Chapter 33: Rainy Night in a Ruined Temple: The Old Man and the Young Girl

Half a month later.

“Boom!”

A thunderclap echoed across the clear sky.

“Looks like it’s about to rain.”

Lu Changsheng, riding his spirit horse on the main road, glanced at the overcast sky and spoke.

“It’s getting late. There’s a temple up ahead. Let’s rest there for the night.”

Li Feiyu suggested, observing the darkening sky.

“A desolate mountain, a ruined temple, heavy rain… I hope we don’t run into any trouble.”

Lu Changsheng spotted the abandoned ancient temple ahead and couldn’t help but mutter.

Still, this weather wasn’t suitable for spending the night outside.

The two quickly rode their spirit horses to the ancient temple.

The temple was dilapidated, overgrown with weeds, dusty inside, and covered in cobwebs.

Lu Changsheng used a cleaning technique to tidy up a bit, gathered some firewood, and started a bonfire.

He then took out raw meat from his Storage Bag and began feeding the Nine Abyss Mastiff.

“This little thing sure can eat, huh?”

Li Feiyu remarked, watching the Nine Abyss Mastiff devour the meat.

“Yeah, I wonder how it fits all that in its stomach.”

Lu Changsheng said.

Though still a pup, the Nine Abyss Mastiff had a huge appetite, eating five or six jin of raw meat per meal.

Ordinary raw meat was no problem; they could afford to feed it a hundred jin a day.

But Lu Changsheng felt that to make the Nine Abyss Mastiff grow faster, he’d probably need to feed it Demon beast meat.

Feeding it Demon beast meat would be expensive.

Even the cheapest Demon beast meat sold by the Lu Family cost one Spirit Stone for five or six jin.

Lu Changsheng realized that raising the Nine Abyss Mastiff to the fourth rank would likely cost a fortune in money and resources.

The Nine Abyss Mastiff, still a pup, fell asleep after eating its fill. Lu Changsheng and Li Feiyu began to meditate.

As night deepened, heavy rain started pouring outside.

Just then,

Hurried footsteps came from outside.

Lu Changsheng and Li Feiyu, who were meditating, opened their eyes simultaneously.

The temple door creaked open, and an old man and a young girl entered.

The old man was thin, wearing a black cloth robe and carrying a gray bundle.

Seeing Lu Changsheng and Li Feiyu inside, his eyes narrowed slightly. He then bowed and said, “This old man and his granddaughter are passing by. We seek shelter from the rain. We hope we’re not disturbing you two young men.”

“This ruined temple isn’t mine. Make yourselves at home.”

Lu Changsheng said to the old man, then glanced at the young girl in the pink dress beside him.

The girl looked about sixteen or seventeen years old.

She wore a long pink silk dress. Though not stunningly beautiful, she was quite pretty. Her face was fair and tender, with a hint of baby fat, giving her a pure and lovely appearance.

Due to the heavy rain, the girl’s pink dress was soaked through, clinging to her developing figure, her long, slender legs partly visible beneath the dress.

Her black hair was slightly messy, sticking to her cheeks, making her look vulnerable and pitiful, yet with a touch of youthful allure.

Surprisingly, while the girl was drenched, the old man’s robe was barely wet from the rain outside.

The old man smiled, bowed again, and then led the girl to sit nearby.

“This old man must be an Innate expert, right?”

Lu Changsheng withdrew his gaze and used a sound transmission technique to ask Li Feiyu.

He could tell at a glance that the old man was a martial artist.

The fact that he could stay dry in the heavy rain clearly indicated extraordinary martial arts skills, so Lu Changsheng guessed he was an Innate expert.

“That’s right. ‘Not a feather can be added, not even an insect can land.’ This is the skill of an Innate expert.”

Li Feiyu replied using sound transmission.

He was naturally familiar with the basic spells of cultivators, even more practiced than Lu Changsheng.

“However, this old man and young girl are clearly not grandfather and granddaughter.”

