I am the sacred tree, evergreen for eternity.

At the summit of the sacred mountain, the ten-zhang-tall elm tree gleamed under the moonlight.

Yu Su woke up.

Or rather, as a tree, he doesn't really sleep.

It's more of a deep, almost meditative state, where the spirit sinks into the depths of the earth's veins, resonating with every breath of this land.

Now, that resonance has been triggered.

A mysterious fluctuation followed the leaf that Xuan had taken away, the one that carried his consciousness node.

It travels across thousands of miles of valleys and mountains, originating from the depths of a remote, wind-eroded wilderness.

Life and death.

The tree once split into two branches. One branch took root in the light of the spirit and grew amidst the piety of humankind; the other branch took root in the deathly aura and sank into the worship of the abyss.

Although they share the same origin, they have never truly intersected.

until now.

Yu Su's spiritual sense traveled upstream along that wave.

A wisp of his consciousness descended from the sky along with the black and white intertwined shadows of the tree.

The spiritual field of life and the power of death complement each other, like yin and yang.

Like the alternation of day and night, like the rise and fall of tides, like the cycle of the four seasons.

Even Yu Su hadn't anticipated that power.

Yu Su's consciousness lingered in that resonance for a long time, and a sudden realization exploded in the void of her consciousness like a thunderclap.

Between life and death, there are all living beings.

Like two sides of a leaf, it grows, withers, and returns to the soil.

Billions of living beings climb, struggle, and fall between these two poles, all of which are their destiny.

See the heavens and the earth, see all living beings.

Yu Su's Dharma form condensed in the void, clearer than ever before.

The patterns on the tree trunks are no longer mysterious lines, but rather the veins of mountains and rivers;

The leaves on the tree canopy are no longer emerald green or withered yellow, but a mix of black and white, a cycle of life and death.

Then, he vaguely saw it.

In the distance of the journey, in the void, there is a glimmer of light.

The true self and divine will.

Yu Su's consciousness extended toward that point of light, inch by inch, like roots slowly advancing through barren rocks.

He touched it.

It was just a fleeting moment.

Then it vanished.

He was still not ready and could not attend court.

Yu Su's spiritual consciousness retreated back to her body, and her Dharma form slowly dissipated.

He had no regrets, no anxiety; he was a tree.

The one thing we have in abundance is time.

……

A desolate inn, a deep rest room.

The charcoal in the brazier glowed red-hot, warming the small space cozy and cozy.

Animal hides were laid out on the ground, and people sat or lay down, their muscles, which had been tense all day, finally relaxed.

After Li removed his mask, his pale, boyish face remained exposed in the dim firelight.

He placed the mask on his lap, clasped his hands on it, and sat quietly in the corner, like a piece of porcelain placed there.

It was a rare treat to meet someone of the same age, and a group of young travelers surrounded Li, chattering away.

"Where did you come from? Why are you alone?"

"What is that mask made of? It feels cold to the touch, like stone or bone at the same time."

"That move you just made was amazing! What was that black and white tree?"

"How come you speak our language? Do all the Abyss Clan learn human languages?"

The questions came at him like a machine gun, but Li maintained a faint smile throughout.

He didn't answer, he just sat there quietly.

Finally, Xuan spoke.

"Alright."

The two words were not repeated, but everyone fell silent.

Xuan leaned against the wall, his gray hair gleaming with a dark luster in the firelight.

His gaze swept over the young faces, his voice hoarse and calm.

"In a foreign land, hearing a familiar accent would excite anyone, but don't be impolite."

"Besides, he's about the same age as your grandfathers..."

Huh? This!

The young travelers lowered their heads sheepishly.

Yu scratched the back of his head and took half a step back; he was the most excited one just now.

Li turned her head to look at Xuan and spoke.

Thank you.

Xuan waved his hand.

The lounge was quiet for a moment, with only the crackling of the charcoal fire.

Li spoke, her voice still clear and crisp, but with a hint of seriousness that had filled the air before.

"After its establishment, the Yuan Kingdom developed rapidly."

His gaze fell on the leaping flames, as if he were looking into the distance.

"The Ao King led the Yuan Clan to establish roots deep in the mountains and seas."

"Although the ghostly light of the dead tree is different from that of the divine tree, it can still draw upon the earth's veins and nourish the surrounding area."

"But the Abyss Clan also has its limitations... Being neither alive nor dead means being forever trapped between life and death."

"Since we cannot reproduce like humans, we have no choice but to go outwards and to more distant places to find a way for the Abyss Clan to continue."

Li paused, revealing a hint of nostalgia for the past.

"The Arrogant King foresaw the dark laws of the mountains and seas."

"In the wilderness, there are too many things that are unknowable and unspeakable."

"Instead of waiting for 'them' to come to us, we should take the initiative to go out and see what this mountain and sea really looks like."

"The Yuan tribe does not need food, water, or even sleep."

"This gave us an advantage in our exploration—other races had to rest for a day after walking for three days, but we could walk for ten days straight."

Li Ping spoke of those turbulent years in a calm tone, as if they were nothing more than a few hardships.

The Yuan Clan's pioneering team wandered around and unexpectedly stumbled into the wind-eroded wasteland, where they discovered an unimaginably huge ancient ship.

"The ancient ship was very large, and most of it was buried in the sand, but the main structure was well preserved."

"We don't know where it came from, or why it sank here."

"But there is no doubt that this is a natural stronghold."

The Abyss Clan's ability to adapt to the environment far surpasses that of flesh and blood.

The sandstorms, bitter cold, and black erosion winds of the wasteland pose a deadly threat to the vast majority of flesh-and-blood races.

But the Yuan tribe could endure it, regardless of day or night.

"We spent a year cleaning the cabins and another year reinforcing the structure."

Li spoke in a flat tone, as if he were talking about today's weather.

"And so, we're here."

"Wilderness Inn".

When he uttered those four words, the corners of his mouth widened slightly for a moment.

"I named it myself, and I also carved the characters on the door."

Everyone was silent for a moment.

They recalled the entrance they had seen when they entered the inn, the patterns half-hidden by the wind and sand—

Those aren't patterns, they're characters.

The writing system of humans.

Carved in the center of this wasteland, like a solid foundation, it has been developing for many years.

Qi opened her mouth as if to say something, but then swallowed it back.

He suddenly let out a snort from his nose, whether it was a sigh of praise or something else, it was hard to tell.

Feng picked up the earthenware pot, took a sip of millet wine, and said nothing, but there was a thin layer of water in his eyes.

A tree splits into two branches, just as a person splits into two lineages.

The Xia clan and the Yuanluo clan are now different races.

But at least they still believe in the same totem.

Xuan remained silent.

He leaned against the wall, his gray hair falling over his forehead, obscuring half of his face.

The firelight danced on his face, illuminating the furrows carved out by time with flickering light.

His hands rested on his knees, his fingers slightly curled, his fingertips unconsciously rubbing the edge of the animal skin blanket.

The silence lasted for a long time.

Finally, Xuan spoke.

The sound was very soft, as if afraid of disturbing something.

"Is he... alright?"