Divine Tang Era

"call out"

A gust of wind swept across the grassland, bending the newly sprouted grass.

The groundhog poked its head out of the burrow, looking bewildered. It seemed like something had just run by, but then again, it didn't.

Although Xu Dan was small and had short legs, he was incredibly fast, and in the blink of an eye, the mountain came into view. He didn't follow the old woman's advice to take the side valley, but instead rushed straight up the mountain.

We rushed all the way here, and it was almost evening by the time we arrived.

The mountain was very high, so Xu Dan wasn't in a hurry to climb it. He first found a place to set up camp, ate and drank his fill, and slept for a while before climbing the mountain the next day. The mountain was indeed very high; he estimated it to be two or three thousand meters high.

Despite the height of the mountain, Xu Dan was not afraid. He slowly climbed up with his luggage on his back and was not very tired.

He felt that it was because he had drunk earth milk and dragon blood in the underground cave that he had unparalleled strength. It was as if there was a small sun inside his body, keeping him warm and never feeling cold.

The mountain slopes upwards, with some trees at the foot, which gradually thin out and disappear as you go higher.

Near the summit, only stubbornly growing weeds and a pile of rubble remained.

"Um"

Xu Dan noticed a glint of light in the sunlight on the grayish stone. He walked over, lifted it up, and discovered it was a piece of jade, somewhat resembling mountain jade from Hetian. He turned over another stone, and it was the same; it seemed the jade production here was quite abundant.

After glancing at it a few times, I put the things down, planning to come back and pick up a few better ones to take with me on my way down the mountain.

After walking a while longer, they reached the mountaintop, where Xu Dan discovered that there was snow. Snow lotuses bloomed amidst the flawless white snow, so dazzling, so conspicuous, so beautiful.

"So beautiful!"

This snow lotus is not breathtaking, but it is naturally beautiful and pure, lovely in its beauty.

Just like a young girl's shy lowering of her head, it is exceptionally endearing.

Xu Dan lowered his head to the largest, fully bloomed snow lotus and gently inhaled its fragrance. The pure, irreplaceable scent filled his lungs, making him feel as if he had returned to the embrace of Mother Earth and was swimming in an ocean of joy.

After a long while, he got up.

Xu Dan faced east, gazing at the towering mountains that pierced the sky in the distance, and the humble city walls at their foot, which resembled ants, and sang loudly.

"I have come to this world, and no storm or whirlpool can stop me."

"I have come into this world, and no matter how fierce the storm, I am still me..."

The tender voices echoed atop the mountains, and even heaven and earth seemed to listen. At that moment, the sound was cheering, jubilation, and the release of lingering worries from a heart that had finally found a place to call home.

After a period of unrestrained venting, Xu Dan lay down on the snow, closed his eyes, and tried not to think about or do anything.

At this moment, heaven and earth seemed to become cautious and fell silent.

He didn't know how much time had passed when he opened his eyes. He felt as if the world had changed, becoming clearer, and his mood lightened considerably. It was getting late; he should get going. The snow lotus flowers were quite nice. He picked ten of the largest ones and put them away before heading down the mountain, collecting a few pieces of jade along the way.

The old woman was right last night; there is indeed a canyon on the mountainside.

It had been deserted for a long time, and piles of withered branches and rotten leaves exuded a putrid smell.

Fortunately, Xu Dan isn't some rich kid, so these things don't really affect him.

The canyon is very long, and some parts are not exposed to sunlight, making it a breeding ground for snakes and insects. Fortunately, the weather is not hot now, so there aren't many snakes and insects around; otherwise, it would probably have taken Xu Dan quite a bit of effort to cross it safely.

The canyon is winding and full of twists and turns, and the scenery is beautiful.

In the past, he would definitely have stopped to watch, perhaps even taking out his phone to snap photos. Unfortunately, now he only wants to find places where people live, to reconnect with human society. Therefore, these landscapes are like trifles to him, utterly unworthy of his attention.

