Rotten Wood and Beasts, Cultivating One's Nature and Refining One's Self

Old Ox spread his hands and gently pulled the city gate open just enough to leave a gap wide enough for someone to slip through sideways.

"Let's go, my Captain Zhang."

Brother Ox teased him, and Zhang San turned back to take one long, deep look at Wenning County behind him.

Desolate streets, roof tiles sprouting yellow withered grass, specks of green moss on the stone slabs before the doors.

A breeze swept past. The iron bell hanging at the corner of a wall merely stirred without making a sound.

Silent and aged, like an old man on the verge of death.

Zhang San lowered his head and passed through the gap in the gate, heading toward the bustling sounds of people.

At that moment, within an exquisitely small residence in Wenning County, Xue Baizhi cradled a white porcelain teacup in her hands and slowly sipped the tea. Then she picked up a candied green plum from the little celadon dish beside her and placed it into her mouth.

The warm fragrance of tea mingled with the sweet, tangy freshness, quietly blossoming between the lips and teeth of this Reverted Elixir expert.

The flavor was beyond compare.

She smiled faintly. This was indeed a rare taste of worldly life not often found atop Jade Sun Mountain.

Xue Baizhi had always possessed an elegant, otherworldly beauty. Her almond eyes shimmered like water, crystal-clear and translucent. Her ethereal bearing and delicate charm melded together, and the allure blooming across her peach-blossom cheeks as she sampled the snacks was equally a beauty beyond compare.

Registrar Tian, seated nearby, watched until it felt as though a little cat had stretched out its milky-white paws and clawed at his heart and liver. He wished he could immediately take this Daoist nun right there and punish