The conversation with Zhang Cuihua unfolded on a barren hillside – near a fiercely hot brick kiln, where vibrant green was a rare sight.

It was May, and though the hillside was bare, it wasn’t unbearable. An occasional breeze blew, providing a welcome coolness.

“Is the child named Chu Yao?” Jiang Wang asked.

“Yes. My sister-in-law and my brother’s wife both had children before me. When the baby was born, my husband said it was good to call him Yao’er. ‘The emperor loves the eldest son, the common people love the youngest son.’ That’s how it goes, I think.” Zhang Cuihua smiled. “He was an educated man.”

“Uh…” Jiang Wang echoed against his better judgment, “My learned brother certainly seemed like an educated man.”

Zhang Cuihua completely missed his hesitation, looking quite proud. “Isn’t that right? My name used to be Zhang Cuihua. My husband said ‘hua’ was vulgar and told me to be called Cuihua. I don’t know what the difference is, but it sounds nice! It just sounds happy!”

In Jiang Wang’s opinion, Zhang Cuihua didn’t sound much better than Zhang Cuihua.

But the satisfaction in Zhang Cuihua’s eyes and words… that was pure joy.

Those things, those beautiful things she cherished, were the greatest strength supporting her life, weren’t they?

Regardless of Chu Mi’s reputation outside, regardless of how people saw him. At least here in the kiln town, there was someone who worshipped him, acknowledged him, and loved him with genuine sincerity.

“That’s truly wonderful.” Jiang Wang thought for a moment, then asked, “Sister Hua, you don’t look particularly well. I know a little about medicine, would it be convenient for me to take your pulse?”

After much consideration, he still didn’t know how to help Chu Mi’s widow. So he thought he would first check her physical condition to see if he could help her transcend.

“What’s inconvenient about it? I’m a mother!” Zhang Cuihua vigorously wiped her hands with the headscarf she had untied, then extended her hand forward. “Take it!”

Jiang Wang extended three fingers, placing them on her pulse in a practiced manner, but in reality, he was already using his Dao power to observe.

Within Zhang Cuihua’s body, he discovered undissipated medicinal power – the power of a Meridian Opening Pill.

He asked casually, “Did the learned brother ever give you anything special to eat?”

“No.” Zhang Cuihua shook her head.

After a moment, she added, “There was one time I was sick, and he ran very far to get me medicine. It was a pill, he got it from a celestial being! I took it and I got better. For so many years, I haven’t been sick again.”

It seemed Chu Mi had already tried to help her transcend, but she clearly lacked talent, and her body hadn’t been conditioned to the proper state. Even with a Meridian Opening Pill, it was unsuccessful.

What else could he do to help this woman, then?

As Jiang Wang was thinking, he suddenly met Zhang Cuihua’s eyes.

The plainness and resilience in those eyes had, at some point, faded.

She looked at Jiang Wang. “My good brother, tell me truly. Did something happen to my learned one? Don’t hide it from me!”

Her lips, stained with ash, moved, as if unsure whether to cry or laugh. “If he’s gone, you can’t trick me into waiting for him in vain, can you? I’m not unwanted.”

Jiang Wang thought he had acted perfectly normal, but he had completely failed to deceive a woman who missed her husband.

Five years.

She had waited for Chu Mi for five years, raising their child alone.

Of course she wasn’t unwanted. At least that sturdy man earlier was clearly interested in her.

But the meaning of “can’t trick me into waiting in vain” was – if it wasn’t in vain, if he could be waited for, she would wait, no matter how long.

Jiang Wang had prepared several reasons in his mind, but at this moment, facing those eyes – eyes that held no power, yet were the most powerful –

Suddenly, he couldn’t utter a single one.

“He left with great dignity, and great honor,” Jiang Wang finally said.

Zhang Cuihua froze for a moment, then slowly, slowly, knelt down.

With those rough hands, stained with brick and tile dust, she covered her face.

No sound of weeping escaped.

Jiang Wang stood beside her, silently keeping her company.

The May wind came and went, whistling back and forth across the bare, unobstructed hillside.

After a long time, Zhang Cuihua vigorously rubbed her eyes with her sleeve, then looked up and said, “When he left, he said he would come back.”

There were no tears visible in her eyes, but her face was streaked with black and white, and she tried hard to be calm. “At least he didn’t lie to me, he couldn’t come back. It wasn’t that he wouldn’t come back…”

Jiang Wang half-knelt down and reached out to gently brush the air in front of her face. A gentle flow of water elemental energy brushed over her face, wiping away the “pattern” of tears mixed with brick dust.

That warm and gentle power didn’t cause her the slightest discomfort.

Zhang Cuihua was clearly stunned by this miraculous scene, and for a moment, she forgot to speak.

Jiang Wang said softly, “Your husband is the same kind of person as me. Your husband and I are friends. If you are willing, I can help you live a different life.”

Surely no ordinary person could refuse the allure of transcendence.

Jiang Wang had always thought so. He himself had yearned for transcendence since he was a child. For this, he had not feared hardship and had not spared any effort.

Zhang Cuihua was silent for a while, then suddenly asked, “It must be very dangerous, right? People like you, it must be very dangerous, right?”

Jiang Wang wanted to say that unless one reached the Outer Building stage, there was no need to fight in the Maze Realm.

But if one didn’t reach the Outer Building stage and didn’t go to the Maze Realm, was there no danger?

