Miaoyu, a captivating smile gracing her face, swayed gracefully as she departed.

The Bone Envoy was a man of profound complexity. Despite their long association, she could never truly decipher him.

His actions today were, perhaps, a test to ascertain if she had discovered the Dao Child, or perhaps a subtle reminder for her to remain vigilant, lest she betray her knowledge of the Dao Child’s existence.

All who gathered within the Bone Dao harbored a shared ideal, yet until that ultimate goal was achieved, each individual pursued their own discreet agenda.

As for the Second Elder, his behavior was considerably more transparent. He appeared utterly indifferent to any information Miaoyu might extract during her interrogation. Perhaps he was uninvolved with the matter of Ji Xuan, or perhaps he was simply confident that Miaoyu would uncover nothing.

She held no interest in speculating on the schemes of such a cunning old fox; it would only lead to misdirection and an inability to truly comprehend his motives.

Regarding the abduction of the Water Tribe, the surveillance detail assigned to that thread was rather small.

Miaoyu herself had informed no one of her intention to appear at the Clear River shore. Whoever could predict her presence there must possess a deep familiarity with her.

She knew not the identity of the informant lurking in the shadows. Even a systematic interrogation would likely prove futile, as those questioned could genuinely be ignorant.

The prospect of the Dao Child’s exposure filled her with anxiety. Having narrowly escaped death, this unease manifested itself in a manner she could scarcely suppress.

Now, the Bone Envoy clearly harbored suspicions, and the Second Elder was no fool.

The Dao Child, upon descending into the mortal realm, did not immediately awaken to his true nature. Rather, he would be bound by the experiences of his infancy and youth, followed by a lengthy process of liberation and awakening. Until then, the Dao Child was not powerful; his combat prowess would depend solely on his cultivation after birth.

This meant that the Dao Child could be destroyed…or replaced…before his awakening.

This was the reason for Miaoyu’s clandestine operations, especially given the First Elder’s apparent lack of zeal in the search for the Dao Child.

As the Holy Maiden, and the Dao Child’s destined worldly partner, she sought to accelerate his awakening.

Thus, having identified Jiang Wang as the Dao Child incarnate, she orchestrated three events.

Three events, three choices.

She sought to destabilize, even dismantle, Jiang Wang’s existing moral framework, and then guide him towards rediscovering his true self.

The first event prompted him to contemplate his nation and its court, the second, to contemplate the relationship between the Human and Water Tribes, and humanity itself.

The third event… would have to be postponed for now.

The First Elder had lost contact somewhere in Yun Country. The Second Elder and the Bone Envoy remained unreadable. Perhaps this was not the opportune moment.

It was too dangerous, she thought.

Her mind troubled, she returned to her chambers.

She had, somehow, forgotten that she was never one to shy away from danger.

…

…

Long ago, his father had told Jiang Wang that the Water Tribe were simply people who lived in the water.

They, like the Human Race, possessed their own thoughts and emotions, their own families and friends, their own loves and hates.

Indeed, this was a shared understanding.

This consensus did not arise spontaneously, but was the product of millennia of interaction and reconciliation between the Human and Water Tribes, and the efforts of countless wise individuals from both races.

And now, someone was secretly abducting members of the Water Tribe, extracting their Dao Meridians to refine Opening Meridian Pills. It was as if, in the pursuit of perfect Opening Meridian Pills, humans would readily extract the Dao Meridians of cultivators.

This made Jiang Wang feel the disorientation and absurdity of this world.

“You think these things don’t happen?” Zhao Rucheng, his handsome face flushed with drink, spoke with increasing carelessness.

It was late at night, and Jiang An’an had long since fallen asleep. Jiang Wang, unable to sleep after finishing his cultivation, had sought out Linghe and Zhao Rucheng in the dead of night.

The three brothers gathered at Zhao Rucheng’s home, drinking until their eyes were blurred with intoxication.

As they discussed the matters weighing on his heart, the youngest, Zhao Rucheng, was the most dismissive.

“There are plenty of people who eat people, Xiong Wen is just one of them!” he roared with drunken laughter. “What did you think? It’s just that many don’t eat so directly, they eat in a different way, and you think that people eating people is rare. Third Brother, you’re too naive!”

“Your Third Brother isn’t naive,” Linghe, who had also drunk heavily, but even drunk would not let himself become dissolute, leaned back in his chair, took a breath, and said, “He has things he believes in.”

“And you, my Big Brother, what do you believe in?” Zhao Rucheng patted his knee, grinning. “So young, and always acting like a kindly old man, why?”

“I believe that human nature is inherently good. I believe that no one truly wants to eat people, that it’s often out of necessity, and that if they had a choice, they wouldn’t do it. I believe that everyone wants to stand clean and upright in the sunlight.”

“Third Brother is a little naive…you’re stupid!” Zhao Rucheng was struggling to sit up straight, so he leaned on the armrest and flung his hand out. “Don’t give those people a chance!”

Jiang Wang sprawled on the table, pouring himself another cup of wine. The alcohol flushed his face, and he squinted his eyes. “Big Brother is the kind of person who has no bad intentions toward others. There are many things he would never do, and then he thinks that others wouldn’t do them either.”

“Hearts are made of flesh.” Perhaps it was the drink, but Linghe seemed unusually stubborn tonight. Or rather, he was, in fact, an inherently stubborn person, just unwilling to argue when sober.

“Some flesh has sores on it, and it’s rotten!”

“It was good before it had sores.”

“No, no, no, some people’s hearts aren’t made of flesh, they’re made of rotten sores!”

“Nonsense, Little Five. A rotten sore can’t grow into a human heart.”

Linghe was truly drunk. It had been a long time since they had used the nickname Little Five when they were together.

Zhao Rucheng chuckled. “Not all people are people, my silly brother.”

“But not all people aren’t people, either,” Jiang Wang, who had been observing the exchange, accurately caught the flaw in the argument, and said confidently, “People are people because most people are people. Otherwise, why wouldn’t we be called ghosts?”

He drunkenly raised his right hand. “So, I declare! Big Brother is right!”

Linghe grinned, a truly innocent and contented smile.

“To hell with it!” Zhao Rucheng flipped over and lay back on his chair. “I don’t care who lives or dies in this damn place. Except for you guys, and Tiger…”

He suddenly burst into tears. “Waaaaah, and Fang Pengju. That son of a bitch Fang Pengju!”

He was the one who usually acted the most contemptuous of Fang Pengju. Only when he was completely uninhibited and drunk would he say such things.

Jiang Wang staggered to his feet, poured himself another cup of wine, and swayed it gently. “To that son of a bitch Fang Pengju.”

Then he drained it in one gulp.

Zhao Rucheng cried for a few moments, then stopped, and said angrily, “Tiger’s been in Jiujiang for so long, and hasn’t sent us a message. He’s a son of a bitch too!”

“Yeah, another son of a bitch!”

Linghe, half-drunk and half-awake, suddenly corrected them. “He’s a *tiger* son of a bitch.”

…

Uncle Deng stood leaning against the door outside, his hands tucked into his sleeves, listening to the voices from inside the room, and sighed deeply, his voice wistful. “They’re still just children…”

The night wind swirled through his sleeves, and a drop of blood fell silently.

But before it could touch the ground, it was caught by some force and dissipated into nothingness.