"Creak, creak" accompanied the sound of footsteps on the snow, a middle-aged Taoist with a long sword on his back and wearing a dark blue Taoist robe, with three strands of whiskers on his face, walked quickly along the small path in the forest, as if he was riding the wind, and soon arrived nearby.

  "We are now only five hundred miles away from the mountain gate. I wonder if my fellow disciples and brothers in the sect know that Qingxu Zi has been traveling down the mountain for five years."

  It turned out that this Taoist was Qingxu Zi, a disciple of Wudang Mountain. Five years ago, he came down from the mountain to travel in the Central Plains at the behest of his master. In these five years, the Central Plains were plagued by warlords rising up and fighting each other, with mountains and rivers shattered and corpses scattered all over the ground. The common people were displaced and struggled to survive, some even resorted to selling their children for food or burning bones for warmth, creating a hellish landscape.

  Qingxu Zi has seen all the warmth and coldness of human relationships and the world's temperaments over the past five years, only to feel the pain and suffering in his heart. Although he cannot bear it, he is powerless to change it, and one person's strength is ultimately unable to save all living beings. Now that the five-year period has come to an end, he returns to the mountain gate, planning to close himself off from the world and live a reclusive life, never to leave this mundane world again.

  Qingxu Zi was operating his Lightness Skill, flying swiftly towards Wudang Mountain. Suddenly, he stopped in his tracks, his face grave, his left hand pressing down on his right, which quickly grasped the Qinggang Sword behind him, assuming a defensive posture.

  Qing Xu Zi frowned and said, "Where did this thick smell of blood come from in this cold and frozen land?" He carefully walked forward, and suddenly found something in the grass by the side of the road. Qing Xu Zi cautiously approached and shouted, "Who's there!"

  However, in the empty forest, except for his panting sound, there was no other sound. Qingxuzi slowly approached and looked intently, only to find that on the ground lay two corpses of a man and a woman, with fresh blood flowing out and staining the surroundings, as if they had just died.

  The two corpses were stacked on top of each other, the man on top and the woman below. The man had clearly died from a silver hairpin lodged in his head, while the woman had died from a knife wound to her abdomen. Qingxuzi gazed at this scene and obviously understood that the man had attempted to rape the woman, only to be killed by a small hairpin. Qingxuzi murmured "Wu Shang Tai Yi Du E Tian Zun" in sympathy for the woman's misfortune.

  "Huh?" Qing Xu Zi was just about to close the woman's eyes when he discovered that her head was turned sideways, her eyes staring intently at the other side of the woods, as if something was waiting for her. Qing Xu Zi followed her gaze and looked over, vaguely seeing some blurry footprints on the ground, and he felt his way along them.

  "Wah... wah..." Just as Qingxu Zi had walked about a hundred steps following the footprints, he suddenly heard the sound of an infant wailing. Qingxu Zi was taken aback and quickly ran towards the direction of the sound using his lightness skill. Before long, he arrived at a pile of huge rocks and found the crying baby.

  He bent down and picked up the baby, gently rocking it for a while, with a hint of helplessness on his face. A Taoist like me who cultivates a clear mind and few desires has actually had a child.

  Qingxu Zi turned around and returned to his original position, bowed down and said to the woman's corpse: "I don't know what kind of relationship this child has with you, let's just consider him as your own flesh and blood. The old Taoist will raise him for you until he grows up, so you can rest in peace."

  After finishing, Qingxu Zi covered the woman's eyes with his hand, and the woman's face seemed to have lost its ferocity from earlier, gradually becoming gentle, as if her heart's desire had been fulfilled. If people die with a spirit, this woman should also be smiling in the underworld.

  The snow was still falling gently, Qingxu Zi walked on the small path in the woods with a baby in his left arm. He found a jade pendant with the character "Zhang" engraved on it in the baby's swaddle, and looked up at the maple forest covered in heavy snow. He bowed his head and said to the baby: "I don't know your name, but since I found you in this maple forest, from now on, you'll be called Zhang Feng."

  The baby sucked his thumb, sleeping soundly, unaware that he already had a new name, a future reputation that would shake the world and stop children from crying.

  Qing Xuzi led Little Zhang Feng forward slowly, the sky was slightly bright, and Little Zhang Feng felt empty in his stomach, so he opened his small mouth and sent out a signal that it was time to have breakfast.

  "Wah... wah..." The loud cry startled the birds in the forest, and Qingxuzi couldn't help but glance at him before quickening his pace. Just as Qingxuzi was leaving the small path through the woods, he spotted a faint wisp of smoke rising from the horizon. He hastened towards it and discovered a small village hidden at the foot of the mountain.

  Qingxuzi thought to himself that five years ago when he left the mountain, this village didn't exist yet. He walked into the village without stopping, where people were busy on the small roads, some of whom saw Qingxuzi and also showed indifference, not wanting to bother with this Daoist and infant combination. Qingxuzi looked around and found a household, walking up to knock on the door.

