Forge a path to success

They waited a moment until there was no more movement in the mist before setting off again. Every now and then, a familiar memory or a monster from a nightmare would emerge from the mist. Whenever this happened, Sillar would call for a halt as if he could foresee the future, his long ears twitching as if he could hear the voices from the mist.

Seeing this, Qingye was very curious, since even she and Chu Hengkong, who were both very perceptive, hadn't noticed any signs. Thinking of the story of the Hundred Tales, she asked, "Grandpa, is this the power you gained by making a wish?"

“No, this is the skill of the forest people, listening to the voice of the earth,” the old man said with a smile.

“That sounds more like talent than skill,” Van der said.

"I can do that too~" Qingxia also twitched her pointed ears.

"You actually know how to do that!"

“If you live in nature for a long time, you will learn it naturally. It’s more worthwhile to ask for something that can’t be learned than something that can be learned.” Slar scratched his hairy chest. “The gift I asked for wouldn’t show its effect normally… because I was very timid when I first came to the wilderness, so I asked the old man for a gift that would make me brave enough to fight.”

"A second personality?" Qingye guessed.

"No, no, that would be too extreme... watch your head."

Suddenly, a noise like a rooster crowing rang out, and a green light descended from the sky. It was a lush green centipede, almost as long as a child, with two pairs of bony wings on its back. Chu Hengkong casually tossed a water bullet, smashing it through the centipede's head. It fell to the ground, twitched a few times, and was then stomped in two by Qingxia.

"That's pretty unique, isn't it? Which kid is afraid of this?" Vande asked with great interest.

"Ah, this is just an ordinary beast."

"This place is so troublesome because the truth and the falsehood are all mixed up."

Qingxia plucked the centipede's bones and wings, popped them into her mouth, and crunched them. She tossed a bone to Silar behind her: "Grandpa, do you want some?"

Silar took the bone: "Oh, it's good that you know to share some with Grandpa. When we were little, you wouldn't share a single bone."

"I was so little back then," Qingxia said nostalgically. "Grandpa could still hold me back then."

Listening to the conversation between the grandfather and granddaughter, Qingye couldn't help but imagine what Qingxia looked like as a child. She's now a strong and powerful warrior captain, and as a child, she was probably about the height of an adult male—around 1.6 to 1.7 meters… while Silar is less than a meter tall…

How did he even manage to hold her?! Did Qingxia grow up to be a miniature pony and only experience explosive growth during puberty? But with his size, the old man could barely lift a corgi, let alone a pony! How did he even take care of his granddaughter back then?!

Qingye felt increasingly horrified as she thought about it: "Um, what did Qingxia look like when she was little...?"

“It’s very different from how it is now,” the old man gestured. “It’s just a little bigger than Van der Rohe.”

"This is such a huge difference! How did it grow like that?! Is it just a horse's tail now?!"

The old man gestured with his paw: "Back then, she was pink, hopping around on her two little feet, and had long claws that could change shape at will..."

Chu Hengkong was startled but remained silent. Fan De couldn't hold back any longer: "Grandpa, are you sure your memory is intact? Even the species has changed!"

"Children always grow up so fast, and you'll never guess what will happen when they reach their growth spurt!" Slar deliberately teased, "They'll suddenly turn into an egg!"

“We… can imagine that,” Chu Hengkong couldn’t help but interject. “She’s like this outside.”

Silaer stared at her granddaughter with her mouth slightly agape, her gaze filled with astonishment.

"You're still dressing up as an egg? Really?"

Qingxia whistled loudly, focusing intently on scouting ahead.

"Child, how old are you now..."

"It's so much easier to sneak when I'm in an egg form! Let's go, let's go!"

“You were in a hurry, that’s why you didn’t hear me clearly,” Slar sighed. “Wait a minute!”

The rapid sound of hooves echoed through the fog, as if a cavalry charge was underway. Immediately afterward, a crimson hurricane burst forth from the mist, carrying a thick, bloody aura as it surged forward. It was Qingxia, the heroine of battle; as she emerged from the fog, a heavy, booming sound echoed, halting the heartbeats of everyone present and causing them all to feel a deep, agonizing pain.

Chu Hengkong watched the terrifying creature disappear into the distance; its profile resembled a demon's maniacal laugh.

