The last time Meng Zhang was summoned by Twin Success Valley, he had a chance encounter with Forest Mountain School's Sect Master Xu Chengxian. Though it was their first meeting, they had a pleasant conversation. Later, when Meng Zhang discovered the nest of sand monsters, Forest Mountain School was the first to come to their aid.
Now, Forest Mountain School has specially sent an invitation, and Meng Zhang naturally wants to go in person. He is also very interested in the dharma meeting held by the Foundation Building stage cultivators. As a guest, he must prepare a generous gift.
Meng Zhang entrusted this matter to Li Xuan. With Li Xuan's rich experience, he could definitely prepare a gift suitable for Meng Zhang's identity. After giving the task to Li Xuan, Meng Zhang continued his cultivation. There was still a month before the dharma meeting, so there was no need to rush.
In his previous experiences, Meng Zhang had used Earth Escape Spells several times. In the desert, the Earth Escape Spell was a very practical spell. Now that his Cultivation Base had reached the Refining Qi stage, he was qualified to delve into escape techniques. Instead of immediately practicing the secret methods recorded in the "Sun-Moon Wheel Turning Sutra," Meng Zhang chose to first cultivate the Earth Escape Spell.
Although he did not possess an affinity for the Earth element nor had he practiced any Earth attribute techniques, Meng Zhang had never thought about reaching the highest realm in the Earth Escape Spell. As long as the spell was effective enough, it sufficed.
Li Xuan took on the task of preparing the gift and put in a lot of effort. He purchased several items, among which the most precious were a set of spiritual shell chess pieces from Forest Spring Watch. These pieces were crafted from the shells of spiritual shells unique to Forest Spring Watch and were exquisitely polished. They felt smooth and emitted a faint spiritual aura, as if moistened by water vapor.
Being neighbors to Twin Success Valley, Forest Spring Watch could stand up to their dominance, indicating that they had their own reserves and strength. In the location of their mountain gate, besides the dense forest and tall mountains, a clear spring flowed down, forming a stream in the mountains.
For cultivators in the Cultivation World, when refining tools, they often required a crucial step of quenching. The method and materials used for quenching were a secret of each tool refiner. The water from the spring at the top of Forest Spring Watch's mountain was a unique water used for quenching.
Large sects like Earthfire Sect had long been ordering the clear spring water from Forest Spring Watch. In the stream formed by the clear spring, a special kind of spirit fish called Grass Spring Spirit Fish lived. The flesh of the fish was delicious, and its meat contained gentle spiritual energy, which had a nourishing effect on the meridians. When cooked carefully by the skilled chefs of Forest Spring Watch, the fish not only had a unique flavor but also maximized its nourishing effects.
These Grass Spring Spirit Fish could only survive in the spring water of Forest Spring Watch and were challenging to raise elsewhere.
At the source of the clear spring at Forest Spring Watch, there were also many special spiritual shells. The pearls produced by these spiritual shells had various uses. Especially the pearls formed by spiritual shells aged over a hundred years had wonderful effects in assisting Foundation Building.
Though these pearls' effects were far from comparable to Foundation Building Pills or Twin Success Valley's Lesser Foundation Building Pills, any spiritual item that could assist in Foundation Building would cause a commotion in the Cultivation World.
The Lingquan Sect had brought considerable income to Forest Spring Watch through Singing Sand City's unique taverns and restaurants. With a stable financial source, Forest Spring Watch was able to maintain several Foundation Building stage cultivators in each generation. Although their number was still less than half of Twin Success Valley's, Forest Spring Watch possessed the ability to make Twin Success Valley wary.
Li Xuan, who was well-informed, had learned that the Elder Lin Shenpo of Forest Mountain School was deeply fascinated by the Dao of chess, so he meticulously chose this gift.
After Li Xuan prepared the gift, they waited for half a month until the time for Forest Mountain School's dharma meeting drew near. Meng Zhang brought Li Xuan and headed directly to Forest Mountain School.
Forest Mountain School was located more than six hundred miles north of Taiyi Sect. On normal occasions, Meng Zhang had rarely gone in this direction.
Meng Zhang and Li Xuan rode their Wind Chasing Horses and set off early in the morning. The journey was safe and uneventful.
In the afternoon, they finally arrived near Forest Mountain School. As they got closer to the school, the terrain began to change. They first encountered various desolate and rugged terrains, followed by continuous small hills covered in green. Occasional glimpses of green could be seen among the hills.
The closer they got to Forest Mountain School, the more pronounced the greenery became, and the vegetation became denser. After passing through a hilly area, a large green mountain came into view.
In the Endless Sea of Sand, encountering such a green mountain was a rare sight. Just gazing at it made one feel refreshed and at ease. This mountain was Forest Mountain School's Lin Mountain.
Seeing the forest covering the mountains, it was easy to understand the origin of its name.
At the foot of Lin Mountain were numerous oases of different sizes, where countless mortals lived. These mortals formed the important foundation of Forest Mountain School, and the quantity of mortals alone could roughly indicate the potential of Forest Mountain School.
On top of Lin Mountain flowed a Second Rank middle-grade spirit vein, while the oases below were home to several First Rank spirit veins. These First Rank spirit veins were guarded by Forest Mountain School's disciples and served as important outer bases for the school.
As soon as Meng Zhang and Li Xuan entered the outer area of Forest Mountain School and hadn't yet reached the foot of Lin Mountain, they encountered patrolling disciples. These disciples were responsible for welcoming guests. After inquiring about Meng Zhang and Li Xuan's identities, the disciples warmly led them forward and sent a message back using a transmission talisman.
Throughout the journey, they passed by several oases in the outer area of Forest Mountain School. The thriving lives of the mortals in the oases impressed Meng Zhang.
The disciples they encountered along the way were disciplined and well-trained. Even though their Cultivation Bases varied, they didn't appear disordered. As a sect with over three hundred years of heritage, Forest Mountain School's ability to govern and educate their disciples had its own unique qualities.
As a relatively wealthy vassal sect under Twin Success Valley, Forest Mountain School's disciples didn't display extravagance or decadence. Meng Zhang carefully observed the disciplined disciples and, from their magic tools, could tell that Forest Mountain School was financially robust.
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