Am I the only good person in this cultivation world?

"Go out for a walk? What do you mean, you want me to go out and feed the monkeys right now?"

"No, I mean, come out with me."

"What, we're going to feed the monkeys together?"

Yao Han sighed, "Why can't I explain this clearly?"

"That's not what I meant..." Yao Han wiped his face, somewhat speechless.

"Haven't you been asking me to tell you about Ziqiu City? Would you like to leave the village and go out to see it for yourself?"

"Oh, so that's what you mean."

Jiang Xiaolu turned her head and looked at her: "Did Grandpa say something to you?"

Yao Han neither answered nor denied it.

"Of course I want to, how could I not?"

She sat up on the roof, hugged her knees, looked up at the starry sky, and swayed back and forth.

"My parents passed away when I was very young, so now when I think of them, I don't feel that sad. After all, I don't even remember what they look like anymore. I just feel a little empty sometimes."

"From childhood to adulthood, I was raised by my grandfather and fourth uncle. I used to always pester them to tell me stories. My fourth uncle had been to the city, so he would tell me about things in the city every day, sometimes for a whole night..."

"I really want to go out and see the world, but Grandpa is old, and my fourth uncle is old too. If I leave like this, who will take care of them? So I can't leave, at least not now."

Yao Han nodded slightly.

Although this girl seems carefree on the surface, she is actually very thoughtful.

"Alright. In that case, you should discuss whether to stay or leave."

"Hmm... Hey, it's so late already, why hasn't Grandpa called me for dinner yet? He usually calls me as soon as the sun goes down."

Yao Han was taken aback.

Because he had already realized that no one was in the house.

He thought Xiao Lu knew that Old Man Jiang had gone out.

Yao Han had a bad feeling.

Jiang Xiaolu jumped off the roof before Yao Han.

"Oh, there's fish soup simmering on the stove... Grandpa—Grandpa, are you there?"

They searched the house and the surrounding area but couldn't find Old Man Jiang.

"Where did Grandpa go so late? Those monkeys will be here after midnight..."

Jiang Xiaolu became anxious and ran to the next door to knock on her neighbor's door.

Yao Han's divine sense swept across most of the village—but he still couldn't find any trace of Old Man Jiang.

This was already the maximum range that his divine sense could cover, reaching as far as about thirty feet.

It would be difficult for an ordinary Qi Refining Level 2 cultivator to extend their divine sense to such a distance. Yao Han was able to do it because his divine soul was stronger than that of other cultivators at the same level.

The so-called divine soul is short for the soul and primordial spirit. In the cultivation world, few people know the methods of cultivating the divine soul. Most people only know that the strength of the divine soul is related to the age and experience of the cultivator. This is why Yao Han's divine sense can cover such a far distance.

Leaving aside the matter of the spirit for now, Yao Han followed the anxious Jiang Xiaolu, asking from house to house, but they still couldn't get any news about Old Man Jiang.

But more and more people gathered around them—upon learning that someone had gone missing, all the able-bodied men who remained in the village stepped out of their homes without hesitation, carrying torches and axes, and began searching around the village.

"Little Lu, didn't your grandpa tell you where he went?"

"Have you looked to the east? Go look there!"

"Everyone, don't get too separated from each other, watch out for any noise in the woods!"

"There aren't any here at the fishing hut either!"

……

Under the pitch-black night sky, a dozen or so torches, like fireflies, hovered in the small Jiangjia Village, echoing the starry sky.

"Come here—there are footprints here!"

A loud shout came from the village entrance, and everyone rushed over.

By the light of the fire, everyone looked down at the ground and saw a series of crooked footprints disappearing into the deep forest.

Could it be... that Yao Han recognized that direction? He had just walked that way during the day.

Many others recognized him just like he did:

"Isn't that where those monkeys live?"

"What time is it now? Brother Jiang, why are you going over there at this hour? Do you mean to...?"

"Oh dear, how foolish of me!"

