Chapter 140: The World Is So Vast, I Want to Go See It

The farther south you go, the lower the temperature, and the plants become vastly different.

The leaves of the trees become increasingly sparse, the grass grows much shorter, and the riverbanks now have clusters of leaf thorns bearing red fruits the size of pigeon eggs.

Although he is in a bad mood, Wei Yuning still habitually collects some special plants.

A fleshy plant that emits a cool scent, smelling much like mint on Earth, he simply names it "Meat Mint".

There is also a plant bearing fist‑sized, spiky fruits; when the skin is peeled, the seed inside has a peculiar mixed fragrance. He originally intended to name it "Spine Fragrant Fruit", but recalling the arch‑enemy "Spine Demon", he abruptly decides to rename it "Demon‑Head Fruit".

As for the red fruits on the leaf thorns, they taste exactly like tomatoes; Wei Yuning, moved by the sight, uses plant‑growth technique to accelerate a large patch of leaf thorns and eats enough of them.

When he places these plant seeds into his life‑space ring, he unexpectedly discovers that the interior space has changed: the outer wall, which was previously a gray mist, has now become an unknown black, translucent stone. Though the layer is extremely thin, visually it appears solid and densely condensed.

He shrugs indifferently and tosses the matter out of his mind.

At present, his location is already within the borders of the Black Water Nation. Black Water Nation is a vast empire yet sparsely populated. Gobi flats, deserts, barren stone mountains, and ice plains—semi‑uninhabited zones—occupy most of its territory, while only the Black Water River basin and areas near the coastline have relatively dense populations.

Wei Yuning follows the Black Water Riverbank, alternating between flying and walking; roughly every half‑day he encounters a large tribe or a medium‑sized town—human settlements.

However, he sees more of the territories belonging to various beasts. The creatures that can wrest land from humans are essentially spirit beasts, the lowest tier being large predators such as lions, tigers, leopards, and sables, plus some bizarre beasts that Wei Yuning cannot even categorize, as if they were forced hybrid laboratory creations. The world's beasts are intelligent and even taller; they possess unique social structures and build nests.

Ordinary humans have far lower combat power than beasts; they must rely on all kinds of tools to survive on a planet where beasts dominate.

Tall, sturdy walls and bunkers are almost standard fixtures at every human settlement.

After five more days, Wei Yuning arrives at a new area: the main trunk of the Black Water River.

The main channel of the Black Water River is unusually wide; even its narrowest stretch exceeds fifty li, and to human eyes it is indistinguishable from an endless sea. Moreover, under normal circumstances, ordinary mortals would not attempt to cross this perilous river.

In the Black Water River basin of the Xi Nation and the Green Wolf Nation, the widest pastures and farmlands are no more than three li, whereas the fertile lands surrounding the main river basin span several hundred to over a thousand li in width.

In the main river section, human settlements begin to distance themselves from the main flow, spreading more along the tributary banks. One reason is that the main riverbanks are riddled with swamps and forests, unsuitable for habitation. A more important reason is that the biodiversity near the banks is extreme; beasts with slightly weaker survival skills cannot survive, and the dominant occupants are uniformly powerful creatures.

Among them, crocodilians, turtles, and python‑type creatures predominate, and some are distant subspecies of dragons.

Naturally, in such water‑rich regions, plant varieties are also far more diverse.

Wei Yuning does not choose to retreat to the safer areas away from the riverbank; he stays here to collect plants, and with his life‑space ring he has no storage worries.

Moreover, such a chance to relax the mind is rare; who knows if there will be another one in the future!

Relying on his excellent invisibility, the illusion of his Green Wood ring, and his footwork, he repeatedly brushes past various spirit beasts.

However, the old saying holds true: "If you constantly walk by the river, how can your shoes stay dry?"

Today, while gathering a plant, he was deceived by a creature with even stronger invisibility.

It is a turtle‑like creature, but its shell is entirely stone‑like, pitted and hollow, covered with countless holes, some shellfish having made homes there; it resembles wild stones even more than the ordinary riverbank rocks.

The worst part is that Wei Yuning stood on this one‑meter‑square stone for three minutes without any oddity. Finally, he used vines to pull this hollow, tube‑shaped aquatic plant out by the roots and placed it into his life‑space ring; when he prepared to leave, an abnormality suddenly occurred.

His feet were pinned to the stone, the cloud shoes on his feet and the lower hem of his garments all turned to stone. At once, an attack arrived. In an instant, Wei Yuning failed to react in time and was hit by a tail that looked like a stone hammer; even though he instantly slipped his body into the local space, he still couldn't help spitting out a large mouthful of fresh blood.

If he were not a flesh‑body cultivator, just this one blow would severely injure an ordinary spirit‑sense cultivator; even a light injury would keep them from getting out of bed.

He actually encountered a spirit beast capable of petrification.

Among the petrifying spirit beasts he has heard of, none directly turn living beings to stone; their ability is more akin to calcifying objects, which is very similar to this spirit turtle's power. It is a bloodline ability, essentially the same evolutionary branch as the earth‑type spirit‑root cultivators' stone‑path Dao techniques.

The combat power of spirit beasts enjoys a physical advantage, especially in close‑quarters combat, making them utterly beyond the reach of low‑level human cultivators.

Barefoot and fleeing, Wei Yuning is still shaken but also awakens. Being possessed by the Jun Demon is certainly fatal, though not necessarily immediate; however, if he keeps acting recklessly, he may die instantly.

Which is lighter and which is heavier, even a fool knows.

Having readjusted his mindset, Wei Yuning decides to engage with human society and live on human territory for a while. During this period, the variety of plants he collects is already ample.

Putting on new shoes, Wei Yuning flies along a tributary, and before sunset he spots a medium‑sized town in the distance. A broad stone‑paved road runs through the town's center, stretching seemingly endless.

In a stretch with no road in any direction, Wei Yuning lands.

Just after touching down, another messenger bird appears before him. Wei Yuning doesn't even glance, and shatters the sigil bird into ash. In the past few days, he has received no fewer than ten messenger birds, and without exception he has destroyed them all.

Earning spirit stones, sect brotherhood, cultivation, Dao companions, slaying demon heads, and so on—none of it matters now; he no longer cares about any of that.

He intends to use this time to truly see this world, so his journey won't have been in vain.

"Gemstone City!" Seeing the three large characters on the city wall gate, Wei Yuning furrows his brow. Apart from a three‑li‑wide river, numerous ponds and vast plains, there is no sign of any mines; he truly cannot discern how the name "Gemstone City" originated.

"Do you have a pass? Without one you cannot enter the city!"

There are three gate‑keeping soldiers, all wearing black helmets and black armor, with thick dark‑red cloth garments underneath. One middle‑aged soldier wields a hefty back‑mounted broadsword, pacing back and forth. The two youthful soldiers stand on either side of the gate, each bracing a three‑meter‑long spear.

The one asking questions is the middle‑aged soldier. He has a pale, beardless face, a slightly plump build, and an arrogant expression; perhaps seeing Wei Yuning's unusually splendid clothing, which is unlike ordinary attire, his tone remains relatively gentle.