Leisurely Traveler with Check-in System

Qi Shunyi’s tone was flat, as if stating a fact, "I will lead the team up, the cook and our deputy leader will prepare dinner down here for everyone, but there’s no requirement for everyone to go up. Those who want to go, gather here in ten minutes."

His words served as a gentle reminder.

Li Younan looked up and saw that the sky was indeed darker than before; the sun over the western hills was almost out of sight.

They knew the sky darkened quickly in the mountains.

He calculated: driving up now to the place where they could see the sea of clouds, there would be less than an hour of light left, and they’d definitely have to navigate in the dark on the way back.

Everyone looked at each other, hardly anyone hesitated.

"We’re already here."

"Let’s go up and take a look, and leave if it’s too difficult."

"Let’s go!"

In the sound of the engine starting again, there was a stubbornness of knowing time was tight but unwilling to miss out.

The car left the town’s flat roads and turned onto the narrower, steeper dirt path, climbing toward the hills shrouded in twilight.

The headlights had already been turned on, two beams piercing the increasing darkness ahead.

The trees by the roadside appeared in dark shadows as the headlights swept past.

Seeing the sea of clouds seemed less absolutely important at the moment; it felt more like a ritual that had to be attempted.

The wheels crushed over the gravel, the vehicle swaying slightly as they plunged into the mountain night’s darkness toward that unknown, anticipated sea of clouds.

The feeling at that moment was very clear: inside their tired bodies, a stubborn thought insisted—since you’ve come this far, with the mountain right in front of you, you must confirm even a vague outline yourself.

The town’s lights grew ever smaller behind them, the darkness and unknown ahead thickening.

This spontaneously decided mountain ascent was less about chasing the sea of clouds and more about an account of their own persistence.

The mountain night wind found its way through the cracks of the car windows, a bit cold, but Li Younan, gripping the steering wheel, kept a steady hand.

...

The car jolted along the gravel road for about half an hour, the light fading faster than expected.

The final steep slope, the headlights barely managed to cut through the dense darkness a few meters ahead, with towering, silent tree shadows on either side.

The parking area was a relatively flat dirt slope, and as soon as they turned off the engine and got out, the mountain wind penetrated their coats.

The world underfoot was completely swallowed by darkness, as if the earth had vanished.

Looking up, the night sky above was exceptionally clear, a few stars shining brightly.

Everyone switched on their headlamps, the beams cast downward, initially revealing nothing but emptiness.

Their eyes, adjusted to the darkness, struggled to discern.

Finally, far below, a scene began to emerge: it wasn’t the imagined vast sea of clouds at their level, but a gigantic misty lake sunken at the valley’s bottom.

It wasn’t still, gray-white mists slowly surging and flowing in the abyss, like the breath of a giant creature in slumber.

Occasionally, moonlight struggled to pierce through thin clouds, casting a few faint, silver-gray patches of light on the mist’s surface, flickering and shifting with the mist’s flow, startling them with the vastness and depth of this misty lake.

It was so distant from them, cold and mysterious, silently filling the entire valley.

The wind brushing across their faces carried a damp chill. Everyone watched in silence, someone murmured, "So this is where it is..."

The tone held the relief of a long journey finally reaching its end, mixed with deep reverence for this profound sight.

Having exerted great effort to ascend in the dark, what they saw wasn’t a nearby, magnificent panorama but a distant, flowing abyss of mist within the valley.

It wasn’t as shocking as they’d imagined, but it held a unique, breathtaking solitude.

Reality differed from expectations, yet wasn’t entirely without merit, just requiring a shift in perspective for acceptance.

Li Younan had brought along a video camera with better exposure, capturing the scene more impressively than a phone would.

He carefully recorded the scene before him and took several photos.

They lingered for about ten minutes, the cold now biting.

The descent required more caution, the headlights probing through the darkness slowly.

Returning to the campsite, the town was already pitch dark, only their camp glowed with a few headlamps and the light of a bonfire.

The sound of the creek was particularly loud at night.

The tension within them released, fatigue crashing down like a mountain.

Qi Shunyi and the team had prepared a very decent dinner; everyone gathered around the bonfire, warming up and eating, animatedly discussing the scene they’d just witnessed—some found it worthwhile, others thought the journey too arduous.

As they warmed by the fire, regaining much strength, their teammate Old Zhang approached the fire carrying a small plastic bag.

The firelight reflected his somewhat excited face.

"Hey, look at this," he lowered his voice with a hint of pride, opening the bag, "I was wandering in the forest while you guys were watching the clouds and found these!"

Inside the bag lay several mushrooms, not particularly unusual in shape. The caps were light brown, the stems stout, speckled with fresh earth.

"Wow, impressive, Old Zhang!"

"Are these edible?" a few others gathered around, asking eagerly.

Old Zhang chuckled confidently, "I know them! We have these on the mountains back home, we call them something like Qiaoba mushrooms. They’re great for soup! Purely wild, real good stuff!"

He carefully put the bag away, "I’ll add them to breakfast tomorrow, let everyone have a taste!"

Li Younan looked over, frowning slightly.