"???"

Ruan Lan was trembling with anger.

It turns out Xu Lai was using her as a guinea pig to test the wine.

Is this something a person would do?

It's simply too much!

She slammed the table, filled with righteous indignation, and said, "Damned brother-in-law, one day I'll make you realize I'm not someone to mess with!"

"Why don't you stop drooling first."

Xu Lai didn't even turn his head as he waved his hand.

"Bang!"

Ruan Lan closed the door in a mix of shame and anger.

Xu Lai basked in the afternoon sun, contemplating the fact that he acted irresponsibly by letting Baize carry all the burdens; it indeed seemed somewhat inhumane.

Otherwise, Baize wouldn't have sent two jars of wine to show his dissatisfaction.

Walking slowly.

He arrived at the tombstone of his master and two senior brothers.

Xu Lai also saw the tombs of his senior sister and himself, naturally sitting cross-legged on the ground.

He noticed a lot of jars in front of the tombstones, covered in dust.

Xu Lai reached out to tidy up all the empty jars beside the grave.

Except one jar wasn't empty, it still contained half a jar of wine.

About to throw it away.

He heard Senior Sister Yu Guiwan's voice not far away: "So the wine was here, I've been looking for it for days."

"Hmm?"

Xu Lai was taken aback: "Why are you looking for this wine, Senior Sister?"

"Not for anything, just suddenly thought of it."

Yu Guiwan gently said, "This Millennium Green cost a Five-colored Immortal Spirit Stone."

"What!"

Xu Lai's voice rose.

"I misspoke."

Yu Guiwan corrected: "There were three jars in total, the other two were cheap."

"This Millennium Green isn't cheap either!"

Xu Lai's mouth twitched.

Even as the Lord of the Heavenly Court, an Emperor Realm powerhouse, he had never squandered a Five-colored Immortal Spirit Stone on a single jar of Millennium Green.

Not to mention the Five-colored Immortal Spirit Stone.

Even a single Immortal-grade Spirit Stone could buy an entire city, trading a Low-grade Spirit Stone for two jars of Millennium Green would fill a hundred cities.

"The junior sister didn't know at that time."

Yu Guiwan, gathering her skirt, sat beside Xu Lai, resting her chin in her hand: "The shopkeeper dared not accept Immortal-grade Spirit Stones; she thought she had entered a black shop."

"According to junior sister, this Millennium Green was treasured by the shopkeeper Liu from the restaurant, so its taste must be fine."

Speaking of past amusing events.

Though expected to smile, the senior sister's eyes were inexplicably melancholic.

"..."

Xu Lai's expression gradually stiffened, realizing even a seemingly worthless Millennium Green held weight.

He carefully kept it.

"What are you doing?"

Yu Guiwan couldn't help but pout: "Dare you take the wine meant for memorial."

"I crawled out of the coffin myself, and the wine was originally my wife's offering for me."

Xu Lai hugged it like a treasure.

From this act, Xu Lai could feel the heavy emotions Ruan Tang had when she bought the wine.

"..."

The young junior brother's words made sense.

Yu Guiwan softly said, "Had I been more alert then, I might have stopped her."

"Then you would have lost your junior brother." Xu Lai remarked.

Yu Guiwan's expression was conflicted.

Indeed, without Ruan Tang ascending the Immortal Path, young junior brother couldn't have been resurrected, yet junior sister is also lost, unknown in life and death.

This choice, inevitably losing a loved one, pained Yu Guiwan deeply.

"Don't worry, Senior Sister."

Xu Lai looked up at the sky, speaking each word firmly: "I will find Ruan Tang and bring her home."

In his heart.

Xu Lai silently added four words—regardless of life or death.

"Home..."

Yu Guiwan tilted her head slightly.

Xu Lai teased, "Does Senior Sister have a heart's desire Dao companion? Junior Brother will bring them back for you."

The senior sister gave Xu Lai a strong pat on the shoulder, rolling her eyes: "I don't want to share my inner thoughts with you."