Cultivation in the Dragon Soaring realm could easily lead to getting lost in the Mist of Ignorance. Was that not dangerous?

The pain of lingering before the Gate of Heaven and Earth, unable to make any progress, had driven how many cultivators mad?

Once the Circulatory System established in the Circulatory Heaven realm collapsed, who could imagine the consequences of a Dao vortex explosion?

Moreover, those who truly embarked on the path of cultivation. Who was willing to remain forever at the foot of the mountain, forever a wandering meridian?

How could he say that transcendence was not a dangerous path?

“It must be very dangerous.” Zhang Cuihua shook her head, answering her own question. “My husband was the most cautious person. Even drawing water from the well, he would ask me to hold onto him from behind. If it wasn’t particularly dangerous… he wouldn’t have gotten into trouble.”

Jiang Wang sighed. “I cannot guarantee that there will be no danger in the world of transcendence. I can only say that by embarking on this path, you will have the opportunity to grasp your own destiny.”

He extended a finger and gently tapped Zhang Cuihua’s forehead, using his soul power to transmit the information about Qingyang Town into her mind. “If you ever come to a decision, you can have Chu Yao go to this place to find me, just say he’s looking for Jiang Qingyang.”

He withdrew his finger. “Apart from this, do not let anyone else know about this matter. I have a lot of trouble, and so did your husband.”

This method of transmitting information into the mind was clearly far beyond Zhang Cuihua’s imagination. Chu Mi had also never displayed any transcendent abilities in front of her.

But she was unexpectedly calm.

After thinking carefully, she said, “The child is still young. When he grows up, I’ll let him decide for himself.”

“Alright.” Jiang Wang didn’t force the issue and changed the subject. “Now let’s talk about the next thing. Are there any problems with your lives?”

Before Chu Mi surrendered, it was impossible for him not to leave some provisions for his wife and child. A person like him would certainly know not to leave too much wealth, but ensuring their basic livelihood would definitely not be a problem.

How was it that Zhang Cuihua still had to move tiles in the kiln, working as hard as the men?

Zhang Cuihua thought for a moment and shook her head. “We’re doing well.”

Jiang Wang was afraid she didn’t understand him and said more directly, “You should know what kind of person I am and what abilities I have now. If you encounter any grievances, difficulties, or insurmountable obstacles, just tell me. I will open mountains where there are mountains and cut off water where there is water, you don’t need to worry.”

Zhang Cuihua’s eyelids drooped slightly. “I grew up here. The kiln town is my home. Who would dare to make me suffer? You don’t need to worry about it.”

Jiang Wang thought for a moment and didn’t press further.

Zhang Cuihua was able to raise a child alone. Her ability to order those men around in the kiln just now showed that she was not a weak-willed person. If she didn’t want to talk, there must be a reason she didn’t want to talk.

Considering that she had sisters-in-law and a brother’s wife, it wasn’t difficult to guess the reason.

Family matters are difficult for outsiders to judge.

It was also understandable that Zhang Cuihua might be afraid that he, a transcendent cultivator, wouldn’t care about the lives of ordinary people.

“Like this.” Jiang Wang took out a bag of碎 silver. It wasn’t that he couldn’t give more, but for the safety of her and her son. “Take this silver…”

Zhang Cuihua retreated far away, her tone very firm. “I can’t take it!”

Jiang Wang continued, “I borrowed it from the learned brother a while ago, and now there’s nowhere to return it…”

Zhang Cuihua took a step back. “Did you really borrow it?”

Jiang Wang said, “How could it be false? We transcendent cultivators cannot lie, or we cannot cultivate. I rushed here specifically to repay the debt, it’s a vow!”

Only then did Zhang Cuihua put the cloth bag away. “Well, it’s right to repay a debt.”

“Of course it is.” Jiang Wang said with a smile. He looked up at the sky. “It’s getting late, I should go.”

He tapped his forehead with his finger. “Remember what I told you. Chu Yao always has a choice. You don’t need to feel burdened, he earned it from his father.”

Zhang Cuihua didn’t say anything, clutching the bag of碎 silver tightly. Suddenly, she bent down and bowed deeply to Jiang Wang.

When she straightened up, the young man with the clear face had disappeared.

Everything was like a dream. Besides the silver in her arms and the wind blowing in her ears, nothing seemed quite real.

“Mom, Mom!”

Clever and thin Chu Yao finally couldn’t be watched by Shanzi and the others, and he scurried over.

When Zhang Cuihua turned around, her face was already smiling. “Come, child, tell your mother, how much money did you earn in total?”

“Heh heh.” Chu Yao counted on his fingers, carefully counting again and again, and said with a grin that revealed a missing front tooth, “Seven knife coins!”

Zhang Cuihua bent down and stroked his head. “Yao’er, you have money to study!”

“Really?” Chu Yao’s eyes, like his father’s, were long and narrow, cunning, and now they were sparkling. It wasn’t that he loved to read, but being with other children at school was definitely more fun than moving tiles.

“Yes, my child is so good.” Zhang Cuihua hugged her son in her arms and said softly, “We’ve earned enough!”

(This chapter is considered an extra chapter because there are two chapters tonight combined into one. If it were marked as an extra chapter for the Alliance Leader, it would be very imprecise. Marking it as half an extra chapter for the Alliance Leader would be strange. So this chapter is considered an extra chapter!)