It was noon at this moment, and the sun was shining brightly.
In a bare mountain range, there are traces of many streams and springs that once flowed, but now, for unknown reasons, they have all dried up. From time to time, the bones of some animals can be seen nearby.
The most conspicuous thing is the dark, scar-like cave along the way. Judging from the traces of the cave entrance, it should be man-made and has been around for some time.
At this moment, a tall figure was slowly coming out of the depths of the mountains from far to near.
The person who came was wearing a black shirt, with bronze-colored skin, clear facial features, and shining eyes. His black hair was tied up casually, with the end splashing upward like a black torrent, plus a cross on his back.
The pair of knives and sticks, as well as the chain stones randomly surrounding the waist, give people a wild and wild feeling.
This person is none other than Shi Mu.
After killing Zhagu, he also tried to ask Parrot to look for traces of Jin Xiaochai and others. As a result, Jin Xiaochai and others seemed to have disappeared from the world, with no trace at all.
So he had to go on the road alone. Fortunately, with Zaku's detailed map to guide him, he didn't encounter any danger except for some attacks by ferocious beasts for more than a month.
He was on the road during the day, and if there was no moon at night, he would summon Yan Luo Lai and let him practice his martial arts with him. Now, he can use his skills against enemies in battle more and more freely.
Suddenly, he stopped at the top of a hill. Without his instructions, the parrot Cai'er flew out from his shoulder and went straight into the blue sky.
Speaking of which, according to the map, he had left the barbarian wilderness two days ago and entered the central continent area.
But along the way, it was still a barren and desolate place, not much different from the barbarian wasteland.
This was very different from the scene he imagined of the rich aura of heaven and earth in the middle of the continent. He almost thought there was something wrong with Zaku's map.
After a while, Shi Mu readjusted his direction and walked down the mountain in one step.
Three days later.
Shi Mu appeared outside a border town.
This town is built near the mountains and covers a large area. It is exactly the "Linshan Town" marked on the map.
Linshan Town is backed by a vast and steep mountain, hence its name.
There are many artificially dug water diversion ditches around the town, which must have been a fertile land with abundant water back then. However, these ditches seem to have dried up for a long time, and the land has begun to turn into desert, making it look extremely barren.
"Shitou, we can finally have a big meal!" Cai'er looked at the town in front of her with gleaming eyes and kept flapping her wings and shouting.
Shi Mu didn't say anything, and moved towards the town.
He soon discovered that most of the buildings in the town were extremely gorgeous, but what was strange was that the streets of this small town were sparsely populated, with no pedestrians, and even the restaurants along the street had few customers, making it look a bit desolate.
Just as he was surprised, a loud cry came from the front.
Shi Mu's heart moved and he walked forward quickly. After turning a corner, he immediately saw the source of the sound.
Four men in animal robes were shouting and cursing while using their spears to beat a dozen young and strong men with their hands tied, urging them to move forward.
Most of these young and strong men had a look of resentment on their faces, but they did not dare to say anything and just kept moving forward.
Around these people, dozens of women, children and the elderly were kneeling on the ground, begging and crying.
These four men in beast robes are all acquired warriors, three of them are in the middle stage of cultivation, and the leading man with triangular eyes has already reached the late stage.
From the cries and begging voices, Shi Mu vaguely heard some clues.
These warriors seem to have come to the town to arrest people for mining.
"To the messenger, please stay!"
At this moment, an old man with white hair, supported by a thin man, hurried past Shi Mu.
The triangular-eyed man's expression darkened, and he turned to look at the gray-haired old man with a look of impatience on his face.
"To the envoy, please show your respect and let them go. There are not many young men left in this town. If they leave again, the rest of the town, old and young, will probably starve to death." Man Man
The white-haired old mayor pointed at the tied young man and said in a pleading tone.
"Old man, we have already doubled the remuneration, and we will not miss you a penny. Now that the pressure from above is tight, I must take these people away!" said the man with triangular eyes.
"I don't want your money, give me my husband back!"
"Don't take my son away!"
…
The white-haired old mayor begged again, and the old and weak women around him were also crying.
The man with triangular eyes was unmoved at all. While pushing away the women hugging his thighs, he urged the others to hurry up and take them on their way.
"Sir, there is someone blocking the way!" Suddenly, one of the men in animal robes said.
The man with triangular eyes was startled, then raised his head and looked forward.
I saw a tall young man in black clothes with a parrot standing on his shoulders. At some point, he appeared on the road where several people were walking. Looking at him expressionlessly, it was Shi Mu.
The white-haired old mayor looked at Shi Mu in astonishment. The old, weak, sick and disabled who were kneeling on the ground, and the young man who was tied up with angry faces were also a little stunned.
"Your Excellency looks unfamiliar, are you from outside?" The man with triangular eyes looked at Shi Mu and asked tentatively.
"Let them go!" Shi Mu said nothing, but the parrot on his shoulder spoke.
"I advise you to ignore our Beast Mountain Sect's business and be careful not to get into trouble." The man with triangular eyes was startled, then his eye corners twitched and his tone was raised a bit.
