Although she had always known that Dijiang Guyu, being a spiritual creature cultivated from Emperor Jiang’s bones, was always a crybaby who could weep over anything.

But she never would have expected there would be a time when it could be scared to this extent by an ordinary goose.

Bai Yin beside her was returning to Yashan for the first time in nearly a hundred years—where had he ever witnessed such a bizarre scene?

Originally, when he had just returned and seen that incongruous big white goose in Guihe Well, he already felt it was quite indescribable.

But now, along came a bone demon and a marten that seemed about to become a spirit…

Since ancient times, Yashan had eight scenic spots, but watching the increasingly intense “battle situation” at Guihe Well, Bai Yin inexplicably had a premonition in his heart.

Perhaps the appearance of Yashan’s ninth scenic spot wasn’t far off.

Jian Chou naturally felt these three were quite embarrassing and couldn’t bear to watch directly, but hearing the noisy commotion, she also felt an indescribably intimate and peaceful feeling.

A gentle breeze caressed her face, stirring the floating clouds.

In the end, she still didn’t go up to drag these three back. She just slowly smiled and inexplicably said: “How wonderful.”

Bai Yin couldn’t help but turn to look at her, seeing this senior sister of Yashan, who actually hadn’t been cultivating for many years, wearing an expression that was both peaceful and distant.

A wanderer returning home—everything they see is good.

Yashan was their home.

Many years ago, when he had first returned from his travels, his expression was probably much the same?

Bai Yin also smiled but didn’t disturb Jian Chou further, leaving her standing alone in place.

Jian Chou didn’t know when Bai Yin had left.

She just stood there watching, observing each scene of Yashan, from brilliant daylight until dusk fell.

Little Marten and Guyu, who had been playing around Guihe Well earlier, were now nowhere to be seen, leaving only the big white goose finally getting some peace, floating leisurely on the water’s surface.

The setting sun’s brilliant rays stretched Jian Chou’s shadow long across the ground behind her.

Only when that last bit of light sank between the mountains did she turn around, following the direction in her memory, flying up along the cliff wall. Soon she saw those two simple wooden doors embedded in the carved cliff wall.

Beside the door still hung a plaque with the characters “Jian Chou” written on it.

Compared to its pristine appearance when she first arrived, it had now accumulated some traces of time, taking on a somewhat aged feel.

Sensing her arrival, a faint stream of light passed over those two characters “Jian Chou.”

Jian Chou took a deep breath before stepping forward to push open the door.

Simple and plain—one table, four chairs, one meditation cushion, one low couch, one lamp like a bean of light, and nothing else.

The light inside wasn’t particularly bright, but it had a reassuring quality.

That lamp sat on the wooden table—a small jade bowl with a warm yellow flame burning inside. It seemed as if it had never been extinguished in these sixty years.

She still remembered this lamp had been arranged by Qu Zhengfeng.

Initially, when Fourth Junior Brother Shen Jiu first saw this lamp, he thought Qu Zhengfeng had stolen his Heavenly Fire Bowl. He made a fuss and drew his sword against Qu Zhengfeng, but the result needn’t be mentioned—

Complete defeat.

Later, Qu Zhengfeng said he was just teasing him—this thing wasn’t any Heavenly Fire Bowl at all, just an ordinary jade bowl.

Now that Jian Chou had returned and looked at this small bowl, her feelings were inevitably complex.

She walked over and picked up the small bowl. With her current cultivation and knowledge, she could almost immediately see that inside the bowl was an ingenious fire-gathering small formation that could ignite flames wherever it was placed.

However, carefully examining this formation, which involved the transformation of the five elements, it should originate from the Yin-Yang Twin Sects of the Northern Domain.

Suddenly, she recalled the Dragon Gate Dragon Scale Dao Seal carved on Black Wind Cave back then…

There was no need to mention Yashan’s own sect techniques—Qu Zhengfeng dared claim second place among the disciple generation, and probably no one would dare claim first.

But whether it was the Dragon Gate of Central Domain’s Zuo Sanqian or the Yin-Yang Twin Sects of the Northern Domain, the things he knew—weren’t they a bit too much?

Such doubts slowly emerged in her heart.

But since there was no one to ask about this matter, Jian Chou thought about it briefly and let it go.

Placing the small bowl back on the table, she had no mind for cultivation. She simply lay back on the low couch, looking up at the ceiling, her thoughts drifting.

