My home is small and cannot accommodate guests.
Mo Li regretted as he chased after him.
He shouldn’t have asked that question. The unusual behavior of Meng Qi was likely due to his memories of the little dragon vein of Shangyun Mountain.
He had wrongly assumed that Meng Qi had been living in seclusion in the mountains because that’s what Meng Qi himself had claimed. However, the truth might be different. After resigning as the Imperial State Teacher, Meng Qi had returned to Shangyun Mountain, but “seclusion” didn’t necessarily mean having a house; it could be a hidden cave suitable for sand rats.
When Meng Qi mentioned that he lived on the outskirts of Shangyun Mountain, Mo Li’s heart tightened.
He realized that the house had probably been built by Meng Qi when he discovered the new dragon vein.
At that time, the Imperial Dragon Vein was very lonely and refused to interact with humans.
Without a house, it meant not wanting to live in a “human form.”
At that time, Chu Emperor Ling was still on the throne, and the world was still in a state of prosperity. The capital must have been much more lively than it is now, with carriages and horses flowing continuously and people coming and going. All the rare treasures in the world are listed here, and the world’s talents gather here. There would be a sea of spring flowers and green willows in half the city, half the city would be filled with excellent poems, and masterpieces would be inscribed on the walls. The beautiful music would be passed down through the ages.
Guarding such a prosperous city is frustrating.
Was it right or wrong to join the world? Is it a gain or a loss?
Mo Li’s heart tightened.
He felt suffocated, even though his internal energy flowed smoothly through his meridians. He suddenly felt breathless.
The sky was too dark, and although the mountain path was smooth, Meng Qi didn’t follow it. He moved through the dense trees like a gust of wind. Despite Mo Li’s relentless pursuit, there were two instances where he nearly lost sight of Meng Qi.
The moon gradually rose, climbing to the mountain’s peak, revealing a glimpse of the forest.
The trees here were dense and varied in height and species.
Mo Li continued to chase forward for a while, then suddenly saw the vague silhouette of a pagoda in the distance.
As expected, shortly afterward, he saw the entire tower. It was only three stories tall, with a spherical spire, and Buddha reliefs on all four sides. Below the tower was a temple with reddish-yellow walls that stood out under the moonlight.
At this hour, the evening prayers in the temple had ended, and the lingering fragrance filled the air.
A young novice monk was sweeping the stone steps in front of the temple with a broom.
His movements were a bit clumsy, and suddenly, he was hit by a strong gust of wind, causing him to spin around in place. He was startled but held onto the broom. Before he could rub his eyes, another gust of wind came.
“Aiya.”
The little novice stumbled to his feet and saw that he was facing the temple, and then his eyes lit up.
“Oh, I must have been blown back here by the wind after my master punished me to sweep to the mountain gate and return. Amitabha, how auspicious, how auspicious.”
The young novice monk cheerfully continued sweeping the stone steps, paying no attention to the mountain gate behind him.
The temple was not large, consisting only of the main hall and two rows of side rooms, with the tower in front.
A plaque hung in front of the temple with the name “Liuhe Temple.”
Inside the temple, a monk carrying a lantern delivered the vegetarian dishes to the side rooms. Someone inside one of the rooms leaned against the window, gazing outside.
“Benefactor?”
“Oh, come in!” the person staying at Liuhe Temple replied with a puzzled expression. “Are there any mountain imps or wild apes in the vicinity?”
The monk was taken aback and quickly said, “You jest, benefactor! There are no such demons here. This is Shangyun Mountain, bathed in the Dragon Qi of the Emperor. How could there be such monsters?”
“That’s strange! I could have sworn I saw two figures walking on the treetops just now.”
The guest at Liuhe Temple muttered for a moment, and the monk didn’t dare to listen further. Instead, he put his hands together, and retreated.
When he walked into the courtyard, he saw the little novice monk happily coming in with a broom, and he hurriedly asked, “Why are you back? Are you lazy again?”
“How can senior brother talk nonsense?” the little novice monk retorted sternly, “Senior brother will not understand the true meaning of my Buddha.”
The monk grabbed the little novice monk by the ear, pushed him towards the main hall, lowered his voice and lectured, “Master has you sweeping as a means to cultivate your character. Recently, several guests with weapons have come to the temple. I suspect they are martial artists from the jianghu. They wouldn’t hesitate to kill, so you must be more careful!”
The young novice monk winced as he was scolded, but he continued reciting Buddhist scriptures loudly.
