Chapter 22: Paradise on Earth (Part 2)

  Zhang Fan looked around, was this still the Alps? Not a patch of snow could be seen, the trees were lush and green with leaves, the shrubs grew exceptionally luxuriantly, and between the trees, wildflowers bloomed one after another. If Zhang Fan hadn't walked to this place step by step himself, he wouldn't have believed that this was a part of the Alps, where just now his field of vision had only endless ice and snow, and all he could feel on his face was the biting cold wind in the silver world!

  Suddenly, Zhang Fan found that the black-clothed man walking in front of him suddenly disappeared!

  He was startled, what's going on? He quickened his pace and caught up. ——Having followed for a day and a night, at this time, it would be better to let him discover than to let him escape! Zhang Fan could almost confirm that such an unusual place was absolutely not formed naturally, here, must be close to their lair!

  But soon he put his mind at ease. The place where the man in black disappeared was a corner, it seemed that the guy had turned around and as long as he followed him, he must still be walking ahead.

  The terrain still left him with a mind - if the other party had already noticed that someone was following, and deliberately hid at the corner to wait for someone to come out, it would not be good. The corner was a cliff, from Zhang Fan's point of view, just blocking the other side of the cliff, nothing could be seen.

  So he walked quietly to the corner, slowly extending his consciousness wave. Fortunately, on the other side of the corner, there was no feeling of conscious existence, it seemed that the person did not suspect anything and walked forward directly. —— Of course, Zhang Fan's consciousness wave (or called thought) had a range of effect, if the opponent hid twenty or thirty meters away, waiting for him to come out, then he would have no way to deal with it.

  But even so, it's much better than being caught off guard.

  Try to lighten your own breathing, then Zhang Fan suddenly took a deep breath, like a black lightning bolt that swept across the corner, and his whole body was also raised to the most suitable state for attack. As long as you feel something is wrong, the substantial wind blade will surely make the sneak attacker caught off guard.

  But all of this was apparently in vain. —— His intuition had always been accurate, and on the other side of the cliff, there was naturally no one.

  But Zhang Fan was still shocked!

  What appeared before his eyes was a mountain valley filled with vibrant flowers, a breathtaking sight! From Zhang Fan's route, the valley was completely blocked by the cliff, so he didn't notice it at all. On the other side of the valley, there was another steep cliff, like two city walls, leaving only a small entrance for people to enter and exit.

  It's too beautiful! This was his first thought after seeing the scenery in the valley.

  This is simply a sea of flowers! Countless varieties of flowers that should be in different seasons are blooming together, clustering and cheering, like a colorful carpet spread between the folds of the mountains, making Zhang Fan suddenly feel an inexplicable sense of emotion.

  A winding stream, shining with sparkling waves, runs through the valley from the mountains. The water is crystal clear, reflecting the vibrant flowers nearby and the distant snow-capped peaks still retaining some white snow, displaying a unique blend of elegance and serenity. In the stream, one can vaguely see silvery fish swimming playfully in the water, adding to the already lively atmosphere of the stream.

  Looking at the scenery in front of him, Zhang Fan suddenly forgot his goal for a moment and was slightly distracted. If this scene were seen for the first time, especially after getting used to the snow-capped mountains, the visual impact would be unparalleled. Even someone with strong mental strength like him was shocked!

  Outside the valley, the biting cold wind seems to have come down honestly in the valley, gently and softly blowing, swaying those clusters of flowers together, emitting waves of fragrance.

  This feeling and scene, even if it's called a paradise on earth, it wouldn't be an exaggeration!

  "Wow, what a grand design!" Zhang Fan was no ordinary person and quickly recovered from his initial shock. If this paradise was naturally formed, it would be truly ingenious! However, unfortunately, Zhang Fan's gaze shifted and he saw several signs of artificial carving. This mountain valley, this paradise-like flower cluster, was just artificially cultivated after all! Even the sparkling stream, Zhang Fan saw one or two places where the stones were placed quite unnaturally. —— Of course, these unnatural things are invisible to ordinary people, but Zhang Fan's observation is particularly meticulous. In a natural stream, the sedimentation and position of stones follow certain rules, but it was clear that the stones in this stream had some places that did not conform to the rules.

  But it's probably only in martial arts and fantasy that such a paradise exists! At an altitude this high, when other places are piled up with snow, if this valley can form naturally, it's really like seeing a ghost! Not to mention the fact that these thousands of purple and red flowers of different varieties absolutely do not suit the cold Alps. ——Except for a few varieties of flowers, there are very few that can bloom in an environment below freezing point. One important reason why these flowers can bloom so angrily is that the temperature in the valley is much higher than outside the valley.

  "There must be a very sophisticated heating system at the bottom of this valley!" Zhang Fan quickly came to a conclusion. According to the geology of this area, if there were hot springs or geothermal activity underground, there would definitely be a faint smell of sulfur. The smell of sulfur is extremely pungent and can't be masked by even the strongest floral scent. But when Zhang Fan sniffed carefully, he didn't detect any unpleasant odor at all. This could only mean that the temperature in this valley was higher than outside because it was entirely man-made!

  But to achieve such a large scale with this artificial product, it really takes a huge sum of money. ——Not to mention how much funds are needed to lay out the entire geothermal system in such a valley, even if we just transplant those delicate flowers and carefully arrange their flowering periods so that they can maintain their beauty all year round, the cost is absolutely not a small amount!

  And in such a remote place, if it's just for the sake of appreciation or fun, the investors must have gone crazy. So Zhang Fan was certain that in places he hadn't observed, there were even more massive projects than what he saw before him. Calculating the costs, it wouldn't be possible to succeed without spending hundreds of millions of euros.