Two

His description may be true, or it may just be a kind consolation for an insecure youth, but Xiao Ziyu is willing to believe

There were also a few passersby nearby who found it interesting and joined in the commotion

A child nearby is asking: "What does it mean to have talent?"

All resistance will only result in harsher insults, and even punishment

I have encountered a sorcerer who claimed that he has been able to make the water in a cup turn cold and freeze since he was a child

The tigress looked him up and down and said, "Hahaha, what an ambitious child."

She seems to be in a good mood, and Xiao Ziyu hesitantly replied: "Um... I, I want to engage in spiritual cultivation"

The crowd shook their heads and sighed in unison

Xiao Ziyu endured the pain, tightly clenched his fists, and then slowly relaxed them. He listened intently to the baseless accusations, enduring the humiliation of having his dreams mocked, without retorting or shedding a tear. The pleas and resistance of the weak would only provoke the fury of the tigress even more, and he could even risk losing his job—he absolutely could not afford to lose this laborious and poorly compensated position for the sake of survival

It seems that there is a child in the neighboring county who can make objects fly through the air. He went to participate in the sorcerer's assessment and appears to have passed.

Before his death, the lonely grandfather told Xiao Ziyu: "Do not listen to those treacherous and ungrateful people. When your parents had just married, they came back to Xiao Family Village to pay respects at the ancestral hall. I have seen them; your father is a good man, the kindest of men. You have a personality very much like his. Your mother is gentle and beautiful, her eyes crescent-shaped when she smiles, like a fairy. Even when speaking to an old man like me, she does so with a smile. Such a good woman would never become a thief..." Your mother is gentle and beautiful, her eyes crescent-shaped when she smiles, like a fairy. Even when speaking to an old man like me, she does so with a smile. Such a good woman would never become a thief..."

The old tiger is finally satisfied: "A good-for-nothing should not indulge in baseless thoughts!"

The crowd was in an uproar

It is said that there were sorcerers in their childhood who could understand the speech of crows, allowing them to have the crows perform tasks for them

Since he became aware of his surroundings, Xiao Ziyu has been without parents, having been raised by his clan. However, the clan members all despise him. They say that Xiao Ziyu's father was a good-for-nothing, a smooth talker who deceived the clan out of money to pursue some sort of spiritual practice, though it is unclear which sect he belonged to. In any case, he met Xiao Ziyu's mother there and they had him. Later, it was said that his father never actually practiced spirituality; he merely found a con artist to impersonate a disciple of a spiritual sect to jointly swindle the clan's money, and then he and his wife met a terrible end, leaving Xiao Ziyu as a burden for the clan to raise.

"I wouldn't dare, I wouldn't dare," Xiao Ziyu stole a glance at the landlady and noticed she wasn't paying attention to him. He quickly filled the teacup to the brim and began to flatter her profusely, "Uncle, you have traveled far and wide, and have seen so much. Is there anything in this world that you have not encountered? Please, show some kindness and share with me, a country bumpkin who has never seen the world, about magical artifacts and such, would you?"

When Grandpa Guogua passed away, Xiao Ziyu was only 8 years old. He had no relatives willing to adopt him, and he was unwilling to beg for a living. Moreover, he was small and weak, often suffering from illness. After much effort, only the fierce woman known as Mother Tiger was willing to take him in to work at her shop. This ruthless woman had previously sought other assistants, but they could not endure her fierce temper and did not last long. Now, with the mild-mannered Xiao Ziyu, she found a suitable match. Xiao Ziyu was very grateful to Mother Tiger, as it was she who taught him survival skills such as sewing and cooking amidst her scoldings, providing him with food and clothing to survive. Although Mother Tiger had a bad temper and was difficult to please, she was not greedy for money; she never confiscated the tips given by customers.

Travelers passing through this place are also willing to share the stories they have heard with such an enthusiastic audience: "Since ancient times, evil cannot triumph over righteousness. The Goddess of Cangqiong is the embodiment of malevolent thoughts in the world, possessing an immortal body and soul. The final battle lasted a full three hundred sixty-five days, claiming countless gods, demons, sorcerers, and magic cultivators. In the end, the Goddess of Cangqiong was defeated; her divine weapon, the Heaven-Slaying Sword, was damaged, and her body was pierced by a sword forged from the flames of the Nine Heavens, nailed to the summit of the Unreturning Rock. However, the fierce flames could not consume her body, and the mighty thunder could not destroy her soul. Despite her defeat, she arrogantly told all her former followers and believers that the bloodthirsty goddess of war would one day return to the mortal realm to wash the three realms in blood. Countless former followers and believers heeded her call, continuously assaulting the Unreturning Rock. In a state of helplessness, the son of the Heavenly Emperor, the True Monarch Fenghuang, voluntarily offered all his cultivation and life. He transformed his body into indissoluble ice, his heart into a fire that burns everything, forming a demon-suppressing formation to seal this cruel demon forever, hidden at the end of the heavens, for generations and eternities..."

