Supported by her son, the old woman arrived at the pavilion.
This pavilion had stood here for decades and was now showing its age; even the log pillars painted in red were starting to peel.
Both this pavilion and the people within it exuded the aura of passing time.
The old woman looked at the aged structure and murmured to herself, "Decades have passed; we have all grown old."
"Mother?"
The youth heard the old woman's words and called out to her instinctively.
The old woman turned her head, offered a slight smile, and said:
"It is nothing. I simply feel that time has passed so quickly; I have grown old without even realizing it. I still remember when this place was first built—I was very young then."
"Mother, what are you saying! How are you old?" the youth said, shaking his head.
The youth's mother was not actually of a particularly great age.
He himself was only in his late teens, not yet twenty; how could his mother be that old?
It was just that too much had happened in the last ten years or so, and she had overworked herself to the point that she had aged prematurely.
While other women her age only had salt-and-pepper hair, hers had turned completely white. She had more wrinkles than they did, and her health was declining day by day.
"You child," the old woman said, shaking her head. "Old is old; I know it myself. I have a sense of how much time I have left in my heart."
"..." Hearing this, the youth frowned and retorted, "Mother, do not say such things. You still have plenty of time to live!"
She gave a helpless smile, took her son's hand, placed it on her lap, and spoke slowly:
"Fine, fine... let us not speak of that anymore."
She opened her mouth, originally intending to tell more of her story, but when the words reached her lips, she changed her mind.
"I know you have likely grown tired of hearing my stories. But... those things are not merely stories."
As she spoke, her gaze could not help but lift toward the distant mountain peak. She said:
"However... it matters not if you only treat them as stories, as long as you do not forget your mother's tales. At the very least, I hope that after I am gone, someone will still remember them."
"Mother... how could I be tired of hearing them?"
"Hmph, you only know how to say these sweet words!"
The old woman said, patting his head as she listened to the boy's words.
"Do not worry, Mother. I will remember your stories."
The youth answered with a beaming smile, not at all embarrassed at being seen through.
Su Qing was sitting directly opposite the two of them. They could not see her, but she saw everything that transpired.
She looked at the old woman, her gaze narrowing slightly.
In her eyes, the old woman was surrounded by a lingering black aura...
It was the color of someone whose wood was about to be spent.
At the latest, half a year; at the earliest, one month... she would likely be lying in a coffin.
Why did Su Qing not know the exact time?
Naturally, it was because Su Qing did not wish to calculate it clearly.
Knowing the exact date an old friend is to die is always somewhat distressing.
Even if this friend's relationship with her was not particularly deep.
"Sigh, in the end... I will give you one last hand! Although I cannot help much, it should be no problem to let you live a few years longer," Su Qing said to herself, shaking her head helplessly.
Su Qing considered herself to have lived for so long that she had seen far too much, and her temperament had long since grown more indifferent.
Yet, she still could not bear to witness such things.
When she saw them, she still could not resist the urge to lend a hand.
Whether this was good or bad, Su Qing did not know... she only felt that, at the very least, she could not let herself be disappointed.
She stood up and walked to the old woman's side, then blew a puff of clear qi.
She merged the medicinal power of a pill into the old woman's body in this manner...
The medicinal power of this pill was not particularly strong; it could not make her walk as if she were flying instantly, much less allow her to ascend to the heavens.
There was not much this pill could do, other than nurse her body back to health, allow her to live a few more years, and reduce her physical pain.
"Farewell. I hope your story will not be forgotten."
After finishing this, Su Qing spoke softly into her ear:
"Of course, I will also remember your story well."
The old woman naturally could not hear Su Qing's words.
Under the influence of the spell's effect, she only felt a light breeze brush past her face and felt a sudden sense of mental clarity and refreshment.
After completing these tasks, Su Qing also funneled the medicinal power of a pill into the youth as well... helping him eliminate some underlying ailments.
If nothing else, it would at least ensure he fell ill less often.
Su Qing looked at the mother and son, offered a faint smile, and softly bid her farewell.
She turned and vanished completely from the pavilion.
She returned to the mountain.
The old woman and the youth naturally did not notice that Su Qing had ever been there, nor did they know what had occurred.
As usual, after chatting endlessly with her son, she slowly made her way home supported by his arm.
