Everything Has an End, Everything Has a Beginning (Part Six)...

The moon was too bright, and the girl dared not close her eyes.

She was like a mouse scurrying about under the moonlight, no longer knowing how she was moving, only knowing to search for anything she could put in her mouth.

Unfortunately, everything around had already been looted countless times, even the tree bark had been stripped away.

The girl could only bite into the dry, hard core of the withered tree, seemingly unwilling to give up, determined to get something from it.

My teeth were a jumbled mess, no harder than a tree stump, and soon a metallic taste filled my mouth. But nothing was wasted; it all went back into my mouth.

This cycle had no positive effect on her body. Her vision would go black in waves, and she felt like she was about to fall asleep, but she was afraid to sleep, as if something terrible would happen if she did.

The girl felt dizzy and dared not move; she felt as if she had frozen.

As her consciousness began to drift, she seemed to see a person emerge from the moon, the radiant moon casting an unstable shadow upon her.

The girl was too exhausted to change her movements and just stared blankly at her.

The person who came in bent down with some curiosity and looked at her strange actions: "What are you doing?"

girl:……

I don't know, but I feel like if I ask her any more questions, she might not survive...

He was about to die, but he didn't.

After the girl regained consciousness, she turned her eyes blankly. When she turned her head, she saw a person wrapped in a black robe reading a book under the bright moonlight.

Her robe was made of some unknown material, as black as the night itself; on a moonless day, it would probably blend into the darkness.

But because the moon was so bright tonight, it made the darkness impossible to hide, and the girl stared at her blankly: "Who are you...?"

The person reading a book not far away paused, turned to look at her, and smiled: "You're awake. Are you still hungry?"

The girl saw her turn her head, and although she could clearly see her face under the hood, she had a feeling that she couldn't remember what she looked like; she could only sense that she was indeed smiling.

It was at this moment that she realized the weakness that had once numbed her mind had suddenly disappeared.

But after the numbness disappeared, the hunger did not disappear; instead, it became more intense. The prolonged hunger had made her forget the initial feeling of hunger.

Upon realizing this, the girl immediately rolled swiftly to the man in black robes with unimaginable skill, regardless of how she moved her hands and feet.

"Hungry!"

...

The parched earth is cracked with countless ugly gullies. What used to be a riverbed has now become like fish skin exposed to the scorching sun. If you step on it lightly, you can hear the very satisfying sound of the soil cracking.

However, for those who live here, they probably can't feel any sense of ease from this behavior.

The pedestrian's clothes were unusual; even amidst the dusty ground, they remained spotless. Yet, the child behind her stubbornly picked up the hem of her clothes.

Ye Xiqing couldn't help but turn around: "What are you doing?"

The child behind her, with a gap in her teeth, didn't speak, but instead gave her an unusually ingratiating smile: she was working!

Since they met under the sun and moon, the two have never been apart.

When the child cried out that he was hungry, the man in black robes under the moonlight smiled, stretched out his hand, and a blue lotus flower bloomed from his fingertips.

The girl had never seen such a miracle before, and before she could even marvel at it, instinct had already made her swallow it whole.

It was such a small lotus flower, yet swallowing it completely quenched all my hunger.

Without even thinking, the girl immediately hugged the "blooming" leg tightly, and she would never let go even if it meant death!

Ye Xiqing had just entered the world and had already acquired a leg ornament, but she didn't pay much attention to it, as it wasn't heavy.

After hanging there for several days and realizing she wouldn't be driven away, the girl began to actively serve the fairy sister who could bloom, wiping stones when she sat down and lifting her hem when she walked.

Although Ye Xiqing didn't need it, such a devout attitude still pleased Ye Xiqing, and she continued to feed her flowers along the way.

After a few days of feeding, the child finally showed some signs of health and started to look more human. Ye Xiqing then asked, "What's your name?"

People from the lower classes are not sensitive to names, and she was too young to remember them well; she only knew that her family called her "A-Ye".

Ye Xiqing then asked, "Where are your family members?"

Aye paused for a moment, only then revealing a hint of sadness; she had no family left…

On the way to escape famine, of course they wouldn't take a useless little child who only knew how to open her mouth and eat, so they abandoned her.

However, this is actually not so bad, as it only means leaving her behind without making any other use for her.

She only dared to come out at night to find food because she saw too many hungry eyes during the day.

She didn't need much intelligence; she instinctively sensed a terrifying threat and remained cautiously hidden, not daring to go out.

As night falls, they become like wild dogs released from their cages, searching for anything they can put in their mouths.

Perhaps human life force is really tenacious; it's amazing that by being so sneaky and unsupervised, it survived until Ye Xiqing's time.

The cultivation world is still set in ancient times, without universal nine-year compulsory education, and civilization cannot reach the lower classes. This child is young, and his animalistic nature far exceeds his human nature.

She rambled on and on, only showing sadness for a short while when talking about being abandoned by her family, before quickly returning her attention to her adventures over the past few days.

The days of wandering alone are certainly not easy.

But once the danger was over, those struggles suddenly became something to be proud of.

Aye repeatedly boasted about his unimaginable "amazing" abilities, as if he were glowing with radiance.

Ye Xiqing stroked her fluffy head and couldn't help but wonder if internal strife was a kind of "civilization disease".

The closer you are to the primitive state, the better your mental state.

Since regaining his strength, Xiao Aye has been lively and energetic, showing no signs of the aftereffects of the disaster.

