Refining the Mountains and Rivers

Chapter 677B - Shepherds

Chapter 677B - Shepherds

As the skies darkened, Qin Yu didn’t lie back down in bed and rest. Rather, he paced around in his room. With his current condition, physical activity was conducive to his recovery.

When night arrived he carefully pushed open the door. He spread out his arms and stood beneath the moon, basking in the moonlight and taking in a deep breath. The night was still like water and pure darkness floated above him. The large and round full moon hung peacefully in the air.

Compared to the moon from the Land of Divinity and Demons, this one was over several times larger. As the cool moonlight illuminated the earth, it seemed no different from daytime.

Qin Yu had no idea whether it was an illusion or not, but when he was bathed beneath this moonlight he felt an incomparably satisfied and comfortable feeling.

“Even the moon is so different. It seems that the turbulent spatial flow brought me to a world extremely far away from the Land of Divinity and Demons.”

As Qin Yu mumbled to himself, he revealed a thoughtful expression. He wondered if You Qi was able to suppress those powerhouses in the Demonic Path. As he was lost in thought, he suddenly paused and his ears pricked up. Indeed, he could hear the sounds of sobbing.

These sounds…seemed to be coming from A’li’s room.

Hearing the sobs of a young girl, Qin Yu couldn’t help but feel a bit agitated. After waiting a bit and seeing that she wasn’t going to stop soon, he began to approach.

Qin Yu was extremely cautious not to leave his shadow against the window. He didn’t want to be inexplicably given the status of a sexual harasser.

Hey, I am just curious as to why this ungrateful little girl was crying so sorrowfully in the night! Yes, it was like this!

“Father, mother, I miss you two so much…I vowed in front of your spirit tablets that I would definitely leave the mountains, become a cultivator and take revenge for you…but…I’m afraid I will never achieve this…

“I know that grandpa and grandma are good people and that is the only reason they would use the medicinal herbs I saved up to save others. But, those medicinal materials were everything I had prepared for my school expenses…I will be 18 this year. After I pass this age, even if I have more money I will never be able to apprentice myself to a master…

“Father, mother, your daughter was unfair to you…but I won’t give up. I will definitely figure out a way to become a disciple of an immortal sect…”

Outside the window, Qin Yu’s complexion stiffened. He never thought that the reason for this young girl’s attitude and actions were all because of him.

This made things especially awkward!

As he was lost in thought, he heard a sound behind him. Qin Yu turned around to see the old man beneath the moonlight. Strangely, he felt a little fearful and weak of heart.

The old man gestured with his hand and turned to leave. Qin Yu followed behind. They walked outside to the courtyard where the black-horned sheep were penned.

The old man was silent for some time. He added some water and fodder to the pen. Qin Yu looked on for a moment and started to help him.

“Don’t try helping. Your body hasn’t recovered so you can just watch.”

Qin Yu said, “I’m fine.”

The old man looked at Qin Yu, “You don’t need to feel guilty. When I took the medicinal herbs A’li saved up to rescue you, a part of it was due to my selfishness. The outside world isn’t good. Becoming a cultivator doesn’t necessarily mean she will have a happier life than if she stays in the mountains.”

There was great wisdom in these words. Qin Yu paused and said, “Yes, you aren’t wrong. But I heard A’li mention her parents…”

The old man’s eyes darkened. “That rascal boy didn’t listen to my advice back then and wanted to become a beast master, and that is the only reason he encountered disaster. This is also the reason I don’t want A’li to become a cultivator.”

After finishing filling the water and fodder, the old man waved his hand, “The night is late. Go to bed.”

Qin Yu nodded. Looking at the old man’s stiff waist, he could still feel a trace of sorrow and misery.

Perhaps the words he spoke tonight were true, but this elderly couple must inevitably feel guilt towards A’li.

Or perhaps he had said these words partly to comfort him.

“You want to become a cultivator?”

Qin Yu mumbled to himself and walked back to his room.

