One person: Senior brother Zhang Zhiwei, the Celestial Master begged me to descend the mountain.

The morning mountain breeze, carrying the dampness of dew, poured in through the gap in the half-collapsed courtyard wall.

Several unidentified birds perched on the eaves, chirping incessantly, seemingly discussing how the long-abandoned courtyard had suddenly become filled with the presence of living people.

inside the house.

Chen Duo curled up on the hard bed, covered with an old cotton quilt that smelled musty.

She is a light sleeper.

Years of living in the bunker instilled in her a habit of remaining vigilant even in her sleep.

The slightest rustling of the wind, or even the sound of an insect crawling across the ground, could instantly snap her awake.

"Smack."

A bluish-green object was thrown at her, landing precisely on her head.

Chen Duo sat up abruptly, her muscles tensing to their limit in an instant. Her right hand instinctively reached for the unidentified object, a faint purple aura flickering in her palm.

"Get up when you wake up."

Zhang Taichu leaned against the doorway, a freshly plucked foxtail grass in his hand, casually picking his teeth:

"Don't sleep like a log, the sun's already high in the sky."

Chen Duo was stunned for a moment.

She took the thing she was holding down and looked at it.

It was a set of blue Taoist robes.

The material is very rough, it has turned a bit white after washing, and it has a faint soap smell.

Judging from the size, it has obviously been altered; the cuffs and trouser legs have been shortened.

"Put them on."

Zhang Taichu pointed to the Taoist robe:

"Take off that dress you're wearing."

Chen Duo looked down at herself.

The once pristine white dress I bought in the mall is now unrecognizable.

Her clothes were covered in mud splatters from walking in the back hill yesterday, and there were oil stains from eating on her chest. Even the hem of her skirt had a small hole torn in it by a tree branch.

But Chen Duo didn't move.

Her hands gripped the hem of her skirt tightly, so tightly that her knuckles turned white from the force.

This is a skirt.

This is the first piece of clothing she has ever owned that belongs to a human being.

It was the clothes she wore when she saw that pretty girl in the mirror.

Replace it...

Does this mean that the girl who appeared briefly is going to disappear again?

Will it turn back into that codename, that monster?

"No change."

Chen Duo squeezed out two words from her throat.

The voice was soft, but very stubborn.

She raised her head, and her eyes, which were usually calm and expressionless, were now fixed on Zhang Taichu, filled with resistance.

"Oh?"

Zhang Taichu raised an eyebrow, spat out the grass root in his mouth, and walked in step by step:

"You've gotten quite the big shot, haven't you?"

"You dare talk back to your master?"

He walked to the bedside, looked down at Chen Duo, and pointed to the dirty dress she was wearing:

"This thing looks like a rag now, aren't you ashamed to wear it out?"

"It's not shameful."

Chen Duo shrank her neck and tucked her body a little deeper into the blanket, like a little animal guarding its food:

"This is...mine."

"I know it's yours, no one's going to take it from you."

Zhang Taichu looked at her with some amusement, bent down, grabbed the collar of the Taoist robe, and waved it in front of Chen Duo:

"But if you want to get by in Longhu Mountain, you have to wear this."

"This is not clothing."

"This is the skin."

"Once you put on this robe, from now on on this mountain, whether it's a Taoist master or a demon from Quanxing, they'll have to think twice before trying to harm you."

Chen Duo's eyes flickered.

She watched the Taoist robe sway gently with Zhang Taichu's movements.

皮？

Camouflage?

"But……"

Chen Duo bit her lip, her hand still not loosening its grip on the hem of her skirt:

"Wearing this... makes you not a girl anymore."

"Who told you that bullshit logic?"

Zhang Taichu chuckled, then reached out and grabbed Chen Duo by the back of her collar, lifting her out of bed like a chick:

"Does wearing a skirt make you a girl, and wearing a Taoist robe make you a Taoist nun?"

"Then what are you when you wear a protective suit? A zombie from Resident Evil?"

"Hurry up, stop dawdling."

"Go take off this skirt and soak it in the basin of water."

"You can't wear it if it's not clean."

Without a word, Zhang Taichu shoved the Taoist robe into Chen Duo's arms, then turned and pointed to the broken wooden basin in the corner:

"You have five minutes."

"If it's not changed properly, I'll have that shameless Zhang Chulan come in and change it for you."

Upon hearing Zhang Chulan's name.

Chen Duo felt a shiver run through her body.

She remembered the pair of chopsticks that had tried to steal her food at the dinner table yesterday, and that smug, smiling face.

If it's that guy...

He's really capable of doing it.

Chen Duo gritted her teeth, looked at Zhang Taichu's back, and finally let go of the hem of her skirt.

Clutching her Taoist robe, she slowly moved behind the screen beside the bed.

A rustling sound arose.

After a while.

A dirty white dress was draped over the screen.

Immediately afterwards, Chen Duo came out from behind the screen.

The light blue Taoist robe she wore looked slightly oversized.

The cuffs were a bit too long, covering half of the back of the hand, leaving only a few slender fingers exposed.