"So, is there?"

"No!"

"Hahaha."

Xu Lai laughed three times, hurriedly fleeing under Senior Sister's disapproving gaze.

Time quietly passed.

Dusk approached.

Xu Lai busied himself in the kitchen preparing dinner.

Everyone living here in the back mountain almost entirely lived without eating, absorbing Spiritual Energy sufficed.

Yet whenever enough time allowed, Xu Lai still cooked three meals a day.

The journey of cultivation is long and arduous.

Xu Lai once lost too much in pursuit of advancing his Boundary, not wishing his daughter and son to repeat the same mistakes.

Especially regarding delicious food, it mustn't be missed when it can be enjoyed.

During dinner.

Xu Lai watched Ruan Lan devour her meal heartily, momentarily dazed, as though the woman before him was Ruan Tang.

Ruan Lan, gnawing on a pig's trotter, hesitated in her movement.

Being stared at by Xu Lai like this wasn't the first or second time, she couldn't help but say: "Wake up, I'm your sister-in-law."

"Ahem."

Xu Lai coughed, apologizing: "Sorry."

"It's okay, I understand."

Ruan Lan, feeling empathetic, wanted to pat Xu Lai's shoulder, taking the opportunity to wipe off grease from her hands.

Unexpectedly, Xu Lai stood up suddenly, causing her to stumble and nearly fall.

"I'm going out for a stroll."

He threw out these words, leaving the back hill, and Ruan Lan immediately directed her mischievous gaze towards her two nephews.

"Aunt, save us!"

"Nobody run!"

They instantly burst into chaos.

...

Xu Lai didn't walk far, quietly sitting on a mountain peak near the sect gate, the Qingfeng Sword following from afar.

As the sky darkened, the not-so-bright stars fell; the evening wind swept through.

Xu Lai took out that half jar of Millennium Green, wanting to unseal it to drink but couldn't bring himself to.

Just half a jar of wine.

What if it's finished?

So he silently stored it away.

"Won't you taste it?" Qingfeng Sword asked.

"Let me be alone."

"You're already alone; I'm not human."

Qingfeng Sword paused and said: "Senior Sister wanted me to accompany you, fearing you might act recklessly; Baize Divine General asked me many times too."

Xu Lai nodded, no longer attempting to drive away Qingfeng Sword.

"Oddly amusing, so many cultivators covet Immortal Fruits to attain eternal life, yet died on Immortal Path, while the Immortal Fruit fell into Ruan Tang's hands, who never sought longevity."

Qingfeng Sword spoke.

Xu Lai sighed: "Perhaps that's why she could reach the end of the Immortal Path."

Qingfeng Sword had no more words, typically speaking very little, barely saying a few sentences over tens of thousands of years.

Xu Lai wasn't surprised.

The mountain peak fell into silence, with only the wind howling.

Suddenly.

Xu Lai gripped Qingfeng Sword, abruptly slashing behind.

"Bang!"

A muffled sound.

A broad yellow river was sliced in half, while azure blue sand slowly flowed.

Netherworld.

Yunmeng Blue Sand.

Huang Zhongtian had arrived.

After waiting for half a year in the Heavenly Court's back hill, the awaited person appeared without joy, only calmness.

"Daoist Qingfeng, meeting again."

Huang Zhongtian sheepishly smiled, transmitting through Divine Sense across ten thousand distances.

He dared not approach too close, fearing to be killed in a fit of rage, knowing Xu Lai had reached Emperor Realm's Great Perfection.

Xu Lai looked at Huang Zhongtian, softly asking: "You led my wife to ascend the Immortal Path."

"Yes..."

Huang Zhongtian hesitated.

"Shush!"

Xu Lai beckoned, a sword pierced the mountain top, it was the Demon Sword Wuzheng.

Appearing suddenly.

Huang Zhongtian's somewhat murky eyes exploded with divine light.