Jiang Xiaolu stood behind the crowd, staring blankly in the direction where the footprints disappeared, lost in thought.

"Sigh... Let's go back. If we don't leave now, none of us will be able to leave."

"Lu girl, don't be too sad, your older brother... ah!"

Xiao Lu, who had been hiding in the back, suddenly rushed out from the crowd, shook off everyone, and plunged into the depths of the forest without looking back. In the blink of an eye, she disappeared into the darkness.

"Lu, come back!"

"Oh dear, this grandfather and grandson are both so stubborn, they really cause trouble!"

"What should we do? Chase after them or not?"

"Chase them! Why aren't we chasing them? Are we just going to watch them die? We'll drag them back, if we have to!"

The villagers, cursing and swearing, chased after him.

Having witnessed all of this, Yao Han sighed, stomped his foot, and his figure transformed into a streak of light, leaping into the distance at a speed several times faster than Jiang Xiaolu.

……

Deep in the mountains, Old Man Jiang leaned against a tree, panting heavily.

He hadn't walked this far in a long time.

"I really have to admit I'm getting old... cough cough."

Old Jiang coughed twice, rested for a while, calmed himself down, picked up the spear at his feet again, and held it tightly in his hand.

After a long while, he slowly got up, used the tip of his spear to clear away the weeds blocking his path, and then continued walking forward.

He walked slowly but steadily, and despite his failing eyesight, he still remembered where he was going.

"We're here, almost there..."

After stepping over a protruding tree root, a somewhat incongruous pile of rubble appeared before Old Man Jiang's eyes.

He will never forget this place.

Ten years ago, my son and daughter-in-law died here, killed by the sharp teeth and claws of those monkeys.

That noon, Xiao Lu ran away. The young couple, anxious to find their daughter, ran out of the house without telling him.

When he and the villagers found the place, they only found their bodies and their daughter, whom they held tightly in their arms.

He never told Xiaolu any of this.

Old Man Jiang didn't blame them, nor did he blame Xiao Lu.

He only blamed himself, blamed himself for not taking good care of Xiao Lu, blamed himself for not finding them sooner, and blamed himself for being incompetent.

His wife passed away early, and his son and daughter-in-law also died before him. He couldn't protect them, but he still had to take good care of his granddaughter.

Days passed by, and before they knew it, their granddaughter had grown up and reached the age of marriage.

He didn't want to be a burden to her.

Now that his granddaughter has a future, he can finally say he has done right by his children and wife in the afterlife.

If you were to say that his only regret in this life was—

Old Man Jiang took a deep breath, raised his spear, and stood firm among the pile of stones, his eyes burning with decades of pent-up anger.

He was trapped by this village his whole life, and he was also trapped by this monkey his whole life.

Anyway, I won't live for many more years, so I might as well have a good fight with these beasts.

Son, your father has come to avenge you.

"Come on, you beasts—"

Old Man Jiang roared angrily, declaring war on the endless mountains and forests.

To his surprise, his shout didn't attract the monkeys, but it did attract the person he least wanted to see at that moment.

"Master—"

Old Jiang's legs trembled, and his previous indomitable spirit vanished instantly. He hurriedly turned around and saw Jiang Xiaolu running towards him.

"Grandpa, let's go back!"

"You brat, what are you doing following me here!"

The moment he saw his granddaughter, Old Man Jiang was terrified, losing all his composure from before:

"What time is it?! Go home now! Are you out of your mind?!"

"I'm not going back! Unless you come back with me!"

"You...you...you're going to drive me crazy! Can't you give your grandpa a break?!"

Closely following them were the villagers of Jiangjia Village, who chased after Jiang Xiaolu all the way here.

Upon seeing the crowd, Old Man Jiang's expression grew even more anxious:

"Why is everyone here? Are you all out of your minds?! I'm just an old man with a worthless life, if I die, so be it, but what about your families? Go back home, all of you! Fourth brother, take Xiaolu back to the village..."

