Sheng He hid behind the door and peeked inside. The two children were very well behaved. The older one was sitting on the steps reading a book, and the younger one was playing with a ball and the big yellow dog.

My mother and aunt sat in the shadow of the courtyard wall embroidering. My aunt would talk about interesting things about the neighbors from time to time, and my mother would respond happily.

Suddenly, the mother raised her head and looked outside the door, and Sheng He quickly dodged.

"Sister, what's wrong?"

Mother Sheng rubbed her eyes and smiled, "It's nothing, I must have seen it wrong."

"Do you think Xiao He is back again?"

The aunt patted Mother Sheng's shoulder and comforted her: "Xiao He is now an immortal. Haven't you heard that immortals are busy, practicing and catching monsters. Maybe you can even practice and become a god in the future. You are a blessed person!"

"yes."

"yes."

Mother Sheng murmured softly and wiped the tears from the corners of her eyes.

The aunt sighed and put down her needlework: "Xiao He hasn't forgotten you. Look at all the things in the yard. They were all bought with the money Xiao He sent back. It's just that Xiao He is busy in Qingyun Sect and has no time to come back. We can't hold the child back, don't you think?"

"Yeah, we can't hold the children back."

"I can't hold the child back. Xiao He has a hard time. I don't know if she will be bullied by others if she is alone in Qingyun Sect..."

Mother Sheng picked up the needle and thread again, muttering something in a low voice, but for some reason, the thread in her hand just wouldn't go through the eye of the needle.

Mother Sheng raised her head, her cloudy eyes filled with tears, and she stared blankly in the direction of the gate.

"But tell me, why can't she come back and look at me? At least just one look would be nice!"

"Woof!"

“Woof woof!”

The big yellow dog seemed to smell something and ran towards the gate with the ball in his mouth and his tail wagging.

"Da Huang! Da Huang, don't run! Ouch, did my little ancestor fall down?"

The aunt quickly helped the fallen child up and comforted him softly.

Mother Sheng seemed to have thought of something, and hurriedly got up and ran to the door after Da Huang.

The door was empty, there was nothing there.

Dahuang looked around while holding the ball in his mouth, seeming to be wondering why the smell he had just smelled had disappeared.

Mother Sheng looked at the corner of clothes disappearing in front of the alley, wiped her tears and chased after it.

"Xiao He! Is that Xiao He?"

"Woof!"

Dahuang barked a few times and followed after him.

"Xiao He, wait for me, I'm here, wait for me!"

The figure in front stopped and turned around, revealing a strange face.

"Ma'am, you got the wrong person."

Sheng's mother squatted down and burst into tears.

After a long time, she finally led Dahuang back step by step.

"Da Huang, you silly dog, do you know that Xiao He is not coming back? She is going to practice Taoism..."

"But if I cultivate immortality, can I leave my mother behind?"

Mother Sheng returned to the yard and picked up her needle and thread again.

A breeze blew, and a magpie flew from afar and landed on Sheng's mother's shoulder.

Mother Sheng picked up the embroidery thread, and this time the thread quickly passed through the tiny needle hole.

"Sister, why is there a magpie on you?"

"It's really strange. It's not afraid of people. It doesn't fly away even when I talk to it. Wait a minute. I'll get some food to feed it."

Mother Sheng froze all over, not daring to move.

After a while, my aunt came over with the child and a small bowl of rice. She handed the rice to the magpie, and the magpie tilted its head and pecked at it twice.

My aunt laughed heartily: "Sister, this magpie is really spiritual!"

Mother Sheng turned her head carefully, afraid of scaring the magpie on her shoulder. She looked at the tiny, palm-sized magpie and suddenly tears welled up in her eyes.

The magpie stretched out its wings and gently wiped away her tears. It moved closer to Sheng Mu's neck, then tilted its head and rested it on Sheng Mu's head.

"This... this... could this be..."

My aunt quickly covered her mouth.

Mother Sheng's tears flowed like a spring, but she did not move, and the magpie did not fly away.

It was not until the sun set that the magpie flapped its wings and flew away into the distance.

Mother Sheng watched the magpie fly farther and farther away, then slowly lowered her head and picked up the bowl of unfinished rice.

She grabbed a handful of rice and scattered it on the ground, muttering softly: "Magpie, magpie, fly slowly, come back and rest when you are tired, magpie, magpie, don't be afraid, you have your mother to accompany you, don't be afraid of anything, ah."

Sheng He flew for a long time and finally stopped in front of the gate of Qingshan City.

She watched from afar as candles were lit and smoke rose from the big house.

Then he watched the candle go out and the door close.

This small city, this gray city.

This is Qingshan City, this is the way she came.

She wants to stay here, but she also has her own ideals.

She wants to practice Taoism, she wants to become an immortal!

She said that she would not stop for anyone!

Ao Shuang appeared under his feet, Sheng He turned into a human form, and flew to the far north on his sword.

…

"Brother, I... wuwuwu, I don't know what I did wrong. Why would Senior Sister Sheng wrongly accuse me like this?"

Zhao Yanran lay on the bed crying bitterly, her back was covered in blood and flesh, looking horrible.

Wu Yan took just one look and turned his head away with a look of heartache, and quickly took out the treasured elixir from his storage bag.

"Junior sister Yanran, I just heard about your punishment in the Discipline Department. What happened? How did you get hurt so badly? This is the medicine I bought with spirit stones. It is very useful for treating external injuries. Junior sister, please eat it quickly."

Zhao Yanran glanced at the pill in Wu Yan's hand and saw that it was just a common low-grade healing pill. She quickly retracted her gaze and said sadly:

"It was... it was Senior Sister Sheng. Senior Sister Qingqing had an accident in the secret realm, and Senior Sister Sheng insisted that it was Senior Brother Chu and I who killed her. Senior Brother Chu has now had his cultivation abolished and has been sent to the Cliff of Repentance. Even I was severely punished."

"Brother Wuwuwu, I really don't know how I have offended Sister Sheng. I gave her the bracelet, spirit stone, and fire beads that she wanted, but she still...Brother Wuwuwu, I really don't know what to do!"

"What! It's that Sheng He again! How could she do such a thing to slander her fellow disciples? She is so heartless!"

The expression on Zhao Yanran's face froze for a moment, then quickly returned to normal.

Wu Yan slammed the table indignantly: "Junior Sister Yanran, you are too kind. You tolerate her in everything, so she will bully you even more! You are just a five-spiritual root. Do you think you can fly up to the tree and become a phoenix just because the elders take a fancy to you?"

"Junior Sister Yanran, don't be afraid. I have been practicing hard in the past few years and am now in the late stage of Qi training. When I see Sheng He, I will beat her up to vent your anger!"

The corners of Zhao Yanran's mouth twitched. She looked at Wu Yan and whispered, "But Senior Brother, Senior Sister Sheng is already in the middle stage of foundation building."

Wu Yan's anger was immediately vented, and his expression was embarrassed: "What...what? Doesn't she have five spiritual roots? How could she establish her foundation so quickly?"