The sun rose slowly that morning, soft pink gold brushing the rooftops. Mist curled around the fields like lingering dreams. Children's laughter drifted across the village, fading gently with the breeze.
The world changed like a page turning.
The sky was a deep blue, smooth as polished jade. Stars still glittered faintly like scattered frost across its endless stretch. Fireflies drifted lazily over the wide fields, glowing in soft pulses. Crickets chirped. Birds slept, tucked under their wings on thick branches.
Chimneys puffed warm smoke from every wooden house.
Inside one of them—
laughter.
The villagers had set out long tables filled with roasted boar, roasted duck, steamed fish, fresh grain, thick soups, and every fruit they had, along with wine brewed by the mysterious stranger. They were celebrating.
Li Qiong.Feiya.
The outsiders who helped them hunt down the giant wild boar destroying their crops.
The village chief welcomed them with arms spread wide, voice full of gratitude. Children tugged on Feiya's sleeves. Elders clung to Li Qiong, not wanting to let go. The fox curled around Feiya's feet, playing with Big D, whose chest was puffed proudly.
But Li Qiong's thoughts were elsewhere.
A formation lay hidden over the entire village like an invisible dome—subtle, quiet, refined beyond normal cultivators' senses. It guided the farmers' breathing, stabilized their bodies, and drew in tiny strands of qi with every inhale.
He crouched silently, touching the earth with the back of his fingers.
The soil thrummed.
His spiritual sense sank downward like a thread of light—
and struck something bright.
The eye of the formation.
Li Qiong took a handful of sand and seeds from his pouch. He crushed them lightly between his fingers.
His hand slipped into his sleeve and pulled out a jade box, its lock faintly glowing. Inside were three strange jade bottles filled with beast blood. He sprinkled a bit of the blood over the crushed seeds. A gentle breeze swept through the village, rustling leaves and flowers.
Li Qiong closed the jade box with a soft click.
Last night's conversation returned to him—the mysterious courtyard he had seen, piled with spirit stones, swarming with spirit insects, the kind of chaos only eccentric geniuses created.
He had asked the villagers about it.
The villagers burst with stories, talking over one another in excitement.
"Ever since that traveler arrived… everything changed. He had no manners at all—childish as a wild monkey—but a heart kinder than anyone's."
"Always causing trouble… yet always fixing it too. Never in the way we expected."
"He was odd. Strange temper. Sometimes lazy for three days straight, sometimes brighter than the sun itself. Mischievous as a fox cub."
"He laughed so loud—like a villain in a story—that the chickens laid early! Every morning!"
"But he made the children laugh every single day. Played with them, watched over them like an older brother."
"Big D listened to him more than to any of us! From the moment they met, that dog followed him like his shadow."
"He came butt naked the first time we saw him—scared us half to death! Always doing the most unexpected things, always making us laugh until our stomachs hurt. The once barren land full of pests? Under his care it became divine soil. Demons came, and he shooed them away like flies. Thieves tried their luck, and he scared them half-dead."
"He fixed roofs… patched fences… chased off wolves… and never asked for a single coin."
"And the chaos he brought! He once flooded the whole field trying to 'improve irrigation.' Nearly drowned all the crops! We had to replant everything."
"He angered the heavens too—cursed every day," another villager said, shaking his head. "Thunder fell on his courtyard so often it put his butt on fire. He didn't dare step outside for an entire week!"
"There was a day he was wrapped in bandages like a ball," someone added. "Rolling around screaming and shouting all night—we couldn't sleep at all. That pervert."
"Childish fellow," someone laughed. "Reckless. But somehow… everything he touched turned into blessings."
"He made Big D braver. Look at him now! A scranny dog who could've died any day—now afraid of nothing except pigs."
The adults laughed warmly, while the children played with Big D, tumbling around in the dust.
Li Qiong laughed then.A rare, genuine laughter.The kind that curled his stomach and brought tears to his eyes.
The absurdity. The brilliance.Exactly the sort of person Heaven sent to stir up the world.
Someone who made life lively simply by existing.
An elder let out a long sigh.
"That young man… we never learned his origins. Not a thing about him except his name."
Li Qiong stood quietly, memories flickering at the edge of his mind—blurry, warm, gentle, yet carrying a faint ache of nostalgia he couldn't explain… and because of that feeling, he decided he would stay a few more days.