Only at this moment did the feeling of returning to Yashan suddenly become real.

From Human Solitary Island, traveling with Fudao Shanren all the way to Yashan, then beginning cultivation, fighting with Jianzhu Sect, becoming famous in Central Domain, mistakenly entering the Killing Red Small Realm, returning to cultivate the “Human Artifact,” then Black Wind Cave…

Each event flowed past like water, one by one.

Without realizing it, Jian Chou fell asleep.

Actually, someone of her cultivation level no longer needed sleep for rest—sitting in meditation would leave her just as refreshed the next day.

But perhaps at this moment, she simply hadn’t thought that much.

Without the storms and hardships of the outside world, she simply needed such pure sleep.

That night, Yashan had gentle night rain with hazy stars and moon.

Jian Chou didn’t dream and slept very peacefully.

Waking early the next morning, she pushed open the door and looked down from the high cliff wall. She saw the dim morning light, misty vapors, and the outlines of the mountain ranges in front of Yashan’s Lingzhao Peak, all blurred in the mist.

Her mind was clear and her spirit refreshed.

She rarely stretched in a big lazy yawn, showing a contented smile, then flew directly down.

The disciples who rose early on Lingzhao Peak all greeted her, and she smiled back in return. But her feet didn’t stop, continuing past the Sword-Drawing Platform.

Halfway, she met Jiang He who had just come out of the Pills Hall.

Seeing that Jian Chou seemed to be heading outside the mountain, he couldn’t help but pause, asking curiously: “Senior Sister is going out?”

“Since Master hasn’t emerged from seclusion yet, I still have a few small matters to handle outside.” Jian Chou smiled. “It shouldn’t delay things too much.”

She was referring to the matter of Qingfeng Monastery’s hidden realm.

Previously, in the Extreme Domain’s Wrongful Death City, she had received aid from Immortal Wuzhong, or rather the real Buyu Shangren, who had separated her body and soul. When she reached the Release Heaven Creation Formation, she had comprehended the “opportunity” he left behind and mastered the true Heaven-Flipping Seal.

He had only asked her to visit the hidden realm once and grant the spiritual beasts within their freedom.

Although Red Butterfly had said in Mingri Xinghai that she need not go, she was still curious about the reason. Moreover, having accepted someone’s trust, she must be loyal to their affairs.

Jian Chou ultimately valued promises, and no matter what, she had to take a look.

Jiang He naturally didn’t know the details and only said: “Then Senior Sister should go and return early—tomorrow we open the Armory.”

Presumably what Zheng Yao had told her in Lanyue Hall yesterday was known to all the junior brothers. Jian Chou wasn’t surprised and agreed, then under Jiang He’s watchful gaze, took flight and became a swaying ethereal shadow, disappearing into the heavy mists before the mountain.

Qingfeng Monastery’s hidden realm was on Human Solitary Island. Even with Jian Chou’s current Nascent Soul cultivation, she couldn’t possibly cross the Western Sea directly.

Not to mention she needed to save time now.

So the route remained the same—

First finding the teleportation array built thirty li outside Yashan, teleporting to Western Sea Plaza, and unsurprisingly seeing her own name on the Fourth Heaven Tablet.

Of course, she also saw Xie Buchen’s name on the Third Heaven Tablet.

At that moment, she was indeed somewhat surprised.

But after thinking carefully, she felt relieved: even if severely injured and near death, Xie Buchen was still Xie Buchen, with the unfathomable Real Person Hengxu behind him—what wasn’t possible?

Going from zero cultivation directly to Core Formation and becoming Golden Core Peak in one stroke—occupying first place on the Third Heaven Tablet wasn’t so hard to accept.

Jian Chou laughed once but didn’t pay it much mind, directly stepping into the teleportation array in Western Sea Plaza and transmitting herself again to Deng Tiandao at the end of the Immortal Path Thirteen Islands.

Sixty years ago, when several of them went to Qingfeng Monastery’s hidden realm together, they had already repaired the formation.

But she wasn’t certain if it could still be used now.

After all, though many had heard of Qingfeng Monastery’s hidden realm, few had actually been there, not to mention the realm later became unstable, unable to bear even a Nascent Soul cultivator’s pressure.

So Jian Chou had expected the formation, even if usable, to be quite deteriorated.

