Lingqiu Mountain

Our first stop Lingqiu Mountain. As mentioned before, the terrain is barren and has many fiery pools and wind caves, making it unsuitable for wild animals to live in. Therefore, there are relatively few demons in the vicinity.

Ink Bamboo Mountain has set up a Daoist temple in the central valley on the south side of the mountain, which is connected to Ink Bamboo Mountain to the north, Lei Marsh to the south, Chicken Mountain Mine to the west, and guards Lunzhě Mountain Immortal Palace to the east.

This well-connected terrain has resource points in all directions, and the unique Flame Pool landform can also be used for cultivation and weapon crafting. It is located at the south gate of Ink Bamboo Mountain, serving as a forward base leading to the Ten-thousand-mountains region.

Li Fan had been traveling all the way on his sword, and he could detect with his Divine Sense that Ink Bamboo Mountain had set up guiding talismans along the route from the south, which looked like beacon towers. He didn't know if they were actually used to warn people, or if it was because most cultivators were as directionally challenged as Profound Heaven Sword Intent...

However, flying south for hundreds of miles was truly exhausting. Even with two inner cores replenishing his Qi, Li Fan was still incredibly tired after such a long journey. It seemed he really needed to find some magical mounts or spirit beasts to travel on. Otherwise, he might end up half-dead from flying and be ambushed along the way, possibly even being assassinated.

However, even the cheapest set of armor costs 25,000 guan, and a flying sword can sell for hundreds of thousands of guan. The spirit beasts and sports cars of the Immortal Realm would cost an unknown amount. Perhaps it's better to use mechanical arts and assemble a flying boat or treasure ship from scratch, saving every penny possible...

Lost in thought, I finally flew to the Middle Valley Dojo. This was no simple altar like the Revered Heavenly Demon Dojo near Ink Bamboo Mountain, where Moon Worship and cultivated.

From afar, one can see radiant Dao Breath rising into the sky from the valley south of the mountain. Upon closer inspection, one feels the abundance of spiritual energy, clearly indicating a blessed land with spiritual veins suitable for cultivation and recuperation. There is also a small town in the valley. In the center, one can see Daoist temples and palaces, but the walls are built along the mountainside, and there are also passes and arrow towers at the valley entrance, creating a strange appearance that is neither quite a temple nor quite a stronghold.

The Daoist temple in Zhonggu looked quite spacious, with many side rooms, probably to provide lodging for passing caravans. But at this moment, there was hardly anyone in the temple.

Following the instructions of the old men in Lou Guan, Li Fan first pressed down the Sword Light at the foot of the mountain, then sprinkled some rice and chanted an incantation.

So he summoned a mountain god dressed as a warrior, fully armored and wielding a large sword.

"Who comes to pay Lingqiu Mountain?"

This mountain god looked to be at least at the Nascent Soul Realm, and his aura was no less imposing than that of the celestial generals of the Immortal Palace. It seemed that he was the mountain god of Lingqiu Mountain. After all, Li Fan followed etiquette, sheathed his flying sword, landed on the ground, and knocked on the door to pay his respects. The mountain god also inquired in a proper manner.

Li Fan bowed and presented the talisman, saying, "Qingyue from Ink Bamboo Mountain has come to patrol the mountain and pays special respects to the guardian immortal."

Since it was his first time here, Li Fan didn't know the exact location of the spirit bird's nest. He came to pay his respects first.

The mountain god was quite solemn, returning Li Fan's greeting with clasped hands and a bow, saying, "Master, this is your first time here, you are quite unfamiliar with me, please show me your Daoist talisman and incantation."

"Of course." So Li Fan also showed the other party the Daoist register documents from Ink Bamboo Mountain Lou Guan Dao, as well as the spirit talismans sent down to patrol the mountain.

The mountain god verified the information and bowed with a smile, saying, "Senior Li, please wait a moment. I will immediately go and inform the guardian deity to open the magic array."

"Thank you for your trouble."

Li Fan waited a while longer, and then a yellow talisman lit up from the middle valley. The mountain god reappeared, but this time he no longer carried his Azure Dragon Crescent Moon Blade, only holding a triangular yellow flag. With a beaming smile, he led the way, saying, "Senior Li, please follow me into the formation. Demons roam the Ten-thousand-mountains. The Middle Valley Dojo is a crucial area of Ink Bamboo Mountain. Usually, the patrols are just a few familiar faces. This is the first time in the past two years that I have seen a newly accomplished Golden Core mage. I must be careful, and I hope you will understand."

"What the general says is true; that is how it should be. May I ask your name?"

