Co-translator: Luckykoi

Despite chiding him under his breath, Bai Fanlu became several measures gentler with him. Once the wound had been bandaged, he said, "Think before you act next time, silly."

Xiao Liu didn't respond. He lowered his head and retracted his hand, holding his right hand with his left and gently touching the fabric on the back of his hand.

Bai Fanlu didn't expect him to learn his ways. He got up and walked towards the riverbank. Xiao Liu's dagger was still in the river. He picked it up for him and wiped the blade dry, returning it to its sheath before turning to hand it to Xiao Liu.

"Look after it well and keep the dagger with you at all times, don't lose it."

Xiao Liu took it from him and gazed at the dagger in his palm momentarily.

"This is the first time that I've killed anyone," he uttered, seemingly having calmed enough to confront this reality. "At first, it felt like a dream, but when I woke up and saw the blood on the blade, I realised that I really did kill someone."

"You didn't kill just anyone—you killed a demon," Bai Fanlu corrected him, not wanting Xiao Liu to doubt himself or to feel burdened by this.

Unexpectedly, Xiao Liu shook his head. "Be it human or demon, what's the difference?"

This was the first time that Bai Fanlu had encountered this rebuttal and couldn't give an immediate response. He opened his mouth and wavered for a moment, "If it's a demon, it is probably justifiable to kill it."

"Is that what you think?"

Bai Fanlu certainly didn't believe this. However, he replied, "Many people do."

"I don't agree, at least." Xiao Liu hung the dagger on his waist and patted the sheath. "But I'm still glad he was a villain. I didn't even know that I was actually capable of this before."

Although there wasn't much point in asking a sixteen-year-old this, looking at the white bandages bound on Xiao Liu's hand, Bai Fanlu was unable to restrain himself from asking all of a sudden, "Do you believe there's no difference between humans and demons?"

"And what of…immortals?" he added.

Xiao Liu seemed to find his question odd. He frowned, then broke into a grin. "What's the difference? There's good and bad among them."

"Take that Flower Thief, for example. Even if he's human, I would still want to kill him after the many atrocious acts he committed. I killed him because he's rotten to the core, not because he's a demon."

"As for immortals…there's got to be some bad sheep too, but I guess I can't do anything about it if I'm no match for them."

At this, Xiao Liu looked ashamed. "I think that I'm still too weak. Immortal Brother, why don't you hurry up and accept me as your disciple. You can teach me secretly and not let your master know!"

Xiao Liu was about to pester Bai Fanlu incessantly, but he found that the other party was staring intently at him. The man's gaze was deep and sincere as if he was moved.

And indeed, Xiao Liu's words had touched Bai Fanlu. It was only last night that the youth's eyes reflected instinctive cowardice. Yet now, he was able to stand in front of him and passionately discuss philosophies of life and death that did not feel shallow nor ludicrous in any way. Instead, it sparked a particular admiration from Bai Fanlu.

"Immortal brother? Do I have something on my face?"

Yeah, you do. You have the moon in your eyes.

Bai Fanlu shook his head and smiled. Under the gently swaying shadows cast by the tree foliage, his gaze glowed and dimmed in the dappled sunlight, finally settling into a warm luminescence.

"Regrettably, it isn't possible for me to teach you. I've important business to attend to and have a long journey ahead. It's hard to say when I'll be back…take care."

Bai Fanlu turned around without further ado, automatically blocking out what Xiao Liu was saying to him and mentally reciting a teleportation spell.

On a crisp spring morning, the tranquility was restored to the woods, along with a blanket of awkward silence. This was accompanied by the trickling river and mellow birdsong that denoted their current time and place.

Bai Fanlu opened his eyes, repeating the teleportation spell for the third time. This time, he almost recited it out loud.

“Immortal brother…”

Don't disturb me. Let me fly.

With a flick of his wrist, Bai Fanlu turned to summon his sword to fly instead. But little did he expect that his sword would also suddenly go on strike. No matter how he called to it, it refused to fly, hanging quietly on his waist like a useless piece of iron.

Teleportation, sword flight…was everything malfunctioning?!

