Gou in the world of comprehension

Chapter 1420 Just who is that person?

At midnight, everything was silent.

The moonlight, like water, flowed over the layered mountains and ridges, dyeing the thick white vapor rising from the mountaintops into a blend of blue and green silk, flowing slowly along the dark mountain ridges, and gathering into a hazy mist at the bottom of the valley.

All the mountains were bathed in a cool, silvery moonlight, like a sleeping giant draped in a translucent veil, and even the clear springs seeping from the rock crevices shimmered with the light of shattered diamonds.

A miniature flying boat, more than ten feet long, was skimming along the dark green treetops.

The distance between the bottom of the boat and the treetops was only a few feet. The pitch-black hull drew an almost invisible trail in the inky night sky, with only the dark blue crystals inlaid on the edge of the hull occasionally splashing a few points of cold light.

Su Fan sat cross-legged on the edge of the deck, his elbows resting on the carved railing, his fingertips unconsciously rubbing the cold railing.

Below the airship, the dark green forest undulated with the air currents, like a crumpled velvet blanket. Occasionally, phosphorescent lights, startled by nocturnal animals, would draw fleeting arcs through the forest.

He gazed at the passing mountain shadows below, his ears trembling slightly as he tried to catch the faint sounds drifting from the cabin.

The flying boat had been traveling through these mountains for several days, and the conversations of the cultivators never stopped.

Despite the unfamiliar tone of the language used in this direction, he patiently studied it as if deciphering an ancient scroll.

In fact, the language of this dimension is different from the language of his previous life, much like the difference between Mandarin and various local dialects in his previous life.

Although there are some awkward parts, they all share a common rhythm.

After a few days, he was able to piece together the general meaning from the people's intonation and repetitive syllables.

At this moment, more than ten cultivators on the other side of the deck were huddled together, their voices hushed like a flock of crows pecking at food.

"Tell me, who exactly is that person...?"

"Is there even a need to ask? It's undoubtedly a cultivator..."

"I know he's a body cultivator, but where in which secret realm did such a powerful body cultivator come from?"

"Perhaps they are like us, rogue cultivators who didn't have time to retreat to the human-controlled area..."

"What a pity, this person is mute..."

"How can you say that? If it weren't for him, we'd all be the dung of these monsters by now..."

"That's right, Lao Liu, watch your mouth. So what if he's mute..."

"He's mute, and I never said I wasn't grateful to him..."

At this moment, on the outskirts of the crowd, a fair-skinned young cultivator secretly glanced at the Nascent Soul cultivator beside him who was resting with his eyes closed, his voice tinged with fear.

"Master... look, where did that person come from?"

The Nascent Soul cultivator slowly opened his eyes, his gaze passing over the crowd and landing on Su Fan at the other end of the deck. The moonlight reflected in his pupils, and then he gently shook his head.

"I don't know where he came from, but I can't figure out his background, and he must have been seriously injured..."

As soon as he finished speaking, the surrounding whispers stopped abruptly, and even the sound of the airship cutting through the air became clearer.

"Master, do you mean that his cultivation level is higher than yours...?"

"It's hard to say. His internal energy is extremely chaotic. In any case, I can't see through his background..."

As the Nascent Soul cultivator spoke, he took out a translucent white jade bottle from his storage ring and handed it to his disciple.

"Xiao Feng, take this bottle of pills to him..."

Upon hearing this, the young cultivator quickly accepted the pills handed to him by his master, then stood up and came to Su Fan's side.

"Senior...this is a healing pill my master gave you..."

Su Fan was stunned for a moment. When he took the jade bottle, his fingertips touched the cold bottle.

He turned to the Nascent Soul cultivator, cupped his hands in greeting, and expressed his gratitude.

Su Fan poured out a pill; the amber-colored pill shimmered with a faint glow, and a refreshing, herbal fragrance instantly wafted to his nose.

That's right, it definitely smells like healing pills.

He sighed inwardly. If he had had this healing pill earlier, his old injuries wouldn't have dragged on until now.

Su Fan took a deep breath and then put the pill in his mouth.

As soon as the pill entered his stomach, he remembered a cool medicinal power that instantly transformed into a warm current, flowing down his throat and throughout his body, like a dried-up riverbed being soaked by a clear spring, so comfortable that he almost sighed out loud.

He closed his eyes, sat cross-legged, and let the medicinal effects slowly spread through his meridians.

After an unknown amount of time, Su Fan slowly opened his eyes, exhaled a breath of turbid air tinged with a faint purple mist, and felt as if his muscles and bones had relaxed a bit.

The long-lost feeling of being nourished by the medicine in his body made him feel incredibly refreshed all over.

However, there were only a dozen or so pills left in the jade bottle. To completely suppress the injury, it would probably take several more bottles.

At this moment, the monks began to talk again. He listened carefully and caught words such as "market" and "secret" in the rapid syllables.

Although they didn't hear the name of the market, they could tell from their wary tone that the owner of that place was no good person.

