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  His heart was burning with anxiety, he sped away with all his might, and as he ran, the flowers, grasses, and trees on both sides of the road were all bent down by him, like a gap had been cut through the sea. The wind in his face made his cheeks ache because of his high speed, but he didn't care at all.

  At this moment, in his heart, there was only the figure of Su Rou in the bamboo forest behind the mountain.

  The loud barking of Da Huang still echoed in his ears, extremely fierce. Gui Li's figure suddenly shot up from the stone steps at the foot of the mountain, emitting a sharp sonic boom as he rushed up the steps. While still in mid-air, Gui Li's heart suddenly felt a chill, almost losing control, and nearly fell down.

  On the ground, two holes of about one person's length and width appeared unknowingly, with two piles of mud beside them. The mud seemed to be still damp, suggesting that Su Rou had just dug them herself. As soon as Gui Li thought of the purpose of these two holes, his face turned pale and his scalp felt numb. Tian Bu Yi's body was still lying quietly in its original place, not moving at all. However, what worried Gui Li the most was that Su Rou was now pouncing on Tian Bu Yi's chest, motionless.

  Next to her, Da Huang was facing Su Rou and barking loudly nonstop.

  The demon's heart sank, looking at the slender figure that was still in front of him not long ago, he felt a kind of fear that made him dare not face or approach her. At this time, on the stone steps behind him, Lu Xueqi appeared with a pale face, standing far away, silently gazing at everything.

  Guī Lì suppressed his wildly racing heartbeat and softly called out: "Shifu's wife?"

  Su Rou's body didn't move at all, without any response.

  The ghost's footsteps slowly moved forward, each step seeming to be a great effort. The loud barking of the yellow dog still echoed in his ears. Finally, he approached Su Ru's body and said softly: "Master... don't scare me..."

  A slightly trembling hand touched Su Rou's shoulder, Gui Li bit his teeth and used force to turn Su Rou's body over: a face with an unexpected hint of a smile appeared before his eyes.

  Su Ru smiled, with a hint of relief at the corners of her mouth, perhaps because she was finally together with her husband.

  Her body was still warm, her expression still calm and dignified, only without life.

  The barking of Da Huang was still loud and clear, but his voice had become hoarse!

  The ghost's legs suddenly softened and sat on the ground, and after a moment, his mind was blank.

  "The teacher's wife has also gone..."

  This was the only cry in his mind, echoing endlessly in his heart.

  The next day, the other veins of Qingyunmen received the bad news from Dazhu Peak that Tian Buyi and his wife Su Rou had passed away.

  Tian Bu Yi and his wife held a position of great importance in Qing Yun Men, with many people looking up to them. The news of their death sent shockwaves throughout the sect, with countless disciples rushing to Da Zhu Peak to pay their respects. Tian Ling Er, who had hurried back from Long Shou Peak, wept uncontrollably in front of her parents' coffins. The other elders of the various branches, despite having achieved great things in their cultivation, also shed tears as they remembered past friendships. Among them, Water Moon Great Master, the first seat of Xiao Zhu Peak and a close friend of Su Rou's, was especially heartbroken.

  In this solemn and mournful atmosphere, there were still some unusual clues. With the status and prestige of Tian Nanyi and his wife, all the other sects had arrived, except for the Changmen Tongtian Peak, where although many elders of the previous generation had come, the master of the sect, Qingyun Zhangjiao's Daoxuan Zhenren was nowhere to be seen. This couldn't help but make it seem like Tongtian Peak was somewhat looking down on the Dazhu Peak sect.

  Song Daren and other disciples of Da Zhu Feng were all dressed in heavy mourning attire, with sorrowful expressions on their faces. They came and went to greet each other with great respect, but when they saw Xiao Yitai and the other Longmen disciples, their faces turned angry and their conversations became much colder. Xiao Yitai and the others felt guilty in their hearts and didn't know what to say, so they could only stand aside, smiling bitterly and remaining silent.

