The howling wind and snow ceased in an instant, leaving the mountaintop eerily silent. Xiao Bangchui suddenly felt something was amiss. Looking around, she realized the peak, previously crowded with people, was now deserted—only she remained amidst the endless white snow.
Startled, she called out, "Ge Lin? Lei Xiuyuan?... Ye Ye?"
No answer came. Tiny snowflakes, dense as summer gnats, obscured her vision—this bizarre change was likely another Immortal Technique she didn’t understand.
The only option left was the thatched hut with its door wide open. Hesitating for a moment, Xiao Bangchui finally steeled herself and strode inside. Just like boarding the carriage yesterday, the moment she stepped in, the surroundings transformed again—from the snow-covered peak to a dense forest shrouded in dark clouds.
She stood beneath a massive locust tree. The light was dim, the sky obscured by thick foliage a dull gray. Whether it was mist or miasma, the entire forest was enveloped in a haze where even colors seemed indistinguishable.
A figure moved behind the locust tree, and the long-absent Black-veiled woman emerged silently from nowhere, whispering, "You have one day and one night. If you can safely exit this forest by noon tomorrow, you’ll pass the Second Selection."
As soon as she finished speaking, a small blue-flowered cloth bundle appeared before Xiao Bangchui. The Black-veiled woman continued, "Water and food are for you to find on your own. Inside the bundle are three Curse Seals for each of the five elements—metal, wood, water, fire, and earth. Use them wisely. Remember, the deadline is before noon tomorrow."
Before her voice faded, her figure dissipated like smoke. Xiao Bangchui opened the blue-flowered bundle and found a stack of Talisman Paper inside, different from what her Master usually used—larger in size and of varying colors, with faintly glowing patterns on the incantations. At a glance, she knew these were far more powerful than ordinary Cinnabar Talisman Paper.
After securing the Curse Seals, she surveyed her surroundings. The gray, misty forest made it impossible to tell the time. The "before noon tomorrow" deadline was likely another test of their judgment. She had no idea where the others were—only she stood beneath the locust tree. With no discernible paths in the forest, lacking a sense of direction could easily lead one in circles. Fortunately, having grown up in the mountains, this gray forest felt like a small courtyard compared to the vast wilderness she once called home.
She sucked on her finger, and the dampness soon allowed her to detect a faint breeze from the east. Wind meant open terrain lay in that direction. With light steps, Xiao Bangchui set off.
The forest was eerily quiet, save for the occasional cry of an unknown bird. Amidst the chaotic trees, she occasionally found a type of grass with extremely slender leaves. Cutting its roots yielded plenty of clear water. After a long while, she managed to gather enough to fill a waterskin, sufficient for a day and night.
Judging by the color of the tree leaves, there likely wouldn’t be any fruit. She’d have to search for edible roots or tubers. Xiao Bangchui thought of the unfinished plate of dried tofu from the morning and regretted not bringing it along—she was hungry.
Suddenly, rustling came from the bushes, followed by a plump gray rabbit leaping out. Its hind leg was bloodied, as if injured, and it hopped frantically toward Xiao Bangchui in panic."Where do you think you're running?!" A voice suddenly rang out from the bushes. With a "swish," a Curse Seal shot out like an arrow, landing squarely on the gray rabbit's back. In an instant, several beams of Golden light descended from the sky, piercing the rabbit's body. It rolled over and dropped dead on the spot.
"Hey! That was my rabbit!" The voice from the bushes was arrogant. Branches were forcefully pushed aside as a lavishly dressed little boy stepped out. The two locked eyes and both gasped—it was the same boy she'd slapped with silver coins.
When he saw it was Xiao Bangchui, his eyes first flickered with panic, but that quickly turned to shock. Pointing at her, he nearly jumped: "You're pretending to be a girl?! How disgusting!"
His face twisted with revulsion as he strode forward to pick up the rabbit, emphatically declaring, "This is my rabbit!"
Xiao Bangchui ignored him and turned to continue on her way. Unexpectedly, he urgently called after her, "Hey, you—wait a second!"
She glanced back. The boy seemed to want to approach but recoiled in disgust at her feminine attire, taking several steps back. "Are—are you a boy or a girl?! Answer me!"
"Your eyes aren't blind," Xiao Bangchui replied coldly.
The boy's expression turned peculiar as he scrutinized her, his look of disdain deepening. After a pause, he asked, "Have you seen anyone else around?"
Xiao Bangchui shook her head and turned to leave again.
"Wait!" he shouted once more.
"Spit it all out at once if you've got something to say," Xiao Bangchui snapped impatiently, cracking her knuckles.
The boy hastily retreated, waving his hands. "Alright, alright! No violence! I'm almost out of Curse Seals—do you have any? I'll pay!"
"I don't need silver," she flatly refused.
His face fell slightly before he shook the dead rabbit in his hand. "I'll trade this!"
"I don't eat meat."
Completely at a loss, Ji Tongzhou had never been treated this way in his life. Normally, he'd have whipped such an insolent commoner half to death. But since entering these woods, he hadn't encountered a single person. All those sycophants who usually surrounded him were nowhere to be found. Finally meeting someone, only for it to be this androgynous peasant—it was utterly infuriating!
