Castle of Black Iron

“Uncle, do you know where’s Naturesound Valley?”

“Naturesound Valley? I’ve not heard about this place!” The strong uncle took a look at Zhang Tie on the mountain path with a herbal medicine basket on his back. When he found that Zhang Tie didn’t look like a bad guy and was smiling at him, he had a good impression on Zhang Tie; therefore, he asked Zhang Tie impatiently, “Is the Naturesound Valley that you said in the Clouddragon Mountain Range?”

“Yes!” Zhang Tie replied while nodded his head.

“It must be not in the nearby. I’ve picked herbal medicines in this mountain for 60 years. I’m familiar with every place within hundreds of miles. However, I’ve not heard about Naturesound Valley at all!” The uncle then looked up at the sky. When he found the sun had been over the top of the mountain in the west, he warned Zhang Tie, “It’s too late. It would be too dangerous for you to enter the mountain alone. Those fierce beasts in the mountain could not be easily dealt with. The other day, someone saw a huge boa in the valley. It was about 17 m in length. That huge boa must have lived in the valley for long as its already covered with mosses. It could already cultivate battle skills. If commoners saw it, they would be scared to death. There’re many terrifying old things in the mountain, you’d better go down the mountain as soon as possible!”

“Thanks for suggesting, Uncle. Oh, is there any town nearby?”

“Besides Brilliantmoon City, the closest town is Plentifulgrains Town. You will get there in this way after crossing three mountains,” the uncle said as he pointed at a mountain peak in front of Zhang Tie, “But it’s too late now. I suggest you to not go there today. If you set off tomorrow, as you’re young, you can arrive there in four hours. Oh, if you want to ask about the location of Naturesound Valley, you can try your luck in Plentifulgrains Town. There’re many herbal medicine traders over there. Some herbal medicine traders have traveled many places and wandered in in Clouddragon Mountain Range all the year round. They might know that place!”

After leaving a few words to Zhang Tie, the uncle went down the hill vigorously. After revealing a bitter smile towards the mountain path, Zhang Tie watched the direction where Plentifulgrains Town was. Closely after that, he disappeared.

As Zhang Tie had just come out of Brilliantmoon City, of course, he didn’t want to go back anymore.

If that uncle saw Zhang Tie’s response, he might have been startled.

It was August 13th, the 3593rd year of Emperor NvWa’s Calendar. It had been 3 days since Zhang Tie left Dragon Emperor City. Over the past 3 days, Zhang Tie actually had not left Dragon Emperor Big Domain. Precisely, he was looking for Naturesound Valley in Clouddragon Mountain Range of Dragon Emperor Big Domain.

Of course, Zhang Tie was not traveling here; instead, he was here to look for the remaining ones of Yin-Yang Sect. Before leaving Motian Realm, he wanted to meet Ji Yuelan, Jiang Ruoxin and their masters Su Haimei and Ying Feiqiong for the last time and bid farewell to them in case of concern.

Previously, Zhang Tie asked those women of Yin-Yang Sect to wait for him back in Dragon Emperor City. Unexpectedly, they didn’t take his suggestion. When Zhang Tie finished his secluded cultivation in Dragon Emperor Pavilion, he found that none of these women were in Dragon Emperor City. Only Jiang Ruoxin came to Dragon Emperor Pavilion alone during the period when he was in secluded cultivation and left a message——Naturesound Valley, Clouddragon Mountain Range.

Zhang Tie realized that women couldn’t be judged in normal way again.

Clouddragon Mountain Range was the largest and longest mountain range in Dragon Emperor Big Domain. The entire mountain range lasted over 45,000 miles and had 8-9 branches. However, he couldn’t find a place called Naturesound Valley on the map.

This mountain range was vast which contained tens of thousands of hills and valleys. It was not easy for Zhang Tie to find Naturesound Valley in Clouddragone Mountain Range.

During the past three days, Zhang Tie had traveled tens of thousands of miles in Clouddragon Mountain Range and asked numerous people. However, he still didn’t know the location of Naturesound Valley.

The 4 hours’ foot walk for youths in the mouth of the uncle was only a few seconds’ trips for Zhang Tie. With a few flashes, it had crossed some mountain peaks and appeared on a path outside Plentifulgrains Town.

When he arrived there, Zhang Tie found that the entire Plentifulgrains Town was only a small village in the mountain. There was only one street in the village, on both sides of which were boites, herbal medicine shops and various stores. Beside that street, there was an open medicine market, which was close to an open patch of grassland. Some small airboats with symbols of herbal medicine shops parked there.

