Watching the Mountain

Chapter 375 -205: Reversal, Mountain Guardian

Hearing Xu Ran’s question, Wang Xiaohu fell silent. He knew what his senior brother was asking—it was the same question he had left him with long ago.

After a moment of silence, he shook his head, gave Xu Ran a faint smile, and spoke softly.

“Senior Brother, you’re mistaken. It’s not that I’ve thought it through, but that I’ve lived it through.”

“Some things can never be understood, no matter how much you think about them. You can only experience them slowly, feel them slowly, and comprehend them slowly through life. When living itself becomes painful, you naturally start to understand.”

Xu Ran gave him a somewhat surprised look. After a moment’s silence, he nodded slightly.

He understood what Wang Xiaohu was trying to say. It seemed that not being accepted as Teacher Qing Xuan’s disciple had made life very difficult for him all these years.

But on reflection, it was understandable. Anyone who learned they had missed a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity would find it hard to let go for a long, long time.

Xu Ran looked at Wang Xiaohu, who now seemed serene and at ease. He smiled faintly and said,

“Whether you thought it through or lived it through, all that matters is that you’ve found clarity.”

Wang Xiaohu nodded slightly and returned his smile. “Indeed. Once you have clarity, you feel at ease.”

Then, his expression turned serious as he said to Xu Ran,

“Hidden Mountain Senior Brother, you once asked me whether I received more kindness from the Sect or gave more kindness to it. I think I can give you the answer now.”

Xu Ran watched him in silence, waiting for his answer.

Wang Xiaohu tilted his head back slightly, his eyes flickering. After a brief pause, he said,

“From the day I joined the Sect until now, I have always been on the receiving end of all sorts of kindness, just like that time when my Blood Ginseng was stolen and I came to you, Senior Brother.”

“It’s because everyone around me was so good to me that I was under the false impression that the Sect owed me whatever I wanted.”

“The Sect is just too good.”

After this emotional sigh, he looked at Xu Ran and said,

“Hidden Mountain Senior Brother, if there is a next life, I never want to join a power like our Sect again.”

“I’ve figured it out. Someone like me should join a power like a Demonic Dao Sect, one that is strict and harsh with its members. I should struggle to survive every day and not have it so easy.”

“That way, I wouldn’t have time to overthink things, and I wouldn’t hold on to such illusions.”

When he finished speaking, he raised his hands and very solemnly formed a Dao Seal toward Xu Ran, then departed in silence.

Xu Ran watched his retreating figure and sighed internally. ‘Illusions, huh?’

It seemed just as Wang Xiaohu had said: he hadn’t thought it through, but lived it through. Perhaps, in his heart, he had never truly let go of the fact that he hadn’t become Teacher Qing Xuan’s disciple.

For Wang Xiaohu, Teacher Qing Xuan was the first person to show him kindness after he arrived at the Sect, the one who made him feel the Sect’s benevolence and warmth.

He had always held a special sentiment and longing for Teacher Qing Xuan, which was why he always thought of seeking him out to uphold justice whenever something happened.

Xu Ran shook his head slightly. An image surfaced in his mind: the timid boy who had once mustered the courage to approach him, wanting to find Teacher Qing Xuan.

Now, that boy had become a white-haired old man.

Xu Ran knew that, barring any surprises, this was likely the last time he would ever see Wang Xiaohu.

He hadn’t interacted much with Wang Xiaohu, and their relationship wasn’t particularly close. His departure perhaps only meant that an acquaintance had grown old and passed on, nothing more.

The faint sadness he felt was proof that he hadn’t grown indifferent despite experiencing so many partings.

He still maintained his inner respect for life and his passion for living.

A faint but profound feeling welled up in his heart, and Xu Ran could feel his own inner state.

‘Perhaps this is the meaning of the path of sentiment I chose back then.’

‘To truly feel the departure of every person I know… it is this feeling that allows me to retain my sense of self and enjoy the pleasure of being alive, even after living through endless ages.’

These emotions would keep him from losing his way on his path.

*

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*

Not long after parting with Wang Xiaohu, Xu Ran was on his way back when he happened to run into Wang Zhenye, the very person the other disciples had just been talking about.

He had just returned from outside the Sect’s gates.

Upon seeing Xu Ran, Wang Zhenye ran over excitedly and greeted him, “Senior.”

Xu Ran nodded in response, then asked curiously, “Just got back from outside?”

Wang Zhenye nodded and scratched his head as he replied, “As you know, Senior, I have quite a few female confidantes. Only a handful of them were assigned Dust-Sealed Stones, and I certainly couldn’t just watch them grow old. So, I had to go outside and see if I could find some more Dust-Sealed Stones.”

Looking at him, Xu Ran’s cheek twitched slightly. ‘He calls that “quite a few” confidantes? Countless disciples in the Sect are green with envy over his lifestyle, yet he continues to do quite well for himself.’

He then asked out of curiosity, “So, did you find any?”

He remembered that Elder Xu of the Instructor Hall had also gone out to find Dust-Sealed Stones for his students, so this was a good chance to get an update on the situation.

“I did.”

Wang Zhenye nodded slightly and said in a somewhat casual tone,

“There are actually quite a lot of Dust-Sealed Stones out there. After I left our Sect’s territory, I just wandered around for a bit and found ninety-nine of them—just enough for all my confidantes.”