Chapter 624: Searching for the Dragon Among the Terraced Fields
The group continued their ascent, climbing higher and higher, and signs of human habitation gradually began to appear in the mountains.
At first, it was just the occasional wooden cabin or thatched hut, either perched on mountaintops or hidden in forest clearings. According to Mr. Liu, most of these were dwellings of recluses living and cultivating in the mountains. Some were disillusioned talents who, having failed to find recognition in the world below, came to the mountains to escape society; some had grown weary of worldly life and came here to live a tranquil life akin to the one in the poem, “I pluck chrysanthemums by the eastern fence, And in quiet ease, glimpse the southern hills[1].” Others came for the rich spiritual energy and the natural marvels, seeking a place of seclusion to practice Daoism, Buddhism, or to pursue their own studies.
Some had more desperate reasons; they were landless and homeless in the lowlands, and were burdened by taxes or driven into hardship by other circumstances, such as having committed crimes like murder or arson. Thus, they had no choice but to hide deep within the uninhabited mountains.
There were also those who came simply because the area was well-known. All of Yunzhou knew this mountain was home to many recluses, and those recluses were said to possess great learning and talent. So some came just to borrow that fame and use it to elevate their own reputation.
With so many recluses, there was inevitably a mix of characters. Some were truly talented and learned; while some were mediocre and foolish, and there were even some with shady pasts. Their reasons for coming were as varied as their backgrounds.
Where there were huts, there were also fields.
At first, the fields were scattered, often found in front of or behind the dwellings. But the further they climbed, the more terraced fields they saw, gradually covering the steep mountainsides.
These mountains were truly vast and towering, yet aside from near-vertical cliffs, every cun that could be cultivated had been carved into farmland. The terraces stretched upward layer by layer, step by step. On gentler slopes, the terraces were broader; on steeper inclines, they were narrower. They looked like a staircase built for the gods leading to the mountain’s summit.
As Song You followed Mr. Liu upward at a slow pace, his body leaned forward with the incline of the trail.
Mr. Liu, not in great physical condition to begin with, especially struggled on these steep mountain paths. He would frequently stop after only a short distance, resting with his hands on his knees and panting for breath. Beads of sweat the size of peas dripped from his face onto the dirt trail. The long sword at his waist, originally just a decorative piece, now seemed like a burden. Thus, the others always stopped to wait for him.
Song You wasn’t in any hurry. Whenever this happened, he would simply stand up straight and take in the breathtaking scenery all around them. Meanwhile, the cat at his feet mimicked him almost exactly.
At some point, the terraced fields had become overwhelming in number, starting from scattered patches, to covering half a mountain, to cloaking entire peaks and every visible slope. Even the distant mountaintops no longer appeared smooth and rounded, but had become jagged like the teeth of a great saw that were shaped into stairs.