A useless person with five spiritual roots? I sacrificed the proud daughter of heaven.

The so-called Snow City was nothing more than a self-deceiving illusion.

As Shenghe stepped out the door, her grandmother, who was cooking in the kitchen, called out to her, "Little girl, where are you going? Dinner will be ready soon. Eat your food before you go out to play!"

"Xiaozhi, come play with this older sister for a while!"

The little girl, nicknamed Xiaozhi, looked no more than five or six years old. She was carrying a grass ball in both hands and wobbled over from the side of the kitchen, saying in a childish voice, "Sister, come play with the ball."

Sheng He smiled, took the grass ball from Xiao Zhi's hand, and then took out a beautiful sky-blue crystal from his storage bag and waved it in front of Xiao Zhi.

"Xiaozhi, is this pretty?"

"Good-looking, good-looking."

Xiaozhi clapped her hands and ran over to hug Shenghe's leg: "Sister is pretty too."

Sheng He patted Xiao Zhi's hair, squatted down, and placed the crystal in Xiao Zhi's hand.

"Sister, give this to Xiaozhi. Xiaozhi, tell sister where sister's clothes are, okay?"

Xiaozhi's eyes widened slightly. She gently touched the crystal in her hand, then reluctantly returned it to Shenghe, pointing to the courtyard beside her.

"These are my sister's pretty stones, Xiaozhi doesn't want them."

"Your sister's clothes are over there. Grandma just took them to wash, but they're not dry yet. You can't wear clothes that aren't dry, or you'll get sick."

Xiao Zhi's little face scrunched up, and her little hands kept waving.

Sheng He couldn't help but chuckle, and picked up Xiao Zhi and carried her into the yard.

Perhaps it's because of the nice weather today, the yard is full of clothes and blankets drying in the sun.

Sheng He spotted his robes at a glance and was about to walk over when a sigh suddenly came from behind him.

"Why bother?"

"Isn't this place nice? Why leave?"

Suddenly, his arms felt empty, and a sky-blue crystal fell to the ground with a "clink!"

Sheng He bent down to pick up the crystal and went straight to her clothes.

Holding the damp robes in her arms, Sheng He turned around and looked at the city lord who was holding Xiao Zhi.

"Is this place okay?"

"If you were so good, how come you couldn't even save your own daughter?"

The city lord's expression changed, and he sighed deeply again.

"When did you find out?"

"I found out as soon as I woke up. I wasn't sure at first, but after seeing the show you put on in the street, I knew I was right."

How could an elderly man nearing sixty years old possibly go out into the snow alone to look for his grandson?

How could such a bustling city possibly appear out of nowhere in a vast expanse of white snow and ice?

Most importantly, the city's residents were too enthusiastic towards the city lord, to the point of being somewhat deliberate.

Sheng He approached Xiao Zhi, stuffed the sky-blue crystal in his hand into Xiao Zhi's arms, and then bowed deeply to the city lord.

"Sheng He once again expresses his deepest gratitude to the city lord for saving his life."

“I had no intention of disturbing the peace of the city. I came here only for the Taixu Land. Therefore, I ask the city lord to return my companion to me.”

"partner?"

The city lord chuckled and placed the twig on the ground.

"Since you came alone, where do you have companions?"

"Or perhaps..." The city lord held up three Azure Grasses, "that you consider them your companions?"

"Yes."

Sheng He's voice was neither humble nor arrogant.

The small courtyard in front of him vanished in an instant. In the vast expanse of white snow, the cold north wind howled past. Sheng He was only wearing a single layer of clothing, and the wound on his lower abdomen seemed to be starting to ache faintly.

Another gust of wind, mixed with snowflakes, blew in their face. The biting cold instantly spread throughout their body. Sheng He shivered from the cold, but remained motionless in her bent-over position.

After a long time, so long that Sheng He lost all feeling in her hands and feet, just when she thought the city lord would not agree, a fiery red bead, warm to the touch, was thrown in front of her.

The next moment, the warm sun shone on them, and Grandma called out loudly from the kitchen, "Lord, Xiaozhi, Miss, the food is ready, come and eat!"

"Let's go eat first."

The city lord picked up Xiaozhi again and walked towards the kitchen.

Sheng He didn't move, stubbornly shouting, "This place doesn't belong to me. Please, City Lord, return my companions to me."

The city lord stopped and turned around, looking at Sheng He with a puzzled expression.

"Why bother? It's just a few sprigs of Azure Grass."

“It’s not just a few clover plants; they’ve helped me a lot, and I can’t just stand by and watch them stay here…”

Sheng He paused for a while, then didn't continue.

Snowstorm City is an illusion, and the fragrance of the Azure Grass can trigger an illusion. If the three little radish heads are left here, it's not hard to imagine what will happen to them.

"If the city lord truly needs the Azure Grass, I am willing to bring the seeds to the city lord."

"Seeds? Heh."

The city lord sighed and reached out to gently touch Sheng He's hair.

“You look a lot like my daughter. Are you really not going to stay? I’ve read your destiny. Your fate has been altered. In the future, you and everyone around you will die a violent death.”

“Stay here, and I will protect you. At the very least, you can live out your life without any worries.”

Sheng He raised her head, looking directly at the man in front of her for the first time, and said, word by word:

"Where there is a will, there is a way; no distance is too far, no mountain too high, no sea too wide."

The city lord re-examined the little girl in front of him, and after a long while, he chuckled softly.

“Even remote mountains and distant seas cannot limit it.”

"I don't need the seeds of the Azure Grass, good child, you go."

The city lord handed the Azure Grass to Sheng He, and asked casually, "That coat, you..."

"He gave me the coat and compass together. He is doing well now, and his wife is doing well too. The city lord can rest assured."

The city lord smiled knowingly and waved his hand at Sheng He: "Alright, alright, you go ahead, Grandma's dinner is ready, I'm going to eat roast chicken with Xiaozhi."

Three sprigs of Azure Grass transformed into hairpins and landed in Sheng He's hair. Sheng He looked at the city lord's lonely figure, lowered her head, and softly replied, "Yes."

When she looked up again, all she saw was an endless expanse of ice and snow. She was still wearing that thick black coat, and the Fire Pearl lay quietly in front of her.

Sheng He took out a compass from his storage ring, and this time, the compass pointed steadily to the east.

……

The city lord slowly walked to the table, where two plates of green vegetables and a large plate of roast chicken were laid out. He remembered that his grandmother's specialty was roast chicken.

"Daddy, An'an loves roast chicken the most. Why don't you ask Grandma to make roast chicken for An'an?"

"Father, why aren't you saying anything? Why haven't you come to see An'an even once in all these years?"

The city lord looked up. The whole house was silent. Grandma and Xiaozhi were nowhere to be seen. The streets were quiet, and even the wind could not be heard.

The once bustling and lively Snow City now resembles a dead city.

But the voice in his ear continued to ask:

"Father, have the seeds I planted sprouted?"

The city lord lowered his head, tears streaming down his face, and the entire Snowstorm City trembled violently with his sobs.

Finally, Snowstorm City disappeared little by little. In the frigid snow, the city lord covered his face with his hands and wept uncontrollably.