The night breeze brushed through the courtyard of Jishan Neighborhood, bringing with it the sweet scent of cassia flowers.
Gu Chengming sat at the stone table, holding a bowl of white porridge that was already nearly empty.
He picked through the events that had occurred in the Tianque Secret Realm, recounting how he had shattered the Dao Throne, how he had liberated that Fifth Realm old monster from the Longevity Sect, and how he had refined the Burial Sword Tomb, which contained ancient sword intent, and brought it back to the capital.
Yu Wenqiu was huddled in a bamboo chair, still holding half an unfinished white bun. As Gu Chengming spoke, massive question marks seemed to materialize one after another above her head.
To be honest, Yu Wenqiu felt as though she had undergone a complete transformation during this period.
For a salted fish elder whose life motto was "If the sky falls, the tall ones will hold it up, so I might as well go back to sleep," her recent level of effort could practically be recorded in the annals of the Wenjian Sect.
Since arriving in the Daqian capital, especially after the trip to Falling Snow Pass, Yu Wenqiu had become acutely aware of her own lack of combat power.
She was an elder, after all—a dignified elder of the Wenjian Sect.
She couldn't very well hide behind her own junior every time she encountered trouble and expertly shout "Little Gu, save me," could she? That would be too embarrassing.
To maintain her crumbling dignity as an elder, Yu Wenqiu had changed her usual lazy ways. She had not only missed the premiere of the latest storybook in the eastern garden but had even quit her daily afternoon snack of pastries.
Whenever Gu Chengming went to work at the Night Guard Division, she would diligently sit in meditation in the courtyard, circulating her qi through her meridians. She had even dug out the advanced sect sword art that had been gathering dust for years and practiced it over and over. Her desperate momentum was several times more intense than when she had crammed for her elder qualification exam years ago.
But cultivation was sometimes a truly demoralizing thing.
She had worked so hard here, gritting her teeth to push her cultivation forward by a tiny, infinitesimal step, happily thinking she could finally share some of Gu Chengming's burden.
Then, this junior of hers went out once and returned to casually state: "The Fifth Realm Near Heaven elder of the Longevity Sect has been physically liberated by my fists."
The more she stayed by Gu Chengming's side and the harder she worked, the more she felt the strain.
Other families' genius disciples progressed steadily, but this one had directly entered a violent ascension mode, leaving her, his elder, far behind until she couldn't even see his tail lights.
Yu Wenqiu looked at the half bun in her hand and suddenly felt that the food in her mouth was tasteless.
"Sigh..."
She let out a long sigh and placed the bun back on the plate, her entire body deflating like a punctured ball as she slumped limply back into the bamboo chair.
At this moment, she was completely unable to accurately describe her feelings.
Should she be proud that the sect had produced such a genius, ashamed of her status as a figurehead elder, or should she just give up struggling and peacefully accept the fact that she was just an accessory?
Gu Chengming naturally noticed the subtle dip in Yu Wenqiu's mood. After a brief thought, he guessed that his elder's self-esteem was acting up again, so he naturally changed the subject.
"Speaking of which, I encountered an extremely rare spiritual creature in the Tianque Secret Realm."
Gu Chengming picked up the teapot and poured himself a cup of water, speaking in a relaxed tone.
"It was a cat that looked exactly like Big Orange."
As expected, hearing this, Yu Wenqiu's attention was instantly diverted. Her sense of frustration was tossed aside, replaced by curiosity.
She reached out her toe and gently nudged the fat orange cat sleeping soundly beside her, asking, "There's another cat as fat as this one?"
"Not only the body type, but even the temperament is identical."
Gu Chengming smiled and briefly recounted the encounter with the cat-fruit and the records left by that unscrupulous Sixth Realm senior in his biography.
Yu Wenqiu was amazed as she listened.
"There's actually a cat you can eat!"
As soon as she said that, the big orange cat that had been lying spread-eagled on the ground suddenly jolted awake.
Its orange fur stood on end, and its volume seemed to double out of nowhere.
Although it was just an ordinary cat that didn't understand anything about Sixth Realm experts or spiritual creatures, it clearly captured the words "edible cat."
The big orange cat's four paws skidded frantically on the stone floor, making a harsh scraping sound.
Then, it turned into a streak of orange lightning and lunged straight onto the courtyard wall, disappearing into the vast night without even daring to look back.
