Pan Zhuanghe saw this but did not show impatience.
He slowly walked to the grille drawer, took out an incense stick from the gap in the drawer, lit it, and inserted it into the incense burner in the center of the room.
A faint smoke diffused throughout the room, and as the fragrance spread, Li Jun suddenly felt a sense of ease in his heart, as if the tension and unease were dispelled by this scent.
Everything before his eyes began to blur slightly, and even the sorrow and worry in his heart gradually faded, replaced by an inexplicable tranquility.
Pan Zhuanghe beckoned to Li Jun again, and this time, Li Jun unexpectedly strode forward, as if drawn by some formless force.
He obediently walked to Pan Zhuanghe's side, climbed onto the stool in front of him, his gaze somewhat vacant, his whole person appearing distracted, yet his face held a hint of joy.
Pan Zhuanghe gently patted Li Jun's shoulder and began to ask him about his background.
At this moment, Li Jun seemed to have dropped his guard, and the secrets in his heart felt as if a valve had suddenly opened; he poured out everything he knew, detail by detail.
From his life story and his hometown of Song Village, to the Demonic Beasts he encountered, the Black Cauldron, and even the strange experiences with the masked old man in the Mountain Valley, he told it all without reservation.
By the end, Li Jun felt as if his mouth had a desire to pour out more, wanting to say something else, but he could only chuckle and smile foolishly; these scenes he witnessed firsthand felt real yet unreal.
Meanwhile, Pan Zhuanghe, listening to Li Jun's expression in that foreign accent, understood everything without any barrier, nodded, and maintained his benevolent smile, as if these matters did not surprise him.
He spoke gently to Li Jun, "Stay here from now on. Although Kefeng City is not large, you can find a livelihood here, and life will gradually stabilize. You can call me Grandpa Pan."
Li Jun was stunned for a moment, then obediently called out "Grandfather," his voice soft but carrying a touch of sincerity.
Pan Zhuanghe showed a satisfied expression upon hearing this and nodded slightly.
Then, Pan Zhuanghe patted the back of Li Jun's head, signaling that Li Jun could go back to rest.
Li Jun stood up and, as if guided by an invisible power, obediently walked back to the cot in the Storeroom and lay down.
Soon, he fell into a deep sleep, appearing peaceful and calm.
Pan Zhuanghe stood by the bed, gazing at the unconscious Li Jun, his brow furrowed slightly, a complex emotion flickering in his eyes.
After weighing things in his mind for a moment, he slowly took out a box of Golden Needles from his sleeve and walked toward Li Jun's bedside, his gaze intensely focused.
The Golden Needles in his hand moved deftly between his fingertips, then flashed like lightning, piercing several key acupoints on Li Jun's head with clean, swift movements, without any hesitation.
Simultaneously, Pan Zhuanghe rapidly formed Hand Seals with his right hand, softly chanting an ancient and mysterious Incantation, his voice low and restrained, like an ancient breeze brushing past.
A thin Green Light lit up at the tip of his right index finger, resembling a Star Fire in the darkness.
With a gentle touch, that sliver of Green Light instantly merged into Li Jun's skull, vanishing without a trace, like a drop of water entering the sea.
Pan Zhuanghe stood by the bed; after performing the Secret Method, he had quietly altered Li Jun's memories, completely sealing away the painful past few days deep within his soul.
Now, in Li Jun's mind, only the memory of falling from the Vulture Demonic Beast's Cage and getting lost in the Forest remained, followed by his encounters with Pan Zhuanghe and the others.
Those bloody wounds, fear, and helplessness had been thoroughly buried.
Pan Zhuanghe slowly squatted down, gently placing his right hand on Li Jun's palm, probing Li Jun's body with his Divine Sense, and murmured to himself, "It's better forgotten."
Suddenly, his brow twitched, and a hint of surprise flashed in his eyes: "Eh?" He gently reached out again to check Li Jun's Meridians, and after a moment, an expression of disbelief appeared on his face.
"This child... this physique? Could it be, no, it should be... How could it be the Primordial Dao Body!" Pan Zhuanghe exclaimed softly, his eyes holding both delight and a touch of regret.
He carefully examined Li Jun again, his expression growing more complex, "What a huge pity. The Primordial Dao Body, a physique rarely seen even in a thousand years. Too bad, the world no longer has Primordial Chaos Qi, so the Dao Body cannot be cleansed, making cultivation impossible. Even possessing such talent, in the current world, there is no place to use it, leaving him a mere Mortal, especially in this Small Spirit Realm. Unless..."
He sighed deeply and gently touched Li Jun's forehead.
Of course, in his understanding, there was a way to forcibly awaken the Primordial Dao Body through external stimulation, but such a method would only result in mediocre Spiritual Root Aptitude, creating a pseudo-Spiritual Root, unable to truly unleash the might of the Primordial Dao Body, and leading to Bottlenecks in later cultivation, preventing Nascent Soul Formation.
