Starting as a spiritual plant master, may I eventually become the master of all lands.

Chapter 117 Boqiu County

Outside the gate of Teng Hua Valley, a streak of emerald green light shot off to the northeast. Within the light was a vine branch three or four zhang long, and on the branch were Song Chuan and his three companions.

This top-tier flying artifact is called "Flying Cloud Vine." It was specially prepared by Vine Flower Valley for cultivators who went out on missions. It was a mass-produced artifact, and could only be described as passable.

Cui Wang had been to the Muke territory before and was in the mid-Foundation Establishment stage, so Song Chuan's previous prediction was correct, and he was to lead the team on this mission.

As for what Deacon Wang said before his departure, Song Chuan knew it without being told: there is no mission that is absolutely safe.

With the opening of the Wood Market, it's bound to be a mixed bag, and some of the fellow disciples from the Vine Flower Valley might even go there on their own.

The market town of the woodcutters in the State of Qi is different from the market town of the human race. The human race occupies the main territory of Qi, and their market town is open for business every day. Only auctions of a certain scale are held irregularly.

The Wood Market is sometimes open to the public once a year, and sometimes only once every few years. It contains some rare mountain wood products that are worth buying.

Furthermore, the territory of the Muke is located in the Emerald Mist Mountains, which are at the easternmost edge of Boqiu County, already outside the territory of the Qi Kingdom's human race. Although it does not belong directly to the Cloud-Broken Great Mountains like the Kongsang Mountains, it is adjacent to and connected to the Cloud-Broken Great Mountains.

The Emerald Mist Mountain Range is not exclusively owned by Mu Ke. There is also a mysterious demon race called Mountain Demon within it, who is both an enemy and a friend of Mu Ke. It is said that this is related to the spiritual veins occupied by the two races.

Song Chuan reviewed the information about Mu Ke in his mind again and glanced at Cui Wang.

The more than 10,000 spirit stones he has is a huge sum!

The sect did not provide more convenient mid-grade spirit stones; one mid-grade spirit stone is equivalent to one hundred low-grade spirit stones!

However, mid-grade spirit stones are more precious and have abundant spiritual energy. Whether it is to directly absorb the spiritual energy in times of crisis or to set up formations, they are far superior to low-grade spirit stones that are simply piled up in quantity!

These ten thousand-plus low-grade spirit stones are equivalent to Song Chuan's salary for fifty or sixty years.

Just then, Cui Wang looked at him, then at the other two, and suddenly said, "It's not appropriate for me to carry all the spirit stones. How about we each take a portion?"

Zhuo Juntao's eyes darted around, and he smiled on his sallow face, saying, "Senior Brother Cui, I think you should keep it. If the Wood Market really opens, we'll all probably go out of our way to buy what we need, so we might have to split up for a while."

After a moment's thought, Cui Wang asked Song Chuan, "What does Junior Brother Song think?"

"I have no objection, Senior Brother Cui, you can make the decision," Song Chuan said.

"Then I'll take it with me for now," Cui Wang said calmly.

As for Dai Lingjun, she seemed to mumble something like "I think—", but seeing that everyone ignored her, she shut up and lowered her head.

Song Chuan only greeted Dai Lingjun once and didn't say anything to her.

The woman would occasionally glance shyly at Song Chuan, her eyes holding a hint of a half-smile, as if she wanted to strike up a conversation with him, but seeing that Song Chuan was deliberately avoiding her, she had no choice but to give up.

And so, the four of them took turns urging the Flying Cloud Vine, leaving Hexi County, passing through several other counties, and finally arriving at Boqiu County after more than half a month.

Boqiu Commandery was the easternmost major commandery in central Qi, bordering Baiquan Commandery to the west, and was the stronghold of the Changshao cuisine. For this reason, it was a famous culinary commandery in Qi.

The county has a dish called "Opening the Box to Find Treasure," which is very famous in the Eastern Region.

The common way to make this dish is to hollow out the tofu, making it into a covered tofu box, stuff it with several carefully selected delicacies from land and sea, and then cover it.

When gourmets savor the food, they first open the lid with chopsticks, then pick out the delicious treats one by one, creating a sense of "treasure hunting" and curiosity.