The flying boat sped along for more than an hour. The sky began to lighten, and the mountain shadows gradually faded from their dark color, turning into a hazy gray-blue.

As the airship entered a canyon, several young cultivators on the deck suddenly gasped, their breathing becoming more rapid.

Su Fan also stood up from the ground and looked towards the end of the canyon.

At the end of the canyon was a dense forest shrouded in a milky white mist, so thick it resembled unyielding milk. Even though he couldn't use his divine sense at the moment, he could still see the spiritual light of the array flowing within the mist.

That hidden market town must be concealed behind this mist.

The airship showed no sign of slowing down, plunging headlong into the fog like an arrow released from a bow.

The moment they passed through the fog, the surroundings suddenly darkened, and the flying boat had entered a stone cave several tens of feet wide. The eerie green moss on the rock walls gleamed under the ship's lights.

About fifteen minutes later, the view suddenly opened up.

The airship entered a huge cave with a high dome, where stalagmites hanging from the ceiling shimmered in the dim light like inverted icicles.

The airship slowly landed on a flat stone platform, emitting a slight tremor.

Su Fan followed the others off the flying boat, his feet stepping onto the cool stone slabs as he looked around.

The rock walls of this makeshift airport are clearly man-made, with white marks left by tools along the edges, indicating that it was hastily carved out.

Before long, several ferocious-looking cultivators strode over and arrogantly checked their identity jade tokens.

The Nascent Soul cultivator led Su Fan to a Nascent Soul cultivator with a gloomy expression and explained a few words in a low voice.

“Fellow Daoist Kuxue, he is a cultivator who was lost and forgotten. Could you please prepare an identity jade talisman for him…”

Upon hearing this, the other person glanced sideways at Su Fan, their gaze like a poisoned ice pick.

“Fellow Daoist Songlin, who is this guy? We don’t accept people of unknown origin here…”

Su Fan looked at the other party calmly. Just from the name, this guy didn't seem like a decent person. He was probably an evil cultivator.

Pine Forest Heavenly Lord chuckled and said, "I would appreciate it if Fellow Daoist Dry Blood could be lenient with me..."

"It's not that I'm disrespecting you, but the God of Black Bones just issued a decree, and I had no choice..."

Hearing the other party say this, Su Fan felt a chill run down his spine.

He never expected that the one guarding this market would be a wicked old demon. After speaking, Ku Xue twirled his fingers, a greedy glint flashing between them, clearly intending to extort some spirit jade.

Fellow Daoist Songlin hurriedly handed over a storage ring. The other party scanned it with his divine sense, and then revealed a satisfied sneer on his face. He slowly took out a blank jade talisman.

"You...drop a drop of your essence on it..."

Upon hearing this, Su Fan bit his fingertip and dripped a drop of his blood onto the jade talisman, watching the crimson stain gradually seep into its depths.

“Songlin, you're the one who brought this person in. Tell him about our rules here; you can't be in arrears on your monthly allowance…”

After speaking, the other party glanced at Su Fan again, and then left with his group.

With this brand-new identity jade talisman, Su Fan followed the others through the airport and along a damp tunnel.

The further you go in, the clearer the noise becomes. The shouts of vendors and the sounds of arguments mingle with the buzzing of colliding spiritual energy, surging in like a tide, making you feel as if you've entered a commercial pedestrian street.

When they emerged from the tunnel, the cavern suddenly opened up before them.

This cave is quite large, with well-planned streets and shops lining both sides in a pleasing manner.

Shops lined the cobblestone path, their signs shimmering with runes under the glowing light of the luminous stone.

The cave is inlaid with bright stones, which emit a dim light.

The cave ceiling was too low, making it feel oppressive and causing a tightness in the chest, as if even breathing was compressed.

Songlin Tianjun led Su Fan to the edge of the cave. The rock wall was covered with dense holes, and the holes of different sizes looked like honeycombs hollowed out by giant bees, gleaming with a cold bluish-gray light under the dim light of the bright stone.

The wind whistled through the cracks in the cave, like the whispers of countless wronged souls.

Looking at the cave entrances of varying depths, Su Fan instantly realized that these were man-made caves.

There are certainly many inns in the market, but in this desperate situation surrounded by strange beasts, they would definitely charge exorbitant prices.

The scattered cultivators left behind in this area have no choice but to live here.

The Pine Forest Celestial Lord helped him rent a cave dwelling, but for such a dilapidated place, the monthly rent was actually one spirit jade.

This is too dark.

The prices at the town's inns would probably be ten or even a hundred times higher, definitely an exorbitant price that could squeeze every last drop of a cultivator's life essence out of them.

There was nothing they could do. The army of alien beasts had already invaded their territory, and the cultivators who had been left behind in this occupied area were already hoping for a corner to shelter them from the wind and rain.

He followed Songlin Tianjun into the cave entrance, and frowned as soon as he stepped through the stone gate.

The cave was no more than ten feet deep and a little over two meters wide. The four walls were bare, without even a decent stone bed. Only a thin layer of dust covered the ground, making it look like an abandoned cave that had been uninhabited for a long time.