But unexpectedly, when she followed old memories to find that formation at the edge of Deng Tiandao, she discovered the formation was not only usable but completely intact.

The lines deeply carved into the ground’s reef stone carried a sharp yet vigorous aura. Dark green moss covered the surroundings, suggesting considerable age.

But at the positions where these lines were located, the moss color was lighter, even somewhat tender green.

Jian Chou bent down and lightly touched it, frowning.

Looking at this formation’s appearance, one could tell that in recent decades, someone should have activated it, even repaired it.

Otherwise, it wouldn’t be so intact, much less leave such traces.

Who could it be?

Jian Chou’s eyes moved as she pondered, but her heart had no definite answer. So she simply ignored it, and after checking that the teleportation array was fine, directly crushed the transmission talisman.

After a dizzy sensation, she opened her eyes to find herself in that huge mountain-belly water ravine.

The stone sphere embedded above like a giant meteorite was covered with deep crack after deep crack. Before her was that hundred-zhang-tall hidden realm gate, but it was now tightly closed.

She still remembered when Xie Buchen had led everyone inside, he had a seal talisman in his palm, presumably given by Real Person Hengxu.

Later in the Heavenly Palace, they learned it was the “Great Brightness Seal.”

Jian Chou didn’t have this thing, but she wasn’t without other means.

With a thought, she extended her hand forward. The Qiankun Bag at her waist flashed with spiritual light, and an object flew out from nowhere, landing in her palm.

It was a foot-long scroll.

If any of the companions who had originally entered Qingfeng Monastery’s hidden realm were here, they would easily recognize this as the painting scroll that Lijun had given to Jian Chou when departing from beneath the Heavenly Palace.

The former pavilions, towers, lotus pools, and red carp were no longer visible.

On the aged, yellowed scroll was only blank space.

But when Jian Chou unrolled it, a light red spiritual glow emanated from the scroll’s surface, enveloping her entire person.

This scroll should have been left by Buyu Shangren of old, with its own space within the painting.

In just a moment, her entire person was drawn into the scroll by this red light, becoming a vague moon-white shadow in the painting.

“Whoosh.”

Then the scroll suddenly rolled up on its own, disappearing from the original spot. When it reappeared, it was already inside the hidden realm.

Towering waves rose on the broad lake surface.

The tall Heavenly Palace floated ethereally in the dome, obscured by misty clouds. A thousand-ren-tall giant Buddha statue stood heavily in the lake, but half the Buddha’s body was already in ruins.

The three thousand human heads that had once hung around it were nowhere to be found.

That scroll appeared from nowhere beside the great Buddha, unrolling again. Thus Jian Chou in the painting, her figure bleeding out like ink wash, emerged from the painting like mist, and in the blink of an eye reconstituted in mid-air.

She landed perfectly on this giant Buddha’s shoulder.

What met her eyes was somewhat similar to the day of the death battle with Xie Buchen, yet very different. The originally unclear hidden realm had become clear at this time.

Beyond the lake was a vast marsh, and further away connected to countless mountains and valleys.

She could vaguely see the maze formation they had once passed through, even the Wandering Hesitation Long Path.

However, those many spiritual beasts from before were nowhere to be seen. Even when Jian Chou extended her spiritual consciousness to sense, she gained little.

She remembered the spiritual beasts in the hidden realm were mostly in the Ten Thousand Beasts Maze Formation. Although a great battle between Lijun and the Wushan Falcon had destroyed most of the formation, presumably they should be over there?

As thoughts turned, Jian Chou directly put away the scroll and flew toward the direction in her memory.

But after flying forward for just a moment, her eyelid jumped violently.

Something was wrong.

This hidden realm felt wrong to her!

Her speeding figure suddenly stopped.

Jian Chou held her breath and concentrated, carefully sensing, capturing what her subconscious felt was wrong. Then she finally drew in a sharp breath.

Spiritual qi!

It was spiritual qi!

She remembered when they had entered the hidden realm before, the spiritual qi within had been almost exhausted. Although Buyu Shangren had once been a great cultivator, the hidden realm was ultimately a cultivator’s small world, not yet evolved to exist alongside the great world and produce its own spiritual qi.

Moreover, because the hidden realm had been long sealed and its formation damaged, it couldn’t obtain sufficient spiritual qi from the outside world.

