The capital, blanketed in white snow and clad in silver, held a unique, serene beauty. Youyou watched with open admiration; Lumbini Deer Park, with its eternal spring, and the endless deserts outside had never known snow.But there was no time for play today. Today was the day to set off back to Lumbini Deer Park. She turned her head to look at Bensheng, carrying simple luggage on his back. He was fastening a small, cotton bird-coat onto Ananda, who had just molted his old feathers. His dark blue eyes were faint, devoid of any emotion.Youyou couldn't help but step forward and tug his sleeve."Brother Bensheng, are you angry?"Bensheng rubbed her head. "No, your brother is just preparing for the return journey. How could I be angry? The reason I came to Zhoku Academy was to protect Lumbini Deer Park!""But, leaving here means you can't become a Comprehender...""Let's go!" Bensheng pulled down his wind cap and took her hand."Go?" Youyou's eyes widened. "How? Aren't we taking a carriage... Whoa—!"Youyou found herself stepping on seemingly empty air, following Bensheng. In one step, they were high above the area outside Zhoku Academy; in a few more, they had left the capital. She screamed in fright."Wh-what's happening?"Bensheng smiled gently. "This is a secret art I cultivated, 'Path Beneath Feet.' One step can cover ali. The distance between Zhaoyun Kingdom and the Saptaparna Kingdom is truly far. By carriage, it would take years to return. But walking with this art, it
should only take a few days.""Brother... won't we fall?" Youyou gripped him tightly, not daring to let go at all. She didn't even dare to step outward."It's fine, this 'path' is plenty wide!" Bensheng deliberately let go of her hand. At first, Youyou was terrified, but when she discovered she was truly walking step-by-lion a path as stable as solid ground, she immediately became happy. She ran left and right, jumping, revealing a deer-like agility.Watching her, Bensheng couldn't help but smile too. But when his gaze passed over Youyou's figure and saw Zhoku Academy growing further and further behind them, the bitterness he had suppressed with difficulty once again seized his emotions.Youyou, understanding, quieted down. The siblings walked silently westward like this. The prosperous and noisy Yongle Kingdom passed beneath their feet. The tea houses and lodges they had stayed in remained the same. The Xu family was decorated with lanterns and colored banners, festive streamers hung high; it seemed a wedding was underway. Bensheng paused for only a moment before stepping forward to leave.The afternoon passed, the sun having crossed its zenith and now descending in the west. Strangely, however, they weren't getting any sun at all.Bensheng looked up. Layers of white clouds wrapped in mist obscured the view; he couldn't see the top. For some reason, the sky felt much lower than usual today.Soon, he knew the reason.It was a great mountain, towering into the clouds, directly blocking the path ahead. No matter how high Bensheng tried to step, he couldn't pass over it....So high.Bensheng stopped to catch his breath, panting from the effort. Suddenly, he slapped his thigh. "Right! I can just 'pass' through it!""Pass?" Youyou exclaimed."Hehe, Youyou, just wait and see..."A moment later, Youyou covered her mouth, stifling laughter, as she helped Bensheng up from the mountainside, a large, bruised bump swelling on his forehead."Alright, Brother, since we can't go through, let's detour around it!"Bensheng, crestfallen, walked down the mountain with Youyou. Before he could even lament the loss of his elder-brother dignity due
to the inexplicable failure of "Pass Through Walls," he noticed the desolate scenery surrounding them.The ground was charred black as coal, pitted and uneven. Aside from broken weapons stuck halfway into the earth and tattered flag scraps drifting about, there was nothing."Could this be... Buzhou Kingdom?" Bensheng sucked in a sharp breath. The saying that Buzhou Kingdom was littered with battlefields was indeed no lie.Youyou, sharp-eyed, spotted a person with a basket on their back passing in the distance and quickly pointed them out to Bensheng."Excuse me, is this Buzhou Kingdom?"The passerby was startled but soon nodded. "Are you also waiting here to 'clean up' the battlefield?"Bensheng was taken aback. "No...""This was a beast battle just now; nothing usable by humans was left behind." The passerby seemed somewhat hard of hearing. He pointed at a piece of charred wolf meat on the ground. "But this is edible. If you want it, I'll share half with you.""No, thank you..."The passerby unceremoniously picked up the wolf meat and began chewing. Between bites, he offered advice: "You're dressed too conspicuously. You'll be spotted by the wolf packs on the battlefield later. It's