"Hey! What are you running for! I wasn't talking about you!"
Yu Wenqiu was amused by the orange cat's stress response and shouted a laugh after it.
Tranquility returned to the courtyard, with only a few cassia leaves falling from the wall and spinning in the wind.
As the atmosphere relaxed, Gu Chengming set down his teacup, suddenly remembering the instructions from Shen Qianqiu and Ren Wencai before they parted.
"By the way, Elder. Before leaving Tianque, the Sect Master and my master both specifically instructed me to return to the Wenjian Sect as soon as my debriefing here in the capital is over."
Yu Wenqiu cracked another melon seed and popped it into her mouth, responding indistinctly, "That's normal. Counting the days, the Sect Disciple Grand Examination is indeed approaching."
Gu Chengming paused for a moment, and various cliché tropes from storybooks immediately surfaced in his mind.
"The Sect Disciple Grand Examination?" He couldn't help but complain. "It won't be like what I'm thinking, will it? Disciples from all peaks gather, draw lots for the arena, elders sit high above and give comments, and finally, a first place for the Outer Sect and Inner Sect is decided?"
Yu Wenqiu gave him a look and replied as if it were obvious, "What else? If a cultivation sect doesn't hold arena matches, are we supposed to gather and see who can memorize more daoist scriptures? Naturally, the outstanding disciples of the major sects compete to allocate the cultivation resources for the following year. Besides that, there are also exchanges between the elders of each peak to showcase their strength and foundation."
After hearing this explanation, Gu Chengming was certain that this was the most standard, stereotypical sect examination process.
He had just finished a life-and-death struggle in the Tianque Secret Realm with a thousand-year-old evil cult intended on subverting Daqian. Now, asking him to return to the sect to fight arena matches with fellow disciples of his generation made the plot jump feel somewhat absurdly large.
Yu Wenqiu seemed to see through his thoughts, brushed the melon seed shells off her hands, and helped analyze the current situation.
"Actually, according to the path the sect originally arranged for you, everything was very reasonable. The process should have been like this: first, you go down the mountain for experience and scramble around at the bottom of Daqian. Then, relying on your status as a Wenjian Sect disciple and your excellent swordsmanship, you obtain an official position in the Night Guard Division, like becoming a junior banner. Following that, you would solve case after case and rise to fame. Finally, carrying the honor of your experience abroad, you would return to the sect for the examination, shock everyone, and take first place."
At this point, Yu Wenqiu wagged a finger in front of Gu Chengming.
—But who would have thought that Gu Chengming's experience wouldn't follow the script at all?
He had jumped directly from "descending the mountain for experience" to "holding a high position in Daqian."
Yu Wenqiu suspected that if he didn't return to the sect soon, Gu Chengming would practically become the vice director of the Night Guard Division.
Gu Chengming laughed in spite of himself.
Thinking carefully, the Wenjian Sect was indeed a place of great significance to him.
Although he had just seen the Sect Master and his master in Tianque, there were still many familiar faces in the sect.
After staying in this quagmire of power and undercurrents in the capital for so long, returning occasionally to that sword mountain standing atop the sea of clouds to listen to the wind passing through the Cangjian Pavilion was actually quite a pleasant prospect.
【The Huiyuan Sword Manual became both excited and a bit nervous upon hearing about the return to the sect. It thought to itself that it was finally going back. Back when it was in the Scripture Repository, it always felt instinctively inferior whenever it saw those high-level sword arts. This time, it would definitely prove that it was the best!】
—This thought was exceptionally in sync with Hundred Bones Resonating.
【Hundred Bones Resonating cheered: When we return to the sect, we shall directly fight our way through all the main peaks!】
"Alright."
Gu Chengming made up his mind and stood up. "I'll head to the Night Guard Division tomorrow to report my itinerary to Director Zhou."
...
The next morning, Night Guard Division, Director's Office.
The room was filled with a faint scent of sandalwood, and Zhou Qingmu was sitting behind a purple sandalwood desk.
The mountain of documents on the desk almost buried her. These were all the follow-up tasks from the Tianque Secret Realm incident.
She was quickly approving them with a vermilion brush, her brow slightly furrowed.
