The Journey of Immortal Cultivation-Chapter 550 - 316: Desert Oasis

In the desert, tornadoes occur frequently. Once they pass, new sand dunes and valleys appear on the ground. Seeing mortals struggling on the surface, constantly facing threats of water scarcity, getting lost, sandstorms, and sand pirates, she once again appreciated the advantage of possessing Divine Skills.

Contrary to what most imagine, this vast desert is not a barren wasteland. There are more than ten large green oases in the desert, around which people have built cities of various sizes, outnumbering those in other states and counties. However, the desert is still somewhat impoverished and lacks resources to exploit, which is why this Great State is a tri-junction of powers; in other words, it’s a grey area where none takes responsibility.

Therefore, it is also a paradise for Independent Demons and Loose Cultivators, with many shady dealings taking place here. The destination of Fu Yunzhang’s group was the oasis city of Kashna, also the largest Gold Cave, a trading market, in this desert.

From the memories of the robbers, Tu Jin learned that Fu Yunzhang’s little gang called themselves "Immortal Bandits," entirely made up of Loose Cultivators and solitary demons. These two types of cultivators are not welcomed in the Great Sects, which is why their cultivation resources are much scarcer compared to the disciples within the sects. Not to mention, among those who have successfully Crossed Tribulation in the recent five thousand years, not a single one was an Independent Immortal or Independent Demon, which shows the arduous path of cultivation for these two groups.

Since they lack almost everything, they might as well resort to robbing, pillaging, and extorting. Fu Yunzhang built this small gang of Immortal Bandits, which had repeatedly succeeded over the decades, victimizing countless Immortal Sects and Demon Sects. Firstly, he abided by a principle not to provoke any major sects, and secondly, he usually only stole Magic Artifacts and wealth without harming human lives. In the Northwest, everyone mentions the Immortal Bandits with gritted teeth but have no profound hatred against them since Fu Yunzhang was cautious and cunning, always plotting before acting, ensuring an escape route for his team, and would immediately make a strategic retreat with his bandits after a hit. Thus, he has remained elusive and never been caught. 𝑓𝓇𝘦ℯ𝘸𝘦𝑏𝓃𝑜𝘷ℯ𝑙.𝑐𝑜𝓂

Having stolen goods, they also needed channels to sell them. Many cities in the desert oases were their usual haunts for selling stolen goods, and this time, the Immortal Bandits headed for Kashna. However, Fu Yunzhang was in a hurry to deliver medicine to his family to cure an epidemic, so he left the stolen goods to his subordinates to sell. As clever as Fu Yunzhang was, he had never attended the ceremony at Guangcheng Palace and was unaware that this small mirror was tied to the safety of the world. He looked at it briefly without noticing anything unusual and handed it over to his subordinates along with other items, preparing to sell them through the usual channels as usual.

In Tu Jin’s analysis, if the Immortal Bandit leader Fu Yunzhang himself did not show up, the success rate of Ning Xiaoxian’s group would skyrocket.

Although Tu Jin’s soul avatar is useful and stealthy, it also has its flaws. It must rely on a physical body to travel and cannot cover a thousand miles under broad daylight. It took quite some time to rush back to the valley where Ning Xiaoxian was, so, all in all, the Immortal Bandits would arrive at Kashna earlier than them by a step.

To be honest, in her imagination, the so-called desert oasis was just a small shallow pool of water emerging from miles of sand, with green algae floating in the water, surrounded by tall palm trees and bushes, perhaps with humans setting up tents and campsites in a disorganized and dirty scene.

But it was not until she saw Kashna City with her own eyes that she felt deeply ashamed of her ignorance.

The city was indeed built beside water, but it was adjacent to eight huge freshwater lakes! These eight oases, like bright pearls in the desert, with even the smallest being the size of three standard soccer fields. Not to mention the clear and bright water, the oases were not entirely green; among the eight she saw, one was reddish, another was light pink, said to be related to the color of the algae growing at the bottom of the lakes.

The abundant water vapor transformed the landscape here. The eight oases might be interconnected underground, hence there were not only tall and straight poplar forests but also meadows, grasslands, dense but low jungles, and even large swamps. As a city connecting these oases, Kashna City had low and short adobe walls, and the houses were very simple, almost a perfect spokesperson for orthogonal architecture; however, the flow of people in the city was surprisingly huge. Almost every hour, merchant teams from afar passed through checkpoints into the city, bringing fine wines, silk, tea, or other local specialties for trade.