Growing angrier by the second, he turned on his heel. He refused to believe his luck was so bad that he wouldn't find anyone else besides her.
He hadn't gone far when his fortunes changed—a little girl was running toward him in a panic. "Hey! You there! Come here!" he called out urgently.
The sprinting girl seemed not to hear. As she ran, her arms flailed wildly in a bizarre manner. The closer she got, the clearer her faint cries became.
"Help! Mother! Help me...!"
The eerie sight made Ji Tongzhou gasp. Before he could react, Xiao Bangchui dashed past and grabbed the girl by the shoulders.
"Hey—" he instinctively tried to stop her. Xiao Bangchui turned the girl around, revealing a horrifying sight—thick streams of purplish-black smoke were pouring from the child's facial orifices. The girl's cries grew weaker until she suddenly went limp and collapsed.
"...What was that?" Ji Tongzhou asked, his voice trembling.Xiao Bangchui didn't speak. She laid the girl flat on the ground as those purplish-black fumes continued to billow out in streams, soon transforming into indistinguishable colored mist among the trees—was this miasma? The girl must have succumbed to it!
Instinctively holding her breath, Xiao Bangchui leapt away like a rabbit. Moments later, the girl's body emitted a faint blue glow, gradually turning transparent before vanishing completely from their sight. Was this what elimination looked like? So the forest was filled with miasma, and children who couldn't withstand it would be lured by its illusions, eventually falling unconscious and being eliminated.
The two children standing nearby in stunned silence exchanged glances. Suddenly, Ji Tongzhou spoke: "...Shall we go together?"
Xiao Bangchui remained silent. Perhaps due to continuously practicing the breathing technique taught by the mysterious old man, she felt nothing from the terrifying miasma. This arrogant boy opposite her wasn't simple either—clearly not just some useless pretty face, but someone with real capability.
She pulled out several talismanic incantations and handed them to him: "One for each of the five elements. Use them sparingly."
She tacitly accepted the proposal to travel together. A forest with miasma would inevitably harbor monstrous creatures, and two people were safer than one.
"...What's your name?" Ji Tongzhou asked awkwardly. Deep down, he disdained associating with riffraff like Xiao Bangchui, but circumstances forced them to travel together, so names had to be exchanged.
"Xiao Bangchui."
"...Really?" Was she joking? Who in the world would have such a stupid name?
"Really."
Ji Tongzhou still didn't believe her, but he couldn't bring himself to make up some ridiculous name like "Little Hammer" or "Tiny Mallet" either. Reluctantly, he told the truth: "My surname is Ji, as in discipline, given name Tongzhou, with 'tong' as in paulownia tree and 'zhou' as in celestial—"
"No need to explain in such detail. I won't have occasion to write your name," she interrupted mercilessly.
"You—!!" Fine. He wouldn't stoop to arguing with commoners. He'd endure!
After walking for who knew how long, the trees grew increasingly dense until there was barely space to place their feet. The boy behind her was breathing heavily, his footsteps growing labored. Surprisingly, he showed considerable perseverance, never complaining or demanding rest.
Xiao Bangchui wiped her sweat. She was exhausted too—she'd underestimated this forest. After walking so long, there was still no sign of an exit. Judging by the time, nightfall must be approaching, though the gray haze made it impossible to tell. At this rate, they might have to travel through the night.
A familiar-sounding wail came from afar. Xiao Bangchui glanced back at Ji Tongzhou, who nodded: "Let's check it out."
The closer they got, the more familiar the crying sounded. Pushing aside the annoying branches, Xiao Bangchui suddenly found herself in a small clearing where three or four dead monstrous creatures lay smoking with black fumes. The source of the crying was none other than the crybaby Lei Xiuyuan, sitting opposite the creatures and sobbing uncontrollably. Anyone unaware of the situation might think it was his father who'd died.
"Lei Xiuyuan."
Xiao Bangchui called his name. Lei Xiuyuan turned his head blankly, then cried even harder upon recognizing her.
"Big sis... sob ... These monsters... These monsters wanted to eat me..." he lamented with heart-wrenching misery.Xiao Bangchui couldn't help but sigh, "...They're already dead. Did you do this?"
The corpses were emitting black smoke—likely struck by lightning. He had used the Curse Seals quite skillfully and even killed the Demon, so she didn't understand why he was crying so hard. And with such vigor too—he seemed resilient enough against the forest's Miasma.
Lei Xiuyuan rubbed his eyes and nodded, finally managing to stop his sobs as he stood up. When he caught sight of Ji Tongzhou behind Xiao Bangchui, he choked up again, mumbling, "You... you..."
Ji Tongzhou had long lost his patience, but with Xiao Bangchui present, he didn't dare lash out. He could only frown and snap, "What?!"
Lei Xiuyuan glanced at him, then at Xiao Bangchui, hesitating as if unsure what to say.
"The forest is full of Miasma, and there might still be Monstrous creatures around. It's safer if we stick together." Xiao Bangchui confirmed he wasn't injured before adding, "Alright, it's getting late. Let's find a sheltered spot to rest before continuing."
