"Sir, please eat this."
An old refugee, accepting a roasted bun from his son, offered it with a fawning smile to Wan Lei.
"No, thank you. We are cultivators; we don't need to eat."
Wan Lei smiled and declined.
"Ah, alright."
The old man smiled, took the bun, and devoured it greedily, making a child beside him salivate.
Wan Lei wasn't particularly moved by the scene.
Over the past year, he had seen too many refugees migrating due to famine and too many people starving to death along the way.
The old man offering him the last of his meager food was an act of kindness, indeed.
But to call it utterly pure? Not quite.
It was merely seeing his strength and wanting to curry favor, hoping for a safer journey ahead.
At the very least, he was a shrewd old man.
He didn't play the victim or resort to moral blackmail.
He knew that such wanderers, the stronger they were, the more uninhibited they were, and the more they disliked carrying unknown burdens that brought them trouble.
Roving heroes robbing the rich to help the poor and eliminating evils for the people were indeed praiseworthy tales.
But the reason all these tales were tales was their rarity, which allowed them to be passed down.
Most wanderers treated human lives as mere grass.
The old man ate his bun while the man beside him roasted more, distributing them to others.
From their conversation, Wan Lei learned that they were two families, neighbors, migrating north to escape the famine.
This region was the northern territory of the Xi family, the most severely affected by war. Further north, the Cao family's territory had not suffered as much from direct conflict. However, many civilians had been conscripted as laborers, and numerous laborers had died in battle, resulting in the crops planted in spring being left untended. Weeds grew rampant, and harvests were almost nonexistent.
Unfortunately, they were unaware of this. They instinctively believed that the Cao family's territory, being free from war, should have food.
If they could reach it, whether to beg or to work for landlords, they could at least find a meal.
Wan Lei had been to the Cao family's territory and knew its condition, but he didn't tell them, not wanting to destroy the last flicker of hope that sustained them.
In chaotic times, humans were less valuable than dogs.
The young man went to the riverbank, chipped off a piece of ice, and placed it in a small iron pot over the fire, melting it into water.
There was no shortage of firewood; dilapidated houses were everywhere, and any beam could be dismantled.
"Oh, this fire is such a good thing, it's truly warm."
The old man stretched out his hands, warming himself by the fire, and smiled kindly.
Wan Lei's heart stirred; that statement seemed rather insightful.
He took out two jars of wine and offered them to the old man.
"Have some wine to warm yourself up."
The old man, Gou huo, widened his eyes. Wine was increasingly hard to come by now. With war, no one was producing anything, and everything was scarce. Wan Lei was offering such a precious commodity to refugees?
But he quickly realized they were merely two jars of the cheapest sorghum wine, nothing special, and lowered his head.
"Oh, thank you, sir, thank you."
The old man nodded repeatedly in gratitude, took the wine, and shared a jar with his old neighbor.
"Old sir, this junior has a question that puzzles me. I hope you can enlighten me."
Wan Lei asked with a smile.
"Oh, my dear sir, you flatter me. I am illiterate and can hardly be called 'sir.'
If you wish to chat, this humble one will gladly talk with you."
"Old sir, you just said fire is a good thing. How exactly is it good?"
The old man smiled. Hearing this, it seemed the other was simply bored and looking for a topic to chat about. So, why not? Especially considering the two jars of wine.
"Young man, do you know how the very first fire in this world came to be?"
After two mouthfuls of wine, the old man felt a sense of comfort, and the distance between them lessened. He no longer addressed Wan Lei as 'sir.'
Wan Lei pondered for a moment. Of course, he couldn't tell him about the universe's birth, the manifestation of rules, and the emergence of fire elements to create the first flame.
The old man wouldn't understand.
But he knew the old man must have more to say.
"Please, old sir, enlighten me."
"Heh heh, in the beginning of heaven and earth, we humans were no different from beasts. We gathered together, wielding stones and sticks, using our fists and teeth, fighting against wild beasts.
Whoever lost became the other's food, torn apart and eaten raw.
But in those days, people had short lifespans. One reason was that they would be killed and eaten by beasts soon after they started living, dying in combat. Or, they would grow old and weak, unable to hunt, and be abandoned by their own kind, becoming food for the beasts.
However, the primary reason was eating raw meat; it was too dirty, unclean, leading to many illnesses and early deaths."
Wan Lei remained silent. Although what the old man said had no direct relation to fire yet, he anticipated the main point would come next.
"Until people discovered that lightning descended from the sky, striking forests and trees. Heavenly lightning ignited ground fires, burning the forests. The wild beasts and snakes within were all incinerated.
After the fire extinguished, people went to collect the roasted animals. They found them exceptionally delicious. From then on, humans learned to preserve fire and use it to roast food.
People believed that fire was a gift bestowed by the gods through lightning, allowing mortals to eat healthy food and drink clean water.
From then on, people developed fire's many other uses.
Initially, people discovered that fire could be used to boil water, cook food, and provide warmth in the harsh winter.
Later, they found that fire could be used to fire pottery and make jars for storing food and water.
Fire could be used for smelting, extracting metals from ores through fire, and refining them into copper and iron.
These copper and iron could then be further refined with fire.
They could be made into swords and knives to defend against beast attacks.
They could be made into cleavers to cut food, making it easier to cook.
They could be fashioned into hoes, sickles, and rakes, which helped them better till the land and harvest crops.
Fire could be used to drive away wild beasts, for illumination and warmth. Land that had been burned by fire became more fertile the following year.
During battles, fire could also be used to transmit signals."
At this point, the old man took a sip of wine.
"Even, my knowledge is limited, but I've heard that you immortals use fire for cultivation or alchemy, which can make people stronger, and alchemy can heal wounds.
Oh, I've rambled too far, too far."
The old man waved his hand and pointed to the bonfire before them.
"Take this present moment, for example. Without this fire, I fear I would freeze to death in this cold night, let alone have this conversation with you.
Therefore, saying that fire gives birth to all things is not an exaggeration."
Wan Lei sat cross-legged, gazing blankly at the bonfire, its flames flickering in his eyes.
"Water drowns all life...
Fire gives birth to all things..."