Ten thousand years later, in another realm of the universe, the Barren Life Realm, within an unnamed mountain domain, lay Song Village.
Song Village, named for the abundance of pine trees that grew there, was nestled among rolling Mountain Ranges, surrounded on all sides by mountains. The only path leading to the outside world was a narrow, winding mountain road.
This place had sheltered countless wars and conflicts in the past because it was so remote that almost no one paid it any mind. The only time conflict had spread here was several hundred years ago during the era of warring feudal lords.
At that time, amidst the chaos of war, a general was ordered to carve out a mountain path. He blasted through a mountain barrier and burned a significant portion of the forest, unexpectedly discovering the small settlement of Song Village. However, strangely enough, within a few days, before any report could be filed about the matter, this general and all his soldiers vanished without a trace.
Because it was a time of war, no one pursued the matter further; perhaps they had been ambushed and annihilated by the enemy forces.
And so it was that this isolated Song Village gradually began to communicate with the outside world over the following few centuries.
Even with some exchange, due to Song Village being desolate, lacking resources, being strategically unimportant, and having difficult transportation through the treacherous Forest, the people here were able to enjoy a period of peace, thus avoiding the ravages of war.
The rugged mountain road had only been repaired into a muddy, stone-paved path in the last few decades, barely allowing Carriages and goods to pass. Otherwise, the people of Song Village would have continued to huddle on this small patch of land, having no dealings with outsiders.
In the center of the village was a shallow pond called the Lotus Pond, named for the large expanse of lotus leaves growing within it.
Several hundred households were scattered around the Lotus Pond. The pond water was clear, the green lotus leaves swayed, reflecting the outline of the green mountains, making it almost the symbol of Song Village.
The villagers farmed for generations, living a life of working from sunrise to sunset. For them, while life was not exactly prosperous, it could be considered peaceful.
Near the foot of the mountain, close to the Lotus Pond, stood a Temple. According to the elders, this Temple originated at the same time as Song Village; it was built concurrently with the founding of the village.
This Temple was quite peculiar; it contained no statues of gods or paintings, but it housed numerous dilapidated Magic Tools. The main hall enshrined only a single large character: "Purity" .
Some elders said this was a temple for purifying filth and expelling evil spirits.
However, the Temple's Incense Offerings had never been abundant. Historically, only the successive Village Chiefs undertook repairs upon taking office, and this had become a tradition for the inauguration of a Song Village Village Chief.
A few hundred meters away from the Temple stood a simple School.
This School had endured the wind and rain for decades; some roof tiles were askew, and green moss had long since climbed the corners of the walls.
This was the only place where the children of Song Village could study. Since the mountain road was opened, many merchants had gradually arrived from outside. Being able to read and achieve Literacy, and then seeking livelihoods in the city, was the aspiration of every person in Song Village.
Every year, the folks of Song Village would rack their brains to pool funds to invite a Tutor from the outside city to this remote little village to teach the children Literacy and reading.
However, not many Tutors were willing to come to Song Village to teach. After all, it was remote and isolated; it took four days on a fast horse to reach the nearest town. The mountain roads were inconvenient, resources were scarce, let alone comparing it to those prosperous large cities.
In the eyes of those scholars, teaching stuck in such a mountain ravine was not only a waste of their talent but was almost equivalent to exile. Any Tutor with a bit of skill or vision would generally avoid Song Village.
Scholars valued character the most, and if character was lacking, propriety was necessary. Here in Song Village, nestled by the Lotus Pond, one could not satisfy the prideful scholars.
But there are always exceptions. Master Ji was persuaded by the villagers of the Lotus Pond to return and teach, not because the neighbors of the Lotus Pond exerted great effort or offered a high stipend, but because Master Ji had offended a local magnate in Xiping City. After writing an essay subtly mocking the man, he was driven out of the city. With nowhere else to go, he had no choice but to accept the external appointment from the Lotus Pond.
