CHAPTER 400: CHAPTER 400: ENTERING THE POND TO CATCH FISH

The mushroom soup, so fresh, so delicious.

After finishing a pot of steaming, tender mushroom soup, Lu Zheng and Liu Qingyan stayed overnight at an inn next to a pharmacy. The next morning, ensuring they were healthy and fine, they left the county town and entered the Southern Borderlands.

...

"Peach Mother Divine Mountain is over two thousand miles deep into the southwest of the Southern Borderlands."

Lu Zheng and Liu Qingyan headed south along the roads winding through the Southern Borderland mountains, enjoying the scenery while Lu Zheng gave introductions to Liu Qingyan.

"I encountered the Hu Family father and son on my way back from Peach Mother Divine Mountain. Feixiong Mountain is closer to Great Jing, and since Mr. Wang Muran is there, I’ve heard that Feixiong Mountain’s relations with the Great Jing Court are quite good."

"Dingfeng Mountain is much deeper. Brother Hu flew with me for half a day before we reached it. We passed many treacherous mountains and rivers along the way, not knowing how many great figures are hidden within."

"But nonetheless, the Southern Borderlands are mostly made up of ordinary people. Although there aren’t particularly populous gathering areas or high-walled grand cities, scattered in the mountain valleys and hilly riverbanks are towns and villages of various sizes."

"Within the Hundred Thousand Mountains of the Southern Border, there’s a dense network of little paths connecting these towns and villages."

"Of course, the territories of various forces are still distinct, and many villages only interact with those nearby. Those who truly reach the Great Jing Court are mostly from the north."

"For example, the mountain folk of villages around Dingfeng Mountain have never entered the Great Jing’s Earth Realm."

...

Entering the Southern Borderlands, still dressed in Confucian robes and plain silk skirts, Lu Zheng and Liu Qingyan stood out. In Yongzhou, they purchased two sets of traditional blue-black attire commonly worn by Southern Border people, donned leather boots, and wore bamboo hats, disguising themselves as medicine gatherers. The baskets on their backs were filled with all kinds of commonplace herbs. Without careful inspection or conversation, one would barely realize they were from the Central Plains.

The two trekked through the mountains, stopping only at civilian villages and never approaching areas where Abnormal People or strange entities might exist, walking only in the outskirts.

Along the way, they encountered a few Abnormal People, but they remained inconspicuous. These Abnormal People were not experts or of great power, thus did not notice them.

Yes, with their cultivation, there was no need to be this cautious...

Nonetheless, being so careful meant they encountered no incidents along the way, arriving at Dingfeng Mountain’s Earth Realm safely and smoothly.

...

"We can show our identity plaques now!" Lu Zheng lifted his bamboo hat and laughed heartily.

Liu Qingyan smiled softly, lifting her bamboo hat as well, standing by Lu Zheng’s side, wrapping her arm around Lu Zheng’s, and looking down the mountain in the direction of Lu Zheng’s gaze.

The two were standing on a not-so-high hill. Not far below the mountain, a stream flowed by, with a village nestled by the mountain and waters, established in a mountain valley, along both sides of the stream.

"This village belongs to the Dingfeng Mountain realm. Hu Zhou brought me here during a scenic tour before because there’s a small waterfall to the east not far from here. Under the waterfall, there’s a pool where a type of fish called whitefish is quite tender," Lu Zheng said. "Since we’re here today, let’s go and catch some whitefish. I’ll make a soup, then we’ll steam and fry some dishes."

"Great!" Liu Qingyan’s eyes brightened, unconsciously sticking out her little fragrant tongue and licking her lips.

She hadn’t tasted Lu Zheng’s cooking for days. Since Lu Zheng praised the ingredient’s freshness, it must be rare indeed, thus...

Liu Qingyan was already eager.

...

Deep Valley, Waterfall, Clear Spring.

The cliff steep, the valley was lush with diverse vegetation. A mountain stream descended from above, forming a nearly hundred-foot tall waterfall, split into seven segments.

As the waterfall poured down, it kicked up water mist, enveloping the valley, keeping it humid year-round, rich with water vapor and dense vegetation.

Underneath the waterfall, deep within the valley, was a pond of water, no more than tens of feet in circumference. The eastern side of the pond had an opening, forming a moderately wide stream that wound away.

However, the stream’s flow was less than half of the waterfall’s, so...

"Is there an underground river beneath this pond?" Liu Qingyan asked.

Lu Zheng nodded, saying, "Moreover, the pond is very deep. The whitefish reside nearly hundred feet below the surface, without a trace of the underground river."

"That deep? Are there demons in this pond?" Liu Qingyan asked with concern.

"None, at least last time when we were fishing in the pond, we didn’t encounter anything, nor did Hu Zhou inform me of anything."

Lu Zheng said, "Moreover, this is Hu Yijun’s territory. If there were demons, we’d just display our identity plaques."

Liu Qingyan chuckled softly, "Alright then, how do we fish?"

Lu Zheng replied matter-of-factly, "Of course, I’ll use the Water Avoidance Technique to go down."

"How did you guys fish last time?"

"Last time Hu Zhou used a Dharma Artifact fishing rod from Dingfeng Mountain, the fishing line was Silk of the Silkworm Demon, the hook Cold Iron Elite, and the bait Herbal Pills infused with Spiritual Qi." Lu Zheng shrugged, "We don’t have those items right now."

Liu Qingyan was stunned, "Fishing can be so extravagant?"

"Absolutely, for folks like us, we can only dive in and catch them ourselves."

Lu Zheng shook his head, "Wait for me on shore for a bit, I’ll go down to catch the fish."

With that, Lu Zheng leaped, reached above the pond, formed a Water Avoidance Technique, and submerged into the pond.

The water lightly recessed and then leveled, not even stirring a ripple, showcasing the Water Avoidance Technique’s magic.

After entering the water and preparing to dive, Lu Zheng suddenly noticed a flash of light nearby.

Turning around, he saw Liu Qingyan holding a bright pearl, following him into the water.

Blinking, Liu Qingyan said mischievously, "Did you forget the Water-Repelling Pearl? You gave it to me."

As she said this, Liu Qingyan’s jade-like face slightly reddened. It was known that she regarded this Water-Repelling Pearl as Lu Zheng’s gift of betrothal.

"I’ll go down with Lu Lang, and I’ll light the way for him too."

Lu Zheng couldn’t help but smile, then joined Liu Qingyan within the Water-Repelling Pearl’s sphere.

Lu Zheng and Liu Qingyan nestled against each other, moved together, holding the Water-Repelling Pearl, descending deeper.

The Water-Repelling Pearl, infused with True Qi, kept all the pond water at bay, maintaining a distance of half a foot.

The Water-Repelling Pearl was truly a treasure underwater, using just a tiny bit of True Qi to displace a large volume of water. Even as they descended deeper, the required True Qi increased very limitedly, at least Liu Qingyan could easily maintain it, effortlessly.

As they descended a hundred feet, under the bluish light of the Water-Repelling Pearl, whitefish about a foot long appeared around them.

"The ingredients have arrived!"