Heading to the Blessed Land [Seeking Follow-ups]

"Uncle Zhao."

Yu Dashan's group arrived at the center of the settlement and immediately spotted Zhao Kun standing there.

"Your father didn't come to see you off?"

There was a hint of regret on Zhao Kun's face.

Though he had already done everything in his power to help, he still held little hope for Old Man Yu, who had chosen to stay behind.

"No. Dad said he'd wait at home for us to return. Uncle Zhao, don't worry. My dad will definitely be fine."

Yu Dashan spoke with certainty.

"Then I'll see you next year."

Zhao Kun nodded.

Then the three families gathered together, clearly intending to support one another along the way.

From Ox Ridge Settlement to New Moon Blessed Land was a journey of roughly a hundred li. Without any burdens, with the physique of ordinary people in this world, they could make it there in one or two hours at most if they ran the whole way.

But because of last night's heavy rain, the road was muddy beyond measure. With all the large and small bundles of luggage and food, along with the long procession, the journey would undoubtedly take much more time.

That was why they had assembled so early in the morning.

And the road ahead was not without danger.

Eight hundred li from New Moon Blessed Land stood Cloud Dream Mountain. Though called a mountain, it was actually a small Blessed Land. Yet this Blessed Land did not belong to humans—it belonged to Demonic Beasts.

Clearly, humans were not the only intelligent race in this world.

Some powerful Demonic Beasts possessed intelligence no less than that of humans.

Especially since Heaven and Earth were impartial—these Demonic Beasts could likewise set foot upon the path of cultivation.

And just like humans, the Demonic Beasts of Cloud Dream Mountain would scatter far and wide to breed and thrive, then return to Cloud Dream Mountain before the Black Annihilation Wind Disaster descended.

So at this moment, humans were not the only ones fleeing disaster.

If they encountered Demonic Beasts on the road, a battle would be inevitable.

But compared to those Demonic Beasts, humans themselves were actually the greatest danger.

Some Blessed Lands were orderly and relatively mild.

But some Blessed Lands centered on plunder, and were known as Robber Cultivator Blessed Lands.

Ox Ridge Settlement was a small settlement, and it was also close to New Moon Blessed Land, so almost no robber cultivators ever set their sights on this place.

It simply was not worth it.

Ordinarily, the common folk in such small settlements could barely feed themselves. There was no profit to be had from them at all.

Only after the autumn harvest, when the Spirit Fields yielded their crops, would everyone have a little surplus on hand.

But even so, those robber cultivators had no interest in such scraps. Even if they suppressed the settlement guards, looting the place would still be a problem.

If those commoners hid their Spirit Stones in their homes, how were they supposed to rob them?

Killing people alone was actually useless.

Because ordinary people knew full well that if all their Spirit Stones were taken, they would still die if they could not enter a Blessed Land.

Under such circumstances, they would naturally rather die than submit.

If things dragged on even a little too long, the Blessed Land would already have dispatched powerful immortal cultivators after receiving word.

Therefore, directly robbing an ordinary settlement was simply more trouble than it was worth for robber cultivators.

The main targets of robber cultivators were merchant caravans traveling between the various settlements and Blessed Lands.

Of course, some robber cultivators would occasionally whet their appetites at certain special times.

For example, before the Black Annihilation Wind Disaster descended, when the common folk of the settlements headed for the Blessed Lands.

At such times, those commoners would inevitably bring all their worldly possessions with them. The robber cultivators only needed to kill them and search their bodies.

The key was that it was quick, and far more discreet.

More than ten years ago, Ox Ridge Settlement had encountered a group of robber cultivators on its way to the Blessed Land. Back then, Old Man Yu had saved Zhao Kun's life, which was why Zhao Kun had always remembered that kindness.

And so, even within the same procession, some people would form small groups and help one another.

Once everyone had gathered, the procession set off.

Old Man Yu stood atop the wall, watching the long procession recede into the distance. The expression on his face hardened into determination once more.

Now, he was the only one left at home, but that did not mean he could hide in the cellar already.

So long as the Black Annihilation Wind Disaster had not truly descended, he still had quite a few things to do.

Especially now that most of the settlement's people had left—this was instead more advantageous for him.

"Little Tree, Little Tree, from now on, it'll be just the two of us relying on each other for survival. I hope we can both safely endure this Black Annihilation Wind Disaster."

Old Man Yu jumped down from the wall and spoke to the little tree before him.

Hearing his words, Yu An fell silent...

"By the way, we've been together for so long, and I still don't know your name. I can't keep calling you Little Tree forever, can I?"

Old Man Yu continued talking to himself.

It seemed that only this could ease the sorrow of parting with his son.

For all his earlier solemn promises about seeing each other again next year, he had no certainty in his heart. He simply did not dare guarantee that he could safely survive this Black Annihilation Wind Disaster.

So this parting might very well be a final farewell.

"How about I give you a name?"

Old Man Yu suddenly said.

At that moment, Yu An dearly wanted to tell him that he already had a name. Unfortunately, he could not speak. He could only lazily shake one of his branches, and under his control, a leaf drifted down.

Flying Flower Plucking Leaf proficiency +1.

Yu An silently recited in his heart.

At first, he had needed to focus his mind and exhaust every ounce of strength just to make a single leaf fall. But after practicing again and again, now, with a single thought, a leaf could break free.

Still, Flying Flower Plucking Leaf remained light and fluttering, without the slightest bit of killing power.

But to Yu An, this was already obvious progress.

It showed that his control over his tree body was improving.

He believed that one day, that falling leaf would become the sharpest blade.

"Looks like you agree too."

Old Man Yu caught the falling leaf and carefully sniffed it.

Seeing this, Yu An felt goosebumps rise all over him. Strictly speaking, that leaf was part of his body as well.

"Since you were born in my home, it means you have fate with my family. My surname is Yu—how about you take it too? Yu Tree? Little Tree Yu?"

Old Man Yu thought for a moment before speaking.

"Little Tree Yu?"

Hearing that, Yu An simply shut off his consciousness and stopped listening to the man's nonsense.

Yet Old Man Yu had no awareness of this at all. He stood there muttering to himself for quite a while longer.

Perhaps it was because he had given the little tree a name, or perhaps because his son had already left and only he and Little Tree remained in the house, but he felt as though some inexplicable bond had formed between him and the little tree before him.

This gave Old Man Yu considerable comfort.

The Ox Ridge Settlement, which most people had already left, suddenly became quiet. There was not a soul to be seen on the streets or in the fields. Nearly everyone had hidden in their homes, reinforcing their houses and cellars in preparation for the coming Black Annihilation Wind Disaster.

At the same time, some acquaintances came to Old Man Yu's home, hoping to join forces with him, but Old Man Yu politely declined them, giving the same reason he had used when refusing Tiezhu.

Those people said nothing in response and could only leave regretfully.

Most importantly, Old Man Yu was now one of only two people in the settlement who had reached Fetal Movement Major Accomplishment.

Even if others had any thoughts, they did not dare reveal them openly.

Meanwhile, after the initial grief had passed, the group that had left the Ox Ridge Settlement all gathered their spirits, gritted their teeth, and hurried toward the New Moon Blessed Land.