60: The dust has settled, but the road ahead is long.

Quiet Garden. The afternoon sunlight filtered through the carved wooden windows, spilling into Lin Xiaoyu's bedroom and casting mottled warm colors on the smooth floor.

Lin Xiaoyu woke up.

Her eyelashes fluttered slightly as she slowly opened her eyes. What met her gaze was the familiar ceiling—the feather chandelier she had personally picked out was hanging there quietly. Her eyes held a hint of confusion upon waking, as if she had just broken free from a deep dream.

"Mom..." Her lips moved slightly, her voice dry and weak.

Su Wanhua, who had been guarding the bedside, looked up almost instantly. This normally elegant woman now had bloodshot eyes and a haggard face. Seeing her daughter truly open her eyes, her tears rolled down without warning, and her voice trembled uncontrollably: "Xiaoyu! Xiaoyu, you're awake! You're finally awake!"

She tightly grasped her daughter's hand. The warm touch of that hand made her almost want to kneel down and thank the heavens.

Hurried footsteps came from outside the door. Lin Wenyuan and Zhao Xiawen rushed into the room almost at the same time. When they saw Lin Xiaoyu indeed leaning against the headboard, her eyes still a bit unfocused but definitely conscious, the two of them let out a long sigh of relief in unison—in that breath was the anxiety, fear, and final relief that had lasted for several days.

Li Muchen stood at the door of the room without stepping inside. He quietly felt the aura circulating within the room—those cold, lingering resentments that had once occupied it were now completely gone.

Lin Xiaoyu's Soul had safely returned to its place, with the Three Ethereal Souls and Seven Corporeal Spirits each performing their duties. Although her Qi and blood were still somewhat deficient and she was inevitably exhausted mentally, her Foundation was undamaged. She only needed a few days of good rest to recover as usual. He nodded slightly; this was already the best outcome.

"Dad..." Lin Xiaoyu's gaze fell on her father, her eyes filled with a bit of confusion. "I... I seem to have had a very, very long dream... It was very dark and cold in the dream... Someone was crying..."

Her memory was still stuck on the chaotic and terrifying fragments from when she was being eroded by resentment.

"It's okay, Xiaoyu, it's all over." Lin Wenyuan walked quickly to the bedside and took his daughter's other hand, his voice choking with emotion. "It's really all over. You're home now, you're safe."

The warmth and steadiness of his palm gradually dispelled the remaining unease in the depths of Lin Xiaoyu's eyes.

Li Muchen did not go in to disturb this family's reunion after the disaster. He quietly retreated and turned to go to the courtyard of Quiet Garden. The ancient locust tree in the courtyard had lush foliage, rustling in the late summer wind and sifting down fine, swaying shadows of light. He stopped under the tree and looked up. The sky was as blue as if it had been washed, white clouds leisurely rolled and stretched, and an occasional cool breeze brushed past his cheeks, bringing the clean scent of vegetation.

This was how the Mortal World should look—peaceful and tranquil.

"Temple Master."

A soft call sounded behind him. Li Muchen turned around and saw it was Li Shiyu. Her eyes were also slightly red, but her expression was much calmer than it had been a few days ago. She walked up to Li Muchen and solemnly bent down, giving a deep bow.

"Thank you." Her voice was sincere and clear. "If it weren't for you, Xiaoyu would probably..."

"It was just a small effort." Li Muchen's tone remained flat, showing no significant emotion.

"It might be a small effort to you, but to our Lin family and to Xiaoyu, this kindness is as heavy as a mountain." Li Shiyu raised her head, her gaze firm. "In the future, if there is ever a place where I can be of use, please don't hesitate to ask. Although my abilities are limited, I, Li Shiyu, will surely do my utmost."

Li Muchen nodded but didn't say much. He helped people never to exchange for promises or rewards. Karma cycles in the world and has its own way; he acted only to follow his own heart and be worthy of Heaven and Earth.

In the evening, to express their gratitude, the Lin family set up a banquet in Quiet Garden. The dishes were exquisite and abundant, filling the entire round mahogany table, with no lack of precious ingredients. Lin Wenyuan and his wife were warmly hospitable, their gratitude evident in their words and expressions.

Li Muchen took his seat calmly, but after only lightly touching a few plates of light vegetarian dishes, he put down his ivory chopsticks.

"Temple Master, are the dishes not to your taste?" Lin Wenyuan asked with concern upon seeing this.

"It is not so." Li Muchen shook his head. "For a practitioner, a diet should ideally be light; there is no need for excessive extravagance."

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His attitude was gentle yet distant, carrying the unique tranquility of someone beyond the mundane world. Lin Wenyuan understood and stopped insisting, but the respect in his heart grew deeper—this young Temple Master possessed heavenly skills, a simple Heart-Nature, and was not driven by material things; he was truly a master.

After the banquet, Li Muchen prepared to take his leave.

"Temple Master, please wait." Lin Wenyuan hurriedly called out to him, took out a thick manila envelope from his coat, and presented it with both hands. "This is a small token of our appreciation. Please be sure to accept it. Great kindness is hard to repay, so we can only use this to express a bit of our gratitude."

The envelope had quite a bit of weight, clearly containing a significant amount.

Li Muchen's gaze swept over the envelope, but he didn't reach out to take it.

"There is no need for this." His voice was calm but left no room for doubt.

"But..." Lin Wenyuan wanted to persuade him further.

"Money is useless to me; rather, it is a burden." Li Muchen interrupted him, his tone indifferent. "If Layman Lin truly has the intention, when you have time in the future, you can go to Qingfeng Temple on Yuntai Mountain to offer some incense. That will complete this connection."

