Watching the black-robed great demon disappear into the horizon, he sat on the city wall and took a sip of wine.
However, when the gourd left his lips, there were some mottled bloodstains on it.
"Sword Immortal Senior, why didn't you seize the opportunity and pursue him? If a great demon dies here, the pressure on the Northern Frontier would be reduced considerably!"
If it was in the past, for anything else, he would let Liu Banbi do whatever he wanted to do. However, seeing a great demon escape right from under their noses, Wan Shi could not understand why the sword immortal senior in front of him did not do anything and just allowed the other party to leave.
Hence, he spoke out recklessly.
Liu Banbi paid no attention and just casually said, "Although he was injured by me, his origin was unharmed. The reason he retreated wasn't that he feared I would kill him with the next strike, but rather, he was worried that this might be a trap we set. If he waited a little longer, it wouldn't just be one Nepenthe cultivator playing with him. As for me, without anyone else's help, killing him would take some time."
Liu Banbi said indifferently, "According to you, even if it takes some time, it won't be a big problem to go deep into the desolate north, right?"
Wan Shi shook his head and hurriedly said, "If it's just on the city wall, you should naturally go all out to kill the demon, Senior. But going deep into the desolate north is unnecessary. There might be ambushes set up by the demons, and it's not a good thing to leave so easily."
Liu Banbi remained silent. It was just that a trace of blood had already flowed from his lips.
"Senior?!"
Wan Shi lowered his voice but still exclaimed in surprise.
Liu Banbi casually raised his hand to wipe away the bloodstains, "It's not that I didn't want to kill him, nor am I afraid to venture deep into the desolate north, and it's not because of the injuries on my body. The reason for not killing him is straightforward: many more people still need saving at this moment."
After saying these words, Liu Banbi stood up. The words spoken earlier were only for adjusting his condition, nothing more.
"Over at the General's Office, so many abandoned pieces have been decided. Although there are reasons that make it necessary to give them up, in my eyes, there's no one in this world who should be abandoned. So, whoever needs saving should be saved."
As Liu Banbi spoke, he had already soared into the sky, heading towards the next location. He did not mention the risks involved because it would have no meaning.
Dying somewhere was not important to him.
After so many years in the Northern Frontier, he had long ceased to have any regrets. If he died, so be it.
Oh, actually, there was still some regret.
That little junior sister was said to be even more talented than him, and even more suited to learn the sword. He had written so many letters, but had not met her yet.
A streak of sword light swept past the horizon!
……
……
The Divine Capital was covered in heavy snow.
In a trance, another winter quietly arrived. The Divine Capital was blanketed in heavy snow, and everything in the world was cloaked in pure white. Especially over at the academy, the South Lake was frozen, and the small pavilion in the middle of the lake was buried under deep snow.
The Dean returned from the South and saw that there were not many changes. On this snowy day, he cooked a pot of mutton and ate it under the pavilion.
However, there were only two people who could accompany him.
There was the scholar Wei Xu who often accompanied the Dean, as well as the Xie Family's girl who was now already a sword cultivator, Xie Nandu.
The Dean casually grabbed a large bone, disregarding whether it had any oil on it, and simply buried his head to bite into it. He completely did not care that his hands were covered in grease.
Beside him, Wei Xu watched a small stove, on top of which a pot of ordinary sorghum wine was kept warm.
A clean cloth was laid out on the stone table in front of the Dean.
Xie Nandu picked up a piece of lamb and put it in her mouth, chewing slowly without speaking.
The Dean finally finished the big bone. Putting the bone down, he picked up the cloth and wiped his hands carelessly. As soon as he finished wiping, Wei Xu poured a bowl of wine for the Dean. The Dean reached out and took it with satisfaction. Smelling the sorghum wine which had a richer fragrance after heating, he sighed, "Days like these may seem ordinary, but if common folks can live like this from time to time, they won't be bothered by who the Emperor will visit next year. The beauty of life doesn't necessarily have to be so grand. Having a meal of mutton in winter is wonderful too."
Listening to these words, Xie Nandu raised her head as if to speak, but the Dean shook his head. He picked up the wine bowl and downed it in one gulp. Feeling the aroma of the wine dancing in his mouth, he then said, "In the prosperous eras of history, it's nothing more than everyone being able to eat their fill. Wanting to eat meat is difficult, and not getting eaten isn't easy either."
