Spiritual Land

Qingshan stretched out, white mist ascending.

Deep within the Dense Forest, Fang Yuan and the Flower Fox Ferret transformed into two Black Shadows, darting forward at a speed almost imperceptible to the naked eye of a Mortal.

This trip to search for Spiritual Fertilizer was crucial for his Martial Dao development, leaving him no choice but to be urgent.

After half a day, the man and beast arrived deep within Qingling Mountain.

"Come, eat!"

Fang Yuan looked up at the sky. Through the dense foliage of the forest, the light spots no longer seemed dazzling, and a scorching sun could be vaguely seen in the sky.

With the Red Jade Spirit Rice depleted, he naturally returned to eating rice balls made from Pearl Jade Crystal Rice. However, for the man and beast whose palates had been spoiled, this was simply torture.

Take the Flower Fox Ferret, for instance. It immediately disdainfully pushed aside the rice ball and leaped into a thicket. Before long, it dragged out a mountain pheasant with vibrant, multicolored tail feathers.

"You truly are a little glutton!"

Fang Yuan cursed with a smile, yet he skillfully gutted the pheasant, washed it in the stream, added some coarse salt he carried, wrapped it in green leaves, coated it with mud, and roasted it in the bonfire.

Before long, a beggar's chicken was freshly baked.

When he smashed open the mud seal and peeled away the green leaves, an astonishing aroma wafted out.

"Mmm... It melts in your mouth, rich but not greasy. It's truly so fresh it makes your eyebrows want to fall off..."

This was also a famous dish in his dream memories. Fang Yuan casually recreated it, immediately making the Flower Fox Ferret eat with delight, wishing it could go hunt another pheasant.

"The dream world is also real and true..."

Fang Yuan had long since realized that his dream memories were too vivid, as if he had truly lived in that world and spent many years there.

"Or perhaps... according to the popular saying in that world, it's another form of 'transmigration.' The difference is that I am now a fusion of two sets of real memories, with no distinction between which is superior... "

His eyes were clear, filled with understanding. "The me now, is Fang Yuan!"

"Let's go!"

After eating his fill, Fang Yuan continued on his way with the Flower Fox Ferret.

The depths of Qingling Mountain were unfathomable, filled with rare birds, exotic beasts, jackals, tigers, and leopards. Even seasoned hunters and herbalists dared not venture too deep.

But for Fang Yuan and the Flower Fox Ferret, whether it was the deep ravines and vines along the way or the ferocious beasts, they were merely things to be dealt with casually. Unconsciously, they had surpassed Fang Yuan's previous furthest exploration range and were still venturing deeper.

"Roar!"

Just as Fang Yuan was pressing forward, a mighty roar suddenly came from ahead. Trees toppled, and then a giant tiger with a fearsome gaze and a white forehead leaped out.

"Indeed, the deep mountains and old forests are full of fierce beasts!"

Fang Yuan didn't even blink, lightly pressing his right palm forward: "Black Sand Palm!"

The Black Sand Palm had reached its fifth layer, returning to simplicity. Even when channeling his energy to the extreme, his palms and arms looked no different from usual, except for a faint black circle on his palm.

Bang!

With a muffled sound, Fang Yuan's palm landed squarely on the tiger's forehead, sending it rolling to the ground.

However, tigers were the most ferocious. This giant tiger had thick skin and flesh. It flipped over and pounced again, coming behind Fang Yuan. Its whip-like tail stood erect and, like lightning, lashed out at his back.

Screech!

On Fang Yuan's back, his clothes exploded, scattering like butterflies in the wind.

"Hmm? This tiger is not ordinary. Even if it's not a spirit beast, it's not much different from the mutated Pearl-tailed Snake before..."

Even though the skull was the hardest part, Fang Yuan was somewhat surprised that it could withstand a blow from his Black Sand Palm.

As for the tail whip?

With the Iron Cloth Shirt for defense, and the tiger at the end of its strength, Fang Yuan didn't really care.

He touched his back at this moment, not feeling much pain. If one were to look from the Flower Fox Ferret's perspective, they would see a red mark appear on his back, which quickly faded away.

"Roar!"

The giant tiger, seeing how terrifying Fang Yuan was, immediately turned around, tucked its tail between its legs, and fled.

However, it hadn't run a few steps before it staggered and fell to the ground like a drunken strongman. Before long, black blood began to flow out.

"The venom of the mutated Pearl-tailed Snake, combined with the Black Sand Palm, is simply invincible!"

Fang Yuan sighed slightly at this. "Especially this Black Sand Palm, which looks straightforward but is actually poison-based. Wouldn't it be better to call it Poison Sand Palm?"

"What a pity about the tiger bones..."

Now that the giant tiger was poisoned beyond saving, its flesh, blood, and fur were ruined, which Fang Yuan found somewhat regrettable.

"Caw caw!"

The Flower Fox Ferret strutted past, its anthropomorphic face displaying a look of disdain.

To it, besides spirit rice and spirit tea, what was meat if it couldn't be eaten?

"However... there truly is something unusual in this mountain!"

Fang Yuan continued forward, his expression becoming solemn.

From the Flower Fox Ferret before, to the mutated Pearl-tailed Snake, and now the giant Tiger, all point to one problem.

This Qingling Mountain is not simple!

Perhaps it's influenced by some mysterious existence.

