Cultivating in a Bizarre World

Ren Qing found the scene around him had changed dramatically. He was now in a dilapidated courtyard.

All sorts of bizarre plants grew nearby, and even he himself had become a sapling.

The branches of the sapling that was Ren Qing were covered in leaves. Each leaf bore the pattern of Double Pupils, which would even blink from time to time.

He realized that it was probably because of his Double Pupils that he had accidentally fallen into the Disaster Mitigation Forbidden Area.

Ren Qing had heard Song Zongwu talk about forbidden areas of the Ghost Envoy Realm and above. Because they contained different Mysterious Objects, they manifested in all sorts of strange and bizarre forms.

’But how could it happen so inexplicably?’

He wasn’t in a hurry to escape. Instead, he fearlessly scanned his surroundings.

This courtyard was actually more like a medicinal garden, enclosed at its far end by walls that towered into the clouds.

Unfortunately, even when he stretched his branches as far as he could, his vision was still limited. He could only see the general situation within the garden.

Ren Qing discovered a total of thirteen types of herbs nearby, though he didn’t know what they represented.

Just as he was about to take a closer look, the forbidden area suddenly changed. The sky was shrouded in shadow.

Heavy footsteps approached from the distance, causing the entire medicinal garden to tremble. Cracks spread across the ground.

A medicine gatherer was striding over.

In Ren Qing’s eyes, the medicine gatherer was thousands of feet tall. Its body seemed to be composed of foul-smelling, rotten sludge, and its facial features were all empty hollows.

Muddy water dripped from it with every step.

The herbs absorbed the muddy water and grew, their branches immediately sprouting fruits imprinted with distorted human faces.

The medicine gatherer bent down, plucked the ripe fruits, and placed them in the basket on its back. Then, it skillfully harvested the rest of the fruits.

After losing their fruit, the herbs quickly withered, turning back into seeds in a matter of moments.

Ren Qing was utterly astonished. He noticed that the seeds themselves had rootstalks connected to a rotting, fleshy corpse.

’The corpse is probably the Mysterious Object, forming a strange cycle within the forbidden area.’

’As for why the forbidden area looks like a medicinal garden, it might be related to the Magic Technique of the possessed Fireworker.’

’The core Mysterious Object might not even be a Disaster Relief Technique...’

The medicine gatherer noticed an extra herb in the garden and strode toward Ren Qing. But before it could get close, the herb vanished.

Ren Qing’s consciousness returned to his body.

He couldn’t help but gasp for air, hot tears streaming from his eyes.

Song Zongwu asked with a worried expression, "How could your Soul suddenly leave your body? Even for just a breath, it’s frightening enough."

"I don’t know either..."

Ren Qing shook his head as he came to his senses. It was like he had just woken from a Great Dream; he only vaguely remembered seemingly turning into a sapling.

Mu Yi spoke up. "Any forbidden area of the Ghost Envoy Realm or above is difficult to fathom. I once heard a senior Forbidden Guard talk about it."

"After he entered a forbidden area of the Yin Messenger Realm, he found himself surrounded by flesh and blood. It was a network of passages, and hurricanes would blow through from time to time."

"It turned out the forbidden area had formed a giant, neither-living-nor-dead corpse. He was actually inside the corpse’s complex network of meridians."

Song Zongwu helped Ren Qing up. "Let’s leave first. With the two Magic Techniques sealing it, we don’t have to worry about anyone stumbling into the forbidden area for now."

Ren Qing quickly regained his strength and followed the two of them back down the mountain the way they came.

Under Mu Yi’s Magic Technique, the vegetation gradually drew together, closing off the mountain path once more.

Ren Qing took the opportunity to ask why they had to excavate the mountainside to seal the forbidden area.

Song Zongwu didn’t answer directly, only saying that Ren Qing would understand once he saw the map.

By the time they reached the camp, it was already late at night without them realizing.

Screeches could still be heard from the distant mountain forest, but the beasts’ sense of danger kept them away from the camp.

Mu Yi nodded to Song Zongwu and Ren Qing, then walked toward a military tent.

She didn’t enter the tent to rest. Instead, numerous roots sprouted from her feet and burrowed into the ground, and her skin turned into bark and leaves.

Guo Qing, who was on watch, stood with his mouth agape. But remembering Wang Sheng’s recent warning, he quickly feigned composure and turned his head away.

"I don’t see anything, I don’t see anything..."

Ren Qing’s mouth twitched. ’Back at the Government Office, the Forbidden Guards would at least conceal their Magic Techniques. But after leaving Sanxiang City, they’re completely unrestrained.’

’Then again, it makes sense.’

’The areas outside the city are more dangerous, after all. If they intentionally hid their strength, they might not be able to react in time when a real emergency occurs.’

"Ren Qing, come with me."

Song Zongwu led Ren Qing into the karst cave. Both of them had night vision, so they didn’t need torches.

They passed through a wide tunnel. As they went deeper, the space grew narrower.

After several forks in the path, Ren Qing arrived at a stone cavern used as a way station. Inside were tools like iron pickaxes.

What surprised him most were the map routes carved into the stone wall.

Judging by the projected scale of the work on the map, the Forbidden Guards would have to excavate a good twenty to thirty percent of the mountain to form a complex tunnel network.

Ren Qing suddenly realized something and couldn’t help but ask Song Zongwu, "Elder Song, are you planning to destroy the entire mountain?!"

Song Zongwu smiled. "Only the part of the mountain near the forbidden area. We’ll make the rock collapse and bury the area underground. And this is just the first step."

Ren Qing understood immediately upon hearing this. Dealing with the forbidden area directly was too difficult, and if Forbidden Guards died inside, the situation would spiral completely out of control.

It was better to settle for the next best thing: making the problem smaller.

"Because of Song Rong, we’ll have to split off some Forbidden Guards to stand watch at the camp, so our progress will slow down."

Ren Qing said with some difficulty, "Tomorrow, we Government Constables will join the excavation of the cave, but..."

Song Zongwu clearly heard the concern in his voice. "What is it?"

"I suspect the other groups of Government Constables were attacked by beast packs and have already suffered heavy casualties. We might not have enough manpower."

"I sent some Forbidden Guards into the mountain forest to support the constables, but I don’t know if they’ll make it in time."

Song Zongwu sighed. "Once the situation here stabilizes, new Government Constables will arrive soon, led by Forbidden Guards."

Ren Qing knew that from the Forbidden Guards’ perspective, the death of Government Constables wasn’t part of their considerations.

Even Song Rong’s existence wasn’t a major concern. After all, even if he entered the Disaster Mitigation Forbidden Area, it would be of no consequence.

Using two Magic Techniques as a temporary measure outside the Disaster Mitigation Forbidden Area and dispatching one Forbidden Guard was already the limit. They couldn’t possibly spare any more manpower.

The most important thing now was to seal the Disaster Mitigation Forbidden Area as quickly as possible.

Ren Qing agreed and then returned to his military tent to rest.

He swallowed some pig eyes and Wolf Blood, cultivating by using the moonlight that seeped in from outside.

Although the efficiency was much slower than direct absorption, he could still feel the Werewolf Transformation gradually spreading to his waist.

After replenishing his mental energy through cultivation, Ren Qing took out a brush and paper and started sketching. He planned to design the wheelbarrow he remembered from construction sites in his past life.

The structure of a wheelbarrow was relatively simple. The tire was the only slightly troublesome part, but it shouldn’t be too difficult with some effort.

This way, transporting rock and soil would be much more convenient.

Ren Qing couldn’t help but sigh. ’Who would have thought that a Fireworker like me would end up doing a miner’s job, and even become a foreman to boot.’