"Zhoku Academy publicly announced Ruoqiao's expulsion for violating school regulations," the Pharmacist said, dropping the curtain and shaking his head with a sigh. "Because the North Gate Supervisor incident only involved cultivators and the royal palace, ordinary commoners weren't informed. To minimize the impact, the full story wasn't publicized later. Only Supervisor Chilo and Ruoqiao and the others received secret disciplinary actions. Ruoqiao can no longer stay in the Saptaparna Kingdom."He led Bensheng to a wooden table and chairs in the clearing."Ruoqiao's condition is strange. Usually, the wounds don't show, but at certain moments, all the injuries he's ever suffered reappear. I suspect it's related to the Five Aggregates.""Not the Five Aggregates. It's memory."A sharp voice interjected. Bensheng opened his pocket and found Ananda had already wriggled out of the bird coat; new feathers had grown on his body."You said memory?" the Pharmacist asked."Mm. The Elephant Tribe possesses superhuman memory; they can remember every single member of their herd. Something Bensheng definitely can't do."Bensheng thought about it; he really couldn't remember every single deer in Lumbini Deer Park. A herd's population was so large; remembering them all was truly remarkable memory! No wonder Ruoqiao was so good at the Five Vidyas."So," Ananda said sadly, "the Elephant Tribe also never forgets any painful memory. Once they recall these pains, all the scars appear on their bodies."Everyone fell silent. Having seen the battlefields of Buzhou Kingdom, the reason for so many painful memories wasn't hard to imagine.Bensheng asked, "But why did Ruoqiao come to Buzhou Kingdom? Wasn't he from Zhaoyun Kingdom?"He still remembered when he begged North Gate to allow him to
enroll in Zhoku Academy, North Gate said the Zhaoyun Kingdom's once-in-a-hundred-years quota was already full. After enrolling, he learned that quota referred precisely to Ruoqiao.The Pharmacist sat down and took a sip of tea. "It's because of the war. With the Elephant Tribe's trampling power and massive bodies, they are an overwhelmingly powerful force on flat ground. So, to seize territory, one Lord entered Zhaoyun Kingdom and drove the entire Elephant Tribe into Buzhou Kingdom to become their beast army."Bensheng listened, anger rising in his heart, his hands clenching into fists. "Unforgivable."The Pharmacist quickly added, "That was a previous Lord, not the current one. The current Lord prefers to lead troops into battle himself. I requested permission from him to build this clinic and disband the beast army, and he agreed. That's why I can treat the wounded here, and Ruoqiao.""...That's good then."The Pharmacist paused, then frowned with a bitter smile. "But actually, there's another problem."Suddenly, a greenish light flashed from the side, startling Bensheng. Youyou, even more frightened, darted out from the shed. "Brother, what happened?!""It's fine, it's fine," the Pharmacist stood up. "That light appears when Ruoqiao transforms back into his human form. He occasionally changes back at dusk. Come on, let's go see him again."Lifting the curtain once more, they saw not the massive, scarred body of an elephant, but Ruoqiao coughing on a small cot at the very back. Bensheng approached and noticed Ruoqiao's pageboy haircut had grown out, the ends now uneven. Compared to during the Court Exam, he was thinner and paler."Ruoqiao...""Don't come closer!" Ruoqiao suddenly shouted sharply. "Heh... Deer Bensheng. One Pharmacist isn't enough, now you've come to gawk at me too?"Bensheng frowned, responding bluntly, "What do you mean, gawk? Do you have any idea how hard the Pharmacist has worked to save you...""Did I ever beg him to save me?" Ruoqiao wiped the corner of his mouth after coughing, glaring fiercely at them. "I don't need your pity."The Pharmacist rubbed the space between his brows and said to
Bensheng, "So the problem I mentioned earlier is... he won't let me treat him. I can only apply medicine when he's unconscious. But once he feels a bit better, he runs off... and I have to find him and bring him back with new injuries.""Runs off?" Bensheng looked at Ruoqiao in surprise. "What does he do?""He goes to protect the Elephant Tribe on the battlefield.""But you just said the beast army was disbanded?""That's the case for this territory. Buzhou Kingdom has countless territories, countless 'kings'... Ruoqiao has been away for so many years. His Elephant Tribe has long been exploited, scattered, and turned against each other by humans..."A pained expression crossed Ruoqiao's face, and a new red