The First Venerable of the Prosperous Age

Even after a thousand miles of farewells, we must eventually part ways...

As Wen Ying's figure gradually disappeared into the clouds, a bright light flashed in Lu Xiaosan's eyes, but his heart was filled with unwavering determination: Nine years, survive, and then become stronger!

He stood there, staring at the distant clouds, his thoughts swirling, and this continued for a very, very long time…

When he turned around, three men in black, each holding a sword, stood before him, their tattered straw hats swaying in the bleak sunset.

"So it's Lu Xiaosan? We've been waiting for quite a while..." the swordsman in the middle said coldly.

Lu Xiaosan glanced to the side and remained silent.

"There really is such a thing as a Qilin in this world. If I hadn't seen it with my own eyes, I would never have believed it."

"Yes, this kid is quite something to have that Qilin treat him with such respect."

"What a pity. We were all about to back down because we were scared, but that Qilin beast said you didn't know martial arts... Well..." The three swordsmen exchanged sinister smiles, "Who told you to harm Hero Crane in the arena?"

After speaking, the three of them simultaneously drew their swords, their six eyes widening in confusion.

The three men simultaneously clutched their bleeding necks, collapsed to the ground, and rolled and struggled, but soon stopped breathing.

Lu Xiaosan walked forward with a cold expression and saw that there were bloodstains on the necks of the three corpses, and an almost invisible silver thread was tied around their necks. One end was the blade stuck behind their necks, and the other end was tied to the handle of their respective knives.

The moment they draw their knives, the blades will slit their throats...

Three silver threads suddenly twitched, loosening their grip around his neck and slicing across Lu Xiaosan's face, leaving three bloody marks. Yet he remained silent with his head down, as if everything was expected.

The direction the silver thread was drawn away from was where that all-too-familiar girl's figure stood.

With her eyes swollen and red, Tian Gao said to Lu Xiaosan in a gloomy tone, "If Miss Wen really dies because of you, then I will definitely grind you to dust."

She sheathed her sword, turned around, and said softly, "Miss Wen's last request is that I protect you one more time."

She turned her cold, beautiful face to the side. "Once you reach the Immortal's Pavilion, your life and death will have nothing to do with me anymore." With that, she walked into the bushes and disappeared into the darkness.

Lu Xiaosan didn't answer a word the whole time, because he was in a low mood. Although he was determined to live and become stronger, he was still human and found it hard to adjust to the absence of someone important in his life.

"You've only lost her temporarily. Going back to your original self, isn't that what you wanted most..." Lu Xiaosan comforted himself like this, but he was still in a daze. He turned his head and blankly retraced his steps.

Whenever he went astray or didn't know the way, a pebble would fly from the darkness to guide him back the way he came.

It wasn't until nightfall that Lu Xiaosan finally returned to the rice paddies outside the cabin, feeling groggy.

In the past, when I arrived here, I would first hear a few alert barks from the Golden Retriever, followed by its joyful figure running out of the house. But now, there are only a few cicadas chirping and the sound of the wind blowing through the rice paddies, and nothing else...

With mixed feelings, Lu Xiaosan slowly walked up. The moment he stepped inside, he seemed to see Wen Ying's familiar figure, as if she were welcoming a returning family member, smiling at him and saying, "Brother Lu, you're finally back."

Lu Xiaosan was stunned for a moment, then shook his head. "I... what am I doing? I need to pull myself together and try to survive."

Thinking of this, he quickly followed Wen Ying's instructions and put the remaining lotus grass into his pocket.

Seeing the objects reminded her of someone, and in order to quickly shake off her sadness, Lu Xiaosan hurried outside...

But he froze on the steps at the entrance, where he was met with that golden expanse once again: the setting sun and the evening glow, and a girl and a dog running joyfully out of the golden wheat field.

“Little Golden Retriever!…” A smile appeared on his face. He seemed to be back in the scene when they recognized each other, the feeling of sunlight finally shining into the darkness.

Just as he was engrossed in it, the familiar golden hue suddenly vanished, replaced by endless night, endless darkness… and so did his heart…

Lu Xiaosan's smile slowly froze; this was the last straw that broke the camel's back.

In that instant, Lu Xiaosan collapsed to the ground, covering her face and sobbing uncontrollably.

His cries were so heart-wrenching that it seemed as if all the beauty in the world had nothing to do with him anymore.

He cried and sobbed for a long time, then began to complain, "Why... why does it have to be her! If... if I were stronger, maybe she wouldn't have had to go back!" After saying that, he slapped himself in the face.

He continued to draw until he was completely exhausted, then lay down on his back, his mind filled with the image of Wen Ying.

He slowly closed his eyes, just to relive the feeling from that moment, but unexpectedly fell into a deep sleep.

In his sleep, he vaguely felt someone flick his forehead. He didn't react. Then he was flicked again, and then again.

His anger surged again and was about to erupt, but suddenly his mind went black, and he lost consciousness.

Before long, Lu Xiaosan was awakened by pain. In his dazed state, he felt that he was bound in a small space and that his whole body was being rubbed and hurt.

However, he was still dizzy and unable to resist, so he could only let others do as they pleased, and soon he fainted again.

