Chapter 180: Tiger’s Lair Mountain!
"Green Spirit Fruit?"
Ning Xian’s face showed some confusion. "Mr. Lin, isn’t this the Hundred Fragrance Fruit?"
Lin Mu smiled. "It’s just a different name."
The Green Spirit Fruit was a common spirit fruit in the Cultivation World. It was also an indispensable ingredient for refining the Ever Youth Pill.
Originally, Lin Mu thought that due to the scarcity of Spiritual Energy on Earth, the Green Spirit Fruit would be hard to find, so he had planned to use the Hundred Fragrance Fruit as a substitute. To his surprise, he had stumbled upon a genuine Green Spirit Fruit right here at the Hundred Herbs Hall.
This will save me a lot of time. As long as I collect one more herb, I’m very confident that I can concoct the Ever Youth Pill. And this final key ingredient grows alongside the Green Spirit Fruit; it has to be within a hundred meters of it.
At this thought, Lin Mu asked, "Do you know who sold this Green Spirit Fruit? Can you still contact them?"
Ning Xian replied, "I’ll have to ask."
A moment later, an apprentice from the Hundred Herbs Hall came over and explained anxiously, "This Hundred Fragrance Fruit was picked by an uncle from my hometown. I bought it because of its unique fragrance and calming effects."
The Hundred Fragrance Fruit wasn’t an overly precious herb, and the apprentice had only wanted to help his uncle, so he had purchased it for a few hundred yuan.
Now that Mr. Ning is asking about it, will he make me reimburse the cost? the apprentice wondered nervously.
Lin Mu chuckled. "Don’t be nervous. I just want to know if he has any more of this Hundred Fragrance Fruit."
The apprentice was startled and glanced at Ning Xian.
"I told you to speak, so speak," Ning Xian glared.
The apprentice hurriedly said, "Yes, my uncle mentioned he picked them from the mountains behind our home. He said there are quite a lot of them, but the mountains are steep and densely forested, and wild beasts often roam there, so he doesn’t dare venture too deep."
Lin Mu’s interest was piqued. "Could you help me contact your uncle and ask if he’d take me there?"
"This..."
The apprentice glanced at Mr. Lin, and then a stroke of inspiration hit him. "Yes, yes! I’ll contact my uncle right away."
He immediately made a phone call.
A few minutes later, the apprentice said excitedly, "Mr. Lin, my uncle is in River City right now, but he’s heading home this afternoon. I’ve explained the situation, and he said that if it’s not too much trouble, he can take you into the mountains. It’s just..."
Lin Mu immediately cut in, "Don’t worry. Whether we find anything or not, I will give him a generous fee for his trouble."
"Yes, yes! I’ll tell my uncle right away."
The apprentice nodded excitedly and contacted his uncle again.
And so, they decided to head to the apprentice’s hometown immediately.
「Qinxian Town, Hengtai Township, Tiger Residence Village.」
This was a small village under the jurisdiction of River City with extremely inconvenient transportation. The winding journey took almost five hours. Huang Laoshi was a native of Tiger Residence Village. Having been born and raised here, he knew the area like the back of his hand.
"This... Sir, don’t look down on us for being poor. In the past, this was one of the biggest and most renowned villages in River City, and it produced a lot of famous people," Huang Laoshi began, his teeth stained yellow and trouser legs caked in mud. He took a long drag from his rustic tobacco pipe as he spoke. "The most famous was General Huang Weihu, from over two hundred years ago. He was an invincible military leader. After he died in battle, he was buried in the mountains behind Tiger Residence Village."
Pointing to a large mountain ahead, Huang Laoshi continued, "In recent years, quite a few people like you have come to the mountains to hunt for treasure. They say General Huang Weihu acquired a valuable artifact that was buried with him."
"How could that be?" Huang Laoshi chuckled, a mix of rustic simplicity and shrewdness in his expression. "If that were true, he would have offered it to the Emperor long ago. Why would it be buried with him? Those treasure hunters never found anything. Instead, many of them were eaten by the monsters in the mountains."
Lin Mu surveyed the formidable Tiger’s Lair Mountain before him. It was steep and menacing, like a mighty tiger crouching in wait, faintly emanating an invisible, commanding presence.
Lin Mu narrowed his eyes. "You said there are monsters in these mountains?"
A flicker of fear appeared in Huang Laoshi’s eyes. He smacked his lips and said, "That’s right. This Tiger’s Lair Mountain is tall, densely forested, and has treacherous cliffs. There are quite a few monsters, you know."
Adopting an air of mystery, Huang Laoshi leaned in. "I’ve heard the old folks in the village say that these monsters are the Tomb-guarding Divine Beasts of General Huang Weihu. They say if anyone dares to disrespect the General in the mountains, the Divine Beasts will come out and eat them."
Lin Mu laughed. "Rumors aren’t always true."
Huang Laoshi’s expression changed drastically. He frantically waved his hands. "You can’t say things like that!"
He glanced around nervously, terrified that the so-called divine beasts might be listening.
Lin Mu just smiled, unconcerned.
"Let’s go. Into the mountain."
He took the lead, heading towards Tiger’s Lair Mountain. "Don’t worry," Lin Mu added, wanting to put Huang Laoshi’s mind at ease. "You’ll get the full reward I promised. If we run into danger, you can turn back."
"That’s great! That’s really great!" Huang Laoshi chuckled, his spirits lifted, and he scurried to the front to lead the way.
As they walked, Huang Laoshi kept up a running commentary. "That Hundred Fragrance Fruit may not be a precious herb, but the ones you find elsewhere are all artificially cultivated. They’re nothing compared to the wild ones from our Tiger’s Lair Mountain," he said with a smile. "It’s just that the place where they grow is a bit dangerous and often prowled by large beasts, so very few people can get there."
At this, Huang Laoshi sighed. "If my wife wasn’t seriously ill and in constant need of medicine, I wouldn’t venture into the mountains to gather herbs and find the Hundred Fragrance Fruit either."
Lin Mu mostly just nodded, occasionally asking a question about the Hundred Fragrance Fruit. For the most part, Huang Laoshi was left talking to himself. After rambling for a while, he figured that the man beside him was either not very talkative or was too tired from the difficult mountain path to have the energy to speak. He didn’t dwell on it. In his mind, Lin Mu was just a typical city person out for a leisurely mountain hike, unaccustomed to hardship or mountain trails. Understanding this, Huang Laoshi consciously slowed his pace.
After walking for over an hour, he grew worried that Lin Mu couldn’t hold out much longer and was about to suggest a rest. He wasn’t tired himself, but he was concerned that if he went too fast for Lin Mu to keep up, the man might not say anything but would hold it against him and dock his pay. To his surprise, however, Lin Mu showed no signs of fatigue; his expression hadn’t changed in the slightest. His breathing was steady, his steps were even, and there wasn’t a single bead of sweat on his brow.
How strange! Huang Laoshi thought to himself, a competitive spark igniting within him. He, Huang Laoshi, went into these mountains at least twice a month and was well-used to the paths. He wasn’t about to be outdone by some city slicker.
They walked for another hour. By now, even Huang Laoshi, whose physical fitness was decent from years of farm work, was starting to feel the strain. But Lin Mu still looked as calm and composed as ever.
It’s infuriating! Could it be that this gentleman hikes so often he’s already developed a robust constitution?
Wiping the sweat from his forehead, Huang Laoshi pointed to a hollow in the distance. "We’ll be there after we cross two more mountains."
He glanced at the sky. It was past noon, and the sun was getting hot. "We should pick up the pace, so we can get back down before dark."