When Gu Chengming walked into the office and announced his decision to return to the Wenjian Sect for the Sect Disciple Grand Examination, Zhou Qingmu's hand holding the brush suddenly froze.
Zhou Qingmu looked up, her gaze falling on Gu Chengming. Her red lips parted slightly, but she hesitated to speak.
In fact, Zhou Qingmu's internal activity at this moment was far more intense than it appeared on the surface. She was so satisfied with this subordinate that she had even developed an extremely strong sense of possessiveness.
Just before Gu Chengming entered, she had just finished conceptualizing a perfect personnel transfer plan in her mind.
She intended to request merits from the court, raising Gu Chengming's rank by several levels and allocating a large amount of top-tier cultivation resources from the royal treasury as a reward.
She had even planned to arrange for Gu Chengming to become a vice director of the Night Guard Division once the attention died down, making him a true core of power in the division.
But while her plans were being made so loudly, the person himself came to tell her he was going back home to fight in an arena.
Zhou Qingmu was feeling quite uneasy.
She knew the protective nature of those famous sects in the cultivation world all too well. If those old foxes of the Wenjian Sect saw Gu Chengming's current strength, would they still let him return to the Night Guard Division to continue his service?
They might very well appoint him as an elder on the spot and then lock him on the mountain for secluded cultivation to rush toward the Fourth Realm.
She was very worried that once Gu Chengming left, he would be like a clay ox entering the sea, never returning to this arena of fame and fortune in the capital.
She wanted to find a reason to forcibly keep him, such as "the demon threat in the capital has not been quelled," "remnants of the Longevity Sect still exist," or "the Night Guard Division is in need of manpower." Various grand excuses rolled around her tongue, but in the end, she swallowed them all back down.
No matter how domineering the Night Guard Division was, there was no rule to stop a disciple of another sect from returning for their grand examination.
If she truly forced him to stay, it would instead make her, Zhou Qingmu, seem narrow-minded, and it might even drive Shen Qianqiu of the Wenjian Sect to draw his sword and charge into the capital to demand his disciple back.
Zhou Qingmu took a deep breath and set the brush soaked in cinnabar on the inkstone, trying her best to make her expression look professional and free of personal emotion.
"Regarding the merits you earned in the Tianque Secret Realm and the subsequent promotion documents, I already finished organizing them all yesterday and submitted them to the court."
Zhou Qingmu chose her words carefully and spoke slowly, while gently tapping the table with her fingertip to emphasize the weight of her words. This was not just a statement of fact, but also a lure, meaning that his benefits were all waiting in the capital, so he should remember to come back for them and not stay in the sect indefinitely.
Gu Chengming naturally understood the intent to retain him behind those words. He bowed and replied with a serious expression:
"Thank you for your cultivation, Director. I will not disappoint your expectations."
Hearing Gu Chengming still refer to himself as "this subordinate," Zhou Qingmu's tense shoulders relaxed imperceptibly.
Since she couldn't keep him, she could only do him a favor.
Zhou Qingmu leaned back in her chair, her gaze softening considerably. She finally shed her majesty as the Director and spoke in the tone of a senior:
"The journey back is long; remember to be extra careful. Although the Longevity Sect suffered a great loss in Tianque, it's hard to guarantee there won't be any survivors setting an ambush along the way. Additionally..."
She paused, looking at Gu Chengming's face, which was young yet had already experienced countless life-and-death situations.
"You've worked hard during these successive battles. After returning to the sect, don't worry about anything and just have a good rest for a while."
Gu Chengming felt a warmth in his heart upon hearing this.
"I understand. Take care, Director."
Gu Chengming bowed again and then turned to exit the office.
The door closed again. Zhou Qingmu looked at the empty doorway, rubbed her brow in some frustration, and picked up the vermilion brush again. Looking at the desk full of documents, she suddenly felt that she couldn't muster any energy for her work today.
"The Sect Disciple Grand Examination... I wonder how long it will take," she murmured in a low voice, sighed, and buried her head back into the paperwork.
The autumn wind of the capital blew through the long streets, swirling a few fallen leaves. The busy period for the vice commander of the Night Guard Division had finally come to a temporary close.
...
The next day.
In the courtyard of Jishan Neighborhood, the autumn wind swirled a few golden cassia leaves, which spun and fell onto the bluestone floor.
