Who Has Not Received Kindness

Heavenly Pillar Mountain rose sheer and straight. The path up was dangerous and slick; by dusk, when the road could no longer be seen clearly, it became even more perilous.

From time to time, someone slipped, letting out startled cries.

There were only people coming down the mountain, none going up.

"Sir, you're still going up at this hour?"

"Yes."

"This path is steep and narrow, and one stretch is wet besides. You must be exceedingly careful. If you lose your footing, then it'll be time to test your magical arts and cultivation, hahaha..."

Kind-hearted people kept warning Song You.

Yet no one told him that overnight stays were forbidden on the summit.

It was true that no one could stay overnight in the temples atop the mountain. It was not that the Taoist masters there were cold and unkind, but simply that the mountain was this small. There were only two temple halls in all, one on each side, and the Taoist masters themselves had to squeeze into the little rooms beside them. There was no space left for visitors to stay.

Ordinary travelers could not stay overnight, but that did not mean Taoists could not. Perhaps this Taoist was going up to visit a friend; otherwise, why insist on climbing the mountain after dusk?

People only warned him that the path was dangerous and hard to travel.

Whenever this happened, Three Flower Cat would sit properly at the roadside, raise her head, and stare at them as if expressing her gratitude with her gaze. Yet no one knew what she was really thinking.

They made their way up the mountain, each step difficult.

It seemed even harder to climb than last time.

On the one hand, many stretches had been worn smooth—or simply trampled apart—by bold travelers going