Chu Suiyan wasn't able to come and welcome Shi Fu back to the mountain. After breakfast, he fell into a deep sleep once again.

Chu Liuxue helped him to bed, tucked him in, and skillfully fetched water to wipe his sweat.

Tao Mian pushed open the door to the room and saw Chu Suiyan lying there as if lifeless. He handed the medicine packet to Chu Liuxue, instructing her to boil water and prepare the medicine, while he went forward to carefully check on Si Dui's condition.

It was more serious than when he had left. The young man was showing symptoms of night sweats.

When leaving the Xue residence, Xue Han had warned him that the medicine might not take effect quickly, but it was important to persist with it. At night, someone needed to watch over him in case he vomited, to prevent him from choking on his own vomit.

Xue Han suggested that Chu Liuxue and he take turns, but Tao Mian couldn't bear to trouble his disciple, so he took the responsibility upon himself.

As Xue Han had said, all medicine has some toxicity, and the side effects of this one tormented Chu Suiyan for most of the night, causing vomiting and dizziness.

He groaned in discomfort, and Tao Mian was anxious. But there was nothing more he could do except repeatedly wipe him down, help him rinse his mouth, and massage a few acupoints on his head and neck to ease his discomfort.

Midway through, Chu Suiyan woke up once. Tao Mian had his back to him, washing a towel in a copper basin.

The sound of the clear water was especially distinct in the moonlit night. Chu Suiyan stared blankly at his master's back, watching as he wrung out the towel, turned around, and looked at him with gentle, serene eyes. The cool, water-soaked cloth was placed on his forehead.

"Shi Fu..."

Chu Suiyan closed his eyes, feeling the coolness on his forehead, which somewhat alleviated the internal heat.

He spoke in a very low, indistinct voice, saying that he would practice his swordsmanship diligently.

Tao Mian, who had been worried about his disciple's illness, couldn't help but laugh when he heard this seemingly out-of-context statement, thinking that his disciple was speaking nonsense due to his illness.

"I haven't really forced you and your sister to practice swordsmanship, have I? Why are you even talking about it in your dreams..."

He took it as his disciple's sleep talk.

Chu Suiyan weakly shook his head, but Tao Mian didn't notice, busying himself with emptying the water from the copper basin.

Many things can't be judged in absolute terms of right or wrong; it's just that one wrong step leads to another.

By chance, there was no turning back.

With Tao Mian and Chu Liuxue's tireless care day and night, Chu Suiyan's symptoms finally eased.

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Noting that his disciple was sleeping less each day, Tao Mian didn't say it out loud, but he was relieved.

If the medicine hadn't worked, Tao Mian would have dragged Xue Han up to Peach Blossom Mountain.

After recovering, Chu Suiyan lay in bed for another half a month. Chu Liuxue wouldn't let him wander around to prevent catching a cold while his body was still weak and falling ill again.

The young man was bored and restless indoors, pestering his sister every day and sneaking out.

Tao Mian, as the master, not only didn't stop him but also abetted him.

Chu Liuxue caught the two of them picking fruits on the mountain more than once.

The result for both the instigator and accomplice was no dinner, leaving them to munch on sour wild fruits. With each bite, the master and disciple's faces scrunched up.

The siblings spent a few more peaceful years in the mountains, with the younger brother growing taller and more handsome.

The sister tied her long hair into a ponytail, cascading from the top of her head, the ends brushing her shoulder blades like wings.

The immortal, however, remained unchanged in appearance. Time passed gently over him like the wind.

Chu Suiyan learned all the cultivation techniques Tao Mian taught him and even created his own sword manual without a teacher.

He indeed had talent. Like the previous two disciples, as soon as he left the mountain, he would amaze the world.

Chu Suiyan, like a young beast, greedily absorbed and sought nourishment. He hoped Tao Mian would teach him the techniques that the senior brother and second senior sister had learned, but Tao Mian tapped his forehead and said not to be greedy.

