A cacophony of howls, both mournful and wild, echoed across the shattered expanse where the Mad One dwelt among the celestial ruins of the Alliance Starfield. “The world beyond is overflowing with wonders! Behold the strapping maidens, the teeming multitudes!”

The voice carried a primal joy, unleashed after what felt like eons of confinement. A gaunt, grime-covered figure danced into view, limbs flailing, cries rending the void as he capered wildly through the debris.

Wang Lin, long accustomed to the madman’s ceaseless prattle, paid him no mind. Instead, he gazed forward, at the star-strewn tapestry ahead, at the familiar emanations that stirred within it.

The scent of home.

“At last… home,” Wang Lin whispered, a deep sorrow in his eyes. He had a home, in Kun Xu, in Vermilion Bird, yet all his family was gone, leaving only the weight of remembrance.

He himself did not know why he returned. It was not merely for Clear Water, nor for Situ Nan, but something deeper, a clarity that bloomed after millennia of wandering. Kun Xu held him captive with a strange power he could not sever.

Even though he was alone…

A wave of melancholy washed over Wang Lin, a grief that had haunted him his entire existence. He stared blankly into the distance, lost in sorrow.

The madman’s howling gradually subsided. Perplexed, he scratched his head and approached Wang Lin, his eyes clouded with confusion. Never had he seen such a face, yet he vaguely sensed the crushing weight of grief emanating from the other man.

“Hark, fair maiden! What troubles thee?” The madman puffed out his chest, striking a pose of faux authority. “Tell the King, has some villain dared to wrong you? I shall see them punished!”

Wang Lin opened his eyes, offered a silent shake of his head, and moved forward, stepping towards the distant stars, his pace deliberate, heavy.

His steps were slow, his gaze fixed on the cosmos. Everything here felt familiar, and that familiarity only deepened the ache in his heart.

He could not explain why this return was more painful than when he had returned from Luo Tian. Perhaps he had simply endured too much, journeyed too far…

“Oh, weep not so, for it pains the King as well…” the madman whined, now trailing behind Wang Lin, drawn in by the other man’s sorrow. “The King longs for home! Little Red, Little Silver, why have you forsaken me? I yearn for my home, I must return!”

The madman’s moods shifted quickly. The sorrow was soon forgotten, replaced with exuberant joy as he gathered rocks around him and sent them hurtling through space, cackling with laughter.

Wang Lin continued his somber march, burying his pain, concealing his weariness. He had many things to do, he could not yet rest.

Watching the madman frolic in the distance, never straying too far, a twinge of envy sparked within Wang Lin. He envied the madman’s carefree spirit, his ability to forget any sorrow and find joy in all things.

Something Wang Lin could not do.

And so, accompanied by the madman’s joyous laughter and his occasional raucous shouts, they ventured deeper into the star-strewn void.

Before long, a colossal cultivation planet loomed in the distance, its size rivaling even that of Tian Yun in its prime, and encircled by a vast ring of satellite asteroids.

Wang Lin had never been here; it was unknown to him.

Around the planet, ripples of unseen energy pulsed, hinting at powerful protective wards.

The entire planet was eerily still, as silent as a graveyard.

The madman spotted it too, his eyes widening with glee, and he roared with delight.

“Huzzah! So many people! So many maidens! This is a wondrous place!” The madman rubbed his hands together excitedly, turning to Wang Lin with a pleading look.

“Oh, I wish to go there…”

Wang Lin let his gaze sweep over the cultivation planet. Unnoticed by any cultivator within, his perception captured everything.

It was a Rank One cultivation planet, teeming with mortals divided into nearly a hundred kingdoms. Cultivators were plentiful, though most remained in the First Step. Second Step cultivators were few.

The most powerful on the surface was a Net Nirvana cultivator. But deep beneath the planet’s center, in a cavernous grotto, were four ancient beings in perennial seclusion.

The strongest among them had reached the Third Celestial Decay, with the others at the First Celestial Decay or the Shattering Nirvana stage.

