Frog Immortal Lord carried the main hall on his back and silently arrived atop a hill outside Buddha-Fate Town.
Ren Qing realized that disaster would befall Buddha-Fate Town and arrived ahead of Ren Shanshi and the others.
"Boundless Heavenly Venerable."
He walked out of the main hall and swept his gaze across Buddha-Fate Town below.
The bluestone roads were clean and orderly. Townsfolk bustled back and forth—some carried vegetables to the market, some sat outside teahouses chatting, while children chased each other through the alleys in play. It was a scene of peaceful prosperity.
Ren Qing could also tell that Buddha-Fate Town had indeed originally risen to prominence through salt production.
The mountains nearby were completely barren, their rocks exposed and marked by countless excavations. They had likely once been open-air salt mines, though most had been abandoned, and only a few Fuyang Chamber of Commerce shops remained.
Li Yao's ancestral residence stood in the center of Buddha-Fate Town. It was even somewhat larger than Fortune-Life Martial Hall, but its doors and windows were plastered with seals.
"Mouse True Person, do you know why there are salt mines in these mountains?"
Mouse True Person moved closer to Ren Qing. "This disciple does not know. I have only heard that salt is generally produced along the coast. Could salt mines form underground as well?"
Ren Qing gazed at the mountains and said mildly, "Because countless years ago, this place was once a vast ocean. After the seawater receded, the salt settled beneath the earth and became the salt mines of today."
Reverence appeared in Mouse True Person's eyes. It seemed the Immortal Elder had truly witnessed it firsthand.
After hesitating for several breaths, it asked, "Immortal Elder, should we have the Mouse Children scout the area first?"
"Not for now. But