The Secret Way of Immortality

Early spring in May or June is the sowing season in Crane Mountain Town.

As long as you get close to the farmland, you can hear loud mountain songs. The farmers enjoy it, showing a prosperous and peaceful scene.

The farmland stretches as far as the eye can see. Crane Mountain Town becomes extremely deserted at this time, with only children and old people enjoying the shade of the trees.

A tea stall was set up near the official road, and the vendor shouted about tea, with a voice no less loud than the farmers, immediately attracting a dozen or so people.

The price of each bowl of tea is not expensive, all made with roasted barley.

The rich aroma spread out.

Li the Elder wiped his hands clean and slowly walked into the stall.

The small place had seven or eight long benches. The farmers sat on them, drinking tea and taking a break before going back to work.

Li the Elder greeted the farmers he knew, and couldn't help complaining.

"This damn weather is getting hotter and hotter. It was winter not long ago, but now there isn't even a breeze?"

A younger farmer, A Liang, chimed in, "Hey, as long as the Yu River doesn't dry up, the hotter it is, the faster the grain harvest will be."

"That's the truth."

Li the Elder remembered the white silver taels that the government brought to collect grain when the rice ears matured, and couldn't help but smile.

Crane Mountain Town has low tax rates, and the rice seeds are provided by the government every year. At most, you can earn enough silver to build a house and start a family if you work hard.

The group chatted while drinking tea, and the porcelain bowls were almost empty.

At this moment, a strange voice came from the corner: "Old man, during the cold winter months, did the weather warm up at all?"

Li the Elder looked surprised. He didn't know when a man had appeared in the corner, and it looked like he had been in the tea stall for a while.

He saw that the man was dressed as a Jianghu wanderer, so he didn't take it to heart.

In the past two years, more and more martial artists have been traveling around Xiangxiang, and镖men (Biao-men, armed escort) are often seen.

"No, I actually felt that winter was colder."

Ren Qing frowned after hearing this. Changes in the weather must indicate some kind of omen. Could it be related to the swamp?

Li the Elder noticed that Ren Qing had a black cloth on his arm, indicating a family bereavement. He wondered why he would travel so far, but he was tactful enough not to ask.

Ren Qing noticed the gazes of others and didn't try to hide the black cloth.

Chen passed away half a month ago due to exhaustion of her lifespan, and was finally buried in the backyard of the village.

He felt mixed emotions about this.

No matter how open-minded Ren Qing was, she was still his predecessor's mother, and even when she was dying, she was still instructing him on those trivial matters.

Ren Qing almost couldn't help but take out the Corpse Meal to extend Chen's life.

But in the end, he respected the old woman's wishes.

The people of this world take the death of their relatives very lightly, after all, the lifespan limit is there, and no one can live past fifty.

The relatives in the village did not cry and wail. They solemnly buried Chen next to Ren the Elder's grave.

Ren Qing observed mourning for seven days according to the rules, and then set off for the swamp.

One reason for going to the swamp was the lack of sand resources, and the other was that the Imprisoned Corpses Hall was in dire need of people.

The Water Gourd died, the Grand Dream Master advanced to the Yang God realm, and the Little Man in a Bottle stayed in the Stomach within a Stomach, causing the Head in a Jar, which was part of the same body, to be unable to leave.

The only Yin Messenger realm members of the Imprisoned Corpses Hall that could be dispatched were Song Zongwu and Li Tiangang.

Although there were several Ghost Envoy realm Imprisoned Corpses Hall members who had undergone three strange transformations, and might gradually advance to the Yin Messenger realm, distant water could not quench immediate thirst.

Ren Qing originally still wanted to continue developing secretly, but he suddenly and unexpectedly discovered the Ghost Market. Except for the Grand Dream Forging, the transactions in the other shops no longer required lifespan.

This situation indicated that after the Grand Dream Master reached the Yang God realm, the lifespan extension of the Dream Butterfly Art might no longer be effective.

Ren Qing was distracted while chatting with Boss Liu, and took a sip of tea to calm his nerves.

Logically speaking, it was indeed a bit difficult for the Grand Dream Master, a Yang God realm expert, to manage the Ghost Market every day. Perhaps...

Ren Qing prepared to find an opportunity to obtain the Dream Butterfly Art, and then use it to control the Ghost Market.

So after checking the tasks posted on the notice board, he resolutely accepted it.

The task only said to head north of Crane Mountain Town.

Now that there was still plenty of time, Ren Qing decided to first find out if there were any abnormalities nearby before setting off.

The two became more and more congenial, and Li the Elder became more and more talkative.

"By the way, what is your name, young hero?"

"My surname is Ren, and my given name is Qing."

A Liang came over and interjected, "Brother Ren Qing, you have such broad knowledge, you must have been to many places."

Ren Qing didn't mind the sweat on the farmer's body, and readily filled A Liang's tea: "It's okay, mainly around the Three Xiang City."

A Liang showed envy on his face, and then asked: "Recently, the Yu River has risen a lot for no reason. Old Li always says it's the Dragon King plowing the soil. What do you think, Brother Ren Qing?"

Ren Qing paused for a few breaths before answering: "It is indeed possible. Small rivers and lakes are prone to Dragon Kings."

Li the Elder said with a smile: "I knew it."

"It hasn't rained for more than half a month, but the water level has been rising, and it's so turbid. It must be the Dragon King plowing the soil."

Ren Qing didn't pay attention at first, only thinking that it was because of the sandification at the source of the Yu River.

After all, the Yu River is connected in all directions, and a certain place upstream might be connected to the swamp.