Mo Li had already moved quite far away, but he could still hear a few indistinct verses of chanting. It appeared that the young novice monk had a good voice.
As he ventured deeper into the mountains, Mo Li noticed a gathering of people from the jianghu in a valley. When he passed through the valley, he saw the flickering of campfires.
The peak of Dragon Claw Peak was close to the cliff of Dragon Scale Peak, separated by a gap of about twenty zhang (approximately 60 meters).
Mo Li had never been to Shangyun Mountain, so he didn’t know what the top of Dragon Claw Peak looked like. When the moonlight was blocked by a peak above, Mo Li looked up and unexpectedly saw the edge of the cliff protruding, blocking the sky above Longzhao Dragon Claw Peak.
Meng Qi’s consciousness was in turmoil. He barely touched the ground, leaping several zhang into the air, and then grabbing onto the hanging vines from the cliff.
Mo Li looked up and froze, feeling anxious at the same time.
–he can’t go up.
Meng Qi’s internal strength is higher than Mo Li. Although there is a gap, if they don’t fight to the death, there is no way to determine the winner without fighting for a day and night. However, in extreme circumstances, this gap can become very obvious.
Mo Li visually observed and directly used qinggong to the extreme, reaching a height that was only three inches away from the vine.
He had to stop, gather his internal energy in his dantian, and halfway through, use a stone for leverage to barely catch the vine.
At this point, Meng Qi had already ascended the cliff.
Mo Li quickly scrambled up after him, using one hand to support himself against the cliff. However, when he turned around, he found himself in a dense forest, and Meng Qi had disappeared from sight.
“…”
Half an hour ago, they had spoken of wanting to be together every moment, and now he had run off.
Even if he chased with all his might, he couldn’t catch up.
Mo Li, gasping for breath, felt that the baggage on his back might be affecting his speed. One had exceptional martial arts without a burden, while the other had slightly inferior martial arts and was carrying baggage…
The most troublesome part was that he didn’t recognize the mountain’s paths at all.
The mountains were filled with spiritual energy, making it impossible to track someone based on their aura.
Mo Li vaguely felt that Meng Qi was heading towards Dragon Tail Peak, but while he was in these mountains, finding the right direction was extremely difficult. Even if he climbed to a high point, his line of sight would be blocked by other peaks, unless he kept climbing until he reached Dragon Horn Peak.
Mo Li had a thought.
Why did Meng Qi want to go to Dragon Horn Peak before?
Mo Li now had two choices: blindly navigate to Dragon Tail Peak in the dark or follow the mountain’s terrain, continuously ascending until he reached Dragon Horn Peak.
After contemplating for a while, Mo Li felt that the latter option was more likely to succeed.
He began to traverse the mountains. These peaks, large and small, looked indistinguishable from a distance. After an hour of walking and retracing some paths, he finally saw the location of Dragon Head Peak.
The “dragon” actually had only one horn, and Dragon Tail Peak and Dragon Head Peak were not even close to each other. They were quite a distance apart. However, from the viewpoint of Linyun Gate in Taijing, due to their positions, the tall and slender peak behind Dragon Head Peak had become the “dragon’s horn.”
Dragon Horn Peak had a peculiar and treacherous terrain, and the peak didn’t rise vertically from the mountain’s base.
When he reached halfway up the mountain, there was a significant slope, resembling a piece that had been shaved off. On the narrow path leading to the summit, there were protruding boulders that formed a makeshift staircase.
If looked at solely, it should have been called the Pen Rack Peak due to its shape.
However, due to the overall mountain’s structure, it conveniently formed the horn atop the dragon’s head, resembling a lifelike antler. It was truly awe-inspiring.
As Mo Li’s foot stepped onto Dragon Horn Peak, he realized he had made the right choice.
The spiritual energy here was so abundant that even in the midst of an ocean of spiritual energy, it stood out like an unyielding island, unmoved by the surrounding waves.
The trees on the mountain were sparse, and after reaching halfway up, even the grass barely grew.
Mo Li was becoming increasingly certain that this was the “birthplace” of the Imperial Dragon Vein, just like the pool on Qimao Mountain. The water in that pool contained nothing but him; not a single fish or shrimp, and even the cave containing the pool lacked any other form of life.
The ground was barren, and any animals forced into the cave would quickly leave.
A large portion of Dragon Horn Peak was barren, with nothing but sand and rocks.
The most prominent feature was the massive boulder at the center, forming the shape of a “pen rack.”