"Master, you flatter me. I am merely a mountain guard in Lingqiu Mountain, and I am not worthy of the title of general. In my previous life, my surname was Zhang. You may simply call me Zhang Shanshen." Zhang Mountain God was quite humble.

This is natural. This kind of wild god is not a legitimate god of the imperial court. He is a disposable object privately appointed by Ink Bamboo Mountain. Although he is called a mountain god, his daily work is just to drive away some wild beasts. If a true god is scattered by a powerful demon, he will perish. Ink Bamboo Mountain can then find another martial spirit with Body Domination Technique and appoint him as the mountain god in his place.

Zhang Mountain God led Li Fan into the Middle Valley Dojo, and casually said a few words.

It turns out that when the Immortal Palace was stationed in the South Border, this Zhonggu Valley was already a dangerous pass. However, it was later seized by demonic beasts, and the Nangong Family was unable to reclaim it in time, so they bestowed it upon Ink Bamboo Mountain as a Daoist temple.

Yes, if you fight your way back, this territory will be yours. Back then, those ten mountains were all like that. It wasn't that the Nangong Family voluntarily gave them up; they were actually all occupied by the great demon.

So later, Ink Bamboo Mountain fought a bloody war for years to slay demons and monsters, and finally reclaimed Zhonggu. A Daoist temple and monastery were built on the site of the Nangong.

Recently, there haven't been many merchant caravans coming. Firstly, Lingqiu Mountain is a poor and remote place with few resources. The main purpose of coming to Zhonggu is to collect trade resources mined in Lei Marsh, but it's not the right season yet, and many of the rare treasures in Lei Marsh are not ready for harvest.

Secondly, in recent years, the conflict with the Immortal Palace has intensified, and the number of demons in Yu Mountain has increased, leading to a gradual decrease in trade and exchanges with the Nangong Family's Lunzhě Mountain to the east.

Thirdly, the north is at war with the Li Country, and the Golden Core cultivators who reside at the Zhonggu Daoist Temple have all gone north to provide support. They haven't returned yet.

Therefore, at this time, the only one guarding the central valley was the Mountain Guardian, the Real Person Huang of Lou Guan.

"Disciple Qingyue pays respects to Real Person Huang." Li Fan went into the main hall of the temple to pay his respects. Zhang Mountain God was waiting outside, guarding his own mountain god temple in front of the temple.

The lineage of Real Person Huang, Lou Guan, is naturally also in human form, but his appearance is quite ethereal and otherworldly, especially his beautiful beard, which is long like a dragon's whiskers and flows all the way to his chest. He is truly True Cultivator with a powerful aura, which is very admirable.

Real Person Huang, his eyes half-closed, nodded to Li Fan. "The spirit bird's nest is a hundred miles southeast of the central valley, on a cliff. I'll have Zhang Mountain God lead you there to inspect it. There are twelve eggs inside. You must see them with your own eyes and count them one by one. If even one is missing, you must report it to me."

Real Person Huang didn't say much, and he clearly knew that Li Fan had just achieved the Golden Core stage, was just taking a short trip under the guise of patrolling the mountain, and that he might not see him many times in the future.

"Yes, disciple understands."

Li Fan could sense that Real Person Huang had probed him with his Divine Sense. This master's aura was quite strong; being entrusted with such an important task, guarding a crucial location like the Middle Valley Dojo alone, meant he was no ordinary person. Although his cultivation might not be comparable to Real Person Liang's, who was perfectly aligned with the will of Heaven, and he might not be able to defeat someone like Xiao Yao, who had trained through countless battles, being able to guard the southern mountain gate meant he was at least more powerful than those four old men from the theoretical school of sword forging.

Without a word, Zhang Mountain God rode a cloud and took Li Fan to the spirit bird's nest. It was clear that he was quite bored, being cooped up on this mountain with Real Person Huang.

"It's on that cliff. Senior Li has already spotted that spiritual cave. Inside is the nest of the spirit bird. When patrolling the mountain, you only need to take a quick look from the outside and check with your Divine Sense to see if the magic array sealing near the nest is intact before you can return and report."

"Just a quick look is enough?" Li Fan scratched his head. He had also studied a bit of Liu Zhens's <Disha Shiliu Zhentu Jie>, and from the outside, it was clear that the surrounding arrays were indeed intact, obviously regularly checked and repaired by the patrolling disciples of Ink Bamboo Mountain. However...

"This is my first time doing a mission, Real Person Huang specifically told me to take a look with my own eyes, so perhaps..."

Zhang Mountain God naturally wouldn't stop him. "Master, you may unseal the formation and go in to check, but remember to repair it properly. The seal on this spirit bird's nest is of great importance; you must not let the beasts inside escape."

