A mountain peak needs to be more than a thousand feet long to have the possibility of storing snow.
If you want that kind of snow that never melts all year round, it must be at least 1,800 feet high. However, there are many factors that affect mountain snow. In addition to the location of the mountains, there are also conditions such as windward and leeward conditions, which are not solely determined by height. For example, the well-known Snow Inkstone Valley also has a large area of unmelted snow, and the highest peak around it is only more than 700 feet. Therefore, the spiritual field is also very important.
Wanren Mountain is located in the extreme west and south of the country. It can be said to be the boundary of the continent. As the name suggests, Wanren Mountain is not a lonely peak named "Wanren", but tens of thousands of peaks stretching continuously to form a long mountain range. It is a natural barrier in the southwest of the country. To this day, perhaps no one has truly crossed this mountain range and gone to the other side of the mountain. But people know that if you cross the mountains and go south, you will come to Biluo Islands. The "Southern Country" back then - it is also called that now, but if you insist on naming it from the direction, it should be called "Southwestern Country". It is still the largest island there. People know this because it can be reached directly from the south coast of the mainland or the Zanglan Sea in the southwest. Today, the two countries still have frequent trade exchanges. After the War of the Gods, many people fled to their home country, but today it is still prosperous, and this is indispensable for the help of their home country.
But it is said that the people there... still seem to be prejudiced against Kanna-kun's life experience. Who knows, it's not important, this shouldn't be something Xue Miyin and the others should care about.
Let’s go back to Wanren Mountain. The mountains here are long and wide, but the length is several times the width. Of course there is snow that never melts all year round, and there are even vast glaciers and tundra. There are hundreds of peaks covered in snow due to their height, as well as many more lower hills. Of course, it is called a short mountain here. If you look at it alone, it can be regarded as a peak, but it is relatively low. The structure of the mountains seals in the cold air, so many low peaks and hills also have snow. In these inaccessible places, the essence of the sun, moon, heaven and earth quietly gather here, forming a unique spiritual field. With a spiritual field, there are naturally spiritual veins, but the flow of spiritual power here is so intricate that even the six impermanent paths can easily get lost. Therefore, to this day, almost no one has set foot in Wanren Mountain. There are only a few scattered villages and towns on the plateau in the northeast of the mountain range.
From where they were now, those villages were no longer visible.
In order to take a shortcut, Miaomiao was of course the one who took Xue Miyin along. However, she is considered a newcomer here and only dares to take some confident paths. Before going up the mountain, they also bought cold clothes in the surrounding towns. Most of this money was earned by Xue Miyin from performing arts on the street. Miaomiao seemed to be much richer than her, and even told her that her current money was enough for the two of them even if they didn't need to play, play or sing. But Xue Miyin knew in her heart that a child, a monster - or a monster that looked like a child, where the money came from, I'm afraid the method was not so legitimate. She knew that the two people's previous lives were not the same, so naturally she could not morally condemn her old friend. After all, it was very hard for her just to survive. Therefore, all Xue Miyin can do is to make more clean money with his own hands to make up for his uneasy conscience.
These preparations are indeed necessary. They set out from three o'clock in the morning, passed through several spiritual veins, and no longer knew where they were. Looking around, Miyin could still see many high peaks connected together, almost the same as looking up from the flat ground. She didn't feel headache, fatigue, or difficulty breathing yet, and maybe it wasn't very high yet, but they had already passed many patches of snow. Perhaps because it is not high enough, the vegetation here is already quite barren. After crossing the meadow, it was afternoon and they rested in an open space. The physical exertion of climbing certainly made Miyin hungry. But she was the only one who needed to replenish food. Miaomiao just drank some water and said that was enough, leaving the rest to her. Should I say that he already has a monster physique?
Further up, the ground becomes even more barren, as terrifying as ringworm-infested skin. However, in many thick soil or cracks between rocks, there are still many kinds of flowers and plants growing tenaciously, most of which Miyin does not recognize. She knew most of the flowers, plants and trees on the plain, and they were all taught to her by Lord Shuangyue, but the plants here looked very different. Miaomiao's sharp eyes also saw a snow lotus, but this still did not allow them to determine the height.
"You said..." Miyin suddenly spoke while squatting next to Snow Lotus.
"What's the matter?"
"You said that the strange-shaped flowers and plants that grow here grow like this in order to adapt to the special environment here; or do you mean that only flowers and plants that grow like this can survive in such harsh conditions?"
Miaomiao looked at her with bewildered eyes.
"Why do you care about this all of a sudden? Are you too tired to be distracted by these messy things? Is it possible that after a while, you will be asking questions about where life comes from and where you will die?"
Don't tell me, she really wanted to ask.
"Be careful, there is other people's scent around here."