“And that’s how she was when she first grew up,” Slar said. “Girls change a lot as they grow up, right?”

"This isn't a change, it's a freakish transformation! What kind of species grows from a little goblin into an egg and then into a centaur?!" Vande was exasperated.

Qingxia said dejectedly, "Grandpa...why do you remember things from the past so clearly..."

“You’ve never raised a child, so you don’t understand. Every day of a child’s life is crystal clear to the elders.” Silaer laughed. “Alright, let’s hurry up and set off. We need to get to the first camp at least today.”

Chu Hengkong silently shook his head in his heart. Silar concealed it well, but the moment Qingxia emerged from the mist, his heart rate quickened, and his ears tensed. This wasn't the reaction one should have when seeing recollections.

That was Slar's "fear".

·

The group, carrying the memories, walked and stopped intermittently until nightfall, when they finally arrived at the first campsite. It was a makeshift campsite enclosed by shadowy walls, resembling a large black coffin from the outside. Slar explained that it was the shadow left behind by knights of the past, capable of maintaining its existence even without maintenance.

"That's a bit far-fetched. It should have been ravaged by monsters long ago after hundreds of years," Vande questioned.

“I guess this was deliberately left behind by Vansalar,” the old man said, “so that we, the later generations, could easily defeat it.”

Thinking of the lounge in the painting, Qingye muttered, "It really is capable of doing that..."

They split into pairs to take turns resting: Qingxia and Qingye in one pair, and Chu Hengkong and Silar in the other, ensuring that someone in each pair could detect the memories. The two male members took turns on night watch, standing outside the shadowy wall, silently watching the ever-changing mist.

“Qingxia has excellent hearing,” Silar suddenly said.

“With Vande here, she can’t hear you,” Chu Hengkong said. “You’ve gone too far, Silar.”

Slar was silent for a while. When he spoke again, he looked somewhat old.

"She's still a child."

“She’s not like that anymore. You know she has her own judgment and sense of right and wrong. You can’t keep hiding the truth forever,” Chu Hengkong said coldly. “She’s grown up reading false stories, harboring false dreams, and possessing false knowledge. She’s put in so much effort for these false things. What will she think when she suddenly learns the truth? It won’t be as simple as leaving the settlement; she’ll be devastated!”

“I knew,” Slar said. “When I first saw her in the jungle, I knew that day would come. She was so small, yet so powerful. I could feel the ferocity and savagery beneath her skin, and I could see ignorance and naivety in her eyes. She read the stories she had salvaged, knowing nothing of the world.”

For everyone's sake, I knew I had to be ruthless. But... she was just a child. It has nothing to do with race; a child is just a child.

Slar sat on the sand, fiddling with his paws.

“I know this choice will cause her pain. To live a life of freedom in the wild, away from society and responsibility, would be the happiest way for her. But… in my homeland, the city-state of the Sacred Tree, many of the races now called ‘citizens’ were once beasts. It was only because we knew, understood, and took responsibility that we transformed from ‘beasts’ into ‘humans,’ and from desolation into civilization.”

Being human is naturally far more painful than being a beast! But can I let her become a happy beast without giving her the opportunity to experience civilization?

Slar clasped his hands together and said firmly, "I thought this was wrong!"

Chu Hengkong had expected him to recount the hardships of being the leader of the settlement and how much the settlement needed new fighting power, even at the cost of "taming" the young Qingxia. But he misjudged Silar's thoughts. His thinking was far too simplistic; even at his age, he remained like those small animals, completely disregarding self-interest and instead contemplating so-called civilization and freedom in this environment.

How could he possibly reprimand him? Blame an idealist as naive as a child? Tell him he shouldn't have educated the child he found?

“At the very least, you should gradually tell her the truth,” Chu Hengkong said finally. “You can’t leave her completely unaware.”

“I originally thought I had more than ten years to slowly change her, but she grew up much faster than I imagined…” Slar smiled bitterly, “In the blink of an eye, I could no longer hold her. When I returned from the City of Nightmares, she had taken over as the Warrior Captain from me. She grew up strong and healthy… but I was at a loss.”

Chu Hengkong couldn't bear to blame the lonely old man any longer. In such an extreme environment as the desolate wilderness, he had already done his best. But reason prevented him from remaining silent, because of the information Chongming had given him, and because of the strange phenomena he had witnessed himself.

