Gao Yiye looked at the streets filled with people scrambling for cake crumbs and spread her hands helplessly.
"It seems the Tianzun is letting the people of Heyang celebrate a festival."
Shansier tilted his head.
"So… what kind of festival is it this time?"
Qiu Ju thought for a moment.
"I think it should be called the Tianzun's Sudden Inspiration Festival."
Dong Xue shook her head seriously.
"No. It should be the Tianzun Pancake Festival."
Li Dao Xuan laughed despite himself.
"Wrong. This one is called the Tianzun Startle Festival."
Gao Yiye quickly looked up.
"Ah? Tianzun, you're here! Why 'startle'?"
"Because I was startled by your Dao Xuan Tianzun Demon-Slaying Chronicles, Episode Five," Li Dao Xuan said calmly.
Gao Yiye's cheeks flushed.
"Eh? You didn't like it? Chang'e falling in love with you is such a good plot."
Li Dao Xuan sighed.
"Do you know Chang'e is Hou Yi's wife?"
Gao Yiye froze.
"If someone else's wife suddenly falls in love with me, that's not romance," Li Dao Xuan continued. "That's how you get hunted down. No need to wait for Marshal Tianpeng—Hou Yi would show up with a bow and settle it directly."
Gao Yiye stared at him in shock.
"Wait—Chang'e is actually Hou Yi's wife? No one told me that!"
Li Dao Xuan covered his face.
At the same time, Shansier, Qiu Ju, and Dong Xue all covered their faces as well.
"Stories can be wild," Li Dao Xuan said, voice muffled behind his hand, "but try to create your own chaos instead of stirring someone else's. Otherwise, embarrassment is guaranteed."
Gao Yiye lowered her head obediently.
"I understand. I was wrong."
"Good," Li Dao Xuan said. "Then revise Episode Five."
"Yes!" Gao Yiye answered quickly.
Qiu Ju and Dong Xue also bowed.
"We'll help revise it."
Just then, Gao Yiye suddenly looked up again.
"Tianzun… if you and Hou Yi fought one-on-one, could you beat him?"
Li Dao Xuan thought for a moment.
"Him? Long-range damage dealer. Fragile body. Weak in duels. Any competent close-combat type deletes him instantly."
Gao Yiye's face warmed.
So the Tianzun was even stronger than Hou Yi… then even stealing Chang'e wouldn't be dangerous—
No. Wait. That thought felt strange.
Li Dao Xuan glanced at her.
"Your expression is suspicious. What are you thinking?"
"Nothing! Nothing at all!" Gao Yiye waved her hands. "I'll go rewrite Episode Five immediately!"
While they chatted, the rest of the city was engaged in a different kind of battle.
The people of Heyang were collecting cake crumbs at maximum efficiency.
Some gathered armfuls and ran home beaming.
After the streets were cleared, attention shifted upward.
People climbed onto rooftops, collecting crumbs that had landed on tiles.
In one narrow alley, a crowd discovered a massive chunk of cake as large as a rockery.
They immediately organized.
Guards were posted at both ends of the alley.
Friends were summoned.
The cake was divided with surgical precision.
After the scramble ended, the streets were spotless, yet the air still carried a lingering sweetness.
With food secured, reason slowly returned.
"Where did this pancake come from?"
"It fell from the sky!"
"But why would pancakes fall from the sky?"
"Who cares? It tasted amazing."
"…"
At that moment, the large drum in front of the county office was struck.
The steady rhythm drew crowds from all directions.
Daoist Ma Tianzheng stood before the drum, performing movements that looked half-ritual, half-dance. When enough people had gathered, he stopped and laughed loudly.
"Do you know where the pancakes came from?"
The crowd shook their heads.
"They were bestowed by Dao Xuan Tianzun," Ma Tianzheng declared. "The Tianzun means to tell you this: though bandits are approaching, there is no need to fear. With the Tianzun watching over Heyang, you need only eat well and sleep well."
The crowd froze.
Then someone cheered.
Soon, the entire square erupted.
Cheers spread through the city like a wave, washing away fear.
Recalling the Tianzun's usual style, Ma Tianzheng raised his voice again.
"Today shall be known as the Tianzun Pancake Festival! Eat freely and be joyful!"
"We're celebrating!"
"Pancakes!"
"Who's afraid of bandits now?"
"Eat first!"
Someone hesitated.
"Actually… after eating a few bites, I feel like I could make this myself. Eggs, flour, sugar, yeast—I could totally do it."
Another scoffed.
"Dream on. Where would you find those ingredients in times like these?"
Li Dao Xuan listened and smiled quietly.
Those things existed in Gaojia Village.
Since solving the grain problem, Gaojia Village had begun raising poultry and livestock. Gao Sanniang's ducks had multiplied into a proper flock. Someone had even bought ducks from her, turned them into braised meat, and opened a shop—business was booming.
Chickens. Pigs. Cattle.
Gaojia Village had them all now.
It was time to guide trade between counties.
Goods from Gaojia Village and Cheng County could be sold in Heyang.
Heyang's specialties could flow back the other way.
The more people moved, the closer they became.
That man who claimed he could recreate the cake? If eggs, sugar, and yeast were brought over, he might truly succeed—and then sell his cakes back to Gaojia Village.
Let the newly well-fed villagers discover new flavors.
Let appetites open doors that fear never could.
"Shansier," Li Dao Xuan said, "when you return to Gaojia Village, organize small trade caravans. Bring eggs, sugar, yeast, cloth, cotton—sell them in Heyang."
Gao Yiye relayed the decree.
Shansier nodded immediately.
"Gaojia Village has variety now. Heyang has flour but lacks daily goods. Exchange will enrich both."
The Tianzun could have simply bestowed everything.
He chose not to.
Because walking paths creates bonds.
And bonds, once formed, are harder to break than walls.