After a moment of daze, Meng Yaoyin turned around, only to find that she was no longer in the Fire Persimmon Immortal City, but had entered the interior of Fire Persimmon Mountain.
She inspected her inner spiritual nature, and saw that deep within, her purple essence was proudly congealed into a mass.
"The injury has deepened again..."
With a soft sigh, she did not rush back to the Immortal City, but continued to delve into the mountain, entering the Lava Fairy Palace.
"Dao injuries erode memory; given enough time, spiritual nature will also dissipate."
"Eventually, I'll revert to being a Buddhist Physician and return to the Lava Fairy Palace on my own."
From that point on, Meng Yaoyin actively reduced the time spent with Ning Zhuo and, through subtle hints, repeatedly suggested to Ning Zhuo the separation that was to come.
Ning Zhuo curled up under the blankets, sobbing.
Sun Lingtong approached the bedside, asking out of curiosity, "Why are you crying? Why aren't you asleep yet?"
Little Ning Zhuo peeked his head out from the blankets, "I... I miss my mother."
"I... I can't sleep. Whenever I can't sleep, my mom would sing to me. Can you sing for me?"
Sun Lingtong, with resignation, sang hesitantly and haltingly.
Buddhist Physician Meng Yaoyin hid her form and watched this scene from behind, her heart filled with immense relief and joy.
She had never expected that the person whom she had saved by chance, although coming from an Evil Sect, would have such a kind heart.
The way Sun Lingtong secretly investigated the Ning Family Clan Land and helped Ning Zhuo fend off relatives' encroachments on the family's wealth were all witnessed by Meng Yaoyin.
...
Time rushed by.
"The night is deep, it's time to sleep properly, or you won't grow tall, and your head will become dull, Little Zhuo," Meng Yaoyin appeared and reminded Ning Zhuo, who was studying by lamp light, in a gentle voice.
Ning Zhuo looked up in delight, "Mom, you're back!"
He held up the book in his hands, "Mom, I'll cultivate Mechanical Techniques with all my might to help heal you. The last time you came back, your arm was injured."
Meng Yaoyin's gaze faintly tightened, and her arm subconsciously moved backward.
Her child had grown up and was more attentive than before.
Her arm injury was incurred while slaughtering a Flame Demon Beast in Fire Persimmon Mountain. At that time, she had lost her sanity with no memory, and, acting on the preset motions of a Buddhist Physician, guarded the Lava Fairy Palace and slaying Demon Beasts was among those actions.
"My good child." Meng Yaoyin was deeply moved and involuntarily hugged Ning Zhuo close.
Ning Zhuo clung to his mother; though his body was that of a tough puppet, he felt an endless tenderness.
He looked toward the lamp on the table, his eyes shimmering with hope, and muttered, "Mom, I'll become the most formidable Mechanism Cultivator in the world."
"I'll cure your silly illness and we'll always be together!"
Meng Yaoyin's body trembled.
For a moment, boundless sorrow overwhelmed her and she struggled to hold it back.
She clenched her eyes tightly, yet no tears fell.
...
"Is this Ciyou Garden?" Little Zhuo looked up at the towering building, his heart filled with apprehension.
But thinking of his mother, he still gritted his teeth and blended into the crowd.
Hiding in a corner, he watched the Mechanism Cultivator on stage, doing his utmost to learn the art of puppet control.
He had learned much about the theory of mechanisms, but truly needed a teacher's guidance for control.
As Meng Yaoyin's condition deteriorated, she treasured the moments of lucid consciousness, unwilling to spend precious time teaching Ning Zhuo these trivial matters.
Ning Zhuo frantically studied Li Leifeng's control techniques, his small fingers moving continuously inside his sleeves, his large eyes unwaveringly focused.
His brain was active for so long that by the end of a puppet show, he was ravenous, his eyes blurry from hunger, his ears ringing.
He picked up the pastries left over by the guests.
"It's... It's so delicious!"
...
Eventually, Ning Zhuo was adopted by his uncle Ning Zhuo.
He entered the school.
Knowing his situation, his classmates taunted him.
"Wild child, wild child!"
"Big head freak, big head freak!"
"Born by a mother, raised by none, an orphan, ha-ha-ha..."
Ning Zhuo suddenly turned around, his eyes already bloodshot, fists clenched, and he growled, "I have a mother!"
The classmates were startled at first, but then mocked him with even greater ferocity.
Ning Zhuo let out a loud yell and charged, grappling with his classmates.
He returned home with a bruised face.
The parents of the classmates who fought with him came to blame him, and Uncle Ning Ze was nothing but appeasing.
Turning back, Ning Ze sternly punished Ning Zhuo, making him kneel as a penalty.
"Quite the nerve you have, hitting a Family Elder's grandson!"
Ning Zhuo knelt until evening without dinner, feeling so hungry he was dizzy.
Ning Ji, who had indulged in a full meal, came up to him with a smirk, the leftover scent of food still on him, and proudly circled around him several times.
"Mother, where are you? Sob sob sob..." Ning Zhuo could only cry in his heart.
Buddhist Physician Meng Yaoyin walked through the tunnels of Fire Persimmon Mountain, each of her steps consistently measured as she moved with a consistently even posture, her gaze devoid of any emotion.
...
Evening, after school.
Ning Zhuo mingled with the crowd as he exited the schoolhouse.
As he turned the corner of the street, his steps faltered when he saw a classmate, laughing joyfully while holding his parents' hands.
"Big head freak!" Suddenly, a loud shout came from behind him.
The next moment, Ning Zhuo was pushed over from behind.
He rose angrily, ready to take revenge, only to see several classmates escaping with uninhibited laughter.
For a moment, he didn't know which one to chase after.
Once they were far enough away, those classmates stopped and mocked, "Motherless wild child, motherless big head freak!"
Ning Zhuo roared and furiously pursued them.
In the end, because he returned home too late, Wang Lan locked him out of the house.
He steeled himself, holding back his rage, and turned to leave.
He left Ning Ze's residence and hurried back to his own small yard.
On the dark, deserted path, a familiar figure suddenly appeared.
"Mother!" Ning Zhuo whispered, rushing joyfully towards the figure ahead of him.
Buddhist Physician Meng Yaoyin looked at him tenderly. She wore a thick, wide robe, black as ink, to facilitate her nighttime movements and to hide her injuries.
Meng Yaoyin took the initiative to hold Ning Zhuo's hand, chatting as they walked.
"How is life at school?"
"It's all good. The teachers are kind, and my classmates like to play with me."
"Why not spend the night at your uncle's?"
"I just... suddenly missed home..."
Meng Yaoyin's heart was filled with sorrow. She was not ignorant of Ning Zhuo's situation, but after much deliberation, she chose to observe from the sidelines.
She would only intervene when Ning Zhuo faced a serious crisis.
It was all dark, and even while holding a wooden palm, Ning Zhuo felt as if he was holding the whole world.
However, Meng Yaoyin's voice gradually faded away, her footsteps became crisp, extremely rhythmic, and her gaze became vacant, as if she were a zombie.
The tender maternal aura seemed to be swallowed up by the surrounding darkness.
Ning Zhuo looked down, acutely aware of the puppet's change.
He grasped his mother's hand tightly, his eyes shining with tears as he choked out, "Mother, don't worry."
"I know."
"I am not a child without a mother's love!"