The enormous rock had a slight incline, and beneath it was an excellent spiritual cave, but the opening was extremely small.
Mo Li’s expression was complex as he realized he had found Meng Qi.
Clothes were scattered on the ground, including a purple soft sword.
The giant rock had been weathered by wind and rain, and although its interior was robust, its surface had scattered holes, each no larger than a palm. Spiritual energy filled these holes, causing the stone to swell slightly, resembling steamed buns expanding in a steamer under the silvery moonlight.
“Meng Qi?”
Mo Li tried calling out.
The night was pitch black, and the wind was so strong that even an ordinary person wouldn’t be able to stand.
Even Mo Li had to use his inner strength to steady himself, squinting as he approached the massive rock.
As soon as he reached the rock, the wind suddenly lessened significantly.
The giant rock was one piece, standing ten zhang tall, and it blocked the entire mountain path.
To truly reach the peak of Dragon Horn Peak, one would likely need to tie themselves with a rope and hang upside down to climb over this blocking boulder, which was a task nearly impossible for ordinary people and even challenging for martial arts experts.
Mo Li placed his hand on the stone and instinctively found a hole to listen through.
There was no sound or movement.
Then he lifted his head and saw a round and chubby sand rat sitting in a cave on the right side of the boulder’s top.
“Meng…”
Mo Li’s words were cut short as he saw a faintly glowing round mass floating out of the cave.
Mo Li’s pupils contracted, and he reached out to catch it.
The round mass landed gently in Mo Li’s palm and then disappeared.
Mo Li quickly lowered his head and found the same round mass on the ground.
When a strong gust of wind blew, the round mass floated up and was quickly pulled back into a hole in the rock by a surge of spiritual energy.
The sand rat grabbed two pieces of broken stone and deftly blocked the hole.
Mo Li: “…”
On Qimao Mountain, there was a bear that would leave its cubs in the den whenever it went out to forage.
Author’s note:
The remaining branches of the subsidiary veins gather in the main spiritual cave for survival…
To put it another way, it’s like children discovering that their parents aren’t at home and sneaking into the master bedroom to sleep soundly.
—
As for the little dragon vein becoming human, it might take several hundred years. So, don’t hold your breath for a family of three, but a fish, rat, and a ball on top of the head are more likely!
My home is small and cannot accommodate guests.
Mo Li regretted as he chased after him.
He shouldn’t have asked that question. The unusual behavior of Meng Qi was likely due to his memories of the little dragon vein of Shangyun Mountain.
He had wrongly assumed that Meng Qi had been living in seclusion in the mountains because that’s what Meng Qi himself had claimed. However, the truth might be different. After resigning as the Imperial State Teacher, Meng Qi had returned to Shangyun Mountain, but “seclusion” didn’t necessarily mean having a house; it could be a hidden cave suitable for sand rats.
When Meng Qi mentioned that he lived on the outskirts of Shangyun Mountain, Mo Li’s heart tightened.
He realized that the house had probably been built by Meng Qi when he discovered the new dragon vein.
At that time, the Imperial Dragon Vein was very lonely and refused to interact with humans.
Without a house, it meant not wanting to live in a “human form.”
At that time, Chu Emperor Ling was still on the throne, and the world was still in a state of prosperity. The capital must have been much more lively than it is now, with carriages and horses flowing continuously and people coming and going. All the rare treasures in the world are listed here, and the world’s talents gather here. There would be a sea of spring flowers and green willows in half the city, half the city would be filled with excellent poems, and masterpieces would be inscribed on the walls. The beautiful music would be passed down through the ages.
Guarding such a prosperous city is frustrating.
Was it right or wrong to join the world? Is it a gain or a loss?
Mo Li’s heart tightened.
He felt suffocated, even though his internal energy flowed smoothly through his meridians. He suddenly felt breathless.
The sky was too dark, and although the mountain path was smooth, Meng Qi didn’t follow it. He moved through the dense trees like a gust of wind. Despite Mo Li’s relentless pursuit, there were two instances where he nearly lost sight of Meng Qi.
The moon gradually rose, climbing to the mountain’s peak, revealing a glimpse of the forest.
The trees here were dense and varied in height and species.
Mo Li continued to chase forward for a while, then suddenly saw the vague silhouette of a pagoda in the distance.
As expected, shortly afterward, he saw the entire tower. It was only three stories tall, with a spherical spire, and Buddha reliefs on all four sides. Below the tower was a temple with reddish-yellow walls that stood out under the moonlight.