When Master Ji first arrived at the Lotus Pond, people lined the road three *li* outside the village to welcome him. With suonas and firecrackers, it was quite lively. They escorted the Master into the School with fanfare akin to a wedding or a funeral, attracting many small children to follow behind.
The School within the Lotus Pond was called Shuhe.
Several pine trees were planted inside the Shuhe School. One pine tree was planted near the corner of the School wall; half of its branches grew outside, while the other half grew into the corner of the School wall, which was quite strange.
Birds also nested in these pine trees, or Squirrels scampered across them.
However, the village children were long accustomed to this; which household didn't have a few swallows' nests under their eaves?
Originally, the villagers of the Lotus Pond wanted to cut down these pine trees, but Master Ji spoke some vague words about the Great Dao being natural, so Village Chief Zhao Biao dropped the matter.
Spring turned to autumn, and Master Ji stayed at Shuhe for several years.
At Shuhe, every child who enrolled did not start with Literacy, but began with drawing. What they drew was naturally the Lotus Pond before their eyes.
After each drawing was finished, Master Ji would ask for their name and then inscribe it for them; this name would thus be recorded.
"What is your name?" Master Ji asked, looking at the drawing of the Lotus Pond before him, gently touching the head of the five-year-old boy.
"I... I am called... Li Jun... Jun meaning fine steed... My father said this name means... he will run fast in the future," the little boy mumbled timidly.
Master Ji inscribed the name for him, writing down the appellation.
"Remember this name; you must never forget it," he said.
"Yes, Tutor."
"What is this black dot you drew under the lotus flower?"
"It's an insect, Tutor. That insect is round and has eight legs?"
"Oh, is that so? Where is it?" Master Ji became interested, squinting as he looked toward the cluster of lotus flowers in the Lotus Pond.
"Over there, over there, Tutor," Li Jun pointed toward the lotus cluster a hundred meters away.
Master Ji was naturally old and dim-sighted, but he kept agreeing, "I see it, I see it."
This made Li Jun quite happy.
Master Ji walked to another spot and continued looking at the drawings of a few other children.
"What is your name?"
"Greetings, Tutor. My name is Su Shuai... Shuai meaning frankness."
"That 'Shuai' doesn't sound good. Change it to the 'Shuai' meaning commander. You will surely have achievements in the future. Go tell your parents it is Su Shuai, the 'Shuai' of a commander."
"Yes, Master Ji."
On the other side of the School, a group of slightly older children were reading from books.
They sat further away, holding scriptures in their hands; they were clearly students who had been enrolled for a long time.
They shouted toward Master Ji, "Tutor! Tutor! The Outer Field is on fire!"
"Study diligently and don't be distracted!" Master Ji scolded.
Those students suppressed their restlessness and returned to their reading.
The Outer Field was only about ten meters from the Shuhe School; it was where the students played after school. Every late summer, the grass in the Outer Field grew taller than a person. Village Chief Zhao Biao organized the villagers every year to burn the grass in the Outer Field.
Initially, Master Ji was also anxious and even warned the Village Chief to wait until the children had gone home before burning it.
But the Village Chief prioritized Farm Work and had no free time. He would burn it whenever it was convenient, which caused Master Ji to grumble for a while.
Fortunately, it had been burned this way for several years without incident, so Master Ji stopped complaining. After all, the Village Chief was doing voluntary labor by clearing the weeds in the Outer Field for the School.
Therefore, every year, this scene would occur: fierce flames outside, and the sound of clear reading voices coming from Shuhe, just ten meters away.
But this time, something seemed different.
"Tutor, it's bad, it's on fire..."
Seeing this, the children in the School put down their books and craned their necks to watch. The Tutor didn't look up, remaining composed, and the ruler slapped the lectern with a *pa*.
"I know. Deng Meng, tell me, where did we stop reading?"
"We stopped at..." Deng Meng stammered.
"Tutor, the School is on fire!"
"Calm down, we are scholars, we must have... What? The School... is... on fire!"