Ye Xiqing casually took her on the road. Along the way, nine out of ten houses were empty; those who could escape had already fled.

Years of drought and famine had destroyed all life. Looking at the empty village, Ye Xiqing walked for a long time and finally decided to settle down here.

This was clearly not a good choice, but Aye had no objections, after all, she was following a fairy who could bloom flowers.

He immediately rushed to each house to look around, picked out the best and biggest one, and happily called Ye Xiqing over.

Ye Xiqing went inside and sat down. The conditions were very simple, but it didn't matter. She was living outdoors now and didn't have to worry about anything. She had a divine constitution that kept her warm in winter and cool in summer.

He glanced at the eager child, patted her head, and said with unusual kindness, "Child, do you want to cultivate immortality?"

...

Given A-Ye's age and understanding, he couldn't comprehend the specific meaning of cultivating immortality, but seeing Ye Xiqing's attitude, he knew it must be a good thing, and immediately clung to her leg: "I want to!"

Ye Xiqing was very satisfied and pressed her head down: "Very good. From now on, you will be my disciple. Take my surname and change your name to Qingye."

Aye nodded quickly, looked up at the person in front of him, and wondered if this amazing person who could bloom flowers was surnamed Qing.

Ye Xiqing nodded. Yes, the surname is Qing, without a doubt.

He accepted this disciple with utmost sincerity and imparted the Daoist teachings to her.

The way of spreading knowledge in the cultivation world is very advanced. Unlike Ye Xiqing, you don't need to go through it repeatedly. You just need to transfer the knowledge of cultivation into your mind.

Of course, it's not C programming knowledge. She's the only one in this world who cultivates in this way; this world has indigenous immortal techniques.

The first step in cultivating immortality is to change one's impure body. Children have innate energy, making them more suitable for foundation building than adults. In just a few days, Qingye was able to climb up and down, which saved him a lot of trouble.

But only immortals who have reached the state of abstaining from grains can completely get rid of eating. Ye Xiqing still has to bloom flowers to feed her every day, which is quite annoying.

In order to support her, Ye Xiqing said, "Let's find some people to farm."

Cultivation not only has the effect of exercising the body, but also the brain. Her little apprentice's IQ increased very quickly, and he immediately asked in confusion, "But there is no water."

Farming requires water. People used to farm here, but because there was no water, everyone left.

"That's fine," Ye Xiqing stood up and looked up at the sky.

If there were no natural disasters like fire, how could we witness the great power of immortals and gods!

When the land becomes uninhabitable, the people living on it can only keep fleeing, not really knowing where to flee to, but if they keep running, they will eventually escape the disaster!

The barren land and piles of bones along the way filled one with despair, with no idea where the migration would end.

As I walked, a white mist suddenly appeared before me. I tried my best to grope my way through the mist, and after an unknown amount of time, I finally emerged from the edge of the mist.

As they emerged from the white mist, something suddenly tapped their forehead. Normally, people would avoid such strange sensations, but at this moment, they were completely stunned.

Suddenly I looked up: Rain!

Countless water droplets fell from the sky, and everyone was overjoyed, eagerly sucking in the source of life. The drought was over! They were saved!

However, they soon noticed something was wrong. It didn't seem to be a normal downpour; the rain was falling precisely on a certain area.

Even if someone who likes rain enters the rain curtain, getting soaked for a while is enough. They immediately move away from the rain curtain and see a person dressed in a black robe standing not far away with their hands behind their back. A silly little child peeks out from the corner of her robe.

This bizarre scene made everyone's hearts tighten. They cautiously approached, unsure of how to strike up a conversation.

Ye Xiqing didn't wait for them to speak before asking directly, "Do you know how to farm?"

...

Ye Xiqing's power to summon wind and rain is terrifying, but regardless of whether she is a demon or a ghost, the fact that she can bring good weather and abundant harvests to this land is enough for everyone to bow down in worship.

Even if she wanted to ask for offerings now, no one would object.

Compared to the newly joined villagers, Qingye was even more excited, looking at Ye Xiqing with starry eyes: "Master, will I be this powerful in the future?"

Ye Xiqing nodded without hesitation: "Of course, you are my student."

Qingye cheered and, like the saved people, revered Ye Xiqing as a god. No, to be able to do this, one could only be a god.

Originally, cultivation was a bit arduous, but with the motivation to move forward, Qingye instantly became as energetic as if he had been injected with chicken blood, practicing day and night.

She worked so hard, but her master didn't work hard at all; he just flipped through books every day.

Aono couldn't help but be curious, so he leaned over and asked, "What book is so interesting?"

Ye Xiqing pushed her head aside without hesitation. (This is a rare, out-of-print book; minors are prohibited from viewing.)

However, when she closed the book, instead of moving on to another page, she unusually asked her apprentice a very philosophical question: "Do you think immortals are good people or bad people?"

Aono, having been saved by a deity, naturally exclaimed without hesitation, "What a kind person!"

Ye Xiqing was undoubtedly a deity, and normally she should have been very happy to hear this, but she just smiled. Even though Qingye was still young, he could sense that it wasn't what she thought.

Ye Xiqing placed her hand on Qingye's fluffy head, her tone seemingly carrying a somewhat enigmatic meaning.

"Then tell me, if the gods are good people, why don't they give people the power to save themselves?"

-----------------------

Author's note: Qingqing: Let your teacher teach you some principles of being a good person.

Ono:......

Master, what exactly do we need repaired in our house...?