So the spiritual beasts here found their cultivation difficult to advance and could only gradually perish.

This was the fundamental reason Immortal Wuzhong had entrusted her to come here.

But at this moment, in her spiritual consciousness’s perception, though the spiritual qi floating around couldn’t compare to blessed lands near spiritual veins like Yashan and Kunwu, it was quite rich—far from the thin state it had been in originally!

Jian Chou felt it was incredible.

In her mind, Red Butterfly’s words suddenly surfaced.

When she asked why there was no need to go to the hidden realm anymore, Red Butterfly had said, “You’ll know when you go.” There was also the anomaly of that formation she’d discovered on Deng Tiandao earlier.

Her brow couldn’t help but furrow. Jian Chou looked left and right, sensing no danger, so carrying this doubt in her heart, she still headed forward.

Her speed was now very fast, easily crossing the lake and seeing the maze formation at the edge that had sunk more than half like a solitary island.

But after traveling through it once, she gained nothing.

She neither saw any cultivator figures nor any spiritual beast shadows. Instead, at the plaza at the maze formation’s entrance, she saw traces of formation repair.

Formation…

The spiritual qi in the hidden realm relied precisely on the great formation left by Buyu Shangren to operate, exchanging with the outside great world to obtain replenishment.

Someone had actually come to repair the formation?

Jian Chou’s brow furrowed even deeper. While speculating, she continued searching, soon reaching those mountains, flying over the eight corridors of Wandering Hesitation from above, flying over Cloud Platform Plaza, and quickly seeing that great river they had to cross when first entering the hidden realm.

She remembered there had been two single-log bridges then—those with feelings crossed the Feelings Bridge, those without feelings took the Heartless Bridge.

But now, the bridges over the river were gone, and there was no longer that sand gull that had reminded them to choose their path. Only a small boat lay overturned in the river, with the characters “Heartless” carved on it.

“Heartless Boat?”

At that time, Jian Chou had taken the single-log bridge, and Lu Xiangleng, Young Master Ruhua, and others each had their own methods of crossing the river. No one had ever mentioned there being a ferry.

Except for Xie Buchen.

Originally, this person had separated from them upon entering the hidden realm, and they didn’t meet again until the maze formation, so no one knew whether Xie Buchen had crossed the river or which path he had chosen.

This overturned boat in the river made Jian Chou stand on the riverbank thinking for a long time, but in the end, she still shook her head.

Entering had been difficult, but leaving was easy. There were no longer the original checkpoints, so naturally, there was no need to choose between Feelings Bridge or Heartless Bridge.

She directly flew over the great river, then crashed into a patch of dim darkness.

Moments later, a familiar gate had appeared before Jian Chou.

A deep black stone gate, three zhang tall.

Centered on the door seam, a lifelike fat pig was carved, with ears so large they were like two palm fans, each hanging an old bronze door knocker.

But at this time, Jian Chou couldn’t see its face, only its rear.

Remembering Xie Buchen’s method of knocking sixty years ago, she reached out, grasped the bronze ring hanging from the pig’s ear, lifted it up, and gently knocked on the stone gate.

“Clang, clang, clang.”

Three crisp sounds, then the entire stone gate actually shook, shedding countless dust particles from the door.

The stone pig carved on the door panel actually trembled, as if startled, then suddenly turned around!

This scene was both eerie and marvelous.

The pig was still a stone carving, embedded in the door as if naturally integrated, but the pig’s rear that had been facing Jian Chou was no longer visible. Its mouth was open, its pig eyes wide, looking at Jian Chou as if it had seen a ghost.

“How is it you, human?!”

This “human”…

The corner of Jian Chou’s mouth twitched. After many years, this gatekeeper pig still counted using “head” as the unit.

“I borrowed the painting scroll Lijun gave me to enter, so I didn’t pass through here.”

“It can actually be done that way?”

The gatekeeper pig immediately became angry, waving both pig hooves within the door panel’s range, making “snort snort” sounds from its nose, obviously extremely furious.

“That stinking carp fish—earlier he agreed that the hidden realm would be guarded by this pig, yet he dared secretly give others a back door! I’m so angry, so angry!”

“…”

This made Jian Chou a bit awkwardly embarrassed.

However, the sudden mention of Lijun in these words brought her additional sorrow. Seeing the gatekeeper pig was still the same as usual, her earlier doubts surfaced.