On the quiet, deserted streets of Los Angeles at night, a girl with an expressionless face dragged a cloth bag in one hand and hurried toward the Zhexian Tower.

Before long, Lu Xiaosan felt incredibly warm all over, as if he were being immersed in a warm bath. Soon, he felt streams of hot porridge being poured into his mouth, and he vaguely heard voices talking, which were from Chang'an.

In the center of the main hall of the Zhexian Tower, Lu Xiaosan lay in a daze, while around him sat five of the most beautiful women in Luocheng, surrounded by a fragrant aroma.

The pretty young Chang'an was the first to ask, "Sister Sweet Cake, is Brother Lu acting like this because he's too heartbroken?"

"I hit him," Sweet Cake replied calmly.

Chang'an froze upon hearing this, stammering, "Why...why?"

Before Sweet Cake could answer again, Yu Lei, who was sitting next to her, laughed and interrupted, "Could it be that Sweet Cake got jealous because she saw how infatuated he was, so she couldn't help but hit him? Hehehe, hahaha..." She made herself laugh so hard she was shaking.

Sweet Cake remained silent, her heart filled with mixed emotions. She was indeed jealous, but not of Lu Xiaosan...

Seeing that Tian Gao's expression was off, Chang An squinted and asked again, "It can't be... like this, can it..."

"Xiao Mei, Sweet Cake Sister will never like him." Lian Xue, dressed in white, was embroidering a red silk handkerchief when she spoke gently to Chang An.

"Yeah, I was just kidding, Sweet Cake Girl, don't take it seriously, hahaha," Yu Lei laughed.

Chang'an nodded gently, finally putting her mind at ease.

"Instead of worrying about him so much, you should think more about your own affairs..." Lianxue said to Chang'an in a serious tone, just like a caring older sister looking after her younger brother.

"Yeah, it'll be your turn in the finals next," Yu Lei said with a mischievous smile.

"I've heard that the Qiantang Spring Lake Sect is far weaker than the Xuanwu Sect, so it will be far less dangerous than it is this time. Unless absolutely necessary, never betray your country like a clown and defect to the enemy. Not only will you be infamous, but you'll also be hunted down by everyone." Lianxue looked into Chang'an's eyes and said earnestly.

Chang'an's face was bitter. "Well... actually..." He wanted to say that it was Ning Konglou's condition, but in the end he kept quiet and didn't talk about it.

Ning Konglou's identity was exposed during the competition, which put him in a bad mood. Recently, rumors have been circulating that he is actually short, ugly, smelly, and extremely lecherous. He must be in a terrible mood right now, so I shouldn't cause him any more trouble.

Sitting opposite Chang'an, Fu Rou was gazing into the distance with one hand supporting her face, looking worried.

Seeing this, Yu Lei couldn't help but laugh and ask, "Why is Sister Fu Rou so quiet tonight? She looks so worried. Are you perhaps worried about Xiao Mei's safety?"

Fu Rou sighed, her sorrowful gaze slowly sweeping over everyone before finally settling on Lu Xiaosan.

“You all say that the clown is a sinner for betraying his country in the face of battle, but he is my lone hero. He has tried his best to help me recover my losses, but in the end... Waaah…” Fu Rou covered her face and cried, and for a moment it was hard to tell whether she was crying really or not.

“Sister Furou, you really did buy Xuanwumen again…” Sweet Cake said.

Fu Rou covered her face and shook her head repeatedly, "Now look what's happened, I've almost lost all that money on my undergarment, boohoo..."

"Then when it comes to the finals, you can bet on Shangyangmen to win. Maybe you can win it back," Yu Lei joked.

Fu Rou shook her head. "With the odds for the final, even if I bet the whole building on Shangyangmen to win, I still wouldn't make back a fraction of what I lost this time..." She then lightly slammed her hand on the table, venting her dissatisfaction.

A moment later, as if suddenly remembering something, Fu Rou sat up abruptly and exclaimed happily, "That's right, I can go buy Chunhu Paiying!" Her previous sad expression had vanished.

Yu Lei chuckled, "Sister Fu Rou, are you out of your mind? The strength of those few from the Spring Lake Sect isn't even enough to defeat He Lai Hero alone."

"So what? If Shangyang Sect loses, I'll make a fortune! And if Shangyang Sect wins, I'll lose money comfortably too. No matter how you look at it, I'm making a profit, haha!" Fu Rou was lost in endless reverie, her face full of pride, as if she had really figured out the secret to making money.

"It's over, Sister Furou has completely gone mad. Gambling addiction is truly terrifying," Yu Lei said, shrugging.

Lianxue sighed and handed the embroidered red handkerchief to Chang'an: "You will be setting off for Qiantang tomorrow. If I were to give you some gold and silver jewelry as a parting gift, it would be too vulgar. After thinking it over, I think only this item is both practical and can express my feelings."

Yu Lei exclaimed in surprise, "Wow, this is a handkerchief embroidered by my sister herself! Many rich young men would spend all their money and still not be able to buy this! Xiao Mei, you've really found a priceless treasure!"

Chang'an carefully accepted the gift, her face flushed, and said, "Thank you... Sister Lianxue..."

Lianxue smiled and nodded, then said, "By the way, why don't you sleep in my room tonight? I can help you review your skills with the zither and pipa."