This World, This Environment—We Cannot Decide Them

Chen Xun remembered that little girl. Her clear, crisp "Thank you, big brother" still lingered and echoed in his mind.

Chen Xun's heart trembled as he slowly said, "Your mother's... they're vicious beyond measure. They wouldn't even spare children."

"Moo~ moo!" Black Bull was still nudging the bodies, trying to wake them.

"They weren't cultivators. They must have been some bandits."

Half-crouching, Chen Xun looked into the distance. The corpses here were all elderly people, women, and children. The murderers should still be chasing those fleeing civilians.

Chen Xun and Black Bull left the two water vats and the clothes where they were. The two Mountain-Splitting Axes slowly spun, slicing every snowflake in two.

Whoosh!

Whoosh!

Boom—

The thick snow beneath them shuddered. Fierce sonic booms rang through the air as they raced as though treading upon a sea of snow, great waves of snow surging behind their feet with towering momentum.

In the distance, several dozen mountain bandits laughed wildly. Blood continuously dripped from the large blades in their hands. Panning City had now fallen into chaos as well, and great numbers of martial men had been conscripted. Who was left to control them?

"Big Brother, more and more refugees are heading for Panning City."

One bandit grinned viciously. "They've brought all their possessions with them. One haul, and it's all prime meat."

"These are the good days."

Big Brother held his blade and laughed madly. "Our time has finally come! Boys, kill!"

"Yes, Big Brother!"

"Yes, Big Brother!"

The mountain bandits raised their blades and shouted in response. Behind them lay a field of corpses. Murdering and robbing, they were having the time of their lives. In the past, government soldiers would have hunted them down, but now they had all gone to the battlefield. Life was comfortable.

Screams rose one after another. Several more civilians helplessly fell and died. Deep unwillingness filled their eyes; even in death, they could not close them. They had clearly been so close...

The mountain bandits laughed even louder as they searched through the victims' clothes for gold, silver, and jewelry. Refugees loved carrying such things.

Suddenly, some sort of commotion came from behind them. Every bandit turned around, narrowing their eyes. Why was the snow on the ground spraying so high?

"What the hell is that?!"

Big Brother spat, clad in animal hides as he stood at the front with his blade in hand. The snow was too heavy to see clearly.

"Huh? Something's running over here?"

"Damn, Big Brother, something feels off..."

"Is that a person? Or a black ox?"

"Not good, run!!!"

Big Brother's pupils violently contracted, and he suddenly roared. But by the time they saw the figures clearly, it was already too late.

Chen Xun stamped his foot and accelerated further. A piercing sound tore through the air as he arrived in an instant!

Big Brother's mind had already gone blank. In less than the blink of an eye, that man had appeared above him. Those eyes... they were the coldest eyes he had ever seen in his life...

Splat! Big Brother's head shot into the sky, his eyes seemingly still unable to react. Blood gushed from his body, spraying without end as he toppled forward.

Black Bull charged directly into the crowd of mountain bandits, letting out an enraged bellow. Agony twisted their faces as though they had been struck by a mountain, smashed to death alive by Black Bull.

Desperate screams rang out one after another. Even at the moment of death, they did not know who had killed them.

Smoke filled the skies. The corpses of several dozen mountain bandits were burned to ashes by the Fireball Technique, while Chen Xun and Black Bull gradually vanished into the vast falling snow.

Inside the cave, Chen Xun and Black Bull had already brought back the water vats and clothes. They were somewhat silent. They had never expected their good intentions to bring about such a disaster.

Chen Xun and Black Bull did not handle the corpses. They had already been buried beneath thick snow, and many people had vanished without a trace.

If Chen Xun had not pointed them in that direction, perhaps they would not have encountered those vicious mountain bandits.

"Old Bull, there are some things we simply cannot decide."

Chen Xun sighed softly and patted Black Bull. "This world, this environment—we cannot decide them, nor do we have the ability to change them."

"Moo~" Black Bull rested its head against Chen Xun's chest again.

"The only thing we can decide is ourselves. We need only seek a clear conscience."