The way cultivators do things is quite different.

This box can't just contain tofu; it must contain spiritual fruits and melons that can enhance magical power, and it might even be made from the organs of rare demonic beasts.

For example, when Song Chuan was hunting for exotic creatures in Kongsang, he killed a member of the Beast Taming Sect who had a chameleon. Later, when he met Zhuang Xiuya and his two companions, Zhang Lao'e mentioned to Song Chuan that the gall of the chameleon was a delicacy.

This leopard gall can be used as a "treasure chest" for "opening the chest and taking out treasures". The chest made by the spiritual chefs among the cultivators is filled with all sorts of edible spiritual items.

This rare and famous dish is not something that an ordinary chef can make.

It must be said that the ingenuity of the human race is unmatched by any other race. As for whether some of their ingenuity is cruel, that is a matter of opinion.

Song Chuan and his three companions looked down at Boqiu County from the Flying Cloud Vine, where the bustling towns and cities were filled with the lively atmosphere of everyday life.

This kind of everyday life contains all the flavors of human existence, from the ordinary to the spiritual, with its own unique blend of sweet, sour, bitter, and spicy, giving it a distinct feel of the bustling world.

"Senior Brother Cui, how about we find a city with a spirit chef and go down there for a meal?" Zhuo Juntao said, somewhat tempted.

"Go to the Woodcraft Territory and complete the mission first, then you can savor it slowly when you come back," Cui Wang said coldly.

"Hehe! Alright, alright, I've finally made it to Boqiu County, and I'm really craving food. Please excuse my rudeness," Zhuo Juntao said with a grin.

The four of them deliberately flew through remote areas of Boqiu County to avoid triggering the formations and restrictions of some sects and families in the county, especially avoiding the area where the Changshao Sect was located. After traveling for two more days, they arrived at the edge of Boqiu County.

The Flying Cloud Vine suddenly stopped.

The group stared intently and saw a large mountain below, with many mortals standing on its summit.

The mortals were all silent, quietly worshipping a huge flag. Embroidered on the flag was a strange bird of enormous size, with a beak like a scimitar and fierce eyes. It was a bird of prey, but certainly not an ordinary bird like an eagle or hawk.

Bird sacrifice! Song Chuan raised an eyebrow slightly; he had seen this scene before in Daishan.

"These mortals are still worshipping the totems of the Dongyi people?" Zhuo Juntao said disdainfully.

"Senior Brother Zhuo, do you know anything about the Dongyi people?" Song Chuan asked.

"I've heard some rumors, but they all date back to ancient times."

It is said that our Eastern Region and the Wilderness Region were once the territory of the Eastern Yi people, who even established a powerful country called the Lai Kingdom, which rivaled the Yunhan Empire to the west. Therefore, the continent we are on is also called the Yunlai Continent.

The Dongyi people were composed of tribes and used birds as their totem. After establishing the Lai Kingdom, they created a bird-themed official system, including five birds, five doves, and five pheasants. They were constantly at war with the Yunhan Empire, fighting for countless years until the kingdom disintegrated.

Zhuo Juntao gave a spirited explanation.

"And then?" Song Chuan asked with great interest.

"What happened next? The Dongyi people just disappeared." Zhuo Juntao shrugged.

"So, does that mean we people of the Eastern Regions have the blood of the Eastern Yi people?" Song Chuan asked doubtfully.

"There is definitely some connection, but the consequence of war is integration. Who doesn't have some blood relation with whom? Even the ancient strange people intermarried with us. So I don't know what these mortals are worshipping."

Zhuo Juntao scoffed.

"But isn't our Eastern Region not part of the Yunhan Empire?" Song Chuan asked curiously.

"I don't know. It's probably because the Yunhan Empire is too big and the distance is too far, so they can't manage it all," Zhuo Juntao said, shaking his head.

"These mortals are just performing ancestral rites; they don't consider themselves Dongyi people. I've heard there are still a few pure Dongyi tribes in the desolate region. Alright, let's go!" Cui Wang suddenly interjected.

"I've learned a lot," Song Chuan said with a slight smile.

Dai Lingjun, standing to the side, was looking down, fiddling with the hem of her clothes, seemingly lost in thought.