Chapter 95 The Old, Weak, Sick and Disabled

Li Chang'an sat on the bamboo raft, feeling somewhat depressed.

He knew that he hadn't just been dreaming, but had been pulled into the mountain god's domain after the ritual was completed.

In that realm of the mountain god, what he saw should be the former Jiarong Mountain.

Jiarong Mountain used to be so lush and beautiful.

But now, those exotic flowers and plants have all turned into ordinary flowers and plants, and the spirit tree has disappeared.

Only the mist swirling around the mountainside remains.

No wonder the mountain god said that there used to be many earth spirits on Jiarong Mountain, but now there are not many left.

But Li Chang'an has no answer as to why it has become like this.

Before we knew it, the once clear sky slowly began to gather layers of dark clouds.

The wind that swept past us grew cool, and ripples spread across the surface of the Ningjing River.

Li Chang'an suddenly felt a drop of water hit him on the head.

He snapped out of his daze and looked up at the sky, only to find that it was raining.

This was the first time it had rained in Xuanling Immortal Mountain since he arrived.

The rain grew heavier and heavier, the raindrops splashing into the river and causing the fragile raft to sway precariously on the water.

If Li Chang'an hadn't been sure he had tied it tightly, he would have worried that it might suddenly fall apart.

He quickly found the bamboo pole to propel the raft, glanced at Jiarong Mountain in the heavy rain, pursed his lips, and decided to go home first.

He's soaked through and can't use his spiritual power, so he needs to hurry back and take a hot shower.

Despite the heavy rain, I could barely open my eyes.

The bamboo raft turned around, and Li Chang'an suddenly saw a bluish shadow in the water.

While they were still in a daze, the figure in blue spoke, his voice steady and deep: "Your soul is injured and you cannot use your spiritual power. I will take you back."

It is the green ox that the mountain god called "Jingjing". It is still there and has not disappeared with the mountain god.

Li Chang'an nodded quickly: "Thank you."

"You're welcome."

As soon as Jingjing finished speaking, Li Chang'an found himself instantly teleported to the corridor on the first floor of his house.

Li Chang'an looked around but didn't see Jingjing following him.

My shirt and pants were soaked and stuck to my body, which was very uncomfortable.

Li Chang'an wrung out the hem of his shirt, went back to his room, took a shower, and came out feeling refreshed again.

He dried his hair and went downstairs, where he saw Tianxuan returning from outside.

He used his spiritual power to protect himself the whole way, so he didn't get wet even in the heavy rain.

"Since arriving at the Immortal Mountain, I've only seen sunny days; this is the first time I've seen rain," Tianxuan said, pouring herself a cup of tea.

Li Chang'an nodded: "It suddenly started raining after the sacrificial ceremony at Jiarong Mountain. Star Lord, why did you come back from outside?"

He remembered that after shipping the goods, Tianxuan checked the orders in the study. For those that had been shipped, he would click a button, and the system would send a special notification to the buyer.

Tianxuan sipped her tea and said, "I saw it was raining, so I went to check on the terraced fields. There's no problem with drainage. With the array in place, the spiritual soil on each layer of the field remains stable, and there's no risk of soil erosion."

With the essence of tea tree branches as the core of the formation, the formation's effect is better than imagined.

Li Chang'an nodded.

The rain continued until the early morning of the following day.

The Xuanling Immortal Mountain after the rain exudes a refreshing air, and the colors of various plants become glossy, as if they have become more vibrant.

After delivering goods to Qingfeng Sect and Xiaoping'an Supermarket, Li Chang'an was walking in the bamboo forest when he suddenly noticed that many bamboo shoots had sprouted on the ground.

Those bamboo shoots had only just sprouted their tips; you couldn't even see them if you weren't looking closely.

During this period, the bamboo in the bamboo forest has only been consumed without any new bamboo being grown. Li Chang'an was worried that one day this land might become barren.

He was quite pleased to see so many bamboo shoots sprouting up after the rain.

He dug up a few bamboo shoots with a hoe and put them in the corner of the yard when he got home. A few days ago, Li Guoliang and his group brought him some cured meat, so he could stir-fry the bamboo shoots with the cured meat for lunch.

Right now, Li Chang'an plans to go and take a look at Jiarong Mountain.

