For the next few days, Yuanchu was forced to stay at home.
The reason given was that he had already skillfully mastered how to activate and control his ability.
Every time Yuanchu wanted to try again, Elder Gu used the same phrase to shut down his questions:
"I have already sensed your power."
Yuanchu didn't know what to say. There was only one person on the entire island who had awakened extraordinary abilities, so whatever he said went.
One day, Elder Gu watched Yuanchu sighing repeatedly until he finally couldn't hold it in anymore:
"Go do physical training. Excellent physical condition is a prerequisite for better wielding your own power."
Yuanchu nodded helplessly; whatever he said went.
……
Life really was boring without those two troublemakers. Yuanchu walked along aimlessly, remembering that Old Gu had told him he didn't need to push himself as hard as before—just one round trip a day would do.
That made Yuanchu give up running. Are you kidding? If he ran, he could make two round trips a day, even if he looked a bit disheveled on the final return.
Hehe, no harm done.
Yuanchu fished a foxtail grass from somewhere to chew on, clasped his hands behind his head, and strolled leisurely. Nobody was keeping tabs on him anyway, which was fantastic.
Yet, scenery by oneself eventually grew dull. Before long, Yuanchu spat the grass out by the roadside, deciding to walk a bit faster to take in the mountain views.
The sky was half-bright and half-dark, but at least the dark clouds still let a weak sliver of sunlight through. He found himself somewhat missing the days of walking to school with Han Xinnian.
Where had she gone lately, anyway? She hadn't come to see him, and she didn't even need to cultivate, did she?
Another thing—had she become a man of few words lately? Why did she seem a bit dazed?
Yuanchu shook his head, casting the thoughts to the back of his mind.
Maybe she just didn't know what to say. People were all like that, just like himself—he looked like he had a paralyzed face, but who knew his inner emotions were so rich?
Poor Elder Gu, seemingly misunderstood by Gu Feng and Moran. Clearly, it was he who had acted a bit cheeky with the old man first, yet those two completely missed that side of him and instead assumed Elder Gu was being overbearing and rude by bullying him.
Yuanchu suddenly burst out laughing.
That was fine too; it would help establish a stern image for Elder Gu and keep the other two from slacking off.
Now that he had finished venting all these complaints, what else was on his mind?
Yuanchu kept walking while continuing to find things to grumble about.
Right, that old man always used public office to settle private scores. Just wait until someday I...
……
Before he knew it, Yuanchu reached the mountaintop. Feeling the cool air drifting across the summit, it truly was lonely at the high altitudes—that made sense.
"Ah, to stand at the very peak..."
Yuanchu was suddenly struck by a wave of poetic inspiration, though he instantly clammed up when he remembered his previous indifference toward Moran.
Never mind whether the other person could hear him; he would just offer a silent apology to himself.
Ahec.
"Achoo!" Moran sneezed in the distance.
"Focus during your training." Elder Gu conjured a willow switch from somewhere and tapped the ground near Moran's feet to urge him on.
"Another day missing Yuanchu." The two cultivating figures couldn't help but think of that figure.
The dark clouds on the horizon were ultimately chased away by sunlight, shifting back into the colors they ought to possess. Flocks of wild geese flew toward the edge of the sky, carving a few clean white trails across the azure heavens through the clouds.
An indescribable happiness.
Yuanchu spread his arms wide, as if to embrace the entire world.
……
If nothing unexpected happened, then something unexpected was bound to happen.
When people were extremely happy, they always felt very excited, but excitement was invariably followed by melancholy.
Yuanchu was just like that. He had no idea why he suddenly felt melancholic—it couldn't really be explained, much like a roller coaster; once you hit the peak of your emotions, you were bound to head back down.
Sigh.
Forget it, stop thinking about yourself; think about them.
Oh, right! I'm on vacation.
At this thought, Yuanchu was happy yet again.
Though it couldn't quite match the excitement he'd felt near the mountaintop, it couldn't stop him from being happy right now.
Other people's misery certainly drew his sympathy, but... without comparison, there was no suffering... Sorry, you two poor souls who are stuck cultivating.
Far away, Moran and Gu Feng sneezed in perfect unison, acting as if they were a single person.
"You two..."
"Elder..."
Before Elder Gu could finish, Moran pointed at the clouds in the sky and asked:
"I've been wanting to say this for a while—why is the sky sunny one second and overcast the next? They always say weather changes as fast as a monkey's face, but it's changed three times in less than a minute. Isn't this changing even faster than a monkey?"
Elder Gu gave an awkward cough.
"Perhaps... this sky really belongs to the Year of the Monkey."
"Achoo!"
This time, it was Yuanchu up on the mountaintop who sneezed.
……
Happy times were always short, much like seaweed. You ask me why seaweed?
That was because... Yuanchu was currently sitting in a rocking chair, holding a piece of seaweed and eating it with great relish.
Elder Gu's advice had been: you can eat, but don't disrupt our cultivation.
O-k.
Yuanchu made a hand gesture, quietly watching them train from not far away, with his back turned to them.
"Want a piece, Xinnian?"
Han Xinnian nodded, opening her mouth to wait for Yuanchu to feed her.
Moran and Gu Feng couldn't see it, but Elder Gu, facing right toward them, certainly could. With dark lines covering his face, he watched Yuanchu—was this guy really coming here just to... show off his romance?
Well, you couldn't quite call it that... Elder Gu seemed to think of something interesting, raised an eyebrow, and let his lips curve into a slight smile.
……
Happy times were always brief. When Yuanchu saw Moran's eyes flashing between red and black, and the top of Gu Feng's head flickering between green and black, glowing in the night sky like a dim and flickering lightbulb, Yuanchu knew it was over.
Farewell, my happy times.
……
"Let's continue with our next lesson."
Elder Gu looked at Gu Feng and Moran, both currently fueled up like they were on stimulants, and Yuanchu, who was already looking somewhat wilted.
"Yuanchu! You don't need to study here."
"???"
Yuanchu pointed at himself, suspecting he had misheard.
He suddenly didn't know whether to feel happy or sad.
If he felt happy, well, watching others suffer through cultivation was quite fun after all.
If he felt sad, it was because while he had already learned what came before, he had never tried this next phase of learning. What if he fell behind and couldn't protect people anymore?
Yuanchu suddenly remembered his promise to protect a certain kid with the surname Han, and shook his head as he said, "No, no, I have to learn."
Elder Gu lightly slapped Yuanchu with his hand:
"What are you thinking? I mean I'm sending you to a different place to study."
"Oh, oh." Yuanchu breathed a sigh of relief.
"Everyone, close your eyes first."
Making sure everyone had their eyes closed, Elder Gu began to chant and cast his magic.
Yuanchu felt light as a feather, as if he were heading to heaven.
Could it be that the environment Elder Gu had set up for him was actually heaven?
A sudden surge of excitement bubbled up inside Yuanchu.
A voice came from afar:
"Open your eyes, Yuanchu."
Yuanchu opened his eyes and took a look:
Hey, isn't this exactly the same as before? The same waterfall, the same white mist, the same river...
If he had to name a difference, he felt as though his connection to something had been abruptly cut off.
"Yuanchu, from now on, you aren't coming back until you've mastered it."
"???"
This seemed a bit different from what he had imagined.