[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-notes-on-cultivation-at-wulong-mountain":3,"chapter-notes-on-cultivation-at-wulong-mountain-notes-on-cultivation-at-wulong-mountain-chapter-5":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","Notes on Cultivation at Wulong Mountain",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},2272910,4440,"Chapter 5: Chapter Four: Descending the Mountain","notes-on-cultivation-at-wulong-mountain-chapter-5",5,"\u003Cp>Dai Shenggao saw that Liu Xiaolou knew, so he said no more, nodding: “Yes, the First Arrow of Xiangnan. He failed his seclusion and didn’t survive. So Old Wang gathered the heroes to storm the manor. I was sent to deliver the notices—will you go?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Liu Xiaolou pondered for a long while, then said: “My master once told me Zhang Xianbai was the top outer-disciple of Dongyang Mountain...”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Dai Shenggao said: “So we must act before Dongyang Mountain sends anyone to pay respects—time is tight, it’s tonight. Your master always received the notices before, but this time...”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Liu Xiaolou said nothing, staring silently at the grave. His master, Master Sanxuan, had received the Hero’s Notice six months ago and had since lain in this very grave—the body had been returned by Dai Shenggao himself.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Dai Shenggao added: “Once you accept the Hero’s Notice, life or death is your own responsibility... make your choice.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He shook his head, took a deep breath, and stepped forward to take the notice, gripping it tightly in his palm. The notice was carved from a square piece of wood, its color yellow tinged with purple, inscribed with the three characters “Hero’s Notice”—the characters flickered in and out, unmistakably Old Wang’s unique handiwork, impossible to counterfeit.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Present the notice to enter?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Correct. Keep it on you, don’t lose it—only with the notice will they let you into the mountain.” He paused, then sighed: “I don’t even know if giving you this notice was right or wrong...”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Liu Xiaolou forced a smile: “I haven’t made any progress in half a year.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Dai Shenggao nodded, said no more, stood tall, and hurried down the mountain.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Liu Xiaolou watched Dai Shenggao depart, sat quietly before the grave for a while, then bowed three times with utmost respect: “May my master protect me on this journey.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After bowing, Liu Xiaolou returned to the thatched hut, tied his master’s Sanxuan Sword to his back, rummaged beneath the bed for the last ounce or so of scattered silver, donned his bamboo hat, and walked out.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The journey to Jinping Mountain was over three hundred li, and he must arrive before tonight—no time to waste.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Outside the courtyard, he saw the large white goose standing by the path, wings slightly spread, head raised toward him. Liu Xiaolou reached out and stroked its head: “If I don’t return, the Sanxuan Sect will vanish from this world. Find your own way then.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As he descended Qianzhu Ridge, a torrential rain began. The Wuchao River rose rapidly, roaring like a dragon, surging downstream.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The small bamboo hat offered no shelter—he was soaked through. Though he was at Qi Refining Second Layer, the rain didn’t harm him, but it slowed his pace considerably.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He walked along the Wuchao River for over two hours, finally leaving Wulong Mountain. Before him stretched vast fields crisscrossed with paths; the rain grew lighter but continued without pause.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Liu Xiaolou had come up the mountain at age eight and cultivated here for ten years—he knew the surrounding roads well. He quickened his step, following the field ridges southward. The sky darkened, his stomach growled. He reached a walled farmhouse, knocked, and called: “Uncle Tian!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>An old farmer opened the door and welcomed him inside: “Young Immortal, are you leaving the mountain?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Yes, passing through. I beg a meal, Uncle Tian.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Of course, of course.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Uncle Tian brought out a bowl of millet rice and a piece of old salted vegetable, ate with Liu Xiaolou, watching him as he asked: “Long time since I saw Master Sanxuan. How is he?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Liu Xiaolou poked at his rice for a long while, then whispered: “My master has passed.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Uncle Tian let out an “Ah,” fell silent, and quietly finished eating with him. Then suddenly, he grinned: “Last year, Jingzhen Immortal of Xiushan took notice of my Zhen and took her to cultivate.