"The environment in which the Cold Stone Flower grows is very special. It doesn't grow anywhere else except in Black Mist Mountain. If you want to pick it, you have to go to Black Mist Mountain, which is indeed more difficult than climbing to heaven!"
Shen Lixue frowned: "Black Mist Mountain is nearly a thousand miles from the capital. Even if we manage to get it, we won't be able to reach the capital within three hours."
"Steward, arrange a carriage to escort the old prince to Black Mist Mountain!" Dongfang Heng stepped out of the inner room, a resolute cold light flashing deep in his eyes, and strode towards the door: "I will go to Black Mist Mountain to find the Cold Stone Flower first. You all follow me as soon as possible!"
"Dongfang Heng, I'll go with you!" Shen Lixue rushed out of the room and hurried after Dongfang Heng.
"Black Mist Mountain is very dangerous!" Dongfang Heng's gaze was deep as he strode forward. He himself didn't know if he could come back alive from Black Mist Mountain, and he didn't want Shen Lixue to go and risk her life as well.
"I'm not afraid of danger!" Dongfang Heng walked very fast, and Shen Lixue couldn't keep up. She reached out and tightly grabbed his arm, asking him to lead her: "Wouldn't it be more dangerous for you to go alone?"
"Are you really going to Black Mist Mountain?" Dongfang Heng stopped and looked at Shen Lixue.
“Yes!” Shen Lixue nodded emphatically, her gaze resolute.
"The mountains are fraught with danger, and I can barely take care of myself, let alone you!" To stop Shen Lixue from going to Black Mist Mountain, Dongfang Heng lied and made his words sound a little more heartless.
"I can take care of myself!" Shen Lixue has mastered ancient martial arts and possesses half of Dongfang Heng's internal strength. Ordinary people are no match for her, and she can completely protect herself.
“We might die there!” Dongfang Heng’s gaze was solemn, which was also the reason why he stopped Shen Lixue from going into the mountain.
"It's alright, we'll die together. It's better than you dying and me becoming a widow!" Shen Lixue clung even tighter to Dongfang Heng's arm. "I know a bit about plants and trees, maybe I can help you!"
"Alright!" Shen Lixue's tone was firm and her attitude resolute, leaving no room for negotiation. Dongfang Heng had no choice but to compromise, giving her a careful look: "Go back to your room and change your clothes first. This black outfit doesn't suit you!"
"Let's go together!" Shen Lixue smiled mysteriously, dragging Dongfang Heng towards Maple Pine Garden. She planned to leave on her own while she changed clothes—no way!
Dongfang Heng's gaze sharpened, and he looked at Shen Lixue with a hint of helplessness, a subtle, graceful curve appearing at the corners of his lips.
After a cup of tea, Shen Lixue changed her clothes, and the steward ordered a fast horse and food to be prepared.
Black Mist Mountain is mysterious and unpredictable, so it is not advisable to take too many people there. Apart from Dongfang Heng, Shen Lixue, there was only Zi Mo and two elite guards.
Shen Lixue couldn't ride a horse, so she rode one horse with Dongfang Heng. The group of four horses and five people sped towards Black Mist Mountain.
As the horse galloped at full speed, Shen Lixue sat in Dongfang Heng's lap, surveying her surroundings. The wind whistled past her ears, and the scenery on both sides rushed by, a completely different feeling from riding in a car in modern times. Behind her was Dongfang Heng's strong chest, his heartbeat strong and powerful, indicating that he had fully recovered his health.
"Dongfang Heng, has the old prince always been frail and sickly?" After Shen Lixue arrived at Qingyan, she heard that the old prince was recuperating and had not left the courtyard at all.
"No!" Dongfang Heng shook his head, his deep eyes growing even more intense: "Grandpa was both a scholar and a warrior, and very strong. When he was young, he fought on the battlefield just like me. Later, my father and mother passed away at the same time. Grandpa was so heartbroken that he fell ill and never recovered. Since then, his health has deteriorated, and he can't withstand the slightest stimulation. The doctor said it was a heart ailment, and there was no cure!"
Shen Lixue had heard a little about the simultaneous passing of the Prince and Princess of the Holy King's Mansion, but she didn't know the specifics. Seeing the sadness in Dongfang Heng's eyes, she didn't want to bring up his painful memories again: "Do you know what a Cold Stone Flower looks like?"
“The Cold Stone Flower grows in a special environment. You can recognize it at a glance when you see it on a cliff!” Dongfang Heng replied, tightening his arms to hold Shen Lixue more securely in his embrace, and spurred his horse to gallop.