"A beast? What's sealed inside?" Li Fan was a little puzzled. He had thought it was a phoenix or a vermilion bird, rare Divine Beast or spirit beasts raised by the Ink Bamboo Mountain sect to collect Heavenly Treasure. How could it be called a beast?

"It is the divine bird Yong. Legend has it that once Yong is born, a great drought will follow. Therefore, Ink Bamboo Mountain is strictly guarded to prevent the divine bird from being born, so as to warn all directions in advance and make preparations."

"What does a bird have to do with a severe drought? Have you ever seen a divine bird appear that caused a drought? How do you know it wasn't just a coincidence? Maybe the drought is causing this bird to fly around randomly? Have you done any observation or research? You need to have solid evidence, right?" Li Fan couldn't help but argue.

Zhang Mountain God, "... I've only been a mountain god for ten years, so I don't know much about these things, but everyone says so, so it must be true, right?"

Li Fan frowned, but seeing how serious Zhang Mountain God was, he figured either he was deliberately fooling him or he himself had been fooled. However, since it was Li Fan's first time on duty, he decided to be serious. So, holding the patrol talisman, he followed the steps of Yu Bu and deactivated the magic array to investigate.

Inside the nest, there were exactly twelve eggs, no more, no less, no problem.

So Li Fan sealed the magic array back to its original state. Just as he was about to use a talisman to record his name into the array to show that he had been there, Li Fan suddenly froze.

"Zhang Mountain God, you're saying that in the past two years, I've been the only newcomer to patrol the mountain? There are many records here that say Xu Liang. Was Senior Brother Xu the one who was in charge of patrolling the mountain before?"

"Ah, yes, patrolling the mountain is not a pleasant job either. It is usually done by cultivators who endure hardship. Senior Xu is a disciple of Real Person Huang. Because their Cultivation Method are special, they cultivate in Lingqiu Mountain all year round. So when there are no fellow cultivators from the sect to help them, he has always taken on these errand-running tasks of patrolling."

However, Senior Xu recently went to the Li Country to assist in the war and has not returned yet, so the sect sent you Senior Li, instead."

Zhang Mountain God also chatted casually.

Then Li Fan suddenly turned his head and stared at him, "What does it look like?"

"Huh? What do you mean? Senior Xu has two eyes and a mouth..." Zhang Mountain God didn't quite understand at first.

"I said that bird, the Yong, has to look like something, otherwise how would we know it's been born?"

Zhang Mountain God thought it made sense. He recalled, "Real Person Huang did mention it, hmm... Its shape is like an owl, with a human face, four eyes, and ears. Its name is Yong, and its cry is its own name. When it appears, there will be a great drought in the world."

Li Fan just stared at him expressionlessly.

Zhang Mountain God was taken aback. "What's wrong?"

Then he saw the young mage in front of him pull a spoon from his sleeve and throw it on the ground. "A spoon?"

The spoon spun around once, pointing straight north.

Li Fan narrowed his eyes. Oh no! Those ugly birds he encountered on the road really were eagles!

He'd had the Si Nan for three months, and of course he'd studied it. In short, this piece of junk was difficult to use.

Because the Si Nan always points in the direction of the closest opportunity. So, if one is cultivating within the Ink Bamboo Mountain sect, then this spoon spinning around and pointing everywhere—yes, Ink Bamboo Mountain is full of opportunities, but those belong to fellow disciples. Could Li Fan steal or rob them? He'd have to buy them with money...

But we're already quite far from Ink Bamboo Mountain, so theoretically, the Si Nan should be pointing towards the nearby divine bird egg, or perhaps towards the Lei Marsh to the south. However, it's still pointing north...

In other words, those ugly birds he brushed past not long ago, heading north, really were the divine birds, the Yong! It wasn't that he had such a good memory that he remembered all the birds he encountered on the road; it was simply that this Lingqiu Mountain was barren, and he hadn't seen a single chicken! The only living creatures he saw were those ugly birds from earlier! The twelve eggs below must have been switched!

Why does he believe it was man-made, and what evidence does he have?

Because of the evidence, Li Fan saw it in the talisman that read "I was here".

Among the many names of Xu Liang, there was another name mixed in: Golden Core cultivator named Chen Jinu who came to patrol the mountain six months ago.

The one who killed Chen Daotong, the one who was tricked to death by Li Fan and his sword intent, the Golden Core eunuch whose name the system knew even though there was no record of him in Ink Bamboo Mountain!

This person's name, like Qingyue's, was appearing on the array's register for the first time, yet Zhang Mountain God had no recollection of it.

The other party may have used transformation techniques to confuse the mountain god, but it is absolutely impossible to simply fool them by marking their names on Lou Guan's magic array with Daoist talismans.

