Immortality: Starting with a grave, I'm invincible when burying corpses.

The sun moved from overhead to the edge of the mountains, and the orange sun set amidst the reflections of the mountains.

People came and went in front of the Mu residence's gate, casting long, long shadows.

Mu An sat silently on the granite steps, watching the sunlight fade and the night fall.

The sounds from inside the house reached his ears, drawing him into memories of the past.

Sitting on the steps, Mu An thought about many things.

His thoughts were in disarray. One second he was thinking about wiping out the Blood Robe Cult, and the next he could recall when the Mu family mansion had just been built, Mu Ling'er had tripped and fallen on the steps, scraped her chin, and cried for a long time.

In a daze, he suddenly realized that Xiao Lü was already over fifty years old this year, and her fiftieth birthday should be celebrated in a more grand way.

Mu An couldn't remember the last time she felt so conflicted. Was it the day the Chu family was destroyed, or when Mu Ping left?

He shook his head, as if trying to shake off useless thoughts.

Too many complicated thoughts are not helpful for spiritual practice; thinking less may actually be more beneficial.

The sunset is always earlier in late autumn, and the night air is slightly cool.

With a soft creak, the door was slowly pushed open.

Seeing Mu An sitting on the steps, Xiao Lü paused for a moment. She didn't seem surprised, but simply raised her finger to her lips, making a gesture to be quieter.

Mu An did not get up. Xiao Lü dusted off her skirt and sat down directly next to him. The moonlight, like water, shone down and illuminated the courtyard in front of them.

"Asleep?"

"Yeah, she cried quite a bit and just fell asleep."

"It will be alright, Ling'er is a strong child."

Xiao Lü didn't reply. She suddenly stood up, took a step up to Mu An's slightly surprised expression, squatted down on the steps behind Mu An, and grabbed Mu An's hair in her hand.

"Young Master still looks like he did when he was twenty, as if none of these years have passed."

Mu An froze for a moment, then, after regaining his senses, he smiled in a seemingly natural manner.

"When one's cultivation reaches a high level, outward appearance is merely a facade. If one so desires, even those terrestrial immortals who have lived for thousands of years can transform into children. Generally speaking, the appearance of a celestial being will remain the same at the age at which one achieves enlightenment, and I will not change much in the years to come."

"I'm so envious..."

Xiao Lü sighed noncommittally. She knew Mu An was lying, but she didn't refute it. Instead, she combed Mu An's long hair as she had done when Mu An was a child.

She murmured softly as she tended to it.

"Little Ling'er is a strong child. What about you, young master? Think about it carefully. From a very young age, you have been very, very strong. You never cry or make a fuss. You are always quiet. You never tell us when you are bullied. When you were three or five years old, you knew more than us adults..."

The moonlight remained clear, but Mu An remained silent.

Only after Xiao Lü finished fixing his hair and sat back down beside him did he casually speak.

"I can't just cry and whine like Little Ling'er, can I? After all, I'm a genius, and geniuses are different."

Xiao Lü didn't ask any more questions. She sat on the steps, looking up at the night sky filled with stars.

"Yes, young master is a true genius, a hero destined to change the world, just like the protagonist in a storybook, full of legendary charm."

As she was talking, Xiao Lü turned her head and looked at Mu An.

Her face held her usual smile, yet it also conveyed a sense of seriousness.

"Young master, do you know that a few years ago, when I had nothing to do, I learned lip reading?"

"Isn't that great? Learning another skill is never a bad thing."

Xiao Lü's smile widened, and she nodded vigorously, wanting to show her approval.

After pointing for a while, she continued, "I heard the word 'monster' so many times today."

"Monster? What does that mean?"

Seeing Mu An's confusion, Xiao Lü smiled and shook her head. She took out a candy from somewhere, peeled it, and handed it to Mu An.

Seeing Mu An put the candy in her mouth, she stopped smiling and started scribbling on the steps with her finger.

"It's mostly nonsense; you can't take what cultists say seriously, but..."

"But what?"

"If you ever feel tired, young master, feel free to talk to me. We can talk about anything. I'll listen attentively to whatever you want to say, as long as I'm still here..."

The sound gradually subsided. Looking at Xiao Lü, who was scribbling with her head down, Mu An's eyes darkened slightly, and she nodded in agreement.

"it is good."

His hand paused slightly as he painted, and his voice carried a hint of pleading, "I have another request for you, young master."

"Why are you being so polite? Just say what you need."

Xiao Lü suddenly looked up and met Mu An's gaze.

"In the years to come, please spend more time with us and less time on spiritual practice, okay?"

The bright moonlight illuminated the courtyard and the two figures within it.

Mu An looked closely at Xiao Lü and then realized that her skin was no longer smooth and tender, and her black hair was mixed with a few barely noticeable white hairs.

He remained silent for a while, assuming that Xiao Lü was feeling sentimental about the passing of time, and readily agreed.

"Okay, I promise."

Mu An has plenty of time and is never in a hurry; there's nothing he's in a rush to accomplish right now.

Seeing that Mu An agreed, Xiao Lü suddenly laughed. She turned her head and said abruptly, "I've been learning to paint recently."

"That's great. It's a wonderful thing to have things you like."

"I want to spend a long time creating a very thick picture book."

"Oh? That's going to be amazing! Can I watch?"

Xiao Lü nodded with a smile, but just when Mu An thought she would take him to see it, she shook her head at Mu An again.

"Not now, let's show it to the young master later."

Mu An felt somewhat puzzled. Little Green was acting very strangely tonight, leaving him completely baffled.

He's fifty years old, why is he suddenly acting like a child?

But Mu An still agreed.

"Okay, you can show it to me whenever you want."

The courtyard fell silent again. After a while, seeing the bright moon hanging high in the sky, Mu An stood up and pulled Xiao Lü up as well.

"It's getting late, you and Xiaohe should go back and rest. I'll stay here with Xiaoling'er."

Xiao Lü stood up gracefully. She did not refuse Mu An's kindness, but instead quietly walked into the house and dragged the somewhat reluctant Xiao He out.

Finally, she looked at Mu An and said softly.

"Young Master, you should also get some rest... No matter how capable a person is, they still need to rest."

Mu An pretended not to hear and casually waved her hand.

With his current level of skill, he could go without sleep for years without any problems; he hasn't slept for a long time.

Although Xiao Lü is eager to learn, she still knows too little and doesn't understand the power of a great cultivator.

Seeing Mu An's perfunctory attitude, Xiao Lü didn't try to persuade her further. As usual, she muttered something while pulling Xiao He towards her room.

Just as she was about to leave the courtyard, she suddenly turned around and threw a piece of candy to Mu An. Seeing Mu An catch it, she waved her hand and took a few steps out of the courtyard.

Under the gentle moonlight, Mu An stared blankly at the somewhat familiar candy in her hand.

He had felt that the candy Xiao Lü had given him looked familiar before, and now he finally remembered.