Zhang Xia was about to leave but seemed to remember something and said:

"By the way, over in Dongyu, there's a person who seems to be a member of the Chen Family. It's said that the Empress Dowager of Dongyu plans to charge him with treason."

"Who?"

"Chen Yi."

..........................

..........................

As the slanting sun sank westward, wildflowers grew on the muddy mountain path. Chen Yi casually waved his hand, tossed a stone, and the wildflower snapped. With a reach of his hand, he caught it in the air.

Perhaps it was because his westward journey might allow him to see Min Ning, or maybe the repeated pursuits made him take death lightly. Now, Chen Yi seemed more carefree than before.

He picked a flower and, mimicking what he read in tales, took a gentle sniff.

How carefree...

Except for the fact that a bug flew into his nose.

Luckily, Chen Yi reacted quickly, caught the bug with a swift hand, casually tossed it aside, and rubbed his nose.

It seems picking flowers at random isn't always a good idea.

Chen Yi exhaled a few breaths upwards, glanced back in the direction of the Capital City, and continued walking without pause.

Like a bird fresh out of its cage.

Now, counting the days carefully, it's been five or six months since the Lantern Festival.

In these months, Chen Yi had been resting and recovering within ten miles of mountainous terrain. Now half a year has passed, and he's nearly fully recovered. Then he happened to run into Old Liu.

Chen Yi recalled his tattered state back then and smiled.

He remembered when he had just escaped the pursuit of those three principal leaders, he searched through the dense forest for that woman's figure.

Unfortunately, he didn't find her.

Otherwise, Chen Yi would have been ninety percent likely to keep her by his side, taking her along the journey, teaching her slowly, ensuring she served tea and water well, and vented all the exhaustion of the journey.

Make her life worse than a concubine of this nation's empress.

But now, no matter how fanciful the thought, it's just empty talk, as he's inquired, everything in the Capital City remains as usual.

And today, having escaped once, Chen Yi couldn't go back to the Capital so soon and simply continued heading west.

To the west lay Min Ning, the Tushan Underground Palace, Taihua Mountain, Yin Sword Mountain, and many things and people he cared about.

"Judging by the distance, I should reach Yin Sword Mountain first."

Chen Yi took a deep breath.

Unintentionally, it had been nearly half a year since he last saw them.

He missed them, really missed them.

His thoughts fluttered through his mind, and Chen Yi quickened his pace, smiling toward the distant horizon, striding forward.

Several days rushed by in a blink.

Chen Yi's pace had been as fast as possible, and within just a few days, he had traveled several hundred miles, nearly a thousand miles.

He didn't ride a horse along the way, relying only on his Qinggong. Considering the time spent resting, this pace was already incredibly fast.

The reason Chen Yi didn't ride a horse was simple: first, thousand-mile horses were rare, and ordinary packhorses found it extremely difficult to travel a hundred miles a day; second, horses needed to travel on official roads and post roads, whereas the paths humans could take were not always accessible to horses; third, it was an opportunity to hone his Qinggong along the way.

Whenever he reached a town along the journey, he would briefly stay at an inn, not lingering much, and continued his journey the next morning.

Moreover, he gradually distanced himself from the bustling Capital City; the further west he went, the more he witnessed desolate wilderness, where not hearing a rooster crow for a hundred miles was a minor detail, and snakes, insects, rats, birds, tigers, and wolves appeared one after another.

The Jianghu depicted in books seemed glamorous, but not considering the bloody storms along the way, at the very least, there must be people for there to be a Jianghu.

Besides, washing up was inconvenient along the way, clothes were hard to wash, and food was mostly dry rations, without much flavor.

Whether it's chivalrous deeds or bloody tumult, when you truly undertake the journey, it mostly turns out to be tedious and monotonous.

Chen Yi couldn't help but mutter, "I wonder what Min Yuechi thinks? Is she doing well?"

Afraid that when he sees her.

He wonders how many days it's been since she washed her hair...

...........

"Achoo!"

A thousand miles away, a red-clothed swordsman carrying a sword and a knife sneezed in the wind and sand.

Min Ning rubbed her nose, not understanding why she sneezed.

She rested under the cliffside, wiped the dust off her face, and suddenly asked:

"Am I sick?"

