Chapter 33: A ruined temple on a rainy night, an old man and a young girl!

Half a month later.

“Boom!”

A thunderous sound, like a dry-land lightning strike, echoed.

“Looks like it’s going to rain.”

On the official road, Lu Changsheng, riding a Spirit Steed, looked at the overcast, cloudy sky and spoke.

“It’s getting late. There’s a temple just ahead; let’s rest there for the night.”

Li Feiyu said, looking at the darkening sky.

“Desolate mountain, dilapidated temple, heavy rain—won’t we run into some trouble?”

Lu Changsheng also saw an abandoned ancient temple ahead and couldn’t help but mutter to himself.

However, this kind of weather was not suitable for spending the night outdoors.

The two rode their Spirit Steeds quickly to the ancient temple.

The ancient temple was very dilapidated, overgrown with weeds, full of dust, and covered in spiderwebs.

Lu Changsheng used a Cleansing Spell to clean it up slightly, then gathered some firewood and lit a bonfire.

Afterward, he took out raw meat from his Storage Pouch and began to feed the Nine Nether Mastiff.

“You little thing, you really can eat a lot,”

Li Feiyu said, looking at the Nine Nether Mastiff devouring the meat.

“Indeed, I don’t know how it fits all that in its stomach,”

Lu Changsheng replied.

Although the Nine Nether Mastiff was a cub, its appetite was enormous, eating five or six catties of raw meat per meal.

Ordinary raw meat was naturally no issue; he could afford to feed it even a hundred catties a day.

However, Lu Changsheng felt that to make the Nine Nether Mastiff grow faster, he would probably need to feed it Yao Beast meat.

If he fed it Yao Beast meat, it would be expensive.

For instance, the Yao Beast meat sold by the Lu family, even the cheapest, would cost one Spirit Stone for five or six catties.

This made Lu Changsheng feel that raising the Nine Nether Mastiff all the way to the Fourth Tier would likely cost him a significant amount of money and resources.

The Nine Nether Mastiff, being a cub, would sleep as soon as it was full, so Lu Changsheng and Li Feiyu also began to meditate and rest.

As night deepened, a torrential rain began to fall outside.

Just then.

Urgent footsteps came from outside.

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

The dilapidated temple’s main door creaked open, and an old man and a young girl walked in.

The old man was slender, dressed in a black cloth shirt, carrying a gray bundle on his back.

Seeing Lu Changsheng and Li Feiyu inside the temple, his eyes narrowed slightly, then he cupped his hands and said, “This old man and my granddaughter were passing by and wish to borrow this place to shelter from the rain. We apologize for disturbing you two young brothers.”

“This dilapidated temple isn’t ours, please make yourselves at home,”

Lu Changsheng said to the old man, then glanced at the pink-skirted girl beside him.

The girl appeared to be sixteen or seventeen years old.

Dressed in a pink misty-silk long dress, her appearance, while not breathtaking, was quite beautiful, with a delicate, fair complexion and a charming face still showing a hint of baby fat, making her look very pure and elegant.

Due to the heavy rain, the girl’s pink dress was soaked, clinging to her budding, youthful figure, allowing her slender, beautiful legs to be faintly visible beneath the skirt.

Her dark hair was slightly disheveled and stuck to her cheeks, making her seem fragile and pitiful, yet also carrying a hint of youthful allure.

However, what was surprising was that while the girl was completely drenched, the old man’s cloth shirt was barely wet by the heavy rain outside.

The old man smiled and cupped his hands, then took the girl to sit aside.

“This old man is an Innate master, isn’t he?”

Lu Changsheng withdrew his gaze and used a Sound Transmission Spell to Li Feiyu.

He could tell at a glance that this old man was a Martial Artist.

And being able to remain dry in the heavy rain clearly indicated extraordinary martial arts, so he guessed he was an Innate master.

“That’s right, ‘not a single feather can be added, not a single fly can land’—this is a technique of an Innate master,”

Li Feiyu replied via Sound Transmission.