best to hide like me, even blackening your hands and face."Bensheng really didn't understand what he was talking about, so he pointed at the high mountain to change the subject. "May I ask, what mountain is this?""This is Kunlun Mountain."Kunlun, the legendary divine mountain? Bensheng remembered the whistle he had given Yeluo, which she hadn't taken back. Sanbao had said it was made from divine bamboo from Kunlun.A slight tremor came from underfoot. Thanks to his recent intensified cultivation of the Five Aggregates, he detected it. But when he looked up, the passerby reacted even faster than he did."The army is coming! Run!" The passerby grabbed Bensheng, threw away the wolf meat, "This time it's the human army. We absolutely must not encounter them.""Wait, why run from the human army?" Since it was humans, shouldn't he belessafraid than if it were a beast army?"You don't understand," the passerby stamped his foot anxiously. Bensheng couldn't see his expression clearly, only heard him
repeating, "It's over, it's over, we can't escape, we're going to be press-ganged."The sound of the army's horseshooves gradually approached. The passerby wept in terror. "Buzhou Kingdom fights every single day. Being caught by the army is a fate worse than death.""Do they just kidnap people directly? Outrageous!" Bensheng said angrily. "Don't worry, I'll protect you."The passerby was stunned, staring blankly as Bensheng put down his pack, gripped his staff, and walked towards the army.The vanguard scout, seeing someone approaching head-on, was overjoyed and raised his hand. "Quick, throw the lasso, catch him and bring him back."The lasso flew through the air with awhoosh. Bensheng didn't move a muscle, merely gave his staff a light flick. The lasso snapped upon contact.The scout froze, then quickly drew his blade. "It's an enemy! Everyone, attack!"Bensheng planted his feet wide, standing firm in a horse stance. No matter how many soldiers or horses came at him, he dispatched them one by one with his staff, knocking them off their horses. He showed no mercy to the scout, giving him an extra tap that knocked him unconscious.The remaining soldiers, provoked, stirred with killing intent. They raised their crossbows, aiming them squarely at Bensheng. Bensheng pressed his palms together, used Path Beneath Feet to circle behind them, and knocked the crossbows from their hands.Youyou and the passerby, hiding to the side, couldn't help but jump out and cheer upon seeing this."Brother is amazing! Brother is mighty!"The messenger at the rear noticed something was wrong, spurred his horse, and galloped towards the main camp, reporting the situation truthfully to the General."What?!"A wine cup was smashed violently to the ground, shattering to pieces."One person, looking like a youth at that, stopped your entire vanguard battalion?""General, that person seems to know some strange, unorthodox methods. He's hard to deal with!""Hmph, I'll go see for myself."By the time the new sound of hoofbeats arrived, Bensheng had
already knocked down all the soldiers and horses. He had released the warhorses, letting the passerby ride one away, and waited on the spot with Youyou.His experience subduing demons and aiding the world in Yongle Kingdom told him that one should see things through to the end.But this wait brought a huge embrace instead."Hahahaha! Good brother, you came to find me!" Shuda looked at Bensheng, eyes shining, his gaze instantly shifting past him to the package in Youyou's arms.He licked his lips, and his stomach rumbled appropriately.Since General Shuda knew him, he couldn't be considered an enemy. The soldiers greatly admired Bensheng's skill. After he entered the command tent with Shuda, a group of them gathered around his staff, looking and touching, scaring Youyou into thinking they had encountered a bunch of perverts. Only when Brahma appeared and stopped them did Youyou feel relieved."Come, come! Tonight we drink until we drop!" Shuda declared grandly, picking up a wine jar.Bensheng raised a hand in firm refusal. "Not yet sixteen. Can't drink alcohol.""No fun," Shuda tossed the wine jar aside and leaned lazily against the back of his chair. "You've already graduated. Why still follow Zhoku school rules?"The cooks soon brought a table full of food. Seeing Shuda's lack of interest made it clear it wasn't anything tasty. Bensheng felt instantly transported back to the Court Exam period and smiled. "Why didn't you go collect your Robe of Origin? You passed the Court Exam too, became an Adept!""I went there for the fighting. Becoming some Adept or not doesn't matter to me. But mentioning that still makes me angry. That day, my Lord suddenly decided to seize that Shakra's territory. He didn't want to get beaten, so he came back early. Once he left, I had to go fight him, of course I couldn't stay either." Shuda swallowed hard. "Ah, think of all the delicious food back in the Saptaparna Kingdom!"Bensheng shook his head with a wry smile. "Alright then, I'll give you all the Golden Thread Pastries I packed from the Rabbit Boss Lady's place when I left!"Shuda instantly closed the distance, warmly grasping Bensheng's hands. "Good brother!"Bensheng shook him off, feeling creeped out, and called for
