After the path was cut off

As the first rays of dawn touched the sky, the vast sea of ​​clouds surged and boiled. Layer upon layer of clouds, imbued with the golden glow of glass, pressed down toward the horizon. Suddenly, the sound of black iron tearing through silk was heard—the fierce bird of the Northern Plains, the Iron-Blue Hawk, spread its wings, each over ten feet long, cleaved through the clouds, and carried two figures as it sped toward the southeast.

On the back of a hawk, a man in black robes fluttered in the wind. He appeared to be middle-aged, leaning against a huge sword case, holding a gleaming wine gourd in his hand, and drinking deeply. The wine gushed down, and before he could swallow it, it flowed down his beard, soaking his front, but he didn't seem to care.

Wine doesn't intoxicate, people intoxicate themselves. Ever since his senior sister Liu Wanying died as ordered, Mo Guyun has been like this. He spends his days drowning his sorrows in alcohol and has lost interest in everything.

Before this journey, the master had made all the necessary arrangements, but he was still worried and specially ordered Li Wangxiang to stay one more night to wait for this senior brother. He not only changed Li Wangxiang's posting to Yunmeng Daze for better care, but also instructed him to accompany him back home.

Mo Guyun didn't give his long-lost junior brother a friendly look. He actually didn't like seeing Li Wangxiang, nor did he like seeing his master.

Seeing her always reminds me of Liu Wanying, and of the time when the four of us were all together on the peak.

He glanced sideways at Li Wangxiang with his slanted eyes: "Are you really going to jump into that quagmire of mortals?"

Li Wangxiang lowered his head and stroked the letter from home in his sleeve, his expression quite calm.

"In the first few years after I joined the sect, I would always clutch my family letters after finishing my studies and hide in a corner to read them over and over again."

"Many people in the peak laughed at me, saying that I was distracted by one or two mortals."

Mo Guyun scoffed.

"If it were me, I would laugh at you too."

Li Wangxiang was not angry, he simply said:

"In my senior brothers' eyes, they may have short lifespans and be frail, but in my eyes, they are my unwavering belief in pursuing the Tao. Now that I have achieved success in my studies, returning to my homeland and protecting my family is the only way my heart can find peace."

"Foolish," Mo Guyun said coldly.

"Why send your people to risk their lives in such a dangerous border region when you can bring them to Tianxuan City and have them protected by the sect for three generations?"

"Senior brother," Li Wangxiang shook his head, his eyes clear and bright.

"What I want to protect is never just a few blood relatives."

"Those who make a living outside the Taoist temple and are slaughtered like cattle and sheep by evil practitioners are also my kin."

"I was born and raised here, and I can't just focus on the safety of my own family and pretend I didn't see anything."

Upon hearing this, Mo Guyun's cold smile deepened.

"If you really want to get involved, you should go and tear down the Taoist temple."

"If you can't lift it, don't make things difficult for yourself with a little kindness."

"Mortals are as numerous as weeds, growing one after another in Taoist temples. What has been consumed in the pioneering wars that have dragged on to this day? Isn't it the cultivators, selected from among ten thousand mortals?"

"How many can you save?"

Li Wangxiang remained silent for a moment before whispering:

"The Taoist temple is too high up; I can't reach it now."

"But I have to protect the people I can reach."

Mo Guyun stared at him, then suddenly fell silent.

That familiar stubbornness, that lukewarm yet inescapable force, almost instantly reminded him of Liu Wanying.

After a long pause, he muttered a curse under his breath.

"...You're becoming more and more like her."

Li Wangxiang was taken aback.

Mo Guyun tilted his head back and gulped down a mouthful of wine, as if swallowing the rest of his words, his voice growing colder.

"You always say that there is no insurmountable barrier between cultivators and mortals."

"But in this world, those who cultivate Qi are judged by those who cultivate Qi, those who establish Foundation are judged by those who cultivate Qi, and those who achieve Golden Core are judged by those who establish Foundation. Which level isn't separated by a river?"

"If you pity them, who will pity us?"

"Senior brother, this is different. Cultivators defy the heavens to prolong their lives; even in death, they have no regrets," Li Wangxiang's voice rose.

"But mortals don't even have a chance to fight. As long as mortals and cultivators share the same sky, they will never live in peace! My parents... died at the hands of evil cultivators! The Daoist sect upholds the separation of immortals and mortals, but what about evil cultivators? In their eyes, mortals are nothing more than walking food, resources to be taken at will!"

"You want me to watch them stay in that kind of place? I can't do that."