“There’s something I haven’t had a chance to tell you yet,” he said. “When I picked up Qingye earlier, I saw three strange creatures in the jungle. They looked very much like your description.”

"What description?" Slar didn't understand.

"Qingxia from my childhood."

Slar's face turned deathly pale, and his large eyes were instantly filled with terror.

"No. No. Protect me, Divine Tree!" it trembled. "Turn back quickly! Quickly—"

The rapid sound of horses' hooves rang out, like a sharp knife cutting off Sillar's words. Both men were startled; they considered the worst-case scenario.

Chu Hengkong rushed back to the camp; Qingxia and Qingye were still resting. Fan De stared wide-eyed, utterly bewildered: "What? You don't trust my cooking skills?"

Chu Hengkong was stunned. He had expected to see Qingxia running back frantically. But it wasn't Qingxia. Then who was it?

Who is coming?

He turned and galloped into the mist with Slar. The sound of hooves grew clearer, and the familiar silhouette of a centaur emerged from the fog. The smooth-coated horse leaped out first, upon which rested a slender woman in a black robe. She paused, her silver hair flowing in the mist, her exquisitely beautiful face bearing a captivating smile.

"I didn't expect there to be anyone here." Her voice was like a fairy singing. "Hello, my name is Wen Yao, and I am a Blood Knight from the Supreme Celestial Realm!"

Chapter 206 The Knight We Met

A relative of Qingxia?

But at this very moment, in this very place, she unexpectedly encountered a "knight" of the same race as her.

There's no way it could be such a coincidence. And it just so happens that it happened while they were discussing Qingxia. It's absolutely impossible for it to be such a coincidence...!

The moment the hawk appeared, their alertness reached its peak. They stood rooted to the spot, motionless, their expressionless faces revealing no emotion. Silar stepped forward, seemingly wanting to speak, a leaf clutched in his paw behind his back.

—Let's take action?

Without hearing a heartbeat, the other person was still in a state of "calmness," suppressing their activity. In this state, if both of them unleashed their full power, they might be able to temporarily subdue them.

"Excuse me, please keep your distance." Chu Hengkong transformed his calamity wrist into a blade. "This place is fraught with danger, I cannot allow you to approach the camp."

—Don't make a move. Observe and see how things develop.

The opponent is most likely a "Blood Knight" with a legitimate lineage, not a ragtag group like Qingxia who grew up relying on the charity of others. If she also possesses skills similar to the Dragon Township Fist, expecting to defeat her easily is wishful thinking. Unable to see through her true strength, it's best to wait and see…

Seeing the serious expressions on their faces, Wen Yao seemed to understand something. She raised her hands and said with a smile, "I understand, I understand~ It's only natural to feel wary of our race's appearance. But we, the 'Myriad Transformations Immortal Clan,' were already allies before the great war even began. This is absolutely true, and all it takes is finding a senior warrior to confirm it...?"

As she spoke, Wen Yao leaned forward slightly. She suddenly leaned close to Chu Hengkong, her delicate nose twitching.

“Strange.” A look of suspicion flashed across Wen Yao’s face. “You clearly carry the scent of my clanswomen, how could you not recognize me? Could it be that you…”

Chu Hengkong's heart sank, knowing that things couldn't be fooled and that Silar's leaves were ready to make their move.

But just then, the shadow wall opened from the inside. The red-haired girl rushed out of the camp, spear in hand, her face grave. "There's a strange smell! Grandpa, didn't you—"

Qingxia stopped abruptly at the camp entrance, completely stunned, forgetting even the words she was about to say. Her vision was completely occupied by that strange yet familiar creature. She looked at the snow-white fur that was much softer than her own, at the delicate face that was carefully groomed, and at the naturally friendly look in its eyes.

Completely different appearances, yet the same self.

"Ah!" Qingxia screamed excitedly, "Ah! Wow!! Wow!!!"

"Hello, sister." Wen Yao walked over, her eyes full of curiosity. "Is this area your territory?"

"Are you... a knight?!" Qingxia grabbed her hand, almost incoherent with excitement. "Are you one of my kind?"

Wen Yao met her gaze and chuckled.