"What Shi Fu teaches you is naturally the most suitable for you. Si Dui, with these two skills, you are already invincible."

The young man pouted in disappointment, his temperament never quite maturing, perhaps because he was always under the protection of the immortal.

"My 'Dream Prayer' isn't even proficient yet. I can't even confuse my sister."

The immortal just laughed.

"Disciple, the reason your 'Dream Prayer' isn't proficient isn't due to lack of talent, but because you don't understand the human heart."

"The human heart? I..."

He wanted to say more, but Chu Liuxue, who was peeling chestnuts nearby, raised her hand and stuffed a handful of sweet chestnut kernels into his mouth, silencing him.

"Mmm mmm—"

"Try it, see if it's cooked."

Chu Suiyan nodded with wide eyes.

Receiving a positive response, Chu Liuxue finally put one in her own mouth.

"Sis, you're using me as a poison tester again!"

"Don't talk nonsense, how could your sister be so malicious?"

Chu Liuxue tasted it herself before offering some to Tao Mian. Tao Mian, always sharing food and drink with his disciples, accepted them readily.

The freshly cooked chestnuts were still slightly hot to the touch.

The three of them sat together in the small courtyard, the autumn mountains clear and bright, the fragrance of osmanthus filling the air, with only the sound of their chatter and the cracking of chestnut shells breaking the silence.

As expected, the siblings quarreled again. Si Dui was the type to get more upset the more he talked, while San Tu got more fired up the more she thought about it, leading to endless bickering.

Tao Mian didn't intervene, squinting as he chewed on the sweet chestnuts, enjoying the distant autumn scenery.

Kids, it's normal to argue a bit.

In the end, it was always Si Dui who stormed off first.

Sure enough, unable to out-argue his sister, Chu Suiyan stood up and left the courtyard in a huff.

Once her brother was gone, Chu Liuxue became quiet.

Tao Mian gently waved his bamboo fan. As the weather cooled, he fanned slowly, and the two of them chatted idly.

"San Tu," Tao Mian suddenly called the young girl, "have you ever thought about returning to the Demonic Realm?"

Chu Liuxue didn't know why Tao Mian asked this, and she looked at him quietly.

"People from the Demonic Realm have been looking for you, haven't they?"

Tao Mian was right. Over the past few years, people from Sky's End Valley had come several times, each time with the same purpose: to ask the young Valley Master to return to the Demonic Realm and restore Sky's End Valley.

Chu Liuxue's answer was always the same; she said she was not capable enough and asked them to leave and not to come again.

She wasn't avoiding it; on the contrary, she was very aware of her situation.

Sky's End Valley hadn't completely fallen; it had merely split into two factions. The faction currently in power wasn't her father's old retainers, and the latter's purpose in seeking her was quite clear.

The changes in Sky's End Valley had been going on for over a decade. She had never participated in any of their secret meetings, didn't understand the operations behind them, and was even less familiar with the power struggles.

She was just a pawn.

When Tao Mian asked, Chu Liuxue answered candidly.

Except for one secret, she hid nothing from Tao Mian.

She said that people from Sky's End Valley had indeed come looking for her, but she was unwilling to leave the mountain.

She said that with her abilities, she couldn't be of much help, so it was better to stay on the mountain and avoid causing trouble.

Tao Mian nodded, not intending to continue the topic, seeing that Chu Liuxue didn't want to delve deeper.

As the northern geese flew south, Chu Liuxue gathered the peeled chestnut shells into a small pile, which echoed the distant mountain range.

She placed the most intact half-shell on top as decoration.

She said, "Banknote, if there's a chance, I'll take you to see my hometown."

It was supposed to be an immediate departure, with Tao Mian taking the two children, their bags packed, but a letter from Xue Han stopped them in their tracks.

Xue Han wrote, "Tao Mian, you better get off that broken mountain of yours, the Emperor's handpicked Crown Prince is planning a coup."