Li Qiong and Feiya stayed a few more days. He helped the village with everything he could think of. He grew so close to them that many began treating him like family.
But soon, it came to an end.
A hawk circled above Li Qiong, carrying a purple cloth tied to its leg—a message.
It was from the prince.Li Qiong's ideas had worked well, but suddenly a neighboring country had started a war without warning. Li Qiong laughed after reading it. Someone was playing games. Everything was starting again from square one.
It was time to move.
Li Qiong stood at the village entrance.
Today… he would leave.
Feiya clung to his sleeve with both hands. Her head was lowered, hair hiding half her face. Her grip loosened, tightened, loosened again—but she didn't let go.
Big D paced around them restlessly. Tail wagging. Then stopping. Then wagging again. Confused. Sad. Trying to understand why the air felt so heavy.
Children gathered first. Small shadows running down the stone path, breath puffing like steam. They slowed when they reached Feiya, eyes red, faces puffy.
One boy held out a basket—fresh vegetables, dew still clinging to the leaves, faint qi glowing around them. Elixir Grade One.
"For… elder sister Feiya…"His voice cracked halfway through the sentence.
A girl stepped forward. Then another. Soon Feiya's arms were full—vegetables, dried fruits, and a clumsily woven bracelet made of rice straw.
Li Qiong understood.
Trust given without hesitation.Purity without fear.Rare in the mortal world.
A group of aunties wiped their eyes.
"Young immortal… you're really leaving?""Stay for another meal… just one more…""You made the village lively again… like spring after a long winter…"
Their voices overlapped—soft, fragile, shaking.
Big D barked.A low, mournful sound.
The dog circled them, tail sweeping the dust, whining softly.
The four-tailed fox plucked a tuft of its soft red fur—slowly, deliberately—and dropped it in front of Big D.
Big D froze.Sniffed once… twice…then whimpered.
A beast's version of:Take care.
Elders shuffled forward, one by one—wrinkled faces, warm eyes, bowed spines.
"Young immortal, in these days you've helped us more than we can say.""We will never forget your kindness.""Wherever you walk… may the heavens watch over you."
Someone sobbed in the back.
Children wiped their noses.Aunties sniffed.Two young men clenched their fists, trying not to cry.
Li Qiong looked at them.
Memories tugged gently—villagers peeking shyly from behind doors,aunties refilling his bowl every time it emptied,children asking if he could fly,Feiya laughing until she rolled in the grass,Big D dragging ten gifts a day for the fox,and faint blurry memories from long ago.
He breathed out slowly.
Before leaving, he stepped toward the chief and placed a jade bottle in his hand.
"Give this to Chunhe," Li Qiong said.
The chief blinked."You… you know his name?"
Li Qiong smiled faintly."Children like to talk."
The chief turned toward the children.They whistled and looked away, trying to avoid his gaze.
"What is inside…?" he asked.
The wind rustled the bamboo.Cranes called from the fields.A distant ox lowed, as if urging Li Qiong onward.
Li Qiong waved a hand without answering.There were things he needed to do.
Feiya tugged his sleeve again—soft, hesitant—then took a deep breath and let go.
They walked together down the dusty road.Green robes rustling.Cone hats shading their faces.
Halfway down the path—
A small white-blue snake peeked out from his sleeve.Tongue flicking.Eyes bright and curious.A new companion for a new journey.
Behind them—
Big D barked.Long and echoing across the valley.
The villagers bowed deeply.
Even the crane in the fields spread its wings and flew above them.
Li Qiong did not look back.
Some places you leave once—but they remain in your heart like pearls resting in the ocean.
The path ahead brightened.Step by step.Soft.Steady.
Feiya slipped her hand into his sleeve again.
Li Qiong smiled.
A rare, genuine smile—soft, quiet, and knowing.The kind that carried more meaning than words ever could.
Big D ran after them until the very edge of the village, paws kicking up dust as he chased their fading shadows. At the gate he finally stopped, chest heaving, ears drooping as he watched their silhouettes melt into the rising morning light.
A lonely bark slipped from his throat.
The wind swept gently across the fields, brushing through ripening grain and rattling bamboo leaves like a hushed farewell.
Behind him, the villagers stood long after the two figures had vanished from sight. Some shaded their eyes. Some held their breath. None spoke.
The world felt a little quieter.
A little emptier.
But also—somehow—brighter.
The journey continued.