The trip to Shangqing Palace on Yellow Peak Mountain concluded without any mishaps.
Last time, Gu Zhao had recruited Taoist Zong Hua of the Namo Sect at Refining Truth Palace. Before heading to Yangcheng, Taoist Zong Hua had already called Taoist Zong Ran and Taoist Zong Wei, who had stayed behind to cultivate in the mountains.
Upon meeting Gu Zhao, the two old Taoists weren’t surprised in the least. Instead, they joyfully thanked him for bestowing such an opportunity upon them, which also gave them the chance to fight alongside Taoist Zong Hua.
Thus, all eight of Gu Zhao’s Thunder Seeds for this trip had been given away.
Quanzhen Huashan Sect: Taoist Xian Yuan.
Chen Ancestor Huashan Sect: Taoist Fa Ran and Little Taoist Tong Hui.
Dragon Gate Sect: Taoist Yun Chang.
Qingwei Sect: Taoist Hai Zhao and Taoist Qi Han.
Namo Sect: Taoist Zong Ran and Taoist Zong Wei.
Before the old Taoists arrived in Yangcheng, Gu Zhao spent a few more days in the modern world with Xiao Ya and Jiang Shishi.
When he returned to the Otherworld with the eight Taoists, he learned that Taoist Yu Hua of the Northern Emperor Sect, Taoist Chong Xuan of the Shenxiao Sect, and Taoist Xi Ning and Taoist Miao Zhen of the Huashan Sect had all broken through to the five-hundred-year Dao Practice realm.
"A double blessing!"
Having just broken through their realms, the four old Taoists returned to Daluo Palace to cultivate in seclusion for a period. This perfectly allowed them to take over for Taoist Xu Ning—who had returned with Gu Zhao—so he could go on a leisurely business trip back to the Taoist Research Institute.
Gu Zhao assigned Little Taoist Tong Hui to Yunyang for a bit of guidance before sending him off to join Changyi, Yangshuo, and the others. He then had Taoist Xu Ning show the remaining Taoists the ropes around the area.
With all follow-up matters settled, Gu Zhao went to find Zhuo Qingyan.
He soon discovered that in just a few days, Bai Yiqi and Bai Yixuan had seamlessly blended into life at Daluo Palace.
The elder sister was gentle and elegant, getting along harmoniously with Zhuo Qingyan and Bi Yingying. The younger sister was lively and adorable, constantly laughing and playing with the Silk Embroideress, Bai Ke, and He Cailian.
"So the Central Plains are this amazing!" Bai Yixuan said while sharing a five-spice roasted chicken with Bai Ke. "There’s so much delicious food and so many fun things to do! I don’t even want to go back!"
"Then don’t go back." Bai Ke shoved a chicken drumstick into her mouth, grabbed the bone, and pulled it out clean, leaving the entire chunk of meat stuffed in her cheeks.
With her cheeks bulging, Bai Ke mumbled, "It’s only been a few days. How many dishes have you even tried? There’s still braised pork, roasted pig trotters, sweet cured meat, honey-glazed roast pork..."
Hearing this, Bai Yixuan paused in surprise. "You can eat pig trotters?"
Bai Ke nodded vigorously. "They’re incredibly delicious! So chewy and bouncy!"
Bai Yixuan blinked. "’Chewy and bouncy’? What does that mean?"
"Crispy on the outside, tender on the inside, smooth and chewy, spicy and savory," Gu Zhao chimed in. "It’s pure collagen. It helps maintain the skin and has moisturizing, nourishing, brightening, and anti-wrinkle effects."
"Hmm?"
All the women turned to look at Gu Zhao.
Gu Zhao shook his head, speechless. "Those are the benefits for ordinary people. Every single one of you has achieved success in Cultivation and attained eternal youth. Do you really need to care this much about a pig trotter?"
Bi Yingying giggled. "No matter how beautiful a woman is, she never minds being a little bit more beautiful."
Chen Zhi and Xu Sirou, who was standing nearby, nodded repeatedly. The others were either ghosts or demons. Only the two of them were humans, and they had no idea if they would ever achieve success in Cultivation. As they aged, they would definitely get wrinkles!
Gu Zhao nodded. "Then we’ll have roasted pig trotters tonight and head out to the Southern Border first thing tomorrow morning."
Early the next morning, Gu Zhao led the group out.
Aside from Taoist Yan Ling, Taoist Yu Zhang, Taoist Qingwei, and Taoist Yuan He, because the Southern Border was teeming with demons, he also brought along four others: Ye Ruyan, Miaoyun Princess, the Fire Monkey of Turtle Beak, Hou Hao, and the Monkey, Yuan Lin.
