"A discussion about the dao, is it?" Jin Rou's interest was piqued. It was rare for someone to invite him in this kind of talk so he didn't mind and answered, "Why not? I have some free time right now, so I'll gladly accept it."

"Great!" Then, the old woman named Xuyi snapped her fingers and a grand table for three appeared. Exquisite teapots and teacups appeared all of a sudden. Next, she held the teapot with such elegance like a flowing water, "I have boiled this tea for three days and the tea leaves are top notch. In fact, this is the best I can offer right now. So I hope you will like it."

After their teacups being filled, Jin Rou and the princess took a sip at the same time.

"Great tea!" Princess Shale exclaimed, "This is such on par with Red Rose Tea."

"Red Rose Tea is on different level than my tea leaves, Young Mistress." The old woman smiled weakly and said, "You compliment it too much."

"No, it is an actual fact." The princess smiled, "Though I'm not a fan of teas, I know what is a better tea and what's on par with it. In our house, your tea can actually rival our tea masters there."

This wasn't an empty praise. She was really talking the truth and didn't hesitate to do so.

"Then I thank the Young Mistress for her generous compliment." The old woman shook her head and finally gave in.

"So what do you want to discuss about the dao, Master Xuyi?" Jin Rou joined the conversation and asked, getting into the bottom of the well immediately.

"How about we talk about experiences?" The old woman answered, "For you, Young Master Jin, according to your past experiences, what is a dao for you?"

Jin Rou didn't answer immediately, and just looked blank there for several seconds. It looked like he was thinking of what to answer first before speaking.

After which, Jin Rou finally spoke, "The dao is full of brutality. It is arduous enough that in order to ascend, you will need so many sacrifices. There is always killing everywhere, and it looks like it is the normal way of the dao."

Just how many did Jin Rou kill up to now? It might not reach thousands or hundreds, but the blood that kept on staining his robe and face would remain there. He was still young yet he had already managed to kill without batting an eyelid. He was cold-hearted and merciless, and that would remain until he die.

"Indeed, the dao is full of killings and sacrifices. You need to kill in order to step up. You need their bones and blood as your stepping stone, it was cruel. Yet, it is what a cultivator should do. Hesitating will only result into you being the victim of it. So if you seek this path, you need to push through without looking back." Master Xuyi sighed and said, "The path of dao is sad and lonely, especially those who are at the top."

Jin Rou listened attentively to this old woman. He could feel that what she said was truly what she experienced. Jin Rou had never felt so much difficulties when he reached zenith in his childhood. With his overwhelming talents, he even reached this stage without any blocks in cultivation.

But he learned so many things during his days in the lower worlds. He learned how dark humans' heart can be and what extent they could do to achieve their goals. Nevertheless, it didn't stop him from making some friends who he could trust.

"But on the other side of this dark reality, you will realize so many things. You will discover treasures and sceneries amazing enough to topple the heavens. You will meet friends and comrades that will help you in your journey and such." Jin Rou added as he reminisced his memories together with the friends he made during his travels.

"Indeed, it is nice to have some true friends to accompany you on your journey. It's nice..." The old woman's gentle eyes suddenly flashed with bitterness and coldness, "Unfortunately, I haven't found one. All of who I trusted had eventually betrayed me for the sake of power. Power has always outweighed anything else."

Jin Rou didn't comment on this. He didn't experience what the old woman had been through, so he didn't dare to say anything about this.

There's a quiet silence between them, the princess didn't speak anything and just listened to the two who were speaking like they were friends. It was nice to listen to some deep talks for rare times.

The old woman broke the silence and smiled, "Anyway, with my age, I really don't care about friendship or camaraderie. All I need is to get stronger so that I can protect myself and a certain someone dear to me."

"So you are pursuing power in order to protect?" Jin Rou asked.

"You can say it that way." The old woman chuckled and answered, "It's nice to have a reason to use your strength other than killing nonsensically, right?"

Jin Rou pursed his lips. But he was agreeing with the old woman's words. It was really nice to have a reason to protect.

The two talked for an hour or two before reaching their conclusion. The old woman stretched her right hand and said, "Young Master Jin is so open minded that it is very nice to talk with you. I hope we can have the time to talk again in the future."

"If fate permits, I don't mind talking with you again Master Xuyi. You are so nice to talk too." Jin Rou stretched his hand also and made a handshake.

After that, Jin Rou stood up and said, "I'll be going now, Master Xuyi. I know you are busy of a person so I won't impose on you anymore. Furthermore, I have my own dealings too, so I have to be on the get-go."

"Then I won't hold you back, Young Master." The old woman smiled. But before she could say more, a familiar voice suddenly rang their ears saying...

"Master....?"