Chapter 399: Relics of the Immortal Sect

"That's right. This is no ordinary monster; legend has it that it was formed from the transformation of the Meridian Divine Wind on the mountain. The Ethereal Sect relied on this monster to occupy half of the Gale Tundra." The old man sighed, "According to the ancestors, the foot of Mount Fengmo Mountain once abounded with Huang Yu Ginseng, and people didn't have to risk their lives to harvest it on the mountain at all. But after this wind monster began to wreak havoc, the Huang Yu Ginseng gradually went extinct, and in the end, only a few stalks could occasionally be found on the high peaks." "And then?"

"That was all over four hundred years ago. Later, the Between Beijia Kingdom incorporated this place into its territory, and the Ethereal Sect naturally refused to accept it, unleashing the Mount Fengmo to run wild. It is said that the entire Gale Tundra was almost left without a living soul! It was only later that the Treasure Tree King couldn't stand it anymore and personally took action to disperse this wind monster! Ever since then, the Gale Tundra has slowly turned into what it looks like today."

He He Lingchuan asked him, "If the Gale Tundra is not suitable for living, why didn't the Ethereal Sect move elsewhere instead of insisting on stationing their mountain gate here?"

"Generations have lived here, perhaps they didn't want to change places?" The old man sighed, "Actually, aren't we the same?"

After the meal, news arrived that the escort team was indeed going to divert to Mount Fengmo Mountain.

The Soul-Consuming Mirror was very happy: "Perhaps, our opportunity has come."

He He Lingchuan nodded slightly. If there was an opportunity, he wouldn't mind playing the role of the oriole behind the mantis.

After the meal, Second Master Shi looked up at the sky: "There are many stars tonight, there probably won't be any clouds tomorrow morning; it's the perfect opportunity for sightseeing."

However, He He Lingchuan said to Second Master Shi: "From tomorrow on, keep your distance from the escort team. Especially when entering the territory of Mount Fengmo Mountain, you must lag behind the escort team by at least ten miles."

Second Master Shi was startled: "Brother He thinks something will happen at Mount Fengmo Mountain?" He immediately laughed, "When Pingshan occasionally has landslides or falling rocks, merchant caravans always divert from Black Rock Stronghold to Mount Fengmo Mountain. This is standard procedure, it's fine."

He He Lingchuan shrugged: "I've said all I can; whether you listen or not is your own decision." The caravan wasn't his; he was just fulfilling the courtesies of a fellow traveler.

Second Master Shi's smile faded slightly.

This trade route had been peaceful for many years, and caravans coming and going had never had any issues. Could it be that this trip would have an accident? Moreover, with the Treasure Tree King's escort team clearing the path ahead, they weren't just freeloaders; but this person before him was someone even the man-eating Zhu Yao Erniang of the Demon Nest Swamp feared, so his words surely couldn't be baseless, right?

That night, everyone retired early.

He He Lingchuan simply didn't sleep, taking a Hundred Virtues Pill to regulate his breath and cultivate.

He could feel that the spiritual energy between heaven and earth had been increasing recently, making his cultivation very efficient.

Before the fourth watch, the caravan set off for Mount Fengmo Mountain.

This time, the Shi Gate caravan no longer vied for the lead, lagging at least fifteen miles behind the escort team. It was evident that Second Master Shi had taken He He Lingchuan's words to heart.

In this gap, other merchants naturally overtook them to fill the space.

After all, the closer one was to the escort team, the greater one's sense of security.

This stretch of mountain road kept getting higher, the mountains were steep and dangerous, and the official road had turned into a goat path.

He He Lingchuan's breath turned to ice. He turned his head and saw a layer of white frost stuck to Second Master Shi's beard.

"Before the road at Black Rock Stronghold was opened, everyone had to pass through here." Second Master Shi wrapped his head tightly in a thick felt blanket, "Otherwise, one would have to take a detour of two hundred miles, which is even harder to walk than this road."

"Originally, this place was occupied by the Ethereal Sect; did one have to pay a toll to pass?"

Second Master Shi gave a dry laugh: "I don't know about that; that was hundreds of years ago."

Along the way up the mountain, he also pointed out several locations to He He Lingchuan, claiming they were the former ruins of the Ethereal Sect.

This immortal sect had also been glorious once, with buildings spread across the mountains. Unfortunately, after four hundred years of wind and snow, not a single tile remained today.

He He Lingchuan didn't see anything.

Second Master Shi was an old hand at reading the road and the sky; he said last night there would be no clouds this morning, and it was indeed a clear sky for ten thousand miles.

A sudden cheer erupted from ahead.

"The sun is rising, look, look!"

He He Lingchuan looked up and to the side, and sure enough, a streak of golden light struck the dangerous peak opposite, reflecting the snow-white peaks into the color of red gold.

Majesty and splendor, coldness and warmth, merged into a perfect unity on this natural palette.

Even the escort team stopped, standing silently with hands cupped toward the golden peak, praying silently.

Legend has it that those fortunate enough to see the sun illuminating the golden peak will surely have good luck if they pray in time.

He He Lingchuan pressed his palms together, yet he didn't know to whom he should pray for luck.

His faith was not placed in gods.

However, in this time and place, facing the magnificent snow-capped mountains, he could especially feel the greatness of creation and his own insignificance.

How must my Dao be refined to possess the power to split the heavens and earth? To this day, can the heavens still provide an answer? After traveling for another two hours, this mountain peak was still ahead, still just as cold and aloof—

Everyone had merely circled around it for more than half a lap.

This nine-turn, twenty-eight-bend mountain road seemed to have no end.

He was still calculating in his heart that if someone had specifically forced the escort team to take this road, it was about time for them to make a move. After walking another few dozen miles, the most dangerous part of this journey would be over.