But he learned from the two's chat that the Yu River is actually a stagnant river, with no distinction between upstream and downstream. Before, the river water was crystal clear.

Ren Qing couldn't help but frown.

Perhaps it's because of an underground river?

If there is an underground river near Crane Mountain Town that leads to the swamp, then he must remind the Imprisoned Corpses Hall to be careful.

After resting for a while, the farmers went to the fields to sow seeds, and the vendors also had to move their positions to attract business.

Ren Qing walked towards the so-called Yu River.

If the Yu River affects the environment of Crane Mountain Town, it may cause a sharp decline in the grain harvest in Xiangxiang.

Xiangxiang is mostly hilly, and Crane Mountain is one of the few places suitable for large-scale sowing. If you want to find another area, the Imprisoned Corpses Hall will have to move mountains and rivers, which is too much trouble.

The sound of water was like a waterfall.

Ren Qing came to the main stream of the Yu River, which was several miles away from the town.

The scale of the Yu River was not small at all, and the waves were constantly washing the riverbed.

The river water was slightly yellow, and Ren Qing couldn't help but reach out to touch it, and found that it was obviously mixed with gravel, indicating that sandification had definitely occurred.

There were also boatmen paddling wooden oars in the center of the Yu River. He noticed Ren Qing on the shore, only thinking that he wanted to take a boat.

The boatman controlled the boat towards the shore.

But just as he got closer and wanted to call out to ask, Ren Qing suddenly jumped into the turbulent Yu River and disappeared.

"Living to see a ghost in broad daylight..."

The boatman was startled and was immediately in a dilemma.

The river water showed no sign of ripples, and it was very likely that this person was washed away somewhere. His behavior was really like seeking death.

While the boatman's thoughts were racing, a huge black shadow of about ten meters covered the river surface.

"Dragon King... Lord?!"

The black shadow sank into the water, and the fish tail swayed as it swam upstream quickly.

Ren Qing's Kun form was like a fish in water, and he could feel the water dragging him forward, and the speed gradually became faster and faster.

However, there were fewer fish in the river, and the aquatic plants were scattered, which led to the residents of Crane Mountain Town not having the habit of fishing.

He came to the most turbulent part of the water.

With the help of Kunpeng's perception, Ren Qing quickly locked onto the source at the bottom of the water, but strangely, the river water seemed to appear out of thin air.

The fins swayed and swam towards the target.

But what was revealed in front of him was not an underground river entrance, but just messy aquatic plants, and the river water gushed out from them.

The double pupils scanned, and it was really too ordinary.

Ren Qing became vigilant and stretched out the Dragon Snake Spine to push aside the aquatic plants.

What came into view was actually a few large rocks, and the water flooded in the gaps, giving a very inexplicable feeling.

Ren Qing甩动 (shuai dong - wielded) the snake spine, tied the rocks and moved them away little by little.

The riverbed was exposed in front of him.

After seeing the object in the crevice, his pupils shrank suddenly.

The source was actually a section of little finger, with flesh and blood remaining on the white bone, and the bone was pale and tinged with light green.

Three dream seeds appeared on Ren Qing's forehead at the same time.

The Yu River in his vision became detailed, and he could even detect a few water insects attached to the stone wall.

Ren Qing carefully observed the finger bone, and his expression became more and more solemn.

The finger bone was melting.

Melting at an extremely slow speed.

Every grain of bone powder, like micro-dust, would form a turbulent water flow mixed with gravel. Just this finger bone could increase the water volume of the Yu River several times.

This is also the reason why the water level has risen even though it has not rained for a long time.

But the finger bone is not a strange object, nor is it a magic weapon.

How could such a strange phenomenon form?

While Ren Qing was in a daze, the strange object of the Kunpeng Art began to erode his body because he had maintained the Kun form for a long time.

He imprisoned the strange object in the prison in his abdomen, and then used the Dragon Snake Spine to tie up the finger bone, and then took the finger bone to swim to the surface of the water.

When the finger bone was exposed to the water surface, it no longer continued to melt, and the Yu River immediately became calm, sparkling in the sunlight.

The gravel gradually sank to the bottom, and it would return to its original crystal clear state in a moment.

Ren Qing carefully looked at the finger bone.

The time of death was a month ago, it should be a woman, and the green bone probably cultivated the technique of controlling plants.

"Lu Xiaoyu? No, the finger bone's alienation is relatively minor."

He took out a tenon feather to contact Li Tiangang, and then swam towards the boatman he had met before.

The boatman stared straight at the suddenly calmed water surface, looking a little at a loss. Could it be that the man just now was really the Yu River Dragon King?

"Boatman, let me ask you a question."

Ren Qing's voice suddenly rang out, scaring him so much that he almost fell into the water.

"Y-you say..."

The boatman said respectfully.

He found that Ren Qing was showing half of his body on the water surface, and there were still traces of alienation on his face, which further strengthened his judgment that he was right.

"Half a month ago, did anyone with strange behavior pass by the river?"

"..."

The boatman pondered for a long time, and then said hesitantly: "There was indeed one, but it was too late at the time to see clearly. The other person seemed to be wearing green clothes."

"I see, thank you."

Ren Qing plunged into the water, not paying attention to the boatman bowing and kowtowing.

The green clothes should be that the boatman couldn't see clearly. In fact, the Imprisoned Corpses Hall member lost control of his spells and wrapped his whole body in plants.

But if the corpse turns into water when it encounters water, if this person's bones are all over the vicinity of Crane Mountain Town, once it rains...

Ren Qing looked at the clouds gradually gathering in the sky and shook his head with a wry smile.

This time it's a big trouble.