Xiao Ziyu was no exception; he held the tea tray and fell into a state of frenzied delusion

Xiao Ziyu was taken aback for a moment and shook his head: "I dare not."

The lonely grandfather took his last breath in the comfort of his confession

Money is the best thing for orphans

Even if this is an impossible dream

Xiao Ziyu cannot speak with birds and beasts, cannot control water and fire, and cannot retrieve objects from a distance. He is not even good at playing hide and seek, and he cannot think of anything that makes him different from other children, finally feeling frustrated

Xiao Ziyu replied: "I know..."

Xiao Ziyu could not guess and shook his head wildly along with everyone else

If a spiritual mage were to pass by and discover that they possess innate wisdom and spiritual bones, how wonderful it would be to take the opportunity to seek a master and learn the craft

He knows that the tigress is speaking the truth

What happened later in the story

I am dying of laughter! You little rascal really dare to think like that, "The tigress seems to have heard the most ridiculous joke, 'Spiritual cultivation, spiritual cultivation! What kind of cultivation are you talking about! Can't you take a moment to look at yourself and see how much you weigh! With your character, you can also cultivate spiritually, I am already a deity!'" For some reason, her fury today is even more intense than usual, and her curses are more severe, "You lowly dog, raised without anyone to teach you, learning from your father's despicable ways, filled with nonsensical thoughts! Spiritual cultivation, spiritual cultivation! What kind of cultivation are you talking about! Can't you take a moment to look at yourself and see how much you weigh! With your character, you can also cultivate spiritually, I am already a deity!'" For some reason, her fury today is even more intense than usual, and her curses are more severe, "You lowly dog, raised without anyone to teach you, learning from your father's despicable ways, filled with nonsensical thoughts! And you deceive everyone into spiritual cultivation! As a result, you ended up with some fox spirit from who knows where, absconding with money! You are just like your good-for-nothing father! Light as a feather! Shameless! The thing I hate the most is spiritual masters! They are all worthless scum that deserve to be killed!"

The sun rises every day, and dreams shatter every day

The traveler slammed the table and exclaimed, "The blade light transformed from that beauty actually sliced down the entire mountain peak! With a rumble, the mountains collapsed and the earth cracked, sending shattered stones flying everywhere, causing many people to wet their pants in fear"

The traveler looks back on the past, slapping his thigh in deep regret: "No wonder everyone wants to become a spiritual master, wielding beautiful magical artifacts, enjoying both fortune and skill. Back then, I was still young and envious, rushing to seek spiritual cultivation. However, the Heavenly Gate Sect is the number one sect in the world, lofty and unattainable, with only the rarest talents in the spiritual cultivation realm allowed entry, something I dared not even dream of. So, I sought out an obscure small sect, but they told me I was too old, lacked talent, and could not communicate with spirits, thus unable to wield magical artifacts, wasting a considerable amount of travel expenses. Sigh, why is it that all the good things in the world are enjoyed by spiritual masters..."

Hahaha! Little ghost, if talent were so easily obtained, then spirit mages would not be so rare

After the funeral, Xiao Ziyu would stand at the village entrance every morning, dreaming that when the sun rose from the east, his parents would return from afar to find him. They would teach him to read like Dayong's father, mend his clothes like Cuiying's mother, prepare delicious food for him, tell him stories, and sing soft and melodious lullabies. As long as they returned, he would be willing to endure daily beatings and scoldings like Daniu.

After she walked away, Xiao Ziyu took out his mother's jade pendant from his pocket and held it to his lips. Whenever he felt distressed, he would do this, as if his mother were silently comforting him, encouraging him, and accompanying him in all his endeavors

Born with deficiencies and having endured hardships in his youth, he suffered severe physical impairments, and whenever he became emotionally agitated, he would fall ill. Not to mention spiritual cultivation, which requires a significant expenditure of mental and physical energy, he was unable to even perform ordinary heavy labor. The kind-hearted women from the neighboring houses all said that the best outcome for him in this life would be to become a worker in a restaurant or an attendant in a wealthy household, to save some money, marry a wife from a poor family, and to live a life of basic sustenance would be quite good.

