Won’s thoughts are too hard to guess.
Thinking about how there might be more won in the future, Jiang couldn’t help but feel overwheld.
This harem business really isn’t going to work.
"Young brother, you’ve got quite the luck with won, eh."
Just then, a warm yet teasing voice suddenly interrupted.
The three who had been chatting and laughing froze, their gazes following the voice.
They saw a middle-aged man in white clothing, whose refined aura seed ethereal, sitting quietly in a clearing amidst the forest, cradling a worn-out erhu in his arms.
The man’s face was gaunt, and his every movent exuded the scholarly elegance of a man untouched by the dust of the mundane world.
However, what sent chills down their spines was that the man’s eyes were nothing but hollow voids—where his eyes should have been were two ghastly, blood-filled holes, forming a stark and eerie contrast to his graceful deanor.
Jiang Shouzhong furrowed his brow deeply.
The three of them were considered top-tier martial artists, yet none of them had noticed this man’s presence until now—a testant to his exceptional cultivation.
"Dare I ask who you might be..."
Jiang Shouzhong stepped forward to inquire.
A person appearing on Zhenxuan Mountain suggested that their status was not ordinary—perhaps he was one of the elders.
The blind man didn’t respond but plucked at his erhu strings instead. Then, with a smile, he asked, "Young brother, I’ve had a question troubling for quite so ti, and I’d like to hear your thoughts. If this world is fake, then are we real?"
Jiang Shouzhong pondered silently.
Qu Hongling’s almond-shaped eyes sparkled as she clasped her hands behind her back, asking coyly, "May I ask which Immortal from Zhenxuan Mountain graces us with their presence?"
The blind man chuckled and countered, "Zhenxuan Mountain—is it truly a mountain? And an Immortal—is he truly immortal?"
Qu Hongling faltered, unable to find a reply.
"What nonsense," Yelü Miaomiao snorted bluntly, her personality straightforward. "Spouting gibberish about real and fake—it’s nothing but the ramblings of a lunatic! Just leave..."
The girl had originally intended to demand he leave, but upon rembering this was his territory, she grabbed Jiang Shouzhong’s arm instead and said, "Let’s go, my husband. Don’t bother with him."
Yelü Miaomiao forcibly dragged Jiang Shouzhong away.
The blind man didn’t stop them. He placed the bow onto the strings and began playing the erhu while singing softly:
"True and false, false and true, all the world is but an illusion, and within each illusion lies the truth. People wander within books, even ghosts tread the path of pages, you and I are but guests in the book..."
His voice faded into the distance.
Qu Hongling glanced back.
To her astonishnt, the blind man had disappeared without a trace.
...
Jiang Shouzhong wasn’t interested in sightseeing and quickly grew tired of it.
Seeing the sun setting, he decided to let the two won go play while he returned to his room for so rest.
Passing by Dugu Luoxue’s courtyard, Jiang Shouzhong noticed so servants departing from the small courtyard. Curious, he stepped inside the small house, only to be greeted by a mouthwatering aroma.
Fixing his gaze, Jiang Shouzhong saw a dish placed on the table inside.
On a delicate porcelain plate, slices of golden, translucent roast pig were neatly arranged, surrounded by vibrant strands of green vegetables, creating a layered sense of color.
The aroma alone was enticing—its presentation enough to make anyone’s mouth water.
"Master, is this your dinner?"
Jiang Shouzhong asked curiously.
Dugu Luoxue was sitting silently on a wooden chair nearby, engrossed in reading a borrowed copy of "Land Strategy" from the Book Collection Pavilion.
Even though the woman wore a simple cloth dress adorned only by a humble thorny hairpin, her elegance and refined grace couldn’t be concealed. Beneath the hem of her skirt, the tip of her embroidered shoes peeked out, adding a subtle touch of charm.
Hearing Jiang Shouzhong’s question, she softly uttered, "Mm."
"But you’re a vegetarian, aren’t you?"
Jiang Shouzhong took a seat at the table, picked up a pair of chopsticks, and couldn’t resist grabbing a piece for himself. The flavor was exquisite—so much so that his appetite instantly grew.
Dugu Luoxue replied, "They insisted on delivering it, saying it was the Sect Leader’s apology gift. You may eat it."
Apology gift?
Jiang Shouzhong froze for a mont, then understood.
As the Vice Mountain Master of Wanshou Mountains and Rivers visiting a major sect, the Sect Leader’s failure to personally receive her was certainly impolite. A formal apology was indeed due.
But gifting a roasted suckling pig as an apology gift seed... surreal.
Didn’t they know the female master was a vegetarian?
"Could it be poisoned?"
Jiang Shouzhong’s guard went up.
