"Then why didn't you go over there to hide?"
Xing Yue was puzzled. If there was a safer place, why were they still cowering in this dark alleyway?
Jiu'er's small face instantly fell upon hearing this. "We can't squeeze in. From dawn to dusk, the entrance to the Heart's Desire Hall and the entire street are packed with people coming to make wishes."
"Many of them don't even leave at night. They wrap themselves in quilts and guard the entrance just so they can be at the front the next day, hoping to be the fated one."
His voice grew more dejected as he spoke. "The Heart's Desire Hall is too popular, yet they only receive one fated one every day before closing."
"We're small and weak; we can't compete with those adults. We wanted to find that lord to repay our debt of gratitude, but we couldn't even get close."
Jiu'er looked at Xing Yue's furrowed brow and asked in a small voice, "Do you... do you have a wish too?"
A wish?
Xing Yue was stunned for a moment.
Leaving Lantao City alive, not letting Deputy Commander Zhao's sacrifice in letting him escape go to waste—did that count as a wish?
He immediately dismissed it; that felt more like a pressing survival need.
If he were to speak of a true wish...
Images flashed through his mind: the desolate land eroded by copper poison, the torrent of bones outside the City of the Wrongfully Dead.
Ultimately, his memory settled on the Lantao City of many years ago—a place of bustling merchants and travelers where, despite the threat of demons, there was order and a glimmer of hope for commoners.
"I suppose I do..."
Xing Yue offered a rare, bitter smile in the darkness. "I suppose I hope Lantao City can go back to how it was before."
"Without these strange diseases, without the sleepwalkers, without the copper poison. To be that final sanctuary, the last pure land in the hearts of the people of Thousand Isles County."
He sighed. "In this world, who is truly without desire, without even a single wish?"
"Being able to meet you all at a time like this can be considered a stroke of fate."
Jiu'er's eyes lit up as he listened. "Then you can go to the Heart's Desire Hall to make a wish! Tell your wish to the lords there."
Erya also nodded vigorously, adding, "Yes! The lords at the Heart's Desire Hall look a bit strange, and Lord Rat is very fierce, and the Buddha Lord looks scary too, but, but they are all very kindhearted."
"They gave us pills, cured Big Brother Jiu'er, and even let us all become cultivators. They will definitely have a way!"
Was that so?
Xing Yue didn't hold much hope in his heart.
Peace on earth just by making a wish?
A city escaping the clutches of evil spirits and strange diseases?
It sounded too ethereal, too illusory. Perhaps only these naive children would believe so firmly in such things.
Seeing his skepticism, Jiu'er asked earnestly, "Are you sincere of heart?"
Sincere of heart?
Xing Yue paused.
If such a miracle truly existed, he was willing to give everything, even face death. Did that count as sincerity?
He hesitated for a moment before nodding uncertainly. "I suppose so."
"Then what is your strength?" Jiu'er asked again, his face full of concern.
"Third-stage, inner demon stage," Xing Yue replied.
During his days and nights of forced labor in the mines of the City of the Wrongfully Dead, the cultivation that had previously been drained by White Jade had actually slowly recovered under the pressure, becoming even more condensed than before.
Jiu'er seemed quite excited upon hearing this. "Third-stage! Then you have a great chance! As long as you are sincere, maybe you'll be the fated one at the Heart's Desire Hall tomorrow!"
Xing Yue looked at the child's innocent and certain gaze and simply smiled without refuting him, taking it as mere comfort.
In the latter half of the night, several people huddles together in the narrow alley, using the moonlight as a blanket and leaning against each other for warmth.
Xing Yue closed his eyes, forcing himself into a light sleep.
Perhaps because he was exhausted to the point of collapse, he didn't have any more bizarre nightmares this time. His consciousness merely drifted as he managed a few hours of rest.
When the first light of dawn appeared, Jiu'er gently shook him awake.
The little fellow skillfully pulled out that pearly-white bone carving, placed it in a relatively clean spot, and then called over the other little beggars to begin their daily worship with proper decorum.
"This is the Lord Bone God," Jiu'er said, pulling the still-groggy Xing Yue and signaling for him to bow as well.
"You must worship the Bone God sincerely for him to protect you and for your wish to come true."
Xing Yue looked at the bone carving and felt it looked somewhat familiar, but he couldn't remember where exactly he had seen it.
Perhaps it was a lingering impression from the nightmare last night?
He shook his head to disperse the inexplicable sense of déjà vu.
Watching the children's pious expressions, he followed suit and bowed, though he felt a bit ridiculous.
Indeed, when humans faced a desperate situation their own power could not resolve, they would unconsciously turn to these ethereal, uncertain gods for protection.
But reality was too cruel. Having a spiritual pillar, even if it was just self-consolation, might not be a bad thing.
At this moment, Xing Yue felt he understood Commander Cheng Zhishan a little better.
Disaster and suffering might have no end, but human strength eventually reached its limit.
Before, when his emotions were high, he felt that the commander's actions were cowardice and betrayal. Now, he tasted a hint of helpless bitterness.
Perhaps he, who had insisted on his so-called beliefs and refused to bow even when knowing the task was impossible, was the one who was truly the fool in the eyes of others.
"Let's go!" Jiu'er's voice interrupted his thoughts.
The little fellow pulled him up and headed outside.
Xing Yue felt a surge of panic. He was a fugitive; was he really going to walk so boldly through the streets?
"Don't be afraid, take this." Jiu'er seemed to see through his concerns and stuffed a piece of dirty, tattered cloth into his hands.
"Cover your face. No one will pay much attention to you."
Xing Yue looked at the piece of rag in his hand, which offered almost no concealment, and was speechless.
This was the very definition of self-deception.
However, things developed beyond his expectations.
Pedestrians were already appearing on the morning streets, and vendors were setting up stalls, yet truly no one spared a glance at him—a strange man with a rag tied over his face.
Even if someone glanced his way, they quickly looked away as if he were just an ordinary passerby.
Was it because of the cover provided by Jiu'er and the other children?
Or had the residents of Lantao City grown so accustomed to strange people and strange events during this time that they no longer cared?
Xing Yue couldn't figure it out.
The street where the Heart's Desire Hall was located was already a sea of people. All sorts were squeezed together: noble family stewards in rich clothing, fierce-looking lone cultivators, and even more commoners with faces full of sorrow or hope.
The crowd was bustling, everyone craning their necks in anticipation.
Xing Yue's third-stage cultivation wasn't top-tier here, but it was enough for the first and second-stage cultivators on the outskirts to feel the pressure, subconsciously making a path for him.
With Jiu'er leading the way like a nimble little fish, they actually managed to squeeze through to the innermost layer of the crowd quite smoothly.
Strangely, even here, the people around him seemed to deliberately ignore the ridiculous rag on his face, their gazes fixed intently on the tightly closed wooden doors of the Heart's Desire Hall.
Rate on N.U.
