Chapter 69

#This Is the Human World

Thanks to the experience of resonating with the middle-aged woman during that moment of intense rage last time—I suddenly achieved enlightenment!

My worldview expanded!

I realized I didn’t need to keep stubbornly sticking with 「Agou」 in this camp anymore!

Because earlier, I was able to enter 「Agou」’s body due to the life-threatening danger she was in. Her strong survival instinct resonated with my desperate urge to save her.

Later, I resonated with the woman’s soul because after all the hardship and fear, she harbored a deep anger at the world—and my own stifled rage aligned perfectly with her emotions.

Thinking about it carefully, aside from that pure little dog, the reason I managed to enter both of those people’s souls was because of intense emotional fluctuations—both mine and theirs.

In anger and fear, no matter who you are, in this vast world—we all feel the same in that moment!

So if I want to find such emotions again, I don’t need to cling to 「Agou」 or that woman. I can totally follow Xie Zhuo instead, and wait for my chance—by finding someone near him!

That way, I can stay close to him all the time!

The next day, 「Agou」 woke up. I tried once again to enter her body and failed, so I gave up on her completely.

I began wandering through Que Mountain as a spirit, unhindered. First thing was to find Xie Zhuo.

By then, many refugees had already arrived at Que Mountain.

The marketplace was a noisy mess, and even the forests were starting to feel crowded.

Luckily, it wasn’t hard to find Xie Zhuo. Apparently, Lord God ji had brought back some mysterious man to Que Mountain and granted him unrestricted access. I overheard this from the common folk as soon as I entered.

The soldiers of Que Mountain were even more interested in Xie Zhuo’s whereabouts than I was.

Following their chatter, I weaved through the massive crowd on Que Mountain in search of Xie Zhuo.

I arrived at the marketplace.

It was already packed on normal days, and now it was even more chaotic and noisy. But in that bustling crowd, I spotted Xie Zhuo at a glance.

Maybe it was my superpower—or his.

He seemed to carry a light, and wherever my gaze landed, as long as he was there, I could always see him right away.

I floated toward him, full of joy. Even though he couldn’t see me, I was still thrilled to circle him a few times, taking him in from head to toe.

“Xie Zhuo, did you not rest properly last night?” I asked him, even though he couldn’t hear me. “Why do you look so tired? Didn’t Lord God ji arrange a place for you to rest? Or did you not sleep well on your own? That won’t do. The fight against the evil gods won’t end in a day or two, you know.”

Naturally, Xie Zhuo didn’t respond. His expression was serious and alert as he moved through the crowd.

I had seen him like this countless times at Kunlun.

Back then, I didn’t understand. I always blamed him for looking so grim every time we went out together, like he wasn’t happy at all.

Now I understood. I wanted to say sorry—but I couldn’t find the right moment or reason.

Xie Zhuo walked slowly through the marketplace, examining nearly every face that passed by.

At the far end of the market, as the crowd thinned and he still found nothing, he leaned against a street corner, arms folded, watching the steady stream of people entering the marketplace.

I stayed by his side, keeping him company from morning till afternoon, all the way until the sun began to set.

As evening fell, people—locals and new arrivals alike—began leaving the marketplace in search of rest.

With the crowd thinning, Xie Zhuo, who had stood watch all day, let out a faint sigh. He straightened up, looking like he was ready to go.

Just then, a woman passed by with two young boys.

They seemed to be refugees. The woman looked worn out. At the street corner, she used Northern Wasteland silver to buy a flatbread.

She tore the flatbread in half and gave it to the two boys—more to the older, less to the younger. Then she told the younger one, “Your big brother needs more food, or he’ll get hungrier. You’re smaller, so you can eat a little less, okay?”

The younger brother nodded obediently and took a bite, but the older brother didn’t eat. He tore off a piece and handed it back to the woman. “Mom, Dunzi and I can eat the same. I’m not hungry. You should have some too.”

The woman blinked, her eyes glistening. “Mama… Mama has practiced Immortal techniques. I can draw energy from heaven and earth. I’m not hungry.”

Still, she didn’t take the bread. She led the boys down the road.

That small family of three—though struggling—shared deep care for one another.

Xie Zhuo watched them the whole time, eyes never straying, until they disappeared from view. Then, he lowered his head just a little.

I looked at him with aching heart—and saw him reach up and touch the stone hanging around his neck.

I figured he must have remembered something from the past.

I glanced around and quietly left Xie Zhuo’s side.

I darted through the marketplace, searching high and low—until I found a few children in the middle of a scuffle!