Ji Tongzhou protested urgently, "No sleep?"
"If we sleep, we might not make it in time."
Grumbling under his breath, Ji Tongzhou reluctantly followed. Lei Xiuyuan quietly moved closer to Xiao Bangchui and whispered, "Big Sis, are you hungry?"
Starving—almost to death—but she still hadn't found any edible roots or bark.
Lei Xiuyuan secretly slipped her a piece of dried tofu. "Here. I didn't finish it this morning and snuck it into my bag."
Dried tofu! Xiao Bangchui couldn't help but swallow hard. The thick slice in her hand would surely ease the gnawing emptiness in her stomach, but...
"What about you? Do you have anything to eat?"
"I already ate, and I have this." Lei Xiuyuan pulled a gray goose from his bulging sleeve. "We can roast it later when we rest."
Xiao Bangchui shook her head. "I don't eat meat."
She glanced back at Ji Tongzhou. His face was pale, clearly exhausted, and he was clutching the rabbit in his hand so tightly it looked like he wanted to devour it raw.
Tearing the dried tofu in half, she handed a piece to Ji Tongzhou. "Eat this. Hang in there."
Ji Tongzhou looked incredulous, but the sight of the grimy tofu filled him with disgust—especially since it came from two little beggars. Yet he was so hungry he was seeing stars. After a long pause, he suddenly snatched the tofu and shoved it into his mouth, swallowing it without chewing.
"Ugh..." The tofu had a strange taste—probably from the beggars' grime. Ji Tongzhou's stomach churned. The tofu had an unexpected effect: he wasn't hungry anymore. In fact, he felt like throwing up...
Before long, Xiao Bangchui quickened her pace. She had spotted a massive maple tree—its sap was edible. Though not as filling as roots or bark, it would at least provide some relief.
"Let's rest here."
Circling the tree, she chose a sheltered spot and bent to gather dry grass, leaves, and branches, quickly arranging two small piles. Ji Tongzhou generously produced his fire starter and lit both piles. The gray rabbit and goose were hastily plucked, skinned, and thrown over the flames. The children leaned against the tree, facing the soon-to-be-finished feast, finally able to exhale in relief.Xiao Bangchui took out a small knife and began digging vigorously into the tree. After a while, she managed to carve out a hole, and soon, pale golden sap slowly oozed out. She cupped her hands to catch it and took a few sips—unlike the cloyingly sweet taste of ordinary maple trees, this was milder but refreshingly fragrant. Feeling invigorated, she drank her fill of the sap, then used leaves to dab some onto the rabbit and the gray goose.
"What are you smearing on my rabbit?!" Ji Tongzhou was startled and quickly snatched his rabbit back.
"Maple sap," Xiao Bangchui tossed the leaf aside. "You'd better flip it over, or it'll burn."
He looked down and saw that one side of the rabbit was nearly charred. Hastily, he clumsily turned it over. As the fire roasted the sap-coated meat, an incredibly rich and sweet aroma began to waft through the air—so enticing that even someone accustomed to fine dining like him couldn't resist. He had never smelled anything so delicious before... Damn it, how could something so crude smell this good? It must be because he was too hungry!
The gray goose was soon roasted. Lei Xiuyuan tore off a leg and handed it to Xiao Bangchui. "Big Sis, you can't skip meat—your stamina won't keep up. Here, take this."
Xiao Bangchui shook her head again. "I don't eat meat."
She had never been able to eat meat since childhood—any kind of meat. Whether it was due to her constitution or something else, whenever she unknowingly ate meat as a child, she would vomit everything she had eaten before. As she grew older, she tried forcing herself to eat meat, but the moment it touched her tongue, an instinctive revulsion would make her spit it out immediately—completely beyond her control. Fortunately, even without meat, her vegetarian diet didn't leave her weak or sickly. In fact, she was sturdier than most kids. Gradually, even her Master stopped bothering about her peculiar dietary quirk. If he wanted meat, he had to eat it outside—back home, not a trace of meat was allowed.
So she really didn’t eat meat—it wasn’t just to spite him... Ji Tongzhou gnawed happily on the rabbit leg. This was his first time eating in such a barbaric, uncivilized manner. He prayed no one he knew would pass by and witness this—his dignity would be lost for eight lifetimes.
Xiao Bangchui rolled leaves into tubes, filled them with water, and handed one to each of them. Ji Tongzhou had been shocked too many times today and had no energy left for further astonishment. He took the water and gulped it down—it tasted sweet and refreshingly cool.
Xiao Bangchui distributed the remaining water from her pouch between the two of them, then went back to digging for roots to collect more water. By the time she had refilled the pouch, she turned to find Lei Xiuyuan and Ji Tongzhou both fast asleep against the tree, full and content. This forest was full of hidden dangers—how could they just fall asleep like that? She couldn’t afford to sleep; she had to stay alert.
"Big Sis..." Lei Xiuyuan suddenly opened his eyes beside her and looked at her quietly. "Can I ask you a few questions?"
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