He walked to the Ningjing River and found his bamboo raft moored in the shallow water.

It seems that when Jingjing took him home yesterday, she also brought the bamboo raft here, making it convenient for him to travel today.

Li Chang'an checked and found that even after being soaked in heavy rain for so long yesterday, the bamboo raft was still intact.

He picked up a thin bamboo pole and used it to propel the raft to the other side.

As soon as they stepped ashore, a figure dressed in a blue robe appeared in front of them.

The man looked to be no more than thirty or forty years old, with a square face and an air of righteousness between his brows and eyes.

The man clasped his hands in a salute to Li Chang'an and said, "Greetings, Your Majesty."

As soon as the voice came out, Li Chang'an recognized it as Jingjing.

He clasped his hands in return and said, "You don't need to call me God, just call me Li Chang'an."

Jingjing paused for a moment, then nodded: "Yes. I am the guardian of the mountain god's true form—the Divine Tree Spirit Ox. You can just call me Jingjing."

After exchanging greetings, Li Chang'an headed towards Jiarong Mountain.

Only some ordinary trees and flowers remained on Jiarong Mountain. When passing a large rock, Li Chang'an paused for a moment.

Yesterday in the Mountain God's domain, this large rock was originally a piece of earth spirit.

What used to feel smooth and lustrous to the touch now feels only as rough as stone.

Li Chang'an continued walking forward. The crystal-like stones in the stream were gone, but the sound of the flowing water was still like a harp melody, clear and ethereal.

When they arrived at the cave where the mountain god's abode was located, the spirit vines were still there, but they were growing sparsely.

Without needing the spirit vines to make way, Li Chang'an entered the cave.

He looked at the much darker cave and frowned, asking in confusion, "Why has Jiarong Mountain become like this?"

Jingjing, who had been following behind him, explained, "As early as the great calamity six thousand years ago, the mountain god had already dispersed his divine power to protect the natural life of the Cangxuan Realm. Over the past six thousand years, the mountains, without the support of the mountain god's divine power, have gradually begun to degenerate."

Li Chang'an fell silent.

The two gradually walked to the barrier stone outside the cave. After passing through the barrier, the mountain god's cave was much the same as the mountain god's domain, peaceful and beautiful, except that there was a small green sapling in the very center.

"What is this?" Li Chang'an asked.

As soon as he finished speaking, golden particles of the basic manual floated out of the storage bag hanging at his waist, giving him the answer.

【Jiarong Tree】: A high-level spiritual plant, an auspicious tree, still in its juvenile stage.

"This is a branch of divine essence cut from the mountain god's body. For the past six thousand years, the mountain god's lingering will has remained here, waiting for the day you offer sacrifices."

"Now that the mountain god's lingering resentment has completely disappeared, this tree is just an ordinary spiritual tree. But it can protect you from misfortune and bring you good omens."

Li Chang'an understood.

This is the "auspicious blessing" in the mountain god's blessing.

He went up and examined the small Jia Rong tree closely, touched the leaves at the top, and after a long while, turned and left.

After leaving the mountain god's cave, Li Chang'an continued to explore Jiarong Mountain.

Although Jiarong Mountain is not high, it covers a very large area.

Now that he can't use his spiritual power, Black Sword went to work on the terraced fields with the sword spirit. Relying solely on his two legs, he still hadn't reached the mountaintop by noon.

The sun grew stronger and the temperature rose higher, and Li Chang'an even broke out in a sweat.

The climate in Xuanling Immortal Mountain is like spring all year round. When it's not this hot, it feels like the sweltering heat outside.

Li Chang'an wiped his sweat and leaned against a tree to rest for a while.

Jingjing glanced at him and then disappeared from the spot.

Li Chang'an didn't know where he had gone, so he took out a bottle of water from his storage bag and took a sip.

Although he can't use spiritual power now, this storage bag has been soaked with his blood, so he can take things out without using spiritual power.

After drinking a mouthful of boiled and cooled Ningjing River water, I felt less hot.

A small figure quietly appeared on the tree behind them.

Li Chang'an turned his head and found that it was just a small squirrel.

He raised an eyebrow, wanting to get closer to see if the squirrel was a spirit or monster.

