Into the Mountains

"Yes, he's been saving this Passing the Spring Shade for a long time, he hasn't been willing to take it out to drink, saying he's waiting for his friends to come over so they can drink together."

Jiuchuan's wife chimed in at that moment.

Upon hearing this, Fang Zelin couldn't help but glance at Jiuchuan.

Seeing this, Jiuchuan quickly waved his hand, "Alright, don't try to get me emotional. I only did this because I consider you a friend."

Fang Zelin couldn't help but laugh upon hearing this. "How long have you known me? Why would I do something like that? I just remembered that I obtained some ancient recipes, and the wine will be ready soon."

"When I get back, the fermented rice wine will be ready. If it tastes good, I'll bring it over for you to try."

The liquor being mentioned is, of course, Clear as Empty, brewed by Fang Zelin.

This wine must be quite good.

However, we don't know the specifics yet; we'll have to wait until we get back to see.

"I see," Jiuchuan nodded, feeling quite satisfied. "Well, even if it's not brewed well, bring some for me to try."

Fang Zelin responded with an "okay".

The two then started drinking, one cup after another.

By the time the pot of wine was finished, Jiuchuan was already quite drunk.

Fang Zelin, on the other hand, showed no signs of drunkenness whatsoever.

The alcohol in this Passing the Spring Shade wine was quite potent, but it didn't seem to have much of an effect on him.

Jiuchuan was helped down to rest; Jiuchuan was the only male in the vast Prince's mansion.

Fang Zelin didn't recognize the others, and felt it wouldn't be appropriate to stay any longer, so he said he would come to visit Jiuchuan after he woke up, and then turned and left.

Fang Zelin had just arrived in Yuanqing Prefecture and wanted to explore the area further.

When Fang Zelin arrived on the street, he looked around and immediately noticed many differences.

The most obvious features are the street layout and the cleanliness of the roads.

The intense Blazing Summer heat all around made Fang Zelin feel as if he had returned to Earth.

Groups of martial arts practitioners would occasionally walk by on the roadside, but their gait made it easy to tell where they came from.

Along the way, we saw many peddlers and vendors, and their cries of hawking their wares were constant.

There weren't many people from the Great Jin in Yuanqing Prefecture; most of them came from the Blazing Summer.

The reason for this is that it is near Cloud-Linking Mountain, where there are too many demons, and people often disappear inexplicably.

After such situations became more frequent, Yuanqing Prefecture naturally began to decline.

Only now, after Blazing Summer took over this place, has Yuanqing Prefecture become much more vibrant. However, even so, there are still very few Great Jin here.

After strolling around for a while, Fang Zelin patted Bearing the Heavens behind him.

"Let's go, let's go take a look at Cloud-Linking Mountain!"

Cloud-Linking Mountain is the place where Yuanqing Prefecture plans to carry out large-scale construction, but so far only a small part of it has been explored.

Next, we should go straight into it.

Fang Zelin didn't stand on ceremony at this point. After deciding on the direction, he bought some dry food and headed towards Cloud-Linking Mountain.

Along the way, we saw many people coming out of Cloud-Linking Mountain, who seemed to have gone in to investigate.

"What? There seems to be thick smoke inside. Has the mountain caught fire?"

Fang Zelin looked up and saw a thick plume of smoke slowly rising from the depths of Cloud-Linking Mountain.

Seeing this, Fang Zelin frowned, somewhat puzzled.

"Yes, there's a fire inside, and it's been burning for quite a while now, still burning, but the fire is kept within a certain area, which is very strange."

A person who was leaving Cloud-Linking Mountain nearby responded upon hearing this.

"If you go into the mountains, you should be careful and avoid this fire. It might spread and you could easily perish in the flames."

After giving the reminder, the other party turned and left without even giving Fang Zelin a chance to thank him.

Seeing this, Fang Zelin looked closely at the wildfire and felt a little strange.

But he continued striding into the mountains.

"When we meet those demons, we need to have a good talk with them and hopefully persuade them to give up a piece of their territory."

Fang Zelin murmured to himself as he walked into the mountains.

Upon hearing this, Bearing the Heavens behind him immediately buzzed.

"What do you mean by 'go up and chop people down with one sword'? Aren't you afraid you'll become a demon in the future?"

Upon hearing Bearing the Heavens's meaning, Fang Zelin let out a soft rebuke.

However, it's unclear where all the demons in Cloud-Linking Mountain are hiding, and whether they'll be easy to find.

"There have been more and more humans coming to these mountains lately. It's really strange. Why are they all rushing into the mountains?"

A wild bear climbed down from a tree and muttered, "These people used to avoid Cloud-Linking Mountain like the plague, how dare they keep coming in now?"

"You didn't know about this? I heard it's people from Yuanqing Prefecture who want to undertake large-scale construction, finding a piece of land in the Cloud-Linking Mountain to build a city, which is why they keep going into the mountains, trying to find a suitable location."

At that moment, a giant python silently slithered over, its scarlet tongue flicking in and out of its mouth.

Hearing the sound, the wild bear turned its head and saw it was this guy, and muttered something under its breath.

What brings you here?

It was certain in its heart that this guy's visit couldn't be anything good.

"Hmph, Grandfather Tree is still suffering right now. Hopefully, we can find those people to help us. As long as we can put out those wildfires, we'll give them a piece of land."

The giant python twisted its body, and as it moved, one could feel the immense power contained within its massive form.

"Ask those people for help; can they put out those fires?"

Hearing this, the wild bear couldn't help but ask with a hint of doubt.

"I don't know, that's what Grandfather Tree said, so it must be okay."

The giant python had already coiled its body up.

Seeing this, the wild bear quickly retreated a few steps. Every time the bear coiled up, it would try to swallow him whole.

He wouldn't dare get so close to the other person under these circumstances.

"Coward!"

Seeing the bear in this state, the giant python snorted coldly, then slithered away. "Let's go, find some people to spread this news."

"If they can do it, Grandfather Tree will reward them handsomely. Don't they often ask fairies for things? We'll naturally be able to satisfy them in the future."

The giant python swam away.

The wild bear dared not delay and quickly followed.

This is something Grandfather Tree instructed us to do; neglecting it could lead to big trouble.

The direction the bear and snake were heading was clearly the passage into the mountains.

Finding someone is very simple. Just go to the intersection and wait there, and you'll find them. It's a very easy thing.

A moment later, the two arrived at the crossroads and saw a figure in the distance walking alone into the Cloud-Linking Mountain.