As the sun was going to set, many people were busy taking the medicines that they put under the sunshine into rooms. Some people were even carrying medicines into airboats.

As the big trading fair would come in 2 days, this medicines market in Clouddragon Mountain Range was very boisterous. The only street was bustling at this moment while being crowded with herbal medicine traders and herbal medicine collectors. The boites on both sides of the street were also flourishing.

Zhang Tie strode over there. When he saw many decent herbal medicine traders accessing to a boite, he thought for a short while before entering it.

It was supper time. It was very boisterous inside the boite. 80% of the tables had been occupied. Over 200 people were inside it.

“Sir, are you alone or having some friends with you?” Watching Zhang Tie coming in, a responsive waiter instantly came forward to greet him.

“I’m alone!”

“This way please…”

The waiter led Zhang Tie to a small table at a corner as he asked with a smile, “Sir, what do you want? Our medicated food is very famous…”

“Just give me 3 or 4 dishes that you’re good at!” Zhang Tie said as he threw two purple crystal coins to the waiter and added, “Here’s the payment. Keep the change!”

Two purple crystal coins was a large sum of money. It could even afford 10 people to have three meals in this store. Therefore, after taking the two purple crystal coins, the waiter nodded and bent over towards Zhang Tie with a brilliant smile, “Generous, generous, sir, you’re really generous!”

“Oh, I wanted to ask you about a place!”

As too many guests who always traveled across the country bragged here, the waiter must have known a lot of information from their mouths.

“Please go ahead.”

“Do you know Naturesound Valley in Clouddragon Mountain Range?”

The waiter scratched his head. After thinking about it for a short while seriously, he replied with a shameful smile, “Erm… erm, I’ve really not heard about it…”. The smart guy then put the two purple crystal coins back as he knew that he shouldn’t take such a great reward without a meritorious deed.

Zhang Tie then waved his hand as he said, “Take them. It’s okay. It’s yours!”

“Thank you, thank you!” The waiter took back the money again with a big smile as he added, “Sir, please wait for a second, I will arrange the cooks to cook you dishes right now…”

After a short while, the waiter had cupped a tray here with 6 dishes and 1 soup. All of them were delicacies, including meat and vegetables and a flagon of liquor.

“Here’s the wild plum liquor that we brewed ourselves. It tastes special. Please have a try…”

After taking the two purple crystal coins, the waiter courteously served Zhang Tie more than he needed.

“I’ve got one blue crystal coin…” Zhang Tie said with a smile as he took out a blue crystal coin and put it under the bowl of soup. Only the waiter could see it. “Before I finish this supper, if you can get the message about the location of Naturesound Valley, you will have this blue crystal coin…”

At the sight of that blue crystal coin, the waiter became stunned at once. A blue crystal coin was equal to 100 purple crystal coins. He might not be able to make so much money after working in this boite for a few years. He even didn’t have a chance to touch a blue crystal coin before. It was even greater than the total amount of money that a drug-dealer used to purchase goods. The tip that Zhang Tie paid him just now had already implied that Zhang Tie was not kidding. He didn’t care about it at all. It depended on whether the waiter could make it.

The waiter swallowed a mouthful of saliva as he gnashed his teeth and spoke to Zhang Tie, “Please enjoy it, sir, wait for a while…” He then hurriedly left there.

The waiter didn’t go to the kitchen; instead, he called the other two waiters and whispered to them.

The other two waiters took a look at Zhang Tie. Closely after that, one of them ran out of the boite. He didn’t come back until a few minutes later.

During this short period of time, when they served water, dishes or drinks for their guests at each table and in each room, all the waiters asked their guests with full respect, “Sir, you must have traveled a lot of places and seen the world. Do you know a place called Naturesound Valley in Clouddragon Mountain Range?”

Many guests didn’t know it. Some guests would even ask them, “Why do you ask about this?”

“Nothing, I’m betting with some people. If anyone knows the location of Naturesound Valley, he or she can enjoy 20% off with their friends…”

Watching such a scene, Zhang Tie faintly smiled as he lightly moved his chopsticks and drank. He just waited for the message from the waiter. On this occasion, the unrivaled battle force couldn’t even match a blue crystal coin…

At sunset, the boite was finally fully occupied as those drug dealers started to talk aloud.

Among those guests, one drug dealer who had just sat down with his friends suddenly spoke aloud, which could almost be heard by all the others in the boite.

“Our boss said a major event happened in Dragon Emperor City yesterday. The two elders of Dragon Emperor Immortal Palace Ying Gucheng and Hou Moyuan promoted to supreme-level immortal generals too…”