The School suddenly erupted in fierce flames, and a wave of stifling heat rushed down from above.
Those pine trees looked like torches, flames shooting up from their tips, reddening the School. The bird nests at the top of the trees could not withstand the scorching heat of the Fierce Flame, and birds flew out in terror, flapping their wings and scattering in all directions.
The Squirrels that had been busy climbing the trunks completely lost their composure, leaping everywhere as if fleeing for their lives.
"Everyone get out quickly, run toward the Lotus Pond, do not go toward the Outer Field!" Master Ji's voice echoed through the thick smoke, carrying a tone of urgency and anxiety, completely abandoning his usual gentle and calm demeanor.
"Everyone run!" A few older children heard the Tutor's roar, quickly grabbed their younger companions nearby, and rushed out supporting each other.
The younger children's eyes were full of confusion, but seeing their companions running, they instinctively followed them out.
The fire spread extremely fast, and thick smoke began to billow.
The Fierce Flame quickly engulfed the School's roof, and tongues of fire licked every corner of the School like giant dragons.
Because the old School had not been repaired for years, some of its walls were already on the verge of collapse. Unable to withstand the test of the flames, with a dull, loud crash, it finally collapsed completely, bricks and tiles shattering, dust scattering everywhere.
A catastrophe. Everything before their eyes became blurred, with only the interplay of firelight and smoke, instilling dread.
Master Ji disregarded his aged body, quickly scooped up a few hesitant small children, and hurried out. His head of white beard shook as he ran.
In this chaotic scene, Li Jun also fled in panic with his classmates. His heart pounded, and his throat was filled with the taste of smoke and dust.
The firelight and rolling thick smoke seemed to surround him. In his ears were the cries of children and the calls of the Tutor; everywhere were flying roof tiles and falling branches.
Just as Li Jun ran past the School's backyard, he caught a glimpse in his peripheral vision of a Squirrel struggling on the ground not far ahead.
A charred tree trunk lay pressing down on the Squirrel. The Squirrel's four limbs seemed to be twitching violently, as if trying hard to break free. The heavy trunk seemed to prevent the Squirrel from escaping, and the flames were about to spread to it.
Li Jun kicked the tree trunk off the Squirrel fiercely. Firelight danced before his eyes, and the heat wave made it hard for him to breathe. His own exertion caused him pain, and he nearly fell.
He bent down, grabbed the Squirrel in one swift motion, held it tightly in his hand, and turned to sprint out of the School.
The Squirrel curled up obediently in his palm and stopped struggling.
Li Jun's heart pounded like thunder, his legs felt weak from running, and behind him was the sound of flames devouring everything, while the rushing hot wind whistled past his ears.
The edges of his clothes were dyed red by the firelight, and sweat constantly streamed down his temples, but he didn't dare wipe it away, only thinking faster, faster, and even faster. Nearby, some children had tripped and were crying out, while some villagers rushed over from the distance.
Li Jun burst out of the School, and the fresh air that hit his face made him take a deep breath.
His body trembled as he gently placed the Squirrel in his arms. The little creature seemed to have fainted.
The fire at Shuhe quickly spread, and the entire Lotus Pond area was in an uproar. The small children were covered in dust and grime; some were crying from injury, but some children were happily watching the excitement.
The villagers were filled with worry, constantly fetching water to fight the fire. However, in the height of summer, the Shuhe School was ultimately burned completely clean. Fortunately, there were no casualties.
Some adults, without asking for details, immediately started hitting their own children on the spot, believing that since their child studied at the School, they must be responsible for the fire, or at least needed a lesson to assert their parental authority.
These children, who a second ago were watching the excitement and the people fighting the fire with unrestrained noise and joy, were now being chased and spanked the next second.
The crowd was noisy until evening, when people gradually dispersed.
Only Master Ji remained, staring blankly at the Shuhe School. Village Chief Zhao Biao said something beside Master Ji, but receiving no response, everyone left separately.