Apart from him, no one else seemed worried. After all, this was within the territory of the Treasure Tree Kingdom, trade was safe, and with the escort team in front, what could possibly go wrong?

At this moment, the distance between the official road and the dangerous peak had shortened significantly, and there were even several natural stone beams hidden in the dense thickets that intersected. Second Master Shi pointed to a narrow, biased path and said: "From here, one can go up to Mount Fengmo Mountain. I went up ten years ago and even saw the ruins of the Ethereal Sect. If one walks fast, one can descend from the other side and happen to return to the official road."

"Was the predecessor of the Ethereal Sect also an ancient immortal sect?"

"Based on what I saw on the mountain, it should be." Second Master Shi sighed with emotion, "That place looked like the Vast Cold Palace; it didn't look like a place for people to live at all! The immortals of ancient times truly had great abilities."

He He Lingchuan immediately said: "Come with me for a trip up there?"

That was an immortal sect ruin, after all; one should go and pay respects to see if the Divine Bone Necklace had any needs.

Besides, Mount Fengmo Mountain was the highest point within a thirty-mile radius; looking down at the entire escort team's journey from there should be as clear as day.

If someone was truly planning something in secret, they wouldn't miss this commanding height.

He He Lingchuan had been silently observing the terrain of the snow-capped mountains.

To be honest, as an outsider, he was unfamiliar with the mountain topography here, which was a major disadvantage.

Heavenly timing, geographical advantage, and human harmony—he possessed none of them.

To profit from the chaos that might occur in the future, he had to observe more meticulously and think more thoroughly.

"Fine, fine then." Second Master Shi tightened his cloak, "But my horse can't go up."

That wasn't an official road; the slope reached forty-five degrees, and the mountain rocks were rugged and uneven.

He He Lingchuan patted the rock sheep's large horns: "Look at what I'm riding."

He pointed at the snow-capped mountain and asked the rock sheep: "Can you carry both of us up?"

The rock sheep bleated twice and nodded repeatedly.

"A piece of cake." He He Lingchuan gave Second Master Shi a hand, helping him climb onto the sheep's back.

It was actually quite stable sitting there. Second Master Shi told his men to meet up ahead, then took a light breath: "Alright, let's go."

"Let's go!" He He Lingchuan flicked the reins, and the rock sheep leaped high, jumping onto that small path in two or three bounds.

It was truly hopping and skipping.

Second Master Shi was bounced until his buttocks went numb. He looked down and saw he was already on a ten-thousand-fathom precipice, so scared he grabbed He He Lingchuan's shoulder: "Slow, slow down! We're not in a rush!"

This rock sheep was born to forage on mountains; it was much more agile at climbing than other animals. After becoming a monster, its strength increased, so carrying two people was not a problem at all.

Most importantly, it possessed innate lightness and shock-absorption talents, treading on precipices as if they were flat ground, and it was surprisingly not much slower than running on the ground—even Newton would be annoyed if he saw this.

Even on a spot the size of a palm, it could fit all four hooves.

The mountain wind blew until Second Master Shi was swaying precariously; he regretted it so much he felt like he was going to vomit bile:

This sheep actually didn't follow the path and liked to take shortcuts! It leaped through the air several times in succession; it was having fun jumping, but Second Master Shi happened to look down, and it was all a bottomless abyss.

The mountain wind was also strong; if the rock sheep made one misstep, all three of them would be finished!

Soon, the main force was left far below and could no longer be seen.

"This, this, this, right here, we can get down!" Second Master Shi pointed to a stone mortar, his face numbed by the cold wind, making it hard to open his mouth.

The rock sheep leaped lightly and jumped into that stone mortar, returning to the planned route.

Climbing up from here would lead to the summit.

This stretch of mountain road was quite wide, and the steps were not narrow, making it quite comfortable to walk. For two thousand years, the disciples of the Ethereal Sect had trodden such mountain paths up and down the sheer peaks.

Second Master Shi couldn't help but sigh: "Going up and down the mountain like this every day is also strangely tiring."

The mirror spoke again, its tone sarcastic as soon as it opened its mouth: "You don't actually think that the disciples of the ancient immortal families walked in and out of the mountain gate, do you?"

Of course, Second Master Shi couldn't hear it.

He He Lingchuan patted the mirror: "Then how did they travel, sword-flying?"

"Of course!" The mirror said as if it were a matter of course, "Do you think those small paths in the mountains look like they are frequently used by people?"

If it were a necessary path, it would naturally be built as wide, flat, and straight as possible. But the few small paths He He Lingchuan saw were uneven and carved very casually; no matter how one looked at it, it meant "just build it casually, it's good enough to have a path."

Now the two of them were following a natural crevice, drilling into the heart of the mountain.

Legend has it that this Mount Fengmo Mountain was the main peak of the immortal sect.

Of course, when it was at its peak, the number of disciples was too large, and they didn't necessarily all live here.

The road actually got wider as they walked, and the two soon arrived at a huge natural platform. Above, a single rock formed a mountain, exceptionally majestic and spectacular. The rock face was like a cut, so smooth that even the rock sheep couldn't climb it.

The "Sun Illuminating the Golden Peak" wonder, worshipped by ten thousand people, was the sunlight striking the peak of this giant rock.

The platform below was huge, at least three football fields side by side.

Standing here, one could not only look out at the mountains, but even the figures of the escort team opposite could be seen clearly! The wind force here was unprecedented, and the two people and one sheep were almost blown off by the mountain wind.

"Quick, quick, go in there!" Second Master Shi pointed forward and shouted against the wind, and He He Lingchuan discovered there was another small path leading inward.

——

Author's Note--

I put a GIF at the end of the chapter to let you see the mobility of the rock sheep without buffs. (Internet image, delete if infringing.)

(End of chapter)