And where the Flower Fox Ferret is leading him now might not be unrelated to this influence; it might even be a chance to find the main culprit!

"Cluck cluck!"

As Fang Yuan ventured deeper, the Flower Fox Ferret seemed to grow more excited, yet also subtly wary, gesturing with its paws.

"Does this mean we're almost there?"

Fang Yuan perked up and glanced at the sky. The last sliver of the setting sun was about to dip behind the mountains, and darkness was descending upon the land.

"Let's take a look in this last bit of time!"

Fang Yuan gritted his teeth and, with the Flower Fox Ferret, pushed aside the dense, forest-like grass.

Whoosh!

Unbeknownst to him, the mist around them had thickened, coalescing into clouds and obscuring their vision.

"This mist... something's wrong!"

It was normal for the mountain to be shrouded in mist year-round, but this white mist was far too dense.

After a few more steps, visibility dropped to almost zero. Vaguely, a tremendous sense of weariness washed over him, making Fang Yuan's eyelids heavy, compelling him to close his eyes and fall asleep.

"Sleep... sleep..."

A soft whisper seemed to caress his ears, intoxicating and bone-chilling, piercing his heart.

"Wait... I can't sleep here. If I really fall asleep, everything will be over..."

His spiritual energy, nearly half again that of an ordinary person, finally proved useful, allowing Fang Yuan to maintain a sliver of clarity, but that was all.

Even with his consciousness barely awake, his limbs felt as if they were cast in lead, unable to move. Even retreating became a luxury.

"Damn it, if I'm falling for this, how did the Flower Fox Ferret get through before?"

Fang Yuan was filled with confusion. He seemed to hear the Flower Fox Ferret's anxious cries, but they grew fainter and more distant, gradually blurring.

"Sleep! Sleep... after you sleep, everything will be alright..."

The drowsiness intensified. Fang Yuan's eyelids closed, then snapped open again. He shook his head and gritted his teeth, "Damn it... this white mist is problematic!"

He forced himself to sit cross-legged, circulating his internal energy to resist.

However, the furnace in his lower abdomen, usually burning intensely hot, was utterly useless against this power.

"Sleep... sleep..."

The faint voice by his ear became even more ethereal.

Suddenly, Fang Yuan jolted. A scene appeared before him.

It was an old man in white robes, with white hair and white beard, white eyebrows, calmly sitting by a spring, sipping tea and discussing the Dao: "My Sitting-Forgetting Tea Ceremony is based on faith, severing ties, calming the mind, and simplifying affairs. When the four roots are completely removed, true observation can be achieved, leading to great tranquility and the pursuit of the Dao!"

"The mind is the master of the body, the commander of a hundred spirits. When still, wisdom arises; when agitated, confusion ensues. In the midst of joy and illusion, only what is spoken is true; within the sweet banquet of action, who perceives the false? It must be a great dream to understand that all aspects of life, the cycle of all things, are merely the mind's evolution, a grand dream, and who can truly know themselves..."

"Master!"

As these scenes of memory surfaced, Fang Yuan found his sleepiness completely gone, his expression dazed.

He was now certain that the Heart-Questioning Hermit was no ordinary person!

Furthermore, he hadn't taught him nothing.

This Sitting-Forgetting Tea Ceremony was the most precious gift he had received.

"Cluck cluck!"

"Cluck cluck!"

With his mind settled, Fang Yuan looked at the white mist again, finding it no different from ordinary mountain fog. The Flower Fox Ferret beside him, however, was growing impatient, even dragging over a long banana leaf filled with clear spring water that exuded a chilling aura.

"You're okay?"

Fang Yuan's eyes flickered, and he immediately understood: "Is this strange power only targeting humans? Or are beasts pure of heart and thus unaffected?"

Clearly, the Flower Fox Ferret had not been treated the same way when it passed through here before, otherwise, it wouldn't have brought Fang Yuan.

"Thank you for your trouble!"

Having figured this out, Fang Yuan didn't trouble the Flower Fox Ferret and directly drank the spring water from the banana leaf.

"This water..."

The spring water was clear and sweet, carrying a subtle, chilling energy that went straight to his lungs.

Fang Yuan only took a sip, and his whole body jolted. A coolness surged through him, making him feel incredibly invigorated.

"What a spring! What water!"

Even he couldn't help but praise it.

Fang Yuan had drunk plenty of mountain spring water before, but water of this quality was truly rare.

"No, this isn't ordinary spring water anymore. It's Spirit Water! Spirit Water!"

Fang Yuan's eyes shone brightly as he looked at the Flower Fox Ferret. "Where did this Spirit Water... come from?"

"Giggle!"

The Flower Fox Ferret stood up on its hind legs, its small paws pointing forward.

"Over there again!"

Fang Yuan's expression turned solemn.

He had a vague premonition that the depths of this mist were likely the source of the entire Qingling Mountain's mutation. Whether it was the Spiritual Fertilizer, the spiritual beasts, or even the Spirit Spring, everything was influenced by that place!

"In that case, I really have no choice but to go..."

Fang Yuan stood up, his face resolute. "A Spiritual Land?"

A Spiritual Land is a place favored by heaven, where earth energy gathers. It is filled with the unbelievable, with all sorts of strange flowers and exotic herbs, rare birds and beasts appearing endlessly. It is an excellent Blessed Land, a celestial land, and even a great treasure trove!