All races revere me as the Heavenly Emperor, solely because of my nine disciples!

"Come with me, we're going home right now, do you hear me!"

"Cough cough cough... Ugh..."

Xu Zifu roared, a gust of cold air rushed into her mouth, and she couldn't help but cough violently!

In the end, she almost threw up.

Zhou Baoyu didn't say anything, but stepped forward and gently patted her back.

She knew that Xu Zifu's retribution had come.

"Say something! Why won't you speak?"

"Come with your mother, do you hear me?"

Having finally calmed down, Xu Zifu roared again.

She regretted it.

This time she truly regretted it; if she had known this would happen, she would never have let her son come into contact with Buddhism.

She never imagined that one day her son would be so despondent as to become a monk.

However, Zhou Baoyu remained silent in the face of Xu Zifu's desperate plea.

Her eyes were firm, so resolute, so ruthless, as if the person standing before her was a complete stranger.

"lady……"

The commotion alerted the entire temple. The monks of Qingshan Temple, along with Dazhuang and others, all came over and couldn't help but greet them, their eyes full of questions.

"Dazhuang, listen up! Don't hesitate, bring the young master home to me now, immediately..."

Seeing that he couldn't persuade Zhou Baoyu, Xu Zifu decided to take a forceful approach and gave orders to Dazhuang and the others.

"Yes...ma'am..."

Da Zhuang and the others were somewhat embarrassed, but they still looked at Zhou Baoyu and stepped forward to help him leave.

However, when the two burly men attacked from the left and right, they found that Zhou Baoyu's feet seemed to be rooted to the ground, and they couldn't move him at all.

"what happened?"

Da Zhuang and the others were stunned for a moment, then tried again, but their faces turned red and they couldn't keep up even when they were panting heavily.

"Bring on more...all at once..."

Seeing this, Xu Zifu gave another order.

Soon, a group of more than a dozen people rushed up and tried to drag Zhou Baoyu away.

However, an unexpected scene unfolded: no matter how hard they tried, no matter how many of them there were, it had no effect on Zhou Baoyu at this moment.

It was impossible for Zhou Baoyu to move even the slightest bit.

"Madam...we...we can't move the young master..."

Everyone was stunned, as if they had seen a ghost, and unconsciously looked at Xu Zifu.

Even the monks were completely bewildered.

"Mother, you should stay too. I'm not going back!"

"Since you can't live without me, why don't you stay and keep me company?"

Zhou Baoyu shook his head and tried to persuade him again.

"Shut up...you unfilial son, shut up!"

"Master Qingshan, have the people from the temple join in and drive him out! Drive him out!"

Xu Zifu's eyes turned completely red. She didn't know what Zhou Baoyu had done, but today, she absolutely could not let Zhou Baoyu stay at Qingshan Temple.

"lady……"

Master Qingshan was taken aback and couldn't help but offer some advice.

They all knew that Zhou Baoyu had a connection with Buddhism, so it was really difficult for them to drive him away.

"I told you to get rid of him, didn't you hear me..."

Xu Zifu ignored all of this and even displayed the authority of the master of the house.

She is currently the wife of the Duke of Zhou, and she is doing this for the sake of the Empress. Qingshan Temple belongs to the lineage of the Duke of Zhou, so how can it disobey her orders?

"Sigh...Young Master Baoyu, you should leave!"

"Qingshan Temple cannot accommodate you at present; your destiny with Qingshan Temple has not yet arrived!"

Master Qingshan sighed and stepped forward to gently push Zhou Baoyu.

Strangely enough, Zhou Baoyu, who was so muscular that even a group of strong men couldn't move, now moved with just a light touch.

"Fine, fine, since this place can't accommodate me, I'll leave!"

"Mother, I'm giving you one more chance. I'll go back with you. I hope I can take care of you!"

Zhou Baoyu shook his head. A monk has nothing. If this place won't keep him, there are other places that will.

He didn't necessarily have to go back with his mother; he could have gone elsewhere, but none of that mattered to him anymore.

Let's just go wherever we end up!

