78: snow

“The Yao Beasts have been much fewer these past few days, which has saved us a lot of trouble.”

“Nonsense, isn't saving trouble a good thing?”

“I just remembered, when we were in the Black Horn Gang, we ate and drank heartily, fearing that we wouldn't have enough for the next meal.”

“What, you still want to live like that? Alright, I'll tell the boss to send you away then.”

“Hey, hey, hey, why are you like this? I was just joking. I don't want to live those days without a backer, fearing for my life. Although there are more rules here, I can see more.

It also makes us more settled, doesn't it?

Look, how long has it been since we've seen such lush green scenery?”

“The Yellow Sand Plains is a dead silence, and the Black Horn Mountain Range is full of mountains, but there's no greenery either. Years ago, our Black Horn Gang even raised two fruit trees, and every year everyone would fight tooth and nail to get a share of the fruit.”

“Wasn't it just to experience something fresh?”

“Who would have thought that we would be able to see this kind of scenery now.”

“Indeed, having a Celestial Master and a powerful backing is much better.”

“How many acres of barren land did your family get?”

“My family was lucky. After that catastrophe, three of us survived and were allocated three acres of land. Although it's not as good as the first wave of Black Ridge City residents, it's almost ready for harvest.”

“My family got a bit less. We eat meat all the time, plenty of Yao Beast meat, but I've never eaten grain grown by my own family. Speaking of which, it's quite a fresh idea.”

“Alright, stop talking, the boss is here.”

Ruo Liuli walked onto the city wall, facing the salutes of the many Yuting Guards, she merely nodded faintly. Then, seeing no oversights, she glanced at the vast yellow sand and descended the city wall on her own.

Strolling through the lush green outer city, feeling the unique fragrance of plants and trees in the air, Ruo Liuli was filled with inexplicable emotion.

The common people around her, seeing Ruo Liuli, all rose and saluted.

Walking to the Cang Hai Flower, she saw three young girls sitting cross-legged, cultivating.

The most immature girl among them had a mature and serious expression on her face.

“Wrong, this is not how you circulate Qi to gather it! Come and learn from me!”

Inviting Moon and Reaching for the Stars looked embarrassed, then learned meticulously, without the slightest impatience.

From within the Cang Hai Flower, a carp spouted spring water like a pillar, and as the blazing sun shone down, it reflected a seven-colored rainbow, incredibly wondrous.

Ruo Liuli glanced at it twice, then no longer paid attention.

After all, the world of Cultivators was very far from her.

Since she chose the path of a martial artist, she could only follow it to the end, with no other choice!

Passing through the outer city, Ruo Liuli saw Sun Dashan, who was busy tilling the soil and building houses.

Sun Dashan was controlling an earth-wood Puppet, moving stone bricks one by one.

Then he stacked them, his face covered in sweat.

Yet, the smile on his face never faded.

“Commander Ruo.”

Ruo Liuli nodded, then continued forward.

Along the street, there were also some new refugees. These refugees had fled recently, not many in number, about a hundred.

They were all working, none of them slacking off.

The sound of hooves echoed, and a lead Sand Scale Horned Wind Horse galloped over, with a ninth-grade Sand Fox leaping on the backs of the horses behind it.

Their relationship was clearly excellent.

Leaving trails of dust, they ran into the distance.

Upon reaching the City Lord's Mansion, Ruo Liuli turned around, filled with inexplicable emotion.

Black Ridge City had truly changed.

The speed of this change was also incredibly fast, in just a short year... in one year, it had been completely transformed.

Entering the City Lord's Mansion, she saw Qiu Ya dancing with a saber, the cold intent from the blade dazzling to the eye.

She walked into the back courtyard.

There, a gentle woman was bending over, working in the Spirit Field.

Ears of crescent moon rice bent the stalks.

The crescent moon rice, entirely white and shaped like a crescent moon, exuded vibrant vitality and Spiritual Qi.

