Chapter 87: Blessed Land, Xiaqi Valley

Chen Mo was running across the wilderness, the wild grass beneath his feet reaching up to his knees; looking further ahead, there was an endless forest.

Sun Shouren's pace was very steady, and he walked in front of Chen Mo the entire time.

Both were Martial Artists, so their speed was naturally not slow; in less than half a day, they had already covered several dozen miles.

After walking for about another two or three quarters of an hour, Sun Shouren finally stopped.

A small, deserted path leading into the depths of the forest appeared before their eyes.

This path must have been frequently traveled, as it was not overgrown with weeds.

"Walk another twenty or thirty miles along this path, and we will reach Xiaqi Valley." Sun Shouren's tone was certain, his gaze fixed on the distance.

In the distance, several mountain ranges were clearly visible, with seas of clouds and mist churning among them, refusing to dissipate for a long time.

The two caught their breath for a moment before continuing their run forward.

Before long, a valley leaped into view, and outside the valley were many villages, farmland, and ordinary people living and residing there.

The population living here likely numbered in the tens of thousands.

This place looked more like a large, hidden Peach Blossom Spring; it was indeed somewhat different from the isolated Dongtian Fudi that Chen Mo had imagined.

"No need to be surprised, Qi Refiners are people too. They cannot handle everything themselves, so naturally, they have use for ordinary people."

Sun Shouren wore a smile as he explained to Chen Mo.

Qi Refiners are not ascetic monks; naturally, they need people to serve them so they can devote more energy to cultivation.

"This Xiaqi Valley belongs to the Xiaqi Sect and can be considered the only Qi Refiner lineage within our Xingyuan Prefecture.

The sect has over thirty Qi Refiners, the strongest of whom is the Xiaqi Sect leader, Daoist Xuanming, who possesses the strength of the ninth layer of Qi Refining."

Sun Shouren strode into the valley, casually explaining the situation of the place to Chen Mo.

Back on the road, he had already told Chen Mo that the cultivation of Qi Refiners is divided into three realms: Qi Refining, Foundation Establishment, and Golden Core.

However, ninety-nine percent of practitioners are blocked at the Qi Refining realm, finding it difficult to make another breakthrough for the rest of their lives.

But this does not mean that practitioners at the Qi Refining realm are weak; at the very least, according to him, most Qi Refiners at the ninth layer of Qi Refining have strength comparable to his own.

And he, looking across the entire Xingyuan Prefecture, is already a Martial Artist of note.

Walking into the valley, Chen Mo carefully sensed the differences in the world around him, yet no matter how he looked at it, there was no great difference from the outside world.

The area inside the valley was not small, spanning several thousand mu.

The terrain rose and fell, with many residences, pavilions, and towers scattered like stars in the sky; between these residences, blue stone paths over a zhang wide were laid out to facilitate passage.

"Are you two also here to attend the Dense Gathering?"

No sooner had the two walked into the valley than two martial men dressed in green tight-fitting clothes came to greet them.

"Ah, so it is General Sun who has arrived." A resonant shout came from not far away, and a middle-aged Daoist wearing Daoist robes walked over and performed a salute.

"Daoist Zhao." Sun Shouren cupped his hands in return.

"This is my foster son, Chen Mo. He is already clear on many matters, and I brought him this time to broaden his horizons." He reached out and patted Chen Mo on the shoulder.

"This junior pays his respects to the Daoist." Chen Mo bowed and saluted.

Daoist Zhao smiled, exchanged a few more pleasantries with Sun Shouren, and then spoke.

"The Dense Gathering is approaching, and there are many affairs within the sect, so I truly cannot entertain you much."

After speaking, he turned his head to look at the martial men to the side and instructed, "Find the two distinguished guests some fine guest rooms, let them rest well, and do not be negligent."

Having finished, he performed another salute and hurried away.