  Incense wafts, sobbing sounds unceasing, this piece of sorrowful intention, is mostly for the deceased's passing. In the original quiet and serene Dazhu Peak, it lingers on. People live a lifetime, yet do not know if there truly is a spirit after death. If indeed so, then the deceased in the underworld looks at all this, wondering what thoughts they would have?

  But I suppose that field is not easy to cultivate, and it won't be a sad situation!

  A figure floated down from the direction of Qingyun Mountain, looking somewhat dazed. At noon, he entered the city of Heyang alone.

  People come and go on the main street, although it's not as lively as before, but you can see that this city is slowly recovering. Some people have passed away in the disaster, some have survived, and new children are growing up, generation after generation, life goes on.

  A lone figure stands on the street, silently gazing at the crowd of people passing by like waves that never cease. He is surrounded by a sea of people who are all just like him, living quietly in an endless cycle of birth, aging, sickness and death.

  But why should people live?

  The demon suddenly thought so.

  His master and mistress had passed away, dying in front of him. After the intense pain, all that was left was numbness and exhaustion.

  In this life, he felt as if he was walking a road that was far longer than others, and this road still had no end in sight.

  He walked away woodenly, with sounds coming from outside, hawkers' cries, shouts, and even the scolding of a woman teaching her child on the other side of the street could be heard clearly if he wanted to. It was just that all this seemed so far away from him, and in his daze, he felt as if he were no longer a part of this world.

  Unconsciously, he walked to a place, looked up and saw the familiar wine house sign, his heart suddenly moved, and he involuntarily walked in.

  The guests in the wine house were scarce, and it was clear that business here had not yet recovered from that disaster. The shopkeeper came over with a smile and asked: "Sir, do you want to eat or drink?"

  The demon was silent for a moment, unable to speak. After coming down from Qingyun Mountain, he was in a daze, as if he couldn't muster the energy for anything. That feeling, tinged with despair, was like when he had witnessed Biyao block that sword for him ten years ago. Yet after these ten years, he seemed to have lost some of his madness, and gained more fatigue instead.

  "Sir? Sir?"

  The shopkeeper's slightly raised voice woke up Gui Li. He shook his head numbly and walked to a quiet corner, sitting down by himself.

  The shopkeeper followed him, still with a smile on his face, and said: "Sir, what would you like to eat?"

  "Here..." he said slowly, and suddenly something flashed from a certain place in the depths of his memory. "Do you still have 'Steamed Fish with Clear Broth'?"

  The shopkeeper was taken aback for a moment, then burst out laughing and said: "Sir, could it be that you were once a regular customer of our Mountain Sea Garden? This steamed mandarin fish dish used to be one of our signature dishes, but now it's no longer available."

  The ghost's expression changed slightly, and he said, "What is the meaning of this?"

  The young shopkeeper shrugged and said, "It's still those beastly demons that are to blame. When they occupied this place, everything within a hundred miles was affected, even the fish in the river outside the city were swept away. To this day, not only can't we find any edible fish, but even fish fry are hard to come by."

  The ghost's face was as if it had lost something, its complexion was uncertain, and it dimmed a few more points. The shopkeeper sighed for a while before remembering the main issue and hurriedly asked: "Sir, why don't you order some other dishes?"

  The ghost stared elsewhere with a stern expression and said casually, "Forget it, you decide on a few dishes of wine and food."

  The shopkeeper nodded and turned to leave. Halfway out, three more people entered from the doorway. The shopkeeper was taken aback, wondering if business was suddenly picking up. He hastily welcomed them, but the three only looked around the shop before one of them spotted Gui Li and called out in a voice that seemed to hold some surprise.

  Gui Li heard a strange noise, and the voice sounded somewhat familiar. He turned his head to look, and was taken aback. As the saying goes, "Heaven's edge, where don't we meet?" The three people standing on the other side were Zhou Yi Xian, Xiao Huan, and Wild Dog. It was Zhou Yi Xian who had called out.

  For some reason, seeing these three people, Gui Li's heart suddenly had an inexplicable sense of closeness. Although they were not close friends, his mood at this moment was indeed lighter because of them.