“By the way, speaking of which, I was entrusted by someone to make this trip here, originally to find the many spiritual beasts originally in the hidden realm. But when I went in just now to look, there wasn’t even half a shadow. You guard this gate daily—do you know the circumstances behind this?”

That single word “You” with respect in this speech made the gatekeeper pig extremely pleased.

It immediately showed an expression of “you human are quite sensible, knowing how capable this lord is,” snorted once, then said: “You’re fairly perceptive, knowing how powerful this lord is. Then I’ll tell you—most of them went out. It’s not that they won’t return, just that they’ve been bored in the hidden realm too long and want to go out for a walk.”

“They’ve already gone out?”

This answer truly surprised Jian Chou.

The gatekeeper pig just used its pig hoof to fiddle with the bronze ring on its ear twice, quite flirtatiously, only saying: “Of course they went out. After you left, the hidden realm collapsed further, spiritual qi was depleted even faster. It only lasted about twenty years before quite a few brothers and sisters were gone. Fortunately, thirty years ago, someone came to repair the great formation in the realm and opened the exit gate. Everyone had been unable to go out for too long and all prepared to go out for a look. Even my sister Red Butterfly went out to play, sigh…”

Great formation repair…

When Jian Chou had examined the hidden realm earlier, she had already guessed something, but hadn’t expected to get confirmation from the gatekeeper pig.

However…

“Thirty years ago, who came to repair the formation?”

“This, let me think, what was the name…”

The gatekeeper pig’s eyes rolled as it poked its brain with its pig hoof, seeming to think hard, but finally shook its hoof vigorously and gave up.

“Bah! This pig doesn’t remember. Anyway, it was that whoever, that one who fought you to the death originally and is quite good-looking!”

Fought her to the death and quite good-looking?

Jian Chou’s pupils immediately contracted, almost not daring to believe her ears: “…Xie Buchen?!”

In the hidden realm, she had only opposed him.

Originally, in front of this gate guarded by the gatekeeper pig, indeed before even entering, they had first fought to the death.

Apart from Xie Buchen, there was no second person.

But now, the gatekeeper pig was actually saying that the one who repaired the formation and restored the hidden realm’s spiritual qi was Xie Buchen?

This person was ruthless enough to kill his wife for the sake of cultivation, yet afterward could treat all things as usual, even returning to the hidden realm thirty years ago to save many lives in this realm?

Cold-hearted?

Or compassionate?

Jian Chou’s mood suddenly became much more complex.

The gatekeeper pig naturally didn’t know what Jian Chou was thinking. Seeing her like this, it only thought she didn’t believe it and snorted: “He saved so many companions’ lives—this pig wouldn’t remember wrong. It was him, and he carried Lijun’s Karmic Fire Red Lotus token. With the token and having saved the hidden realm, this hidden realm now actually belongs to him—it’s changed owners.”

Changed owners.

So the current master of this hidden realm was already Xie Buchen?

Jian Chou finally froze, countless thoughts flashing alternately through her mind, only generating an indescribable sense of absurdity. But after long silence, it finally transformed into a laugh of relief and a sigh of mockery—

“Indeed, that’s right! This is exactly like him…”

Xie Buchen.

Even if he had ten thousand compassionate intentions, there must be hidden purposes behind them. Talk of saving the many lives in the hidden realm was probably just incidental to obtaining the hidden realm.

So-called mercy was merely to display his power of life and death.

How lofty and superior!

Those weaker than him were all like ants—living or dying, what difference did it make to him?

But calculating from beginning to end, regarding this Qingfeng Monastery hidden realm, he ultimately didn’t lose much. Though his cultivation had collapsed, he gained a hidden realm…

Truly worthy of being Xie Buchen.

Jian Chou didn’t know if her heart held more admiration or more mockery.

This trip to Qingfeng Monastery’s hidden realm was quite unexpected, but the result was ultimately good. Immortal Wuzhong’s concern was nothing more than those spiritual beasts of his, and now those that could be saved were all well. Though it wasn’t her help, she could be at peace.

So without further words, she asked the gatekeeper pig to open the hidden realm gate and returned to that mountain-belly water ravine.

She should have directly returned to Shijiu Zhou through the teleportation array, but when she stood in the formation, she suddenly stopped.

