The affairs of the porridge and medicine shops had been settled. Ma Du and Zeng Ye had assumed they would continue their journey towards the border of the Shihao Kingdom, as before. There were two Yin spirits, former soldiers of the border army, whose last wishes were tied to that place. Though they could not return to their homeland in life, their desires lay there.

However, Chen Pingan lingered for another day. At dusk, he paused by the city gate, watching a dark-skinned youth leave the city. He then visited the dog meat shop in the dilapidated alley, which was now closed. On either side of the doorframe, the images of the door gods, Yuan Cao holding a tablet and Yuan Cao holding a mace, were pasted. Only then did Chen Pingan return to the inn.

Earlier, at the city gate, Chen Pingan had encountered Guan Yiran, the Da Li military cultivator. The latter deliberately dismissed his escorting soldiers and stood alone with Chen Pingan by the city gate, asking softly, “Are you laying a long line to catch a big fish, temporarily releasing the tiger back to the mountain, in order to find the demon’s place of enlightenment and discover one or two immortal treasures? Or are you letting it go, considering it a benevolent act?”

A mountain sprite able to transform into human form must have great fortune on its side. Either it stumbled into an abandoned immortal’s dwelling, or it consumed a spiritual herb that condensed the spiritual energy of a region. Either way, tracing the roots or directly refining the sprite would yield a considerable windfall.

Chen Pingan smiled. “It’s the latter.”

Guan Yiran said regretfully, “What a pity. If you hadn’t shown up, two of my colleagues who are constantly complaining about being broke would have already targeted this little demon hiding in the dog meat shop. But since you’ve intervened, I’ll persuade them to give up. It was just a bonus anyway, and we usually have military duties. Of course, if you had chosen the former, we could have worked together.”

Chen Pingan asked, “Wouldn’t my intervention reduce your colleagues’ gains? Will it make things difficult for you?”

Guan Yiran smiled faintly. “My two friends and I are cultivators, but we are even more so members of the Da Li military. So, your words and your intention are enough. It’s rare to meet someone from our homeland while traveling. We don’t need to be overly polite, but some courtesy is best if it exists. If not, it doesn’t matter. At worst, we’ll pretend not to know each other and follow the Da Li laws and military regulations.”

Chen Pingan deeply agreed. “Sound reasoning.”

Guan Yiran laughed heartily, “I’m very happy to meet such an accomplished fellow countryman in this place hundreds of thousands of miles from home.”

Chen Pingan clasped his fist in salute. “I’m unable to reveal my identity now, but I will definitely seek you out for a drink when the opportunity arises, Brother Guan.”

Guan Yiran, the Da Li Military Secretary, raised his arm, made a fist, and lightly tapped his iron armor. “Then I’ll really remember it! Let me make it clear in advance, on the battlefield, it’s okay if a brother owes me his life, but owing Guan Yiran a drink? Not even the Heavenly King himself can get away with that!”

This chance encounter between fellow countrymen in a foreign land was filled with joy at parting.

As the young man in the azure cotton robe moved away from the city gate, two military cultivators wearing Da Li armory-specific light armor slowly approached, a sturdy young man and a slender woman.

The woman sized up Guan Yiran, who seemed to be savoring the moment, and asked curiously, “Yiran, this early spring isn’t a good sign. You’ve lost so much immortal money for nothing, and you’re still so happy?”

Guan Yiran chuckled. “I’m happy because it pleases me.”

The sturdy man said, “A young cultivator who can easily give away a Xiaoshu coin and asks nothing of the little demon, even escorting it to the city gate, plus the porridge and medicine shops opened earlier in the city, which intelligence shows are not limited to one city but are everywhere… I wouldn’t believe anyone else has such a benevolent heart, but with this person, judging by his words and actions, it all makes sense. I think Yiran did the right thing. He’s a fellow countryman, and it’s never a loss to have him as a friend worth drinking with.”

The young woman, whose figure was graceful but who carried a giant sword, complained, “You men are all the same. You like to put on a show of generosity when you meet someone you like. Is it really necessary?”

Guan Yiran said seriously, “Miss Qi, I don’t like you generalizing about us men. I’m much richer than Yu Shanfang, so I don’t need to put on a show. Who was it who said that a playboy like me, from a wealthy family, reeks of money even when he farts?”