This was Pan Zhuanghe's superficial understanding of the Primordial Dao Body, as he had only encountered one such physique in his life—Li Jun's.
However, within a force called the Tiangang Alliance in the cultivation world, records of a Secret Method existed: thousands of years ago, someone had activated a true Primordial Dao Body using an Evil Method, and the means involved cleansing it with innate Primordial Chaos Qi, where 'innate' meant seizing the wisp of Primordial Chaos Qi from a cultivator with a Spiritual Root.
But a Spiritual Root cultivator only possessed one wisp, which was too little; true cleansing would require sacrificing at least several hundred cultivators. This vicious method was despised by the cultivation world, so it was kept secret. Furthermore, a Primordial Dao Body that achieved Nascent Soul Formation was an important medicinal ingredient. Pan Zhuanghe, of course, did not know these hidden secrets.
Pan Zhuanghe looked at the sleeping youth, his heart filled with regret, "If in those ancient times, there were still places in this world containing Primordial Chaos Qi, this child might have already been fought over by the major Sects, his Dao Body cleansed, with boundless prospects. But now... truly born at the wrong time."
"Eh?" Pan Zhuanghe caught a slightly different aura, so he sent his Divine Sense in again to investigate, but found nothing in the end.
Pan Zhuanghe sighed, shook his head, and finally stood up, turning toward the door.
He gently closed the door with light movements, and Li Jun continued to sleep soundly.
Pan Zhuanghe's figure disappeared at the end of the corridor.
As the door closed, Li Jun's untold memories of the Mountain Valley were sealed away in the long river of time.
Around Li Jun, a speck of light, indiscernible to the naked eye and undetectable by Divine Sense, was absorbed by the Pinecone inside Li Jun's body, and after a long while, another one followed... and under this speck of light, Li Jun's body recovered slightly faster.
In Li Jun's dream, that Squirrel, now turning silvery, reappeared, and began playing hide-and-seek with Li Jun among the trees.
Yi Enguang, the Pavilion Master of the Medicinal Cuisine Workshop, was very pleased to hear that Pan Zhuanghe had gathered Three Soul Grass.
He hurried to the Medicinal Materials Storeroom and paid his respects to Old Pan. Upon hearing that Pan Zhuanghe had brought back a child, he was initially curious and specifically asked other servants about it.
Once he learned that the child was indeed an orphan found in the Forest, he did not inquire further.
Yi Enguang, being thoughtful, arranged for someone to deliver some items suitable for a child: exquisite small toys, clothes, and even a few books. These things were quietly placed in the West Storeroom of the Medicinal Cuisine Workshop.
In the days that followed, Li Jun settled down in Pan Zhuanghe's Storeroom.
The news that there was a child in the West Storeroom of the Medicinal Cuisine Workshop quickly spread.
Outsiders assumed Pan Zhuanghe had brought back a grandson, while those in the know jokingly called Li Jun a fortunate child, able to live a stable life under Pan Zhuanghe's protection and even work as a small helper in the Medicinal Cuisine Workshop.
Although Li Jun was young, he came from a Hunter family, was sturdy, and could endure hardship. Pan Zhuanghe's care also led the other servants in the workshop to show him some consideration.
Days passed, and Li Jun sometimes felt homesick, thinking about returning to his hometown of Song Village.
But he heard from Huang Zidong that it would take several years just to leave Fengluan Mountain bordering Kefeng City, where he could easily get lost or become food for the Fierce beasts in the Forest at any moment.
Moreover, there were at least a hundred villages named "Song Village" scattered everywhere. He had no map, and even his sense of direction was vague, so Li Jun gave up the idea.
During this time, he gradually understood the local dialect and learned how to speak the language here.
Li Jun knew that the city he was in, Kefeng City, was a small city in the Xia Kingdom, and the Xia Kingdom was just one country on this land, with other countries such as the Ning Kingdom, Song Qing Kingdom, Faji Kingdom, and so on.
After some days of deep thought, Li Jun finally realized that returning home now was tantamount to a fool's dream.
Rather than wandering adventurously, it was better to stay here, learn a skill, and make plans for the future.
After all, even if he returned home, he would just be driven out by Li San to become an Apprentice. Working at the Medicinal Cuisine Workshop now was his own opportunity, and Li Jun cherished his job here very much.
Furthermore, Pan Zhuanghe doted on Li Jun, showing more affection than his biological father, Li San.
This care gradually settled Li Jun's heart.
But occasionally, late at night, homesickness would quietly creep into his heart.
Life at the Medicinal Cuisine Workshop, however, was fulfilling; learning a trade here brought a rare sense of peace and warmth.
The thought of returning home was buried deep in his heart, becoming a cherished memory.