Li Yu watched a little boy trip and scrape his knee. One of the elderly women rushed over with a wet cloth and a soothing song. She hugged the boy and he stopped crying.

  Something in Li Yu’s chest tightened. A dull, heavy ache that had nothing to do with the wine.

  "I'm an orphan too," Li Yu whispered.

  He hadn't said those words out loud in a long time. In his mind, his parents were gone. He remembered the feeling of being small, of being alone in a big, scary world before awakening his martial spirit and moving to the Green Mountain Sect. He remembered the uncertainty of where the next meal would come from and what he would do.

  Since gaining power he had focused on survival. On getting stronger. On helping his friends and those he cared about.

  He had built a guild with his followers. He had recently founded an alliance. He had saved countless lives through fighting.

  But he had never truly looked down and back.

  "I..." Li Yu looked at his hands. "I have so much gold. I have mountains of spirit stones. And I never even thought to ask."

  He felt ashamed. A burning, hot shame that flushed his cheeks. He had tossed mid-grade spirit stones at a loan shark yesterday to solve a problem for one kid but he had walked past places like this in every city he visited without blinking. He never thought much about it, out of sight, out of mind.

  "Li Yu?" Si Luo placed a hand on his shoulder. "Are you okay? You haven’t moved in a while."

  "I'm an idiot," Li Yu said back to her. His voice was thick and full of regret. "A powerful, rich idiot."

  He walked into the courtyard.

  The old man with the crutch saw him coming. He straightened up and was shielding the toddler behind him. His eyes were wary—strangers in fine robes usually meant trouble in this part of town.

  "Can I help you, young master?" the old man asked. "We don't have any wine here. The tourist usually stay on the other side of town. It’s where all the fun things are."

  Li Yu stopped in front of the man. He bowed slightly to the man.

  "I am not here for wine," Li Yu said. "I was passing through and exploring the place. I saw the sign."

  He looked at the kids who had stopped playing to stare at the strangers.

  "Do you have enough?" Li Yu asked the man. "Food? Clothes? Medicine?"

  The old woman was nearby and couldn’t help but sigh. She then wiped her hands on her apron. "We manage, young master. The village here is kind. They get many visitors so many people live well. They give us surplus grain, food and other supplies. We do better than most orphanages. But... winter is coming. The bamboo houses draft. And medicine has gotten more expensive due to the war."

  Li Yu nodded in understanding.

  He reached into his robe. He didn't pull out a flashy bag of gold that would make them targets. He didn't pull out high-grade spirit stones they couldn't spend or would know what to do with.

  He pulled out a heavy dull pouch of silver and copper coins. Common currency that was usable everywhere and in the price range of their needs. It was a substantial amount, enough to feed this place for five years but not enough to ruin them to greed.

  He pressed it into the old woman's hands.

  "For the winter," Li Yu said. "And for the medicine."

  The author's tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

  The woman felt the weight. Her eyes widened. "Young master... this is..."

  "And this," Li Yu pulled out a small jade bottle. "These are low-grade health pills. Dilute them in water. One pill can heal a fever for many kids. Don't use them whole. That would have the reverse effect and harm them."

  The elders looked at him and tiny tears welling in their eyes at the kindness. They didn't know who he was but they knew what this meant.

  "Who are you?" the old man asked.

  "Just an orphan, much like that," Li Yu said softly. "One who got lucky and wanted to give back."

  The group left the House of Little Shoots in silence.

  Li Yu walked to the edge of the platform in his own thoughts. He was looking out over the endless green ocean of the bamboo forest. He felt a bit lighter but the shame hadn't fully vanished. One donation didn't fix the world.

  He pulled out his communication token.

  He infused Qi into it.

  "Commander Li?" Sect Master Zhou’s voice crackled through. "Is everything alright?"

  "I'm fine, Zhou," Li Yu said. His voice was serious and lacking its usual playful lilt. "I have a mission for the Alliance. One that I hope can remain constant on the mission boards. I will provide funds to support it."

  "Name the target, Commander. We will mobilize the fleet and attack where you point."

  "The target is poverty," Li Yu said. "Zhou, I want you to survey every town and city in our territory. Find the orphanages. Find the shelters."

  "The... orphanages, sir?" Zhou sounded confused.

  "Yes. I want the Alliance to establish a supply line. Food, winter clothes, basic medicine and whatever else is needed. I want a monthly stipend set up for every caretaker. And I want guards posted—not to intimidate but to protect them from gangs and predators. Merit points to be assigned accordingly."

  There was silence on the other end. Zhou hadn’t expected to hear that their commander who fought through countless beasts would be talking about the common person. Then, Zhou’s voice returned but was a bit softer.

  "That... is a simple thing, Commander. It will cost us a tiny fraction of our operating budget. You won’t need to contribute anything extra. You have already given too much. We can do it easily. Helping mortals is cheap."

  "That’s good. Do it." Li Yu replied with a smile on his end. "Make it a priority while setting up the alliance."

  "Understood, Commander. It will be done."

  Li Yu cut the connection. He switched to using his Koi Sanctuary.

  "Wise Host!" Kui answered him. "How is it going over there? With you there I am sure everything is fine. Things are great on our end. There has been no conflicts and we are expanding nicely."

  “That’s great news Kui. I need you to spend money for a mission I am going to assign."

  Li Yu repeated the order. He told Kui to mobilize the Golden Shell Guild’s vast network. Not for profit but for charity.

  "Set up a foundation," Li Yu instructed. "Any orphan who wants to learn a trade, we teach them. Any orphan who has talent for cultivation, we sponsor them. No strings attached. No debts."

  "What a kind idea, Wise Host! Not great for profit but good for our image." Kui chuckled. "We have already been helping those in need as you instructed but haven’t been going out of our way for it either. Let’s call it the “The Little Shell Initiative.' Perhaps those we help will come back and join us or help us in the future."

  "If anyone tries to mess with the kids under our protection, remind them that Golden Shell is heavy."

  "You got it, Wise Host. I'll get the accountants on it today. Take care of yourself over there. I’ve been hearing stories of unrest starting but still on a small scale. As mentioned before, nothing that has affected us."

  Li Yu ended the conversation with Kui and took a deep breath. The air of the bamboo forest tasted sweeter than before.

  "You are a strange cultivator," Si Luo observed as she was standing beside him. "Most seek to sever mortal ties. You seek to reinforce them."

  "I can only follow my heart and thoughts," Li Yu shrugged. "Or maybe I just want to make sure the next kid like me doesn't have to rely on luck to survive in this world. I will do what I can but I will never claim to save everyone."

  Bai Ruo adjusted her glasses. "It makes sense. If you feed them, they won't steal to survive. If you teach them, they become productive. Plus, if they grow up knowing the Golden Shell helped them, you get a loyal workforce for life. It's a solid investment."

  Li Yu smiled, patting her on the shoulder.

  "Thank you, Bai Ruo. Way to make helping others sound like a business plan. That would just be a bonus."

  He turned back toward the main village.

  "Come on," Li Yu said. "Let's go find some breakfast. I think I earned some food."

  As they walked back, the sun climbed higher, illuminating the bamboo forest. Li Yu didn't feel like a hero, or a commander, or a legend. He just felt like a guy who had finally remembered where he came from. What he didn’t wouldn’t change the world but it would help it slightly. That was enough.