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Liu Xiaolou blinked. “Xiushan... Master Jingzhen... Zhen is truly fortunate.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Uncle Tian smiled: “Thanks to you, Young Immortal. If you hadn’t saved her back then, the flood would’ve taken her.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Liu Xiaolou shook his head: “Uncle Tian, it was nothing. Don’t mention it. Xiushan is a fine place, Master Jingzhen is a great cultivator—my master said she was very, very high-level... but now she’s gone, how do you manage? Didn’t you go with her?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Uncle Tian waved his hand: “No problem. I live well alone—less worry! Besides, Xiushan is five hundred li from home. What would an old man like me do there? Who’ll tend these fields? My surname is Tian—I was born to live with the soil... Oh, by the way, Master Jingzhen said Zhen can come home once a year.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Another silence fell.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Liu Xiaolou nodded slowly, placed the ounce or so of silver on the table: “Uncle Tian, I must be on my way.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Uncle Tian rushed out after him: “Too much! You don’t need this much!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Liu Xiaolou didn’t turn back, just waved behind him: “Next time I come, I won’t pay at all.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Leaving Wulong Mountain, Liu Xiaolou traveled under stars and moon, pushing hard. Though Qi Refining Second Layer didn’t make him faster than a wealthy household’s bodyguard, his dantian held a steady flow of true qi, granting him enduring stamina. By dusk the next day, he entered Xiangnan’s Jinping Mountain.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At the mountain pass stood a blind old man who blocked Liu Xiaolou’s path: “Young man, where are you headed?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Liu Xiaolou glanced at the old man’s chest and saw the same Hero’s Notice. He quickly pulled out his own and waved it before the old man: “I come from Wulong Mountain to attend the Heroic Assembly.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The old man sniffed, then asked: “Who issued your notice?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Liu Xiaolou answered: “Dai Sanren.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The old man nodded, pointed to the high mountain to the right: “Enter here, climb the northern peak when you reach the scattered rocks.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Liu Xiaolou bowed, followed the direction, and after walking a few li, found a trail beside jagged rocks. He climbed upward, ascending under the rising moon until he reached the summit—a sheer cliff lay ahead.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He immediately saw Dai Shenggao at the cliff’s edge, hidden behind a massive boulder, peering down occasionally. Seeing Liu Xiaolou, Dai Shenggao waved him over.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At the cliff’s edge, below lay a dark valley, its terrain indistinguishable, only the surrounding peaks outlined in moonlight as shadowy ridges.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In that valley lay a cluster of lights. Dai Shenggao said: “That’s the Zhang family’s Jinping Manor.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Liu Xiaolou gazed afar, then asked: “Master, which heroes have answered the call?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Dai Shenggao pointed to the surrounding mountains: “The eastern hills hold the Mengdonghe heroes, the southern valley the Seventh Branch of the Pai Sect, the western peak the Yunshan Gang, the southeast and southwest gaps are held by local magnates Gao Feiyan and Wan Jianxin. On this northern cliff, we have the brothers from the north.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Liu Xiaolou asked: “Who from Wulong Mountain came?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Dai Shenggao replied: “Time was too short—we invited few. Only you and Longshan Sanren... you’re the first to arrive.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Liu Xiaolou gazed across the mountains, unable to judge how many cultivators lurked in each peak, but the Zhang clan inside the manor clearly knew nothing of the danger—their lights still burned brightly, like a banquet laid out under the heavy night, waiting to be devoured.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That night, over thirty heroes from the north gradually gathered on the northern cliff, revealing Dai Shenggao’s wide network.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In the late night, Longshan Sanren arrived—a man with a full beard obscuring his face, claiming his cultivation of the mysterious art had granted him the “Dragon Head” form, whether true or not, no one knew. Though both were Wulong Mountain hermits, they had never met. When he heard Liu Xiaolou was Sanxuan’s disciple, he nodded: “Brother Sanxuan... a good man.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Liu Xiaolou bowed to him in thanks.\u003C\u002Fp>",1308,"2026-06-19T23:11:25.549Z",1,"Qwen3-Next 80B","fcbb44babb47e81912f8e2e0a6ac86420fedcb1e2945b03f94565add1f6415ba","notes-on-cultivation-at-wulong-mountain-chapter-6","notes-on-cultivation-at-wulong-mountain-chapter-4",638,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fnotes-on-cultivation-at-wulong-mountain-cover.jpg"]