TFHS: Chapter 106

Nandou Town was very prosperous. There were many mercenary teams and various experienced adventurers staying here. This also attracted many merchants to be stationed here.

Feng Ming led Bai Qiaomo to find a restaurant first. In the past few days, they either ate barbecue in the wild or bought their own dry food and spiritual fruits.

He needed a delicious meal to reward the two of them. By the way, he needed to hear what was happening in Nandou Town recently.

The two of them found a seat by the window of the second floor and listened to the discussions of other cultivators in the building while eating.

Not surprisingly, many cultivators in the building were talking about the situation in the Netherworld Valley.

Feng Ming wasn’t surprised. Even Feng Linlang and Song Wantong, who were in Sihong Academy, got the news. These cultivators who often traveled outside were even better informed.

Nandou Town was closer to Netherworld Valley than Sihong Academy. If there were some abnormal situations there, it would soon spread to this area.

The cultivators dining at the table next to them happened to be talking about the Netherworld Valley. One of the cultivators’ voices was like a bell. It was difficult for Feng Ming and Bai Qiaomo not to listen.

“It isn’t like you don’t know about the dangers in the Netherworld Valley. Even if there is really a relic about to be born in there, it won’t be so fast. Now with our little cultivator, we are just asking for death if we want to enter the Netherworld Valley.”

This cultivator with a loud voice was obviously familiar with the Netherworld Valley, so it wasn’t a good place.

The cultivator at the same table said, “Everyone knows the dangers of the Netherworld Valley, but this also shows that the origin of the palace about to be revealed to the world is very important. Not just any cultivator can place a heritage palace in that type of place. Due to this, the vision in the Netherworld valley will attract a large number of cultivators to go there.”

The cultivator said, “That makes sense, but my opinion is that we can wait. If you really want to go, you can go to Beidou Town and wait. Beidou Town is closer to Netherworld Valley. However, if you don’t have something that can resist the poisonous gas in the valley, you must not step into the valley before the poisonous gas becomes thinner. Otherwise, your life won’t be saved.”

Feng Ming became curious when he heard this. He put down the chopsticks in his hands and asked the cultivator, “Brother, this is our first time in Nandou Town. I was very curious when I heard you talk about Netherworld Valley. Is Netherworld Valley so scary?”

Seeing that Feng Ming looked like a curious baby, this practitioner had a cheerful temperament and didn’t mind strangers talking to him. He was also happy to answer other people’s questions.

“It turns out that this is your first time here. It is no wonder that you don’t know the situation in the Netherworld Valley. The Netherworld Valley is filled with terrible poisonous gas all year round. Cultivators below the essence dan realm will have tumors swell all over their bodies when exposed to the poisonous gas. The tumors exude black water, and they will become unconscious, attacking anyone around them. Moreover, this state doesn’t last long. It can take as little as half a day or as long as several days before they die of exhaustion and turn into trees in the Netherworld Valley.”

“Even the fourth grade detoxification pill can’t relieve this state. It is said that the fifth grade detoxification pill can have a certain resistance. But how rare is the fifth grade detoxification pill? Except for those who have no shortage of pills, who would usually run to the Netherworld Valley?”

“However, Netherworld Valley is filled with poisonous gas all year round. Every ten years or so, the poisonous gas in Netherworld Valley will become thinner and the risk of entering will be much less at that time. Therefore, most experienced cultivators will choose this time to go into the valley to find treasures.”

Feng Ming gasped. “It turns out that it is so dangerous and scary. Fortunately, we heard the news about the emergence of the ruins and didn’t rush there. You don’t recommend going to Netherworld Valley now. Is it because there is still some time until the toxic gas in the valley weakens?”

“Haha, yes. It will take at least three months to become thinner. Therefore, running over there in a hurry now is meaningless. We can only watch others use all types of methods to enter the valley.”

Bai Qiaomo also asked, “You said that there was a vision, allowing people to judge that there is a heritage site in the valley. What type of vision is it?”

The cultivator replied, “Just a month ago, someone was outside the Netherworld Valley and saw a light shining in the center of the valley. It even penetrated the poisonous gas. Through that light, they saw the shadow of a mansion looming in the middle. The cultivator specially filmed this scene using a picture stone and brought it out. He earned money by selling the picture stone.”

“It has been certified by many cultivators. This vision is likely to be the appearance of a heritage site. The news soon spread. As a result, Beidou Town has recently gathered a large number of cultivators and they are looking for ways to explore the valley.”

“I see. Thank you, Brother.”

“You are flattering me.”

They reported each other’s names. The cheerful cultivator’s last name was Zong. Cultivator Zhong knew that Feng Ming and Bai Qiaomo were brothers surnamed Qiao. He immediately shouted in a loud voice, “Brother Da Qiao, Brother Xiao Qiao.”

“Pfft, cough…” The moment he took a sip of tea, Feng Ming unfortunately choked and coughed until tears came out.

If he had known this, he wouldn’t have taken the character in the middle of Bai Qiaomo’s name as the surname. Okay, now it was his fault.

A smile flashed in Bai Qiaomo’s eyes, and he patted Feng Ming on the back to cheer him up. He guessed that it might have something to do with the name Cultivator Zhong called them. It must’ve reminded Junior Brother Ming of relevant memories from his previous life.