At this hour, the evening prayers in the temple had ended, and the lingering fragrance filled the air.
A young novice monk was sweeping the stone steps in front of the temple with a broom.
His movements were a bit clumsy, and suddenly, he was hit by a strong gust of wind, causing him to spin around in place. He was startled but held onto the broom. Before he could rub his eyes, another gust of wind came.
“Aiya.”
The little novice stumbled to his feet and saw that he was facing the temple, and then his eyes lit up.
“Oh, I must have been blown back here by the wind after my master punished me to sweep to the mountain gate and return. Amitabha, how auspicious, how auspicious.”
The young novice monk cheerfully continued sweeping the stone steps, paying no attention to the mountain gate behind him.
The temple was not large, consisting only of the main hall and two rows of side rooms, with the tower in front.
A plaque hung in front of the temple with the name “Liuhe Temple.”
Inside the temple, a monk carrying a lantern delivered the vegetarian dishes to the side rooms. Someone inside one of the rooms leaned against the window, gazing outside.
“Benefactor?”
“Oh, come in!” the person staying at Liuhe Temple replied with a puzzled expression. “Are there any mountain imps or wild apes in the vicinity?”
The monk was taken aback and quickly said, “You jest, benefactor! There are no such demons here. This is Shangyun Mountain, bathed in the Dragon Qi of the Emperor. How could there be such monsters?”
“That’s strange! I could have sworn I saw two figures walking on the treetops just now.”
The guest at Liuhe Temple muttered for a moment, and the monk didn’t dare to listen further. Instead, he put his hands together, and retreated.
When he walked into the courtyard, he saw the little novice monk happily coming in with a broom, and he hurriedly asked, “Why are you back? Are you lazy again?”
“How can senior brother talk nonsense?” the little novice monk retorted sternly, “Senior brother will not understand the true meaning of my Buddha.”
The monk grabbed the little novice monk by the ear, pushed him towards the main hall, lowered his voice and lectured, “Master has you sweeping as a means to cultivate your character. Recently, several guests with weapons have come to the temple. I suspect they are martial artists from the jianghu. They wouldn’t hesitate to kill, so you must be more careful!”
The young novice monk winced as he was scolded, but he continued reciting Buddhist scriptures loudly.
Mo Li had already moved quite far away, but he could still hear a few indistinct verses of chanting. It appeared that the young novice monk had a good voice.
As he ventured deeper into the mountains, Mo Li noticed a gathering of people from the jianghu in a valley. When he passed through the valley, he saw the flickering of campfires.
The peak of Dragon Claw Peak was close to the cliff of Dragon Scale Peak, separated by a gap of about twenty zhang (approximately 60 meters).
Mo Li had never been to Shangyun Mountain, so he didn’t know what the top of Dragon Claw Peak looked like. When the moonlight was blocked by a peak above, Mo Li looked up and unexpectedly saw the edge of the cliff protruding, blocking the sky above Longzhao Dragon Claw Peak.
Meng Qi’s consciousness was in turmoil. He barely touched the ground, leaping several zhang into the air, and then grabbing onto the hanging vines from the cliff.
Mo Li looked up and froze, feeling anxious at the same time.
–he can’t go up.
Meng Qi’s internal strength is higher than Mo Li. Although there is a gap, if they don’t fight to the death, there is no way to determine the winner without fighting for a day and night. However, in extreme circumstances, this gap can become very obvious.
Mo Li visually observed and directly used qinggong to the extreme, reaching a height that was only three inches away from the vine.
He had to stop, gather his internal energy in his dantian, and halfway through, use a stone for leverage to barely catch the vine.
At this point, Meng Qi had already ascended the cliff.
Mo Li quickly scrambled up after him, using one hand to support himself against the cliff. However, when he turned around, he found himself in a dense forest, and Meng Qi had disappeared from sight.
“…”
Half an hour ago, they had spoken of wanting to be together every moment, and now he had run off.
Even if he chased with all his might, he couldn’t catch up.
Mo Li, gasping for breath, felt that the baggage on his back might be affecting his speed. One had exceptional martial arts without a burden, while the other had slightly inferior martial arts and was carrying baggage…
The most troublesome part was that he didn’t recognize the mountain’s paths at all.
The mountains were filled with spiritual energy, making it impossible to track someone based on their aura.
Mo Li vaguely felt that Meng Qi was heading towards Dragon Tail Peak, but while he was in these mountains, finding the right direction was extremely difficult. Even if he climbed to a high point, his line of sight would be blocked by other peaks, unless he kept climbing until he reached Dragon Horn Peak.