Eight experts, plus the Daluo Palace Master himself, were more than enough to show their respect to Cyan Hill Mountain. Besides them, the group included the Silk Embroideress, Bai Ke, and the sisters, Bai Yiqi and Bai Yixuan.
"Let’s go!"
Gu Zhao condensed a cluster of white clouds beneath his feet. The clouds solidified into a platform, gently lifting everyone into the air before turning into a streak of cloud light that sped toward the south.
Bai Yiqi didn’t feel the impact of any strong winds, nor any forceful pushing. There was only a gentle breeze brushing against her face; it felt exactly like standing on solid ground. While Bai Yixuan, lacking experience, didn’t react much, Bai Yiqi could deeply sense how profoundly high Gu Zhao’s Dao Practice was. She feared it was no less than that of the Mountain Master of Cyan Hill Mountain and their venerable elder.
He truly lived up to his reputation as the great expert who had killed Mo He Divine Monarch.
Bai Yiqi’s eyes flickered. Sensing the peaceful yet dignified, gentle yet slightly cheerful aura radiating from Gu Zhao, she finally gathered the courage to approach him.
"The Celestial Fox Lineage of Cyan Hill Mountain hasn’t set foot in the Central Plains for a very long time. I never expected it to be even more prosperous than we imagined."
"The Central Plains are vast and rich in resources, with a large mortal population. After all, it takes a lot of people to make a place bustling," Gu Zhao said with a smile. "Cyan Hill Mountain is still a famous mountain in the Southern Border. Don’t you have many commoners under your jurisdiction?"
Although the Southern Border was mountainous, it also had small plains and valleys. Even Red Moon Valley had many mortal commoners living under its rule. Given that the Celestial Fox Lineage of Cyan Hill Mountain was intelligent and kind, the number of commoners under their protection shouldn’t be small either.
"Of course we do, but our largest fortified town is only about the size of Xiuyue County. Most of the mountain dwellers are scattered among the landscapes. They toil away every day just to make a living and haven’t read many books."
Bai Yiqi said softly, "In the towns, even toddlers as young as three have to help their parents with chores. Whenever they have a rare moment of free time, they spend it picking fruit in the mountains, chopping firewood, weaving bamboo, walking the dogs, or feeding the chickens. There’s nowhere near as much delicious food and fun entertainment as in the Central Plains.
"Because of this, the mountain commoners also yearn for the Central Plains."
Gu Zhao replied, "It’s actually not too bad; at least they don’t have to worry about basic survival.
"In fact, the Southern Border has many local specialties—jewelry, jade, animal pelts, and herbs. If they could trade and share resources with the Central Plains, their lives could definitely improve a lot."
"The mountain roads are treacherous. How could they trade?" Bai Yiqi asked.
"Jiangzhou has many rivers, and Shanzhou has many mountains. The Central Plains are divided into four by three great rivers, yet they still eventually developed," Gu Zhao said. "Even if only mortal commoners put in the effort, as long as they spend years carving through mountains and building roads, they can connect to the outside world."
In this world, the Southern Border was simply a region with many mountains, rivers, and vast forests. At its most extreme, it was only comparable to An Nan in Celestial Xia. Back in the day, the Han Dynasty was able to establish loose rule over such areas—let alone in a Cultivation World like this one!
If Cultivators truly set their minds to it, would carving through mountains and building roads really take decades or centuries?
But the problem in this world was precisely that Cultivators lacked that intention. Even though the Celestial Fox Lineage of Cyan Hill Mountain consisted mostly of Spirit Monarchs, they merely protected the commoners within their territory so they could live safely.
As for the development of the commoners? That was naturally left up to the commoners themselves.
Furthermore, there were demons and ghosts in the world. Being immortal and long-living, they stood high above mortals. This drove ambitious individuals to pursue the path of Cultivation, which inadvertently stifled the development of secular society.
As a result, even though this world had developed for ten thousand years—and its various techniques in housing construction and tool manufacturing were still remarkable, comparable to the Song and Ming Dynasties of Celestial Xia—overall, it remained an ancient agricultural society.
Of course, this wasn’t necessarily a bad thing. The ancients of Celestial Xia weren’t necessarily less happy than modern people; their mental realms might have even surpassed those of modern times. But the prerequisite for that was guaranteeing basic survival.
However, achieving this prerequisite wasn’t actually that difficult.
With abundant Spiritual Qi and fertile land, as long as they didn’t encounter natural disasters or man-made calamities, survival wasn’t hard at all. Take the lands currently under the jurisdiction of Daluo Palace, for example. In truth, as long as the old Taoists killed off some demons and ghosts, managed the corrupt officials, and intimidated the landlords and merchants, the ordinary commoners would have more than enough to survive on.