“You can’t expect ivory from a dog’s mouth!” The woman, as slender as a spring willow, punched Guan Yiran on the shoulder, causing him to stumble back several steps. She then turned and walked back to the city wall.

Guan Yiran rubbed his shoulder with a grimace, truly in pain, while the sturdy man named Yu Shanfang looked on with schadenfreude.

The woman was a military cultivator from the Wind and Snow Temple. Compared to the True Martial Mountain cultivators, who mostly served as mid-to-high-level officers in the Da Li iron cavalry, the woman surnamed Qi didn’t take that path. The Da Li border army wasn’t surprised by this, as Wind and Snow Temple military cultivators preferred to be solitary wandering knights after leaving the mountain. Those like this woman often served as close escorts to important generals.

Yu Shanfang wrapped his arm around Guan Yiran’s shoulder and said in a low voice, “Yiran, I’ve known you for seven or eight years now, and I still just think of you as a son of a general from the capital, the kind who’s too good for some things and not good enough for others. Otherwise, your family wouldn’t have dumped you in such a lousy place, where you stayed for nearly three years, as the lowest-level military cultivator in our border army. You know how annoying your Beijing accent is. But Qi Qi, whom I’ve only known for two years, saw through your family background. She insisted you were a son of a wealthy family. Why? None of us old brothers who’ve frozen our asses and taken shits in the snow believe it. Are you two already…?”

Yu Shanfang broke free from Guan Yiran and wiggled his eyebrows at him.

Guan Yiran said helplessly, “Who doesn’t know that this Qi Qi has long admired her junior grand-uncle, the Sword Immortal Wei Jin, from a branch of the Wind and Snow Temple?”

Guan Yiran sighed. “And I already have a fiancee. To tell you the truth, she’s also the daughter of a prominent family in the capital. I’ve never even met her. It’s funny to think that I won’t know what my wife looks like until the day I get married and lift her red veil.”
Yu Shanfang, his curiosity piqued, inquired, “Whose unfortunate daughter has been saddled with a rough, old border guard like you?”

“No need to insult your own brother like that,” Guan Yiran retorted, his hand resting on the hilt of his Great Li border army saber. He walked shoulder to shoulder with Yu Shanfang through the foreign streets, glancing around. Almost every street corner was plastered with colorful depictions of the Yuan and Cao family guardians of Great Li. There were only a handful of families with the surname of Grand Pillar State, and the Yuan and Cao were undoubtedly among the most prominent. However, there were actually two others who could contend with the Yuan and Cao families: one was secluded on the mountains, rarely concerning itself with worldly affairs, surnamed Yu; the other was solely involved in court affairs, never venturing into the border army, their ancestral home in Yi Prefecture, having moved to the capital two centuries ago. Each year, the direct descendants of this family would return to their hometown for ancestral rites, an event even the Ministry of Rites of Great Li took seriously. Even the Great Li National Preceptor had once jested with the Emperor, saying that a century ago, during the chaotic era of eunuch interference, consort family usurpation, regional warlord rebellions, and cultivator rampages, the Great Li Dynasty would have crumbled beyond repair if not for this family’s tireless efforts as the dynasty’s menders.

Yu Shanfang interlaced his fingers, stretching forward to loosen his joints. His body crackled and popped, a testament to the many twists and turns that had led this “wild cultivator,” promoted step by step from a low-ranking border scout to a military secretary, to casually say, “Sometimes, when we old brothers are drinking and chatting, we feel like you’re different from us, but we can’t quite put our finger on it. We’re not like those seeded youngsters sent into the army. Our eyes are constantly assaulted by the border winds and sands, so our vision isn’t as sharp as those officials’ sons.”

Guan Yiran chuckled. “I only befriend three kinds of people: those on the battlefield who are willing to die without hesitation, those in the officialdom who possess true integrity, and lastly, the… good people on the mountains.”

Guan Yiran became melancholic. “It’s a pity that the first and third kind don’t seem to live long. The battlefield speaks for itself. After so many years of life and death, we’ve lost our closest brothers, and we no longer weep and wail like women. As for the third kind, I once knew a young man named Yu Yin, a contemporary I greatly admired. He was so good that he made you feel that… no matter how terrible the world was, having him ahead, speaking and acting, was enough. Just watching his receding figure made you happy. But such a good cultivator died so needlessly. His family and our court, who had placed great expectations on him, chose to minimize the matter for the sake of the bigger picture. I felt it was wrong, but would those great figures listen to the words of a nobody like Guan Yiran? No. Even if… my surname is Guan.”

