Cheng Xinzhan arrived at Dayao Mountain to find devastation everywhere.
The entire southern foothills had been destroyed, collapsing down the southern slope and burying the Xun River at the mountain's foot. And this was after he had done everything he could to stop that arrow, wearing away some of its force and Water-Filling Dharma Intent. Otherwise, more than half of Dayao Mountain might have been destroyed.
Dayao Mountain was the watershed between the Peach Blossom River and the Osmanthus River. Many mountain streams fed into both rivers, and its mountain roots were intimately connected to their water veins. If Dayao Mountain were destroyed and this watershed lost, the two rivers' water qi would clash, while their tributaries would no longer replenish them. A great disaster would follow.
The Peach Blossom River and Osmanthus River were important water veins in the eastern Southern Wastes. Their waters were abundant and slow-flowing, brimming with vitality—beautiful rivers exceedingly rare within the Southern Wastes. In Cheng Xinzhan's plan for "Transforming the Wasteland into Fertile Land," they were to play an important role in regulating earth qi and nourishing the barren land. This had been one reason he had first united with the Peach Blossom River. If these two great rivers suffered damage, not only would his land of Union with the Dao be directly injured, but the Daoist's great future undertaking would also be severely hampered. This could be considered a blessing amid misfortune.
At this moment, amid the devastated southern foothills, the most conspicuous sight was the bottomless hole among the shattered rocks. Formed when Green Robe's final arrow pierced the mountain, it measured over a hundred zhang across, like a bloody wound in the earth.
Cheng Xinzhan flew down.
Along the way, he saw broken mountain roots and leaking earth qi. Only after