Chapter 49 - In the Mountains
Cassius followed Li Wei's vague memories down a narrow path behind Flower Road Village, where it led directly into the mountains. There was an uphill slope close by, and it was covered in blooming yellow wildflowers. Their petals spread open like little umbrellas, swaying gently in the breeze.
Two small graves lay close together in the center of the sea of flowers.
Cassius searched for a while before carefully picking a few white flowers from the grass. Tiny black rice-like insects, drawn in by the strong fragrance, crawled around the centers of these roadside wildflowers. They were likely nectar-feeding insects.
He walked deeper into the flowers, squeezing through a narrow path until he arrived at the two tombstones. He placed one bouquet of white flowers on the left and another on the right.
With the flowers covering the slope, it looked like a soft yellow and green blanket. A black dot moved slowly northward.
The Beierna Mountain had an average elevation of about three thousand meters and spanned across two counties. The climate ranged from continental humidity to southern Eurasian subtropical humidity, which was ideal for producing many rivers in Beiliu County. All kinds of typical high-altitude sightings such as forests of broadleaf, sclerophyll, conifers, and even meadows were on the mountain.
The site Cassius was looking for was not high, located just below five hundred meters in the Beierna Mountain. The climate may have changed over the last seventy years, but the site should still exist.
On the path shaded by greenery, the sunlight casted mottled shadows through the leaves. Occasionally, there was an intermittent mountain breeze in the forest that would gently brush away the summer heat.
Before his time-travel, Cassius had conducted a field survey in the real world and had someone draw a map for him to memorize. Since the mountain roads might change in the span of seventy years, the map had landmarks like waterfalls, rivers, and peaks marked instead of paths or signs. These kinds of natural features were unlikely to change much over seventy years.
Shhh, shhh…
Cassius’s eyes lit up when he heard the distant sound of water. He hurried over.
Although the forest was seldom visited and not maintained, Cassius was still able to move nimbly around the paths that were overgrown with weeds. Sunlight shone directly on Cassius's upper body as he climbed atop a massive tree trunk, creating an aura of blinding white light around him.
The water from a nearby cliff waterfall created a rainbow arc before plunging into the pool below, spraying mist everywhere. A few white water birds occasionally circled overhead.
Yaga Waterfall was one of the scenic spots in the Beierna Mountain that helped Jianmu Town’s tourism development in the later years. It looked almost the same as it did seventy years later.
Once he found Yaga Waterfall, everything else would fall into place. All he had to do now was follow the downhill stream to find the creek where the Lanxin Grass grew.
Cassius glanced at the waterfall and quickly mapped out a route. For the average human, walking without a path was somewhat dangerous. But Cassius fearlessly flipped straight down from the edge.
Thud.
A perfect landing from about five or six meters high.
Cassius continued along the clear stream, maneuvering through trees and wading through water. Halfway through, he encountered a brown-haired wild boar drinking by the stream. Solid as a young bull, it looked like a seven hundred pound wild boar king with its white tusks slightly yellowed at the tips.
The two stared at each other.
The wild boar king seemed to sense danger as he drank two more sips of water before retreating into the forest. Cassius relaxed a bit and continued along the stream.
Finally, at a bend in the creek, he found what he had been searching for—patches of Lanxin Grass!
He carefully walked over to a flat area by the creek. The soil was fertile and moist, with stones scattered on the ground. Poking out in between the stones' crevices were green patches of Lanxin Grass. A quick glance told him that the large patch of wild Lanxin Grass covered a considerable area, with more growing on Cassius's side of the creek.
"There's so much! There might even be enough to supply the Wind Elephant Sect for several years!" he remarked. He felt a little emotional.
Realistically, the Wind Elephant Sect would not harvest them to the point of extinction. These wild Lanxin Grasses were precious, yes, but what truly mattered was the land on which they grew on.
The climate, water source, terrain, and soil—all of that was important. With the right environment, the Wind Elephant Sect could mass cultivate it and have an endless flow of Lanxin Grass. Even the youth training camp's trainees could use the medicine!
With such abundant training resources, it would be hard for the sect not to thrive.
Cassius could already imagine how overjoyed the Wind Elephant Sect's leaders would be once they discovered this vast field of Lanxin Grass.
He plucked a leaf and scrutinized it under the sunlight. The leaf was shaped like a miniature peach and resembled a ginkgo leaf. It was green with a bluish hue, with veins shooting out in all directions. This small precious thing made up half the cost of the Wind Elephant Sect's training medicine.
Cassius also noticed that these wild Lanxin Grasses looked very healthy and full, indicating that it was likely more potent than usual. The Beierna Mountain was indeed perfect for growing Lanxin Grass, proving that Matthew’s data was accurate.
Once he checked his surroundings and found no signs of human activity, Cassius didn’t hesitate to dig up several Lanxin Grass from their roots. By the time Cassius returned to Flower Road Village, night had set. Thankfully, there were some old flower pots littered around Li Wei's house that he could use to plant the Lanxin Grass.
After a quick dinner, Cassius fell into a deep sleep.
The first thing he did when he woke up early the next morning was check on and water the Lanxin Grass. Afterward, he scarfed down a tasteless breakfast consisting of the bread he had packed solely for sustenance.
When dawn finally broke, he headed into the mountains once again, a rusty machete in hand. He was going to mark the path since the last time he came, he hadn't had time. And if possible, he was also going to explore some other routes to the site as well. Ideally, he wanted a path leading directly from the mountain's base to the Lanxin Grass site.
Cassius spent the whole morning wandering and marking routes. During this time, he encountered a small wild boar that suddenly charged at him. With his rusty machete, he ended its pitiful life, securing his dinner for the night.
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