Behind Mu Yi's cheerful laughter lay a story few truly knew.
Mu Yi lived with his father in a modest wooden house on the edge of the village. His father, Mu Zhen, was a traveling merchant—well-known for his kindness and helpful nature, though he often returned home late due to his work taking him from one village to another.
His mother had passed away when Mu Yi was just three years old. The story that went around simply said she fell ill and never recovered. Since then, Mu Zhen had raised Mu Yi on his own. Perhaps that's why Mu Yi grew into such a lively, talkative, and social child—as if laughter and words were the walls he built to keep his heart warm.
"My dad says life is like doing business," Mu Yi once told Li Yuan and Fan Tu.
"Sometimes you gain, sometimes you lose... but you have to keep going."
Li Yuan simply nodded. He wasn't one for long replies, but he understood the meaning.
Mu Yi was different.
If Li Yuan preferred silence and Fan Tu laughed loudly, then Mu Yi was the one who filled the space between them. He was like a small fire on a cold night—not one that burns, but one that gives warmth.
Even though he lived with just his father, Mu Yi's house always felt lively—thanks to the sound of his own voice. He would talk about his father's goods, funny customers, or the strange things he saw at the market.
But beneath it all, Li Yuan knew... there was an emptiness Mu Yi tried to hide.
"Do you ever miss your mother?" Li Yuan asked one night as they sat by the riverbank.
Mu Yi smiled, but didn't answer right away.
"Sometimes I dream of a woman singing to me... her voice is so soft. Maybe that's her."
After that, they sat in silence. But it wasn't an awkward silence—it was one of quiet understanding.
Mu Yi might not have been the strongest, nor the most serious in training, but his spirit and joy often became the reason the three of them kept moving forward.
And in a world that had yet to know Qi or great powers...
A strong heart was the purest strength they had.