The person who returned Xiao Ziyu to Xiao Family Village was an irresponsible passerby. He secretly abandoned the weaned Xiao Ziyu at the chief's doorstep and ran away, causing the chief to become extremely angry. The clansmen bullied Xiao Ziyu for being young and attempted to take all of his family's property as compensation. Those in the know have said that while they were busy seizing the property, the child cried in the cold wind, nearly starving to death.

At the very least, spiritual cultivation requires a healthy body, and he does not even possess that.

In this way, he can be revered, vanquish demons and eliminate evil, no longer be bullied, and no longer live a life of hardship

The pursuit of spiritual cultivation is immensely costly; even with talent, to enter this field, one must either come from a wealthy or powerful family, or at the very least, be an extraordinary genius, coupled with good fortune to be discovered by a discerning sorcerer.

The impoverished child lacks self-esteem, and the orphaned child is without care

Xiao Ziyu, why are you just standing there in a daze? The owner of the teahouse, surnamed Hu, nicknamed "Mother Tiger," is a woman in her fifties, towering like a mountain, with a body full of excess flesh. It is said that she has never married in her life, and her personality is extremely cantankerous and harsh. When in a good mood, she might occasionally give Xiao Ziyu some meat, but when in a bad mood, she can scold someone for two hours without a break. Upon seeing Xiao Ziyu resting and listening to stories instead of working hard, her anger surged. She heavily slammed the bone cleaver onto the counter, took off her apron, twisted his ear, and lifted him up as if he were a piece of firewood, dragging him to the backyard. Just as she was about to scold him, she paused for a moment, suddenly let go of him, brushed the dust off his clothes, and seemed to have a change of heart as she asked, "Ziyu, you seem so engrossed, are you seeking spiritual enlightenment?"

Xiao Ziyu remained silent

Uncle, every time I make a mistake and play hide and seek, no one can find me. Is that considered a talent

I wish to wield my sword and traverse the world, vanquishing demons and slaying monsters

But, mother, I am unwilling to live this kind of life; I still have dreams

Occasionally, he would be delayed in his work and face scolding, yet every time he heard an interesting story, he found himself unable to move a step.

The lonely grandfather also gave Xiao Ziyu a small white jade pendant, which had black spots on the back. Its shape was symmetrical, somewhat resembling a butterfly. The craftsman had carved winding wisteria next to the butterfly following the shape of the spots, making it quite unique. It felt warm when held in the palm. The grandfather told him: "This is something your father gave to your mother. She accidentally lost it at the well and cried desperately. I, however, am a despicable and shameless person. After secretly finding the pendant, I hid it away and lied to her, not returning it. The pendant has wisteria flowers on it, which is your mother's name, Wisteria, Wisteria, how beautiful it sounds. Every time I hold it, I think of her. I am truly shameless, really very shameless. I have felt guilty about this my entire life. I intended to return it to her when she came, but the old man ultimately did not wait for her. Now I return the pendant to you, which can be considered as it returning to its rightful owner. Do not hate the old man; the old man wronged your mother. She cried so pitifully that day; how could I be so heartless? Your parents were both wonderful people... I am truly shameless, really very shameless. I have felt guilty about this my entire life. I intended to return it to her when she came, but the old man ultimately did not wait for her. Now I return the pendant to you, which can be considered as it returning to its rightful owner. Do not hate the old man; the old man wronged your mother. She cried so pitifully that day; how could I be so heartless? Your parents were both wonderful people..."

Injured? Xiao Ziyu found it strange to describe an object in this way and felt somewhat puzzled. I see that the talismans of Wang Shenpo in the village are all peach wood swords and black donkey hooves. Shouldn't this thing be described as damaged or broken instead?

Perhaps tomorrow will be different

"Hey, silly boy," the traveler laughed and spread his hands, "If she returns, this world will not be so peaceful, and we won't have good days ahead. However, I heard that Zhu Tian was injured and escaped, not knowing where he is lurking, waiting for his master to revive, perhaps a significant hidden danger. Sigh, such matters are not for us commoners to worry about. Luoshui County is indeed calm, but not long ago, the demons in the southwest caused chaos, it was truly tragic..." Luoshui County is indeed calm, but not long ago, the demons in the southwest caused chaos, it was truly tragic..."

"You clumsy good-for-nothing, I took you in out of kindness to let you work, to provide you with food, and to prevent you from starving, yet you do not know gratitude! All you do is slack off and be lazy!" The tigress, seeing Xiao Ziyu not resisting, found it pointless to scold for long, and her anger gradually subsided. Finally, she issued an order, "I will go kill a chicken, Old Niu, quickly bring the firewood. After you finish serving the tea, you go to the vegetable garden and pull some green onions, then collect the vegetables in the backyard! No slacking off! From now on, do not mention the matter of spiritual cultivation! You little rascal are not even worthy of thinking about it! Do you understand?"

