Five days passed in the blink of an eye, yet Juexian Valley remained remarkably peaceful, with no incidents occurring.
Ji Yuan did not stay confined to his small courtyard. He ventured out frequently, and with Luyin’s presence, his travels were unimpeded.
Within a few days, he had explored the first half of Juexian Valley, spending his days either loitering in the market or wandering around to admire the scenery.
However, as time wore on, he noticed that the external cultivators trapped in the valley seemed to be growing increasingly impatient. Each day, many would gather at the city walls, attempting to find a way to leave the place.
On the evening of the sixth day, Ji Yuan returned from the market outside, a slight smile gracing his face.
His luck had been quite good today. He had indeed found many excellent items while "scavenging" in the market. Although they weren't worth much money, they were novel and interesting, perfect as trinkets to play with.
He walked through a path in the woods, arriving outside the Rain Clan's village and strolling through rows of medicinal fields.
Under the twilight, a group of Rain Clan children swarmed around him. The older ones were as tall as his chest, while the younger ones only reached his waist.
Over these few days, Ji Yuan had been playing joyfully with the Rain Clan children. They seemed to quite like the young man from the outside world.
"You're quite popular," Tang Muhuan remarked from behind him, unable to refrain from exclaiming.
At the same time, this cultivator of the third stage of Confucian Dao instinctively showed a kind expression when looking at the Rain Clan children.
Watching the group of children frolicking amongst the medicinal fields, he couldn't help but think of the younger generations of his own family. The children there were of similar ages, but they lacked this kind of liveliness.
Scions of Confucian Dao families were required from a young age to diligently study the writings of the sages, learn how to govern, and even master the art of scholarly pursuits.
They had neither the time nor the opportunity to play as carefreely as this.
"Perhaps it's because of Luyin," Ji Yuan said, his face filled with a smile as he watched a group of children chasing Luyin, who was flying in mid-air, not far in front of him.
These days, he often had a mistaken impression, as if he weren't in some perilous situation, and that the Rain Clan here harbored no hidden ambitions.
At least here in the village, everything was so peaceful and harmonious, with the dense forest seeming to block out all undercurrents.
He often found himself unsure whether the outside was a facade or if the inside was merely a disguise.
"Thinking too much is useless. When the moment truly arrives, we'll use the secret passage Luyin mentioned to escape," Tang Muhuan said, sitting on a large rock nearby. He produced a pipe from somewhere.
As a spark ignited the tobacco, wisps of mist containing traces of spiritual energy began to rise.
Inhaling and exhaling plumes of smoke, he looked at his surroundings with a touch of melancholy. Perhaps, after one of his descendants could stand on their own, he might be able to find a place similar to this to settle down.
After more than two hundred years, he felt weary. He thought it was time for him to retire.
"I feel that Elder Tang can still strive for several more decades without any issues," Ji Yuan said cheerfully, as if sensing Tang Muhuan's thoughts.
Upon hearing this, Tang Muhuan immediately rolled his eyes. He had already worked hard his entire life; did they still want him to continue serving Mingxin Pavilion?
As they conversed, Luyin, with a beaming smile, flew back and landed on Ji Yuan's shoulder, making faces at the children chasing after it.
"Little brother, tell us more about the outside world today!"
The Rain Clan children surrounded them, clamoring for Ji Yuan to tell them more stories about the world beyond.
He smiled and nodded. Surrounded by the children, he sat by the edge of the medicinal field and recounted simple stories that were commonplace in the secular world outside.
Gradually, some of the Rain Clan's strong youths, who had finished their work, also began to gather around, squatting nearby and listening quietly.
Although they knew these were fabricated stories by humans, they couldn't help but feel a sense of longing. After all, barring any accidents, they would never step out of Juexian Valley in their entire lives.
Naturally, they would not get to see the world described in the stories.
It wasn't until the sunlight in the sky began to disappear that the Rain Clan youths led their children home, forming a long line in twos and threes along the small paths between the medicinal fields.
"Sometimes I truly wish it were all a pretense, that the Rain Clan had no long-held ambitions cultivated over tens of thousands of years," Ji Yuan said, his eyes narrowed slightly. Holding a pile of ripe medicinal herbs in his arms, he hoped that this paradise could endure.
At the very least, he hoped it wouldn't be reduced to ashes by war due to someone's ambition.
Those innocent children, those youths who might never leave the village in their lives, should not become sacrifices to some ambition.
"There are always some things in the world that cannot be changed. Every life must bear the consequences of its mistakes," Tang Muhuan said slowly, standing beside him and putting away his pipe.
Perhaps those mistakes had nothing to do with these children and young adults, but so many things in the world were this helpless, and beyond human power to change.
At the very least, they couldn't change it. With their cultivation at the third stage, they couldn't even guarantee their own safety in the face of what was about to happen, let alone attempt to save others.
To achieve such a feat, one would need at least the cultivation of the Golden Core stage.
Thinking this, Ji Yuan shook his head slightly. Currently, he was only in the early stage of the Spirit Gathering realm, not even in the Dao Enlightenment realm. Thinking further was futile.
After storing the medicinal herbs gifted by the Rain Clan members, he and Tang Muhuan returned to their temporary residence in the small courtyard. Luyin, on Ji Yuan's shoulder, immediately jumped down and poured them all a cup of spiritual tea.
Although the tea had gone cold, none of them minded. They drank it with relish, absorbing the faint spiritual energy contained within.
Suddenly, Ji Yuan, who was drinking tea, froze. Then, he looked up sharply at the distant horizon.
The sun had already set, leaving only moonlight in the sky. Against the dark night, a bright fire suddenly shot up into the heavens.
Even from a distance, one could clearly see the massive flames raging outside the forest, like ferocious fire serpents ravaging the land.
What should have been a peaceful night was now filled with endless shouts of killing from afar. Amidst the vibrations of spiritual power, a deafening roar accompanied the tremors of the earth.
"It's started!" Ji Yuan's expression changed as he muttered to himself.
Beside him, Tang Muhuan's face darkened. He hadn't expected everything to erupt so suddenly, without any warning.
It had been peaceful moments ago, and in the blink of an eye, it seemed as if the entire Juexian Valley had fallen into a conflagration. In mere moments, he could already sense the presence of over a dozen cultivators at the third stage.