Bestowing the Jade

After the two landed, the surrounding forest remained quiet, with only the miasma swirling around Jiang Lan's former hut.

Bai Qiuran looked at several places in the darkness, then said to them, "Li, come out, it's us."

After a moment, the rustling of leaves came from the darkness, and Li led a group of Human Race, whose expressions still showed fear and dread, out of the woods.

Bai Qiuran looked at his apprentice, whose face was haggard. The grief of losing his wife had left him very depressed. In a sense, neither of them was in a good mental state.

Bai Qiuran carried Jiang Lan on his back and walked towards them. Some of the other Human Race retreated in fear, but one of them immediately spoke up to reassure them, saying, "Don't worry, Master is human."

"It's good to see you're all alright."

Bai Qiuran patted his shoulder, then looked at the other Human Race beside him.

"Let them come in first."

Bai Qiuran spoke, she unfolded the drawing in her hand, glanced at the tribespeople behind her, and nodded to them.

The group did not resist, Bai Qiuran took them back into the map, along with Li Ye. Then, carrying Jiang Lan on his back, he set off for other Settlement in the Eastern Lands.

After slaughtering Heavenly Gods near a Settlement, and then capturing all the survivors and the Souls that were born into the painting, Bai Qiuran carried Jiang Lan back and forth like this until dawn.

Bai Qiuran stopped after confirming that all the people in the nearby Settlement had been slaughtered and that the Heavenly Gods had all left the earth. He took Jiang Lan back to the Settlement where they had been born, collected the ghosts that had been born there, and then found a secluded valley. With the help of Wisdom Immortal, he set up a very durable Formation to block the surveillance of Heavenly Hearing and Earthly Sight.

After doing all this, he cut down trees and hunted animals in the valley, built a small hut, temporarily housed the weak Jiang Lan inside, and then released Li from the painting.

"Master."

Li looked somewhat dejected and dejected. He looked at Bai Qiuran and asked, "Did you need something from me?"

"Um."

Bai Qiuran said to him, "Come for a walk with me."

Jiang Lan was already fast asleep in bed. After her original Divine Office Divine Power was stripped away, even though Bai Qiuran's wood-attribute True Qi saved her, her spirit and physical strength became no different from those of Mortals.

Bai Qiuran glanced at the girl on the bed and, finding her breathing steady and without any problems, closed the door and left with Li.

The two did not go far, but only wandered around the valley. Coincidentally, there was also a stream in this valley. As the stream flowed, the water gathered into a small Pool. Bai Qiuran and Li stood by the Pool, looking at the shimmering Pool.

"What a coincidence."

Looking at the water, Bai Qiuran and said, "When you and I, master and disciple, first met, it was by a Pool like this. Later, I passed on something to you, also through a Pool like this."

"I will never forget my master's kindness."

She stood behind him, bowing her head as she answered.

"I've heard everything that happened to you from Lan'er."

Bai Qiuran turned around, patted his disciple on the shoulder, and asked, "What are your plans for the future?"

"This disciple... does not know."

Li replied somewhat bewilderedly, "According to the rules, I should lead the remaining members of my clan to find a place to continue multiplying, and then offer sacrifices as much as possible to seek the forgiveness of the Heavenly Gods."

So, do you want to follow the rules?

Bai Qiuran countered with a question.

"This disciple doesn't know. The Heavenly Gods came tonight, saying that our Human Race has committed a grave error and must be punished."

As he spoke, he clenched his fist.

"But seeing the way those Heavenly Gods, seeing them kill and humiliate our people, I couldn't suppress the anger in my heart. Until they tried to harm my wife, causing her death, I finally couldn't hold back anymore..."

He trembled and knelt down prostrate before Bai Qiuran.

"I'm sorry, Master. What you taught me was meant to help our Human Race protect ourselves from wild beasts, but I couldn't help but use it to kill a celestial Heavenly Gods."

As Bai Qiuran's disciple, Li knew Jiang Lan's identity as the Plague God, and he had also seen Bai Qiuran being surrounded by a group of Heavenly Gods when he went out.

Bai Qiuran's shadow blocked his view. He thought Bai Qiuran would punish or even kill him, but Bai Qiuran raised her hand and gently placed it on his head.

"Well done!"

He praised it.

Li looked up in surprise and asked, "But, Master, aren't you and Master's Wife also...?"

"I've already said it, I'm Human Race."

Bai Qiuran reached out and helped him up, smiling as she asked, "Don't you believe in your master either?"

"This disciple dares not."

He answered immediately.

"I know what you're thinking. Believe in yourself. Didn't you already use what I taught you to kill a Heavenly Gods with your own hands?"

Bai Qiuran sat down cross-legged on a rock.

"Back to our previous topic, what I taught you was indeed intended to Human Race protect itself. But you must understand, it's not just about protecting ourselves from wild beasts and harsh natural conditions; it's also about protecting you from the Heavenly Gods... from the hands of Heaven itself."

He recalled the First-Generation Heaven's Envy Elder who died in the depths of the Return Ruins Penglai Abyss, angrily scratching out the words "Heaven killed me" with his fingers.

"Remember this: from this moment on, we Human Race will not rely on heaven or gods, but only on our own strength to survive in this world!"

Bai Qiuran solemnly countered, "If the Heavenly Gods don't treat us as human beings and wantonly manipulate and slaughter us, then they are the enemies of our Human Race. When faced with enemies, we must annihilate them again and again, until they dare not lay a hand on us again!"

"Disciple understands."

Li took a deep breath.

"But compared to the Heavenly Gods, the disciples and clansmen are far too weak, as insignificant as ants."

"It's alright, I'll teach you!"

Bai Qiuran said earnestly, "From this moment on, I will accept you as my True Disciple. Before I leave, I will impart everything I know to you and your people without reservation."

"Disciple kowtows in gratitude to Master!"

He stood facing Bai Qiuran and bowed.

"No need for thanks. A teacher for a day is a father for life. If you don't mind, you can even use my surname. My surname is Bai, and you can call yourself Bai Li from now on."

Bai Qiuran thought for a while, took out a piece of sapphire from the storage bag, cut a piece off, then raised his hand to pinch the fire seal, summoned the immortal fire, and refined a jade pendant that was exactly the same as that of later generations, with the word "standing" engraved on it.

"Here, take this. It's a rule of our sect. From now on, you are my True Disciple."

Bai Qiuran handed the jade pendant engraved with the character "Li" to Li, feeling a somewhat unreal sense of connection between everything.

He said to Li, "The character on this is [Li], just like your name. It represents my expectations and encouragement for you. Li, in the future, you must lead the Human Race to stand up and become a race that stands tall and upright, not inferior to the Heavenly Gods!"