"Get lost!" Shi Mu still didn't move and said:
"court death!"
The man with triangular eyes was furious. He shook the spear in his hand, and a burst of green light immediately lit up the gun. The head of the gun trembled rapidly. For a while, there was a loud hissing sound in the air, and a sharp wind blew in his face.
The cold green light at the head of the gun flashed strangely in the three-foot space, and soon formed a huge green wolf head. The man with triangular eyes pounced forward, and the wolf head bit towards Shi Mu.
The three men in animal robes behind him also rushed towards Shi Mu. The spears in their hands trembled, and soon three smaller wolf heads formed and also rushed towards Shi Mu.
The distance between the two was already close, but in the blink of an eye, four green wolf heads were in front of Shi Mu with a chill in their eyes.
When Shi Mu's gun tip was within a short distance of him, his lips moved slightly, and a piece of white light emitted from his hand, instantly condensing into a shell-like moon-white shield outside his body, with countless white runes flowing endlessly on the shield.
"Boom, boom, boom!" There was an explosion!
The four ruthless heads collided with the Yuebai shield, and it immediately exploded. Dozens of cold rays of light continuously hit the shield, and air waves scattered in all directions.
The moon-white shield was calm and calm.
Before the four of them could make any other move, Shi Mu opened his mouth and four streams of white energy shot out, hitting the chests of the four of them in a flash.
This is the latest use of the air blast technique that he has discovered along the way. After accumulating a certain amount of mana in his body, he can spray out several white air attacks in one breath.
As the realm of Yun Shen Technique increases, the power of Qi Explosion Technique also increases greatly. When a full blow is struck, it is no longer weaker than the full force strike of an ordinary acquired Dzogchen warrior.
However, Shi Mu obviously did not use all his strength.
"Bah, bah, bah!" A series of muffled sounds.
Because the three men in animal robes were too close, they were directly hit in the chest by the white air. A white air wave erupted and they flew backwards. Their clothes on their chests were completely destroyed and their flesh and blood were blurred.
The three people's faces were pale, their bodies were filled with energy and blood, and they were unable to get up for a while.
The man with triangular eyes swung the spear in his hand in time, white air exploded on the barrel of the gun, and a huge force surged forward, causing him to retreat three or four steps in a row, and then the impact of the air wave was resolved.
"Spiritual Warlock!" His expression changed.
As soon as he finished speaking, a ball of white air shot out from Shi Mu's hand and arrived in front of him in the blink of an eye.
Just when the man with triangular eyes tried to fend off the attack with the spear in his hand, the white energy suddenly flashed and turned into a white energy chain about ten feet long, which tied him up tightly.
With the current power of the Qi Ring Stake, even an ordinary early-stage innate warrior can be caught off guard and restrained for two or three breaths. It is naturally more than enough to deal with acquired warriors.
"Stone, well done! Beat them to death." The parrot flapped its wings and screamed.
Shi Mu rolled his eyes at it. Without looking at the four beast-robed warriors, he turned his head and said directly to the old and weak women:
"Let your family go and you can go home."
The young and strong men and their family members who had been stunned just now burst into tears of joy when they heard this. Many people dragged their families forward to kowtow to Shi Mu.
There was such a commotion that Shi Mu was at a loss for a moment.
At this moment, the energy chain on the man with triangular eyes not far away had disappeared, and he got up as soon as he turned over.
The other three beast-robed warriors also struggled to stand up and moved closer to the man with triangular eyes.
Many young men and women, old and weak, noticed this and immediately backed away from Shi Mu in horror.
"If you dare to interfere in our Beast Mountain Sect's affairs, don't leave if you have the guts!" The man with triangular eyes stared at Shi Mu and said.
"roll!"
Shi Mu frowned, but before he could speak, the parrot on his shoulder puffed out his chest and said arrogantly.
Seeing Shi Mu's cold gaze, the man with triangular eyes turned around and left in a hurry, followed by the three green-robed warriors.
Seeing that the other party had escaped, the rescued Qingzhuang and his family members expressed their thanks again and then gradually dispersed from Shi Mu's side.
"This old man is Liu Dou, the mayor of Linshan Town. May I ask the name of the righteous man? Thank you for your help today." The white-haired old mayor then stepped forward and saluted Shi Mu.
However, there was not much joy in his words, and he still seemed worried.
"I'm Shi Mu. I'm just passing through your town on a long journey." Shi Mu stretched out his hand and stopped the old mayor from saluting.
"Shi Yishi, I see that you are so busy with your travels, you must not have eaten yet. There happens to be a restaurant opened in the old man's home. If you don't mind, how about going with us?" the old mayor invited.
"Okay, great! Shitou, Cai'er is going to starve to death." The parrot flapped its wings and cheered.
Shi Mu flicked the parrot's head with his finger, then nodded to the old mayor and agreed.
The old mayor immediately turned around and walked in the direction he came from with the support of the thin man. Shi Mu walked side by side with him unhurriedly.