All memories related to this place now surfaced.

In the end, she still didn’t directly return to Shijiu Zhou, but flew through the air, just as Fudao Shanren had once brought her rushing into this place, speeding out.

Outside was Qingfeng Mountain, with green tiles and white walls halfway up the mountain—exactly Qingfeng Monastery.

In autumn, the forests were fully dyed, the green mountains like fire, with a cold chill in the wind.

Jian Chou stood on the high mountaintop, looking west—

Winding mountain ranges, vast plains.

The Great Xia Dynasty was on that most prosperous stretch of land, with cities densely visible from afar, prosperous and lively.

This was Human Solitary Island, where she came from.

Her distant gaze became somewhat misty. Jian Chou rose like a wisp of wind, drifting straight westward.

Mountain ranges rose and fell beneath her feet, flashing by rapidly.

Only when she saw that village ahead did she slow down, descending and landing at the village entrance.

This was a small village nestled in a mountain hollow.

High mountains surrounded it on all sides, but below sat dozens of households. Near noon, cooking smoke rose from within, and occasional dog barking and laughter could be heard.

Sixty-some years had passed in a flash.

When she walked through from the village entrance again, she saw only thatched houses and wooden gates, mostly no longer looking as they had in the old days. There weren’t many villagers walking the paths, but they were all unfamiliar faces. Seeing such an outsider with completely different dress and bearing, most cast curious glances.

Jian Chou’s steps weren’t hurried.

But this village seemed to have always been this small. It didn’t take long to reach the very center, where she could see that tall ancient banyan tree with a single glance.

Dense branches and leaves stretched toward the sky, but on the branches near the ground, many red ribbons were tied. Some new, some old, some long, some short.

When wind blew, the leaves rustled.

Those red ribbons hanging full on the branches also fluttered, extremely bright against the backdrop of the high autumn’s azure sky.

She couldn’t help but remember:

When originally leaving this place, passing this tree, Fudao Shanren had said, “Hang up that silver lock of yours.”

But she had refused.

Now looking down at her open palm, that silver lock tied with a red string lay quietly in her palm.

But after standing under this tree for a long time, she finally slowly closed her fingers and gripped it back.

Whether living or cultivating, one needed something to hold onto.

Now wasn’t yet the time to let go.

Jian Chou slowly curved her lips in a smile, looked once more at this vigorous ancient banyan, then continued walking eastward.

The further she went, the fewer households there were.

The roads in her memory were already overgrown with wild grass, yellowed by autumn’s arrival, appearing increasingly desolate and lonely.

At the end stood only three rooms of old thatched houses, half a collapsed fence wall, and two rotting wooden doors.

She stepped on the old path already hidden by wild growing weeds, walking all the way to the door before stopping. She could see that door.

Still looking as it had when she left.

Tightly closed, with a small copper lock hanging above.

But after all, years had passed and wind and rain had eroded it. The originally lustrous yellow copper lock was now covered with mottled green rust.

All these years, it seemed no one had come here again.

Two rotting doors, one old lock.

Inside the door were her once-ordinary days of daily necessities, locked away were her once-imagined times of mutual respect and shared hardships.

Before everything happened, who could have predicted the later outcome?

Jian Chou gazed for a long time, finally still walking up and reaching toward the hidden gap three inches outside the right door frame.

It was a key, just like the lock head, already mottled with copper rust.

This was what she had placed when leaving, still in the original spot.

She inexplicably smiled, looking down at it, only feeling that worldly matters were unpredictable. Probably when Xie Buchen originally killed her, he wouldn’t have thought that precisely because of this, she would step onto that vast land of wind and clouds in Shijiu Zhou?

It had probably been too long since anyone had touched it—the key was already covered with dust.

Jian Chou instinctively wanted to use her fingers to wipe it clean. But just as she touched the key, something suddenly flashed through her mind, and she stopped her hand.

This dust…

She raised her eyes, looking at that copper lock, then at the gap that had originally hidden the key. The dust on this key was much less than the other two places.

As if…

At some past moment, there had also been a person who, like her, came from afar, reached the door, took out this key, and instinctively wiped it clean.

“…”

This copper lock key in her hand was somewhat cold.

After all, yesterday’s days could not be retained.

Jian Chou stared at it for a long time, finally still not touching it, placing it back in that crevice, hiding it just as before.