Shen Lang never imagined that these dozen or so foreign men and women were truly here with a purpose, and from what he heard, their objective seemed to be to find something in this tourist attraction.
Shen Lang couldn't fathom what these people had traveled so far to find, but he didn't care.
In short, as long as they didn't bother him, he couldn't be bothered with anything else.
"Brother Shen, look, there's a flock of white cranes in the sky."
As Shen Lang yawned, Yu Xiao and Yu Fei exclaimed excitedly, pointing at the sky.
Hearing their words, Shen Lang looked up and indeed saw dozens of white cranes flying overhead, a truly magnificent sight.
Shen Lang had seen a single white crane fly by before, but never dozens. He was quite astonished by the sight.
At this moment, a white bird at the front of the flock turned its head and said, "No need to be so surprised. Our attraction's biodiversity is very well preserved. Besides white cranes, you'll soon see many animals that experts claim are extinct."
Upon hearing the white bird's words, Yu Xiao and Yu Fei's eyes lit up, and they became even more eager for this trip.
Shen Lang, however, was not particularly excited. He had seen far too many such wonders in Qiulong Mountain.
Shen Lang and the others rode horses for half an hour, following the white bird. After half an hour, they arrived at the edge of a body of water.
Before them lay a lake, with dozens of small boats moored at the shore. The white bird pointed to the mountain ahead and said to the group, "See the crevice beneath the mountain ahead? This is what is described in 'The Peach Blossom Spring': 'When the forest ends at the water's source, a mountain is found. The mountain has a small opening, as if it emits light. So they abandoned their boats and entered through the opening. At first, it was very narrow, barely wide enough for a person. After walking several dozen steps, it suddenly opened up.'"
The white bird elaborated incessantly, "The true beauty of the Peach Blossom Spring lies behind it. However, to witness this beauty, you must first do one thing."
The white bird held up a finger and said, "This one thing is to buy tickets. Please follow me."
With that, the white bird leaped off its horse. Shen Lang quickly followed suit, dismounting first and then carefully helping Yu Xiao and Yu Fei down, one by one.
In contrast to Shen Lang's cautious approach, the dozen or so foreign men and women were much more agile. They carried large backpacks but jumped down with ease.
Led by the white bird, the group proceeded to the ticket counter to purchase their tickets.
The ticket price was not expensive, only two hundred yuan per person. While purchasing the tickets, the white bird informed everyone that for the sake of the attraction's mystique, all visitors, including Shen Lang's group, were required to surrender their mobile phones. The attraction would hold them in safekeeping and they could be retrieved at the ticket office upon their departure.
Hearing that they had to hand over their phones, Shen Lang was, to be honest, a little reluctant. However, considering that he was accompanying Yu Xiao and Yu Fei for a fun outing, he quickly put his reservations aside, turned off his phone, and handed it to the white bird.
Seeing that Shen Lang had already given his phone to the white bird, Yu Xiao and Yu Fei did not hesitate. They turned off their own phones and handed them over as well.
After giving their phones to the white bird, Shen Lang, Yu Xiao, and Yu Fei walked towards the boat docking area. An elderly man poling a boat smiled at the trio and said, "Come aboard."
"Xiao Xiao, Xiao Fei, come aboard," Shen Lang said with a smile.
"Okay—"
Yu Xiao and Yu Fei smiled and followed him onto the boat. The old man then pushed off with his pole, and the small boat slowly moved forward.
The lake water was crystal clear, and Shen Lang could clearly see fish swimming at the bottom. The surrounding mountains were lush and green. Once on the boat, Shen Lang felt an unprecedented sense of comfort.
Yu Xiao and Yu Fei, on the other hand, transformed into curious explorers, fascinated by everything they saw.
Seeing Yu Xiao and Yu Fei's continuous laughter, Shen Lang also began to smile.
However, when Shen Lang looked back, he noticed that the twelve foreign men and women were arguing with the white bird.
Although Shen Lang was quite far from them and could barely hear their voices, he had learned a special skill from his old master: lip-reading.
By observing their lips, Shen Lang understood that the subject of their argument was mobile phones.
The twelve foreigners adamantly refused to hand over their phones to the white bird, claiming that no tourist attraction in the world had such a rule. The white bird's response was equally simple and blunt: no phones, and they would be sent back immediately.
Thus, the two parties were engaged in a heated dispute.
Shen Lang didn't know the outcome of the situation, as the boat had already entered the crevice in the mountain by then.
Upon entering the crevice, they transitioned from daylight to darkness, and Yu Xiao and Yu Fei clearly showed signs of discomfort.
At this moment, the old man poling the boat explained, "Everyone, please don't be nervous. This is the first night of the three days and three nights. Listen quietly with your ears, and perhaps you'll hear something different."
Hearing the old man's words, Yu Xiao and Yu Fei closed their eyes and listened quietly as he had suggested. Soon, they exclaimed with excitement, "We heard it! We heard it!"
"Sister, what did you hear?" Yu Fei asked Yu Xiao excitedly.
"I heard someone playing an extremely beautiful ancient zither piece," Yu Xiao replied.
After speaking, Yu Xiao looked at Yu Fei and asked curiously, "Xiao Fei, what did you hear?"
"I heard the clash of weapons on an ancient battlefield, and the sound of rolling war drums," Yu Fei said, sharing what she had heard.
Following that, Yu Xiao and Yu Fei simultaneously turned to Shen Lang and asked, "Brother Shen, what did you hear?"
"Me?" Shen Lang asked, smiling. "I heard your joyous laughter, the two of you."
"Is that so?" Hearing Shen Lang's words, Yu Xiao and Yu Fei said somewhat disappointedly, "We thought you would hear something different."
"Xiao Fei, I can't hear the sound of the zither anymore. Now I hear the sound of a mother singing to her child," Yu Fei suddenly shouted.
"Sister, I can't hear the clashing of weapons or the rolling war drums anymore either. Now I hear the sound of ancient chime bells, clear and melodious," Yu Xiao said.
"Unbelievable. Truly unbelievable that such a magical place exists in this world, where even the sounds people hear are different."
Yu Xiao and the others were thrilled, while Shen Lang remained remarkably calm. He knew that nature possessed a recording function, especially in certain stone caves, which could emit sounds heard years later.
However, Shen Lang had to admit that this attraction was indeed remarkable, otherwise, so many people wouldn't be curiously flocking to it.
It was just that, for some reason, Shen Lang hadn't heard any sounds from beginning to end. Could it be that his martial arts cultivation was too high, preventing these sounds from resonating with him?