A black cloth belt was tied around her waist, accentuating her already slender figure.

Her originally messy short hair was also managed to be tied into a simple topknot on her head using a wooden hairpin she found somewhere.

Although it looks somewhat incongruous.

However, the gloom and deathly aura that belonged to the Gu-body Saint Child inexplicably dissipated by most of it because of the Taoist robe covering him.

Instead, there is a delicate beauty that carries a touch of childlike innocence and a hint of otherworldly refinement.

Chen Duo walked to the bronze mirror in the corner of the wall, which had a broken corner.

The mirror was blurry, and the reflection of people was distorted.

She raised her hand and shook the wide sleeve with some curiosity.

A gust of wind whistled through the air.

This feeling...

Very strange.

The clothes we used to wear were either tightly fitted to our bodies for ease of movement, or thick and stuffy to protect us from toxic fumes.

It has never been this empty before.

It's like having an extra layer of flowing air around your body.

That feeling of being bound seemed to fly away along with the wide sleeves of the robe.

"Not bad, looks like a human being."

Zhang Taichu looked her over and nodded in satisfaction.

"It looks much better than that tattered dress."

"Alright, stop looking at yourself. You're going to crack the mirror."

"Come out and work."

Zhang Taichu turned and walked outside.

Chen Duo pursed her lips and looked at the little Taoist nun in the mirror.

Is that me?

like……

It's not bad looking.

She took a deep breath, and imitating Zhang Taichu, she put her hands into her sleeves and quickly followed.

I had just reached the gate of the courtyard that had no door.

Footsteps came from the mountain path outside.

Calm and powerful, each step was measured with precision, as if it had been measured with a ruler.

Chen Duo subconsciously stopped and shrank back behind the door frame, only her eyes peeking out.

In the morning light.

A tall and slender figure was walking along the bluestone path.

Her long white hair was casually draped behind her head, and her spotless white Taoist robe fluttered slightly in the morning breeze.

He was carrying a vermilion food box.

That face remained as cold and aloof as jade, revealing no expression, just like the morning mist on Longhu Mountain, carrying an aura of ethereal beauty.

It's that... senior brother.

Chen Duo gripped the door frame tightly, and a splinter pricked her fingertip, causing a slight pain.

She was still very afraid of this senior brother.

Although he was very polite when he took me to take a shower and find me a place to stay yesterday.

But beneath that politeness lay a sense of aloofness that kept people at arm's length.

It's like dealing with a problem that you have to deal with.

Zhang Lingyu walked to the courtyard gate.

He stopped, his gaze sweeping over the empty door frame, and his lips twitched almost imperceptibly.

My uncle's demolition skills are truly...

immediately.

His gaze fell on the figure peeking out from behind the door frame.

Zhang Lingyu was stunned.

For a fleeting moment, his eyes glazed over.

The morning light shone on the blue Taoist robe, giving the somewhat timid girl a faint golden edge.

The wide sleeves of the robe fell down, concealing the hands that had once been stained with blood.

The Gu-body Saint Child, whom he had previously perceived as radiating an ominous aura and representing trouble and danger, was now gone.

It looks like this now.

He was no different from a young Taoist novice who had just arrived at the mountain, full of curiosity and awe for everything.

Clean.

purely.

It reminded him of the first time he put on a Taoist robe and stood in front of his master many years ago.

Was I like that back then?

Cautious, yet full of anticipation.

The aloofness in Zhang Lingyu's eyes vanished silently at this moment, like ice and snow melting in the morning light.

He was not displeased by Chen Duo's evasiveness.

instead.

He straightened up, tidied his clothes, and bowed slightly to the figure huddled behind the door frame.

The movements were natural and fluid.

There was not a trace of reluctance.

"Good morning, junior sister."

A clear, cool sound echoed through the mountain forest in the early morning.

But when Chen Duo heard those three words, they no longer sounded as stiff and forced as they had yesterday.

Rather, it is a form of recognition.

A genuine, equal greeting between fellow disciples.

Chen Duo stared at him blankly.

Junior sister.

He called out again.

And this time, there was no annoying Zhang Chulan pressuring him from the side.

There was no fierce master threatening him either.

He... called himself that.

Chen Duo felt her heart skip a beat.

She emerged from behind the doorframe somewhat flustered.

He didn't know where to put his hands inside the wide sleeves.

Shake hands, shall we?

Will he wave like that nephew did yesterday?

or……

Chen Duo tried hard to recall Zhang Lingyu's actions just now.

Hands clasped together? No, that's a monk.

Are your hands clasped together? Left hand on top or right hand on top?

do not care.

Chen Duo imitated Zhang Lingyu, clumsily crossing her arms in front of her chest and bending over so much that she almost bumped her head on the ground.

"morning……"

"Senior brother."

Her voice trembled slightly, and she was a little out of breath from bending over so hard.

But when he called out "Senior Brother".

She felt her heart, which had been hanging in mid-air, finally land on solid ground.

Zhang Lingyu looked at his junior sister, who seemed to want to bow to him, and a faint smile flashed in his eyes.

"There's no need for such a grand gesture."