81 The End of the Martial Path
“Stone tomb… Weapons… Many books…”
Jiang Ming’s eyes suddenly showed interest.
Corpses were common in the mountains, but there were only a few graves. Even if there were, they were shallow graves that were casually dug by the villagers. He had not seen any stone tombs in the past three years.
“There are even some books. It seems that the owner of the tomb was someone important.”
The books in this world were not too expensive, but to be able to hide so many books in a tomb was not something an ordinary person could do.
“Let’s go and take a look!” Jiang Ming put the short blade on his waist and walked in the direction of the danger zone.
With his current strength, the danger zone was nothing to him. As long as he did not get close to the forbidden zone, there was no risk.
The fat tiger let out an excited cry when it saw that they were going out for a group activity. It immediately rushed over from nearby and carried Master Si into the depths of the forest.
At the same time, on the treetops in the surrounding forest, some birds quietly flew away and scattered in all directions. A few gray eagles soared into the sky above the forest, taking in the scene.
In the river, the fish swam in a frenzy, relaying what they had seen.
Although Jiang Ming was not invincible here, he was like a fish in water. He did not have to move carefully or hide his strength as a first-class martial artist. No matter where he went, there would be beasts to explore the way for him in advance. If there was any trouble, he could avoid it in advance.
He would also be able to know at once who had entered the forest.
However, in the past three years, the Cloudy Dream Mountain Forest had been unusually peaceful. Apart from the herb gatherers and explorers from various villages and towns, as well as the occasional martial artist, no one else visited.
“However, I heard that since the beginning of this year, the Liang family has sent more people to Great Cloud City and recruited many martial artists with a lot of money.”
Jiang Ming thought about it. “Although the Liang family didn’t find the treasures that the Shi family had pocketed, they probably had other things in their hands and were ready to explore the Cloudy Dream Mountain Forest.”
Jiang Ming did not have to go into hiding this time. The Liang family was not looking for the King of Medicine. The Liang family did not care about the herb gatherers in Peace Town. As long as they did not look for trouble, there should not be any trouble.
Moreover, Jiang Ming did not need to join the army. He just needed to stay in the town, remotely control the beasts in the mountains, and slowly do some research. When the opportunity presented itself, it would not be too late to make a decisive move.
“Aside from the Liang family, I heard that there are other unfamiliar forces that have secretly come to Great Cloud City.”
Jiang Ming’s eyes moved slightly. He was happy to see this scene.
The more chaotic the terrain was in the Cloudy Dream Mountain Forest, the greater the chance Jiang Ming would have to fish in troubled waters.
However, he did not know what the secret of the Cloudy Dream Mountain Forest was. Jiang Ming had not gotten any information about it until now.
“Could it be that someone is planning something big here?”
Such a thought flashed through Jiang Ming’s mind, but he immediately discarded it.
“No matter what, as long as you enter the mountain, you’ll be in my territory!”
After half an hour, Jiang Ming finally arrived at his destination.
This was a soft slope, and after the heavy rain in the mountains, the soil and stones slid off. A collapsed corner of the stone tomb was revealed.
Through the sunlight, he could see that the tomb was rather big.
The one who found the tomb was a little squirrel with purple-gray fur. When it saw Jiang Ming coming, it jumped onto his shoulder in a few steps and wagged its furry tail as if it was asking for a reward.
Jiang Ming smiled, took out a piece of golden ginseng, and sent it away. Then, he jumped into the stone tomb.
The tomb was dark, and a lot of sand and soil had poured in. However, he could still see the general layout.
“Did someone live here?”
Jiang Ming was surprised. Not only was there a row of bookshelves in the tomb, but there were also tables, chairs, and beds. There were even walls that were blackened by fire, which showed obvious traces of human life.
If it was not for the crude stone coffin at the end of the tomb, Jiang Ming would have thought that this was a regular house that had gotten buried.
“Please excuse me!” Jiang Ming walked to the stone coffin first and slowly opened the coffin lid.
A skeleton lay quietly inside. Under the dim light, the bones were crystal clear and gave off a warm luster, as if they were carved out of Jade.
“Immortal jade bones… This is the skeleton of a Grandmaster!”
Jiang Ming’s eyes narrowed. He did not expect that a Grandmaster would be buried in this nameless tomb.
He looked at the skeleton’s crossed hands, which were holding a roll of gray-white animal skin.
He took out the animal skin and spread it out to read what was written on it.
“My name is Li Tai. I became a martial artist at the age of fourteen and entered the first class at the age of twenty. I became a Grandmaster at the age of thirty-five. At the age of fifty, I was at the peak of the Grandmaster realm, sweeping the Grandmasters in the world without a single defeat. Standing at the end of the martial path, I’m full of pride and desire to go one step further! I want to open the way for the martial artists in the world to see the scenery above the Grandmaster level!”
Jiang Ming continued to read it.
“I’m eighty now, and I’m still in my prime. I’m invincible, but I haven’t made any progress because I can’t see the way forward.”
His eyes scanned over the next part.
“When I was 130 years old, I had white hair on my temples and was in despair. Was the Grandmaster realm the end? Why are the heavens so cruel? At 150, my vitality was declining, and I was getting old… I had heard the legend of the Cloudy Dream Mountain Forest of the country of Yan and had come here in search of an immortal. Now, at 176, I can’t wait any longer. Martial arts… I’ve been pursuing you all my life. But why are you so cruel?”
After a long time, Jiang Ming sighed.
Zhou Jingyu and Li Tai, two peerless Grandmasters, both died in search of immortality. Could it be that the end of the martial path was the Grandmaster realm, and there was no way forward?
“However, according to what Li Tai said, he might have found the immortal fate. He has lived here for more than twenty years, but he has never been able to wait for the opportunity.”
Jiang Ming’s eyes flickered as he walked toward the only table in the tomb. There were some animal skins, books, and other things scattered on the table. Even the table had a lot of scribbles on it.
On the table, Jiang Ming suddenly saw something familiar.