  Only to see Zhou Yi's face change from shock to a smile, he quickly walked over with the "Xianren Zhilu" banner fluttering in the wind, and said with a laugh: "I really didn't expect it, we meet again here."

  Kui's mouth corners revealed a faint smile, although it disappeared in an instant, but he still said: "Please sit down, senior."

  Xian nodded on Monday and sat down honestly. The shopkeeper stood aside, smiling and asked: "Are you all together?"

  Xian Bai shot him a glance on Monday and said, "Nonsense, can't people who are together sit together?"

  The shopkeeper nodded repeatedly and said: "Yes, yes, please sit down, I'll go prepare the wine and dishes, I'll be right back."

  On Monday, Xian couldn't stop smiling, and he pulled over the shopkeeper, ordering 7 or 8 dishes and 3 or 4 jugs of fine wine. The shopkeeper nodded repeatedly and hurried off to prepare them.

  The little girl's face, however, was not as happy as her grandfather's. On the contrary, her face looked gloomy and unattractive. Especially when she saw Zhou Yixian ordering more dishes and wine later on, she became even more sullen. She wanted to speak several times but held back. After the shopkeeper left, she couldn't help but sneer: "Grandfather, you ordered so many dishes, are you trying to treat the person who saved your life to a good meal as a way of repayment?"

  Xian's face sank, and he said angrily: "Little ring, what nonsense are you talking about? What kind of relationship do we have with this Ghost Ji brother that can be compared to these wines and dishes?" As he spoke, he turned his head and smiled at Ghost Ji, then sighed and shook his head, saying: "Look at this River City, after the great disaster, people's hearts are no longer ancient, none of them are willing to open their eyes to see each other, the world is in a difficult situation..."

  Xiao Huan's face changed, and she glanced at Gui Li, then stared at Zhou Yi Xian with a slightly red face. However, Gui Li seemed to feel nothing, and only said lightly: "Yes, don't worry, old man. I was once taken care of by you for many days, so this time it's my turn to invite you as a thank you."

  Xiao Huan's face suddenly turned red, but Zhou Yi Xian was overjoyed, nodding and smiling: "Not bad, not bad, the child is teachable!"

  The wild dog looked at Xiaohuan and then at Gui Li, wanting to speak but hesitating.

  At this time, the shopkeeper brought up several plates of cold dishes and two more jugs of wine. Zhou Yixian took the jug without hesitation and poured a full cup for everyone present, raising his cup to say: "We are all wandering people who have met by chance here, it's really a rare fate, let's drink this cup."

  After finishing, he tilted his head and drank it all in one gulp. Then, he slightly shook his head, seemingly very satisfied with the taste of this fine wine. Guǐ Lì looked at him, his mouth twitching, as if he had smiled, but his facial muscles were stiff and expressionless, so even if he did smile, it wouldn't show. He slowly picked up his own cup and put it to his lips, but just a moment later, he suddenly let out a sigh, filled with a hint of helplessness and bitterness, as if what he was holding was the most bitter thing, unable to swallow, and slowly put it back on the table.

  At this time, Xiao Huan, who was sitting next to Zhou Yi Xian, couldn't help but say, "It's a rare fate, I don't know who saw someone else's shadow from afar on the street and rushed over, shouting and yelling, thinking of eating for free!"

  On Monday, Xian's face didn't change color, he just rolled his eyes and said: "Children's words are harmless, children's words are harmless!"

  Guilei seemed to have not taken Xiaohuan's words to heart, he looked like he was always distracted and had something on his mind. Xiaohuan had known him for many years, but it was the first time she saw Guilei with such an expression, and couldn't help but feel a little worried, asking him: "What's wrong, is there something on your mind?"

  The demon's expression turned solemn for a moment, but he didn't respond to Xiaohuan. Instead, he turned to Zhou Yixian and said, "Senior."

  Xian had just poured himself another cup of wine on Monday and laughed, "What's up?"