"Others?" Miyin was confused, "Who would come to this deep... deep mountain? It seems like no one has ever been to this kind of place. Could it be someone collecting herbs?"
"I don't know. The smell is too thin. It should have been left behind a long time ago. Now I can't even tell whether he is a human or a monster. But for now, it seems that there should be only one person. Don't worry, let's keep walking."
Xue Miyin didn't know what she meant by "worry" here. Are you afraid of meeting humans or monsters? Are you afraid of not meeting them, or are you afraid that you can meet them? If they were humans, they might be able to help them, but not necessarily. After all, Miaomiao was a monster, unless the other party didn't recognize her. On the contrary, it is hard to say. It is very easy for monsters to identify humans. So she wasn't sure whether all this was a good thing or a bad thing. Having been surrounded by monsters all the time, she felt tired of her own identity. Xue Miyin didn't know if those people traveling with Zhongli Hanshang would do this occasionally. Probably not? After all, there are more humans among them. So, will the fox demon be confused about his identity?
Forget it, what does this have to do with her. She just continued walking with Miaomiao. The sky was getting dark, and they walked steadily throughout the day. At some point, there was only a vast expanse of white around her, but it was not very cold yet. She didn't know why. Maybe the snow was maintained by spiritual power. Indeed, here, she was no longer as tired as she had been in the afternoon. But all this is still a little unreal. After all, just yesterday, she could smell the approaching scent of summer among the flowers. In just one day, everything seemed to be back in the depths of winter.
That brief warm winter.
"It's not particularly cold at the current altitude. Even though there's snow all around, it's not really cold yet." Miaomiao said as she walked, "While the temperature is still suitable, we can find a place to rest first. Wait until daybreak..."
Halfway through her words, her voice and steps suddenly stopped. Before Miyin could figure out what was going on, she saw Miaomiao suddenly striding forward, and she hurried to follow. she asked:
"What's wrong? What did you see?"
"There's light... Oh my God." Her tone was a little excited. "There's someone living here. It seems like a monster."
After confirming this, her pace quickened. Xue Miyin was a little frightened, so she just followed from a distance. This old friend of mine is really brave. Logically speaking, whether she is a human or a monster, shouldn't she be alert? However, if there were ordinary humans living here, Xue Miyin would not dare to let down his guard. In such complex terrain and difficult conditions, what kind of person can live peacefully here?
After walking on this relatively flat snow for a while, there were their long footprints behind them. Not long after, Xue Miyin saw a family as expected. It was a lonely little house, but it was white and very eye-catching in the dark night. The warm orange light shines from the white room, making people feel warm just by looking at it. At this point, Miaomiao's pace slowed down a bit, but Miyin increased her speed. Human beings have been yearning for fire since ancient times. It means warmth, it means safety. Whether it is respect for the simple sun, worship of the god of fire, or the incarnation of light and fire in other religious myths, there are always people who treat them with such piety. As for monsters originating from birds, animals, flowers, plants and trees, they are not so fond of them when faced with the light of fire. It seems that even the wonderful nature of human beings resists when approached.
When Miyin caught up with his friend, they both stopped. They watched quietly not far away, and no one came forward.
Scattered snow fell from the sky. Xue Miyin stretched out her hand, and a tiny snowflake fell on her fingertips, but she didn't feel cold, just as weightless as a wisp of dandelion. A small shadow walked out of the pure white hut. Miyin thought it was a guard dog, but after looking at it for a long time, he thought it looked like a cat and it was difficult to tell the difference. The little animal is also pure white. It was probably surprised by the falling snow and sprinted around the door twice. The snow fell on its body and almost melted into its hair.
At this time, Miyin felt the shamisen hanging on his body vibrate slightly.
A stream of spiritual power surged out from the shamisen and transformed into the shape of a calico cat. Amiao suddenly rushed out for some reason and headed towards the little animal rolling in front of the house. The little white beast sensed the danger, jumped up like a carp, and jumped back into the house with a swoosh, and the door closed tightly with a snap. Amiao didn't catch up after all, so she opened the door anxiously. Realizing that it was in vain, it whined melancholy. Cats have various sounds. When it feels aggrieved, it makes a "ouch" sound, which makes anyone who hears it feel extremely sad.
At this point, Xue Miyin and her companions approached the hut. When they arrived at the door, Amiao was still lingering, jumping up from time to time and trying to push the wooden door. Although the door is made of wood, it is also white and inconspicuous in this ice and snow.
"It might... want to play with the animal just now." Xue Miyin was not sure, "Well, at least that's the case based on previous experience. Moreover, this proves that the thing can see it."
"It's the breath of the fox." Miaomiao also looked at the small door.
Miyin reached out and picked up the restless Sanhua'er. She freed her hand and approached the closed door.