Within the cavern, the elements of ice and fire intertwined, used by the elders to suppress the effects of their tribulations and stave off death.

“I have pressing matters that require my attention,” Wang Lin said, knowing this world held no harm for the madman.

“Oh, it matters not! I shall play on my own! In truth, your presence unsettles the King. And even if you wished to join, I would refuse!” The madman scoffed.

Wang Lin paused, looked at the madman with soft eyes, and said slowly, “Must you go to that world? Remain with me, and after I finish, I will take you wherever you wish to go.”

The madman shook his head vehemently, turning back to the cultivation planet, his eyes filled with excitement. “So many people! It must be the most wondrous place of all! So many maidens… So many cultivators! When I fled, it was to find such a place! I shall not change my mind, I must go!”

Seeing the madman’s face, Wang Lin sighed. He was still worried. The madman had the mind of a child, and even with his indestructible body, he could be deceived.

He would not care if the madman deceived himself, but he would never allow others to deceive him. Wang Lin paid his debts; since the madman had granted him grace, he would not allow anyone to harm him, even in the slightest!

“No!” Wang Lin snapped, and with a wave of his sleeve, a golden light shot towards the madman, encircled him, and began pulling him away.

Fury ignited in the madman’s eyes. He snarled and roared, struggling against the golden light. Somehow, he unleashed a technique that allowed him to escape, and he turned on Wang Lin, his rage laced with triumph.

“You dare command the King?” he yelled. “Even my brothers cannot! Wherever the King wishes to go, he shall go! Even if you are the King’s master, hmph! How many masters does the King have? Let me see, one, three, eight… Forgotten! Many! And none may command me!

“I shall go play!” the madman screeched, baring his teeth in a savage grimace.

Wang Lin stared coldly at the madman. He preferred peace, and did not indulge others. Seeing the madman’s resolve, Wang Lin snorted, raised his hand, and grabbed at the air. His storage crack opened, and two beams of light erupted from within.

The first beam released an excited shriek.

“I’m not going back! Never again! You only drag me out when you need me, and toss me back when you don’t! I may be a mere sword spirit, but I have served you well, you cursed star! You cannot treat me like this!” Xu Liguo cried, bursting forth from the light. His eyes darted about, and he spotted the madman.

The madman, in turn, stared back at Xu Liguo.

As they sized each other up, a head poked out from the second light beam, revealing Liu Jinbiao. He looked around warily, then examined the madman before stepping forward.

“You two shall accompany him and remain on this planet. You must protect him from all harm!” Wang Lin commanded, his tone brooking no argument.

His gaze flicked over the madman, Wang Lin turned, and with a single step, vanished into the stars, heading for the headquarters of the Alliance!

“Clear Water Shixiong, Wang Lin comes!”

After Wang Lin left, the madman and Xu Liguo stared at each other. After a long pause, they both spoke at once.

“Fair maiden, tell the King your name!”

“Who are you?”

Xu Liguo paused, then his anger flared. He snarled at the madman, saying, “Who’s a maiden? I’m a man!”

The madman roared with laughter, pointing at Xu Liguo, trying to speak, but he burst into fits of hysterics. “You’re a man? Hahaha! Little Red, look! The sword spirit claims he’s not a maiden… Hahaha! I shall die laughing… Ah, is it raining? Oh, Little Red, it’s raining! Fetch me an umbrella!” As he mumbled to himself, his eyes grew distant and bewildered, he stopped laughing, and simply stared at Xu Liguo.

Xu Liguo blinked at the look, and glanced at Liu Jinbiao, who was staring intently at the madman.

Liu Jinbiao nodded solemnly, stepped forward, examined the madman, especially his face, and gave a curt nod to Xu Liguo, revealing a smile that was somehow sickening.

“Madman?”

“Yes, a madman, no doubt!”

Xu Liguo and Liu Jinbiao exchanged glances, then slowly turned towards the madman with a pair of unsettling smirks.