Yu Shanfang chuckled, deflating his boast. “So what if your surname is Guan? Big deal! You’re not from the Guan family of Yunzai County, among the Grand Pillar States! Your registered household in the army clearly states that you’re from the capital. Don’t you know what kind of person our General is? He’s already dug up your background. He told us you’re just from a third-rate military family in the capital. You’re not even qualified to get a small courtyard in Yi Chi Lane, where Grand Pillar States live next to each other and Ministers quarrel over the walls, let alone General’s many Chi’er Streets. What, are you related to the Guan family of Yunzai County? Just because Liu, our old comrade and rival, inexplicably discovered that one of his young scouts was an unostentatious second-rate military descendant from the capital, whose ancestor had been a second-rank Grand General and even received a coveted posthumous title, our General felt overshadowed by Liu. Now he dreams every day of secretly having a first-rate military descendant hidden among his own lads. It’s hilarious.”

Guan Yiran hesitated for a moment. “If I die one day, our General might cry and laugh while scolding me.”

Yu Shanfang was shocked. “What? You’re really a descendant of the Guan family from Yi Prefecture?”

Guan Yiran nodded. “Guan family of Yunzai County, Yi Prefecture. I’m a direct descendant. There’s nothing I can do. My ancestor wasn’t a cultivator, but his bones were particularly strong. At a hundred years old, he could still drink a pound of wine and eat two pounds of meat in one meal. The National Preceptor was surprised when he saw him.”

Yu Shanfang rolled his eyes. “I believe you about as much as I believe I’ve seen the Emperor! If you’ve met National Preceptor Cui, then I’ve met the Emperor himself!”

Guan Yiran scoffed. “I told you, you don’t believe me. Believe it or not, it’s none of my business.”

Yu Shanfang asked suspiciously, “Really?”

Guan Yiran nodded with a smile. “I’m not lying to you. Remember when I took leave to return to the capital three years ago during the New Year? Qi Qi said she had followed a missionary to the capital in the first month of the year, possibly in Rain Flower Lane or Chi’er Street. I was visiting door to door during the New Year, so Qi Qi inadvertently caught a glimpse of me. However, the rules were strict in those two places, and Qi Qi didn’t dare to follow me. Of course, Qi Qi and I didn’t know each other at that time, so there was no need for her to investigate my identity.”

Yu Shanfang stealthily reached out his hand, wanting to touch Guan Yiran’s head.

Guan Yiran dodged his hand and said in annoyance, “What are you doing? Are you so horny that you’re treating me like Qi Qi?”

Yu Shanfang rubbed his hands together. “I’ve never touched a big shot in my life, so I just wanted to feel it. Tsk, tsk, tsk, Grand Pillar State Guan family! Tonight, I’m going to get you drunk and touch you all I want. I’ll gather the old brothers, one by one.”

Guan Yiran said playfully, “If you can do such a despicable thing, I’ll marry your unmarried younger sister, whom you always praise as a celestial being, and call you brother-in-law every day.”

Yu Shanfang kicked Guan Yiran in the butt.

Guan Yiran took the kick without dodging.

They continued to walk side by side.

Yu Shanfang suddenly sighed. “You should have told the brothers about this before they left, even if you secretly told them.”

Guan Yiran was silent for a moment, then shook his head. “I couldn’t bring myself to say it.”

Yu Shanfang nodded sadly. “That’s true.”

Guan Yiran suddenly smiled. “If I die on the battlefield one day, and the truth comes out, then our General and you will at least have something to brag about to the other cavalrymen.”

Yu Shanfang shook his head. “Don’t die.”
Guan Yiran also shook his head, slowly saying, “Just because I, Guan Yiran, am a scion of a meritorious family from Yizhou, does that mean I can’t die? The Great Li doesn’t have such a principle.”

Yu Shanfang laughed and said, “You’ve misunderstood. It’s just that the way you, as a young man, looked at that peer named Yu Yin back then, is how I look at you now. In the future, you’ll become a high-ranking official in the Great Li court. Even if you go to the capital at that time, all prim and proper, no longer clad in armor, wearing official robes every day, while I’m still muddling around in the border army, maybe we won’t even have anything to do with each other in this lifetime. But I’ll still feel… reassured. Yes, just… more reassured.”

