Chapter 2249 - 2246: Lake of Tears

Chapter 2249: Chapter 2246: Lake of Tears

In the corner of the "mountain terrain map," there is a red dot, labeled with three characters "Medicine King Mansion." And this red dot is situated above an elliptical marker, which means that this elliptical region lies on the path to the Medicine King Mansion.

Of course, viewing the map is simple, but Lin Tian knows that reality is far more complex than the drawing; who knows how many valleys a single line of undulations represents? How many mountain peaks?

Lin Tian closed his eyes, and the scene of gliding through the air reappeared in his mind, offering a bird’s-eye view from above.

Mountains, forests, water sources, along with their locations and features, emerged one by one, creating a realistic "mountain terrain map" painted in Lin Tian’s mind.

Only he possesses this ability, super vision, eidetic memory, replaying in the mind—this is how he demonstrated medicine refinement back in the day.

Yan Bei said to the pilot, only Yun Tian could quickly understand the hand-drawn mountain terrain map, but they didn’t know that Lin Tian had already imprinted the actual terrain into his mind during the high-altitude glide.

Lin Tian reopened his eyes, a faint smile gracing them, and as he superimposed the mind terrain map with the hand-drawn version, many previously incomprehensible lines now had real-world references.

Although he still couldn’t completely comprehend the entire map, Lin Tian had an overall direction; as long as he found the route, that was enough. As for the terrain beyond the route, who would bother with it?

"Master, you’re really something else, finding clues even like this." The Sword Spirit exaggeratedly remarked.

Lin Tian put away the terrain map, heading towards the elliptical marker. According to the map’s instructions, a few mountain peaks remained ahead before reaching the elliptical marker. Through valleys and forests, Lin Tian forged ahead swiftly.

Though surrounded by snowy landscapes, Lin Tian’s speed was not diminished. Here, nature preserves its primitive appearance—snowfields, mountains, desolate, even the foraging animals are seldom seen.

Walking through the mountains instills a sense of perfect silence, where the crunch of snow underfoot can be heard from afar.

"Master, what’s the point of living in such a place?" The Sword Spirit curiously remarked, naturally referring to the Medicine King Mansion.

Mountains, snowfields seem to maintain their appearance from ancient times, eternally unchanged with not a hint of modernity. Living here, pleasures aside, basic living wouldn’t be convenient; there are even dangers; when a snow avalanche occurs, and one may rest eternally with the mountains.

Lin Tian gazed up deep into the mountains, softly saying, "Perhaps, in their eyes, worldly matters are what truly seems tedious—from morning till night, every minute is not their own."

"However, in my view, whether it’s cultivation or secular life, each has its meaning; it’s merely different choices." Lin Tian did not regard cultivators as particularly noble.

In secular life, stories are depicted excitingly, even passed down through the ages.

In the tranquil snowy mountains, only the Sword Spirit could converse, thus the journey wasn’t entirely boring.

Passing through a valley, skirting half a mountainside, a taller peak emerged ahead, piercing the cloud sea, half on earth, half in the sky.

Lin Tian knew this was one of the several high peaks glimpsed from the helicopter; as the mountain terrain map indicated, the elliptical marker was on this mountain.

Before climbing, Lin Tian surveyed the surroundings, discovering no other Ancient Martial Artists; logically, they possessed martial skills, their pace unlikely to lag much.

Those moving swiftly should have already appeared, such as in Shen Lin, but Lin Tian hadn’t encountered anyone—this was somewhat peculiar. It was unlikely everyone fell into the ravines; one possibility remained—each person’s terrain map was different, leading to divergent paths to the Medicine King Mansion.

"It seems the Medicine King Mansion played a clever trick, separating everyone." The Sword Spirit, understanding Lin Tian’s thoughts, commented.

"Hopefully, Miss and Xuanxuan are safe." Lin Tian worried slightly; among the contestants, only Xiao Manxuan was an ordinary person; if not for her unique constitution, she might not withstand this climate.

Shaking his head, Lin Tian embarked on the climbing path. The mountain was higher and steeper; it began with forest, gradually becoming sparse before turning into short shrubs; finally, entering the snow line.

The snow line was gradual, not distinctly demarcated yet above it, the icy snow remained constant. Lin Tian stepped forth, half his body sunk into it.

Avoiding falling into icy pits, Lin Tian activated super vision so he could see the snow depth and whether there were footholds beneath.

With such an "enhancement," Lin Tian ascended the mountain with abandon, rapidly tracing a safe route upward; cloud mist began to gather around, seemingly nearing the Yun Hai.

Just as he considered entering the Yun Hai, faint sounds of water suddenly reached him; Lin Tian halted, looking towards the sound’s origin.

Altitude-wise, this counted as mid-mountain, and the sound emanated from the other side of the mountainside.

"I hear water, could it be..." Lin Tian’s heart was filled with joy.

"Master, could it be the Heavenly Pond you mentioned?" The Sword Spirit also exclaimed joyously.

Lin Tian didn’t respond but instead adjusted his path, circumnavigating the mountainside to the other side; the sound of water grew clearer, and the terrain gradually transitioned from steep to accommodating. ℯ

More miraculously, the layer of snow started thinning, eventually revealing soil and rocks; atop the rocks grew alpine moss, further ahead, lush grass carpets were dotted with unknown wildflowers.

A lake suddenly appeared at the horizon’s edge, surrounded by mountains on three sides; those mountains bore green vegetation. One side had a gap, and the lake water overflowed from the natural dam’s low point, easing out softly, flowing amidst the mountain stones, descending the mountain—this was the source of the sound.

The lake’s surface was calm, displaying various shades of emerald, reflecting the surrounding icy mountains, echoing the ancient and rugged nature of the mountains.

At this elevation within the mountains, aside from rocks and snow, there were no other green plants, much less any liquid water, yet here existed a lake with greenery—a jade gem in the midst of the snowy expanse.

Standing at a height, Lin Tian roughly examined the lake’s form, noting its resemblance to the map’s mark, though not a perfect oval, somewhat resembling an eye.

The greenery appeared like eyebrows, and the flowing lake water resembled tears—nature’s prowess was undeniable.

As Lin Tian advanced forward, his eyes suddenly widened because by the lakeside stood a person, accurately speaking, a little girl—not even taller than Yun Xiaotian; cloaked in white, with her back turned, her figure and appearance remained obscured.

Approaching further, Lin Tian found the little girl fishing; at that moment, the girl moved, turned around, and looked toward Lin Tian.

At last, Lin Tian saw her face—the slightly childish visage, smooth and fair skin, long eyelashes lightly curling upward, her eyes clear and innocent, brimming with spiritual energy, akin to the glacier lake waters behind her.