"This Daoist Zhao is an elder of the Xiaqi Sect; if you have any Mirage Spirit that is inconvenient for you to use in the future, just find him to handle it," Sun Shouren said in a low voice as they walked into the guest room arranged for them by the Xiaqi Sect.

"This child understands." Chen Mo nodded in response, then asked with slight curiosity, "Foster father, why are there so many Martial Artists within the Xiaqi Sect?

And I truly do not understand, what exactly is the difference between this Dongtian Fudi and the outside world? Is it that my strength is insufficient, or is it because I am not a Qi Refiner that I cannot sense it?"

These two questions had indeed left him confused; the former was easy to explain, as Qi Refiners also have relatives and descendants, and it is impossible for all of their children and grandchildren to have the talent for immortal cultivation.

Thus, it is perfectly normal for their descendants to practice the Martial Dao and become Martial Artists.

Although these Qi Refiners themselves do not understand the Martial Dao, with their strength and status, it is by no means difficult to befriend Martial Artists and obtain cultivation Secret Techniques for their relatives to embark on the path of the Martial Dao.

But he really could not figure out the latter; no matter how one looked at it, this Dongtian Fudi had no difference from the outside world.

Logically speaking, with his current physical strength, as long as the external environment changed, even the slightest change, he would be able to perceive it.

Yet, from entering the valley from outside, he had not perceived any changes.

"You cannot perceive the special nature of this place not because your strength is insufficient, but because the time has not yet come.

Wait until nightfall, and you will discover that there is no one beating the Gong and Drum here, and the Blood Moon does not shine, nor does the Mirage Sea come."

Sun Shouren sat down with a smile to answer his doubts.

"A Dongtian Fudi is like a mountain; because its terrain is towering, it is not disturbed by the Mirage Sea. For the Mirage Sea to flood this place, it would at least have to submerge everything outside first."

He spoke leisurely, his words neither hurried nor slow, and Chen Mo pricked up his ears, listening quite carefully and earnestly.

"Unlike us martial men who cultivate our own bodies, Qi Refiners draw the Qi of heaven and earth into their bodies and cultivate by observing the changes of heaven and earth.

Their perception and awareness of heaven and earth are far superior to ours by more than ten times. Once they step out of the Dongtian Fudi, they are naturally fine during the day.

But once night falls, they will mostly encounter ominous things, and might even be dragged directly into the Mirage Sea; even beating the Gong and Drum would be of no use to them.

If a Qi Refiner wants to leave the Dongtian Fudi, they must either be bolstered by a Secret Technique or have a secret treasure for protection; otherwise, they cannot easily leave.

And the higher the cultivation of a Qi Refiner, the harder it is for them to leave the Dongtian Fudi."

Chen Mo felt this deeply; after his physical body improved, he saw this world more and more clearly.

He understood how deep the waters of this world were; seeing things too clearly was definitely not a good thing.

With his current cultivation and strength, he could see the black shadows on the moon when observing with all his might.

And Qi Refiners of the same realm could see far more than he could.

However, it can also be seen from this that Qi Refiners seem unable to control their own perception as freely as martial men.

However, from this it can also be seen that Qi Refiners seem unable to manipulate their own perceptions at will like martial artists.

Of course, there is also a possibility, which is that their perception of this world is simply too clear.

Even when deliberately suppressing it, what they see still far exceeds that of Martial Artists of the same realm by an unknown margin.

"Now you can understand why there are so many Martial Artists in this Xiaqi Valley."

Sun Shouren took a sip of tea and asked Chen Mo with a smile.

"Because it is not easy for Qi Refiners to go out, so there are many things that must be left to Martial Artists to handle on their behalf."

Chen Mo did not overthink it and gave the answer quite smoothly.

"A child worth teaching!" Sun Shouren nodded with great satisfaction upon hearing this.

This question was actually not difficult; once asked, anyone who was not particularly dull-witted could guess it.

The reason he specifically asked Chen Mo was simply to indulge his addiction to being a mentor.

