Notes on Longevity

Chapter 170 Even with a thousand-year-old demon body, the human heart should not be underestimated.

Dao Yisheng's words caused Taihua to direct all his anger at Lüyi, because he knew that Dao Yisheng had long forgotten some of his past, but she remembered everything. He also understood what Lüyi was trying to do; she was simply using the pretext of making clothes to try and keep Dao Yisheng around. However, what he couldn't understand was why a dying woman would want to keep Dao Yisheng around.

He wanted to vent his anger, but restrained by Dao Yisheng, he could only take a deep breath and slowly speak to Dao Yisheng, trying to persuade him to give up what he had agreed to, "We can buy the clothes on the way."

However, Dao Yisheng disagreed upon hearing this. He frowned and looked at Taihua, saying incredulously, "Back on the mountain, you always told me that people should be based on propriety and that honesty is of utmost importance. Why are you saying this now? Anyway, I have already promised the girl in green that I will leave in ten days at most, after she has finished making the clothes."

Faced with Dao Yisheng's stubbornness, Taihua was helpless. After all, he was the one who brought the man out, so he had to take responsibility for him. Taihua glanced at the green-clad man who was still looking down, and finally sighed helplessly: "Fine, I promise you, ten days at most. After ten days, we will leave Yu'an."

Dao Yisheng breathed a sigh of relief upon hearing this. After all, this was the first time he had spoken to Taihua like this. Aside from playful banter, he never dared to speak harshly to Taihua, fearing he would be abandoned if he angered him. Now, having chosen to travel alone, he figured he might never meet someone so kind to him again after leaving Taihua. So, he decided to try arguing with Taihua. While saying those words, he was actually quite nervous, afraid that Taihua would simply stuff him into his gourd and take him away.

Fortunately, Taihua seemed to genuinely care about him, and he wasn't sure if his actions would hurt him. So, he cautiously approached Taihua and asked softly, somewhat fearfully, "Really? You really agree?"

Taihua looked at Daoyisheng's face as it drew closer and sighed helplessly, "Tell me, why did I agree to bring you down the mountain to Yu'an?"

Taihua said something similar to what Daoyi had said when they were born between the two mountains, except that back then he said it to avoid arousing Daoyi's suspicion, but now he truly regretted it: "What can I do if I disagree? Am I really going to arrest you?"

Upon hearing this, Dao Yisheng immediately changed his expression, put his arm around Taihua's shoulders, and chuckled, "I knew it, you're the best to me."

"I'm so good to you, and you still don't listen to me. You're really hurting me." Taihua rolled her eyes at Daoyisheng's fawning manner. Although she complained a little, she still let him hug her and finally smiled helplessly.

However, when his gaze fell on Green Robe, the smile on his face froze slightly. He knew what Green Robe was thinking, but with Dao Yisheng right beside him, he couldn't say it directly. So, he said to Green Robe, "You know how to make clothes?"

Upon hearing this, the woman in green dared not raise her head, but could only bow and reply, "When traveling among mortals, one must always know some skills, otherwise one will not even have food to eat."

“Since Dao Yisheng needs clothes, you should make them now,” Taihua said.

The woman in green replied, "Yes."

As soon as she finished speaking, the woman in green turned and walked towards the wooden house. Dao Yisheng looked at her lonely figure again and couldn't help but ask, "Taihua, is there something you're hiding from me?"

Taihua frowned, and placed the hilt of his sword on Daoyisheng's head. "What could I possibly be hiding from you?"

Dao Yisheng was puzzled: "Otherwise, why are you in such a hurry to take me away? You know, you would never have let me go alone before. Just now, you actually agreed to let me travel alone in order to get me to leave. You must be hiding something from me." Taihua looked at Dao Yisheng's firm and certain expression and tone, and looked him up and down in disbelief, clicking his tongue repeatedly: "I didn't realize? I've only been gone a short time, and you've already started using your brain?"

Upon hearing this, Dao Yisheng's somewhat emerald-green eyes widened in disbelief that Taihua would say such a thing about him. He pulled her close and pretended to scold her, "What do you mean by that?"

Taihua burst out laughing when he saw his expression. "I told you you're stupid."

After saying that, Taihua laughed even louder, which made Daoyi so embarrassed that he wanted to disappear. He hugged her even tighter and said, "Taihua, if you keep saying that, I won't talk to you anymore."

As soon as Dao Yisheng finished speaking, Taihua's laughter stopped abruptly. Dao Yisheng thought he had fooled him, but he didn't expect Taihua's laughter to grow even louder. It was so loud that all the flowers closed their blooming buds, startled the birds in the forest, and even the green-clad man in the wooden house, who was staring blankly at the food on the table in front of him, turned around to look at the two people who were awkwardly entwined together.

Watching the two playfully bickering, Green Robe couldn't laugh. She didn't know what had happened after Taihua left, or why he treated her so badly upon his return. However, she had a premonition that Taihua's haste in taking Daoyisheng away this time must be because of her. She thought perhaps Taihua had used a secret method similar to Yun Gong's to calculate something, which was why he was acting this way.

However, there was no time for her to think about it now. What she needed to do now was to make some clothes for Daoyi.

She looked forlornly at the two people in the distance, sighed, and then slowly walked up to the second floor.

After a brief playful exchange between the two at the edge of the woods, Dao Yisheng continued to ask Taihua seriously, "Do you really agree to let me leave alone?"

Taihua also stopped smiling. He looked down at the silver sword in his hand and said, "Actually, I don't want to agree."

Dao Yisheng asked, puzzled, "Why?"

Taihua replied, “Because you have never truly lived in the human world, you do not understand the various aspects of human life. I am afraid that if I let you leave alone, you might cause a great disaster one day, and I may not be able to save you then.”

Dao Yi was puzzled, yet understood, and said, "Just because of this?"

Taihua chuckled, "You haven't experienced the dangers of the human world, and you're inherently naive. Even at a thousand years old, you're still like a child. And because of that, let me tell you, it's not easy to be a demon, and it's not easy to be a human either."

At this point, Taihua recalled his first encounter with Yun Gong, their separation from Kunlun, and their subsequent meeting. He then said, "You are a demon. What is the purpose of your thousand years of cultivation? It is nothing more than to attain the Great Dao, so that if you have the opportunity in the future, you can ascend to immortality and go to the Heavenly Palace. But what about humans? They are different. They are curious about all the wonders of this world, and the desires in their hearts are like a bottomless abyss, trapping them in a prison from which they cannot extricate themselves. Even if someone can see through worldly desires, they still cannot escape the shackles in their own heart. Therefore, even with a thousand-year-old demon body, one should not underestimate the human heart."

(End of this chapter)