After passing through the canyon, Xu Dan saw that it was still early and wanted to run as fast as he could.

Suddenly, I heard a "humming" sound, like the sound of a puppy.

Why are there dogs here? Curious, Xu Dan followed the sound and came to a small hillside at the foot of the mountain.

A massive mastiff lay dead in front of the earthen slope, its body riddled with wounds, the ground stained brown with dried blood. Not far from it lay more than twenty large blue wolves, presumably the mastiff's victims.

Xu Dan walked up to the giant mastiff and touched it; it was already dry and hard, indicating that it had been dead for a long time.

"Hmph"

Several childish voices came from behind the giant mastiff. Xu Dan turned around and saw a cave on the earthen slope, from which the voices were coming.

Xu Dan walked over and peered inside. There were several Tibetan mastiffs inside the cave; the ones outside were already dead, but the one at the very back was still alive, its eyes still closed.

He took the little one out; the little guy seemed hungry and was looking for food everywhere. Xu Dan didn't have any milk, so how could he feed him? After thinking for a moment, he put some honey in a wooden bowl, mixed it with cooled boiled water, and held it in his arms. He warmed the water with his body heat and breathed on it to warm it up before feeding it to the little guy, to prevent him from getting diarrhea from eating cold water.

After a while, the water warmed up a little, and I held the little one in my arms to feed him.

The little guy was starving and couldn't wait to get close to the honey water and drink it.

Xu Dan fed the little guy water from a wooden bowl while petting him. Its black fur made it look like a bear cub, so he named it "Black Bear." This little guy had a terrible life; its mother and siblings died shortly after birth, before it even opened its eyes. "From now on, you'll be with me! While I can't make you rich and powerful, you'll certainly have plenty to eat and drink."

The little guy seemed to sense something, looked up for a moment, and then buried his head in his water again.

After drinking the honey water, the little guy seemed tired and fell into a deep sleep in Xu Dan's arms.

Xu Dan stroked the little creature, glancing at the giant mastiff and wolf carcass beside him, thinking: Since I've taken in someone else's child, I should at least give her a proper burial. Besides, I'm penniless, and these wolf pelts are perfect for skinning and exchanging in the city; otherwise, how will I eat?

He took out a sleeping bag from his luggage, put the black bear inside to sleep, and used a book basket to shield it from the sudden hail and cold rain that might strike the alpine meadow.

Then, they took out a small wooden shovel, dug a hole, and buried the giant mastiff and her cubs.

They skinned another twenty-odd large blue wolves. As for the wolf meat, there was no need to worry about it; the great grassland would take care of it all.

Because the earthen slope was the battlefield between the giant mastiffs and the large blue wolves, in order to avoid further attacks from the large blue wolves, Xu Dan carried his luggage, dragged the wolf skin, and ran a distance with the little guy before choosing a sheltered grassy slope to camp.

"Um"

The next day, Xu Dan was still asleep when he suddenly felt something wet on his face. He opened his eyes and saw the little guy sticking out his tongue and licking him wildly.

In just one night, the little guy, whose eyes were still closed, opened them. Seeing that his efforts had finally awakened his master, he immediately pounced on him and started licking him.

"What are you licking for? You're not a simp, have some self-respect, okay?"

Xu Dan reluctantly held the little guy in his arms. The little guy squirmed restlessly, probably because he was hungry. He took out yesterday's wooden bowl, filled it with honey and diluted it with cooled boiled water. Feeling that this wasn't nutritious enough, he also shaved some smoked venison slices, chopped them into small pieces, soaked them in the honey water, and used his body heat and the steam from his mouth to cool them down before feeding them to the little guy.

The little guy was clearly hungry; as soon as he saw the food, he immediately lay down on it and started eating.

Xu Dan also cut some smoked venison and soaked it in water to drink. Eating venison dry is always too tough, so it's better to soak it in water.

After the two children finished breakfast, seeing that it was getting late, he packed his luggage, moved a space on the book basket, put the little guy in, and then dragged the wolf skin and ran forward.