This meant she wanted to investigate on her own.
Chu Xin consoled her a couple more times, then walked absent-mindedly towards the disciples’ quarters. The jade token at his waist clashed with his ornamental pendants, making a crisp sound, his thoughts in turmoil.
Now it was only Shen Ze who had died, but Ning Buwei was hiding his identity within Wushi Sect. Sooner or later, he would cause greater chaos. As a disciple of Wushi Sect, he should prioritize the sect’s interests.
Chu Xin gritted his teeth and flew on his sword towards the peak where his master Chu Wu resided.
The jade token at his waist suddenly lit up for a moment, a green light flashing in the air before quickly extinguishing.
****
“Father, come out for dinner!” Jiang Yizheng called out at the entrance of Ning Buwei’s cave.
Ning Buwei had been severely injured before. Although his dantian and meridians had been repaired, recovery was still difficult. He could only patiently start cultivating from the beginning. Fortunately, the spiritual energy in this Yijian Peak was abundant. Though he had been busy with Ning Xiu before, now after just ten days of seclusion, he had already cultivated to the tenth level of Qi Condensation, showing signs of breakthrough.
However, he couldn’t abstain from food before reaching Foundation Establishment, so he still needed to eat regularly.
Jiang Yizheng and Feng Zizhang, one in the Qi Condensation stage and one just fond of food, had an exceptionally high enthusiasm for food. They were always excited about cooking various dishes.
Today, they had somehow caught two wild chickens, which they were carefully roasting over the fire. They had even brushed a layer of sweet honey on the surface. The aroma of honey and roasted chicken filled the entire cave.
“We’ve been roasting it for over an hour. It must be crispy outside and tender inside,” Jiang Yizheng tore off a chicken leg and put it in Ning Buwei’s bowl. “Father, eat this.”
Ning Buwei expressionlessly picked up the chicken leg and started gnawing.
“Father, the wings are delicious too,” Feng Zizhang tore off a chicken wing and put it in his bowl.
Ning Buwei expressionlessly picked up the chicken wing and started gnawing.
A moment later, looking at the bowl full of meat, he said quietly, “You two, act normal.”
“Okay, Father.”
“No problem, Father.”
Ning Buwei: “……”
Jiang Yizheng, gnawing on a chicken wing, tilted her head and looked at him. “Father, are you really Ning Buwei?”
Ning Buwei snorted with a laugh. “What, don’t believe it?”
“I do,” Jiang Yizheng chewed on the crispy wing tip, saying in a daze, “So the great demon likes to gnaw on chicken legs.”
Feng Zizhang’s mouth twitched. Although he was also curious, he tentatively asked, “So, is the Venerable Nanshu really dead? They say his tower was very powerful.”
Ning Buwei smiled slightly, separating the meat from the bones of the chicken leg in his hand. “At that time, I did it just like this. First, I peeled off his skin, then chopped up his flesh, picked out his bones, and then crushed his soul—”
Plop.
The chicken bone Jiang Yizheng was holding dropped onto the table. The chicken in Feng Zizhang’s mouth suddenly lost its flavor.
How… how brutal.
Ning Buwei stared at them with a fierce grin. “For small cultivators like you, I usually swallow them whole in one bite.”
“Hiccup!” Feng Zizhang swallowed the chicken in his mouth, hiccupping with a terrified expression.
Jiang Yizheng, with trembling paws, tore off another chicken leg for him. “Father, Father, are you full? If-if-if not enough, Zizhang and I can go catch more.”
Ning Buwei curled the corner of his mouth. “It’s okay. After being injured, my appetite has decreased a lot.”
The two little simpletons silently breathed a sigh of relief.
Ning Buwei ate most of the roast chicken in good spirits. “Where did you catch these chickens?”
“In the bamboo forest on the mountainside of Yijian Peak,” Jiang Yizheng gnawed on a long, thin chicken neck, her eyes narrowed with delight. “Don’t know what they eat, but they’re especially plump.”
Ning Buwei felt something was off. “The bamboo forest on the mountainside?”
“Yep.” Feng Zizhang nodded, gesturing to Ning Buwei. “The lake outside the bamboo forest is really big. Xiao Jiang and I even saw fish in it. Tomorrow, let’s make fish soup.”
Ning Buwei silently gnawed on a piece of meat.
Yijian Peak had many spiritual veins, so it was normal for the wild chickens in the mountains to have delicious meat rich in spiritual energy… right?
In the bamboo forest across the lake, Chu Jun was holding his son for their routine visit to see the two silver-chasing fire phoenix chicks brought from the spirit beast garden. These fire phoenix chicks looked very similar to wild chickens in their youth and weren’t particularly cute, but Ning Xiu seemed to especially like them and wanted to see them for a long while every day.
