The Unruly Immortals

In the clearing of Niuxin Village that was used for drying grain, a group of militia were training, and Gao Zhijian sat on a large stone with knitted brows, watching the village soldiers practicing martial arts before him, yet his mind was still preoccupied with the events that had happened earlier.

"None of the other fellow disciples believe what I've told them."

Logically, he should have been angry, but Gao Zhijian wasn't, because even he couldn't fully believe his gradually awakening, chaotic memories.

It was very likely that he was the Emperor, remembering living in the Imperial Palace, with many people revolving around him, being able to obtain whatever he wished for.

But that segment of memory was not complete; there were large gaps in between, and the breaks were replaced by various odd deaths and life experiences starkly different from those in the Imperial Palace.

The memories in his mind didn't seem to belong to one person but rather appeared to be stitched and patched together from fragments of all sizes.

This made Gao Zhijian very doubtful, whether all that chaos in his memory was fake, or perhaps, was he also becoming mad like Brother Li?

Logically, he should now be searching for his past, to discern the truth amongst the jumbled memories, to find the real him.

But unless necessary, he didn't want to go back. He wanted to stay here, he decided it was quite nice now. Because he liked Niuxin Village, and he liked the name Gao Zhijian, he was Gao Zhijian.

Suddenly, a furry figure flashed through his mind, and an honest smile spread across his face unwittingly.

Everyone lived together, peacefully and comfortably, while the past in his memory, even if it were the magnificent Imperial Palace, although there was plenty to eat and warm clothes, felt very... cold and uncomfortable to him. He didn't like it there.

In this world, it's good to be confused sometimes; why must everything be made so clear? It's better to live in the present, anyway; it seemed there wasn't anyone from the past worth searching for.

Gao Zhijian, sitting there, pondered many things, but when he came back to his senses, he found that the dozen or so village soldiers were all over the place, waving their wooden halberds, taking advantage of his lapse in attention to slack off.

"Hmm?" Gao Zhijian picked up a small stick and walked over, wherever he found a wrong posture, he directly tapped with it—enough to be painful but not damaging. His method was very skilled.

These people were too thin, they must train to become stronger, to develop sufficient vigor and spirit, and then begin the cultivation of the Military family's techniques.

His task now was to train a militia for Niuxin Village, as instructed by Brother Li.

Time ended amid the moans and groans of the militia, and at dinner, the strenuous physical training turned them into gluttons, wolfing down their food.

The reason none of them thought of escaping the hardship, despite daily suffering, was the white flour they got every day, and the reward of one hundred Wen Money each month.

Today's dinner was soy sauce fried rice, oily and salty, using a lot of lard, perfect for replenishing lost strength, and also particularly easy to make.

Among the crowd, Gao Zhijian didn't see Chun Xiaoman eating, so he silently took note.

After dinner, he went to the kitchen, fried two eggs, placed them on top of the soy sauce fried rice, and, taking a bowl and chopsticks, headed for the Bai Family Ancestral Hall.

When he arrived at the great hall underneath the Ancestral Hall, he saw Chun Xiaoman leading several people in reciting the Divine Incantations of the White Lotus Sect.

"Eat," Gao Zhijian said as he brought the bowl in front of Chun Xiaoman.

"Hey! Big guy, you're really something, bringing food for one person only, huh? We haven't eaten yet!" Scholar Lv said discontentedly from the side.

However, Gao Zhijian didn't even deign to look at him, once again offering the bowl to Chun Xiaoman.

Chun Xiaoman stopped and said to the others, "Let's call it a day, let's go have dinner."

The four young girls respectfully nodded their heads and followed Scholar Lv, who had a look of disgust on his face, down the stairs.

After they all left, Chun Xiaoman, holding a bowl, continued eating and asked, "How are things on your side? Are those people still obedient?"

"Still… still… still… pretty good!"

"Alas, it's not going well on my side. These Divine Incantation Chants are hard to memorize, and there are already so few in the village who can do it. Plus, one needs a high comprehension to succeed. No matter how much those with low comprehension recite, there's no response."

"We are all human, I don't know why there's such a big difference. If everyone were to learn them, I wonder how long it would take. Sigh, let me tell you something you might not believe. The person with the highest understanding is actually that lousy Scholar Lv. You should have seen how smug he was."

Gao Zhijian silently stood aside, quietly listening to Chun Xiaoman's endless complaints.

After Chun Xiaoman had finished venting her frustrations, she had also finished her bowl of soy sauce fried rice.

Just as Gao Zhijian was about to pick up the empty bowl to leave, Chun Xiaoman's voice came from behind. "Zhijian, you don't need to bring me food anymore, the kids will keep some for me in the dining hall."

With a complex expression, Chun Xiaoman pursed her lips, but eventually she said, "I made a vow before, intending to remain an unmarried woman of self-combing for life. I still have no intention of changing that, so do you understand what I'm trying to say?"

"Hmm... "

"Don't blame me for being so straightforward, but we are all sworn brothers and sisters who have shared life and death. I just want to clear the air early, to avoid ending up not even being able to be brothers and sisters. I will tell Zhao Wu the same thing."

Gao Zhijian stood there in silence, only he knew the pain in his heart, and the empty bowl in his hand cracked under his grip.

Chun Xiaoman walked up to him and looked him in the eyes seriously, "In these chaotic times, for us, the disabled, to have such a stable home is not easy. We must cherish it all the more."

"You know, in other places, people like us would only be sold, beaten, treated like goblins, and not fit to be regarded as human. So, Zhijian, we must focus on the important things and work hard to protect this home."

"Yes." Holding the empty bowl, Gao Zhijian nodded his head dispiritedly and turned to walk towards the stairs.

Looking at his retreating figure, Chun Xiaoman felt some compassion, but still thought it was better to speak sooner rather than later.

Chun Xiaoman sat back down on the ground, picked up the book from the floor, and started to memorize it again.

Although these Spirit Writing Techniques were not comparable to the Divine Skills of Brother Li, she still studied them very seriously.

Her comprehension wasn't as good as Scholar Lv's, but diligence could compensate for her lack of natural ability. If studying for six Hours a day wasn't enough, then she would study for seven or eight Hours.

Sincere effort could break metal and stone, and she could now clumsily apply some simple Divine Strikes.

After all, she never wanted to return to that helpless state where she could be sold by her own father without any resistance.

As Chun Xiaoman concentrated deeply, a noisy commotion of footsteps came from the staircase.

Soon, a panicked Scholar Lv rushed down, "Hurry, hurry, hurry! There's trouble! A gang of bandits has stormed our village; they're killing anyone they see!! Several people are already dead!"