The next day, A’li got out of bed early. Although the young girl tried to conceal it, she couldn’t fully hide her reddened eyes.

Seeing Qin Yu sitting in the courtyard, she frowned and walked away without a single word. Loud cries soon filled the air as the herd of black-horned sheep was driven out into the mountains.

The granny waggled her fingers, hinting for Qin Yu not to care. He smiled and shook his head.

The old man started a bit later than usual. After he washed up and took a seat, the granny began to prepare a simple breakfast.

“Young fellow Qin, since your body is fine, sit down with us and eat.”

Qin Yu hummed out an agreement. He wanted to help the granny but was stopped by her. When he looked at her carrying over a bowl of porridge, he said, “My injuries are fine now. You don’t need to use any more precious medicinal herbs on me.”

The old man furrowed his eyebrows. He looked at him and said, “Okay. This is the last one so eat it all.”

Qin Yu smiled and nodded. After eating, the old man started to drink tea. The tea was made from crushed leaves and the flavor was quite good.

After drinking two cups, Qin Yu looked at the granny who was preparing the sheep fodder. He said, “I’ve more or less recovered so I want to find something to do. Old man, rest assured that I will try to help A’li split the work.” As he spoke he turned to the black-horned lambs. “I think they should leave the pen now.”

The old man laid down his teacup. “You don’t need to go home?”

Qin Yu shook his head, “My family isn’t here.”

It was unknown what the old man thought of, but he didn’t press the issue. After a long silence he nodded and said, “Alright, I still have a set of grazing equipment. How about you take some of the black-horned sheep out and give it a try.”

Qin Yu smiled and nodded in anticipation. “Very well. I’ll listen to you.”

He looked into the distance towards the endlessly sprawling mountain range. He narrowed his eyes, a bit of anticipation in his gaze.

With such rich heaven and earth spiritual strength, there should be many heavenly materials that were bred. He hoped he could obtain a harvest!

…

Great Blue Mountains was the name of the mountain range where the old man and his family lived. There was no special meaning behind this name. This mountain range went from east to west. Some mountain peaks were tall and steep and some were low and sloping. Because the steep peaks were so high, they blocked the water vapor that crossed over, leading to abundant rainfall. Thus, this region was covered with gentle brooks and rivers, giving rise to many green pastures that were suitable for herding.

Qin Yu was standing in a pasture. He wore a set of thick leather pants and vest and a white fur hat covered his head. When he held a long whip in his hand, he looked like a qualified veteran shepherd.

Taking in a deep breath, he felt the rich spiritual energy in the air. Then, he smiled and kicked the pig that was lying on the ground pretending to be dead. “Who would have thought that a wild pig actually possessed the ability to search for treasures like a trained mouse? Hurry up and get to work…don’t forget, you are now a beast raised through my blood. If anything happens to me, you won’t escape either.”

Big Pig sorrowfully howled. He accepted his fate and opened his eyes, racing into the mountain forest and submerging himself there.

Before coming out, the old man had warned him again and again that he must not leave the safety of the pasture region and enter the mountain wilderness. All sorts of formidable monster beasts dwelled there.

Although Qin Yu could move freely, his body was still weak and frail. Even if he knew that all sorts of treasures were growing in the mountain forests, he still didn’t have any ability to go and pick them up.

Luckily, he had a wild pig that he could use as he pleased. In the turbulent spatial flow, Big Pig had absorbed the blood of Qin Yu’s Ancient race body to survive. Inadvertently he had sighed a master-slave contract of the Ancient race with Qin Yu, becoming his blood-raised beast.

At the start, Big Pig had used every method at his disposal to kill Qin Yu, but now he had to think of every possible way to ensure that Qin Yu remained alive. This really was a huge joke that the heavens had made of him. No wonder Big Pig had a half-dead half-alive appearance in these past days.

The sun rose in the west. When the light began to darken, there was a loud rumbling sound from the edge of the pasture where it met the forest.