Yu Wenqiu was huddled deep in the bamboo chair, with that familiar thin blanket draped over her knees. The storybook in her hand was open to a certain page, but it hadn't been turned for a long time.
Her gaze drifted over the edge of the book, focusing aimlessly on the ivy on the courtyard wall as she calculated the matters after returning to the Wenjian Sect.
Counting the time, the Sect Disciple Grand Examination was indeed imminent.
In the past, whenever such a grand event occurred where the entire sect would be pulled out to show off and compare cultivation, Yu Wenqiu would definitely start faking illness half a month in advance.
She would either claim to have caught a cold and need quiet rest or simply go into seclusion, not emerging until the examination was over.
In short, as long as she could escape that headache-inducing arena combat and the public gaze, she had all sorts of strange ways to skip work.
However, the current situation was entirely different.
She, Yu Wenqiu, a dignified elder of the Wenjian Sect, was now a true Fourth Realm great cultivator!
Even in the entire cultivation world of Daqian, this was considered a level of mastery.
Returning to the sect now should theoretically be a great opportunity to hold her head high and receive the admiration of all the disciples.
But...
Yu Wenqiu slowly shifted her gaze toward the figure sitting at the stone table nearby.
Why did it feel like her strength had improved, but she was becoming more and more like a burden?
Yu Wenqiu let out a long sigh and rested her chin on the storybook in frustration, her expression extremely complex.
Meanwhile, Gu Chengming, sitting at the stone table, did not notice the myriad of resentful thoughts swirling in his elder's mind.
His eyes were slightly closed, seemingly resting, but his divine sense had already sunk deep into his sea of consciousness, where he was focused on studying his system panel.
In his vision, the "Special CG / Laboratory of Love" interface was emitting a soft glow.
The pure white space was much more spacious than before. Gu Chengming strolled along the corridor paved with gray mist, his gaze scanning the doors on either side.
As expected, it confirmed his previous speculation. In addition to the existing dedicated rooms for "Qingxin Art of Love" and "Hundred Bones Resonating of Love," a brand-new door had appeared deep in the corridor. The doorplate was clearly engraved with several ancient characters—"Zhou Rites Heavenly Rectifying Art of Love."
Gu Chengming nodded thoughtfully.
The pattern was now very clear. As long as a technique reached maximum favorability and successfully unlocked the final bond, the Laboratory of Love would automatically open a dedicated, independent room for it.
【Hundred Bones Resonating suddenly spoke up: Emperor Gu, let's defeat powerful enemies together!】
To be honest, if the Qingxin Art had said this, he would definitely suspect that the powerful enemy it wanted to defeat was himself. But since Hundred Bones Resonating said it, he only felt that Hundred Bones Resonating truly wanted to defeat powerful enemies.
Opening his eyes, his vision refocused.
Only then did Gu Chengming suddenly discover that Yu Wenqiu was staring straight at him from not far away. Her beautiful peach-blossom eyes were full of melancholy, and she hadn't even noticed that the pastry in her hand had dropped crumbs.
Gu Chengming's heart stirred, and he immediately understood most of it. His elder's appearance was likely due to falling into some sort of self-doubting spiral again.
Before returning to the Wenjian Sect, there was still some ample time, and there was something he ought to do.
"Elder."
Gu Chengming was the first to break the silence in the courtyard, his voice warm and clear. "Speaking of which, we've been in the capital for some time. Aside from that chance outing during the Lantern Festival, we've both been tied down by various chores and haven't really taken the time to appreciate the prosperity of the capital. How about... since we're about to leave, we go out for a good stroll today?"
Hearing this, Yu Wenqiu's originally dim eyes instantly lit up.
She immediately sat up straight, tossed the storybook onto the bamboo chair, and nodded repeatedly in agreement. Even the melancholy that had filled her just now was completely dispersed by this sudden invitation.
In fact, Yu Wenqiu hid a small secret in her heart.
She had long ago compiled a thick list of "Ten Must-Visit Places in the Capital." These were all things she had heard from neighbors and storytellers when she went to the market to buy storybooks.
She had always wanted to visit them but had never been able to make it happen.
The reason was simple: if she were to visit those bustling streets and taste those tempting snacks alone, she felt it would be lonely and lack fun. Subconsciously, she wanted Little Gu to accompany her.
