Danqing figured the man might truly have run into trouble.

He was not the sort of person who could stand by and watch someone die.

Da Bao quickly hauled out a person—a young man of about twenty-five or twenty-six. His clothes were thick and clearly quite valuable.

Otherwise, he would have frozen to death by the roadside long ago in this bitter midwinter.

Chu Danqing gave him a simple examination but could not spot any problem. He took out some hot water and fed it to him.

Chu Danqing was not a professional medic, and his means of saving people were extremely limited.

As for using recovery-type consumables, the other man did not look like he was about to die, so there was no need to be so extravagant for now.

After being fed nearly half a bowl of hot water, the man slowly woke up.

"Th-thank you, brother, for saving me." The moment he woke, he began thanking him.

"You are welcome. How did you faint in the snow by the roadside?" Chu Danqing helped him up and asked curiously.

"It is a long story." As he spoke, the man revealed a bitter smile. "My name is Guo Ming. I came to Yangxian County on business."

"I heard that South Mountain Temple was quite efficacious, so I brought my servant here for a visit. Who would have thought that, when a cold wind blew past, I accidentally fell?"

"I fainted while rolling down the cliff, and I do not even know where my servant went." Guo Ming tightened his clothes, trying to warm himself.

"Ah, well..." Chu Danqing looked over the marks on Guo Ming's body. He had indeed rolled down from above, and he had quite a few injuries.

"Then what do you plan to do next?" Chu Danqing asked.

He could send Guo Ming down the mountain, but the foot of South Mountain was still quite far from Yangxian County. He could not possibly escort him all the way back to the city for treatment.

Chu Danqing still had to get rid of that Zhanji Tiger.

"This place is not far from South Mountain Temple. I ask that you send me up to the temple for some treatment."

"The monks in the temple should have no shortage of medicinal pills, ointments, and medicated wine for bruises and sprains." Guo Ming understood that the journey to South Mountain Temple was shorter than returning to Yangxian County.

Chu Danqing agreed with that, but quickly thought of a question. "Where is your servant?"

"Even if you rolled down the mountain, wouldn't your servant have chased after you all the way down?"

"Why are you the only one left?"

At those words, Guo Ming seemed to realize it as well. He looked around in all directions. "I truly do not know. Perhaps he did not see me?"

"How is that possible? With injuries like yours, you could not have rolled very far." Chu Danqing directly dismissed the explanation, then sized him up from head to toe. "Otherwise, you would have lost your life long ago."

As he spoke, he casually cast a Scrutiny Technique on him.

The main reason was that there were contradictions in the man's words.

Digitized information surfaced. They were merely the attributes of an ordinary person.

That put Chu Danqing at ease. He had just thought Guo Ming might be the Zhanji Tiger in disguise.

"My servant was born into my household and has grown up in my family since childhood. He is extremely loyal."

"He could never have run away."

"Besides, this place is unfamiliar to him. Where could he possibly run to?" Guo Ming immediately explained. He still trusted that servant greatly.

Chu Danqing did not continue arguing. Instead, he said, "Then let us go up the mountain first. How could such a living person simply vanish?"

Guo Ming wanted to search, but his injuries truly left him powerless to do so.

Thus, he could only say, "Then I shall follow your lead, brother."

As he spoke, Da Bao supported Guo Ming, and the three of them headed up the mountain together.

Along the way, Chu Danqing and Guo Ming chatted idly, probing each other's purposes in passing.

"Brother Chu is actually an Attendant of the Lu family. That is truly remarkable." After learning Chu Danqing's identity, Guo Ming could not help looking at him with solemn respect.

"You know of the Lu family too?" Chu Danqing looked slightly surprised. He had thought the Lu family only had some renown in Yangxian.

"How could I not? Though the Lu family occupies one corner in peace, their ancestors were..." Guo Ming recounted the Lu family's former glory as though it were familiar household lore.

"So the Lu family has such a grand origin." Chu Danqing followed up on the topic, then casually asked, "What did you come to Yangxian County for?"

It was not that he was deliberately prying. They simply had no other topic left to discuss.

"To be honest, this is not my first time at South Mountain Temple." Guo Ming smiled. "I came here to visit an old friend."

"Several years ago, I traveled here and, through a strange twist of fate, became acquainted with the hunter Liu Wu."

"I originally planned to visit Liu Wu, but my heart itched with impatience, so I decided to first visit South Mountain Temple and enjoy the snowy scenery."

"I concealed this matter before. I hope Brother Chu will forgive me." Guo Ming clasped his hands in salute.

Chu Danqing did not mind. This explanation was far more reasonable.

"Your hobby is certainly unusual. In the dead of winter, you actually wanted to climb a mountain." Chu Danqing was rather speechless. If he were not a Dimension Apostle but merely an ordinary person, how comfortable would it be to sleep at home in this weather?

The snow had fallen so heavily it had become a disaster. Only people of such uncommon status could have this kind of refined leisure.

"The wind and snow... are growing stronger." Da Bao suddenly said.

Chu Danqing's steps paused. With Da Bao's reminder, he noticed that the wind and snow were much heavier now than when he had been at the foot of the mountain.

Because they had increased little by little, the process had not been so obvious. Coupled with his conversation with Guo Ming, Chu Danqing had overlooked it.

He was not cold. The White Wool Robe and Silver Scale Cloud Brocade were warm in winter and cool in summer, with excellent warmth and cold resistance.

Guo Ming's clothing was also thick. He was not cold either, but his efficiency in climbing the mountain had been affected.

"About two or three li north of here, there is a small hut built by Liu Wu. We can go there to take shelter from the wind and snow for a while." Seeing this, Guo Ming made a suggestion.

People who made their living in the mountains would build small huts there for supplies and shelter. Liu Wu, as a hunter, naturally had them too—and more than one.

Guo Ming had stayed there before and knew its approximate location.