"Actually, there is another reason, which is that if we Martial Artists enter or exit frequently in a short period or linger in the Mirage Sea for a long time, we will also be tainted by the Mirage Sea Breath.

If the Mirage Sea Breath on one's body reaches a certain concentration, it will resonate with it and one will be directly and forcibly pulled into the Mirage Sea.

The Mirage Sea is fickle, and coming into contact with it is inherently an extremely dangerous matter; the more one comes into contact with it, the more dangerous it becomes.

Therefore, we Martial Artists sometimes also have to hide in such a Dongtian Fudi to avoid it for a period of time, allowing the Mirage Sea Breath on our bodies to dissipate, so that we can walk out of this place," Sun Shouren explained carefully with a cautious look on his face.

Even for a Martial Artist, as long as one is tainted with enough Mirage Sea Breath, one could be pulled into the Mirage Sea at any time and place, which can be said to be quite dangerous.

Because it is impossible for a person to go twelve hours a day without sleep or rest, fully focused, and maintaining vigilance at all times.

Once one is pulled into the Mirage Sea in a daze, it would be fine if one were conscious at the time, but if one were pulled in while in a deep sleep, that would be dangerous.

Even if a Martial Artist senses the changes in the world around them and can wake up immediately.

The Mirage Sea is unpredictable; even if it is just a moment of daze, there might be strange creatures appearing to take one's life.

Therefore, Martial Artists who often enter the Mirage Sea for adventures will have a familiar Dongtian Fudi where they can stay for a long time.

This is to prevent having nowhere to avoid disaster when the Mirage Sea Breath on their bodies becomes too thick.

"Brother Shouren has arrived; why didn't you let someone give notice in advance?" A rather steady voice came.

The courtyard gate was pushed open, and a Taoist in his fifties wearing green robes walked into the small courtyard.

"This is Daoist Xuanming, the current sect leader of the Xiaqi Sect," Sun Shouren introduced the newcomer to Chen Mo with a smile.

He brought Chen Mo here this time mainly to let him see the world and get to know more people.

Only in this way could he pass his connections on to him in the future.

Sun Shouren knew that his family property could be passed on to his children, and it wouldn't matter even if they had no ability or prospects.

Friends and relatives, as well as his several adopted sons, would help protect them to some extent, and a life as a stable, wealthy man would certainly be possible.

But for his connections and relationships, one must have the ability to inherit them, otherwise, one simply cannot hold onto them.

And Chen Mo, as it looks now, is undoubtedly a very good candidate.

If he can take over his connections, he will not necessarily rise rapidly in the officialdom in the future, but he will at least have a smooth path.

"This junior pays respects to the Daoist," Chen Mo bowed and performed another salute.

Daoist Xuanming was quite happy, reached out to help him up, and walked into the main hall of the courtyard with Sun Shouren to chat.

Two days later, the Dense Gathering opened.

As a Dense Gathering, it is a relatively private small assembly for trading and exchanging things that are not easy to sell outside.

Anyone who can come to participate in this Dense Gathering is a person of status and reputation throughout the entire Xingyuan Prefecture.

Sun Shouren also introduced Chen Mo to many people; not to say they were very familiar, but at least they had met.

In the future, when these people see Chen Mo again, they will know that he is Sun Shouren's adopted son.

In addition, as the organizer, the Xiaqi Sect would also sell some of the medicinal pills they refined in exchange for resources and silver money.

Medicinal pills can be purchased with silver money, it is just a bit expensive.

After all, the Xiaqi Sect is not completely isolated from the world and also has times when they need to use silver.

The Origin True Stone in Chen Mo's hand was also sold at this Dense Gathering, exchanged for three bottles containing twelve medicinal pills, used to assist in cultivation.

After participating in the Dense Gathering and staying at the Xiaqi Sect for another day, Chen Mo and Sun Shouren then set off to leave.

(End of this chapter)