After listening blankly to Lord Lao's words, Belle still found herself unable to respond, her mood inexplicably sinking.
After a long while, she asked, "Will he ever awaken to the Dao?"
Lord Lao slowly shook his head. "With his temperament, enlightenment is beyond his reach. He will die nursing resentment against Old Lord, then drink the Lethe Draught, forget everything, and begin anew."
"Then, is there anything I can do to help him? He welcomed us so warmly—perhaps I should return and teach him the Crescent Star Cave’s techniques."
Lord Lao looked at her and slowly shook his head. "This life cannot be salvaged; for him, the best is simply to let things take their natural course and wait for his allotted span to end. Even if I intervened now, it would only be error upon error. Everything is already decided."
Belle lowered her head as she walked, silent and withdrawn.
She felt that everything Lord Lao said was right. Yet why did what was right feel so helpless?
Unconsciously, she pressed her hand to her chest, feeling a deep ache.
When night fell, facing the campfire, Belle softly asked, "Old sir, do you have any disciples?"
"Yes, a few rather disappointing ones," Lord Lao replied quietly, nodding.
Do you teach them the same way?
Lord Lao slowly shook his head. "I never truly taught them. If someone can only learn by being taught, how can they ever desire to learn or comprehend quickly? The library holds a hundred volumes of Daoist classics—has he truly understood any of them?"
"Not teach?" Belle stirred the campfire with a stick, speaking softly. "If Elder Qingyun were here at the monastery, he would lecture daily, and I would always attend."
And what about Master Sage Subhuti? Did he ever lecture?
Belle slowly shook her head and smiled faintly. "My master never lectured, only answered questions. Sometimes his answers were so cryptic, he never made things clear."
Suddenly, she began to miss her days at the monastery.
There, she never had to worry; if she was bullied, her elders and masters would always stand up for her.
But out here, she discovered the world was not only vast, but also filled with so much helplessness—it made her heart ache.
She realized, her world and the monkey's were truly different.
"Not lecturing is because seeking the Dao is a personal journey, unrelated to others. Answering questions is his duty as a teacher. Speaking cryptically is to make you ponder for yourselves. The same scripture yields different insights for everyone; only what you realize yourself can be put to real use. That is the highest way." Lord Lao stroked his long beard, slowly closed his eyes, and nodded in silent approval.
Old sir, when your disciples ask you questions, do you always answer them?
Lord Lao slowly opened his eyes, tilted his head back, and sighed: "Depends on my mood."
Belle covered her mouth and burst out laughing.
Lord Lao laughed as well.
So what do they usually ask?
Questions about how to refine pills or where to pick immortal herbs—things like that, boring as can be. Few ask as you do. I rather like you; why not become my disciple?" Lord Lao glanced at Belle with a sly look.
Belle was taken aback and hurriedly shook her head.
"You're Elder Gale's disciple from Crescent Star Cave, aren't you? What, do you think I'm inferior to your master? Want me to show you a trick? Ha ha ha!" With that, Lord Lao rolled up his sleeves, as if preparing to perform magic.
Belle quickly reached out to stop him, shaking her head and sighing: "My master has treated me with immense kindness; I have never considered changing sects, nor could I ever do so."
Then why did he allow you to leave the mountain before finishing your training?
Lowering her head, Belle blinked, took a deep breath, and exhaled, her breath turning into faint mist that drifted away.
After a long while, she smiled: "My master forbade me to leave, but I insisted. I wanted to go to Blossom Mountain to find him."
Find him?
Find a monkey. I want to see with my own eyes how he is doing." Belle pressed her lips together, gazing into the roaring campfire.
After a long time, she hunched her shoulders, breathed warm air into her palms, and held them tightly.
Everything in this world is far more complicated than she imagined; for that reason, she felt even more determined to see for herself.
Thinking about it, she suddenly smiled: "If he suddenly saw me, he would surely be very happy."
Lord Lao pursed his lips and nodded: "He should be."
When he was at the monastery, I was with him every day.
How is his cultivation?
Hmm... I don't know. But with his talent, and since he's cultivating the path of the traveler, he should be at least at the Nascent Soul stage by now.
If he’s reached the Nascent Soul stage, why isn’t he the one looking for you?
Belle was momentarily stunned; the two exchanged glances.
Turning away, Lord Lao stroked his long beard and sighed to himself: "Matters between men and women always hinder cultivation. Hopefully it’s not a case of ‘mistaking spring feelings for the eastward flow, leaving only regret and shame.’"
Belle lowered her head in silence.
After a long time, she laughed softly: "So what if it’s a mistake? Right or wrong, what does it matter?"
Hmm?" Lord Lao quietly raised his eyelids to look at her.
She blinked rapidly and smiled with a sigh: "My cultivation is still shallow, I don’t understand your rights and wrongs, old sir. I only know that if I feel I should do something, I must do it—otherwise, I’ll regret it when I can’t anymore. In this life, I don’t seek immortality, only to live without regrets."