He naturally knew several Elementary Spells for Cultivators, and he had Cultivated them much more skillfully than Lu Changsheng.

“However, this old man and girl are clearly not a pair of grandfather and granddaughter,”

Li Feiyu continued.

“Oh? How can you tell?”

Lu Changsheng asked.

He also felt that the two didn’t seem like a grandfather and granddaughter.

Because there was no intimacy between them like that of a grandfather and granddaughter.

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

“Their behavior and demeanor don’t resemble those of a grandfather and granddaughter. What kind of grandfather would watch his granddaughter get drenched like that?”

“Moreover, this old man is an Innate master, yet his granddaughter shows no trace of martial arts practice, which also doesn’t seem quite right.”

“However, these points can barely be excused. The most important thing is that this girl has her acupoints sealed and cannot speak.”

“And when she came in, the moment she saw us, her eyes clearly lit up, revealing a hint of hope, as if asking for help.”

Li Feiyu explained in detail to Lu Changsheng.

“Alright, indeed, having walked the Jianghu makes a difference.”

“In that case, do you want to play the hero saving the damsel?”

Lu Changsheng exclaimed in admiration.

He hadn’t expected Li Feiyu to discern so much in such a short time.

He had a Lianqi Third Layer cultivation, but he only saw that the old man was an Innate master and that the two didn’t seem like grandfather and granddaughter, without noticing so many details.

“I grew up in the Crimson Whale Gang and started walking the Jianghu at twelve, traveling north and south. I do have this kind of discernment.”

“As for saving the damsel, there’s no rush for now. Let’s observe the situation first.”

Li Feiyu said with a hint of self-satisfaction.

While the two were conversing via Sound Transmission, the old man took out some dry rations from his bundle and, in a familiar manner, said, “Young brothers, may I borrow some fire? I’d like to roast some dry rations.”

“Also, my granddaughter’s clothes are wet now. If we don’t make a fire, she might catch a chill and fall ill.”

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

Seeing the old man approach, Lu Changsheng immediately narrowed his eyes, feeling a sense of vigilance, and put his hand into his robe, holding a stack of Talismans.

He clearly remembered Li Feiyu telling him that Innate Martial Artist’s strength was no less than that of a Qi Refining Third Layer Cultivator.

Once in close combat, an Innate Martial Artist had a greater chance of winning.

This old man’s origin was unknown, and coupled with Li Feiyu’s recent words, there was clearly something amiss.

In such a situation, he would naturally be cautious; if the other party dared to make a move, he would strike immediately.

“Please, help yourself!”

Just then, Li Feiyu spoke up.

At the same time, he transmitted to Lu Changsheng, “Leave it to me.”

Lu Changsheng did not reply, still clutching the Talismans, maintaining his vigilance.

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

“Roar!”

Just then, the Nine Nether Mastiff, which was sleeping beside Lu Changsheng, suddenly woke up and roared at the old man.

Seeing this, Lu Changsheng calmly soothed the Nine Nether Mastiff, ready to strike at any moment.

“We’ve already eaten,”

Li Feiyu said to the old man, a slight smile on his face.

“Then this old man will just take a stick to light the fire,”

The old man seemed not to notice the Nine Nether Mastiff’s roar, bending down to pick up a piece of firewood from the bonfire.

And just then, Li Feiyu looked at the old man with a half-smile and said, “This fire probably isn’t enough, is it? Shall I add some for you?”

Before his words finished, Li Feiyu, who was sitting, had his robes billow as he suddenly unleashed a powerful palm strike towards the old man, his palm force fierce, causing a whistling gust of wind.

Facing this sudden palm strike, the old man also seemed prepared, reacting very swiftly, and raised his hand to strike out with his own palm.

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

“Boom—”

“Ah!!!”

As their palms met, the old man immediately let out a shrill scream, his hand igniting.

Then, the flames spread from his arm to his entire body at a visible speed, burning him to ashes.