The old woman did not know how many more times she could come to pay her respects; she could only treat every visit as her last.
Perhaps she was the most devout believer of all.
Because she had truly seen the existence of a god.
On Mount Changbai.
Su Qing sat in the courtyard, watching the breeze rustle through the Bodhi Tree, slowly emptying her mind.
After a brief moment of clearing her thoughts, Su Qing's somewhat stifled mood finally lightened considerably.
She looked at the crescent moon that had already climbed into the distant sky and said to herself:
"In a couple of years, I should go find Chang'e! It has been a long time since I last visited Sister Chang'e! I can also trade for some cultivation techniques and secret manuals while I am at it."
"Does Master truly intend to return to the Moon Palace to see Palace Mistress Chang'e?"
"Naturally!" Su Qing nodded and asked, "Is there something improper about it?"
"It is not that it is improper, but rather... it has been so long since Master last visited Palace Mistress Chang'e. Given her personality, I fear Master will be nagged for a very long time."
"..." Hearing Leng Xiang's words, the corner of Su Qing's mouth twitched slightly.
Su Qing could naturally imagine what Leng Xiang meant... she could guess how long she would be nagged once she went up there.
However, she could not truly stay away from the Moon Palace and never visit Chang'e just because she was afraid of being nagged, could she?
If she did that...
With Chang'e's personality, she truly would descend from the Moon Palace specifically to Mount Changbai to discuss the meaning of life with her.
When that time came, it probably would not be as simple as just being nagged.
"If she nags, she nags! At worst, it goes in one ear and out the other!" Su Qing replied with a beaming smile.
Upon hearing this, Leng Xiang only smiled slightly and said no more.
Days continued to pass peacefully.
Time also flowed by swiftly.
In the blink of an eye, two years had hurried past.
Over these two years... Su Qing still spent most of her time on Mount Changbai. Her life was without waves, and she remained quite the homebody.
She spent most of her time cultivating and studying...
She only occasionally went out to fulfill the wishes of some pilgrims or to visit the White Snake at Li Shan.
Today was right in the middle of summer.
The sunlight was exceptionally piercing, and the weather was quite bright and scorching.
The sound of cicadas on the mountain was incessant and noisy, even more annoying than those restless little sparrows.
Fortunately, Su Qing had long since grown accustomed to it.
Even while being bothered by these annoying sounds, she was still able to peacefully take an afternoon nap.
In fact, she was currently lying on a reclining chair beneath the Bodhi Tree, her face covered by a leisure book, sleeping soundly.
However, suddenly.
Su Qing seemed to feel something in her heart and snapped awake from her dream.
She sat on the reclining chair, looking at her own feet with a somewhat unclear mind and a dazed expression...
In that instant just now.
Su Qing felt as if many things had happened.
She did not know exactly what had occurred...
It was merely a vague sensation.
Su Qing took a deep breath but suddenly froze; she realized that the spiritual energy between heaven and earth... had risen another level.
And this time, the magnitude of the increase was even greater.
It had risen by a full fifty percent!
"Master? What is wrong? Did you have a nightmare?"
Seeing Su Qing suddenly bolt upright with a strange expression, Leng Xiang could not help but ask with concern.
Leng Xiang's voice pulled Su Qing back to reality.
She then shook her head slightly and said:
"Yes! I had a bit of a nightmare. It has been so long, yet this is the first time I have had a nightmare."
"I suppose Master's sleeping posture was incorrect, which is why you had a nightmare?"
"Nightmares are related to sleeping posture?"
Su Qing was stunned for a moment, but in the next second, she realized she had almost let the girl lead her astray.
She gave a light cough and said, "By the way, did you notice that the spiritual energy of heaven and earth has increased quite a bit?"
"Hmm? Naturally, I noticed... such a sudden increase is indeed a bit strange. However, so many strange things happen in our courtyard that I did not pay it much mind."
Leng Xiang looked at Su Qing with a face full of confusion and asked:
"Could this be the Bodhi Tree's doing?"
Hearing this, Su Qing remained silent for a moment and went to inquire of the Bodhi Tree.
After receiving an answer from the Bodhi Tree, she shook her head slightly and said:
"It was not her doing."
In fact, not only was it not the Bodhi Tree's doing.
