Chapter 18: The Departed Were Gone, the Living Remained

The duo's eyes glittered as they stared at the hundred-year-old wild mountain ginseng. They were so excited that those countless nights of drained essence were not worth mentioning at this moment!

"Old ox, we're going to strike a fortune."

Chen Xun stared, fully aware that this plant had been cultivated by him and the ox with their Essence of All Things. "This is a level of wealth comparable to that of gold!"

"Moo!!"

The ox was very excited; it had never seen gold before!

"With this age, the wealthy families of the city might go crazy over it. This is definitely an intense object of desire." Chen Xun swallowed hard. Most herbal books held records of such herbs. This could be considered a treasure in the mortal world.

"Should we sell it?"

"Moo? Moo."

The big black ox hesitated for a moment, then shook its head. They weren't lacking in money. They had enough to cover their daily lives. This was a treasure they worked hard to create, it was theirs.

"Fine. Let's keep it for the future, then." Chen Xun nodded. He also felt that selling it would be a huge waste. It would also be disrespecting the countless days worth of green drops they had spent, in a way.

"Let's cultivate some other herbs. A few decades should be enough. Otherwise, it would attract too much attention and would cause unnecessary problems."

"Moo!"

The big black ox nodded vigorously. Chen Xun had told it many stories, and it knew better now.

Over the past few years in the Ningyun Mountain Range, they had only found regular herbs. They hadn't encountered any of the legendary elixirs. Who could be lucky all their life?

However, after the battle between the cultivators in the sky today, the people of Panning City turned restless. Many were eager to seek immortality, causing droves of people to flock into the Ningyun Mountain Range.

Seeing these new trend, numerous frauds appeared, promising people a chance onto the path of martial arts. Many naive people met an end in the hands of viscous bandits, and robbery and murder became common place in the mountains. The coffin sellers of the city couldn't be any happier.

In fact, this immortality craze caused the martial sects to take action. If the immortal sects didn't want these new disciples, they'd take them! What the immortal sects didn't want to handle, they would gladly take!

As a result, various stories of chivalry from the martial world began to circulate, gaining popularity.

The barbarians of the Ningyun Mountain Range gradually lost traction, and everyone soon forgot about them.

Time seemed to really have the power to make everything quiet down. //

...

With that, five more years passed.

During this time, Chen Xun had invested all of his Immortal Points into the Essence of All Things. And he and the ox finally advanced their Qi Refining stage to the third level.

Unfortunately, in these past few years, time has not been kind to their neighbors, who were mostly elderly. Some passed away, and those who did not had at least aged considerably. The duo had taken it upon themselves to take care and settle the funerals of those who had passed away. They helped their families without complaining.

On an autumn night, the sky turned colder, and the moist air gradually turned into fine droplets of dew. The clear, cold light cast by the moon illuminated the city dimly. And in the distance, the spirit hall of the departed, were especially heart-wrenching, their numbers exceeding those of years before.

The early autumn night persisted a bit longer, and the cool breeze turned more melancholic.

Chen Xun stood outside the spirit hall, playing the suona under a tree. The yellowed leaves rattled with night breeze, some snapped off, slowly fluttering to the ground....

His heart couldn't help but grow heavy with melancholy, and he sighed.

Those familiar smiles were disappearing one by one. Perhaps, as time passed, those smiles would be but a hazy memory at the back of his mind.

Throughout the spirit hall, murmurs of sorrow filled the air. Chen Xun walked slowly around, having done all he could to help.

"Chen Xun, my brother, thank you."

"Please accept my condolences." Chen Xun stood up, his voice low, managing a faint smile. "We've already conducted the rituals. They will surely be protected on their way to the underworld. No ghost would dare get in their way."

Their family members nodded heavily, their hands tightly gripping Chen Xun's, tears of gratitude welling in their eyes.

"Moo moo~"

Outside the spirit hall, the ox mooed softly, and the bells hung on its body shock from side to side, blessing those who had passed.