  "Who is it? It's so early." A annoyed voice came from inside the house, followed by footsteps and the door was opened. A sleepy-eyed boy of about 12 or 13 years old walked out. The boy rubbed his eyes and looked up to see who was knocking on the door. Qingxuzi cleared his throat and asked:

  "Excuse me, young man, is there any food at your place that babies can eat?"

  The young man was clearly seeing a Taoist holding a baby for the first time, and he was stunned. He heard Qingxu's words and turned to run into the house. Before long, he came out of the house with a big aunt who thought she was fat and round. She saw the small Zhang Feng with tears on his face in Qingxu's arms, glared at Qingxu, and snatched the baby from Qingxu's hands.

  Gently rocking the baby, with a smile on her face, humming an inexplicable tune, as if she were holding her own child.

  "You this old Taoist priest is how take care of the child, look at this little kid has urinated, have you such a father?"

  The aunt was clearly furious, scolding Qingxuzi loudly. At this time, Little Zhang Feng woke up again, opened his small mouth and started a new round of calling for food. The aunt hurriedly bowed her head to coax Little Zhang Feng, looking at the child crying loudly and then glared at Qingxuzi with a fierce gaze, turned around and carried the child into the house, Qingxuzi followed behind with an embarrassed expression.

  "Dog Dan, hurry up and go to Ah Hua's house next door to get some milk, remember to warm it up on the stove." Auntie said to the young man as he entered the house.

  The young boy took the wooden bowl and walked out, not long after he came back with a steaming hot bowl of milk that smelled delicious. Auntie took the wooden bowl and tasted the temperature, then she slowly fed Xiao Zhang Feng with a small wooden spoon. Xiao Zhang Feng hadn't eaten all night and now eagerly stretched out his little tongue to drink the milk.

  Qing Xuzi looked at Little Zhang Feng, who was drinking milk with a satisfied expression, and let out a sigh of relief. He bowed his hands to Auntie and thanked her: "Thank you so much for your help, I don't know what I would have done otherwise. Here are some loose silver coins, please accept them as a token of my gratitude." After saying that, he left some silver coins on the table.

  The aunt looked at him and nodded, indicating she understood.

  "Big sister, may I ask which family Ah Hua belongs to? I'll go thank them and also ask for some more milk to keep for future use." Qing Xuzi hastily asked as he saw the old aunt's expression soften.

  The old aunt looked at him with a strange expression and said: "Do you want to thank Ah Hua?"

  "What's wrong?" Qing Xuzi asked doubtfully.

  At this moment when Qing Xuzi was puzzled, a young man standing beside him burst out laughing: "Ahua is the cow from Zhang's family next door."

  Qing Xuzi was taken aback for a moment, then also burst out laughing. Auntie shook her head with a smile and said: "Wait a bit and let Dog Dan go ask them again, anyway they have plenty."

  "I humbly ask, elder sister, why do the villagers seem to harbor some kind of hatred towards me, yet you help me?" Qingxuzi asked with a puzzled expression, stroking his three long mustaches.

  "Alas," sighed the old aunt, "it's all because of the war. Our village fled here three years ago to escape the chaos, and it took us two years to finally catch our breath and live a peaceful life. Now we're afraid that outsiders will come and disrupt this hard-won peace. As for why I'm helping you, it's all because of this poor child." Qingxu Zi listened and also let out a helpless sigh, not blaming the villagers for being cold, but rather lamenting how difficult the world was.

  Qing Xuzi tightened the front pocket of his clothes, where Xiao Zhang Feng was wrapped up and sleeping soundly after eating and drinking his fill. He stood up, bowed to Auntie and said: "Thank you, I'm leaving." After that, he took Xiao Zhang Feng and continued on his way to Wudang Mountain.

  At the foot of Wudang Mountain, Qingxuzi finally returned with Xiao Zhangfen, who didn't dare to walk fast along the way. After five days, they finally arrived at the mountain gate. Qingxuzi carried Xiao Zhangfen and walked up the mountain. When passing by Jie Sword Pavilion, a young Taoist came out and said to Qingxuzi:

  "Who is under your feet? If you want to go up Wudang Mountain, you need to leave your sword at Jianjie Pavilion. When you come down the mountain, return it to me."

  Qingxu Zi laughed and said: "Go quickly to the mountain to report, just say Qingxu Zi is back."

  The little Taoist was taken aback and asked in surprise: "Are you Qingxuzi's Shu?"

  "Ah, go quickly and inform the Master's brother." Qingxu Zi replied with a smile, the little Taoist hurriedly ran up the mountain. Qingxu Zi sat in the Jian Sword Pavilion, looking around and sighing: "Thinking back to when I first came down the mountain alone, five years of wandering in the mundane world, now returning as two people."

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