One hundred years later, behind Big Bamboo Peak, where the disciples once practiced body refinement upon entering the sect. Tian Buyi walked slowly through the woods with his hands clasped behind his back.
Everything here was unchanged. In the past hundred years, Big Bamboo Peak had not taken in another disciple. The black bamboo had grown more plentiful and sturdier.
Thanks to the prescriptions Luo Yunji had left behind, Tian Buyi still looked just as he had before. But no matter how much he ate, he could no longer regain his old potbelly.
His sturdy frame came to a halt beside the lake, by a huge boulder. This was where Luo Yunji used to slack off whenever he practiced chopping bamboo.
Tian Buyi looked up at the top of the boulder, as if that little rascal were still lying there, sleeping so soundly that he lost all sense of time.
Or perhaps that little rascal was crouched by the lake, urging his senior brother to hurry up and make him something tasty.
A bonfire blazed, its red flames dancing. A wild rabbit from the woods had been skinned and gutted, and was roasting golden brown above it. Golden fat dripped steadily into the flames, filling the air with its rich aroma.
Tian Buyi watched quietly. This was something he did every day, without fail.
That year, seven disciples had given up their lives for the world, stepping into that Void Rift and never sending word again.
He had traveled all across the Divine Land. He had ventured into the Wildlands, where the sands blew, and even braved the Hundred Thousand Mountains.
But all he had found was disappointment!
He had searched everywhere and found nothing!
Some had urged him to give up and face reality. But he had held on.