Beside the main road of the post station, in a small teahouse where travelers temporarily rest, a ragged boy holds a tea tray, looking up with bright eyes that sparkle with anticipation. His name is Xiao Ziyu, fourteen years old, and he works as a small errand boy in the teahouse. His greatest joy in life is listening to the stories told by travelers from the south and north. These stories are always filled with heroes, knights, treasures, deities, and secrets. The protagonists in these tales can accomplish many things that he will never be able to do, such as walking on rooftops, wandering the seas, punishing evil and eliminating treachery, slaying demons and monsters. The stories are always filled with heroes, knights, treasures, deities, and secrets. The protagonists in these tales can accomplish many things that he will never be able to do, such as walking on rooftops, wandering the seas, punishing evil and eliminating treachery, slaying demons and monsters

In this day and age, as long as one can cultivate spiritually, even a small sect is considered an impressive achievement

The tigress grabbed his ear and asked again: "Do you understand? Are you deaf?"

Everyone spoke up in a lively discussion

The mother tiger patted his shoulder and continued to coax, "Don't be afraid, speak the truth to me, a boy must have some ambition."

I wish to walk the path that my father has walked

Her tone contained the calm before the storm, and Xiao Ziyu anxiously looked at her feet

Momentary tenderness is for the sake of greater humiliation

Xiao Ziyu planted several wisteria flowers in front of his grave.

"You little brat! Why aren't you coming over here right now!" The thunderous roar jolted him from his reverie; it was the teahouse proprietress, furiously glaring at him. Xiao Ziyu was startled and shivered, not daring to speak further, and quickly scurried to the kitchen, standing before her with lowered head and submissive demeanor, ready to receive her reprimand

Xiao Ziyu's neighbor is an eccentric and unpopular old man. The old man, a doctor, had his leg broken after offending a wealthy person, which led to his return to Xiaojiacun, where his temper became increasingly peculiar. Aside from tending to his flowers and plants, he found fault with everyone and scolded them. Yet, he took Xiao Ziyu in, providing him with rice porridge, checking his pulse, and administering medicine to help him recover. After much effort over half a year, he managed to bring Xiao Ziyu back to life, while his own health deteriorated further. Later, the old man fell and became paralyzed from the waist down, bedridden and unable to care for himself, his temper growing even more irritable, often erupting in anger and smashing bowls. Nevertheless, Xiao Ziyu continued to care for him diligently. Before he died, he made a statement in front of the clan leader, leaving his small, dilapidated house to Xiao Ziyu, thus providing him with a means of survival.

He has long been accustomed to such a life

It is said that gifted children can sense the power of nature from a young age

The more she scolded, the more intense it became, insulting his parents, and she pressed her greasy fingers heavily against Xiao Ziyu's forehead.

Xiao Ziyu, holding a jade pendant and with tears in her eyes, gently pleaded with her mother: "Mother, I wish to become a spiritual master"

"You inexperienced little brat!" The traveler scoffed, "Have you ever seen a magical artifact? How dare you contradict me!"

This is the dream of all the youth in the world

"I do not hate, I do not hate." Xiao Ziyu wept while holding the jade pendant, as if embracing a mother's love, "My parents are both wonderful people, and they will forgive you too"

Xiao Ziyu listened intently: "Has the Goddess Cangqiong returned?"

The traveler, feeling quite elated, took a sip of tea and continued to boast: "Magical artifacts are not the nonsense trinkets that your village shamans possess; they are tools of spiritual communication, capable not only of extraordinary powers but also of transforming into human forms to assist their masters. Look at the rustic expressions on your faces; you must think I am exaggerating? Let me tell you, I once had the fortune to witness a spirit master from the Tianmen Sect dealing with some kind of monster. At that time, I squeezed into a good spot among the crowd and saw it all very clearly. I tell you, I once had the fortune to witness a spirit master from the Tianmen Sect dealing with some kind of monster. I squeezed into a good spot among the crowd and saw it all very clearly. He raised his hand, and the curved blade in his hand fell to the ground, instantly transforming into a stunning beauty. She was a genuine beauty! With golden, curly hair, green eyes like those of a cat, and fair, tender skin! Damn... I was drooling at the sight! That beauty flew into the air with the spirit master on a paper crane, and the master chanted some incantation; the beauty immediately transformed into a flash of blade light, striking the mountain peak. Can you guess what happened next?"

Fortunately, there are still kind-hearted people in the world