The Uncle Bai Xu Qi'an spoke of was, naturally, Bai Fengxian, Lin Changheng's friend and a fellow member of the Bing-Gui Immortal Seedlings.
No overwhelming grief swept over Lin Changheng. He merely felt a little hollow inside, a sense of something lost.
At his age, forty-eight, reaching fifty-the age of knowing heaven's decree-was only a blink away.
He had already experienced life's great rises and falls. His emotions no longer ran wild over things as they had in his youth, and he knew what lay beyond human control.
Partings and deaths were both inevitable.
And without becoming an immortal, longevity would forever remain beyond reach!
He simply had not expected it to come so soon.
"I understand."
With that quiet reply, Lin Changheng left on his own.
"Uncle..." Xu Qi'an opened his mouth instinctively, wanting to offer some comfort, but ultimately said nothing. He watched that retreating figure, seemingly untroubled yet truly desolate, walk away.
Lin Changheng briefly packed his belongings, then glanced at the [nine-leaf violet cinnabar fungus]. It had already grown two inches tall and brimmed with vitality. Its growth was certainly heartening.
Knowing he could not take it along on this journey, he could only replenish both formations with enough spirit stones to keep them running before leaving.
He was going back to the lineage to see Old Bai off on his final journey.
The three of them had once made a pact: whichever of them reached the end of his immortal path, those still living would find him a good place to be buried.
He would, of course, honor his promise.
After giving Shopkeeper Xu a few quiet instructions, Lin Changheng collected an Azure Flood Dragon Horse boarded by the Xu Family at the relay station outside the Market Ward. He changed his appearance in a