The old man advised: "Ben Island is actually a teacher, you know! A few years ago, Ben Island also had a teacher, but he was too old and his body was not good, so he closed the school. In these years, there has been no second teacher on the island. Alas, this small island is too small, those who read books are unwilling to stay here, and they all went to Qianyun Island, which is thousands of times larger than our island! Only we, who eat hard-earned rice, are still making a living on this small island."

  "Mr. Jian, if you are willing to open a school on this small island, it will also be a blessing for the whole island, and a good deed!" The old man's address changed, and he became more respectful towards Zhao.

  "Although I've read some books, I don't know if I have the ability to teach. Anyway, I don't have any other skills, so I'll just give it a try!" Zhao smiled and agreed to do it.

  The old man was overjoyed and immediately offered to contact some residents in the town to help Zhao build a good school as soon as possible.

  Before long, the old man brought a large group of people to Zhao Di's front, all of whom respectfully called him "Mr. Jian". It seems that the old man was not joking, and there are indeed very few educated people on this island. When an educated person arrived on the small island, these people were extremely happy.

  Under the guidance of "Mr. Jian", these people used the island's bamboo and trees to quickly build several bamboo houses and wooden houses at the foot of a green mountain, and also added many bamboo tables and chairs. In just half a month, "Mr. Jian"'s school "Listening to Bamboo Book House" was opened with the strong support of the island residents.

  Because "Mr. Jian" was just a symbolic name for collecting tuition fees, on the first day of the opening of the book hall, the islanders sent over a dozen children aged 5 to 12.

  "A mother's needle and thread, a son's traveling clothes. Before departure, she sews them tightly, fearing his late return." Zhao Di taught the first lesson, only teaching the children to recite this poem and briefly introducing its meaning. As for recognizing characters, the level of these children was uneven, some had read books for one or two years and could recognize over a hundred words, while others had not even held a pen before.

  Moreover, most of these children didn't have names, only some nicknames like "Ah Dull, Second Dog, and Lengzi". Zhao Di then gave each child who didn't have a formal name yet a more elegant one, writing them down on paper slips for them to take back.

  Before long, more and more children were sent to Zhao Di's place, and Zhao Di also came without exception. At its peak, he even had nearly a hundred students. He had to expand the bamboo shed and divide these children into three batches according to their literacy level for separate classes. By the end of the day, it was quite busy for him.

  Apart from teaching these children to read and write, Zhao Di would occasionally talk about the ways of heaven, earth and human relationships, such as filial piety, respect for teachers, respect for others, and kindness to oneself. These things are often just touched upon. With his years of cultivation and broad-mindedness, he naturally wouldn't endlessly indoctrinate so-called Confucian virtues. This is also the difference between Zhao Di's private school and other Confucian academies.

  There are also some curious and inquisitive students who often ask "Mr. Jian" all sorts of fanciful questions, many of which even Zhao Di cannot answer or explain.

  "What lies beyond the continent beyond the ocean?"

  "What is above the sky? What is above what is above the sky?"

  "What lies beneath our feet? Is it land or sea? How deep is the earth? How deep is the ocean? And what's at the very bottom of both?"

  "Why is it said that the moon and stars revolve in a regular course? Who controls these things? Is it the Heavenly Way?"

  "What is the Tao of Heaven? What is the Tao? Is it the cycle of birth and death of all things? Is the Tao ultimately human, immortal, or just an illusory non-existence?"

  "Is the Way of Heaven just? Why is there a distinction between beasts and monsters, as well as between ordinary people and immortal masters? If the Way of Heaven is not just, then who does it speak for?"

  It's hard to imagine that such profound questions would come from the mouths of children in their teens. The simple and naive thoughts of these kids often left Zhao Di, a great master who had lived for over a hundred years, speechless on the spot, sometimes even leaving him stunned and deep in thought for several days, "forgetting about food and drink".

  Yun Mengli couldn't idle around either, apart from assisting Zhao Di in managing the Bamboo Cottage and Book Hall, she also had to prepare lunch for these children. For her who had never touched cooking before, this test was not easier than Zhao Di's.

  The couple spent the whole day around the bamboo house and study, tidying up in an orderly manner.

  And when a rough child has been taught for two or three years, not only can he recognize words and characters, but also be filial to his parents and polite to others, which makes Zhao very pleased.

  More than ten years have passed, and the reputation of "Listening to Bamboo Books" has become more and more renowned. Although there was a second school on the island later, the islanders usually still preferred to send their children here, only when Mr. Jian's quota was full would they go to another school.

  More than a decade of hard work, for the former Zhao Di, may have passed in just one closed-door meditation, and it's hard to feel the long flow of time. But as an ordinary person, he has lived through every day, and the changes and feelings of more than ten years have given him a feeling of being in a different world.

