Cloud Valley Temple and the Mountain

The green mountains stretched ten li into the distance, while the tide lay flat and the road was edged with sand.

Bright, silvery dewdrops bent the slender blades of grass beneath them, hanging there unsteadily. As unfamiliar footsteps passed by one after another, the drops finally fell with soft plops, melting into the sand.

An Yang and Xiaochán walked along the two- or three-meter-wide dirt road, preparing to visit the legendary Cloud Valley Temple.

Perhaps Xiaochán's legs were too short. Though the journey was not particularly long, they still spent half a day making their way there.

Neither of them seemed impatient, however.

These roads were too narrow for a large luxury motorhome to pass through. An off-road vehicle would have had no trouble, and its performance was excellent, but in this world, where the gods and Buddhas of the heavens remained unclear, An Yang truly did not dare drive an off-road vehicle roaring along the roadside.

So walking was still the best means of transportation.

Along the way, they encountered quite a few commoners, all heading in the same direction as them. Presumably, they were believers of Cloud Valley Temple as well.

These people carried bundles of various sizes on their backs, the faint smell of cheap incense and candles wafting from within. Their gazes toward the distant valley were filled with incomparable piety, yet whenever they came to their senses and looked at the other people by the roadside, their eyes held deep wariness.

One believer even took a fancy to Xiaochán and offered An Yang fifty copper coins to buy her as a maidservant.

Yes, fifty copper coins.

An Yang knew full well that these people went to Cloud Valley Temple to burn incense and worship Buddha merely to seek a moment of peace of mind amid