This is hardly a cave dwelling; it's even more shabby than a rat hole in the wild.

Okay, even if the place is small, it's still better than me sleeping outdoors every day.

Su Fan sighed, turned around and closed the heavy stone door, then unloaded his backpack onto the ground.

He took out a patched quilt from his bundle, spread it out at the innermost part of the cave, and then sat cross-legged on it.

He closed his eyes and focused on examining the injuries inside his body. The medicinal power of the healing pill was still slowly circulating in his meridians, and it would take at least until tomorrow to be completely refined. He would have to wait patiently for the second pill.

Thinking of this, he took out a small brown jade bottle from his pocket, poured out three grayish-brown fasting pills, and stuffed them into his mouth.

This was given to him by the Nascent Soul cultivator. A bottle of thirty pills would be enough for an ordinary cultivator to last a month, but he had an amazing appetite, and even if he ate sparingly, he wouldn't last more than ten days.

As the hunger in his stomach gradually subsided, Su Fan lay back on the mattress and fell into a deep sleep as soon as his eyelids closed.

For the past few years, he has been living a life of hardship in the mountains, sleeping with one eye open even when he has to guard against strange beasts flying overhead.

Now I can finally let down my guard and get a good night's sleep.

He slept for a full seven or eight hours until he heard the footsteps of cultivators outside the cave. He suddenly opened his eyes, sat up, and rubbed his face vigorously. The warmth in his palms dispelled the remaining drowsiness.

Su Fan took out the bottle of healing pills again, poured out a smooth and lustrous pill, and swallowed it without hesitation.

Once the medicinal effects had transformed into a warm current flowing through his limbs and bones, he slowly got up, stretched lazily, and his bones made a series of crisp "crackling" sounds, feeling so comfortable that he almost groaned out loud.

This sleep was more restful than the previous six months combined.

Pushing open the stone door, the noise from outside the cave surged in like a tide.

Su Fan mingled among the passing cultivators, strolling leisurely along the bluestone path through the market.

The street stalls on both sides of the road were filled with all sorts of odds and ends, including rusty magical artifacts, unknown animal bones, and herbs that gleamed with an eerie light. He glanced at them and shook his head inwardly.

Su Fan still needs a few more bottles of healing pills to improve his internal injuries.

He didn't trust the products from those roadside stalls.

Although he might not be able to refuse if he asked the Nascent Soul cultivator, he was unwilling to owe him a favor if there were any other way.

As he walked, Su Fan caught a glimpse of a beast claw gleaming with a cold, eerie blue light on a stall. Its shape was exactly the same as the flying beasts he had killed.

Su Fan immediately stopped in his tracks, picked up the beast claw and weighed it in his hand. The sharp edge of the claw still carried a faint smell of blood.

"Fellow Daoist has excellent taste..."

The stall owner was a monk who was missing half an ear, and his voice was as hoarse as if he were grinding a piece of iron.

"These are the sharp claws of the 'Ironclaw Bat,' which, when forged into arrows, can easily pierce the flesh of strange beasts..."

After listening to the stall owner's words, Su Fan couldn't help but sigh inwardly.

The spells of this direction are of little effect on the beasts; on the contrary, objects made from the beasts' own materials can break through their defenses.

"Eighty spirit jades, fellow Daoist, you won't lose out if you take them..." the stall owner shouted, slapping his thigh.

Su Fan almost burst out laughing. You're kidding me, his bag was full of stuff.

But from the stall owner's price, he finally figured out the trick: the materials from the strange beasts were actually hard currency here.

Thinking of this, Su Fan put the beast claw back on the stall, then stood up, turned around, and left, having already made up his mind.

He spent the afternoon browsing the medicine shops in the market, figuring out most of the prices before returning to his cave.

Not long after, he went out again carrying a tattered cloth bag. About an hour later, he returned with light steps. The bag was bulging, and the rope was trembling slightly from its weight.

After closing the stone door, Su Fan sat cross-legged on the mattress and dumped everything out of the bag.

The sharp claws of the dozen or so iron-clawed bats had disappeared, replaced by rows of small jade bottles covered with runes.

Eight of the bottles contained healing pills, the effects of which were even more refined than those given by the Nascent Soul cultivator.

He also has ten bottles of fasting pills, several hundred pills in total, enough for him to go into seclusion for several months.

As for the pills for treating the soul, he didn't buy a single bottle because they were ridiculously expensive.

In any case, once his injuries heal, he will be able to activate his spiritual energy to open his storage ring, where the top-grade soul pills stored inside will be enough for him to squander for several years.

For the next two months, Su Fan did not step out of his cave.

In this cramped cave, he practiced his cultivation technique day after day, using the medicinal power of the pills to repair his damaged meridians and dantian.

When the last wisp of medicinal energy was refined, he was finally able to barely mobilize a trace of spiritual power. Although it was not enough to sustain the battle, it was enough to open the long-dormant storage ring.

(End of this chapter)