The little body in his arms was soft and fragrant, as if boneless. Her unique, fresh scent lingered around him, elegant and captivating. Normally, he would have cherished her tenderly, but now, he had urgent business to attend to and had neither the time nor the inclination.
Dongfang Heng and his group rode fine horses that could travel a thousand miles a day. They arrived at Black Mist Mountain the next day. The morning sun shone warmly. Looking at the towering mountain shrouded in mist, Dongfang Heng frowned. Such a large mountain, finding the Cold Stone Flower was truly as difficult as climbing to heaven. However, he never gave up halfway on what he wanted to do.
"The mountains are fraught with danger, so let's not get separated and search together!"
Shen Lixue took out a drawing and handed it to Dongfang Heng. Under his puzzled gaze, she explained softly, "This is the pattern drawing of the cold stone given by the Ghost Doctor of Southern Xinjiang, and this too!"
Shen Lixue took out a medicine bottle, poured out a few pills, and explained softly under the puzzled gazes of Zi Mo and the others: "The Ghost Doctor said that there are many poisonous creatures in the deep mountains and forests. This pill can protect one from all poisons for three days!"
"Let's go into the mountains!" After tying their horses to the foot of the mountain, Dongfang Heng, Shen Lixue, Zi Mo, and the others took their pills and entered Black Mist Mountain.
At dawn, the ground was covered with dew, and the birds and beasts had all woken up. The group quickened their pace along the stone path and occasionally heard the chirping of birds.
"Your Highness, Your Highness, it's foggy!" a guard walking behind whispered a reminder.
A thin white mist drifted gently in front of them. Shen Lixue looked back and saw that wisps of mist, visible to the naked eye, were rising around them and along the path they had come from. "The sun is rising higher and higher, so the mist should be dissipating. Why is it gathering more and more?"
“There are many trees here, their branches and leaves are so thick that they block out most of the sun in the sky. The sunlight can’t penetrate, so the fog won’t dissipate!” Dongfang Heng said softly, holding Shen Lixue’s wrist tightly. “The fog will get thicker and thicker. The three of you hold each other’s hands tightly and don’t get separated!”
"Yes!" It was awkward for the men to hold hands, but they couldn't care less about that now because of the situation. The three of them quickly joined hands and walked side by side.
The fog grew thicker and thicker, its color changing from pure white to a pale gray. There were no more birdsongs, not even a whisper of wind. The sound of footsteps could be heard clearly, creating an eerie silence.
"Everyone be careful!" In her previous life, Shen Lixue often went into the mountains. Where there were birdsong, there were birds living, so it was very safe. In quiet places, ordinary birds and beasts could not live, so it was relatively dangerous.
"Whoosh!" A whooshing sound rushed over, so fast that no one had time to react.
Shen Lixue narrowed her eyes and swung the dagger out of her hand.
"Thud!" The object was pierced by the dagger and fell to the ground.
"What is this thing?" Everyone was startled when they saw the translucent blue-green object on the ground.
"Is it a frog?" Shen Lixue frowned. The unidentified creature had four short legs, two long and two short, with a blue stripe and a light blue stripe on its back, and a long tongue sticking out. It looked exactly like a frog, except that a frog's body is solid, while this one was translucent, much like the mutant animals studied by modern scientists.
“Looks like it!” A guard squatted down and reached out to pull the dagger off the frog.
"Don't touch it!" Shen Lixue warned urgently.
The guard shuddered and stepped back. At that moment, the pierced frog raised its head, its eyes bulging out, and its long red tongue, dripping with liquid, was instantly spat out, brushing past the guard's clothes and landing on the grass not far away.
"Sizzle sizzle sizzle!" The grass that was touched by the liquid withered rapidly at a speed visible to the human eye. In the blink of an eye, all the plants within five meters were dead.
The guard stared blankly down at the corner of his clothes, where a large patch of liquid had been stained. If the poison had been spat on him, he would have surely died. "Thank you, Princess, for saving my life!" The guard was still shaken by the terrifying moment.
"No need for thanks. This Black Mist Mountain is very strange. Everyone be careful!" Shen Lixue instructed, holding Dongfang Heng's large hand tightly, and groping in the thick fog, slowly walking forward step by step.
"Truly poisonous!" Another guard exclaimed in astonishment as he looked at the frog that was completely dead. Just a frog had such potent toxins; no wonder Black Mist Mountain was a place where no one could return.
As the sun rose higher, the mountain mist thinned somewhat. Shen Lixue and Dongfang Heng walked to a large rock and looked into the distance. They had only walked a short distance; it would take them a long time to pick the Cold Stone Flower.
"Your Highness, Your Highness, please have something to eat!" They had been traveling for days without much rest, and after climbing the mountain for half a day, they were starving. They needed something to eat to replenish their strength.