Hearing this, Lin Wenyuan immediately promised solemnly: "Certainly, certainly! Another day, I will personally bring my whole family up the mountain to express our thanks, contribute to the construction of Qingfeng Temple, and offer incense."

Li Muchen nodded slightly and turned his gaze to Lin Xiaoyu, who was sitting quietly to the side. After a full day of rest and food, the girl's face had recovered some color and her eyes were clear and bright, though she still had a bit of weak weariness from her recent recovery.

"Lin Xiaoyu." He spoke. His voice wasn't loud, but it made the girl immediately sit up straight and listen intently.

"That pen, and similar 'games,' do not touch them again in the future," Li Muchen said.

Lin Xiaoyu nodded vigorously, still feeling lingering fear: "I wouldn't dare to anymore! I really wouldn't dare!"

"It's not that I want you to 'not dare'." Li Muchen looked at her, his gaze deep. "But rather that it's 'unnecessary.' Some things in this world, some boundaries, are not set to restrain you. Youthful curiosity is natural, but one must know that curiosity also needs the guidance of wisdom. In some Domains, if you step in carelessly, you will invite unprovoked disasters, even affecting your life. This is not alarmist talk."

His words were calm but carried a heavy power, each word striking Lin Xiaoyu's heart. The girl lowered her head and said softly but firmly: "I will remember, Temple Master. Thank you for your teachings."

Only then did Li Muchen shift his gaze back to Lin Wenyuan: "That old pen from the republic of china, has it been properly settled?"

"It has been buried." Lin Wenyuan's expression was solemn. "At Nanshan Cemetery, right next to Ms. Liu's grave. I set up a joint tombstone for them, so that these two sisters with bitter fates... can accompany each other in the other world and not be lonely."

Such an arrangement carried a late warmth and consolation from the living. Li Muchen nodded and said no more. This was fine. A tragedy that had spanned nearly a century, after the dust had settled, could find some peace in this way; perhaps it was the best mercy fate could provide.

The night grew darker, and the lights began to glow.

Li Muchen declined the Lin family's offer of a car and left Quiet Garden alone, stepping into the city's brilliant night. The traffic on the streets was like a woven tapestry, and the neon lights interlaced into a flowing river of light, vividly rendering the city's noise and prosperity.

This massive city remained full of vitality at night, with people in a hurry, either rushing home or enjoying the nightlife. Few people knew that just a few hours ago, in a quiet cemetery on the other side of the city, a blood-and-tear grudge that had been silent for ninety years had finally come to an end.

Few people knew that a woman's Soul, which had been imprisoned at the bottom of a dark well for nearly a century, had finally seen the light of day, had its resentment washed away, and had safely passed on.

Even fewer people knew that a seemingly ordinary Taoist in green robes was silently walking through the dark corners of the Mortal World, smoothing over those scars invisible to ordinary people and settling those entangled Karmas.

Li Muchen raised his head and looked at the night sky above the city, which was reflected in a dark red color by the lights. A few scattered stars flickered stubbornly with faint light, and a crescent moon hung coldly in the sky. He suddenly remembered Chen Shuyi's last whisper before she dissipated, a voice full of the most humble yet profound hope for the next life.

"If there is a next life... I want to be born in an era where women can choose freely."

It will happen.

He responded silently in his heart.

It definitely will.

This world might still be imperfect, and there might still be many injustices and shadows, but it was indeed moving forward slowly and firmly. The struggle, Awakening, and effort of generation after generation were bit by bit prying at those deep-rooted shackles and widening those once narrow roads. Light might come slowly, but darkness would eventually retreat inch by inch.

That was enough. With hope, there is the power to move forward.

He withdrew his gaze and continued to step forward. His figure seemed a bit out of place on the colorful street, yet it strangely blended into the myriad of lights from the homes. Soon, that simple green-gray Taoist robe vanished into the bustling crowd and the mottled light and shadows, and his trace could no longer be found.

Behind him was the warm light shining from countless windows, the joys and sorrows of countless ordinary families, and the full weight and temperature of the smoke-and-fire Mortal World.

In front of him was a long road with no visible end, a distance still shrouded in the mist of the unknown, the next corner that might be calling for help, and the next Karma waiting to be settled.

His road was still very long.

Because this world was very large, with a population of hundreds of millions. In the long river of time, too many unheard cries had been deposited, and too many unredressed grievances had been buried. Chen Shuyi would not be the last, and Chen Shiru would not be the last either.

There were still countless injured Souls wandering in the darkness, and countless Souls who had caused harm but had never paid the price were evading. These tangled balls of thread needed someone to patiently untangle them; these unbalanced scales needed someone to carefully calibrate them.

But, it was okay.

He would keep walking.

Carrying the memories of two lifetimes, carrying the skills gained from a lifetime of cultivation, and carrying a heart that had experienced the vicissitudes of life but had never cooled. Step by step, he walked toward the places that needed him, whether it was a hidden corner of a bustling city or an ancient legend in a remote mountain village.

Until grievances were redressed, until resentment was forgiven, and until those twisted Karmas were set right again. Until this Mortal World he protected could bit by bit become clearer, more just, and closer to the beautiful way it was originally meant to be.

This, perhaps, was the deepest meaning of his living this life again.

This, perhaps, was the most fundamental purpose of his embarking on this long road of cultivation.

The night wind blew through the gaps between the high-rise buildings, bringing the blurred sounds of the city from afar. In the wind, there seemed to be an almost imperceptible whisper, the tone ancient and peaceful:

"taoist greeting."

Then, there was the sound of steady and composed footsteps, neither fast nor slow, gradually fading away.

Step by step.

Unwaveringly, walking toward the place where the next story begins.