Li Feiyu continued.

“Oh? How can you tell?”

Lu Changsheng asked.

He also felt the two didn’t seem like relatives.

There was no familial warmth between them.

But he didn’t know why Li Feiyu was so certain and wanted to hear what this ‘old hand’ in the jianghu had to say.

“Their behavior and posture don’t resemble that of a grandfather and granddaughter. What grandfather would let his granddaughter get soaked like that?”

“Moreover, this old man is an Innate expert, yet his granddaughter shows no signs of martial arts training. That’s not very logical.”

“But all of this could be explained away. The most important thing is that this girl’s acupoints have been sealed, preventing her from speaking.”

“And when they came in, her eyes lit up upon seeing us, showing a glimmer of hope, as if seeking help.”

Li Feiyu explained in detail to Lu Changsheng.

“Impressive. Your experience in the jianghu really shows.”

“So, in that case, are you going to play the hero and save the damsel in distress?”

Lu Changsheng praised and asked.

He was surprised that Li Feiyu had observed so much in such a short time.

Despite being at the third level of Qi Condensation, Lu Changsheng had only noticed that the old man was an Innate expert and that the two didn’t seem like relatives. He hadn’t picked up on so many details.

“I grew up in the Red Whale Gang and started roaming the jianghu at twelve. I’ve traveled far and wide, so I’ve developed these observation skills.”

“As for playing the hero, there’s no rush. Let’s observe the situation first.”

Li Feiyu said with a hint of pride in his voice.

As the two were communicating secretly, the old man took out some dry rations from his bundle and asked casually, “May I borrow your fire, young men? I’d like to warm up these rations.”

“Besides, my granddaughter’s clothes are soaked. Without a fire, she might catch a cold.”

As he spoke, the old man approached Lu Changsheng and Li Feiyu.

Seeing the old man approach, Lu Changsheng’s eyes narrowed slightly, becoming wary. He put his hand in his robe, grasping a stack of talismans.

He clearly remembered Li Feiyu telling him that an Innate martial artist was no weaker than a third-level Qi Condensation cultivator.

In close combat, the Innate martial artist might even have the upper hand.

The old man’s background was unknown, and given Li Feiyu’s recent words, he was clearly suspicious.

In this situation, Lu Changsheng naturally became cautious, ready to act if the man made any strange moves.

“Please, go ahead!”

Li Feiyu spoke up at this moment.

He also sent a message to Lu Changsheng: “Leave this to me.”

Lu Changsheng didn’t reply but continued to hold the talismans, staying alert.

The old man came to the bonfire and offered his dry rations, saying, “You two young men haven’t eaten yet, have you? Why don’t you have some?”

“Roar!”

Suddenly, the Nine Abyss Mastiff, which had been sleeping next to Lu Changsheng, woke up and growled at the old man.

Seeing this, Lu Changsheng calmly soothed the Nine Abyss Mastiff while remaining ready to act.

“We’ve already eaten.”

Li Feiyu looked at the old man, a slight smile on his face as he spoke.

“Then this old man will just take a branch for the fire.”

The old man seemed to ignore the Nine Abyss Mastiff’s growl and bent down to pick up a piece of firewood from the bonfire.

At this moment, Li Feiyu looked at the old man with a half-smile and said, “I’m afraid this fire won’t be enough. Shall I add some more?”

As he spoke, Li Feiyu’s robe billowed, and from his seated position, he suddenly thrust out a palm towards the old man. The palm force was fierce, causing the air to whistle.

Faced with this sudden attack, the old man seemed prepared. He reacted swiftly, raising his hand to meet the palm strike.

But in that instant, a thumb-sized flame appeared in Li Feiyu’s palm.

“Bang——”

“Aah!!!”

As their palms met, the old man immediately let out a miserable scream, his hand bursting into flames.

Then, the flames visibly spread from his arm across his entire body, quickly reducing him to ashes.