Su Qing knew that they certainly would...
After all, she couldn't stay in this city forever. At most, she would leave after a few years, once the situation had stabilized and the Incense Power had been developed.
Therefore, once she left, this place would lose its 'City God' again...
The Heavenly Court would not simply watch as this place fell back into chaos. Thus, they would definitely send someone, even if that person wouldn't stay for long. After all, ensuring the stability of the mortal world as much as possible before the arrival of the Great Tribulation of Heaven and Earth was a policy established from the very beginning.
Su Qing let out a long breath and said, "Alright, let's leave this matter as it is for now. Over the next few days, I'll teach those unruly demons a few more lessons, and then we'll go find Su Qingyu!"
Hearing this, Ao Yiyi had no objections and nodded with a smile.
Over the following days, Su Qing decapitated several more demons. Her vigorous cleansing naturally produced results...
The demons who had been the most flamboyant were now dead. Those hiding in the shadows, plotting in secret, were terrified by Su Qing and became exceptionally cautious, no longer daring to show their faces easily.
This was both a good thing and a bad thing. The good part was that the current troubles could be considered settled for the time being. The bad part was that catching those fellows in the future would be more troublesome. However, it wouldn't be that much of a hassle. After all, Su Qing's strength was there.
Once her temple was built and began gathering Incense Power, those demons wouldn't be so hard to find. By then, everyone in the city would essentially be her eyes and ears. Furthermore, it would be much easier for her to divine the locations of those demons. Thus, while it became slightly more complicated, it wasn't by much.
"The matters here can finally be considered settled. Next, let's pack up and go find Su Qingyu and the others directly. I expect they're getting a bit anxious from waiting. After all, it's been quite a while since we last visited."
On this day, Su Qing sat in the courtyard, looking quite relaxed. She said, "By the way, what do you think would be good to bring them this time? Given their wealth, they probably don't lack jewelry or anything like that. It would be better to bring some pills for them. They're getting old, and I suspect their bodies are starting to fail them."
Su Qing never forgot that Su Qingyu was merely a mortal whose body would age day by day. Over the years, Su Qing had frequently brought her pills to condition her body. While she hadn't given them longevity pills, she had not been stingy with other things.
As for why she hadn't produced any longevity pills, the reason was simple: she didn't have any. The Queen Mother of the West had been nowhere to be found in recent years. Thus, even if Su Qing wanted to get some, she couldn't. As for getting them from Taishang Laojun or others... that was possible in theory, but the problem was that Taishang Laojun had also been unavailable lately. No one knew what they were so busy with.
Therefore, all Su Qing could do now was help the girl condition her body to let her live a few more years. If she truly couldn't find any longevity pills, then she would simply accompany her through the final leg of her journey. After all, that had been her plan from the start.
Ao Yiyi, listening from the side, nodded silently and said, "Yes, bring some. I expect we won't be able to see them many more times."
Hearing this, Su Qing let out a long breath, stretched, and said, "Yiyi, call the others. Let's go together!"
Ao Yiyi had no objections and nodded, going to call the rest of the group. Before long, everyone in the household had gathered. Su Qing then rode her Somersault Cloud toward the horizon.
The speed of the Somersault Cloud went without saying; in no time at all, they arrived at their destination: the skies above Xingyang City.
Thirty years had passed, and Xingyang City had changed quite a bit. Aside from the basic layout, which remained largely the same, the city had seen many fresh faces over the years. The subtle changes were countless.
Today, Su Qing remained indifferent to the state of Xingyang City. She simply descended into the courtyard.
The courtyard was cold and quiet. An old woman sat there, sunbathing. This old woman was none other than Li Yichou. Li Yichou had aged as much as one possibly could. Despite the conditioning from Su Qing's pills, she could not stop the decay of age, eventually becoming this way. However, this was already a very good situation. After all, she had been a martial artist and carried many old wounds. If Su Qing hadn't healed those injuries, her current state would have been much worse.
Su Qing exhaled and said, "We've come to see you again..."
Hearing Su Qing's voice, Li Yichou, sitting in her chair, opened her mouth and said hoarsely, "Sister Su is here again? My, so many years have passed without me even noticing! Good, good... that child has missed you to death! I'll go call Su Qingyu for you..."
Li Yichou seemed to be in high spirits. Smiling, she scrambled up to call Su Qingyu. Seeing this, Su Qing smiled and didn't stop her. Although the woman looked incredibly old, her physical health was actually quite good for someone her age. Moving around occasionally was much better for her than staying still.
Before long, Li Yichou brought Su Qingyu out. Su Qingyu also had an aged appearance. Although she looked to be in her fifties or sixties, she was actually over seventy years old.
"Master, you've come! It really has been a long time since I last saw you. We've aged quite a bit these past few years, yet Master is still so young!" Su Qingyu said with a smile. "I wonder how many more years we can accompany Master."
Hearing this, Su Qing shook her head and said, "Don't think about such things. By the way, I brought some things for you..."
Su Qingyu also smiled and shook her head. She was a mortal; naturally, she would consider these things. However, she was already content. To have met such a good master as Su Qing in this life was no easy feat. Especially since Su Qing now returned once every few years. If nothing unexpected happened, perhaps her master really would be the one to hold her funeral.
However, she naturally wouldn't mention these things in front of Su Qing again. She didn't want her master to overthink. She simply said, "Master is really something, bringing us so many pills every time you visit..."