Bai Fanlu arched his brows, folding his arms behind him with all the composure in the world. He did not utter a single word and began pacing forward.

A banished immortal meant that a cultivator was ousted from immortality. In order words, an immortal that cannot fly.

Xiao Liu effortlessly caught up to this banished immortal in no time at all. "Immortal brother, where are you going? Can you take me along?"

"No."

Bai Fanlu was now in a poor mood and was in desperate need of some peace and quiet. But Xiao Liu kept yattering on in his ears, incessantly asking him if he was unwell in any way and how so.

Zhizhi didn't let up either, yowling hysterically as it clung onto its owner's leg, as if upset that Xiao Liu had forgotten about it as he left without it.

Bai Fanlu suddenly stopped in his tracks. Unable to halt in time, Xiao Liu bumped into him then hastily took a step back. His hands were hanging down in embarrassment.

All of a sudden, someone’s stomach rumbled.

Bai Fanlu burst out laughing. Seeing Xiao Liu's beet-red face. He paused for a moment and said, "I think I'm starting to feel hungry."

"Huh? Ah! I know! Immortal brother, wait right here, I'll get you something delicious!"

The youth spun back and bolted off. His steps were brisk and lively, as if entirely oblivious to the possibility that Bai Fanlu could be shaking him off.

Bai Fanlu briskly walked a short distance ahead, stopping before a tree. The branches of this tree could give an excellent foothold for him to climb. He glanced around before bunching up his robes and clambering up the tree.

Finding a comfortable and stable position, Bai Fanlu closed his eyes, concentrating his mind and adjusting his breath.

The evil heat in his lower abdomen had long been eliminated, so why did it still feel like something was blocking his meridians, obstructing the smooth flow of his spiritual energy?

Bai Fanlu lifted and flicked his fingers at a leaf. It crumbled, disintegrating into nothingness by his swirling spiritual energy.

Healing techniques and wind spirit techniques could still be activated, yet teleportation and sword flight couldn't.

Bai Fanlu could not figure out what was wrong. He carefully sieved through last night's recollections, and a detail caught his attention.

Apart from his spiritual energy and the Flower Thief's evil energy, what exactly was that unfamiliar third energy?

Although Bai Fanlu could no longer sense it, that energy was bitingly cold, like ice, seeping in without his notice. When he could finally sense it, the energy gradually encroached and eventually spread out and dispersed itself.

It was as if…

A venomous viper had been drawn out of its cave by prey.

A shiver ran through his entire body. Bai Fanlu could practically see that viper slithering towards him and spitting out its forked tongue, its two eyes embedded in the skin tessellated with scales, coldly fixated on him.

Bai Fanlu abruptly opened his eyes. The leaves around him also quivered and fell with a rustle.

What now? Should he still go to Yingzhou? Even if he didn't, there wasn't any reason for him to return to Tian Shu Sect.

Or should he stick around here? Maybe just hide it out in the mountains as he had initially planned?

Though it was a good idea, Ting Nu made Bai Fanlu realize that not having a mobile phone in this world didn't mean that no one could locate him. Even if he did not provoke the demonic realm, those over there still had every means to find him, let alone the Immortal Sect.

His original intention for moving separately from Yun Zhan was to leverage his knowledge of the plot to speed through the mini-bosses and hidden side scenes to extricate himself early. Now, he was reluctant to give up halfway.

Man, life is tough, Bai Fanlu silently bemoaned.

He had acted on the spur of the moment, and in the end, he had to reap what he sowed. But if Bai Fanlu was given a chance to do over, he would still choose to capture the Flower Thief, just that he would be more careful not to be hit by a spell.

Since things had come to this, he might as well head to Yingzhou first. So what if he couldn't fly? He still had his cultivation techniques and could brush up on his spells on the way to Yingzhou. This would not hinder his ability to defeat the mini-boss before Yun Zhan. Maybe he'd be able to fly again by then.

Bai Fanlu weighed out the pros and cons in his mind, feeling that he'd better hasten the plot progression so he could return home.

To prevent Xiao Liu from catching up to him, Bai Fanlu complemented his jogging with Qinggong Cloud Threading Technique. Although this speed wasn't comparable to flying, it was still many times faster than walking like an ordinary person.

