Chapter 212 – The Busy Streets Deep Within the Mountains (2/2)

Even more wondrously, within that snowbound land in the encirclement of snow mountains, only a single mountain remained lush and verdant, like an emerald gem on the white snow.

Li Qingshan stood on a snow mountain and looked into the distance. He marvelled at the wonders of nature. Although the formations of Green Vine mountain played a big part, the real reason why the mountain experienced eternal spring was because of the spiritual vein underground.

Not only was this place close to Jiaping city, but it was even close to his hometown, Qingyang city. It was located in one of the outlying ranges of the Boundless mountains.

Of course, it was close at Li Qingshan’s current level of strength. Just the several hundred kilometers of dangerous, precipitous mountain paths were enough to sever all chances of regular people reaching here. Even if they managed to reach here out of sheer luck, the pervasive mist hid many secrets. Not only would it be impossible for regular people to climb the mountain, but they probably could not even see the green mountain.

Li Qingshan could see it, but he hesitated over how he was supposed to reach there.

Was Yu Zijian on the mountain somewhere right now, suffering?

Li Qingshan stood atop the mountain in thought. He stomped his foot and true qi spurted out from the bottom, kicking up a ring of snow. He had already leapt towards the cliff several hundred meters below him, having locked onto a pine tree that grew vertically from the cliff face. After pushing off it, he arrived on a mountain on the other side. He wanted to make his way to the back of the Green Vine mountain to see if there were any cracks he could enter through.

By now, the night had already darkened. Winter nights were extremely long, and the dark night was beneficial to Li Qingshan’s movements. If there was some wind and snow, it would be even better.

Perhaps the heavens had really decided to answer his prayers, as snow began to fall a while later.

Li Qingshan concealed his aura, but when he arrived behind the mountain, he was slightly stunned.

A small town sat on a region of level ground. It gave off warm lantern light. Was there actually a village located right beside where cultivators cultivated?

However, as Li Qingshan was born in a village, he knew that regular towns or even small cities should have been pitch-black by now, just so that they could save some oil. The town was bustling with people flowing to and fro. It seemed extremely busy. It seemed out of the ordinary for such a busy place to exist within the frosty mountains.

When Li Qingshan approached the place, he became even more shocked, as there was not a single regular person wandering the streets. They were all cultivators.

Li Qingshan had never seen so many cultivators gathered together in his entire life. Although most of them were at the second, third, and fourth layers, they were still cultivators.

Were these Qi Practitioners from the Green Vine mountain?

Li Qingshan immediately shook his head. There were several hundred Qi Practitioners here at the very least. The Green Vine mountain definitely did not have that many Qi Practitioners. And, the clothes of these people on the streets varied. They bore different insignias. They did not come from the same sect.

At a closer glance, he discovered that many of the Qi Practitioners were like peddlers. They called out to attract customers, without the slightest dignity that belonged to Qi Practitioners.

Li Qingshan’s curiosity immediately rose beyond his control. He knocked the bamboo basket on his back. “What do you think? Wanna check it out?”

The bamboo basket seemed simple on the surface, but there was a thick layer of cushioning inside. Xiao An sat in there leisurely, leaning against a silken pillow as she read in great interest a buddhist scripture that Li Qingshan had found to be boring.

“Let’s go!” She replied very succinctly. She could clearly tell what Li Qingshan was feeling right now.

Li Qingshan emerged from a dark corner and made his way over to the town. However, he maintained his guard constantly. He had been screwed over by far too many Qi Practitioners in the past, and he had claimed the lives of many Qi Practitioners as well. As a result, he was even more vigilant of those like him than the daemons underground.

When he set foot in the town, everything remained the same as before. Everyone continued about with what they were doing. There were far fewer people who looked at him due to his abnormal size compared to on regular streets.

However, Li Qingshan’s huge size still solicited a lot of attention.

“Fellow cultivator, why don’t you check out this fantastic golden silk for tailoring robes? It’s only three spiritual stones for a tael!”

Li Qingshan declined with a smile before turning his head and seeing a second layer Qi Practitioner call out at the top of his voice from a building, “A fifth layer Qi Practitioner explaining the essence of the Innate Method of Practising Qi, only a spiritual stone for entry! In exchange for a single spiritual stone, you can save three years worth of time! You’d better get in here fast, or it’ll be gone before you know it!”

Li Qingshan’s ears pricked up instinctively. However, the building was surrounded with formations, such that it was impossible to eavesdrop on what was being said inside no matter how great his hearing was. Two first layer Qi Practitioners discussed at the entrance whether to go in or not.