Chapter 52

"Get out of the way!"

Qin Sang cast a cold glance at the surrounding soldiers. Though his body was free of blood, he appeared no less terrifying to the soldiers than a fierce demon.

He took a step forward, and without waiting for the general's order, all the soldiers parted like the tide, looking at Qin Sang with awe, none daring to stop him.

Qin Sang seized a horse and, under everyone's watchful eyes, galloped straight toward the city gate.

At the Jiangzhou Marquis's residence, the new plaque had been pierced by a long sword, and the crown prince's body hung from the sword, still swaying. A pool of blood had gathered on the steps, red and glaring.

*Clomp clomp clomp...*

Qin Sang rode down the long street, galloping to the capital city gate, where Wu Chuanzong was guarding with a group of soldiers.

Seeing Qin Sang approach, Wu Chuanzong personally opened the city gate and shouted, "Sir, take care!"

"Marquis!"

It was Zhou Ning, the water monkey, leading a fine horse. "Fast horses have been prepared at all the military posts along the way. Marquis, take care on your journey!"

Seeing Zhou Ning, Qin Sang couldn't help but recall their first meeting on the Wuling River, feeling a deep sense of emotion as he patted Zhou Ning's shoulder, which was missing an arm, but not knowing what to say.

"Take care, we'll meet again!"

Qin Sang changed horses and galloped out of the city. Not far from the city, he suddenly had a premonition and turned to look behind him.

He saw a lavish banquet set up on the city wall, with the Long Princess sitting behind the table, staring at Qin Sang. Bai Jianglan and Old Yue stood by her side, bowing to Qin Sang.

The Long Princess, dressed in the armor of a city guard, her eyes shining like stars under the moonlight, raised an amber cup and toasted Qin Sang, drinking it in one gulp.

She stood up and left.

Her crimson cloak disappeared into the darkness.

...

Qin Sang followed the official road, traveling smoothly.

From the capital to the southwest, all the way to Zhen Shui County, the Three Witches City remained unchanged, but the Green Sheep Temple had been occupied by refugees.

Then Qin Sang turned west, crossing the Wuling River, and arrived at the Chen Shui River, revisiting the old place.

The traces of the great fire had been erased by time, but Qin Sang could still find some bones.

After searching for a while, he found the remains of the Song surname youth and the black-clothed demon under the grass and soil.

The two sets of remains were easy to identify. Qin Sang arranged the remains of the Song surname youth and built a grave for him, and also buried the black-clothed demon, as the *Yinming Sutra* was obtained from him, which had opened the door to his immortal path.

Qin Sang paid his respects and continued on his journey.

Now he was no longer afraid of wolves or tigers, traveling boldly through the mountains and forests. Before long, he arrived at the northern border of Ningguo.

Further west, through another country, he would reach the Tianlu River.

Qin Sang hesitated for a moment. After arriving in Ningguo, he had a strange impulse to visit Wangjia Village.

He wasn't sure if it was due to the memories of Qin Sanwa, which had created an emotional connection, or if it was a sense of compensation for Qin Sanwa.

Even if he took a detour, it wouldn't delay him for more than a few days, which was negligible compared to the long journey to Biyun Country. It wouldn't affect his major plans, so Qin Sang didn't hesitate for long and decided to visit Wangjia Village.

When he arrived at Wangjia Village, it was deep into the night.

This peaceful little village had not changed much over the years, and everything matched Qin Sanwa's memories. Qin Sang felt a strange sense of familiarity and strangeness.

Qin Sanwa's home was in the northern part of Wangjia Village, with fields behind it. The courtyard was not small, with a row of five stone houses. When Qin Sanwa had his accident, only his eldest brother had married, and his second brother had just become engaged but had not yet brought his bride home. The whole family lived together.

His mother and eldest sister-in-law often quarreled, which used to be annoying, but now it seemed somewhat warm.

An owl hooted twice from a tree.

Qin Sang suddenly realized he was smiling, almost immersed in Qin Sanwa's world.

He reminded himself that he was Qin Sang, a visitor from another realm, and Qin Sanwa was dead. Those memories were like watching a long movie, with all the actors being strangers.

At that moment, the Qin family courtyard appeared before him.

Compared to when Qin Sanwa left, it had not changed much. Qin Sang adjusted his mindset and used the *Invisible Step* to sneak in.

It was late at night, and everyone in the house was asleep, with occasional coughs heard.

From the breathing sounds, there were nine people in the courtyard, three of whom had very light breaths, clearly children.

His eldest and second brothers both had children.

Qin Sang looked through the windows of each room. Some faces were familiar, others were strangers. He suddenly paused in front of one room.

Inside the room, where the Qin family's ancestral tablets and guardian spirits were placed, there was an additional tablet. Since Qin Sanwa had died before reaching adulthood, his name was used on the tablet.

Suddenly, there was a slight movement from the farthest room, which belonged to Qin Sanwa's parents.

"Old Qin, Old Qin..." It was Qin Mother's voice, kept low to avoid disturbing the children in the adjacent room.

After a while, Qin Father's sleepy voice responded, "What's the matter? It's the middle of the night, why aren't you sleeping? What's wrong... Did you dream about Sanwa again?"

"Yes, I did."

"So what? How many times has this happened..."

Qin Father mumbled, then suddenly exclaimed, "Why aren't you crying this time? You used to cry all night when you dreamed about Sanwa. Hey? You're even smiling?"

"Why can't I smile?"

Qin Mother huffed, "I haven't dreamed about Sanwa for so many days, I was so worried I couldn't eat. Today, I finally saw my child. Shouldn't I smile?"

"Sanwa has been dead for several years..."

"You're the one who's dead!"

Qin Father cried out in pain, as if he had been pinched by Qin Mother, and angrily scolded, "You're just a stubborn donkey! If he weren't dead, why wouldn't Sanwa come home? Old Wang hasn't returned either. His shop was taken over, and his house was occupied. If it weren't for the old clan leader of the Wang family, Old Wang's wife wouldn't even be able to keep those few acres of land. The whole family is so pitiful..."

"Hey, you care so much about Old Wang's wife, why don't you bring her home and take care of her!"

"I don't care about her, I just mentioned it. Don't you often give them food... What are you doing in the middle of the night?"

"I'm doing it for Old Wang, who took care of Sanwa!"

Qin Mother held a lamp and pushed open the door. "I dreamed about Sanwa coming back. I have to go out and open the door for him."

Qin Sang quickly hid in the shadows.

"You've had this dream at least eighty times, if not a hundred. Every time it's just a waste of effort, and you never give up! Wait for me, I'll go out too..."

"Don't you believe it?"

"I'm going to the toilet!"

Qin Sang remained still, watching as Qin Father and Qin Mother returned to their room with disappointed faces and blew out the lamp.

After Qin Father and Qin Mother fell into a deep sleep, Qin Sang reappeared, silently pushed open the door, and picked up a cup of wine in front of the ancestral tablet, poured a cup of turbid wine, and gently sprinkled it on the ground.

"You are already dead."

Qin Sang sighed softly, talking to himself, not sure who he was speaking to.

...

Before leaving, Qin Sang visited the Wang family and left a bag of silver coins in front of the spirit tablet of Wang the shopkeeper, thus settling his last earthly ties.