"Wende, when you travel the galaxy in the future, remember this: never speak your master's esteemed name."
Underneath the great golden tree, his Master spoke to the young Wende, who had grown into a teenager, with solemn gravity.
"Master... you've never even told me your name... I've been asking you for ten years..."
Wende looked helplessly at the grumpy old man before him. Every time he asked for his name or where he was from, the old man would feign sleep or confusion, or he would make an empty promise to trick him into memorizing medical texts, only to go back on his word later...
"Ah? I haven't told you?"
The Master shook his head in disbelief, his clouded eyes staring at Wende, full of doubt.
"No..." Wende shrugged.
"Phew... That's good... That's good."
The Master looked immensely relieved, as if someone knowing his name was a matter of grave importance.
"So, old man, what's gotten into you? You've been acting so strange lately. Want me to give you a few needles?"
Wende looked at his Master with worried eyes. As his only family in this life, he didn't want anything to happen to the man before him.
"Hehe... Do you think I wouldn't know if I was sick? I'm your master!"
Patting his withered chest, the Master struck a heroic pose as if he were unparalleled in all of heaven and earth.
"Ahem, cough, cough..."
"Calm down, calm down... You're getting old, stop hitting yourself all the time."
Wende sat beside his Master, using the power of [Abundance] to help sort out the flow of qi within his body.
But the more he sorted it, the deeper Wende's frown became.
"Hahaha, a man gets old..."
The Master looked up at the sky with a sigh, his gaze finally settling on Wende beside him. His only disciple... and his only salvation.
"Master... your body..."
Looking at his decrepit Master, a wave of bitterness washed over Wende's heart.
"Hahaha, birth, old age, sickness, and death are the natural way of things," the Master said with a carefree shake of his head.
"I once strayed onto the wrong path, foolishly dreaming of eternal life. But it wasn't until I saw many things, until I personally obtained this so-called immortality... that I discovered that eternal life... is merely another form of death."
The Master's withered hand gripped Wende's still-fair one. Their hands were a stark contrast—one as dry and sallow as deadwood, the other as fair and delicate as a newborn's.
"Rather than being a living dead, it's better to face death with a calm heart..."
"Wende, you must remember, when my time is near, things will surely become chaotic. When that time comes, no matter what happens, you must... you must find a way to leave this place. Use the knowledge I taught you, and go explore the endless sea of stars..."
Lifting his head, the Master looked at the azure sky above. Golden leaves drifted down slowly from the great tree behind him... It was autumn once again...
His own "winter," wasn't far off, was it?
Looking at the disciple by his side, a glimmer of clarity flashed through the Master's clouded eyes.
This great tree... he had planted it together with a young Wende. Back then, looking much younger himself, he had personally held that small hand, dug into the soil, and planted the sapling...
"..."
Sensing the Yin and Yang energies within the person beside him gradually returning to a state of peace, Wende remained silent.
He understood that when the Yin and Yang energies reached a perfect equilibrium, it would be his Master's time to "retire." But...
The Yin energy still held the dominant position, yet his Master showed no signs of regaining his youth...
"Birth, old age, sickness, and death... is this the natural way of things?"
Wende looked up at the treetops, perplexed, and simply lay down under the great tree.
"Haha, I was once like you. But I ultimately walked the wrong path. And you, my disciple, you will be more correct than your master. Even... more correct than that person."
"Who?"
The Master just smiled and said nothing.
"Hey! Don't be a riddle-master!"
"Sigh, what should we eat tonight? White cut chicken again?"
"Forget your white cut chicken. I recently learned a few new dishes. There's one called spicy tofu, want to try it?"
"You rebellious disciple! Don't you know your master can't eat spicy food!"
"Tsk, it's not spicy! It's better than stewing soup and making pastries for you every day!"
.........
"Hello? Young man? Are you listening?"
Bailu's clear voice snapped Wende out of his memories.
Meeting Bailu's questioning gaze, Wende simply smiled.
"My apologies, it is not convenient to disclose my master's esteemed name."
"Is that so... Well, I can't force you. I must still thank you for saving me," Bailu said politely.
"However... I still need to check on these Cloud Knights. Even though you pushed back their Mara-struck state, it wouldn't be good if they had other external injuries."
With that, Bailu walked toward the nearest Cloud Knight.
"I don't know... but this little doctor's style feels completely different from everyone else's," March whispered to Welt and Stelle.
"Mm, she is of the Vidyadhara. I've read about them in some documents. It is said they are descendants of dragons. Seeing one today, it is indeed so," Welt said with a sigh of admiration.
"However, it looks like this place has already been turned into a patient reception area," Wende noted, looking at the stretchers, medical supplies, and the few bandaged Cloud Knights who had just arrived at the plaza.
"It seems the Stellaron's impact is greater than we imagined. But with this little miracle doctor here, there shouldn't be too much of a problem, right?"
Welt watched Bailu's busy figure, then, as if a thought struck him, he turned his gaze to Wende.
Wende silently nodded.
"I see. Since we've chosen to help the Xianzhou, then let's do it. If you need our help, just say so," Welt said, understanding the meaning in Wende's eyes and nodding in agreement.
"Thank you, Uncle Yang!"
Wende smiled at Welt, then walked towards the nearby injured Cloud Knights.
"Err... so, is there anything we can help with?"
Watching Wende already starting to treat the knights, March suddenly felt like there wasn't much she could do at the moment...
"What we can do now is maintain order. If a new abomination appears, we stop it in time, and then let Wende or that little doctor try to save them," Welt analyzed the current situation and gave the most logical answer.
"Hmm, I feel like after Wende joined the Astral Express, we've become more like a rescue team!" March said with a smile.
"It would be even better if Stelle would just behave herself!"
Stelle: "???"