Chapter 18

Walking along the winding mountain path, Ding Qi neither hurried nor slowed his pace. This mountain path, trodden by the mountain dwellers who came to cut firewood and gather herbs over the years, was very difficult to navigate. The path was barely wide enough for two people to pass side by side, and the sides were overgrown with weeds. Thorny bushes would occasionally emerge from the forest, requiring extra caution while walking.

If it rained, the path would become muddy and impassable. Fortunately, it hadn't rained in the nearby Qixia Town for the past half month. Having grown up in the mountains, Ding Qi was accustomed to walking there and didn't find it too tiring.

He paid careful attention to his steps, avoiding the thorns on the path, while observing the forest on both sides of the mountain path, as if searching for something. Sometimes, he would leave the path, looking pleased as if he had discovered something, and head into the forest. However, after each search, when he returned from the forest, the joy on his face would always be replaced by disappointment.

"It seems impossible to find the phoenix tail grass near the mountain path." After returning from the forest with a disappointed look once again, Ding Qi glanced at the dense forest nearby and sighed.

This time, he started his search for the phoenix tail grass from the mountain path closest to the herb garden, which was the path he was currently on.

"Fortunately, I didn't have high hopes before coming. Not finding the phoenix tail grass is also normal," Ding Qi thought to himself.

Venturing deep into the forest was a dangerous affair. Inexperienced people would quickly get lost and might even die there, unable to find their way out. Even experienced mountain dwellers were reluctant to venture deep into the forest due to the unpredictable risks.

Most mountain dwellers, like Ding Qi, would only wander around the forest near the mountain path and wouldn't go deep into the forest.

The forest near the mountain path was the main area where mountain dwellers gathered herbs and cut firewood. The phoenix tail grass would also be found in this area.

Although the forest area along the mountain path was not small, the amount of phoenix tail grass it could produce was limited. Since the official notice was posted, the number of people coming to gather phoenix tail grass had increased significantly. Most of the phoenix tail grass that could be found had already been picked. Now, it was becoming increasingly difficult to find phoenix tail grass in the surrounding area.

Even though Ding Qi found it easier to search for phoenix tail grass compared to ordinary people, he still had no luck after a long day, which left him somewhat disappointed. He even began to doubt whether the phoenix tail grass in the surrounding area had been completely picked by the influx of herb gatherers since the notice was posted.

"Since I can't find the phoenix tail grass near the mountain path, I can only venture deeper into the forest and try my luck," Ding Qi said to himself, looking at the mountain path ahead, which was gradually becoming indistinct.

He had already ventured several miles deep into Qixia Mountain, and the signs of the mountain path were becoming less clear. With his rich experience in entering the mountains, Ding Qi knew that the path, trodden by people over the years, would soon disappear, and he would enter the remote depths of the forest.

Ding Qi, who had lived by the mountains since childhood and had years of experience in gathering herbs and cutting firewood, would not get lost in the deep forest like ordinary people. As long as he didn't venture too deep, the risks would not be too great.

With the idea of venturing deeper into the forest, Ding Qi's pace on the mountain path quickened. He no longer had any hope of finding the phoenix tail grass in the surrounding area.

Even so, whenever he saw a place that might grow phoenix tail grass, he would still rush over to check carefully.

After half an hour, the mountain path had become almost invisible. If one didn't look closely, it would be hard to notice the path's existence.

"Probably after a short while, the mountain path will completely disappear," Ding Qi mused, touching his nose as he looked back at the barely visible path.

Soon, his figure disappeared into the dense forest along the mountain path.

Half an hour later, Ding Qi was searching for something in a forest. The traces of the mountain path had already vanished without a trace a quarter of an hour ago, indicating that he had truly entered the depths of the forest.

Just a moment ago, Ding Qi had discovered a place where the phoenix tail grass might grow. Now, he was searching hard, hoping to find some.

After searching for a while in the forest, Ding Qi finally stood up, but his hands were empty, and he had not found any phoenix tail grass.

"Didn't expect to be wrong again. I thought this time I would have some luck," Ding Qi shook his head, feeling dejected.

Then, Ding Qi took off the small basket on his back. This basket was specifically bought from the town for this trip to gather herbs. It was light and convenient, designed by the town's craftsmen for those who went to gather herbs. It was perfect for holding phoenix tail grass, unlike the clumsy baskets he used at home for cutting firewood. Of course, it wasn't cheap, and Ding Qi had hesitated for a long time before finally taking out some money from his limited savings to buy it, frowning.

Placing the basket in front of him, Ding Qi reached inside. Soon, he took out a phoenix tail grass from the basket.

Looking at the phoenix tail grass in his hand, the slightly dejected expression on Ding Qi's face was instantly replaced by a joyful one.