Even the Bodhi Tree was currently bewildered.
"That is truly strange! Why would the spiritual energy of heaven and earth suddenly rise so much?"
Leng Xiang rubbed her chin, speaking with some confusion.
"I am not sure either," Su Qing answered with a smile.
She actually knew the reason.
But the reason could not be told to Leng Xiang.
Firstly, it involved too much, and secondly, she had given her promise to the Old Mother.
Leng Xiang did not know that Su Qing knew these things. After thinking for a moment, she quickly gave up on these incomprehensible thoughts.
She said, "However, this is not necessarily a bad thing! With the spiritual energy increased, it should also be a good thing for immortal cultivation. So, there is no need for us to worry about it!"
Su Qing shook her head and looked at the distant mist, saying, "Who knows? It might be a good thing, or it might be a great disaster."
"Well now, Master. World-altering changes are things that we cultivators cannot interfere with, so let it be. Master, do not think too much! Just face it with a calm heart," Leng Xiang said with a beaming smile.
Su Qing looked at Leng Xiang, then pinched her cheek and said, "You have learned to talk sense! But you are not wrong; we indeed cannot interfere. Let it be."
Seeing Su Qing speak thus, Leng Xiang continued to smile happily even though her cheek was being pinched.
"Alright, you go back to your work! I... hah~ need to wake up a bit more. I feel... like I haven't quite woken up yet." Su Qing yawned and released Leng Xiang.
Su Qing had just snapped awake, and her head was still a bit dizzy while her eyes felt fatigued, so she was not lying.
Leng Xiang nodded upon hearing this and said nothing more, turning back to continue her work.
Meanwhile, Su Qing sat on the reclining chair with a slightly dazed gaze and a muddled look.
However, she only appeared to be dazed and muddled.
In reality, her mind was contemplating the remaining matters.
The feeling she had upon waking up was not limited to just the spiritual energy.
The spiritual energy was merely the most obvious and significant part.
Aside from the spiritual energy, Su Qing felt there should be some other small matters.
Su Qing pondered for a long time, unable to find a clue for a while.
Suddenly...
For some reason, she thought of that old woman from that day.
She frowned and performed a quick calculation with her fingers...
This calculation truly revealed something.
Because she discovered... that the old woman was dead.
And she had passed just a moment ago!
Su Qing: "..."
"Good things always come with a price, but bad things always seem to come one after another!" Su Qing could not help but sigh.
The old woman dying today was a surprise to Su Qing, but she did not find it strange.
Her pill had been forcibly extending the old woman's life, keeping her alive for a few extra years... now that the pill's efficacy had worn off, the people from the Underworld were naturally going to collect her soul.
It was just that seeing off an old friend always brought a bit of melancholy to her heart.
And what annoyed her most was that it happened to be today.
With bad things coming one after another, it was inevitably somewhat depressing.
Su Qing lay back on the reclining chair, staring blankly at the leaves of the Bodhi Tree.
She did not intend to go and bid the old woman farewell...
To avoid feeling saddened by the matter again.
She only offered a silent wish in her heart, hoping the old woman would have a good reincarnation.
"This time it is a true farewell, Zhou Chuxue..." Su Qing closed her eyes, thinking to herself.
In a flash.
It was evening.
Su Qing sat in the courtyard, looking at the bright moon in the sky, calculating in her heart how many years it had been since she came to Mount Changbai, or rather, how many years Sun Wukong had been locked in the Eight Trigrams Furnace.
If it had been more than forty-eight years, then she could go find Chang'e.
After all, she had to avoid Wukong's official Havoc in Heaven.
To avoid being dragged into the greatest trouble of all.
"Calculating the time, it indeed seems to be about right. I suppose Wukong must have been suppressed under the Five Elements Mountain by now!"
After performing some calculations, Su Qing found that the time indeed exceeded forty-eight years.
Thus, she also breathed a sigh of relief.
After all these years, she could finally make a trip back to the Moon Palace.
"I hope Chang'e does not react too strongly when the time comes!"
Su Qing shook her head slightly, thinking to herself.
She was not afraid of being nagged by Chang'e—had she not been nagged by her enough already?
What she was mainly worried about was whether Chang'e would do something strange...
After all, Chang'e was far too unreliable.
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