“Haha, Brother Da Qiao and Brother Xiao Qiao have such a good relationship.” Cultivator Zhong looked at the two of them and continued to laugh.

“The black crystal turtle raised by the two brothers is also very cute.”

The black crystal turtle squatted on the table and ate the meat from the bowl in front of him. He was also loved by the cultivators at the table.

Feng Ming was forced to reluctantly accept the title of ‘Brother Xiao Qiao’ and thanked him for Xiao Jing.

None of the cultivators at the table noticed Feng Ming’s previous abnormality was caused by their names.

In particular, the cultivator surnamed Zhong spoke to them enthusiastically for a while, telling them about the situation in the Nandou Mountains, what they needed to pay attention to when entering, and where to buy the most detailed mountain topographic map in the town to save time. There were endless cases of first time cultivators being deceived.

As they said, Feng Ming and Bai Qiaomo went to a store in town, bought a copy of the most detailed topographic map, and a pamphlet similar to an adventure guide. He had to say that the owner was very good at doing business.

Afterward, the two of them found an inn to stay at for a while as they prepared to go to the mountains tomorrow.

Once the two of them were alone, Feng Ming took the best-grade pill and let Xiao Jing hold it and chew it slowly. Then he asked Bai Qiaomo, “Have you never been to the Netherworld Valley?”

Bai Qiaomo never mentioned the dangers of the Netherworld Valley on the way, so he hadn’t thought about it.

As Feng Ming thought, Bai Qiaomo nodded and said, “I didn’t pass by this area at that time, so I never went deep into the Netherworld Valley. However, I have heard about the situation here.”

Feng Ming was curious. “What exactly is the composition of the poisonous gas inside? Is it so powerful?”

Just by listening to the description, it could be seen that the Misty Forest outside Gaoyang County was incomparable to the poisonous gas in the Netherworld Valley. The fifth grade detoxification pill only has a certain resistance, and doesn’t remove the poison.

Just hearing the description of the symptoms after poisoning made people shudder. Even if they were going to die, they couldn’t die in such an ugly manner.

Bai Qiaomo touched his chin and said thoughtfully, “The poisonous gas in the Netherworld Valley is probably related to the word Netherworld. I don’t know where the name Netherworld Valley comes from. If we can figure it out, maybe we can know where the poisonous gas actually came from?”

“However, I know that this Netherworld Valley is indeed very dangerous. There is a relic palace this time, but many people died. It isn’t just the Netherworld Valley. The relic palace is also very dangerous.”

Feng Ming was stunned when he heard this. “Then let’s wait a bit longer. We don’t have to rush to the Netherworld Valley. Let’s first stay here for a while, practice our skills, and pay attention to the news over there. Then we will talk about it when the time comes.”

Bai Qiaomo nodded. He might have rich experience, wasn’t weak in strength, and had something to protect his life, but he wouldn’t easily step into such a dangerous place.

What’s more, he still had a junior brother around him who needed his protection. Therefore, he wouldn’t put himself in danger.

As for the Feng siblings, as well as Wu Yingyan and the others who rushed to Beidou Town, Feng Ming, and Bai Qiaomo wouldn’t care about whether they entered the valley or about their life and death. At most, he regretted that Wu Yingyan didn’t fall in their hands.

Once they left Lanshui City, Bai Qiaomo wrote several secret letters through special channels and sent them to several princes in the Imperial City.

He was giving the princes a handle on the Wu family. This was something he had learned after defeating the Wu family in his previous life. The Wu family previously held a very rich reserve of medium-grade yuan crystal veins. The Wu family didn’t report it to the imperial court but mined it privately.

The Dongmu Dynasty had regulations that once yuan crystal veins were discovered by the public, they had to report it to the government and the court. No force was allowed to mine it privately. Once discovered, they would be severely punished.

Of course, there were benefits if the private sector discovered the yuan crystal vein and reported it. Officials would send personnel to mine it and the mined yuan crystal mines would be rewarded to the ones who reported it in proportion.

If forces such as the noble families discovered a yuan crystal mine and reported it to the court, the imperial court and the noble family would jointly mine it and distribute it proportionally or the noble family would provide manpower to mine, and the court would send supervisors. The proportion of yuan crystals received by the corresponding noble family would increase slightly.

Perhaps this was an important means for the dynasty to control all forces in the area. This method couldn’t be said to be good or bad, but for Bai Qiaomo, it could be used to deal with the enemy.

The Wu family thought they had the noble concubine and prince as their backers, and they were unwilling to give up part of the profits. Therefore, they completely kept this rich mine.

There were other noble families and forces that did this privately, but they didn’t make it public. Once reported and discovered, could the emperor of the dynasty allow such a phenomenon to exist?

Even if it was his favorite concubine or beloved son, he couldn’t let it go easily. It was because once a precedent was set, other noble families and forces would follow suit. What other means could the dynasty rely on to suppress all parties?

After all, yuan crystals were a very important resource for cultivators to cultivate and improve themselves. If the dynasty didn’t control such an important resource, how could it sleep peacefully? Instead, it would always worry about the loss of status and the other forces below joining together to rebel.

The current Zong family was taken from the imperial family of the previous dynasty. The Zong family had been in charge of the Dongmu Dynasty for more than a thousand years.