"Is this Juexian Valley?"
Ji Yuan dismounted from his dragon steed, murmuring to himself as he walked forward.
Before him lay the legendary Juexian Valley, the dwelling place of ancient alien races.
"I heard that this place was once a vast mountain, within which a deity was born capable of killing great powers,"
Jiang Yunzhou stood beside him, his eyes gleaming as he spoke. "However, such a powerful deity was eventually slain by the strong warriors of the alien races, and their final strike erased the central part of the mountain."
Before the two of them lay an incredibly vast canyon, at least ten miles wide, with cliffs on either side comparable to towering peaks.
Who could have imagined that this was originally a massive mountain, and that a powerful deity capable of suppressing even great powers once resided there?
Yet, after a great battle in ancient times, the main body of the mountain was wiped out by supreme power, and that deity who shook the heavens had its golden body shattered.
The birthplace of a former god had now become the territory of its ancient enemies.
"Let's go, let's go, follow me to see Elder Fu Chang!"
Lu Yin leaped lightly onto Ji Yuan's shoulder, waving the small wooden stick in its hand as it spoke.
Although it said to follow it, it showed no intention of leading the way and instead urged the two to hurry up.
Ji Yuan and Jiang Yunzhou exchanged glances, their expressions filled with a hint of helplessness, yet a smile always lingered on their faces.
As they walked towards the canyon not far away, the former subconsciously looked back and happened to see the two departing dragon steeds. One of them even looked back.
It was the dragon steed that had carried him all the way. Their gazes met in mid-air, and then they slowly withdrew.
"It seems that dragon steed has quite a fondness for you."
Jiang Yunzhou couldn't help but laugh when he saw this.
Hearing this, Ji Yuan shrugged and then quickened his pace, running towards the canyon. Lu Yin on his shoulder let out a joyful laugh.
It was impossible not to feel something, but to tame a dragon steed was not something that could be achieved just by wishing for it.
Furthermore, having resolved the issue in his state of mind and found the correct path, Ji Yuan now possessed a touch of carefree detachment. Since things could not be forced, he would let them take their course.
Before long, the two arrived at the entrance of the canyon. Here, a city wall stretching for dozens of miles blocked the way. Both on top of the wall and within the open gate, there were a large number of human guards.
"Although there are only a few hundred alien races here, the number of humans under their protection is no less than ten thousand."
Jiang Yunzhou transmitted his voice with divine power, the sound directly echoing in their minds.
These humans were mostly those who had entered the mountains to escape chaos during times of war and had eventually thrived under the protection of the alien races.
They were both the protected and the believers of the alien races, dedicating themselves to the best of their ability generation after generation to guard this isolated sanctuary.
With Lu Yin's intervention, the two were not questioned and were directly led into the city walls.
Even the guards at the city gate brought out a cart pulled by a strange beast to carry the two and Lu Yin, speeding towards the depths of the canyon.
Along the way, although Ji Yuan appeared calm on the surface, he couldn't help but sigh inwardly. This was his first time experiencing the customs of alien races.
To his left and right, people had built wooden houses in the forests, and some even lived directly within the massive tree trunks.
Amongst the dense tree shadows, there were markets and shops. Here, one could even see street food stalls, and occasional shouts could be heard.
On the distant mountain cliffs on both sides, large buildings could be vaguely seen, carved directly from the stone walls, with various strange beasts and flying birds entering and exiting.
"It seems there are more than just humans living here?"
Ji Yuan asked as he surveyed his surroundings.
If it were just the ten thousand-plus humans protected by the alien races as Jiang Yunzhou had said, they wouldn't have achieved such a scale.
"Besides humans, there are many other tribes in the valley, including beasts and spirits that have gained intelligence, as well as some ancient tribes."
Lu Yin sat on Ji Yuan's shoulder, shaking its head as it enlightened them.
The masters of Juexian Valley were the Yu clan, one of the hundred tribes in ancient times. Their prosperous era saw them protect dozens of weaker races within their territory.
Even though the Yu clan had declined over the long years and lost its former glory, they still had four subordinate tribes, protecting numerous beings.
These included humans who had fled from wars, beasts and spirits in the mountains who had gained intelligence, and some beings born for special reasons.
For instance, some ghosts, and even cultivators who had accidentally strayed into the demonic path.
As long as they could abide by the rules of the Yu clan, were free of any sin, and were willing to live in seclusion here, they would be accepted by the many beings here.
"The Yu clan believes in the way of moving clouds and bringing rain, and the essence of rain is water,"
Lu Yin said with a look of piety. "Water nourishes all things and is the source of life. While nurturing all spirits, it also encompasses everything in the world."
In its words, every member of the Yu clan was the kindest and wisest being in the world. They embraced all benevolent beings and despised any with impure intentions or burdened by sin.
Although there was some exaggeration, the overall picture was not much different. This was also one of the reasons why Juexian Valley could stand its ground and enjoy peace.
"That's... the Yu clan!"
Ji Yuan's gaze sharpened, and he murmured softly.
By the roadside ahead, several members of the Yu clan were gathered under a tree, singing softly with special musical instruments.
Their appearance was similar to humans, but they were more slender and generally taller. Their skin was a pale blue, with what appeared to be special patterns.
Each member of the Yu clan had a horn about an inch long on their forehead, which, like their hair, was pale blue.
Although there were no fluctuations of power emanating from these Yu clan members, Ji Yuan could still feel a pure essence of water contained within their bodies.
"Is this the Yu clan, born with an affinity for water?"
As the carriage sped past, Ji Yuan slowly withdrew his gaze and couldn't help but whisper.
All members of the Yu clan, from birth, were close to water. Even without any cultivation, they could use the unique innate divine abilities of their race through the patterns on their skin. Moving clouds and bringing rain, summoning wind and rain, were almost instinctive.
And if they were to embark on the path of cultivation, they could further leverage this affinity to approach all great daos related to water in the world.
It was said that in ancient times, the strong members of the Yu clan were the beings in the divine court who governed the rain of the world, and their tribesmen were often enfeoffed by heaven and earth as river and water deities.