Wild cultivation begins with wielding the Taiyin talisman.

When they returned to the rat swamp, it was already late afternoon, and the sun was about to set.

Amid Zhao He's choked sobs, Ning Che went to collect Chen Mu's body.

How many partings will a person experience in their lifetime?

He had many comrades-in-arms, some of whom left, and then he left too. By sheer luck, he came here, but soon he would have to face even more partings.

He still remembered the first time he met Chen Mu. The young man was wearing a long gown and had a refined, scholarly air about him, like a scholar who had stepped out of an ancient-style TV drama, with outstanding character.

Later, when they gathered, drank, and practiced meditation, Chen Mu always had a book in his hand.

Regardless of the genre, he seems to love watching and liking everything.

Including the book of formations that still lay beside his body, unclosed.

He had never asked about these things, and he didn't even know what kind of magic Chen Mu was good at.

At that time... at that time, it seems there weren't so many feelings.

At the time, it was only common.

Memories are like a handful of salt, sprinkled on the empty spaces in the heart.

The pain is not something that can be stopped by cutting into the skin.

My hatred is etched into my very bones!

Ning Che's lips were pursed as he picked up the book on formations. But suddenly he felt that something was off about the book.

I opened it with one hand and saw that there was a letter inside.

After unfolding and reading the letter, his heart sank even further.

He remained silent, somewhat laboriously hoisted Chen Mu's body onto his back, then picked up the book and walked out.

He couldn't let Chen Mu lie in this place forever.

Chen Mu once said that he came from Huichuntang.

Then let's send Chen Mu to Huichuntang first.

The three noticed Ning Che's actions and immediately blocked his way, asking, "What are you doing?"

"Take Chen Mu home..."

"I'm going too!" Zhao He shouted without thinking before Ning Che could finish speaking.

Lin Ye didn't speak, but stood to the side, watching Ning Che.

Zhong Hongyao said, "The rat demon definitely won't make any more moves in the short term. I'll just stay here and keep watch."

Ning Che nodded, "Then you all can come along too." He then looked at Zhong Hongyao, "Thank you for your help."

After a few polite exchanges, the four of them set off.

The road to Feihu City is much easier to travel than the way we came.

The miasma in the swamp had almost dissipated, and the road no longer tugged at people's shoes like a living creature.

The wood on Ning Che's back was very light, so light that it didn't seem like a grown man, but rather like a bundle of firewood that had been dried in the sun, swaying gently with his steps.

Zhao He tried to accept the money several times with tears in his eyes, but Ning Che shook his head and refused each time.

"I'll carry it."

His left arm steadily supported Chen Mu's knees, while his right arm hung down at his side, dangling from a simple strip of cloth, swaying with his steps like a lifeless piece of withered wood.

Lin Ye led the way, the bandage on his shoulders was torn and bleeding from the movement, but he didn't utter a sound, he just kicked away all the pebbles and weeds blocking the way.

Lin Caiwei followed behind, walking barefoot through the gravel and mud, her feet not getting dirty at all.

She was wearing shoes before.

Ning Che had a fleeting thought, but at this moment, he no longer had the energy to examine it in detail.

No one spoke on the street.

The only sounds were the wind rustling through the treetops and the soft rustling of half a bag of dried herbs that fell from Chen Mu's arms when Ning Che occasionally adjusted his posture.

Ning Che simply asked Zhao He to keep it safe for him, saying that it wouldn't be too late to ask at Huichuntang.

Ning Che only took a short break when the city gate of Feihu City came into view, and then asked Zhao He to help him change his posture while carrying him.

Zhao He chimed in, "Chen Mu told me that this is the best clinic in Feihu City, and it's the only place that allows credit."

Lin Ye curled the corners of his mouth and sneered, "In my eyes, they're all the same—places where people make dirty money."

Ning Che raised his left hand, stopping the two from arguing before they could start.

Regardless of the truth, Chen Mu is going home and shouldn't listen to any more of this.

Feihu City remains bustling, like a stage that never closes, with all sorts of vendors performing and hawking their wares on the streets.

But as soon as the group entered the city, the once bustling streets fell silent, and passersby quickly made way for them. It wasn't because they looked particularly fierce, but because of the corpse Ning Che was carrying on his back, dressed in the protective attire of a mountain guardian.

This is a major event, a very big deal in the city. It's usually only during years of natural disasters that the mountain dwellers would risk their lives to stay in the mountains.

Those gazes swept over me, some with sympathy, some with curiosity, and some with a fear that I wanted to avoid.

Ning Che saw not a trace of respect in his eyes.

He didn't care, he just steadily supported the person on his back and kept walking towards East Street.

At the end of East Street, a large courtyard with three courtyards stands on the side of the street. The three large characters "Huichuntang" on the lintel are painted brightly. There is a long queue at the entrance, including an old man coughing with his mouth covered, a woman holding a crying child, and a man squatting against the wall clutching his stomach.

A strong medicinal smell wafted from the courtyard, mingling with the lively atmosphere of the street, yet it felt as if there was an insurmountable chasm separating Ning Che from the person on his back.

The long queue made way for Ning Che when they saw his attire.

Ning Che didn't stand on ceremony and walked straight in, stopping at the door.

The young apprentice guarding the gate looked up and saw the withered body on his back. His face turned deathly pale, and he took two steps back, exclaiming, "What...what are you doing?!"

"Send them back." Ning Che's voice was flat, revealing no emotion.

"Bringing someone back?" The apprentice asked, puzzled. He mustered his courage and looked at the person a few more times before finally recognizing him.

He froze instantly, then began to tremble, his lips quivering as he stammered, "Senior Brother Chen...?"

This commotion naturally alerted those inside the hall, and many people dressed as doctors put down what they were doing and came out.

The leader was a middle-aged man with a short beard, dressed in a silk blue robe, with a mutton-fat jade pendant hanging from his waist. He glanced at Chen Mu on Ning Che's back, his brows instantly furrowing into knots, his tone full of impatience: "Move the body further away, don't disturb the patients in the hall."

Upon hearing this, Zhao He suddenly raised his head and drew his knife with a clang, startling everyone around him into retreating.

Seeing this, Lin Ye also took a step forward.

Ning Che didn't move, but gently lowered Chen Mu a little so that the other could see his withered, lifeless face: "Chen Mu is from your Huichuntang, right?"

"It used to be."

The middle-aged man raised his chin, didn't look at Chen Mu, and spoke directly.

He spoke very quickly, as if eager to distance himself from the situation: "He has long since left the hall and joined the mountain guardians; his life and death are governed by the rules of the mountain. It is against propriety for you to send him back."

"You..." Zhao He shouted angrily, but was interrupted by Ning Che's look.

He swallowed back those overly harsh words. But the hand gripping the knife hilt tightly still betrayed his turbulent inner state.

"He died in the rat swamp, in a battle with a demonic beast," Ning Che said.

The middle-aged man nodded and gestured to the young apprentice behind him: "Go and fetch two hundred thousand coins. Consider it a token of my appreciation for your hard work."

Two hundred thousand is certainly not a small amount.

Ning Che found it somewhat laughable.