"Okay... let's go, let's go now..."

Xu Zifu was so excited that she trembled all over. As if afraid that Zhou Baoyu would change his mind, she quickly stepped forward, pulled Zhou Baoyu, and walked outside.

It was getting dark, but Xu Zifu didn't care about anything and walked very fast, afraid that if he hesitated for even a second, Zhou Baoyu would change his mind.

"Mother, the mountain path is steep, please be careful..."

Zhou Baoyu stayed close to his mother, taking care of her carefully.

Unfortunately, Xu Zifu wouldn't listen to a word he said.

Late at night, before the group had even reached the foot of the mountain, Xu Zifu tripped and nearly tumbled down the mountainside due to the accumulated snow.

If Zhou Baoyu hadn't pulled her back in time, she would have fallen off a cliff.

"Madam, please be careful..."

The group of people were startled and rushed forward, carefully protecting Xu Zifu.

Xu Zifu finally realized what was happening and slowed down.

Finally, at midnight, the group arrived at the foot of the mountain, took the official road, and headed straight for Dingyuan County.

That night, Xu Zifu used all his strength, and by the time dawn broke, the group had only traveled halfway.

To everyone's surprise, the moment the sky brightened, Xu Zifu seemed to have aged thirty years out of thin air.

Her once black hair had turned gray, and her face was covered in wrinkles; she looked like an old woman.

"Madam, what's wrong?"

Everyone was shocked, but Zhou Baoyu, who had been watching Xu Zifu all night, was not surprised at all.

Xu Zifu could have avoided this. If she had stayed at Qingshan Temple and had the support of the faith of the people there, and because she made sacrifices for them, they would have helped her in return.

Unfortunately, her insistence on leaving Qingshan Temple destined her to embark on her own path of destiny.

"What's going on?"

"Wait, how did my hand get like this?"

"My skin... ah... why... quick, does anyone have a mirror?"

Xu Zifu felt exhausted and was momentarily stunned.

But when she saw the mottled marks and some blemishes on her hands, and then noticed the skin on her arms, she was completely dumbfounded.

His aged hands made him look like a completely different person.

"Why is this happening, why?"

Xu Zifu was terrified. As she spoke, she discovered something even more terrifying: even her own voice had changed.

Her whole body ached and felt weak; she looked so old and frail at that moment.

No one present was carrying a bronze mirror, but at this moment, Xu Zifu still became aware of his own changes.

She couldn't help but recall Zhou Baoyu's words.

"Baoyu... what did you mean by what you said at the temple yesterday?"

Why is this happening? Do you know something about it?

Suddenly, Xu Zifu turned around and grabbed Zhou Baoyu's shoulders, shaking him repeatedly.

"Mother...is this snow beautiful?"

Zhou Baoyu did not answer, but asked a question instead.

"Answer Mother, do you know something?"

Instead of answering, Xu Zifu asked a question; she just wanted to know the answer, and she didn't want to grow old like this.

"Mother, your youth has been forever lost in this heavy snow!"

"This is what you have earned with thirty years of your youth. From this day forward, wherever the Zhou family goes, the Zhou family will rule the land. For the next thirty years, the country will be prosperous and peaceful, and the weather will be favorable!"

"And the price is your thirty years of sacrifice!"

Zhou Baoyu did not deny it, and only at this moment did he speak frankly.

"what?"

"I traded thirty years of my youth for thirty years of peace, prosperity, and favorable weather for the Zhou family's rule?"

Logically speaking, Xu Zifu should have profited from this deal.

After all, sacrificing her life would save countless lives.

But she couldn't accept it; why should she be the one to sacrifice?

People are selfish; they can accept that others are doing well, but it's hard for them to accept that others are doing better than themselves.

Even if you can accept that others are doing better than you, you shouldn't do it at the expense of yourself.

This is not just human selfishness, but also a form of self-protection that no one can avoid.

Including Zhou Baoyu!

Or rather, Zhou Baoyu could avoid it now, but when the moment actually arrives, he will no longer need to avoid it.

For him, whether he avoids it or not is meaningless!