Under the firelight, her eyes looked faintly red.
With his hands tucked into his sleeves, Lord Lao hunched over and frowned: "If that’s the case, I’ve been meddling too much."
Thank you, old sir.
Hmm?
If not for you, old sir, who knows what trouble I might have run into on this journey.
Lord Lao squinted, looking half-asleep, and said quietly, "No need for thanks. One day... just don't blame me, that's all."
A gentle breeze stirred the firelight.
Belle continued poking the campfire with her stick, staring into it for a long, long time, lost in thought.
...
Achoo!
In the underground city room, Monkey rubbed his nose hard. "Who's thinking about me?"
With his cultivation, catching a cold was impossible.
Staring at the pile of bamboo slips on the table, Monkey felt a dull ache in his forehead.
Standing to the side, Lu Six-Turns bowed slightly: "Your Majesty, these need to be dealt with quickly."
Can't you make the decisions yourself?" Monkey glanced at him.
No.' Lu Six-Turns slowly shook his head and clasped his hands: 'We've taken in too many demons lately, and now the underground city is overcrowded. Many haven't fully integrated, and it's hard to absorb them all at once. If this continues, something serious will happen. These matters must be decided by Your Majesty—no one else can bear that responsibility.'
Monkey sighed deeply, helpless: "Hiding underground really is troublesome."
Just then, there was a knock at the door.
Here we go again.' Monkey covered his face and groaned, 'Come in!'
Short-Beak entered, covered in dust.
Another group of demons has been spotted heading toward Blossom Mountain, with a Sky Patrol General trailing behind. What should we do?
Lu Six-Turns looked at Monkey, eyes wide, gesturing toward the bamboo slips on the table.
Rubbing his temples, Monkey asked, "How many are there?"
About five hundred demons.
How many groups of Sky Patrol Generals are following?
Three groups. The difference in strength is so great that the Sky Patrol General doesn't dare follow too closely.
Kill the Sky Patrol Generals and take all the demons in.
Your Majesty!' Lu Six-Turns quickly clasped his hands in protest: 'The underground city really can't hold any more, and if three groups of Sky Patrol Generals go missing at once, then...'
Don't worry.' Monkey pursed his lips, his eyes cold: 'Even if we don’t kill them, it’ll be our turn soon enough. When that time comes, we’ll be exposed whether we want to or not. Once we’re above ground, overcrowding won’t be a problem.'
...
The moon was faint, and a massive fleet sailed slowly through the sky, weaving among the clouds. The flagship bore banners with the words "South" and "Broad Vision."
Inside the huge war room, countless celestial army clerks bustled about.
One by one, the heavenly soldiers dumped bundles of urgent military reports onto the table without sorting them, then turned and left. The clerks buried themselves in the piles of bamboo slips, searching for meaningful information. Several generals argued over strategy atop a high platform. Guards who came to ask for orders didn’t even know whom to approach.
The entire scene was chaotic.
Nezha’s first victory shattered the morale of the demon forces in the Eastern Divine Continent, turning the campaign into a simple sweep. This meant that, to improve efficiency, the army had to split into smaller units, increasing the workload.
Faced with this, the South Heaven Gate army—long unused to warfare—was flustered and overwhelmed, and missed communications were frequent. Fortunately, they held a strong advantage, so it didn’t matter much.
Broad Vision Heavenly King, his skin entirely red, walked through the piles of bamboo slips in full armor, a red dragon coiled around his hand, looking on helplessly.
With this unreliable bunch of subordinates, he couldn’t even get help sorting things out.
But it didn’t matter; victory was certain, and now it was just a matter of claiming credit.
As he passed a long table, he looked down and saw a bamboo slip under the table. He bent to pick it up. Its title read: "Report from the Sky Patrol Office."
"A report from the Sky Patrol Office left behind here?" Broad Vision smiled helplessly.
Unlike the well-structured and clearly divided Heavenly River Navy, the South Heaven Gate Legion didn’t have its own Sky Patrol division. In this campaign, almost all information on demon forces came from the Sky Patrol Office.
Every report from the Sky Patrol Office meant a military merit; for such an important document to be lost was surprising.
He sighed softly, untied the cord, and spread it out on the table, looking down.
At that sight, his previously red skin turned faintly purple.
It recorded the location where a subordinate Sky Patrol General had gone missing.
After five years of rapid growth, the demon forces now had many capable leaders, including powerful demon kings. It was nothing new for Sky Patrol Generals to go missing after encountering demon kings while on duty.
Now those demon kings were like stray dogs, fleeing everywhere. Even if the location of a missing Sky Patrol General was known, by the time the celestial army arrived, the enemy would often already be gone.
But this report recorded a place where Sky Patrol Generals had repeatedly gone missing—dozens of groups had lost contact there!
Ao Lai Kingdom, Blossom Mountain...' Gazing at the bamboo slip on the table, Broad Vision narrowed his eyes slightly.