Chapter 91: Fat up

“Don't ask,” he said, having rented two rooms.

This move astonished even the inn's attendant.

He had prepared a double Heaven Rank room, but this gentleman rented two rooms.

What's going on, is he a true gentleman?

Or is he impotent?

But Li Qi ignored the attendant's surprised gaze; he paid for the rooms, told Shen Shuibi he was going out for a walk, and let Shen Shuibi do as she pleased, but warned her not to wander off.

The rabbit nodded like a chick pecking at rice, appearing very obedient.

Li Qi calmed himself, packed his belongings, carefully re-wrapped his saber in coarse cloth so it looked like a stick, and then left.

What was he going out for? To find opportunities to earn money, of course; he couldn't just sit around and do nothing.

Fattening up the old Dragon Steed wasn't a one or two-day affair; it would take at least half a month of good rest. Luckily, he didn't need to forge new horseshoes, otherwise, it would cost even more.

But there was no need; Dragon Steeds tread on clouds, so there isn't much wear and tear, nor do their hooves grow continuously like ordinary spirit horses, leading to illness.

A Dragon Steed's hooves are always fixed; they grow if they're too short and stop if they're too long, which is very convenient.

They are both called horses, but in reality, they seem to be completely different species.

Thinking about it, one is a horse, and the other is a half-Dragon.

Li Qi's mind was filled with these random thoughts as he walked through the streets of Snake Tail County, looking around, observing the situation of the entire Snake Tail County, and occasionally chatting with people to gather common knowledge he didn't know.

The air here was quite fresh and very humid.

Human settlements are always near water; Snake Tail County has a clear river flowing through it, which originates from the melted snow of White Snake Mountain.

Just as Li Prefecture relies on the Li River for its sustenance, White Snake Prefecture, the entire prefecture, relies on White Snake Mountain for its sustenance, after all, those who live by the mountains live off the mountains, and those who live by the water live off the water.

The melted snow from the mountain gives rise to countless winding rivers, forming a dense network of waterways that supply all natural things, and the very existence of White Snake Mountain itself is a Treasure Trove.

Unlike the barren mountains and forests of Li Prefecture, White Snake Mountain's existence, with its countless Heaven And Earth Treasures and extending mineral veins, makes White Snake Prefecture quite wealthy.

Moreover, this wealth is built upon a large number of adventurers.

Whether it's exploring mineral veins, collecting Heaven And Earth Treasures, or anything else, in short, they have to leave the city and go into the wilderness, where merchant caravans await in the city; they buy as much as you bring out.

After purchasing, they would take boats, follow the rivers to the Li River, and then transport them from the Li River to other places.

White Snake Mountain and the Li River perfectly form an ecological chain, supporting the livelihood of hundreds of millions of residents in two prefectures of Great Deer Kingdom.

However, unlike Li Prefecture, which relies on the Li River and can earn money by collecting taxes and farming in the city, in White Snake Prefecture, one must leave the city to earn money.

Li Prefecture has the Li River; as long as people cultivate grain outside the city and gather by the Li River, there will naturally be an abundance of resources, taxes, and livelihoods delivered to their doorstep. Water is the most gentle to humans; as long as you stay by its side, resources will flow down with the water.

But mountains are different; they are rich but also severe. They won't deliver resources like flowing water; you need to prepare your equipment and risk your life to gather them in the mountains yourself.

Because of this, the martial arts culture here is strong; many families have sabers, swords, and armor, and they often gather into groups to go into the mountains to earn money.

White Snake Mountain is like an inexhaustible Treasure Trove; if you run out of money, you go in and procure.

That's nonsense; a mountain range stretching for thousands of li, covering an area of perhaps several million square kilometers, is practically the size of a continent on Earth. It would be a miracle if it could ever be exhausted.

Snake Tail County has a small population, only a few hundred thousand, but Li Qi, just by walking and observing here, could feel the general atmosphere of the entire White Snake Prefecture.

There weren't as many Gangs as in Li Prefecture, but there were more “Mountain Collecting Teams” and “Martial Arts Schools.”

These were the most common organizations in Snake Tail County.

On the streets, people could often be seen practicing martial arts, and many places had arenas where everyone enjoyed sparring. Winners received thunderous applause, and losers were not discouraged, stepping down for the next opponent.

It seemed to be a game everyone played, where winning or losing wasn't important; what mattered was mutual improvement.

Li Qi could tell that most of these people were much stronger than the Gangs in Li Prefecture City. Many of them had Evil Qi and scars on their bodies, likely from years of wandering and fighting in the mountains, having killed many beasts and humans alike.

Also because of this, the forest development around White Snake Prefecture was quite high.

Li Qi realized that in White Snake Prefecture, it would be very difficult for him to ride his horse through the wilderness for many years without encountering a single ghost, as he did in Li Prefecture.

Riding the old Dragon Steed at full speed here, he would probably encounter a mountain collecting team every so often, seeing his exhaust.

“Here… it’s not suitable to be too ostentatious, otherwise, it’s easy to expose the Dragon Steed’s identity.” Li Qi shook his head, assessing the situation of White Snake Mountain, considering how he should proceed.

A tall spirit horse and a Dragon Steed are two different concepts.

Unless someone is as proficient in horse appraisal as Shen Shuibi, simply walking won't easily expose it. But if the old horse takes flight and runs, anyone with a bit of knowledge in this area can instantly recognize it as a Dragon Steed worth a thousand gold, which is hundreds of times the price of an ordinary spirit horse.

“But earning money is quite convenient. The martial arts culture is prevalent here, and many mountain collecting teams are recruiting people. However, those are ordinary mountain collecting teams; even their strongest members haven't reached the ‘Ranked’ level, and their pay is too low, a waste of time.” Li Qi walked down the street, analyzing how to earn some travel expenses to give the old Dragon Steed extra meals.

As a newcomer, he shouldn't expose his Invoker abilities, but earning money with his Ninth Rank martial Dao should be achievable.

After all, he had been wandering the streets all morning and hadn't seen a single Ninth Rank martial artist. The strongest person in those patrol teams was just a big-bearded strong man.

He had just finished tempering his skin, membranes, tendons, and bones, and had only just begun the stage of tempering his internal organs. Moreover, looking at his age, he was already forty or fifty, his Qi and blood were already declining, and he probably had no hope of reaching the Ninth Rank in this lifetime.

Reaching the ‘Ranked’ level, for ordinary people, is so difficult, so difficult that it's unattainable even if one dedicates their entire life to it.

In fact, it's not just reaching the ‘Ranked’ level; simply having access to a cultivation method that allows one to reach the ‘Ranked’ level already screens out ninety-nine percent of people.

This made Li Qi unable to help but once again lament his luck.

Therefore, he should grasp it even more firmly.

Li Qi continued walking down the street, listening to a group of people shouting.

But at this moment, someone hurried forward and proactively spoke to Li Qi, saying, “Brave warrior! Please stop!”

Upon hearing this, Li Qi turned his head.

He saw a merchant dressed in silk, who for some reason had called out to him.