Dusk descended.
Within the Huaqing Palace Hot Spring Resort, the restaurant blazed with life. Merchants raised wine cups, shouted drinking commands, and laughed loudly as deals were struck mid-toast. Contracts were sealed not with seals, but with flushed faces and spilled liquor.
Nearby, Wu Shen and Shi Kefa avoided the noise. They settled beneath covered bridges and in open pavilions, laying out tea sets. Steam curled gently upward as rain pattered against tiled roofs. They sipped, discussed affairs of the realm, and when inspiration struck, casually composed a poem or two.
The hot spring grounds were already occupied.
Men soaked in clusters—some murmuring about trade routes and prices, others arguing policy and troop movements as if the steam itself sharpened their political insight.
Yet—
Not a single woman could be seen.
Almost every noblewoman had retreated to the private baths attached to their guest rooms.
In this era, asking women to don swimsuits and bathe publicly was pure fantasy.
Deep within the resort stood a secluded structure hidden by a dense bamboo grove. Inside was a small, private hot spring, shielded from sight and sound.
Li Daoxuan and Gao Yiye soaked there alone.
The pool was not large. They sat facing one another, steam drifting lazily between them. Beneath the water, their feet brushed by accident.
At first, Gao Yiye withdrew her foot instantly, startled.
Then it happened again.
And again.
Eventually, she stopped pulling away.
Their feet came to rest together.
Gao Yiye's cheeks were flushed—whether from the heat of the spring or something else, Li Daoxuan couldn't tell.
"Ti..Tianzun," she asked hesitantly, "if you soak like this… won't you rust?"
"Probably," Li Daoxuan replied with a laugh. "This body wasn't designed to be waterproof. The water's already seeped in."
Her eyes widened. "Oh no! Then what will you do?"
"I'll build a new one."
"…Huh?"
Only then did she realize her worry had momentarily erased something fundamental.
"This body is just Prototype One," Li Daoxuan explained casually. "A basic framework for testing. Prototype Two will have far more… interesting features. As for Prototype Three—"
Her curiosity flared. "Prototype Three?"
Li Daoxuan grinned. "Both arms will be cannons. Thick as my forearms. Ammunition loaded at the elbows. Remove the palms, and the muzzles are right there."
Gao Yiye gasped softly.
"And my feet will house wheels. Pop off the soles and I can rollerblade. I'm very good at it. Practiced a lot."
She covered her face with both hands, half laughing, half exasperated. "Tianzun… you can move mountains, fill seas, and fly through the heavens. Why would you still need cannons and rollerblades?"
"Life needs variety," Li Daoxuan said easily. "Take Sun Wukong. Every time he dealt with a demon, he used a different method. If he always crawled into their stomachs and tore them apart from the inside, no matter the opponent—where would the fun be?"
Gao Yiye thought about it.
…He wasn't wrong.
Silence followed.
The sky darkened further. A night breeze drifted across the water's surface.
They searched for another topic, but none came. The quiet grew slightly awkward.
Just as Li Daoxuan was about to force conversation—
Gao Yiye suddenly leaned forward and threw herself into his arms.
He stiffened in surprise.
"Th-That… forgive me," she said softly, her voice trembling. "I just… really want someone close to me."
He understood instantly.
Her position isolated her from the world. Surrounded by reverence and distance, she lived alone even among crowds. Perhaps only here, with him, could she experience something as ordinary as closeness.
And wasn't he the same?
Li Daoxuan wrapped his arms around her gently.
They said nothing more.
Nothing else happened.
Yet in that quiet pool, pressed together as steam drifted upward, a rare peace settled into their hearts.
Far away—
Huaiqing Prefecture burned in blood.
The rebel army, once marching toward Henan, had been blocked at the river by Li Daoxuan. With no path forward, they turned back like a flood diverted—and poured straight into Huaiqing.
At their current strength, ordinary counties stood no chance.
Only prefectural capitals could still resist.
Huaiqing's towering walls held—for now.
Corpses piled beneath the ramparts. Government soldiers fell atop the walls. Common folk hauled stones and poured boiling water, screaming as arrows struck them down mid-motion.
Roars, screams, and agony merged into a single deafening howl.
Henan Governor Fan Shangzheng led three thousand garrison troops, hoping to relieve the siege from outside.
It was hopeless.
Henan soldiers were infamous for their weakness. Against two hundred thousand rebels, they were ants before a tide.
Unable to help, Fan Shangzheng circled the outskirts, desperately searching for a place to rest—even a temporary camp.
At last, a hundred li south of Huaiqing, a scout rode up.
"Governor! Wen County lies ahead."
"Wen County?" Fan Shangzheng frowned. "Sima Yi's hometown… The Eight Great Kings of the West Camp slaughtered it not long ago. Nine out of ten residents dead. The court appointed a magistrate, but no one dared take the post. In the end, Qiu Qianfan recommended a young man."
He shook his head. "It must be ruins by now."
The scout hesitated. "The city walls have been rebuilt. They look… usable."
"What?"
Fan Shangzheng stared. "That magistrate is truly capable?"
The scout nodded.
"Then move," Fan Shangzheng ordered. "At once."
When they reached Wen County, disbelief overtook him.
The shattered walls had been rebuilt. Though only two meters high, they stood firm again. Civilians were still at work atop them, hauling stones and baskets of earth.
Fan Shangzheng laughed aloud in relief. "There are walls! We can rest here!"
Just then, a head popped up over the battlements.
Fan Shangzheng blinked.
He recognized him.
"Ah?" he exclaimed. "Hero Xiao Qiushui?"
The figure on the wall—none other than Dao Xuan Tianzun, Test Model Two—smiled brightly.
"Governor! Long time no see! What have you been busy with lately?" he called out cheerfully. "Have you eaten yet?"
Fan Shangzheng froze.
The string of absurdly casual greetings left his mind blank.
After a long pause, he managed a wry smile. "Hero Xiao… could you do me a favor and ask Wen County's magistrate to come out and meet me?"