Mission Down the Mountain

"Your mission is to head to Nameless City, uncover the truth behind the demonic entities, and if it is within your power, eliminate them. If the situation proves too difficult, remember not to force it; preserving your own life is paramount. Send word back to the mountain immediately, and I will personally dispatch reinforcements."

Li Xiaoyu took the letter and the map, a surge of heroic spirit rising in his heart.

To descend the mountain for training!

This was exactly what he had dreamed of.

Cultivating in isolation was, in the end, a lesser path.

Only in real combat could he test his true strength, and only in the vastness of the world could he find more "sustenance" for the Immortal-Slaying Gourd.

"This disciple accepts the order!"

He did not hesitate in the slightest, responding in a deep, steady voice.

Shang Zhengliang nodded with satisfaction.

He then took a silk pouch from his storage bag and handed it over.

"Inside are some medicinal pills and talismans I have prepared for you, along with some silver. They may prove useful as you travel through the world below."

"Furthermore, this is a Thousand-Mile Sound Transmission Talisman. Should you encounter an emergency, crush it, and I will immediately know your location and situation."

He gave his instructions with great care.

"Thank you, Master."

Li Xiaoyu felt a warmth in his heart and solemnly tucked the pouch away.

"Go."

Shang Zhengliang waved his hand. "Depart the mountain today to avoid the turmoil of tomorrow."

"This disciple takes his leave."

Li Xiaoyu bowed once more, turned, and began his descent.

Shang Zhengliang stood at the edge of the cliff, watching his disciple's receding figure, remaining motionless for a long time.

"Tian Buyi, oh Tian Buyi, for the sake of a Qi Hao, you have cast aside a peerless piece of jade like my disciple."

He muttered to himself, a cold sneer appearing on his face.

"Just wait. It won't be long before you regret your decision today until your guts turn green!"

Li Xiaoyu traveled down the mountain without a single pause.

He changed into a plain cyan martial outfit, wrapped the Autumn Water Sword in cloth strips to carry on his back, and kept the unremarkable wine gourd hanging at his waist.

He looked like a wandering swordsman traveling the world.

When he reached the foot of Green Cloud Mountain, he looked back to see the seven majestic peaks looming in and out of the clouds.

He took a deep breath, drawing the spiritual energy of the mountains into his lungs.

Then, he turned resolutely and strode toward the bustling, mortal world below.

His first stop was Heyang City.

He needed to resupply in that prosperous city and gather more information regarding Nameless City.

More importantly, he wanted to experience the human world, filled with its seven emotions and six desires, which was so vastly different from the life on the mountain.

His Dao lay on the mountain, but even more so, it lay below it.

Green Cloud Mountain was so towering that it took mortals several days to climb.

For a cultivator like Li Xiaoyu, descending took only half a day.

Li Xiaoyu stepped onto solid ground, leaving behind the cloud-shrouded atmosphere of the immortals.

A completely different scent rushed to meet him—the fragrance of soil, the vitality of plants, and the earthy aroma of human life.

He walked along the official road at a steady, unhurried pace.

Travelers began to appear on the road.

There were peddlers carrying shoulder poles, farmers driving ox carts, and merchant caravans riding tall horses.

Their faces bore expressions different from those of the cultivators on the mountain.

There was the weariness of struggling for a livelihood, the longing for a better future, and the joy of chatting with family.

This caused Li Xiaoyu's heart, which had been dormant for six years, to skip a beat.

On the mountain, he had faced the barriers of cultivation realms, the mockery and alienation of his peers, and the monotonous, day-after-day grind of practice.

Li Xiaoyu's world had been monotonous and stifling.

At this moment, he felt like a drop of water merging into a river.

The feeling was novel and made him feel relaxed.

In the afternoon, a majestic city appeared on the horizon.

Heyang City.

As the most prosperous city for a hundred miles, Heyang City leaned against the mountains and overlooked the water, its high walls and imposing scale radiating grandeur.

The city gates were packed with a constant stream of people and carriages, a scene of bustling activity.

Li Xiaoyu followed the flow of the crowd through the gates.

The atmosphere of the bustling city enveloped him.

The streets were lined with shops, from taverns and teahouses to pawnshops and clothiers; everything one could imagine was there.

The cries of street vendors, the laughter of children, and the rumble of carriage wheels blended together, brimming with vitality.

Li Xiaoyu walked along the bluestone-paved main street, curiously observing his surroundings.

He saw someone at a street corner selling steaming buns, their fragrance causing passersby to stop in their tracks.

He saw a storyteller by the roadside recounting the Seven Meridians Martial Arts Tournament of the Green Cloud Sect; the story was embellished with flair, yet it drew rounds of applause.

Li Xiaoyu also saw a few young women in a cosmetics shop picking out jewelry, their faces filled with smiles.

On the mountain, everyone pursued the heartless Great Dao.

Below the mountain, every corner was filled with the warmth of human emotion.

Li Xiaoyu's state of mind was cleansed.

He felt that he was no longer a disciple of the Green Cloud Sect burdened by the labels of "genius" or "trash."

He was merely a traveler, new to the mortal world, finding everything novel.

Li Xiaoyu found an inn called the Mountain Sea Pavilion and checked in.

The Mountain Sea Pavilion was the most luxurious inn in Heyang City, said to have such deep connections that even the city lord had to show them some respect.

Li Xiaoyu requested a room with a window, ordering a pot of clear tea and a few side dishes.

He did not rush to inquire about the Nameless City, instead sitting quietly by the window, watching the bustling crowds below and listening to the loud chatter of the guests at the neighboring table.

"Have you heard? Tian Buyi of Big Bamboo Peak is holding an adulthood ceremony for his daughter today. The scene—tsk tsk—it's said that even Senior Brother Qi Hao from Dragon Head Peak went personally to offer his congratulations!"

"Senior Brother Qi Hao? That's the cream of the crop among our Green Cloud Sect's younger generation! It seems the Tian family is going to marry into Dragon Head Peak!"

"Isn't that the truth! I heard that Tian Ling'er originally had a fiancé, that Li Xiaoyu from Morning Sun Peak."

"Li Xiaoyu? That trash who was still at the second level after six years of cultivation? He must have been dumped long ago!"

"Your information is outdated! I just came down from the mountain; I heard that Li Xiaoyu had an epiphany and is already at the fourth level of the Jade Purity Realm."

"He even defeated Shen Tiandou in one move during the Morning Sun Peak internal tournament and became the new head disciple!"

"What? Is that for real?"

The discussion from the neighboring table drifted into Li Xiaoyu's ears.

He picked up his teacup and took a sip, a playful smile appearing on his face.

Li Xiaoyu had not expected his own affairs to become fodder for gossip in a teahouse at the foot of the mountain.

However, there was no ripple in his heart.

To him, these discussions were nothing more than passing smoke.

He was more concerned with his mission now.

Li Xiaoyu listened to the conversations of the merchants in the inn.

Soon, he captured some useful information.

"Old Zhang, you'd better be careful on your trip to the northwest to sell goods this time. I heard that the Nameless City near the Wilderness has been plagued by monsters lately—it's very sinister!"

"Yeah, I heard that too. Several merchant caravans have gone missing in that area, and the people sent by the authorities never returned. Now, hardly anyone dares to travel that trade route."

"Monsters? I suspect it's the Demon Sect evildoers causing trouble! That area is close to the Wilderness, which has always been the Demon Sect's territory."

Hearing this, Li Xiaoyu raised an eyebrow.

The situation was even more serious than his master had described.

It seemed this trip to the Nameless City would not be so easy after all.