However, Little Gu was very busy with his duties at the Night Guard Division, having to go to the northern border and enter secret realms. She truly didn't want to bother him with these trivial matters of eating and playing.
What Yu Wenqiu didn't know, however, was that Gu Chengming had actually accidentally seen that densely written list tucked inside her storybook. Not only had he seen it, but he had also memorized all the contents.
...
Half an hour later, the two of them changed into casual clothes and walked out of Jishan Neighborhood side by side.
The capital today was bright and sunny. The shouts of street performers under the overpass and the cries of street vendors intertwined, filled with the vibrant aura of the mortal world.
Their first stop was the most famous Yuzhen Tower in the east of the city.
Just as they reached the street corner, they could smell the rich milky fragrance of freshly baked thousand-layer pastries. Gu Chengming naturally walked to the end of the long line to wait, while Yu Wenqiu stood in the shade of a nearby eave, standing on her tiptoes to peer toward the counter, her throat involuntarily swallowing.
When Gu Chengming walked back carrying two bags of steaming thousand-layer pastries and handed them to her, Yu Wenqiu couldn't wait to pick one up and put it in her mouth.
The crispy outer layer dissolved on her tongue along with the sweet filling. Yu Wenqiu narrowed her eyes in satisfaction and commented indistinctly:
"It truly lives up to its reputation. Compared to the dry pastries made in our sect's dining hall, it's simply like heaven and earth."
Gu Chengming looked at her cheeks bulging like a hamster's and a smile appeared at the corners of his mouth as he handed over the water skin he was carrying.
"Eat slowly, Elder. There are several more places to go ahead."
For the rest of the day, their footprints covered the streets and alleys of the capital.
They went to the antiques and calligraphy street in the South Market, where Yu Wenqiu stopped for a long time at a small stall filled with strange stones. Finally, Gu Chengming took out some silver and bought a paperweight carved with a charmingly naive orange cat. They then went to the entertainment quarters under the overpass to listen to a storyteller with a mustache vividly recounting various bizarre tales of the martial world. Yu Wenqiu listened with great interest, occasionally discussing the rationality of the protagonist's techniques with Gu Chengming.
Subsequently, they crossed the bustling Zhuque Avenue, looked at new arrivals of Flowing Cloud Brocade in a century-old tailor shop, and identified poisonous grasses brought from the southern border in a market specializing in rare flowers and plants.
The entire day's itinerary was packed and non-stop, yet it felt exceptionally leisurely and comfortable.
It wasn't until the sun set and the sunset glow in the sky was like brocade ignited by fire, enveloping the entire capital in a soft golden-red light, that the two of them walked up a long flight of bluestone steps together.
It was only at this moment, as the breeze brushed her face, that Yu Wenqiu suddenly snapped back to her senses.
She stopped and looked back at the path they had come from, quickly connecting the places they had visited today in her mind. The thousand-layer pastries of Yuzhen Tower, the cat paperweight from the South Market, the storytelling at the overpass, the flower market on Zhuque Avenue...
These places, without exception, were all the destinations listed on her secret list.
Yu Wenqiu turned her head and looked at Gu Chengming, who was slowly walking ahead.
At the end of the bluestone steps was a high pavilion called Lingyue Pavilion.
The terrain here was extremely high, one of the very few places in the capital where one could overlook the entire city's scenery without any obstruction.
The two stood at the railing.
It was the beautiful moment of transition between dusk and night. The red glow on the horizon had not yet completely faded, and below, as night quietly descended, the lights of thousands of households lit up one by one. It was as if the stars from the nine heavens had fallen into the mortal world, turning into these myriad lights of homes, connecting into a brilliant sea of light.
The bustling sound of traffic in the city reached here from a distance, having turned into a reassuring background noise.
The evening wind brushed through the pavilion, making Yu Wenqiu's hair fly gently.
The scenery was both magnificent and gentle.
Gu Chengming rested his hands on the railing, his gaze lingering on the lights below for a moment, then he turned his head and looked at Yu Wenqiu beside him.
"These past two days, I noticed Elder Xiao Yu's brow was furrowed, as if she were quite troubled."
Gu Chengming's voice sounded exceptionally gentle in the evening wind.
He paused and spoke with great sincerity: "Although I'm not sure what exactly Elder is worried about, I thought that taking you out for a stroll to see the mortal world's red dust aura would be of some use."
