novelraw Chapter 951 - 522: Then, Departure_2
Chapter 951 - 522: Then, Departure_2
She decided: "This journey isn’t specifically to provoke others, so it’s fine. I’ll just bring more Hidden Guards with me."
Two days later, she set off.
He Sect Leader watched Qi Zai’s white figure disappear into the distance, feeling a bit uneasy.
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There are very few Flying Artifacts that can match Qi Zai’s speed, so Ning Xiaoxian didn’t stand on ceremony and directly tossed all the Hidden Guards into the God Demon Prison, while she rode on Qi Zai for the journey.
In terms of straight-line distance, it shouldn’t take long to fly from Bashe Forest to Mirror Sea. Unfortunately, there are too many mystical places on this continent, with the Heavenly Thunder Absolute Prison, one of the six major forbidden zones, blocking the way. Even for Qi Zai, to rashly cross the Absolute Prison would be akin to suicide. This necessitated detours, which consequently lengthened the travel time.
Before departing, she and Qi Zai did some research and learned that Mirror Sea is a large inland sea hidden in the central part of the Southern Continent, like the Mediterranean Sea in Europe, but two to three times larger. Islands are scattered throughout, with the largest being about the size of a small state prefecture. Mirror Sea has six major rivers connecting to the open ocean, especially with its northern part directly connected to the Ice Ocean, only separated by a shallow strait from the inland sea, making it not a dead sea, but vibrant and vast, with misty waves.
The expansive Mirror Sea covers seventy-six large and small states and counties in total. The "King Jinghai Mansion," where they plan to go, occupies thirty-one of these states and counties. The vast territory it covers far surpasses many small Immortal Sects and Demon Sects. Being situated by the sea, its docks and warehouses are established along the Mirror Sea coast, with the mansion handling most of the shipping and freight business on Mirror Sea.
After hearing this information, her first impression of the King Jinghai Mansion was that this family was extremely wealthy. But in this world, it’s not just the rich who rule; cultivators aren’t to be trifled with. Without corresponding martial prowess, even the richest can be nothing more than a fat piece of meat for others to butcher.
Take, for example, Shen Wansan, the wealthiest man in Jiangnan during the late Yuan and early Ming periods. His wealth was beyond measure, with eminent skills in wealth creation and accumulation. When Zhu Yuanzhang established his capital in Nanjing, Shen Wansan helped build a third of the capital city and constructed a corridor with 1,654 bays and four teahouses in Nanjing... but ultimately, what was his fate? He was nearly killed by Zhu Yuanzhang, and only through others’ pleas was his sentence changed to exile and military service, while his vast estate was, as one might say, ’taken.’ When the Emperor wants it, dare you refuse?
Thus, for the King Jinghai Mansion to have grown to its present state, they are not afraid of people coveting their wealth. Even for the mortal Old Grand Dowager’s ninetieth birthday, many Immortal Sects and Demon Sects attend. They must have their own backup and talents. Cultivation isn’t just about cultivation level, but also eyesight, knowledge, broad-mindedness, and mental state. What some say is merely surface-level talk. She wanted to see the essence through the phenomena, but unfortunately, Ning Yu did not know of her interest in the King Jinghai Mansion and provided limited information. Additionally, the intelligence network in Ning Yu’s hands is just being set up, with many shortcomings, certainly incomparable to the network established by Miluo.
Ah, finding the whereabouts of the Nanming Lihuo Sword is still a long and challenging journey.
Fortunately, the trip was peaceful. Occasionally, there were minor hurdles, yet given her and Qi Zai’s current strength, these posed no real problem. As they resolved them quickly, they continued their journey, and the curse seemingly omnipresent before had vanished. At this pace, she could arrive at her destination several days early.
This day, as they barely flew past Baiyong State territory, Ning Xiaoxian’s tightly furrowed brows never relaxed.
Though soaring in the sky, they were still aware of the conditions on the ground. When the sky is clear and the clouds light, gazing from the endless heights below reveals such vast world and endless humanity. It’s a grand sight rarely seen by mortals, insightful to the cultivation of many cultivators’ mental states. However, upon entering the nearby states, what she saw from the sky can only be described as "heart-wrenching."
She flew over more than 600,000 miles, yet not even a hint of clouds in the sky. This is certainly not an enviable "crisp autumn" scene but unveils a grave and serious reality—drought!
In this world, mortals rely on foods grown from the land for survival. Hence, entering populated areas, she could often see lush fields stretching endlessly from above. The Southern Continent is vast, with central inland areas differing conspicuously in climate from other regions. The sun remains fierce, and during this crucial late autumn when crops are supposed to be filling out and needing vast amounts of water, the scene from above reveals much of the land cracked and dry, with crops already dead.
Many rivers she passed had muddy bottoms cracked from exposure to the sun, appearing like the wrinkles on an old man’s face, naturally completely devoid of water.
It’s a drought disaster that occurs once in two to three hundred years. Understandably, ordinary people’s lives would be beyond miserable, their situation simple life and death! At her last stop in a small county, out of thirty-seven wells in the county, thirty-four had dried up, and only three were barely producing water. The crops outside the county were all dead, and even the giant banyan tree in the county, 600 years old, was barely surviving. To think, the banyan tree species has roots so extensive and deep that ordinary trees can’t compare. Yet even such tenacious species are near dying from thirst, not to mention the people? (To be continued. If you enjoy this work, feel free to go to Qidian (qidian.com) to vote for recommendations, monthly tickets. Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users please read at m.qidian.com.)