Su Qing only smiled at those words, then continued her conversation. Nearby, Ao Yiyi and Hu Lin'er went to see Rendong.
As for the children there, they were ones Su Qingyu had taken in. She had been busy with various matters at the shop her whole life. Although many people had expressed their love for her, she had no intention of marrying, so she remained single to this day. However, being single didn't mean she could endure a lonely temperament. Although Su Qing returned to accompany her, it was only once every few years. And this courtyard was filled with nothing but old folks.
Therefore, she had picked up many abandoned children over the years. Some she had even bought directly from human traffickers. These children served as her companions and were also part of her plans for the future. She would die sooner or later, so she naturally had to train a successor to continue running her shop after she passed.
Of course, not all of these children were successors. Su Qing didn't know which ones had the chance to inherit everything. However, she did know that some would inherit Su Qingyu's lifelong martial arts. She just didn't care much about it. After all, the only ones Su Qing cared about were Su Qingyu and her old friends; what did these children have to do with her?
Over the next few days, Su Qing and the others stayed there, spending time with Su Qingyu and the rest. During these days, time passed very quickly. They were as talkative as ever, chatting with Su Qing about various trivial matters from recent years. Su Qing, in turn, told them a bit about her own experiences.
On the morning of the fifth day, Su Qing was preparing to return. She found Su Qingyu to bid her farewell, saying she would come back to see her in a few years.
Su Qingyu was already used to this and didn't cling to Su Qing as she had when she was a child. She simply smiled and said, "Then I'll go wake Sister Yichou so she can say goodbye to you, Master."
Su Qing had no reason to refuse, so she smiled and nodded, waiting for her to call Li Yichou. Li Yichou's room wasn't far, and Su Qingyu soon reached her door. She didn't bother knocking, as she knew that simply knocking often wouldn't wake Li Yichou. Thus, she pushed the door open and entered the room, intending to pull her straight out of bed.
"Sister Yichou, it's time to get up!" As she spoke, she reached out to pull Li Yichou up.
However, once she pulled Li Yichou up, she discovered that at some point during the night, Li Yichou had passed away. Seeing this, her mind momentarily went blank. She stood there in a daze for a long while. Only after a long time did she snap back to her senses and let out a long, heavy breath.
Su Qingyu did not wail or make a scene, nor was she overly surprised; she could even be described as calm. Firstly, Su Qingyu was old herself; after reaching a certain age, one saw many things. Thus, upon seeing this, although she still felt lament and sadness, she could no longer bring herself to cry. Secondly, it was because Su Qingyu had already expected this situation. Li Yichou had long been as old as one could be. She could be considered among the most long-lived people in Xingyang City. Therefore, she could have passed away at any moment.
She simply hadn't expected her to pass away on this very day. She looked at Li Yichou and shook her head.
"To think you would go before Master left."
Su Qingyu laid Li Yichou back down, letting her rest on her bed. Then, she slowly walked out the door. Su Qingyu returned to Su Qing and gave her a bitter smile, saying, "I'm sorry, Master. I'm afraid Sister Yichou won't be getting up."
As soon as those words were spoken, Su Qing immediately understood what had happened. Su Qing let out a long breath. She wasn't surprised, nor did she show any signs of grief. She had seen too much of life and death. Learning of Li Yichou's passing, she felt some surprise, but she didn't burst into tears from a sudden surge of sorrow. How old was she? How many people had she seen off? How could she cry over such a thing?
Now, she merely felt a bit of sentimentality. Hu Lin'er and Ao Yiyi, however, were stunned upon hearing the news and immediately hurried toward Li Yichou's room. Hu Lin'er hadn't experienced many such things, and Ao Yiyi had been protected too well by her master, so she hadn't experienced this either. Thus, the reactions of the two were much larger than Su Qing's.
As for Little Coal Ball... although she had experienced the death of the old Daoist, she remained muddled and ignorant regarding the matter of life and death. Therefore, after hearing these words, she was in a state of complete confusion. She didn't even know why Hu Lin'er's reaction was so intense. However, even though she didn't understand much, she knew how to read the atmosphere. She realized that in such an atmosphere, if one didn't understand anything, the best choice was to say nothing at all. Staying here quietly would suffice. While doing so wasn't necessarily right, at least it wouldn't be wrong.
Su Qing looked at Su Qingyu, exhaled, and said, "To think she would leave us last night... it's just that she left this world."
Su Qingyu shook her head helplessly and said, "Yes, it was so sudden. If I hadn't gone to check this morning, I might not have even noticed..."
"Forget it. Since she has passed away, we'll stay here for a few more days. At the very least... we'll leave after she's been buried." Su Qing sighed, then patted Su Qingyu's shoulder and said, "You, too, should not be sad..."
Su Qingyu looked up at the sky, and finally, the corners of her mouth curled up as she said, "Me? I'm not sad. I already expected her to pass away; I just didn't expect it to be today. It's just that this has disrupted Master's other plans."
Su Qing shook her head and said, "That's nothing. You don't need to worry; I'll find a way to handle things. For these next few days, let's not think about those matters."
Su Qingyu wasn't clear on Su Qing's situation, but since Su Qing had said so, she didn't say anything more. She nodded and said, "Since Master says so, I'm relieved. Regarding the funeral, leave it to me to preside over. After all, Master's situation is special."
Su Qing had no objections. "Yes, I'll leave it to you."
After a pause, she added, "I'll go see Li Yichou."
"Mhm!"
Su Qingyu nodded, then followed Su Qing into the room.
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