Chapter 5: The Ageless Hero

When Gabriela woke up, the sunlight had already crawled over the windowsill and landed on her ankles, bringing a warm sensation.

She instinctively looked toward the side of the bed.

The floor bed where Qiaolin had been sleeping was neatly packed away.

None of the furniture or items in the room were missing, but for some reason, the space felt empty.

“Qiaolin?”

Gabriela called out the man’s name.

Aside from a few crisp bird chirps from outside, there was no response.

An inexplicable sense of unease rose in Gabriela’s heart.

She suddenly remembered the secluded life Qiaolin had mentioned to her before.

‘Has Qiaolin already left this place to avoid me?’

A flash of panic appeared in Gabriela’s eyes.

She hurriedly got out of bed and searched every corner of the small cottage.

“No…” She called Qiaolin’s name over and over, but her heart only felt more lost.

‘Does Qiaolin actually hate me?After all, I am a member of the Demon Race, and the Saintess he loved, Tor, died in battle against the Demon King. And the Demon King back then… was my own blood relative.’

Gabriela couldn’t help but let such thoughts consume her.

She ran outside and found a locked room.

Perhaps it was a warehouse or something similar.

Gabriela didn’t think he would be inside since it was locked from the outside, but… how would she know without checking?

With Qiaolin’s abilities, locking a door from the outside shouldn’t be difficult.

Gabriela nervously reached out.

With her strength, breaking this iron lock wouldn’t be a challenge either.

Then —

“What are you doing?”

A man’s voice came from behind her.

Gabriela turned around blankly and instinctively said, “I thought you had left.”

Qiaolin understood her meaning instantly, so he gave her a light chop to her forehead.

“Ouch…”

“Don’t say such silly things. I just went out to see some villagers for medical treatment.”

“Medical… treatment?”

Under Gabriela’s confused gaze, Qiaolin patted the wooden box at his waist.

He opened it to reveal various bottles, jars, potions, and medicinal powders.

“This is my medicine room. It also serves as a clinic.”

Qiaolin opened the door, and a rich medicinal fragrance wafted out.

Gabriela instinctively covered her nose, only to find that the scent wasn’t pungent at all.

Instead, it carried a faint, elegant aroma.

Looking at the dazzling array of potions on the shelves, Gabriela couldn’t help but ask, “Aren’t you proficient in Healing Magic now? Wouldn’t it be too much trouble to use these medicines for treatment?”

“Magic can indeed cure their illnesses with ease, but I won’t stay here forever. Perhaps I’ll stay for ten or eight years and then move on. Before that, I hope to teach them this knowledge through practice,” Qiaolin said while gathering herbs.

Due to the Divine Blessing, Qiaolin’s body would never age again.

If he stayed in one place for too long, it would inevitably attract unnecessary trouble.

He didn’t plan on taking any disciples, either.

Rather than granting knowledge to a single person, it was better to sow the seeds like common sense, allowing them to spread among the people.

If he encountered a little fellow with magical talent, he might teach them a few spells.

Unfortunately, people were just like he once was — obsessed with violent magic.

“This is what they call: ‘Give a man a fish, and you feed him for a day; teach a man to fish, and you feed him for a lifetime,'” Gabriela said with a smile.

“My, my, after several hundred years, the Lady Demon King has become much smarter.”

“I wasn’t stupid to begin with, okay?”

After Qiaolin finished packing, he invited Gabriela along to see if she wanted to watch his medical work.

The girl, naturally, agreed with pleasure.

—

“Remember, if you encounter this kind of bruise or sprain in the future, grind this herb into dregs and dissolve it in hot water. Soak the injured area in it to relieve the symptoms,” Qiaolin said patiently to an uncle who had injured his foot in a fall.

“If the injury is in a hard-to-reach spot, taking it orally is also fine. It tastes a bit bitter, but good medicine tastes bitter, haha.”

Gabriela watched from the side as he examined the villagers.

Clearly, they had no idea of the man’s true identity; they all believed he was just an ordinary rural Physician.

Furthermore, Qiaolin charged almost no fees.

At most, he would take a few eggs.

Some wealthier families would send him a chicken or prey they had just caught in the wild.

“Isn’t this the young girl Qiao just married? My, she certainly has a healthy build.”

The news of the Marriage Contract Qiaolin and Gabriela had signed had spread through the village that very day.

Facing the villagers’ praise, Qiaolin could only give a wry smile, while Gabriela’s face had already turned beet red from embarrassment.

“Qiao, when are you two going to have a child? We’ll be sure to come over for a drink to celebrate.”

“Next year for sure, next year for sure!” Qiaolin brushed everyone off with casual excuses, but the girl of the Demon Race beside him seemed to take it seriously.

“Are you… really going to…”

“If I didn’t say that, they would never shut up,” Qiaolin said, patting Gabriela’s head.

After a busy morning, the two returned to the cottage.

“So, what do you plan to do this afternoon?”

Gabriela asked.

“Usually, I’d go on commissions with Sains and the others in the afternoon, but I’ve quit doing that for now. Thinking about it, I don’t really have anything to do during this period.”

Qiaolin rubbed his chin, lost in thought.

“Why don’t I just go with you to the Demon King’s Castle?”

“Eh? You… you agree?”

Gabriela was stunned.

She thought Qiaolin would at least consider it for a few more days or weeks.

“I never refused in the first place. Besides, compared to my idle life in seclusion, the situation on your side is probably more important.”

“Actually, it’s not that urgent…”

Gabriela muttered softly.

She looked at the calm smile on Qiaolin’s face and then asked, “When do we set off?”

“We leave tomorrow. I need to tidy up here first and leave a note. Once I leave this time, I don’t know when I’ll be back.”

“We aren’t going to fight a Demon King this time. You’re talking as if it’s so strange,” Gabriela complained.

“Haha, but this matter isn’t something that can be solved in a heartbeat, right?”

Qiaolin asked.

“If you reached the Saint Rank, you probably wouldn’t even need my help.”

Gabriela fell silent upon hearing this.

For the powerhouses who controlled strength in this world, the gap in ability could be seen at a glance through ranks.

People used three tiers to represent strength: Mortal Rank, King Rank, and the highest, Saint Rank.

Within the Mortal Rank, levels were also divided from One Crown to Five Crown.

For example, Clara from the adventurer party was a One Crown Soil Magic user.

The most straightforward characteristic used to distinguish these ranks was mana.

300 years ago, Gabriela’s strength had already reached the early stage of the King Rank.

A powerhouse at that level could dominate a region of the continent.

Meanwhile, the Demon King’s power had long resided at the Saint Rank; even Qiaolin, as a Celestial Hero, had not reached that level at the time.

To defeat the Demon King, Qiaolin’s party had gathered numerous King Rank powerhouses, yet they were still no match for her.

In the end, Qiaolin had to rely on a special secret technique provided by the Celestial Realm to forcibly break through to the Saint Rank before he could finally stand a chance.

That was why Qiaolin teased Gabriela — if she became a Saint Rank powerhouse, no one would dare resist her rule.

“I don’t want to use force to intimidate others, and I definitely don’t want to become like my sister.”