However, just as he made a move, a yellowish-gray shadow suddenly pounced from behind a tree.

Li Chang'an quickly dodged, and the next second, a large, emerald-green snake hung from the tree, its blood-red mouth opening wide to bite him.

Li Chang'an ducked to avoid it, but out of the corner of his eye he saw a large black bear charging from the right, and at the same time, a white shadow pounced from the left.

Surrounded on both sides, with that giant snake above him, and unable to use his spiritual power, he had no way to escape!

Li Chang'an frowned, just about to use his spiritual power despite the injury to his soul, when suddenly, a beam of azure light spread out, stunning all the animals in place.

"Stop!" A deep, authoritative voice rang out.

Immediately afterwards, he appeared beside Li Chang'an, holding a round piece of earth spirit in his hand.

Jingjing handed the earth spirit to Li Chang'an.

Holding the earth spirit in his hand, the surroundings instantly cooled down and became less hot.

Then, with a glance from Jingjing, the black bear immediately stood still, looking rather reserved.

The green snake was so frightened that it coiled itself around the branch and dared not move. Two figures then emerged from under the tree.

Li Chang'an saw that it was a lame weasel and a white fox with half its tail missing.

The weasel seemed to be old; its once golden fur was now rough and dull, with many grayish-white hairs mixed in.

It was still wearing a tattered little jacket, and it limped over to Jingjing, giving her a fawning bow:

"Head butler."

"I told you not to call me that," Jingjing frowned. "What were you doing just now?"

The weasel spirit smiled and looked at Li Chang'an: "This... we thought he was an intruder and wanted to kick him out."

The fox spirit flicked her half-round tail and chimed in, "Yeah, who knows if he's some wicked cultivator trying to steal spiritual treasures from the mountain."

Jingjing raised her hand and rubbed her temples, saying, "Look carefully, this is the master of Xuanling Immortal Mountain, a god!"

The spirits were startled and carefully examined Li Chang'an.

Then, the weasel spirit suddenly knelt down: "It's you, Master! I greet you, Master!"

The fox spirit, the black bear spirit, and the snake spirit in the tree all hurriedly shouted, "Greetings, Your Excellency!"

Li Chang'an: ...

“No…” he said helplessly, “It’s not that kind of era anymore, please don’t call me that.”

Jingjing glanced at him coldly and said, "Everyone must call him Godly Lord properly, and you are not allowed to follow Golden Beard's example."

The spirits quickly changed their tune: "Greetings, Your Majesty."

Jingjing turned to look at Li Chang'an, shook her head slightly, and gestured for him not to deny it.

Li Chang'an coughed and lowered his voice, "Hmm."

Jingjing then relaxed her brows and introduced, "Your Majesty, this is Golden Beard, a weasel spirit with a late-stage Golden Core cultivation. Six thousand years ago, it was captured by a wealthy family. In order to survive, it agreed to protect its master and became their slave."

"Later, it lost another leg while trying to escape, and encountered the mountain god, who then took it back."

After being rescued, Golden Beard grew old and began to think that the mountain god was its "master" and the guardian spirit was its "head steward".

"These two are a white fox spirit and a black bear spirit, both at the early stage of the Golden Core realm, and they have no names. The snake spirit in the tree is at the late stage of the Foundation Establishment realm, and there's also a blind cat-owl spirit, also at the late stage of the Foundation Establishment realm."

As he introduced it, an owl emerged from among the leaves, except that it had a long wound running across its eye.

"As for that squirrel spirit... it has basically no cultivation, but it has already developed intelligence."

After Jingjing finished her introduction, she paused and then said, "They all suffered at the hands of cultivators, and soon after being brought back by the mountain god, they faced a great calamity. The mountain god's protection caused them to fall into a deep sleep, and they only woke up yesterday after your sacrifice. Their memories are still stuck before they fell into a deep sleep."

Li Chang'an fell silent, looking at the spirits in front of him.

"Are these the only remaining spirits on Jiarong Mountain?"

Jingjing nodded: "Yes. The mountain god of Jiarong Mountain is not very powerful, and not many spirits come to seek his protection."

He said seriously, "So the only spirits on the mountain are those that the mountain god picked up, and they are basically all old, weak, sick, and disabled."