The deceased returned to the soil, and the living lived to see another day, waiting for their turn....

The smithery's street turned quieter these days. And as the days passed, Chen Xun and the ox became more peculiar in the eyes of the residents. People sought them out personally, seemingly paying less attention to the smithery itself.

Today was a clear morning, with complete silence that filled the area. The wind carried a bone-chilling coldness, and the old trees by the street were streaked with a withered yellow.

The sound of a door closing shut was very faint, not drawing attention. A man turned his body and peered at the street one last time. The days that he had spent here passed through his mind one by one.

They were like travelers of time, fleeting like passersby. Nobody knew where they came from, and where they would be heading next. They slowly started walking away, never to set foot her once again.

With that, the blacksmith shop remained closed in the following years. The neighbors assumed that Chen Xun might have died far away. Years later, they only remembered that there was once a blacksmith who hammered iron like none other.

...

One month later, nighttime.

The western region of Panning City....

This was the most bustling area of the city. Those who could live in the western district were either nobles, or wealthy families, and every piece of land here was of sky-high price.

A group of people walked amidst the bustling crowds. Among them, the men carried a refined air, while the women displayed elegance and beauty. Their eyes were full of wonder, yet their demeanor carried an ethereal sense, as if they didn't belong here.

"The world of mortals is truly fascinating," one of the girls remarked with a melodious voice, "All I do is cultivate all year round in the sect. Only the spiritual beasts in the mountain keep me company."

"Sister Ye, you're mistaken. Allow me to clarify," a stern, stoic man shook his head slightly and said, "You've never witnessed the cities of cultivators. Panning City is just a tiny village in the world. The vastness of heaven and earth is beyond your imagination."

"Ah... Senior Brother Yu, is that really so...?" Ye, the junior sister, exclaimed, her voice tinged with excitement. "Did Senior Brother Yu ever go there?"

Senior Brother Yu's expression remained the same, yet his stern face turned even sterner, and he replied earnestly, "No, I haven't."

The entire group's mouth twitched.

"Hey, what's that over there?"

Something seemed to have caught the eye of Junior Sister Ye, causing her to dash towards it. Upon seeing her run ahead, the others had no choice but to follow, but once they saw it, they were all taken aback.

It was a small "building" with four iron wheels underneath. There was a signboard on the small building that read "Xun Flavor Snacks."

It seemed to be a shop, yet it had the appearance of a vendor's stall, and it took quite a large space. The spot was bustling with people, and it seemed to have garnered quite the popularity.

The owner could be seen sweating profusely, holding a large pot, with flames leaping out of it. He would occasionally add unexpected seasonings that delighted the customers.

On the side of the building was a window with an ox's head peering through. it strangely lifted its hoofs and took the copper coins in the slit its hoof. It even gave back change!

And outside the building was a grill with skewers. It was releasing fragrant fumes in the air, and the aromatic scent traveled for miles. When this group of people caught a whiff of it, they couldn't help but start salivating.

With such a popular vendor, there were naturally others in the same trade who felt envious. However, the owner had three huge axes slung over his body. The sight of his ten-pack abs that appeared when he bent over blew any thoughts they had away.

"Boss, I want this!" Junior Sister Ye happily exclaimed. She wanted to try everything, "And that, too."

"Young lady, first come, first served. You have to wait in line. How about paying first?" The owner's speech was very straightforward. The people waiting felt a sense of contentment upon hearing it. Eating here was indeed satisfying.

"Senior Brother Yu, come quickly and pay!!" Juino Sister Ye jumped up and down, beckoning her senior brother over.

She kept sniffing the aroma with her delicate nose. The smell left her entranced.

Senior Brother Yu felt uncomfortable all over. He strode through the crowd and approached the window. He took out a silver coin and stared at the ox.

Senior Brother Yu was dumbfounded, and his mouth slightly opened. Why was an ox receiving the money...?

The big black ox was also puzzled, exhaling through its nostrils. It didn't expect to receive so much; it couldn't keep count.