More precisely, it was a group of kids bullying a little girl. She looked like a refugee who’d been separated from her mother and had run into a bunch of local Que Mountain brats.

The girl was already crying so hard she couldn’t even make a sound.

I didn’t think twice. I charged straight into her body!

Her pain, helplessness, and rage surged through me and wrapped around my soul. My limbs and body synced up with hers once again.

What came next was simple.

After giving those little punks a solid beating, I grabbed the ringleader. “You hit someone—pay up!”

The boy, bruised and bloodied, handed over the silver in his pocket without a word of protest.

I stuffed the money into my pocket and ran.

With the little girl’s short legs, I dashed through the streets like a whirlwind, heading straight for the corner of the market. Thankfully, Xie Zhuo was still there—and so was the flatbread seller!

I pulled out the money I’d just “collected” and bought four flatbreads.

They were big and thick, and the little girl had to stretch her arms wide to carry all four.

The warm bread pressed against my chest as I walked up to Xie Zhuo.

He was so tall—standing before him as a little girl, he felt like a mountain.

But I wasn’t afraid at all. I stared up at him, waiting for him to look my way.

Whether it was the bread or me that drew his attention, Xie Zhuo finally looked away from the stone in his hand and gazed down at me.

I held out the bread.

He froze, didn’t take it.

“Here, the bread’s for you.”

At first, he didn’t move, but he opened his mouth to speak: “I don’t—”

I didn’t want him to say more, so I grabbed one of the flatbreads by the edge, stood it up, and jumped to stuff it right into his mouth.

Xie Zhuo didn’t resist.

He bit down on the bread, utterly confused.

I made up an excuse on the spot. “I heard the Que Mountain soldiers say a tall, mysterious man is protecting us with Lord God. You’ve been standing here all day—you must be protecting us, right? I won’t allow someone protecting us to go hungry!”

And before I could mess anything up, I jumped up again and shoved the remaining three flatbreads into Xie Zhuo’s arms—then turned and bolted.

Xie Zhuo had no choice but to bite one and hold the other three in his arms, barely managing to stay steady as he stood there frozen.

I glanced back and, seeing he wasn’t chasing me, let out a sigh of relief.

Once I ran into a corner, my whole body relaxed, and I was once again pushed out of the little girl’s body.

She stood there in a daze, looking around in confusion, as if not understanding why the ones who had hit her were now gone.

She took a few steps and heard something jingling in her pocket. Reaching in, she pulled out the leftover money from buying the food. She blinked, looked around.

Of course, she couldn’t see anything. I pushed out a round little hand from my round spiritual form.

With that small hand, I gently patted her on the head.

“Thank you for carrying me for a bit.”

The girl couldn’t feel it, so I simply turned and left.

I returned to Xie Zhuo’s side.

He had taken the Bread out of his mouth. His large hand easily held three, steady and firm. With his other hand, he held the one he’d bitten into and began eating it, one bite at a time.

I knew Xie Zhuo had been nourished with soul power from his clan since childhood—he didn’t actually need to eat. But here he was, eating the Bread seriously, bite by bite.

As if… he were sincerely accepting the kindness of a stranger little girl.

Watching him eat warmed my heart too.

“Young man, the Bread’s good, isn’t it?” The old man selling the Bread had shouldered his yoke, ready to head home.

Xie Zhuo looked at him and nodded.

“Ah, I’m still not quite as good as my old lady. Sadly, she’s bedridden now, can’t get up, can’t move. Otherwise, the Bread would have even more bite to them.”

The old man rambled on as he walked away: “She probably makes the best Bread in all of Que Mountain!”

Xie Zhuo didn’t reply. After finishing the pancake, he carried the remaining three and walked through the market.

The sunset spilled over him, making him look less like a lonely wanderer burdened with the past and more like an ordinary man on his way home.

I knew where he was going.

He didn’t go looking for Zhulian. Didn’t go looking for the evil god.

Instead, he went to where the refugees were being housed on Que Mountain—and found that little family: the woman and her two sons.

He handed them the three Bread. Said nothing. Faced with the woman’s gratitude, he just quietly turned and walked away.

He walked past the gathering of refugees, watching them with their children, their elders. He saw reunions, tears of joy, and people arguing about uncertain futures.

All their noise and chatter—just the trivialities of everyday life.

I floated behind him, watching as he left the refugee settlement and turned back once under the moonlight.

And softly, I whispered in his ear: “Xie Zhuo, look—this is the human world.”