The barrier of Jingzi Mountain vanished for just a fraction of a second, and a streak of pink seized the opportunity to slip right through.
Inside the pavilion, an old man was dressed in a peach-colored wide-sleeved Daoist robe, with three wine gourds hanging from his waist.
The soft, delicate pink clashed utterly with his advanced age, yet because of his kind and gentle expression, it possessed a bizarre sense of compatibility.
It was Feng Dong; he had arrived.
Immortal Wuqing conjured a wine cup, poured a cup of wine, and pushed it toward Bai Chen.
“Taste this peach blossom brew I recently fermented. Last time, the pear blossom brew wasn’t finished, and neither was the story. You won’t escape this time.”
Bai Chen did not drink it; his gaze remained calm and steady.
“There is no need. I still have matters to attend to.”
“What’s this? With your capabilities, shouldn’t that little doll be bouncing around with vitality by now?”
Bai Chen tapped his fingertips lightly against the tabletop, speaking the plain truth.
“Xiao Xiao has just recovered from severe injuries; this deity has no such leisure.”
Immortal Wuqing laughed heartily, stroking his beard while gazing fixedly at the foremost Immortal Venerable in the world before him.
“You exhausted your spiritual power to heal his injuries, nearly damaging your own immortal roots, and even went so far as to harm your own immortal body—all for a picked-up master-disciple bond? And now you won’t even drink my wine.”
Bai Chen gripped the wine cup before him, solemnly turning it a full circle by the rim. With a hook of his index finger, all the wine inside fell straight into his mouth.
“He is the one I brought back. Guarding his safety is a master’s duty.”
“Oh? So it was merely a duty.”
Bai Chen fell silent for a moment, then looked at Immortal Wuqing. “Wine does not intoxicate man, man intoxicates himself. Immortal, savor your peach blossoms slowly. This deity is intoxicated, so let us end it here.”
How could the dignified, foremost Immortal Venerable in the world have a tolerance for alcohol so feeble?
Immortal Wuqing said word by word, “Ever since that chaotic era, you have remained alone for a millennium, cold-hearted and unfeeling. Now, for the sake of a disciple, you stir up such a tempest and willingly self-inflicted harm? Do not forget, you are destined for ascension. Whether it is a person, an emotion, or an object, it must end here. Nothing in this world can surpass you.”
Bai Chen stood up, the cold wind whipping up his robes and projecting an unapproachable aloofness.
“Thank you for the reminder, Immortal. This deity knows what he is doing.”
“If you ruin your supreme path because of a momentary mortal, how should your late master and senior martial brother feel?”
With his back turned to him, Bai Chen replied in a detached tone, “As for the matter of ascension, this deity is determined to succeed. Immortal need not remind me.”
Immortal Wuqing watched his receding figure and sighed, “I wish for you to always remain alone, yet I cannot bear to see you without anyone by your side. The resplendent path of the gods is destined to be solitary. Is this right or wrong? Isn’t living in the present moment correct…”
A flask of wine was poured out under the ginkgo tree, the liquid slowly freezing into an amber-colored ice that enveloped a withered leaf.
“A-Ran, perhaps this old man should not linger in this mortal world.”
White snow descended slowly from the sky, showing a tendency to grow heavier. By the time the heavy snow fell in flurries, the pavilion was already empty of people.
Inside the artifact-refining room, Bai Chen was forging a magical tool. Spiritual fire quenched the materials, incantations were completed, and the artifact manifested. In the blink of an eye, the room was empty once more, with only a flash of white leaving down the mountain.
After drinking the soup medicine meant to nourish Qi and enrich blood, Tu Xiao felt his eyelids grow extremely heavy. His master had said he would return in half a day, so when he woke up, his master would surely be right before his eyes, right? Thoughts swirled, the notion was pleasant, and he gradually drifted into a deep sleep, his breathing steady and calm.
Early the next morning, it had been a night without dreams.
Tu Xiao propped himself up by his waist, yawning silently. As he put on his shoes and raised his head, he saw that at the desk and chair diagonally opposite him, his master was resting his elbow on the table, supporting his head with one hand, eyes closed like an immortal descending to the mortal realm.
He walked over softly, not daring to make a sound for fear of disturbing such a breathtaking view.
How could anyone look so astonishingly handsome even with their eyes closed? It was simply beyond beautiful.
If he had a smartphone right now, he would definitely sneak a photo to let this beauty be handed down through the ages.
Such long eyelashes, such a straight nose. Suddenly, a thought popped into his head: Do you want to slide down big brother’s nose? Do you want to slide down big brother’s abdominal muscles?
His gaze drifted downward, pausing at the waist and abdomen. Does Master have those?