Youyou to come in. But a scout entered the tent first."General, the enemy forces have arrived."Seeing the food about to reach his mouth snatched away, Shuda cursed furiously. "Damn that rotten Shakra, always has to oppose me!"He grabbed his curved blade from the rack and hurried out.Youyou timidly entered the tent. "Brother, are they going to fight again?""Mm, let's go walk somewhere else." Bensheng, seeing Youyou's fear, comforted her. "The situation is different in each country. We can simply choose not to watch these things."Bensheng left the Golden Thread Pastries and left the camp from the rear with Youyou. Many of the warhorses they had released earlier had returned. Bensheng borrowed one for Youyou to ride. The siblings slowly meandered around Kunlun Mountain.This area was a forested region. Perhaps because it was protected by a powerful lord, it hadn't turned into a battlefield for a long time. Tender shoots sprouted from the charred earth. Nourished by the spiritual energy of the divine mountain, every plant and tree grew tenaciously."Brother, I've never seen flowers like these here. They're even more beautiful than those in Lumbini Deer Park." Youyou touched the fresh petals, unable to bear picking them. Seeing this, Bensheng picked up a flower that had already broken off and gave it to Youyou."It seems someone has been here before," Youyou said, noticing footprints on the ground and broken, picked plants. She puffed her cheeks angrily. "This person is too bad! Why destroy them?"As soon as the words left her mouth, a loud shout came from high above, growing closer and closer."Help—!"Bensheng moved at the sound, catching the person sliding down the slope.Feels like I've been doing good deeds all day... Fine, consider it subduing demons and aiding the world. After this internal grumble, Bensheng and the person in his arms stared at each other, wide-eyed and stunned."Ben...sheng?""Pharma...cist?"Bensheng really couldn't be blamed for not recognizing him. The Pharmacist was now wearing a short-sleeved, short-pants outfit that
exposed his arms and legs. His hair was cut even shorter than Bensheng's. Compared to the wide cloth robes and chest-length hair during the Court Exam, his image had changed so drastically it could be called "wild.""What are you doing here?""I was about to ask you the same thing!"Naturally, the companions were happy to meet. But Youyou still remembered the无辜殒命 (innocently killed) flowers and couldn't help but cry out, "Why did you pick them?!""Because I need these medicinal herbs to save people's lives!" The Pharmacist raised the bamboo basket in his hand.Youyou retracted her head, apologetic. "I'm sorry."The Pharmacist smiled easily. "Follow me!"With the warhorse's help, the Pharmacist quickly brought them back to his clinic. Calling it a clinic was generous; it was essentially a few simple sheds built from wood. Bensheng glanced at the ground beneath his feet; the soil was charred black, indicating this place had also been a battlefield not long ago.The commoner women helping at the clinic saw the Pharmacist return and handed him his mended Robe of Origin. The robe already had three or four patches. The Pharmacist swiftly put it on and took the herbs to treat critical patients.The commoners praised him profusely, saying that after the Pharmacist graduated and obtained his Robe of Origin, he left the Saptaparna Kingdom and came here. Because in Buzhou Kingdom, where fighting occurred daily, there were new wounded every day. To save and treat them, the Pharmacist had put down roots here and never left.Bensheng was filled with deep respect.After finishing his rounds, the Pharmacist took one look at Bensheng's expression and knew what he was thinking. "Don't look at me like that. The lives you all saved during the Court Exam far outnumber mine." The Pharmacist pulled Bensheng along, taking him to a secluded wooden shed.This shed was much larger than the others, but it was very quiet inside, as if no one was there."I want you to meet him."Bensheng lifted the curtain. A swarm of flies and insects flew out towards them.Inside the shed lay a giant elephant, covered in wounds, its flesh torn and mangled, bloodied marks blurred. Insects clung to it,
unwilling to leave.Bensheng was stunned by the massive injuries, taking a good while to regain his composure."Who is he?""Ruoqiao."