Zhou Tong laughed and said, “You scholars always enjoy feeling sentimental and melancholy about autumn. Actually, why think so much? If you’re destined to meet again, you naturally will.”
Mingren paused, smiling bitterly, “Uncle Zhou, you’re right. I’m being overly sensitive.”
Zhou Tong looked at Mingren appreciatively and after a moment, asked tentatively, “If the young master truly meets Li Tan again, what would you plan to do?”
Mingren thought for a moment and replied, “After meeting Brother Li, I realized I was just a frog at the bottom of a well. If we meet again, I will definitely ask how vast this world is and how many wonderful things exist in it.”
Zhou Tong hesitated slightly, “I wonder if I should say something?”
Mingren nodded, “It’s fine, go ahead.”
Zhou Tong continued, “Even if the young master still spends all day reading poetry and neglects cultivation, even if you meet Li Tan again and he is willing to answer your questions, you will still be a frog at the bottom of a well, never truly understanding the vastness of the world. I once read in a book about a grand city outside Linjiang. Full of yearning, I joined a mercenary team to reach it, only to find it vastly different from what I had imagined.” Mingren looked stunned and dazed after hearing this.
Zhou Tong stood up and walked elsewhere without uttering another word.
He admired Mingren and didn’t wish him to waste his prime years for such an unappealing reason. Now that he had said what needed to be said, the decision was up to Mingren.
Just past noon, the heat reached its peak. Even with layers of green leaves providing shade, the scorching sunlight still found tiny gaps to squeeze through, creating speckled shadows on the tree trunks and ground. Moisture evaporated, lingering in the air without dispersing, making the forest hazy and the atmosphere sticky.
The clothes had dried sufficiently, so Zhou Tong ordered everyone to continue onward.
Mingren also collected his garments but, too embarrassed to dress in front of everyone, held them without putting them on.
“Uncle Zhou.”
Mingren quickly ran to Zhou Tong’s side, “Yesterday, the elders at home told me that monstrous beasts have appeared at the outer edge of the hunting zone. It’s possible that a rare treasure is about to emerge nearby. Could it be water cloud bamboo?”
Zhou Tong shook his head, “Although water cloud bamboo is rare, it doesn’t even come close to being a rare treasure.”
Mingren looked worriedly around and said, “If that’s the case, perhaps we should detour.”
Zhou Tong asked in confusion, “Why do you say that, young master?”
Mingren explained, “If there truly is a rare treasure ahead, the monstrous beasts attracted might not be just one. If we encounter them, we might…” Zhou Tong raised his hand to signal the team to stop, frowning as he looked ahead with slight hesitation.
The direction Zhou Tong was leading the team was toward the crooked tree where the vine serpent had previously hung. He was well aware of Mingren’s concerns, but the temptation of a rare treasure being fought over by monstrous beasts was just too great.
If they captured the vine serpent, he and the mercenaries wouldn’t need to take on missions for half a year. But if they could be lucky enough to obtain the rare treasure guarded by the vine serpent, perhaps, with good fortune, he wouldn’t have to fight for his life in a place like the Zhui Xian Realm ever again for the rest of his life.
Zhou Tong gritted his teeth and said, “Young master, fortune favors the bold. The spiritual energy in a place where rare treasures emerge will definitely be more abundant, making the chances of water cloud bamboo growing there much higher. Your father’s condition is not optimistic.”
Upon hearing the last few words, Mingren was stunned, his fingers slightly trembling. After a long pause, he bitterly and helplessly said, “Then I’ll follow Uncle Zhou’s plan.”
At that moment, Mingren suddenly recalled his father’s furious expression when he had refused to cultivate and his helpless look at the end. A sharp pain surged through his heart, and he suddenly seemed to understand many things, yet he still felt somewhat lost.
On a secluded forest path—though it was called a path, it was basically just rough terrain cleared of thorns and bushes—Li Tan was walking along.
He had already reached a considerable depth. Comparing the strength of the ferocious beasts here to humans, it was essentially the territory of cultivators at the innate stage. For Linjiang cultivators who could dominate at the early innate stage, this place was undoubtedly a den of tigers and dragons.
But Li Tan wasn’t afraid at all. He casually tossed a beast core he had just obtained up into the air like a stone and caught it again as he walked, passing time.
After two days of recovery, his spiritual power had grown significantly. Relying on his experience from seven perilous journeys in the wilderness before his rebirth, he strolled through here as easily as if it were his backyard. Even if he did unluckily encounter a ferocious beast, it wouldn’t matter. Beasts that only knew how to charge recklessly were much easier to deal with than innate-stage human cultivators. As long as he mastered the techniques, it would be as simple as slaughtering pigs or sheep.
“Yesterday, I spotted a vine serpent at the outer perimeter. There must be a spiritual plant maturing nearby. If I’m lucky, it might be exactly the medicinal herb needed for the Nine-turn Green Spirit Pill. That way, I won’t have to go too deep and risk an accident,” Li Tan muttered softly to himself.
Suddenly reminded of Mingren he had met the day before, he smiled and said, “That kid is actually quite promising. If we meet again by fate, I might as well give him a few pointers. Perhaps I can help Mingde gain a sincere friend.”
Taking a couple more steps forward, Li Tan rubbed his chin thoughtfully and murmured, “At this time, Mingde should be around eighteen or nineteen years old. Mingren is about the same age… What an incredible coincidence.”
Li Tan gave it only a couple of thoughts without dwelling too much, after all, Mingren was merely an interesting passerby to him.
As time passed and the heat gradually dissipated, the forest became cool again. After weaving through various paths, Li Tan reached the area near where he had captured the vine serpent the previous day. If a spiritual plant was to appear, it shouldn’t be too far from here. Arriving at this spot, Li Tan stopped playing with the beast core and began observing his surroundings cautiously.
Since the vine serpent had come, other monstrous beasts might also be drawn here by the fragrance of the spiritual plant. Beasts possessed some level of intelligence, and if they launched a surprise attack, it would be troublesome. Just like yesterday—if Li Tan had been careless and failed to detect the hidden vine serpent among the vines, Zhou Tong’s mercenary team might have suffered heavy casualties.
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