Guan Yiran nodded.

Yu Shanfang curiously asked, “I’ve always wondered, why do you young masters from prominent military families all seem to like to hide your identities and become insignificant border scouts?”

Guan Yiran laughed and said, “In Yichi Lane and Chier Street, every young master with any sense of self-respect hopes to have been a genuine border scout in this lifetime. Not relying on the merits of their ancestors, but relying on their own abilities, to cut off the heads of enemies one by one and hang them by their saddles. Later, no matter what the reason, when they return to Yichi Lane and Chier Street, even the worst-off young man from Chier Street, having been a border scout, if he sees those grandsons of ministers from Yichi Lane on the road, as long as it’s not too unreasonable, he can just beat them up severely. Afterward, he doesn’t have to worry about implicating his ancestors and family, nothing will happen. From my grandfather’s generation to mine, it’s always been like this.”

Yu Shanfang marveled, “That’s possible?”

Guan Yiran stamped his foot and smiled, “That’s why the hooves of the Great Li iron cavalry can tread here.”

Yu Shanfang whispered, “Yiran, do you think it’s possible that one day you’ll become the first member of the Guan clan in Yunzai County to receive a posthumous title for a military general?”

“May your words bring good fortune, may your words bring good fortune.”

Guan Yiran hurriedly bowed his thanks, then straightened up and joked, “Can’t I receive a posthumous title as a patrolling envoy?”

Yu Shanfang patted Guan Yiran on the shoulder, “Since you’re already a member of the Guan clan, you should be more low-key and speak softly. Otherwise, just your capital accent is so annoying, what will become of you in the future? Won’t I and my brothers have to treat you like a woman every day?”

Guan Yiran rubbed his chin, “That makes sense, that makes a lot of sense.”

At the summit of Sui Mountain.

The golden-armored deity helplessly said, “If you continue to delay like this, I don’t see how you’ll fare in the future. That Grand Master of the Academy, burdened with affairs, how long has he been dragging things out for you? All the good impression he had of your unorthodox theories will be exhausted.”

The old scholar sat cross-legged, rubbing his ears, “If heaven wants to rain, and a mother wants to marry, let it be.”

The golden-armored deity slowly said, “According to information, the Ancestral Hall of Dragon Tiger Mountain is a bit strange. That Fire Dragon True Man from the Northern Treasury Continent seemed to have done more harm than good after that person delivered that sword strike.”

The old scholar laughed and said, “How do you know that, in the eyes of others, a great misfortune isn’t the result that this non-familial Grand Celestial Master of Dragon Tiger Mountain wanted?”

The golden-armored deity was just mentioning it casually. Not to mention a non-familial Grand Celestial Master, even if the familial Grand Celestial Master of the Dragon Tiger Mountain Celestial Master’s Manor did something, this Sui Mountain deity wouldn’t care at all.

However, the three Grand Masters of the Academy, belonging to the three lineages of Confucianism, had all been rebuffed by Bai Ze, that proud scholar, and the old scholar, either returning empty-handed or not even being able to meet them. Even the main deity of the great Sui Mountain would feel deeply worried.

Because the matter was truly too great, involving the most fundamental trends of the world.

The old scholar said, “My students, compared to the other major lineages of Confucianism, are very, very few. There’s no way around it, I have a discerning eye, none can compare…”

The golden-armored deity sneered, “Is there any point in saying such nonsense just to me?”

The old scholar nodded, “It’s still more interesting than saying it to myself.”

The golden-armored deity fell silent.

Seeing that this fellow wasn’t arguing with him, the old scholar felt a bit disappointed and had to continue, “Eldest, Cui Chan has the most talent, and he likes to get stuck in a rut, which is the best attitude for scholarship. But Cui Chan is too smart, he’s pessimistic about the world, he’s been that way from the beginning.”

“Let’s talk about the third, Qi Jingchun has the best scholarship, and it’s not just the highest, even I, as his teacher, have to praise him, ‘all-encompassing, a magnificent sight.’ If he hadn’t ended up with a teacher like me, but was in the lineage of the Sage of Rites or the Second Sage, perhaps his achievements would have been even greater. Qi Jingchun is optimistic about the world.”

