Revelation of the Way of Heaven

In late autumn, the artificial river on campus seemed to have lost its vitality, becoming unusually quiet with almost no sign of flowing. Along with the willows with only withered branches and leaves left by the river, and the dark yellow soil exposed by the withered grass, it was clear that winter was fast approaching.

Of course, not everything is withering. It is the perfect time for chrysanthemums to bloom. On a small hillside a few meters away from the artificial river, a patch of chrysanthemums proudly displays their unique beauty. They are colorful, with red ones like flames, white ones like feathers, and yellow ones like golden threads. Amidst the desolate and withered scenery around them, these sprites blooming in the wind appear even more charming and beautiful.

Qin Xiaochuan really liked these chrysanthemums, not because of the proud spirit that the ancients attributed to them, but purely because of their beauty. They were beautiful in a grand way, unlike the delicate peach blossoms and plum blossoms, which only dared to bloom with a little bit of blush. They were also beautiful without being gaudy, unlike peonies and peonies, which relied entirely on the spread of large petals, and even though they were elegant and luxurious, they could not avoid a bit of vulgarity from being heavily made up.

It seems that just looking at them fills my heart with an exhilarating sense of joy.

"Hmm, this one's pretty good." Guo Shiyi's finger lightly swiped across his phone screen, and the photo on the phone finally settled on a patch of golden chrysanthemums. Guo Shiyi was squatting in the flower bushes, and there was no sense of incongruity between her and the flowers. She was like a chrysanthemum fairy who had appeared in the human world. It was hard to tell whether the flowers accentuated her beauty or her beauty made the flowers seem even more ethereal.

"Send these to me," Qin Xiaochuan said to her with a grin.

"What do you want my photo for?" Guo Shiyi said without looking up.

He smiled and said, "It's beautiful. I'll save it on my phone and take it out to look at when I have nothing to do. It's good for my eyes."

The girl pouted at him, but still sent him her photo without saying a word.

"What exactly did you ask me to come out and find you for? It couldn't just be to see chrysanthemums, could it?" He finally asked the question as she sent him the photos.

"What's wrong? Is it not okay?" She tilted her head to look at him.

"Of course," he smiled, adding meaningfully, "This job is much more comfortable than watching movies."

The girl rolled her eyes at him, too lazy to pay him any attention. While scrolling through her phone, she asked with a smile, "So, what was causing your insomnia during the competition?"

Qin Xiaochuan knew that this wasn't the reason she had come to him, but he didn't press further. During the time he had spent with her, he had come to understand Guo Shiyi to some extent. She seemed to enjoy contradicting him; the more he wanted to know an answer, the more she would beat around the bush and not tell him. At this point, it was best to go along with what she was saying, and she would eventually reveal the answer herself.

That being said, Qin Xiaochuan didn't want to bring up this issue with her any further.

"Uh, what else could it be?" he answered vaguely.

"Is it because of your childhood friend from high school?" Qin Xiaochuan had mentioned Xia Ruoyi to her before in Kawamoto Taro's Matryoshka doll, and Qin Xiaochuan did not expect that the other party would still remember it.

"Yeah." He nodded helplessly.

"Haven't you let go of her yet?" she asked again, a slight smile on her face as she spoke, her thoughts unreadable.

This question really stumped Qin Xiaochuan. When watching movies or reading novels, the protagonists usually need a year and a half or even longer to recover from a breakup. At least during the competition, he felt that way too. But now—thinking about it carefully, he didn't seem as sad as before. Was it because he had been so happy and busy lately that the sadness had been diluted?

No one is indispensable. He recalled a famous quote circulating online, but at this moment, the sentence both comforted and frightened him. He was comforted because he wasn't as heartbroken as he had imagined; he was frightened because he realized another truth for the first time: everyone is actually an individual being, meaning that humans are born alone.

"I'm not quite sure either," he finally replied truthfully.

The young woman stopped asking questions. She put away her phone, patted him on the shoulder, and said, "Don't overthink it, young man." She spoke to him in the tone of an older, wise man, but unfortunately, the height difference between them made her "wisdom" seem cute and comical. "Let bygones be bygones. Life needs to move forward." Her voice was deep, as if she had seen through the ways of the world.

"Pfft." Qin Xiaochuan finally couldn't help but laugh, and all the negative emotions that had been in his mind just now were instantly swept away.

"What are you laughing at?" She frowned, completely unaffected by his emotions, and continued to play her role. "When my master told me this before, I immediately understood. You should..." But as she spoke, she finally couldn't help but burst out laughing.

"Did your master ever say that you're a naughty girl?" Qin Xiaochuan could barely contain his laughter, and finally could only ask speechlessly.

"Guess," she said, making a face at him.

"I definitely said that."

She smiled but didn't answer. Instead, she asked him, "Do you know why Master and the others agreed to let you participate in this competition?"

"Wasn't it because you recommended it?" Qin Xiaochuan said without thinking.

"That's only one reason. Those old guys are very shrewd; they actually have their own plans," the young girl said, sticking out her tongue. It seemed she was somewhat dissatisfied with her teachers.

"What are your plans?" he asked, frowning. This was something he had never thought about before.

"You're the second person since Wei Feng to reach level 3 innate spiritual power. Do you think the sect wouldn't be paying attention to you?" Guo Shiyi asked, her eyes sparkling.

"you mean?"

"They asked you to participate in this competition partly to fulfill my request, partly to go with the flow and see how you perform in the competition, and partly to recruit you into our Wudang sect."

This was indeed something Qin Xiaochuan hadn't expected. He looked at Guo Shiyi, who had a serious expression, and asked, "So you're their envoy?"

"I guess so. Since those old guys agreed to my request, I naturally have to repay them." Guo Shiyi showed a helpless expression, but after a moment she smiled and said, "Of course, I also want you to join the Wudang Sect. Hehe, although those old guys are a bit rigid, they are still very good to their disciples."

"Actually, I really want to agree to your request," Qin Xiaochuan said helplessly to Guo Shiyi, "but this is not something I can decide on my own. At the very least, I need to get Han Kexin's consent."

"I see." The girl seemed a little regretful, then looked at him curiously: "Speaking of which, I'm quite curious about your relationship with Sister Kexin."

"There's nothing to be curious about." Qin Xiaochuan racked his brains, trying to figure out how to explain it to her. "Let me put it this way, she's like a guide to me." He wasn't lying to her; Han Kexin was indeed the one who led him into the world of spiritual power.

"Okay, I understand." The girl nodded. "In other words, Sister Kexin is like a second mentor to you."

Her thinking wasn't wrong, so he nodded noncommittally.