swelling immediately appeared on his cheek.He smiled self-deprecatingly. "I'm the same. I was used by North Gate to frame you all. But I'm not pitiable. I did all this willingly." He looked at them challengingly. "So don't think you can save me just to flaunt your noble compassion and kindness."Fearing Ruoqiao might become too agitated if they continued, the Pharmacist pulled Bensheng away."What are you going to do?" Bensheng asked. With Ruoqiao so uncooperative, it must be causing the Pharmacist a lot of trouble."Even the most skilled healer can't save an uncooperative patient." The Pharmacist smiled wryly. "It's a pity I can't just punch him to make him listen to me. Well... even if my strength can't change the world, I'll do as much as I can!"Bensheng suddenly stopped walking.He stared blankly at the Pharmacist's back as he pretended to throw a punch, forcing himself to suppress the trembling throughout his body."It's like...""Like what?" Ananda poked his head out of the pocket to ask."Do you remember the statue of the Ancient Ancestor in the tunnel leading to the Great King's underground palace?" Bensheng smiled. "I see the shadow of that statue in the Pharmacist." He was too embarrassed to say that the statue hadn't moved him, but he felt it in the Pharmacist's foolish-looking silhouette. It made him tremble from his toes to his eyebrows."'Do as much as I can'?"Bensheng looked up. The lingering glow of the sunset dyed the clouds over Kunlun, and even if the sun itself was unseen, its
radiance never truly left."What did you say?" The Pharmacist lifted the tent flap, looking at the sky with sleepy eyes. "Bensheng, I must be dreaming, right? This isn't sunset?""It's already dawn! Get up!" Bensheng yanked the blanket wrapped around the Pharmacist."Whoa--!"The now tidied-up Pharmacist, carrying his medicine basket, looked at Bensheng standing before him and finally woke up fully. "You're serious?""Serious," Bensheng extended his hands. "Let me help you save people, Pharmacist. Using my spiritual power."Youyou, following behind, heard this and looked up."Actually, from the moment I left the Saptaparna Kingdom until now, I've been feeling terrible... I lost my qualification to become a Comprehender, and I don't even know why." Bensheng suppressed the bitterness rising on his tongue and took a deep breath. "I thought everything had returned to the most unfamiliar of times, but that's not true. I've been running and fighting for a long time; I'm no longer the original Bensheng. I just... lost my direction. But luckily, I just found it again!"Primordial Colored Light glowed in his palms. The Pharmacist watched as the herbs he had just uprooted in the bamboo basket rapidly grew larger under the light's nourishment, his eyes widening in astonishment."My original reason for wanting to become a Comprehender was for everyone's sake! Since I have the power to help everyone now, then what difference does it make whether I become a Comprehender or not?""That's wonderful, Bensheng!" The Pharmacist finally reacted. He hugged Bensheng, laughing through tears. "I'm not fighting alone anymore!"The herbs, accelerated by spiritual power, grew rapidly, soon making up for the shortfall. The Pharmacist even found spare capacity to teach the commoners helping at the clinic how to plant medicinal herbs. Recently, more and more people gathered at the clinic. Everyone spontaneously built houses, planted crops, raised animals. It was becoming a thriving small village.This change attracted the attention of the local Lord. Bensheng met Shakra for the first time; even Ananda couldn't help but marvel at his golden hair, silver armor, and his dignified, handsome face. "Lüzan
g would be jealous if he saw him," Ananda whispered.Bensheng shook his head with a smile. He hadn't thought about them in a long time. Given Lüzang's ability, he should have passed the Hall Exam quickly. I wonder who ultimately became the Comprehender, him or Yeluo? Lüzang seemed stronger, but Yeluo's Three-Pronged Vajra Sword couldn't be underestimated either. Maybe by the final day of the Hall Exam, Lüzang would be thoroughly beaten by Yeluo. That would be quite a sight!"Bensheng, let's go!" The Pharmacist, arms full of extremely "sturdy" medicinal herbs, strode boldly into the large shed, kicking the curtain aside."Ruoqiao, take this!"The unconscious elephant knew nothing. When he transformed back into human form and woke up, he finally discovered that every inch of his skin seemed to have lost the motivation for pain; he felt nothing."Am I dead?"He reached out and pinched his arm, tears falling from his dazed