“Let’s go back to the second, Zuo You has the most stubborn personality, but he’s actually a very good person, especially good. When he was still living in poverty in the back alleys, I let him manage the money. It was more useful than me, his teacher, who couldn’t hold onto a purse. Cui Chan said he wanted to buy a chess manual, Qi Jingchun said he wanted to buy books, Ah Liang said he wanted to drink alcohol, could I not give them money? With my skinny frame, I definitely had to put on a brave face. I was only relieved when Zuo You managed the money. Zuo You’s aptitude, talent, gifts, and temperament weren’t the best among the disciples, but he was the most balanced, and he was born with focus. So he learned swordsmanship, even though it was late, it was really too fast, yes, it was too fast. It even made me a little panicked back then. I was afraid that he would become the first fourteenth-realm sword cultivator in the vast world for thousands of years. What would we do then? Don’t look at this guy being far away from the mortal realm, Zuo You is actually the most afraid of loneliness. Although he has been wandering at sea for over a hundred years, what are Zuo You’s true thoughts? They’re still on me, his teacher, and on his junior brother… What teacher wouldn’t like such a disciple?”
“I recall this grand scholar, back in the day, who insulted me with… truly vile and unscrupulous words. But could I stoop to his level? Just a minor sage from some insignificant academy, unworthy even of ancestral rites! It would’ve been far too undignified to argue with such a junior. So, I subtly… uh… *visited* him. Beat him so soundly he was wailing for his parents! The dolt actually admitted to it! Even came crawling back to *me*, confessing his faults! Confess, confess, my foot! Why couldn’t he just wear a mask, dish out a beating, and then vanish like smoke? Who would know? Dare to challenge me? Could he even defeat Left and Right? And even if he could, they’d deny everything! Then our lineage’s Vice Master could easily crush him! And if he could crush him, couldn’t *I* crush *him*? Alas, Right is a bit slow-witted. What could a poor teacher like myself do? Little Qi and the others were watching. So, punishment it was! Off I went, tail between my legs, with Right in tow, to offer apologies and make amends, and compensate for the damages… a tiresome affair!”

The golden-armored warrior inquired, “If Right confessed to you, why would he agree to apologize to others?”

The old scholar rolled his eyes. “Naturally, I explained the *reasoning* to Right in private. ‘How can you call yourself a disciple of a Literary Sage if you hit so lightly? How will you avenge your teacher’s honor?’ After such words, Right nodded thoughtfully, agreeing that he’d be more careful in the future.”

The golden-armored warrior chuckled, “I am impressed.”

The old scholar sighed, “As for Fourth… well, that’s more complicated. He’s only half a disciple, really. It’s not that I disown him, but he felt his origins were too humble and didn’t want to cause me trouble. So, *he* disowned *me*. Different reasons, but the result is similar to my closed-door disciple. As for the rest, the nominal disciples, each has their own unique path.”

“Among them, Mao Xiaodong is the most similar to me in the way he imparts knowledge and resolves doubts. Of course, his scholarship still falls short of his teacher’s. He’s meticulous in everything he does, but he’s still a bit distant from the ‘following his heart without overstepping boundaries’ state. But such things can’t be pointed out directly. One must comprehend and break through on their own. The Buddhist concept of ‘self-awakening’ is excellent. In this matter, the Daoists are not as insightful…”

The old scholar didn’t elaborate further, avoiding grand pronouncements. He changed the subject, “When I argue with people, I never believe I’m entirely right. One must understand both their strengths and weaknesses. Otherwise, what’s the point of arguing? If one merely vents their own views, where does all that learning go? Knowledge is most vulnerable when it becomes rootless, descending from the heavens, lofty and intimidating. Aside from a few scholars praising it, what meaning does it have? If it doesn’t touch the earth, doesn’t nourish the land, doesn’t truly benefit the common folk, doesn’t provide them with a large basket or small satchel where they can place their ‘ten thousand life’s tribulations, but still find a place of peace’, if you just fill them with paper theories and ideas that people mistakenly believe only sages are qualified to discuss, it will exhaust them to death. How can you then hope for transformative education?”