Putting down the wine bowl, the dean lamented again, "The snow in the Divine Capital this year seems to have come earlier than usual. Now, I reckon it hasn't even started snowing in the desolate north."
Xie Nandu said softly, "According to Senior Brother's recent letters, when talking about the desolate north, there should be another month or so before it starts snowing."
The Dean asked, "How long has it been since that kid sent a letter?"
Since the time Xie Nandu said she would start practicing the sword, after the Dean wrote a letter to the desolate north, Xie Nandu and that senior brother frequently exchanged letters. For the difficulties in Sword Dao, that senior brother would give an answer.
"It's been over a month. The last time Senior Brother wrote, he mentioned that he found time to write a letter when resting from a great battle. I sent a letter to Senior Brother at the beginning of the month, but he hasn't replied. The situation in the desolate north is probably at its most difficult now."
Xie Nandu looked at the dean with a questioning look in her eyes.
The Dean smiled and just said, "Your senior brother was actually an excellent student many years ago. He could memorize those sages' principles after reading it a few times, and he could also express his own opinions. Speaking of which, there's another brat who always likes to misinterpret the meaning of the sages. He really deserves a bea... forget it, he just likes reading, so naturally, he reads everything. Studying too much isn't a good thing either, just like this foolish kid here. One day, he flipped through those history books, saw the history of cannibalism, and felt that we scholars are useless."
Speaking up to here, the Dean turned to Wei Xu.
Wei Xu said softly, "Indeed, we're not as good at fighting as sword cultivators."
The Dean snorted coldly and said with a frown, "Stumbled his way into learning the sword by accident and it turned out he really has some talent for it. It made him feel amazing. He happily went to the Sword Qi Mountain, took a sword, and never came back, running to the Northern Frontier. How many years has it been?"
Wei Xu smiled but did not speak. He had interacted with that fellow apprentice brother before too, and was aware of his carefree nature. Actually, even if he stayed in the academy, there would probably be a day when he found the academy boring and left. He would also go elsewhere even if he did not go to the Northern Frontier.
"Don't worry, teacher. No matter how dire the warfare in the Northern Frontier..."
Wei Xu hesitated in his words.
The dean snorted coldly and said impatiently, "When did I worry about him?"
Xie Nandu remained silent.
Wei Xu just poured another bowl of wine for his teacher.
The Dean looked at the boiling lamb in the pot, at the continuously rising white mist, and said nothing.
Xie Nandu silently ate the mutton.
After an unknown amount of time, Xie Nandu slowly stood up and bowed to the Dean seriously.
The dean glanced at her and casually said, "In the end, you're my disciple. If you've been bullied, as a teacher, I naturally have to do something about it. Besides, it's not a big deal, why bother?"
Xie Nandu smiled and said, "Since Teacher has done something for this student, there's no problem with this student expressing gratitude through with a bow."
Hearing this, the Dean smiled faintly and did not stop her anymore. It was just that after watching Xie Nandu bow, he said with satisfaction, "Since you've also studied quite a few books and are now practicing the sword, you're following the same path as your senior brother. It's just that he feels a headache when he reads those sages' books now, don't learn from him."
Xie Nandu nodded slightly, remaining silent.
The Dean muttered, "That fellow has truly become a sword cultivator. There's no trace of a scholar in him anymore."
Afterward, the Dean chatted idly for a while more, it was nothing more than some words of advice. Xie Nandu listened quietly, and finally, the Dean waved his hand, allowing her to leave.
Wei Xu looked at the pot with only a little bit of mutton left and was about to carry it away.
Suddenly, the dean said, "Wei Xu, cook a bowl of longevity noodles."
Wei Xu instinctively asked, "Teacher's birthday doesn't seem to be today?"
The Dean sneered, "Of course it's not today!"
Wei Xu was taken aback, feeling a bit dazed.
The Dean did not explain anything and just waited for a while. Wei Xu then brought a bowl of longevity noodles to the Dean.
After placing it in front of him, Wei Xu could not resist asking, "Teacher, where in the world would one eat longevity noodles on their disciple's behalf on their birthday?"
The Dean looked at the bowl of longevity noodles in front of him and became unusually serious as he said, "That fellow is in the North, even if today is his birthday, he might still be wandering around the gates of hell. How would he have time to eat this?"
Staring at the longevity noodles before him, the Dean grumbled, "Stinking brat."
……