Mo Li had a thought.
Why did Meng Qi want to go to Dragon Horn Peak before?
Mo Li now had two choices: blindly navigate to Dragon Tail Peak in the dark or follow the mountain’s terrain, continuously ascending until he reached Dragon Horn Peak.
After contemplating for a while, Mo Li felt that the latter option was more likely to succeed.
He began to traverse the mountains. These peaks, large and small, looked indistinguishable from a distance. After an hour of walking and retracing some paths, he finally saw the location of Dragon Head Peak.
The “dragon” actually had only one horn, and Dragon Tail Peak and Dragon Head Peak were not even close to each other. They were quite a distance apart. However, from the viewpoint of Linyun Gate in Taijing, due to their positions, the tall and slender peak behind Dragon Head Peak had become the “dragon’s horn.”
Dragon Horn Peak had a peculiar and treacherous terrain, and the peak didn’t rise vertically from the mountain’s base.
When he reached halfway up the mountain, there was a significant slope, resembling a piece that had been shaved off. On the narrow path leading to the summit, there were protruding boulders that formed a makeshift staircase.
If looked at solely, it should have been called the Pen Rack Peak due to its shape.
However, due to the overall mountain’s structure, it conveniently formed the horn atop the dragon’s head, resembling a lifelike antler. It was truly awe-inspiring.
As Mo Li’s foot stepped onto Dragon Horn Peak, he realized he had made the right choice.
The spiritual energy here was so abundant that even in the midst of an ocean of spiritual energy, it stood out like an unyielding island, unmoved by the surrounding waves.
The trees on the mountain were sparse, and after reaching halfway up, even the grass barely grew.
Mo Li was becoming increasingly certain that this was the “birthplace” of the Imperial Dragon Vein, just like the pool on Qimao Mountain. The water in that pool contained nothing but him; not a single fish or shrimp, and even the cave containing the pool lacked any other form of life.
The ground was barren, and any animals forced into the cave would quickly leave.
A large portion of Dragon Horn Peak was barren, with nothing but sand and rocks.
The most prominent feature was the massive boulder at the center, forming the shape of a “pen rack.”
The enormous rock had a slight incline, and beneath it was an excellent spiritual cave, but the opening was extremely small.
Mo Li’s expression was complex as he realized he had found Meng Qi.
Clothes were scattered on the ground, including a purple soft sword.
The giant rock had been weathered by wind and rain, and although its interior was robust, its surface had scattered holes, each no larger than a palm. Spiritual energy filled these holes, causing the stone to swell slightly, resembling steamed buns expanding in a steamer under the silvery moonlight.
“Meng Qi?”
Mo Li tried calling out.
The night was pitch black, and the wind was so strong that even an ordinary person wouldn’t be able to stand.
Even Mo Li had to use his inner strength to steady himself, squinting as he approached the massive rock.
As soon as he reached the rock, the wind suddenly lessened significantly.
The giant rock was one piece, standing ten zhang tall, and it blocked the entire mountain path.
To truly reach the peak of Dragon Horn Peak, one would likely need to tie themselves with a rope and hang upside down to climb over this blocking boulder, which was a task nearly impossible for ordinary people and even challenging for martial arts experts.
Mo Li placed his hand on the stone and instinctively found a hole to listen through.
There was no sound or movement.
Then he lifted his head and saw a round and chubby sand rat sitting in a cave on the right side of the boulder’s top.
“Meng…”
Mo Li’s words were cut short as he saw a faintly glowing round mass floating out of the cave.
Mo Li’s pupils contracted, and he reached out to catch it.
The round mass landed gently in Mo Li’s palm and then disappeared.
Mo Li quickly lowered his head and found the same round mass on the ground.
When a strong gust of wind blew, the round mass floated up and was quickly pulled back into a hole in the rock by a surge of spiritual energy.
The sand rat grabbed two pieces of broken stone and deftly blocked the hole.
Mo Li: “…”
On Qimao Mountain, there was a bear that would leave its cubs in the den whenever it went out to forage.
Author’s note:
The remaining branches of the subsidiary veins gather in the main spiritual cave for survival…
To put it another way, it’s like children discovering that their parents aren’t at home and sneaking into the master bedroom to sleep soundly.
—
As for the little dragon vein becoming human, it might take several hundred years. So, don’t hold your breath for a family of three, but a fish, rat, and a ball on top of the head are more likely!