Keeping this at this pace for the better part of the day was exhausting. Fortunately, he had an excellent directional sense and found the town of Jiyang that the book's Bai Fanlu and Yun Zhan had passed through in the novel.

This town was situated in a rugged hill range. While it wasn't large, it was a thriving financial hub due to its unique geographical location between Yingzhou and Dongchang.

 As such, the townspeople were relatively affluent in resources, and this place was suitable for long-distance travellers to replenish their supplies.

Bai Fanlu especially made a trip here to buy a horse. After all, it was too taxing to travel long distances by foot.

But after taking a look around the marketplace, he discovered that horses in ancient civilisations cost as much as a motorcycle. It was way beyond what he could afford at present.

Since he couldn't purchase a horse through regular means, Bai Fanlu decided to take a different approach.

After asking around, Bai Fanlu knocked on the door of a mansion.

A young household servant answered the door. When he saw Bai Fanlu, he asked, "May I ask who this Young Master is?"

Bai Fanlu replied, "My surname is Lu. I'm a friend of your young master."

The servant looked surprised. "About that… the young master has been ill for a long time, I'm afraid it wouldn't be possible for him to receive guests."

"It's fine," Bai Fanlu answered. "All you have to do is to let him know this: 'As night falls on Lan Mountain, the snow falls near the bridge.'"

"As night falls on Lan Mountain, the snow falls near the bridge?" The servant couldn't make sense of it. "But the young master is now resting."

Bai Fanlu smiled without saying a word.

As Bai Fanlu appeared both distinguished and dignified, the servant still nodded despite his hesitance. "Young Master, please wait a moment. I'll report this to my master."

Bai Fanlu waited outside the door, knowing that he would surely be welcomed in.

As expected, not too long after, the tightly shut door was opened once more. This time, aside from the young servant, there was also a middle-aged man. Bai Fanlu guessed that the man should be Lord Shen, the head of the family.

"Welcome to my humble abode, Young Master Lu. Forgive me for not receiving you earlier. Come in, let's talk inside."

Bai Fanlu bowed slightly before following the two men in.

He wasn't brought to the guest hall but was led straight to the backyard and arrived before a door.

Someone was coughing from inside.

As if jolted back to reality by the sound, Lord Chen bowed to Bai Fanlu, apologising, "Forgive me. I brought Young Master here without serving you tea. It really is…"

Bai Fanlu understood why he had done so, and replied understandingly, "It is natural that you are worried about your son. However, there's something I would like to explain to you first. May we step aside and have a word?"

"Oh, go ahead, please," Lord Chen hurriedly agreed.

After instructing the servant to wait at the door, the two walked a short distance away from the house.

"Pardon me for asking, but was your son in a coma for a year and three months, waking up only when he heard the sentence, 'As night falls on Lan Mountain, the snow falls near the bridge.' Yet seemed as though he had lost all signs of awareness, never responding when spoken to, and only coughing up blood?"

"It is exactly as Young Master has described." Lord Chen was greatly astonished. "Ever since my son fell into a coma, I have attempted countless methods to no avail. When Young Master arrived today, he woke up but appeared like a retard. May I ask what strange disease is this? Is there any cure?"

Bai Fanlu reassured, "You have no cause for worry. I'm a cultivator, and I have, by chance, learned of your son's condition. I am here today to help him eliminate this psychological condition."

"Really?! Then I am indebted to Young Master…ah, no, Immortal Master." Lord Shen was emotional and started to shed tears. He hurriedly wiped them away with his sleeves.

"You may not know that he is the only son in the family. After he fell ill, my wife also passed on. If something were to happen to him again, I-I don't know what to do."

With that, Lord Shen was about to go down on his knees but was stopped by Bai Fanlu.

"Don't thank me yet. If your son is cured…" Bai Fanlu hesitated midway, then suddenly continued, "There's something that I have to ask. I hope Lord Shen won't take offence."

"Immortal Master, please do not mind me. Please speak."

Bai Fanlu uttered grimly, "Do you wish for your son to live or for him to carry on your lineage?"

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