What on earth was he thinking?! Tu Xiao shook his head vigorously, trying to rattle all the nonsense right out of his brain.
“What is the matter? Is your head hurting or feeling uncomfortable?”
A cool touch covered his forehead, and Tu Xiao was so flustered he forgot to reply.
Spiritual energy entered his body, and after probing, there were no problems.
“When I went down the mountain to subdue demons and returned, I passed a pastry shop. Remembering that you liked eating them before, I bought a package of everything.”
“Go wash up first, and when you come back, try them. How does that sound?”
His master still thought of him even while going down the mountain to subdue demons; his status was simply too high. Who would refuse? Only a fool would.
Tu Xiao agreed readily and dashed out at top speed to wash up.
Upon returning, he unlocked the path of opening a “blind box.”
He opened a package and took a bite.
This one was a chestnut pastry, overflowing with a milky aroma and a rich chestnut flavor.
He opened another package and took a bite.
This was milk tea, with a sweet tea fragrance where the tea flavor blended with the cheese without being greasy at all.
Crab roe pastries, rose pastries, mung bean cakes, osmanthus sugar cakes, arrowroot cakes, and jujube-paste yam cakes.
Every single package was unwrapped, and the table was nearly covered.
After his careful tasting, the most delicious ones were the crab roe pastries and the osmanthus sugar cakes. The crab roe pastries were milky, savory, and sweet, while the osmanthus sugar cakes smelled of osmanthus and were soft and waxy. Taking a sip of tea afterward, he felt as though his soul had achieved redemption.
So full.
He was full, but his master hadn’t tasted them yet.
Although his master practiced inedia and wouldn’t eat them, not feeding him was a completely different matter. After a moment of thought, Tu Anyu [Tu Xiao] was enlightened; pouting his rear and wearing a smiling curve in his eyes, he handed over a piece of osmanthus sugar cake.
“Master, it’s fragrant, waxy, and melts in the mouth. Do me the honor of trying a piece, won’t you~?”
“It’s too sweet.”
The words of refusal had already slipped out when he saw the clear disappointment visibly manifest on the person before him. Those sparkling eyes instantly dimmed, his head slowly drooped, and his little mouth turned down in a pout.
It was merely a piece of pastry, after all, not some fatal poison.
Bai Chen raised his hand to take the osmanthus sugar cake, speaking in a flat tone, “Eating a little bit is fine.”
Sure enough, the person before him sprang back to life in a second. He took a bite of the sugar cake under that expectant gaze, chewing at a leisurely pace.
“It’s delicious.”
Tu Xiao felt secretly delighted; he truly understood his master, and his master even shared his exact preferences.
“I think so too, delicious and I love it. The pastries Master bought are the best, my absolute favorite.”
Tu Xiao initiated his praising mode, continuously eating another round in order.
Just as he was about to feed his master again, a yellow ring appeared before his eyes.
It was the Buli Ring, forged from millennial crystal stone and a single drop of blood.
The creator could sense the user of the ring at any time, no matter where they were; alternatively, by using spiritual power to activate the ring, the creator would immediately sense it, allowing for the remote transmission of a spell array, magic arts, or the person themselves.
“Extend your hand, Xiao Xiao.”
Tu Xiao stuffed the crab roe cake he was about to hand over straight into his mouth, then quickly wiped the crumbs off both hands onto his uniform jacket, stretching out both hands cleanly and obediently like a hamster.
He watched as his master placed the golden ring onto his index finger. His hands were too small, so the ring was clearly oversized.
Miraculously, the moment it was fitted on, the ring vanished instantly, leaving only a faint golden circle visible around his index finger. If one didn’t look closely, it was utterly impossible to spot.
Tu Xiao tugged at his index finger and asked, “Such a big gold ring, is Master giving this to me?”
“It is the Buli Ring, not a ring. If you want to see it, try urging your spiritual power and press your thumb against this mark.”
Tu Xiao gave it a try, and sure enough, the ring appeared again. How magical.
“This is the Buli Ring.”
“Mn. If you fall into a perilous situation, urge your spiritual power to touch this ring. No matter where you are, this master will be able to perceive it and come save you.”
The original book had mentioned it: the Buli Ring, implying separation neither in life nor in death. If he remembered correctly, Tu Xiao was supposed to be the one giving it to Bai Chen. How had it reversed now?
He didn’t quite remember all the functions of the Buli Ring, but it should be similar to its name—much like a high-end tracking monitor.
“Master is simply too amazing!”
With this thing, who would dare mess with him?
He immediately moved in to hug him, only to be blocked, though it did not diminish his joy at that moment.
He had the mistaken illusion of being sheltered by the headmaster while at school.