Day after day, the black mass of cultivators outside Yi Shui Ju visibly dwindled.
From several thousand at its peak, it had fallen to only a few hundred now, and the number was still shrinking.
In a more distant stretch of water, a painted pleasure boat happened to pass by. Seeing people kneeling upon the lake's surface, its passengers began discussing it among themselves.
"There are still people here? Are there really this many people in the world who insist on beating their heads against a wall?"
"They may insist, but Heavenly Monarch Yuanxu doesn't. What can they do?"
"Heh heh, everyone stupid enough to wait outside Yi Shui Ju thinks he's still here?"
"If he isn't here, where is he?"
"Hasn't it been said everywhere? They say he went north."
"North? Isn't the north ravaged by the demonic calamity?"
Just then, someone nearby shouted, "Only those who press forward despite knowing the hardship are true heroes!"
His tone was high and his words slurred. He was clearly somewhat drunk.
Ordinarily, that would have been nothing. Few people bothered arguing with a drunkard. But this was a large vessel, and its owner had invited three or four groups of people, a mixed bag from every walk of life. Something the "drunkard" had noisily said reached someone on this side and irritated him. He sneered.
"So what if he went north? What difference can one man make? Besides, did he really go north? Where in the north?"
His companion thought he was speaking to him and answered honestly, "No one said. How could people like us possibly know how a figure like him conducts himself?"
Another person cut in, "Didn't the Xiyu Alliance leak even a hint?"
At this point, all the groups' conversations converged. The drunkard from earlier cried out,