Fate

Wen Xu thanked him. After a brief spell of dizziness, he opened his eyes again to a landscape both familiar and strange.

Six years ago, he had been pursued all the way to a cliff and fallen over its edge. He had thought there was no chance of survival, only to find another village beyond the dark willows and bright flowers. He had been like a frog at the bottom of a well, believing the sky was no bigger than the square above his head. Only after reaching the Cultivation Realm had he learned how vast heaven and earth were, and how boundless human power could be—far beyond anything a mortal could imagine.

Wen Xu simply removed the silk band from his eyes. With nothing between him and the world, the scenery unfolded before him.

After Chunchou and the other candidates left, Wen Xu had been the only person in this realm. Back then, he had been like a bird startled by the mere twang of a bowstring, his heart full of fear that he dared not show. Or rather, he had hit rock bottom, and managing to cling to Chunchou had taken every bit of cunning he possessed.

Wen Xu walked up a small hillside. The candidates had stripped it of Pill-Fragrance Herb back then. He had lain here awaiting the judgment of fate. Had he felt lost? He could hardly remember.

Perhaps he had not. At the time, he had already prepared himself to lose everything. Now... he seemed to have everything, yet he had begun to fear losing it.

People always wanted to keep beautiful things for themselves. Even he was no exception.

Following the path he had taken before, Wen Xu walked from the hillside toward the woods. The spirit plants and fruit trees that had