  His eyes gleamed with a hint of emptiness, and he said in a low voice: "I remember that ten years ago, when I was still a young man who had just come down from Qingyun Mountain, you once calculated my fate for me in this River City."

  Zhou Yixian and Xiao Huan were both taken aback, while Ye Gou Dao Ren was baffled. As for that old matter from back then, he naturally knew nothing about it. Zhou Yixian furrowed her brow, thought for a moment, and said, "Hm, I still remember some of the details. What's going on? Why are you suddenly asking about what happened back then?"

  As he said this, a mysterious color suddenly appeared on his face, and he lowered his voice to say to Gui Li: "You won't be saying that we were wrong back then and wanting to return the fortune-telling money from ten years ago, will you?"

  "Grandfather!" Xiao Huan scolded Zhou Yixian, seemingly unable to bear it any longer. She pushed Zhou Yixian aside and turned to Gui Li, "Gui Li big brother, do you have something on your mind? Perhaps...you can tell me about it."

  Gui Li looked at Xiao Huan with a hint of warmth in his tired eyes, but he still shook his head and said, "I'm fine, I just want to ask Mr. Old a few questions."

  On Monday, Xian tidied up his clothes, coughed, and suddenly the air of a Taoist immortal poured out, making this small wine tower hall seem to shine with splendor, as if he was the only one revered.

  "Go ahead," he said lightly. "With our friendship, we can say anything to each other, but the money for my life is still due, of course." As he finished speaking, he ignored Xiao Huan's reddening face and winked at Gui Lie.

  The demon smiled faintly, with a hint of comfort, and patted Xiao Huan, who was about to lose control due to shame. Then, he turned to Zhou Yi Xian, with a puzzled expression on his face, and said: "Senior, you have played the mortal world, your experience is extraordinary, I have something that has been puzzling me, please tell me, what is the meaning of our life?"

  As soon as the words came out, Xiaohuan and Ye Gou were both stunned, looking at Gui Li with an inexplicable expression. Zhou Yixian, on the other hand, furrowed his brow, the playful smile on his face gradually fading away, his expression becoming more solemn. He didn't answer casually, but instead pondered for a moment before slowly saying: "Your expression is unusual, not like your usual self, did you encounter something unpleasant again?"

  Guilei fell silent for a moment, then said in a low voice: "My master and mistress passed away the other day."

  "Ah!" Xiao Huan and Ye Gou Dao Ren were both startled, exclaiming involuntarily. Zhou Yi Xian furrowed his brow, sighed softly, and said in a low voice: "Tian Bu Yi has also gone? What a pity."

  The demon's expression was indifferent, and Zhou Yixian slightly closed her eyes. After that, her expression returned to normal, and she said: "No wonder you have a painful look on your face. Birth, death, parting, and reunion are all common human emotions, and no one can avoid them. You're not an ordinary person, so why get bogged down in them?"

  His face was even more painful and he said, "But their departure is indeed closely related to me!"

  "Since it's like this, you should just return what you owe. Why must you torture yourself here?"

  The ghost was startled and muttered: "What I should repay, what I should repay?"

  "Then I'll ask you," said Xian Dao on Monday, "when your master and mistress passed away, did they have any grievances against you?"

  The ghost's head slowly lowered, and after a while, he said slowly: "No, my master and mistress treated me with great kindness, until the end of their lives, they still remembered me and took this ungrateful and unfilial son back home..." By the time he finished speaking, his voice was already choked with sobs.

  The little ring beside her looked at the ghost's fierce appearance, and unknowingly her eyes also turned red.

  Xian smiled slightly, with a faint glint in his eyes, as if he had transcended the mundane world and seen through the ways of the world. "Then let me ask you again," he said, "did your master and mistress have any regrets when they passed away?"

  The ghost hesitated for a moment and slowly shook his head.

  "Then it's settled," Xian smiled on Monday. "You should be happy for them, after all. Isn't dying without regret the best outcome for them?"

  The ghost lifted his head and looked at Zhou Yixian, his lips moving slightly, with a bewildered expression.