Watching the woodcutter disappear at the base of the mountain, Fang Chang smiled and paused before chopping more bamboo.

In the bamboo forest, there is a delicacy known as bamboo shoots.

These are the young shoots of bamboo, available year-round, though most delicious in spring and winter. Even though it wasn't the ideal season, they were still a treat and easy to find.

Fang Chang had already spotted them earlier but had waited until the woodcutter left to gather them.

Due to his crude tools, picking them was a bit challenging. Fortunately, he just needed to find the tips of the shoots emerging from the ground. Carefully picking them to avoid damaging the underground rhizomes and scales, Fang Chang filled half his basket before stopping.

Later, he planned to roast them over the bonfire with their skins on. It should be delicious.

While searching for bamboo shoots, Fang Chang also noticed traces of another delicacy—a rodent called the bamboo rat.

Looking around carefully, he found quite a few burrow entrances on the sunny hillside where the bamboo forest stood, fitting the bamboo rat's habitat. This hillside would serve as a good food source in the future.

Though bamboo rats are quite agile, Fang Chang found them easy prey. His skills had improved significantly through practice, so he no longer needed traps for hunting. However, without cooking utensils beyond the bonfire, he decided to leave these tasty ingredients for another time.

He picked up the stone axe and resumed chopping bamboo.

The bamboo spirit in the distance continued to tremble but dared not move. It knew it was slow, and moving might lead to being caught and chopped down.

After all, its entire being was valuable material, whether to ordinary people or the practitioner in the distance.

However, Fang Chang did notice this unique bamboo.

In a forest of straight bamboos, one thick bamboo twisted itself into a crooked shape and shook continuously, making it hard to miss.

After felling the last large bamboo, Fang Chang approached with the stone axe in hand.

The bamboo spirit trembled even more.

It knew it had been discovered and feared its end was near. It had accepted its fate, but fear lingered.

I am so unfortunate... I have grown silently in this deserted mountain for many years, and after gaining spiritual awareness, I've endured endless loneliness without any peers to communicate with...

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This short life is about to end... Soon, I may become various bamboo products like bowls and chopsticks or mats and stools...

I truly envy humans...

The bamboo spirit couldn't help but think of the humans it had glimpsed. As spirits of heaven and earth, they were born with wisdom, bodies that moved freely, and many companions they could communicate with, something the bamboo spirit envied.

Most importantly, they lived much more safely.

If there's a next life, I must reincarnate as a human...

Fang Chang approached the twisted bamboo, walking around it twice, amazed. The white-haired monkey also ran over, jumping, spinning, and somersaulting on nearby bamboo poles.

Lightly tapping the bamboo pole with the axe handle, Fang Chang said to the monkey beside him:

"It's been a long time, hasn't it?"

The monkey jumped on a nearby bamboo pole, looked around, and squeaked in agreement.

The bamboo trembled more violently.

"Let's head back to the cliff; the roof hasn't been built yet," Fang Chang said with a smile to the monkey.

Then, while the bamboo spirit trembled, he gathered forty large bamboos. Without trimming the branches and leaves, he bundled them in sets of twenty, returned the stone axe to his basket, and took a deep breath:

"Ho!"

Using inhuman strength, Fang Chang hefted the two large bamboo bundles onto his shoulders, nodded to the monkey, and began the journey home.

Along the way, he moved as if walking on flat ground.

The bamboo spirit only dared to straighten up after the man and monkey walked away.

What kind of person is this, who clearly saw me but didn't cut me down like in the legends? Does he think I'm too thin and plans to fatten me up before cutting? Will they return, and can I remain here...

Though born hollow, the bamboo spirit's thoughts were intense.

Once it straightened, it stood taller than the other bamboos in the forest, like a mast in the sea.

...

When Fang Chang returned to his hut with two large bamboo bundles on his shoulders, the sun was already past its zenith.

He set the bundled bamboos aside in the open space, walked to the stream, and washed the bamboo shoots one by one in the clear water before returning them to the basket.

The bonfire had gone out. Fang Chang retrieved hay and fire-making tools from under the bed, used the fire-making bow to reignite the flames, and placed the washed bamboo shoots, unpeeled, onto the fire to roast.

After a moment's thought, he added some fruit to the fire as well.

All cooked food for lunch today.

Seated on a stone bench beside a large stone table, Fang Chang waited until the fire was ready, then took out the roasted bamboo shoots, peeled them, sprinkled a little coarse salt, and took a light bite.

Roasting enhanced the bamboo shoots' sweetness, and the hint of salt made them delicious.

The roasted fruit became sweeter with a special flavor, some soft and sticky like roasted sweet potatoes.

Fang Chang tossed a roasted bamboo shoot to the monkey peeking from a distant tree:

"Brother Monkey, enjoy the roasted bamboo shoot, but be careful not to burn yourself."

The monkey caught it mid-air, grinned, flipped it a few times, peeled it like Fang Chang, and ate it quickly and delightfully.

Seeing the monkey's eyes dart around the food on his table after finishing, Fang Chang smiled and tossed over another roasted fruit. The monkey caught it, nodded to Fang Chang, and shifted to a higher branch to savor it.

Taking advantage of the sunshine, Fang Chang took "The Way of Practice" from the shack and read a few more chapters.

The path of practice is like water dripping on stone, a process that accumulates over time. According to this guide, one must follow nature's principles, polish body and mind, and align spirit with body and body with heaven and earth to have hope on this path.

After enjoying some leisure, Fang Chang closed the book, got up, and walked towards the bamboo bundle he had cut that morning.

His spiritual sense predicted rain in two days.

Adding a roof to the new house would provide shelter from the rain.

Untying the bamboo bundles, Fang Chang selected a few, removed branches and leaves, and split them in two. He searched the stream for long, sharp stones to use as chisels, cutting the bamboo at suitable points and carving recesses with the stones and chisel.

He tied the six half-split bamboos into three A-frame shapes, added a small crossbeam near each intersection, and secured them into triangles. The sides of the A-frames were neatly aligned at the same height.

Fang Chang planned to assemble the roof on the ground, then install it onto the house frame.

With boundless energy, he could afford to be this willful.

Next, he used bamboo branches and leaves, along with green thatch found nearby, weaving them onto the new roof in the direction left by rain.

The roof's ridge was covered with thick, long thatch, and the ends sloped downward to prevent leaks.

Installation was the easiest part. Compared to the large stone table, the square, long new roof felt as light as a feather.

He easily added the roof to the house frame, securing it with thin rattan to ensure stability in wind and rain.

When it rains, it's likely to be windy, so he prepared for the possibility of "the hut being blown apart by mountain winds."