The wind carried the scent of peach blossoms. Weeds swayed, turning into waves of spring breeze that swept across the land. On the branches, peaches seemed to redden in the blink of an eye, while the rustling of Peach Trees filled the air.

Aqing watched, utterly dazzled, as if she’d stepped into some Great Dream.

The sound of splashing water filled her ears. In the next moment, she saw a Waterwheel standing by the river. It turned with a clatter, sending water into the ditches that flowed along small paths into the Peach Grove.

The wind rustled again. Aqing watched as leaves drifted from the Peach Trees towards where the little hut once stood.

Peach Trees piled up, taking the shape of a house—a courtyard, grasses, flowers, turning into tables, chairs, and a wooden cottage…

It felt like instantly returning to a time long past.

Aqing gazed at the wooden cottage. She seemed to see her ‘dad’ push the door open and step out. She murmured, “Dad…”

She rose to her feet, staring blankly at the doorway.

But the doorway remained empty.

For Aqing, it was only a brief moment of distraction.

Chen Changsheng took a bite from the peach in his hand. The crisp sound snapped Aqing out of her thoughts.

She turned to look at Chen Changsheng, about to speak.

But Chen Changsheng said first, “It’ll be dark soon. I won’t stay much longer.”

“Oh, and the peach is very sweet.”

Aqing was stunned for a moment. Gazing at the Green-Robed Gentleman’s smile, she felt strangely mesmerized again.

Chen Changsheng ate his peach as he walked away from the Peach Grove.

When passing through, it seemed he smelled the same fragrance of peaches—just like three years ago.

Aqing watched Chen Changsheng leave. Suddenly, she called out, “Changsheng!”

Chen Changsheng turned back to look at her.

Aqing whispered softly, “Thank you.”

Chen Changsheng only gave her a warm smile, then turned away and left without looking back.

After Chen Changsheng left, Aqing let out a long, slow breath.

She entered the little cottage. It was exactly as it had been, as if nothing had changed. She stepped outside again and ran towards the Peach Grove.

Every single Peach Tree covering these mountains belonged to her. They could only belong to her.

…

Chen Changsheng returned to Qingshan City.

Seeing the sky darkening, he walked to a wine shop (or distillery) in the city.

“Shopkeeper, please give me two ounces of liquor.”

The shopkeeper was around forty years old. This wine shop (or distillery) used to be looked after by his father. But his father’s health wasn’t good now, so it had fallen to him.

“Sure thing, coming right up.”

Chen Changsheng said, “I forgot my wine flask. Shopkeeper, could you find one for me?”

“Alright, but the flask costs two coppers. So…”

“That’s fine.”

Li Lao’er poured the liquor while asking, “Bro, are you from around here? Haven’t seen you before.”

Chen Changsheng replied, “I just recently came back.”

Li Lao’er paused. “Oh? How’d you get back? I heard people are guarding the entrance outside.”

Nearly thirty thousand Xiang Army soldiers were camped outside the Abyss River, sealing off all routes into the area.

Chen Changsheng said, “I picked a night, climbed over a mountain, and got in.”

Li Lao’er chuckled. “Impressive, bro. But why come back now? Hah, easy to get in, hard to get out. Qingshan City looks peaceful now, but it’s not really quiet.”

Hearing this, Chen Changsheng asked, “Not quiet? I heard the Southern King set rules before?”

Li Lao’er leaned closer and lowered his voice. “Only for show. Plenty still happens behind the scenes. Like recently, ‘protection’ taxes on the streets went up quite a bit.”

“I didn’t hear about this,” Chen Changsheng said, pausing.

Li Lao’er replied, “Just hearsay myself. Can’t be sure. We’ll know for certain when the collectors come next time. I sure hope they don’t increase it.”

He sighed, adding, “Though business is better now, that much is true.”

At least the Military Officers / Soldiers wouldn’t just eat without paying anymore. They could earn some silver after all.

As he spoke, Li Lao’er finished pouring the liquor and handed it to Chen Changsheng.

“Twelve coppers total, including the flask. Hold onto it, bro. Next time you come, bring the flask and it’s still two coppers.”

“Got it.”

Chen Changsheng carried the wine back to his courtyard.

Taking small sips along the way, he made his wobbly walk to his doorstep.

Unlocking the gate and entering the courtyard, he sat down to rest.

“…”

Chen Changsheng brought out the Alchemy texts that the Old Dragon King had given him earlier. He began flipping through the pages, one by one.

He sipped wine while he read, continuing like this until the sky turned dark.

Wang Sanniang came over. She brought two Baked Pancakes, saying they were leftover from selling, but they were clearly fresh from the griddle.

She also talked about Uncle Lou, telling Chen Changsheng not to be too sad, that life still needed to go on.

Chen Changsheng said, “Thank you, Sanniang. I’m fine. I’m doing well, as you see.”

“Good that you’re alright.” Wang Sanniang let out a sigh of relief. “I saw you’ve been looking down these past couple days, so I spoke out. Brother Chen, don’t take offense.”

“Of course I won’t.”

“Mmhmm,” Wang Sanniang acknowledged, then said, “Alright then, I’ll head back if there’s nothing else.”

“Alright.”

Chen Changsheng took a hot Baked Pancake and started eating. It tasted great, and he finished both before feeling full.

He lit a candle on the table in the courtyard and continued reading.

Over the evening, Chen Changsheng managed to understand quite a bit.

But what frustrated him most was the matter of the True Flame. Naturally, Alchemy required an extraordinary fire, and Chen Changsheng sadly lacked one.

It wasn’t that he hadn’t learned about it, but due to his… defect.

The True Flame originated from the five internal organs, generated inside and projected outward. But his own organs had never been refined. How could he produce True Flame?

Previously, for refining his External Incarnation, he had to seek help from the Third Prince. But relying on someone else’s tools was inconvenient at best.

He needed to find a different path.

“Fire…” Chen Changsheng murmured. “Inner refinement techniques usually evoke True Flame through the five organs. But what if I bypass the organs and use Soul Spirit instead?”

He closed his eyes and connected with his Divine Sense, searching within it for a possible method.

Deep within a person’s Divine Sense, indeed there was a kind of flame – the Soul Flame. But this flame was different from the one cultivated through internal organs and couldn’t be simply drawn upon, because this was the most vital flame for a Cultivator. If it went out, the person perished.

Within his Soul Spirit, Chen Changsheng observed that Soul Flame.

“So… weak?”

Chen Changsheng was surprised.

Something felt off. He directed his Divine Sense towards Ping’an Ruyi in the neighboring courtyard.

Checking them, he was shocked to find their Soul Flames were dozens of times more vigorous than his own.

Compared to theirs, Chen Changsheng’s Soul Flame was truly pitiful.

“It shouldn’t be like this…”

Chen Changsheng frowned slightly, pondering deeply. 𝒇𝓻𝓮𝓮𝙬𝙚𝒃𝒏𝓸𝙫𝒆𝙡.𝓬𝓸𝒎

Suddenly, an idea struck him.

“Could it be because of the Curse?”

He paused, then froze completely, abruptly standing up.

“If that’s really the case… then doesn’t it mean that the longer I can make this Soul Flame burn brighter, the longer I can stay in the Mortal World?”