eyes."So... this is what such a small pain feels like now..."A long, exhausted breath came from inside the shed. Ruoqiao, startled, quickly wiped his tears and looked. The Pharmacist and Bensheng were slumped inelegantly on wooden chairs, panting heavily as if asleep. But upon closer look, one could see their eyes were still open, watching his every movement with joy.The Pharmacist grinned. "Ruoqiao, now, those painful memories won't affect you anymore, right?"Ruoqiao lowered his brows, withdrawing his gaze. "You think eliminating those memories can save me?"The Pharmacist raised a finger and wagged it."Three hundred and sixty-five days.""What?""The time it took us to treat you."The Pharmacist curled the corners of his mouth. "Just eliminating the memories was useless. So, we treated every single wound that appeared on your body. No matter when or where you got injured... we healed them all. Whew, exhausted us!"Bensheng looked sideways at the Pharmacist, the two sharing a knowing smile of shared hardship. "Finally, can get a good sleep, eh, Pharmacist/Bensheng!"The hearty laughter infected the commoners outside. They brought
fruits, vegetables, and pastries, entering the tent with Youyou to offer congratulations.Ruoqiao watched them get up to greet everyone, their Robes of Origin now densely patched. His eyes darkened, and he suddenly grabbed the quilt tightly."What are you so proud of?!"The clamor stopped. People looked at him, puzzled.Ruoqiao turned his head, his voice hoarse as he shouted, "You keep talking about true equality and freedom. If you have the ability, go save people on the battlefield! Go save all the lives suffering like me! What you're doing now is nothing but nobly bestowing a life upon me. There's no difference from North Gate, who didn't value human life!""How can you say that?" Youyou said angrily. "Does saving others count as saving a life, but saving you doesn't?"Ruoqiao was momentarily speechless. But Bensheng, smiling, stopped Youyou and walked to the bedside."Ruoqiao, you can go out and see for yourself now. I will save everyone."He didn't believe it.Even standing on the mountainside with a perfectly healthy, flawless body, seeing with his own eyes Bensheng standing alone in the clearing between the two opposing armies below.He still didn't believe he could save everyone.Shuda stared at Bensheng, shouting in confusion, "Brother, what are you doing here?"Bensheng said, "I've come to stop your war."Shakra glanced at Shuda and shook his head. "Adept, this lord respects all you have done for my people. But stopping the war... that is impossible.""Exactly! I need to settle the score with him once and for all!"Bensheng closed his eyes and said no more. He pressed his palms together, silently reciting a secret chant. Bright Primordial Colored Light gradually manifested around him. The light then coalesced into points, flying out and directly touching the wounds of the injured soldiers in the armies."To save all living beings from every suffering."The friction of iron armor creaked. A soldier lifted his leg in disbelief. "It moves! My leg can move!""My hand too!""My injury from yesterday, it's healed!"
Shuda simply turned his horse around, personally inspecting the soldiers. The more he looked, the happier he became. He turned and shouted to Bensheng, "Good brother, you really did it! You've healed all the sick and wounded in my army!"It was the same in Shakra's army. The guard excitedly spurred his horse forward. "Your Majesty!""I know." Shakra didn't turn around. The soldiers' laughter said it all."Good!" Shuda raised his curved blade. "Since everyone is healed, today, we fight a great battle!"The expected rousing cheers didn't come; only a few scattered voices responded. Shuda turned back in surprise to see the soldiers who had been chronically injured or ill lowering their heads. They didn't dare speak. Having finally obtained healthy bodies, so precious, before they could even properly savor it, how could they be willing to lose it all in an instant?Shakra stopped his guard from berating the soldiers. He urged his horse forward and asked in a deep voice, "Adept, what exactly do you want to do?""I told you. I want to stop your war.""I must admit," Shakra nodded, "you have succeeded this once... The regained good health has made the soldiers reluctant to fight. This battle cannot continue. However, you cannot stop all wars.""Then I'll start with what's before me," Bensheng lifted his head. It was the face of a youth coming into his own. With that face, he said calmly, "Even the smallest strength is a force that can change the world."