  Zhao Di and Yun Mengli, now dressed as a middle-aged couple, had long since rarely discussed topics related to the cultivation world. Instead, they talked about which child was clever, which one was mischievous, which one was introverted, and whose family on the island had gotten married or had some other joyful event, whether there were any disputes between neighbors, and so on. For them at this time, perhaps these mundane matters that cultivators would look down upon were actually real and tangible.

  For over a decade, the Starry Sea's Immortal Realm has remained turbulent and bloody, especially in the outer starry skies. Although the density of demonic beasts has increased significantly, the rumored beast tide has yet to erupt, which is not good news for the Foreign Sea Merchant Alliance.

  The later the beast tide bursts, the more demons will accumulate during this period, and the destructive power of the beast tide will also increase greatly.

  This time's beast tide seems to have been delayed by twenty or thirty years compared to previous records, yet there is still no sign of eruption. Some people have predicted that if this beast tide does not erupt prematurely within ten years, its impact may even extend to the third island.

  However, for the foundation-building and core-forming cultivators who rely on hunting and killing demonic beasts to obtain demon dan and improve their cultivation, this period before the beast tide explosion is an invaluable golden opportunity. All cultivators with a certain amount of power have come to the outer star, either alone or in teams, to hunt and kill demonic beasts. The outer star has become even more lively and turbulent as a result.

  As for the inner stars, although the surface is calm and peaceful, there has been a fierce struggle for power among the major forces beneath the tranquil surface. Especially with the Blood Intent Sect's sudden surge in strength after sealing off the space, it has gradually replaced the Tianmo Sect's position and become the wealthiest and most powerful sect on the Xuanzhou Immortal Island.

  And this super sect of the Inverse Heaven Alliance, more than a decade ago, had also put out a wanted notice to the three major powers of the Starry Sea for Zhao Di and Yun Meng Lü, with a reward so high that even Zhao Di would be tempted.

  Zhao Di's name and appearance were thus spread throughout the Starry Sea, and some cultivators who knew Zhao Di also had different thoughts when they saw this high-profile wanted notice.

  Over the past decade or so, the one who has changed the most is Yun Mengli. She has almost completely abandoned her identity as a cultivator and, with the passage of time, even let go of the hatred for her family's enemies that she had harbored for so long. In the past, she had hoped that Zhao Di would make great progress in his cultivation one day and take revenge on Tian He居士 (Tian He Hermit) to avenge her deep-seated grudge. But after more than a decade of living as an ordinary person, she suddenly brought up this matter one day and asked Zhao Di to give up the idea of taking revenge for her, saying only that this person would have his own reckoning with heaven.

  Although Zhao Di didn't dare to agree with this view, in any case, seeing his beloved wife able to untie the knot in her heart and put down her burdens, truly living a carefree life, he was happy for Meng Li.

  As for the sisters Youlan and You'ruo, they have been quietly cultivating themselves in the depths of the green mountain under the Bamboo Book House, while also helping Zhao to cultivate some of the treasures in the Buddhist Seven Treasures, as well as feeding the spiritual beast Ice Wind Python.

  The two women in the cave were hidden by a very clever formation, not to mention that there was only one Qi-refining cultivator on this island. Even if there were Nascent Soul stage experts here, they would not be able to find any flaws. Moreover, at such a close distance, even if there was wind blowing or accidental movement, it was all within Zhao's control.

  Recently, the two women informed Zhao Di through divine consciousness that Bingfeng Mang had become restless after refining several six-grade Jiao-class demon pills into a six-grade transformed Jiao pill, and seemed to have the possibility of advancing again.

  As the master, Zhao Di had to personally go and comfort it for several nights. As a result, after the Ice Wind Python's breathing became slightly calmer, it indeed entered a long sleep. This was precisely an omen before this python advanced in rank once again.

  It was night, Zhao Di put Ice Wind Python to sleep in the mountain cave under the ground, and then returned to Ting Zhu Book House again.

  "Husband, how is the spiritual beast doing?" Since no ordinary person would come to the Listening Bamboo Pavilion at night, Yun Mengli had also changed back to her original stunning appearance and asked Zhao Di with concern.

  "The situation is good, and they have entered a long sleep." Zhao Di held his beloved wife's jade hand, strolling slowly in the bamboo hut, with the soft rustling of the bamboo beneath their feet creating a soothing melody that accentuated the stillness of the night. The pale moonlight cast a gentle glow on the couple's faces, revealing an air of detachment from worldly concerns.

  At this time, the expressions and temperament of the two people made it difficult for others to associate them with that couple of bookish husband and wife in Japan.

  "Is the husband going to refine a treasure in the near future?" Yun Mengli smiled sweetly at Zhao Di, and anyone could see the deep affection in her eyes.

  "Is this what that girl said?" Zhao Di smiled slightly, also gazing at his opponent, his wife's stunning beauty, which he had never tired of in all these years. He reached out and gently wrapped his arm around his wife's waist, and she leaned softly into the crook of his arm.

  （）