Journey to the West: Building a Celestial Empire Starting from Lion Camel Ridge

When Liu Cheng emerged from the ruins, the sun was already setting.

He stood on the edge of Bone Town and glanced back.

The dilapidated house where Chen Ping'an and his companion were staying could still be vaguely seen, and the pale golden light of the barrier flickered slightly.

Ali is not dead.

Another boy named Chen Ping'an was added to the ruins.

Liu Cheng's mind raced, and he looked up at the sky before quickening his pace.

......

When Liu Cheng returned to the land temple, it was almost dark.

When he was about ten steps away from the temple gate, he slowed down and took a deep breath.

A faint scent of incense wafted through the air, emanating from the barrier in front of them.

A huge, pale golden dome, like an egg, enveloped the earth god temple, creating a safe zone ten zhang in diameter.

This is the protective barrier of the Earth God Temple.

Inside the temple is a statue of the Earth God with only half a face remaining. People worship it sincerely, burning three sticks of incense every morning and evening. Perhaps it is truly blessed by gods and Buddhas, for it has managed to create an incense barrier in the desolate land of Lion Camel Ridge.

As he stepped into the barrier's area, the scent of incense became even stronger.

Liu Cheng gently knocked on the dilapidated door of the earth god temple, twice on the front and once on the back.

A moment later, the door opened from the inside, revealing a face.

It's Brother Fan.

Fan Qiming was in his early forties. He had a scar on his face that ran from his eyebrow to his ear. He was blind in his left eye, which was covered with a black cloth.

"You're back?"

"Um."

Liu Cheng squeezed through the door, and Fan Qiming closed the door again.

The local temple is not large; it takes about twenty steps from the front hall to the back hall.

There were more than a dozen people crammed inside, making it feel a bit crowded.

An elderly person was huddled in a corner, and a child was nestled in his mother's arms.

Two wounded hunters leaned against the wall; one of them had a broken leg, which was being held in place by a branch.

"How is it?"

Fan Qiming sat down by the fire, pulled a piece of roasted taro out of the ashes, broke it in half, and handed one half to Liu Cheng.

Liu Cheng took it, took a bite, and found the taro to be very hot.

"Ali is still alive."

Fan Qiming paused for a moment, then looked up.

The single eye was fixed on Liu Cheng.

"Alive?"

"Alive," Liu Cheng said.

"This girl has a tough life."

Fan Qiming was slightly taken aback; the news that Ali was alive surprised him.

The deathly aura has corrupted him to that extent; although he's not dead yet, he won't live much longer.

His attention quickly returned to the taro in his hand, and he took a big bite.

"Moreover, the death energy has been completely cleared away."

"really?!"

Fan Qiming suddenly looked up, his voice rising abruptly.

The hunters nearby also turned their gazes over.

"Absolutely true."

Liu Cheng recalled that he could see clearly that Ali's forearm was clean and there was no trace of death energy corroding it. Moreover, she looked full of energy and spirit, and was not like she had been on the verge of death before.

"How did you do that?"

Having lived in the ruins for many years, Fan Qiming knew very well just how troublesome this deathly aura was.

Even though he possessed cultivation, he could only suppress it forcibly. On his exposed forearms, black markings slowly writhed.

It's just not as serious as Ali's.

But Fan Qiming knew that one day he would be like Ali, tormented by death energy to the point of wishing he were dead.

To survive in Lion Camel Ridge, the barrier alone is not enough.

Cultivation level is equally important.

Drawing qi into the body and tempering the physical body is an essential path in spiritual practice.

But Lion Camel Ridge is such an environment, where deathly energy has long been mixed with spiritual energy, making it difficult to distinguish one from the other.

That's why they've been trying to find a way to expel the deathly aura from the ruins. They've made some progress, but it's hard to say whether it will actually work.

"Clear...the death energy..."

Fan Qiming muttered to himself, his chest heaving, before finally sitting down again after a moment.

"I don't know."

Liu Cheng thought for a moment, "Ali is currently in the ruins of White Bone Town, and there is also a young man named Chen Ping'an. They have a shelter and a barrier."

Fan Qiming remained silent for a while before putting the taro down.

"There is neither a local earth god temple nor a mountain god temple there."