"Big brother, this is no longer your choice! You guys, hurry up and carry big brother away!"

"You've gone too far! What are you doing? Put me down... my back..."

A chaotic scene unfolded on the pile of rubble. Just as everyone was hurriedly hoisting Old Man Jiang onto their shoulders, a bright light from above caught their attention.

Jiang Xiaolu was the first to discover it:

"Look, what's that?"

The villagers all looked up.

The light grew larger and brighter, transforming into a sphere of light that hung brilliantly in the night sky, as if another sun had appeared under the heavens, illuminating everything around it.

"Hey, there seems to be someone in that light!"

"Nobody's here, Fourth Brother, you're just talking nonsense."

"So what exactly is this thing?"

Just as everyone was wondering what was going on, the golden light suddenly spoke:

"Are you villagers from these mountains?"

"Oh my god, there really is someone!"

"This...this...this is an immortal! The immortal spoke!"

"The immortals have appeared! The immortals have appeared!"

The villagers, who had never seen anything like it, were utterly shocked and bowed in worship.

"Stop worshiping, I'm asking you a question."

The crowd exchanged bewildered glances, and finally, the well-traveled Jiang Laosi stepped forward from the throng, bowing respectfully.

"Reporting to the Immortal Master, we are indeed villagers of Jiangjia Village. May we ask what brings you here? If you have any instructions, we are willing to serve you faithfully."

"No need for service."

The immortal in the golden light gave a soft hum.

"I am a wanderer, and tonight I happened to pass by this place, only to encounter a group of ignorant and reckless monkeys causing trouble here, even attempting to do something indecent to me. What is the relationship between these monkeys and you? Are they perhaps your pets? Tell me the truth."

The immortal's voice was like a booming bell, resounding through the trees and making the villagers' ears ring. They didn't realize what he was saying for a moment.

Finally, it was Jiang Laosi who reacted quickly, bowing deeply twice more:

"Immortal Master, you have truly misunderstood! We mortals usually avoid these demonic monkeys like the plague, let alone have the ability to keep them! Immortal Master, you may not know that these monkeys in the mountains are cruel and vicious by nature, and they will devour anyone they encounter. It is probably because of this that they accidentally offended you."

"Oh? It seems I've done a good deed in the process."

"Why do you say that, Immortal Master?" Jiang Laosi was taken aback.

"These monkey demons were courting death and disturbing my rest. I have already sent them all away."

"I am foolish and ignorant, and do not understand what the Immortal Master meant by 'dismissing' me..."

This radiant immortal seems to have a rather bad temper:

"What else could it mean? Of course, we should kill them all."

These words caused a stir among the crowd, their faces filled with disbelief and shock.

"Is the immortal's statement true?"

"Hmph, why would I deceive you mortals?" The immortal snorted again, sounding very impatient.

"Those monkeys are wiped out? We don't have to worry about a monkey plague anymore?"

"Heaven has eyes! Heaven has eyes!"

"Thank you, Immortal Master! Thank you, Immortal! My mother, who is now in the afterlife, can finally rest in peace..."

"Immortal Master, you may not know this, but this monkey plague has troubled us for over ten years, causing harm to countless innocent people! Your divine power has saved us from this dire situation, rescuing us from this calamity. Such kindness is like a second life; we are eternally grateful!"

Jiang Laosi took the lead, and everyone bowed down and knelt down again to perform the kowtow ceremony.

"Alright. This demon monkey leader has been eliminated and can no longer pose a threat. From now on, you can live in peace and prosperity without worrying about him causing trouble again. I am about to embark on a long journey. You may do as you please."

The golden light in the sky gradually dimmed, looking as if it might dissipate at any moment.

Jiang Laosi paused for a moment, then cried out urgently, "Immortal Master, please wait! I dare to ask your name, so that when we return to our village, we will build a shrine to commemorate you and worship you for generations to come..."

"Name".

As the golden light gradually faded, the immortal pondered for a moment, then slowly said:

"My name is 'Wandering Hermit'."