"Is that even a question? Of course we're family!"

·

Wen Yao entered the first camp, and no one had a reason to refuse her entry. To be precise, she didn't even enter on her own; Qing Xia practically dragged the white-haired knight into the camp. She bounced around her fellow knights like a newborn foal, her enthusiasm making Wen Yao feel awkward.

"Don't do that, little sister." She combed her hair, starting to feel embarrassed. "I'm right here, I won't turn into a wisp of smoke and disappear."

"I'm so afraid you'll leave!" Qingxia stared at her expectantly. "I've never seen a fellow countryman before... I've never seen another Discipline Knight!"

"Disciplined Knight?" Wen Yao's mouth gaped open. "Excuse me...? What are you trying to say...?"

Qingxia was too anxious to speak, and she looked to Chu Hengkong for help. Chu Hengkong remained calm: "Qingxia is our settlement's 'Discipline Knight.' Before you appeared, we also thought she was... the only one."

Wen Yao's expression shifted from shock to astonishment. It took her several seconds to react before she burst into laughter, "By your loving mother, my dear sister! What on earth happened to make you think like this?"

“I don’t understand…” Qingxia said blankly. Wen Yao’s smile faded, and he stroked his compatriot’s cheek with almost affection.

“Sorry, little sister, but listen to your passionate heartbeat.” Wen Yao gently pinched her cheek. “Discipline Knights are on the path to supreme godhood, while our race is born to follow the path of destiny unification.”

Qingxia was almost petrified. Her golden eyes dimmed, the expectation in them extinguished, replaced by a cold, ashes-like reality. Her lips trembled uncontrollably, her astonishment and shock turning into an unreasonable rage.

"You're lying!" Qingxia screamed. "We...we are...a race born with justice!"

"What's wrong with your bloodline factors..." Wen Yao said, puzzled. "Of course we are, sisters."

Qingxia, who was about to erupt, was startled by these words.

"But you said..."

Wen Yao gently poked Qingxia's forehead and chuckled, "I see, now I understand your troubles."

My dear sister, don't be afraid. Though we are not Discipline Knights, we always fight alongside them. Martial Monks and Heartbreakers are our comrades, and Ancient Dragons and Divine Trees are our mentors.

Remember this well: our name is the 'Myriad Transformations Immortal Clan.' Long before the Allied Forces were established, we were a member of the righteous path of the Submerged Realm. This was true then, and it is true now!"

Hope rekindled in Qingxia's eyes, her pupils sparkling like gold. She cried out and hugged Wenyao, shouting excitedly. To avoid misunderstanding, Wenyao raised his hands, both amused and exasperated, pleading with everyone to help separate the overly enthusiastic girls. Silar apologized repeatedly, busy defending the clueless Qingxia. Qingye tried to pull her away, but couldn't overcome the centaur's strength.

In the chaos, Chu Hengkong lifted Fan De and retreated to the shadowy wall. He took out the communication artifact he had used in Golden Leaf City and quietly spoke in his mind.

(Tell me she's talking nonsense.)

(Not necessarily, I do have a vague recollection of this race...) Vande pondered for a moment, (The Myriad Transformations Immortal Clan, there is such a race, and it has a rather long history. I guess you don't know, there's a theory in academia about the relationship between gender and the history of existence...)

(I know that the older the race, the more likely it is to be asexual or non-sexual.) Chu Hengkong didn't say that this is what you taught me.

(Damn, you actually knew that! Not bad, buddy, my opinion of you has changed. You've taken a solid step on the road to escaping illiteracy!) Fan De was greatly surprised. (The Myriad Transformations Immortal Clan is a race with a rich history. They are all female. Records say they are naturally sincere, beautiful, and optimistic throughout the clan, making them a very typical lawful race.)

(The Qingxia race? Lawful??)

(I also think it's pretty far-fetched, but that's how it's described in the book. The Myriad Transformations Immortal Clan seems to have a tightly knit social system to maintain stable rule. Even though they often intermarry with various races to introduce foreign bloodlines, they have never experienced an internal strife or coup.) Fan De pondered for a moment, (However, I don't recall the book saying they are the path of cultivation... Rather, this race is named 'Myriad Transformations' because each individual is unique and extraordinary. These two being exactly the same is a bit strange...)