"Although this time I came up empty-handed, today's luck wasn't too bad," Ding Qi said to himself with a smile.

This phoenix tail grass was picked by Ding Qi at the end of the mountain path. Due to the official notice, Ding Qi had already given up hope of finding phoenix tail grass in the forest near the mountain path. However, to his surprise, he found one at the end of the path.

For Ding Qi, this was a pleasant surprise, making him very happy. With this phoenix tail grass in hand, even if he couldn't find any more herbs today, it wouldn't be a wasted trip.

Moreover, Ding Qi believed that if he ventured deeper into the forest, he would still have a chance to find more.

Since he entered the forest, he had searched many places, but the only phoenix tail grass he had was the one he found by chance.

Ding Qi didn't pay much attention to this. He had already anticipated such a result.

Like the forest near the mountain path, the forest he was in now had probably been searched by many people. After all, it wasn't far from the mountain path, and there were many mountain dwellers who came to gather herbs nearby. The phoenix tail grass in the forest had likely been picked by the people who came before. This was why his search had been fruitless.

Ding Qi believed that if he ventured deeper into the forest, to places rarely searched by mountain dwellers, he would have a better chance of finding phoenix tail grass.

Thus, Ding Qi continued to search for phoenix tail grass while venturing deeper into the forest. Soon, he crossed the area frequently searched by mountain dwellers and entered deeper into the forest.

Half an hour later, Ding Qi stopped in a dense forest, his face showing surprise and confusion.

After crossing the area frequently visited by mountain dwellers, Ding Qi quickly found a phoenix tail grass, confirming his initial guess. This strengthened his resolve to search for phoenix tail grass deeper in the forest. To his surprise, shortly after finding another phoenix tail grass, he discovered yet another one.

Including the one he picked at the end of the mountain path, he now had three phoenix tail grasses in his basket. Finding three herbs in succession made Ding Qi extremely pleased. In his years of experience gathering phoenix tail grass, finding three herbs in a day was a rare occurrence, and he couldn't help but feel elated.

While feeling elated, Ding Qi was also puzzled.

During the two times he found the herbs, he noticed a strange phenomenon in his body. Ding Qi vaguely sensed that his internal true qi would become restless when he discovered the phoenix tail grass.

After cultivating true qi for two years, Ding Qi could indeed more easily find hidden phoenix tail grass, but it was more like an intuition, with no physical reaction, let alone the internal true qi becoming restless as it did now.

At first, Ding Qi thought it was just his imagination, but when he found the third phoenix tail grass, he again felt the internal true qi become restless.

Ding Qi recalled the feeling when he first picked the phoenix tail grass at the end of the mountain path and realized that a similar situation had occurred then.

After experiencing this several times, Ding Qi finally began to pay attention to this phenomenon.

"Is it that feeling again?" Ding Qi carefully sensed the restlessness of his internal true qi and looked at a patch of weeds in the dense forest.

Now, the feeling of internal true qi restlessness had appeared again.

"Could it be that I can find another phoenix tail grass?"

With this thought, Ding Qi walked towards the patch of weeds that caused the internal true qi to become restless.

After a thorough search, he indeed found a phoenix tail grass in the weeds.

This time, Ding Qi was finally convinced that whenever phoenix tail grass grew nearby, his internal true qi would become restless, and it wasn't just his imagination.

Looking at the newly dug phoenix tail grass in his hand, Ding Qi was pleased with this new discovery but also puzzled: "What is this all about?"

The discovery today was crucial for his future plans to gather phoenix tail grass, and Ding Qi took it very seriously. Although he knew it was related to his internal true qi, he couldn't figure out the specifics.

Standing in the forest, recalling the feeling of internal true qi restlessness, Ding Qi seemed to have a realization.

"Could it be...?" Ding Qi frowned, thinking to himself.

"Is it as I think? If I spend a few days verifying, I might find the answer. Now..."

Thinking about this, Ding Qi scanned the forest and looked at the sky.

It was already late in the day, approaching evening.

In another half an hour, it would be completely dark.

The night in the mountains was much more dangerous than the day. Apart from the wild animals that often appeared at night, the lack of visibility made it easy to fall and possibly lose one's life.

Ding Qi, who had grown up in the mountains, understood this very well. Seeing that it was already late, he knew it wasn't the time to ponder his confusion. He needed to get down the mountain before it got completely dark to avoid any danger.

Following the marks he left when entering the mountain, Ding Qi quickly arrived at the forest near the mountain path and soon saw the path. After all, he had spent most of the day near the mountain path and hadn't ventured too deep into the forest.

However, Ding Qi knew that when he came to gather herbs in the future, he would directly cross the forest near the mountain path and wouldn't linger there for long. He would go directly to the depths of the forest and venture deeper over time. By then, he wouldn't return to the area near the mountain path so quickly.