The old scholar stood up, his form hunched, gazing into the distance, murmuring, ” ‘Human nature is inherently good,’ is it wrong? Profoundly good. But there’s a very awkward problem within: if human nature is inherently good, why is the world so complex? What has the Confucian teaching truly transformed? Does it teach people to be evil? So, what to do? The Old Master and the Ritual Sage are both waiting. Then, finally, they waited for me. I said, ‘Human nature is inherently evil.’ Within a school, we sharpen, debate, and mend each other. The key is that I can stand my ground, and my reasoning is sound. That’s why I became a Literary Sage. But then an even more awkward problem appears: from the perspective of an outsider like you, you might think the doctrine of ‘inherently evil’ can become one branch of the Confucian literary tradition, which is fine. But can it truly become the main current of our Confucianism?”

The old scholar answered himself, “Absolutely not.”

The old scholar raised his thumb, pointing to his own heart. “I myself believe that.”

Silence for a long time.

The golden-armored warrior sighed, a rare expression of regret.

The old scholar didn’t retract his thumb, suddenly sighing. “Thinking about it, I’m truly both a sage and a hero! Impressive, impressive.”

The golden-armored warrior remained silent.

The old scholar turned his head, helplessly saying, “Why don’t you argue with me? That way I can persuade you with reason!”

The golden-armored warrior said calmly, “I won’t give you that chance.”

The old scholar nodded, pleased. “Then it seems I’ve already won you over with virtue.”

The golden-armored warrior took a deep breath.

*Or else what?*

The old scholar suddenly became serious. “Don’t rush to chase me away. I want to learn from Bai Ze and that most dejected scholar. I’ll wait a little longer. Although I don’t know what they’re thinking, I want to wait and see.”

The golden-armored warrior asked, “What if you wait until the end and you’re wrong? Won’t you regret it?”

The old scholar folded his hands behind his back, narrowing his eyes with a cold smile. “Regret? From this teacher to my inner-circle disciples, regardless of their individual choices of the Great Dao, regret? Never!”

Above the golden arch bridge.

A sword was plunged into the bridge railing, the tip and a short section of the blade already embedded, sparks flying, a dazzling sight.

The woman sitting beside it, holding a tung leaf umbrella horizontally across her lap, stood up. She opened the seemingly ordinary oiled paper umbrella, glanced upwards, and then vanished, leaving only the tung leaf umbrella suspended in place.

She stepped into a blessed land, right at the mouth of a well.

That “casually gifted” tung leaf umbrella naturally held profound meaning, but whether the new owner would live long enough to discover the truth remained to be seen.

But what did that have to do with the original owner? It was a calculation, yet not a calculation. The Dao that can be spoken is not the eternal Dao.

Almost instantly, a tall, old Daoist appeared beside her, smiling, “Long time no see.”

She ignored him, surveying her surroundings, nodding. “In this current era, it’s considered a grand scheme.”

The old Daoist smiled, “Otherwise how could I discuss the Dao with the Dao Ancestor?”

She glanced at him.

The old Daoist remained composed.

She gazed at a certain spot in the lotus blossom blessed land, seemingly enlightened, scoffing. “You certainly haven’t forgotten your roots.”

The old Daoist laughed heartily, full of delight. “Acting with the flow, with minimal effort, to turn heaven and earth upside down, to sink an entire continent.”

She frowned.

The old Daoist sighed, “This era is no longer the one of the past.”

She shook her head. “It’s only that I’ve changed masters.”

The old Daoist didn’t speak.

Even he couldn’t comment on the matter.

She asked, “Just this small plot of land?”
The old Daoist chuckled, “Truly, I cannot give any more.”

She seemed to lose her enthusiasm, departing in disappointment. Her figure faded, returning to her own realm, and she retrieved the parasol crafted from Tong leaves.

The old Daoist remained by the well, peering down, his gaze fixed on the dim, unfathomable waters within.

He withdrew his gaze, lifting his head to gaze at the firmament. “This is my greeting gift for returning to the Azure Heavens, what do you think?”

In the small lotus grotto connected to the Lotus Root Blessed Land, an old man continued to observe a single droplet of water. He watched it fall upon the uneven lotus leaves, some the size of mountains and peaks, even entire provinces of mortal empires. The veins of a single leaf could stretch for dozens, even hundreds of *li*. Therefore, the trajectory of the minuscule droplet, and its ultimate landing point, was a process of immeasurable duration.

The old man remained unhurried.

Years flowed by, time slipped away.

Yet, as the embodiment of the greatest law of the universe, even the grand and boundless River of Time itself would detour around the old man as it passed.

(Recommendation for a new book from the esteemed urban author Old Shi)