Chen Xun looked at Black Bull and smiled faintly. "Things like this happen everywhere, at every moment. Take it a little easier."

"Moo~" Black Bull nodded. It simply felt that those people had been far too hateful—robbing others and then murdering them.

"Old Bull, let's start cultivating. We haven't finished the Heavy Feather Pills yet."

Chen Xun's expression stirred, sweeping away his earlier unhappiness. "Look forward. We still have many things to do."

"Moo moo!" Black Bull's eyes widened slightly, and it too regained its spirits.

They consumed pills remarkably slowly and steadily. Back then, they had swallowed several in succession, but now they ate one pill and meditated for several days, gradually refining its medicinal power and becoming familiar with their increasing spiritual power.

Time gradually passed as they ate away at their supplies. Another year went by, and it seemed that it had not snowed again this year.

They had now broken through to the Seventh Layer of Qi Refinement. The Heavy Feather Pills had been completely used up, but they had stored seven hundred-year Spirit Medicines, preparing to strike it rich.

Chen Xun had also finally raised the Essence of All Things to 20. They planned to start adding points to their spiritual power next year to see whether the spiritual power within their bodies would increase.

More and more people fleeing from the other side of the Ningyun Mountain Range passed through. Some starved to death on the road and were eaten by vultures, some were killed by wild beasts, and some were robbed by mountain bandits...

Others passed outside their cave. The world outside seemed to be growing increasingly unstable.

Seeing many civilians freezing and starving, Chen Xun and Black Bull would secretly give them some smoked dried meat. But they never had much contact with them again. Who could ever clearly explain the Karma of this world?

In such times, Rogue Cultivators yearned for strength even more fiercely. They squeezed through every possible opening, desperate to enter the Ten Great Immortal Sects instead of muddling through their days in the Mortal Realm.

Compared to the misery outside, the Immortal Ascension Assembly was in full swing, even more lively than in previous years. Their hearts were higher than the heavens, and they longed for the broader world of cultivation.

Inside the cave, one man and one ox lived without contention, each doing their own things. The disturbances of the outside world had nothing to do with them.

"Old Bull, I'm going to the Immortal Ascension Assembly. Wait for me here."

This time, Chen Xun did not plan to wear a hood, nor did he plan to bring Black Bull. It would be safer that way.

"Moo moo!" Black Bull clamped onto Chen Xun with its mouth, refusing to let go. They had never been apart.

"I'll be back in one day. If I'm not back, come find me."

"Moo?"

"Really. When have I ever lied to you? If things go quickly, I'll be back in half a day."

Chen Xun smiled. They no longer had Spirit Medicine or an Alchemy Furnace, so he had to make the trip.

"Moo~"

Black Bull nodded, ran over to move aside the huge stone blocking the cave, and then waited there for Chen Xun.

Chen Xun shot out in a single stride. This time, he carried four medicine boxes containing four hundred-year spirit herbs, and he no longer used the Essence of All Things to conceal his cultivation.

After hesitating for a moment, Black Bull chased after him and saw Chen Xun off for a long distance. Only when they were about to enter the depths of the mountain range did it turn back, continuously mooing.

Chen Xun looked back with every few steps. Only after Black Bull vanished from sight did he quicken his pace.

"There are quite a few more people again."

Chen Xun encountered many Rogue Cultivators along the way. Upon seeing his Seventh Layer of Qi Refinement cultivation, they all stepped aside for their senior, respect in their eyes.

In a world where strength was revered above all, those who had attained more always came first. Chen Xun remained extremely low-key and ignored no one.

After entering Nine-Star Valley, he moved through the various places with practiced ease. He even heard about the booklet-selling business. Chen Xun merely smiled faintly, an inscrutable glint flashing through his eyes.

There were also quite a few more Rogue Cultivators selling goods in the valley, all bartering items in order to increase their chances of passing the trials.

He arrived at a pavilion belonging to a small sect, adjusted his emotions, and entered the pavilion step by step with a mournful expression on his face.