Sitting cross-legged with his eyes closed, Mu Bai immediately began copying and engraving the Origin Water Chiru within his Divine Palace. Spirit Monkey and Gray Bear kept close watch, allowing no outsiders near.
Two days later, Mu Bai awoke. By now, all his spirit positions were filled. On the surface, he appeared to have four Soul Marks, just like anyone else, but a single-petaled Pear Blossom Mark lay hidden on his forehead. His spirit positions were truly all filled, and he had stepped onto the ancient path of cultivation from before the Immortal-Origin War.
"Brother Mu, did you break through?"
Spirit Monkey and Gray Bear both sensed the tremendous surge of Soul Power from Mu Bai in that instant. Although he had only four Soul Marks, the fluctuations of Soul Power they emitted were already enough to stir half-demons.
"An Ancient Chi Ru was sealed inside the Bifang statue. I copied and engraved its remnant soul into a Soul Mark."
Mu Bai truthfully recounted the story of Chiru and Origin Water, leaving Spirit Monkey and Gray Bear deeply moved.
"Dummy, should we not have left Azure Ox behind?"
"Yes, we should stay together forever too!"
Hearing the story of Chiru and Origin Water, Spirit Monkey and Gray Bear both thought of Azure Ox. Once upon a time, they too had been as inseparable as Meng and Jiao, with no distance between them.
"What matters is that your hearts stay together. If your hearts diverge, even when you embrace without a gap between you, betrayal and broken trust can still arise between brothers!"
Since they had already left, Mu Bai hoped this separation could serve as a test of the bond between the three brothers of Everlasting Spring Valley. Only after weathering the test could it become purer and truer.
Fear