Cough, cough, cough...

Howlingsky coughed again.

How is there still more?!

Cao Yi started patting Howlingsky on the neck and back.

Xiang Yu glanced at the sky and said, "It's getting late; I'll take my leave."

"Be careful on the way," Cao Yi said, busy and unable to see Xiang Yu off.

"Daoist Priest, I'm leaving too," Yi Xiaochuan greeted and left, harboring resentment towards Cao Yi, the jade destroyer.

"Be careful," Cao Yi replied without looking back.

Suddenly, Howlingsky coughed up a piece of jade.

"Now it's gone, right?" Cao Yi stood up.

"Ding! The host has completed a hidden mission by repeatedly revealing the divine in front of the character Yi Xiaochuan."

"Reward: Unlock partial functions of the Ghost Flower."

Ghost Flower?

It was something Cao Yi had almost forgotten after obtaining it.

He was very curious about the system's unlocked functions. Moving to a spot without broken jade, he opened the purple-gold red gourd.

"Come out."

With a flash of light, Yelü Zhigu and the Ghost Flower stone plate appeared simultaneously.

"What do you need Yelü Zhigu for?"

Just when Cao Yi thought the purple-gold red gourd was malfunctioning, something strange happened—a red light, about the size of a fist, shot from the Ghost Flower stone plate and hit Yelü Zhigu.

With a bang, many shadows appeared around them: a little girl riding a horse galloping on the grasslands, her expression joyful. In an instant, she grew up into a spirited young woman, bending her bow and shooting arrows.

At night, by the bonfire, she danced and sang, drawing cheers from the crowd.

Suddenly, a meteor fell from the sky, covering everything in red light.

In an instant, many people were injured or killed, but the young woman remained unharmed.

Soon, the girl became the clan's priestess.

One night, the Ghost Flower bloomed, dazzlingly beautiful, but the girl collapsed on the ground, losing her life.

The light show ended.

"This thing is a bit sinister," Cao Yi felt uneasy and was about to put the Ghost Flower stone plate back into the purple-gold red gourd when another red light shone out.

Cao Yi quickly blocked it with the gourd; he didn't want to end up like Yelü Zhigu.

"Ding! The red light from the Ghost Flower stone plate is an unlocked function that shows a person's past and future, and it is not dangerous."

Yelü Zhigu's cause of death: "A mortal body cannot endure the strange items from the land of reincarnation."

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Cao Yi, hearing this, moved the gourd aside.

The Ghost Flower stone plate emitted red light, illuminating him, revealing a child's shadow.

Cao Yi instantly recognized it as himself.

Then, it suddenly vanished. The red light remained.

"What's going on?" Cao Yi asked in surprise.

The system fell silent again.

"Is it because I'm the destined protagonist?" Cao Yi speculated.

The system remained silent.

"This thing isn't useful to my modern self; I don't read fortunes for people," Cao Yi shook his head, picking up the purple-gold red gourd to store the Ghost Flower stone plate.

Seeing that it was getting dark outside, Cao Yi went to the kitchen to prepare dinner. After eating, he spent over ten minutes on evening practice.

Since he had refined during the day, Cao Yi decided not to practice further and get a good night's sleep.

The next morning, just after finishing his morning practice, he heard voices outside.

"Uncle, it's here."

Xiang Yu's deep voice rang out.

Uncle!

Cao Yi raised his eyebrows; Xiang Liang had finally arrived.

Xiang Liang, one of the famous uprising leaders at the end of the Qin dynasty, was a descendant of the Chu nobility, the son of Xiang Yan, and Xiang Yu's uncle.

"Sir, we are here again," Xiang Yu's voice came.

Cao Yi stood up and walked out of the shrine, coming face to face with:

The tall, strong, and fierce Xiang Yu; the relaxed Yi Xiaochuan, as if on a tour; and the middle-aged man with three strands of beard, dressed in gray cloth—none other than Xiang Liang.

"Xiang Liang of Xiang County, greetings, Sir."

Xiang Liang was momentarily stunned by Cao Yi's youthful appearance but still returned the bow.

Cao Yi returned the gesture.

"Let's talk inside the shrine."

Cao Yi stepped lightly into the shrine.

The three followed in.

Inside the shrine, there were no tables or chairs, only a few half-worn cushions.

Cao Yi sat cross-legged with his back to the statues of the Three Pure Ones.

As the six states valued the left side, Xiang Liang and the others knelt on the left side.

"Sir, great talent. Brother Fan often speaks of you. It's a fortune to meet you today," Xiang Liang began with some polite words.

"A person from the countryside can't have much talent," Cao Yi replied with a smile.

"May I ask what you think of the current state of affairs?" Xiang Liang tossed out a vague topic.

"The world has just been unified; where's the current state of affairs?" Cao Yi countered.

Since they came to him, why use empty words? This Xiang Liang was far from Liu Bei's three visits to the cottage centuries later.

Xiang Liang didn't expect the hermit to respond this way. After hesitating for a moment, he changed his question: "What is your view on the current Emperor Qin?"

Now that was a question worthy of a hero.

"He unified the six states, ending centuries of conflict; his achievements are unparalleled," Cao Yi provided a response leaning toward Qin Shi Huang.

This was also Cao Yi's true feelings; regardless of what Qin Shi Huang did later, unifying the six states and establishing a centralized dictatorship was indeed a model for future generations.

Upon hearing this, both Xiang Liang and Xiang Yu changed their expressions. This hermit, clearly a man of Chu, spoke such heretical words.

"I agree with that," Yi Xiaochuan from the modern era wholeheartedly endorsed it.

Both he and Cao Yi had undergone modern education, subconsciously favoring unification.

"Shut up," Xiang Liang reprimanded.

Cao Yi, an outsider, expressing pro-Qin Shi Huang sentiments was tolerable, but Yi Xiaochuan was his disciple; he could not stand that.

Yi Xiaochuan quickly lowered his head, realizing from a year of experience that angering this famously strict master would lead to trouble.

Xiang Liang bowed to Cao Yi, saying, "It seems you and I are not of the same path; I take my leave."

With that, he stood up and prepared to leave.

"If you want others to treat you sincerely, you must first treat others sincerely!" Cao Yi casually remarked.

Xiang Liang stiffened, turned around to bow again, and sat back down.

This time, Xiang Liang spoke openly: "Since King Ping moved east, the world has been in chaos for hundreds of years, countless nations have perished, and the death toll exceeds tens of millions. It was only after Ying Zheng of Qin ascended the throne, after six generations of efforts, that he swept the world, allowing the common people a chance to breathe.

However, Ying Zheng does not practice benevolent governance. Every year, tens of thousands are conscripted to build the Great Wall, and countless die beneath it.

Good people are imprisoned by the tens of thousands to construct the Epang Palace and the Lishan tomb, with many dying from beatings and exhaustion every month.

He exhausts the people and sends an army of five hundred thousand to conquer the Southern Ridge's wild lands, with thousands dying from miasma and plague.

He knows not how to care for the people; in two and a half years, he ordered the opening of direct roads, often applying the law of collective punishment. The conscripted people either die or become prisoners.

Ying Zheng's dictatorship has long lost the people's hearts; he awaits only death, and chaos will surely ensue. I implore you, Sir, to come out of seclusion and assist Xiang in restoring the world."