Yu Wenqiu opened her mouth but found that she didn't know what to say at this moment.
Gu Chengming did not look away. He looked into Yu Wenqiu's eyes and continued: "Ever since our time at the Wenjian Sect, Elder has always helped me a lot. Whether it was speaking out for justice, providing guidance, or this journey south and north."
"The path we've traveled has been full of thorns and dangers. If Elder hadn't been by my side the whole time, I imagine it would have been very difficult."
These words were by no means empty politeness.
Even if it was initially just to use the elder's identity to ward off trouble, in their subsequent time together, Yu Wenqiu's seemingly unreliable yet extremely protective concern had already occupied a very important position in Gu Chengming's heart.
"Regardless, I want to express my gratitude to Elder Xiao Yu."
Gu Chengming spoke with a smile: "In the future, no matter what difficult situation Elder encounters or if there is any frustration or knot in your heart, you can speak to me without any hesitation. I will always be here."
The evening wind seemed to stagnate at this moment.
After Gu Chengming finished speaking, he realized that Yu Wenqiu was standing there blankly.
Those peach-blossom eyes, which always held a hint of laziness and cunning, were now staring at him without blinking. Her eyes were shimmering, and she seemed completely dazed.
Yu Wenqiu's heart beat violently in her chest, so fast that she felt a sense of panic herself.
Little Gu's words were just too unfair!
He was clearly a junior, and she had always been the one trying hard to maintain her dignity as an elder. But why, as he stood there now and said those things in such an incredibly steady tone, did it feel so reliable, even making her want to depend on him?
A heat instantly rushed to her cheeks. Yu Wenqiu immediately realized that if she didn't react soon, her little feelings of being moved would be completely exposed.
To hide her inner turmoil, she quickly composed her dazed expression and forced a fierce look.
She pointed a slender finger and unceremoniously poked Gu Chengming's chest. The force was not great, but the momentum was full.
"Stop saying those pretty words!"
Yu Wenqiu glared at him fiercely, trying to make her voice sound confident: "This elder's days of protecting you are still long! How can you make it sound like this elder has become a useless person who needs your care for everything?"
She tilted her chin up and snorted, then withdrew the finger she had poked into Gu Chengming's chest and put her hands on her hips.
"This elder has only one requirement for you from beginning to end."
Yu Wenqiu shifted her gaze from Gu Chengming's face to the brilliant lights of the city. Her voice was somewhat light in the night wind, yet incomparably clear:
"That is, no matter what demons or ghosts you encounter in the future, you must be safe. Stay by this elder's side whole and sound, and then..."
She turned back, and as the breeze blew, the scene was as beautiful as a painting.
The night wind stirred the stray hairs at her temples, gently brushing against her fair cheeks. Her eyes at this moment seemed to have crushed the city lights and the stars behind her. She slightly raised her chin, a faint yet certain smile on her lips as she looked steadily into his eyes:
"Write storybooks for me for the rest of your life!"
Gu Chengming opened his mouth, just about to respond.
At that moment, his vision flashed, and the familiar system interface popped up without warning.
【Skill 'Wisdom Eye' activated】
Immediately after, three option boxes with different emotional colors and causal directions appeared clearly in the void between Gu Chengming and Yu Wenqiu.
Option One: Respond rationally. Tell the elder that the path of cultivation is long, life and death are up to fate, and while you will try your best to protect yourself, writing storybooks for a lifetime is difficult to guarantee.
Option Two: Tease and joke. Laughingly claim the elder is treating a dignified vice commander of the Night Guard Division as a storyteller and that she'll have to pay extra.
Option Three: Follow your heart.
Gu Chengming looked at these three options and was stunned for a long while.
This so-called 'Wisdom Eye' always jumped out at such critical moments to show off its presence.
If it were when he had first started out, he might have carefully weighed the potential favorability changes or plot directions behind each choice.
But at this moment, standing on this pavilion, facing this woman who often slacked off yet was willing to stand in front of him in times of danger, Gu Chengming suddenly felt that the options provided by the system were truly redundant.
He did not touch any of the option boxes in the void, but let them gradually fade from his vision.
Gu Chengming gazed into Yu Wenqiu's eyes, which reflected the lights of thousands of homes, and a warm smile appeared on his lips.
"Okay."
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