In the months that followed, Xu Liang acted as if nothing had happened, indicating that everything was normal. It's likely that he had at least some contact with Chen Jinu, if not collusion with him!

So what about his master, Real Person Huang?

Could he be a spy?

Can we trust the other person?

Should we gamble on the character of Lou Guan's disciples?

"This is not Yong Bird egg."

Li Fan finally decided to take a gamble. After all, being entrusted with such an important position as guarding the Middle Valley Dojo meant that the person was someone Lou Guan could trust. So he rushed back to the dojo to report to Real Person Huang.

"Moreover, when I came to patrol the mountain, I did see a strange bird with a human face and four eyes, which looked like a night owl, brush past me. I'm afraid there were at least twelve of them!"

According to the records I found on the magic array, a man named Chen Jinu came to patrol the mountain six months ago. It's likely that this person is behind this. I wonder if the real person remembers him?"

Real Person Huang squinted, frowned, stroked his beautiful beard, and looked at the egg that Li Fan had brought back.

He picked up the bird egg with two fingers, and with some kind of magic, the Hall of Light suddenly lit up, illuminating the embryo inside. It appeared to be a chaotic, swirling vortex, resembling a nebula...

These are Yong Bird.

"Sir! Everything I said is true! These eggs must have been secretly replaced by Chen Jinu, who came to patrol the mountain six months ago! Or maybe he did something else, but in any case, those birds have hatched!" Li Fan's heart sank, but he gritted his teeth and persevered.

Although he personally didn't really believe that a bird could have anything to do with a natural disaster, there was definitely something fishy about that Golden Core eunuch coming all this way to do such a thing! And it must have been shortly after he finished making these arrangements that he went to Kunlun Mountain to ambush Senior Brother Lu!

Unfortunately, Ink Bamboo Mountain himself couldn't find Chen Jinu's name, and Li Fan couldn't possibly reveal the existence of the system. If this Real Person Huang, to protect his disciple's mistake, stubbornly refused to believe him...

"These are Yong Bird. But I believe you too."

Kindness?

Li Fan looked up and saw that Real Person Huang was still squinting, shining the light on the bird eggs, stroking his beard and slowly saying, "They are exactly the same as the first eggs I saw when I Foundation Establishment. After so many years, it's impossible that they haven't matured yet. These are probably newly laid eggs. The original batch has indeed already hatched..."

Li Fan was overjoyed, "Master! Then let's go and retrieve him immediately!"

Real Person Huang shook his head, calculated with his fingers, "It's too late. They only flew away after the new eggs were laid, so they've probably already hatched. Six months? Then the opportunity is indeed set, and the fate of the great drought in the world cannot be changed... Are you sure you saw twelve?"

Li Fan frowned, deep in thought, "I'm not sure, but there are definitely quite a few, at least eight or nine..."

Real Person Huang sighed, "Then most of the Twelve Countries will suffer disaster. Last time, only one Yong Bird was born, and there was a drought for ten years. The Black Lotus Sect took advantage of the situation and rose to power. This time, so many have hatched in one brood. I don't think we need to chase after them. Let them fly out and take the news with them so that the people can be prepared."

"One drought and ten years of famine!" Li Fan's voice shrill. "That's ridiculous! If there's a drought for 120 years, even the gods will starve!"

Real Person Huang didn't mind his loss of composure, and smiled wryly, "Do you think that the good weather, the absence of disasters and calamities, and the peace and prosperity of the country over the years are all due to the benevolence and virtue of the ruler in the Liqiu Palace?"

However, after the Black Lotus Sect, the people were impoverished and everything needed to be rebuilt. The abbot was appointed as the National Preceptor of the Immortal Palace Li Country Palace. Although he was there to guard the Nangong Family, he also bore the expectations of the people of the Li Country.

Perhaps the abbot acted impulsively and led us, the Lou Guan priests, in performing a ritual to suppress evil spirits and seal away all the calamities and misfortunes that Li Country with the Ink Bamboo Mountain. This protected the peace of the Human Dao and ensured that the Ink Bamboo Mountain and the Li Country would suffer and prosper together, incidentally protecting the Li Country's dragon vein as well.

But now, the Li Country's court, instigated by the Immortal Palace, wants to ruin the destiny of my Ink Bamboo Mountain. However, they only see the surface. I'm afraid that many of the spells that suppressed the nation's fortune for them have long been broken by those mediocre people themselves.

Hmph, do they really think this can damage the foundation of Ink Bamboo Mountain? Little do they know that in the end, they will only be the ones to suffer...

Alas, karma is a wheel, and retribution is inevitable...