Fan Qiming pondered, "How do I construct the incense-burning protective barrier?"

"I checked their barrier; it wasn't an incense barrier, and there was no smell of incense."

Because he was not protected by the shelter, Liu Cheng had difficulty seeing the interior of Chen Ping'an's shelter clearly. "If there were an altar and incense offerings, the smell should be quite noticeable."

"That's interesting."

Fan Qiming stroked his chin, seemingly pondering something.

"Now that Ali is alive, what about her return?"

She said she couldn't.

Liu Cheng was silent for a moment, then continued, "I told her about the rainy season, and she said it was your shelter, not mine."

"Your exact words?"

"The exact words."

Fan Qiming nodded and didn't ask any more questions.

He had guessed that Ali would say that.

This girl is stubborn. She was able to survive alone in the ruins of White Bone Town for four years, not because of luck, but because of the ruthlessness in her bones.

When we sent her away, she didn't say anything. She just glanced at everyone and then turned and left.

Fan Qiming still remembers that glance.

"What about Chen Ping'an?" Fan Qiming asked.

"He said he would come and check on the situation here before the rainy season starts," Liu Cheng said, "and then make a decision."

Fan Qiming remained silent for a while, then pulled another piece of taro from the fire and handed it to a child standing next to him with longing eyes.

"OK."

"Then we..." Liu Cheng hesitated for a moment, "...wait?"

"wait."

Fan Qiming said, "The rainy season is coming soon. The more capable fighters we have, the better our chances of survival."

"What if he doesn't come?"

"If you're not coming, that's fine too."

Fan Qiming stood up, dusted off his hands, and said, "If we can get through these two years, we can get through this rainy season."

He spoke calmly, but Liu Cheng sensed the weight in his voice.

Two years.

Liu Cheng couldn't remember how many people had died in the local temple.

There were initially thirty or so, then it became twenty or so, and now there are only eleven left.

When the rainy season comes, even more will die.

Liu Cheng lowered his head, took a bite of taro, and said nothing more.

---

Chen Ping'an stuck the Bone-Splitting Spear into the soil next to him and began to dig up the wild pear saplings.

The saplings' roots weren't deep, but the soil was compacted and hard.

Fortunately, with a spear in hand, Chen Ping'an quickly dug up three plants, wrapped the roots in a damp cloth, and carried them on his shoulder.

By the time we got back to the shelter, it was almost dark.

Rubbing sounds began to rise from the ruins, and the bone demons could be vaguely seen closing in from all directions.

Chen Ping'an placed the three pear saplings on the purification platform. After the golden light dissipated, he opened the system panel and found the [Planting Rack] option.

confirm!

On the open space to the right of the purification altar, the soil and rocks began to move on their own.

The first layer is formed by three parallel wooden frames, each about three feet long and half a foot wide.

Then there is the second layer, two feet above the first layer, with the same three wooden frames.

Finally, there's the third layer, and then another two feet above it.

The three-tiered wooden frame has three compartments on each tier, for a total of nine planting spaces.

The wood looks old, as if it has weathered many years of storms, but it is solid and has a warm, smooth feel to the touch.

After the frame is formed, the bottom of the grid also changes accordingly.

A shallow depression appeared in each cell, filled with loose humus and emitting a faint earthy smell.

The entire construction process took less than half an incense stick's time.

When the last ray of blue light faded, a complete planting rack stood there.

Three layers and nine compartments, neatly arranged, made of solid wood, exuding the moist scent of freshly turned soil.

Ali stared at it for a long time before speaking.

"Was it that thing again?"

"Um."

Chen Ping'an didn't explain much, picked up the three pear saplings, and walked to the planting rack.

He selected the top three compartments, placed the roots of the saplings into the depressions, and filled the soil with his hands.

The soil was loose and slightly damp, as if it had just rained.

After filling the hole with soil, he stood up and patted the dirt off his hands.

Almost simultaneously, the panel popped up:

[Successfully planted: 3 wild pear seedlings]

[Location: Top floor, positions 1/2/3]

[Estimated ripening time: 15 days]

【Characteristics: The fruit is edible and contains trace amounts of spiritual energy; long-term consumption can improve physical constitution】

[Plant Rack Features: Accelerated Growth (Current Efficiency: 1.5x)]