The gentle woman wiped away a bead of sweat, then sat down cross-legged.

“The City Lord once said that I can take this plant essence for myself, considering it my salary.”

“I also need to cultivate diligently, perhaps in the future, I will have the opportunity to cultivate Qi absorption and become a Cultivator.”

“At that time... I will be able to plant a few more acres of Spirit Field, so I won't feel powerless.”

Chen He's background was not high, so she had no great ambitions.

To be a tenant Spirit Farmer for generations, bound to a piece of land in this life and this book, was not a restriction.

It was more like a... mission.

The world is vast, and people have their own aspirations.

Some have high ambitions, some like to slack off and lie flat, some like to venture out, and some just like to live on their own small plot of land, untainted by worldly affairs.

The plant essence entered her Physical Body through the Hundred Farmers Qi Eating Secret Record.

Slowly changing her Spiritual Root affinity.

Her Physical Body gradually became clear and light, and turbid Qi and Impurities were slowly expelled from her Physical Body.

However, this progress was extremely slow.

The Qing He Cow gnawed on grass, its eyes watering with desire, staring at the soon-to-be-ripe crescent moon rice.

It only felt that the weeds in its mouth were truly bland, utterly tasteless.

Completely different from what was expected, Shen Li had no use for it, merely letting this Qing He Cow graze freely.

Nor did he slaughter it... After all, logically speaking, this Qing He Cow... could be considered Shen Li's dowry, and killing it would be a pity.

The Qing He Cow's eyes flickered. Seeing Chen He absorbed in cultivation, it stealthily approached, opening its large mouth to bite down.

But then a cold shout rang out, Chen He opened her eyes and scolded.

“If even one is missing, perhaps this year the City Lord will prepare a great slaughter and eat a meal of beef!”

“Counting the days, it's almost New Year's.”

“For us Human Race, New Year's is a festive occasion, but for an ungrateful beast like you... it's hard to say.”

“Roasted beef, stewed beef, grilled steak....”

The Qing He Cow's intelligence was not developed, so it couldn't understand the meaning, but this didn't prevent it from feeling a certain chill.

It mooed and retreated to the back, its four limbs on the ground, actually throwing a tantrum and refusing to get up.

Seeing this, Chen He could only sigh helplessly.

“You beast... The Spiritual Qi in the city is abundant now, I wonder if you'll have a chance to advance in rank.... Sigh.”

By the pond... Wang Teng, with his red hair, squatted in front of the pond, his hands manipulating the Lingyin Technique, the crimson lines condensing into a whip, constantly leaping on the water's surface.

He would sometimes frown, sometimes relax, sometimes laugh heartily, and sometimes his face would twist in a grimace.

“That damned Shen, did he really learn this method? Why is it so difficult?”

“He wouldn't be tricking me, would he? Learning this really shortens the speed of forming spell seals? How is that possible?”

“Why is it so hard, damn it! I'm not practicing anymore!”

“What the hell!”

Wang Teng's appearance was distorted, making people want to immediately stay away.

And in Ruo Liuli's eyes,

From inside to outside, from top to bottom, the entire Black Ridge City had a sense of being a paradise.

Making Ruo Liuli feel as if she were in a dream.

If she didn't harbor such deep hatred in her heart, she would also be willing to grow old and die here.

Perhaps this was a very correct choice.

Yet, within her heart... she had calmed some of her anxiety, soothed some of the boiling demon blood, and her whole being became stable and peaceful.

Just then, the sky gradually grew dim.

The Yunmai Heshui Formation was triggered for some unknown reason, forming dark clouds in the sky.

Wang Teng got up, mumbling.

“Crazy, it's going to rain again.”

But after waiting for a long time... no raindrops fell.

Only a cold wind blew.

And then, large flakes of snow actually began to fall from the sky.

Crystal-clear snowflakes landed in their hands, and everyone looked blankly at the snow melting in their palms.

“It's snowing?”

“It's snowing~”