Dugu Luoxue smiled faintly and shook her head gently, "No, it’s not poisoned. But from now on, my als are likely to all be at dishes."
"Why?"
Jiang Shouzhong was puzzled.
Dugu Luoxue explained with a laugh, "Originally, I wasn’t planning for you to climb the mountain, but because of , they were forced to host you. So, to spite a little, they’re trying to make break my vegetarian principles. Of course, this is just my personal guess."
At the final sentence, she blinked playfully.
Such an unusually youthful and charming deanor left Jiang Shouzhong montarily entranced, rendering even the roast at in his mouth tasteless.
"Ahem."
Dugu Luoxue pressed a fist to her lips and coughed lightly.
Snapping back to his senses, Jiang Shouzhong scratched his head and chuckled sheepishly, but then frowned and asked, "If you request a vegetarian dish, will they really refuse to prepare one?"
Dugu Luoxue chuckled and nodded, "I imagine so."
Jiang Shouzhong felt utterly exasperated.
What kind of childish Sect Leader was this, acting like a juvenile brat?
Dugu Luoxue closed her book, her gaze tinged with a hint of worry.
There were certain things she hadn’t voiced.
At their level of mastery, so matters couldn’t be addressed openly—they could only be hinted at or tested indirectly.
Qi knew she was a vegetarian but deliberately sent her at dishes.
The implication lay in the words "breaking principles."
If she wanted to eat, she had to break her principles. If she refused to break her principles, she’d go hungry. Food was essential to all—even Immortals were no exception, and Fasting Pills did harm over prolonged use.
But Qi’s intention wasn’t solely about als.
He was using food to urge Dugu Luoxue to reconsider her path.
If she wanted to restore her Tao Heart and achieve the pinnacle of the Dao, she needed to break before rebuilding, undergoing Nirvana Rebirth.
Persisting blindly would only make matters worse.
Like a shattered vase, no matter how carefully pieced together, it would always bear cracks, unable to ever hold water again.
So when Qi sent that roast pig, Dugu Luoxue already understood—he had seen through her fractured Tao Heart and offered her two paths.
Persist in her present state?
Or... break and rebuild?
This choice had left Dugu Luoxue lost in hesitation. Through her journey with Jiang Shouzhong, there had been countless monts where she’d considered letting go—or falling—but she always gritted her teeth and endured.
Jiang Shouzhong, anwhile, cursed under his breath, feeling indignant toward Zhenxuan Mountain’s pettiness.
But given it was ultimately soone else’s turf, he could only swallow his grievances.
After a mont’s hesitation, he tentatively suggested, "Master, why not take a bite? You can’t go hungry these days. Fasting Pills already aren’t great in the first place."
Dugu Luoxue parted her lips to speak but ultimately said nothing.
Jiang Shouzhong picked up a piece of at, leaned closer, and held it near Dugu Luoxue’s mouth. Smiling, he said:
"Honestly, being strictly vegetarian isn’t ideal. A balanced diet is healthier. And I must say, Zhenxuan Mountain’s chef is undeniably skilled—probably even better than those in the Imperial Dining Room.
Look at this roast suckling pig—the at is firm, the color enticing, the skin is crisp yet unburnt, and the flesh is tender without being greasy. Try one bite, I promise you won’t want to go back to vegetarian dishes."
The scent of honey, spices, and the unique aroma of roast pig lingered around the woman’s nose.
Normally, such tempting food wouldn’t sway her.
She avoided at not because of a monk-like aversion to killing but simply because she disliked the taste of at itself.
In her view, life was ant to be light and simple.
It should remain light.
Yet at this mont, she inexplicably swallowed a mouthful of saliva.
It wasn’t the allure of the food—it was the proximity of the man and the breath he exuded.
She recalled the ti in the carriage, when she indulged in a small mont of weakness, inhaling the scent of Jiang Shouzhong’s clothes. This made her uneasy about getting too close to him.
Staring at his sharp-featured, handso face and the at held between the chopsticks, Dugu Luoxue’s inner turmoil deepened.
To break?
Or not to break?
The irony was that her disciple was the one personally placing that piece of at before her lips.
Could this be fate’s intention in the grand sche?
Dugu Luoxue’s heart was in turmoil as she suddenly asked, "Jiang Mo, do you truly hope for your master to break her principles?"
Jiang Shouzhong was montarily stunned.
When his eyes t the shattered sadness in hers, his heart suddenly tightened.
Just as he was about to speak, she slightly parted her red lips and delicately bit into the at, and at the sa ti, a tear silently streaked down her breathtaking face.
Yet there was a trace of entrancing haziness and allure in her eyes.
"Then... let it break."
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