She was asking Zhu Yu.

As a remnant soul of unknown origin, Zhu Yu resided within her body, naturally aware of her condition.

Zhu Yu replied succinctly: "No."

Min Ning nodded but then questioned with doubt:

"Then why did I sneeze?"

Zhu Yu said: "I don't know."

Min Ning felt that Zhu Yu, being a remnant soul, indeed didn't say more than necessary; there wasn't even a person to chat with along the way, making her often feel lost.

Often, it was Min Ning alone who felt a sense of loss. She gazed into the distance and couldn't help but mutter to herself:

"Is it possible that he's thinking of me?"

Zhu Yu immediately responded: "He's not thinking of you."

Min Ning was taken aback: "Didn't you say you didn't know?"

Zhu Yu: "..."

After a moment of silence, she said: "That's just what I feel."

"Why do you feel that way?" Min Ning asked curiously.

"I heard that if a man likes a woman, he'll give her a flower." Zhu Yu's tone seemed to rise slightly: "He gave one to someone else, not to you."

Min Ning had talked with Zhu Yu about many things concerning Chen Yi. At this moment, her straightforward nature didn't think much about it, only slightly furrowing her brows in distress.

Zhu Yu let out a chuckle: "Got it?"

"Got it."

"So?"

Min Ning elegantly smiled and said:

"When I see him again, I'll give him a flower."

Zhou Yitang stiffened a bit, and her face changed slightly.

Had she inadvertently helped this most talented disciple pursue a rebel?

If Min Ning actually gave the flower, wouldn't the rebel be lured into Shushan?

Facing the wind and sand, Min Ning scratched her hair and laughed lightly:

"Zhu Yu, thank you. When I give him a flower, he definitely won't expect it.

His master wouldn't think of this move either, and with patience, he'll be my disciple."

As if feeling this wasn't enough to express her gratitude.

Min Ning added another sentence: "Zhu Yu, thank you, and I'll give one to you too after this."

Zhu Yu: "....."

A thousand miles away, on Cangwu Peak, Zhou Yitang closed her eyes slightly, seemingly pondering.

And in the Western Jin desert, Min Ning picked up the knife in her hands, waiting for the wind and sand to die down.

Before leaving, she even managed to find lice in her hair.

......

You ask when I'll return, but there's no set date; the night rain over the Bashan Mountains swells the autumn pond.

The mist-shrouded ridges were indistinct as Chen Yi donned his bamboo hat and cloak, crossing from one mountain to another.

The mountain wind swirled, weeds grew by the road, concealing a stone stele, which Chen Yi stepped on, revealing and inspecting it.

Engraved on it were the words "Liu Feng County."

Seeing these words, Chen Yi's heart skipped a beat.

He was close to Yin Sword Mountain now, only three or four hundred miles away.

As he got closer to Yin Sword Mountain, Chen Yi couldn't help but feel nervous, experiencing a bit of the trepidation often associated with nearing home.

Is the little fox holding a paper flower waiting for him?

Is his master leaning against the gate of Cangwu Peak?

With thoughts surging, Chen Yi took out the map, looked at it repeatedly, afraid of going the wrong way.

Just then, he saw an old man standing on a small slope next to the stele.

Chen Yi walked over, holding the map, and asked:

"Old man, can I reach Liu Feng County by continuing straight ahead?"

The old man seemed a bit dazed, in a stupor.

It wasn't until Chen Yi asked again that the old man turned his old face and murmured:

"Liu Feng County... there, there! My son Li Heng bought a house and spent all my burial savings, yes, just that way."

As he spoke, the old man pointed in a direction. Chen Yi peered afar and saw a few hills to cross.

"Thank you, old man."

Speaking, Chen Yi made a hand gesture and softly recited:

"Great calamity yields mercy, great virtue opens the door to sweet dew, transforming all directions, saving all living beings."

As soon as he finished speaking, the old man widened his eyes and murmured:

"So, it turns out I'm already dead..."

The mountain breeze swept by, and the elder's figure vanished into the wind, leaving this soul to drift away unknown.

The place where he stood was not a dirt slope but a small grave mound.

Having guided the soul to peace, Chen Yi turned around and strode toward Liu Feng County.

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