But today when they came to the bamboo forest, he only saw feathers scattered on the ground.
“Ah?” Ning Xiu looked puzzled, lifting his head to look at Chu Jun. “Ah?”
Where’s the big fluffy one? Where’s the little fluffy one?
Chu Jun’s expression froze.
Earlier, when he had diverted his attention to look at that shell, he had heard those two children playing down the mountain, laughing and having fun, so he hadn’t paid much attention.
“Your big brother and sister took them to play,” Venerable Jinghe couldn’t bear to tell his son that his little pets might have been eaten, so he tactfully said, “I’ll buy you two more.”
“Ah~” Ning Xiu lay in his arms, looking around for his fluffy friends but couldn’t find them. His little mouth puckered, and he looked like he was about to cry.
Recently, Ning Chengfeng had been in seclusion, and Ning Xiu had been throwing tantrums several times a day, wanting to find him. Each time he would cry heartbreakingly. These past two days, they had finally managed to distract him with the fire phoenixes – although Chu Jun had to admit, these two silver-chasing fire phoenix chicks really did look a lot like wild chickens.
Ning Buwei had finished eating the roast chicken and was sprawled in his chair digesting when he heard Feng Zizhang say, “I think I hear Xiao Shan crying?”
Jiang Yizheng was still sucking on bones. Hearing this, she perked up her ears. “Sounds like our little brother?”
Just as Ning Buwei straightened up, he saw a beautiful person in white robes walk in from outside the cave, carrying a loudly crying child. Seeing the pile of bones on the table, their gaze paused briefly.
“What’s wrong?” Ning Buwei got up and walked to Chu Jun’s side, taking Ning Xiu.
“Ah~” Ning Xiu heard his father’s voice and stopped crying. He stared at his long-unseen father with teary eyes, accusingly crying out, “Yiya!?”
Father, where have you been!?
Ning Buwei held his son and bounced him a bit. “Has he gotten fatter?”
“Mm.” Chu Jun handed him a cotton handkerchief. “He’s been fussing to find you every day.”
Ning Buwei took it and wiped his son’s tears, saying gently to Ning Xiu, “Father’s been busy with important matters.”
Yes, busy taking off his shell’s clothes, Chu Jun silently added.
“Thank you for taking care of him,” Ning Buwei raised his head to thank him.
Chu Jun had been staring at him, and when he looked up, their eyes met, then quickly darted away like two swimming fish.
“It’s no trouble, it’s what I should do,” Chu Jun’s gaze fell on Ning Buwei’s face again. Looking carefully, he did resemble the youth from five hundred years ago.
“Aya~” Ning Xiu waved his little arms vigorously, making the bells on his longevity lock jingle clearly.
Father, look~ Bai Bai mother made it for me~
Last time Ning Buwei came to find them, Ning Xiu was taking a bath and wasn’t wearing it. This time he was eager to show his father his little bells.
Just from the material of the silver lock and the red wooden beads on it, one could tell it was quite valuable.
Ning Buwei felt the red string looked familiar, so he looked at it a bit longer.
“Peak- Peak Master, please come outside.” Feng Zizhang walked in from outside the cave, stuttering a bit due to nervousness.
The cave was filled with the aroma of roasted chicken, and the table was covered with chicken bones. He and Jiang Yizheng had set up a small table outside and prepared tea for their guest.
Chu Jun wasn’t standoffish. Hearing this, he followed Feng Zizhang out, and Ning Buwei naturally followed, carrying Ning Xiu.
Although it was early winter, Zhen Prefecture was in the southeast, so the weather wasn’t too cold yet.
It was just evening, with some warmth still lingering at the foot of the mountain. In the distance, ink-colored mountains stretched out in undulating waves. The sun was half-set, painting the evening sky red and casting a bright, vibrant hue over the entire Yijian Peak.
The small table they had set up was a bit low. Feng Zizhang took out a few small stools from his storage ring, embarrassedly rubbing his nose. “Peak Master, please sit.”
Chu Jun lifted his robe slightly and sat on the small stool.
“Father, you sit too,” Feng Zizhang warmly invited him.
Ning Buwei: … He didn’t really want to sit.
But seeing that the other had already sat down, it would be impolite not to sit as a host, so he sat down with Ning Xiu in his arms.
Feng Zizhang, being very perceptive, began to pour tea. Jiang Yizheng had built a fire some distance away and was doing something with her back to them.
“Ah~” Ning Xiu, having finally seen his father, nestled in his arms, looking at this and that, his little bells jingling clearly. “Ya!”
Ning Buwei pinched his little hand, then turned to look at Chu Jun, only to find that the other was also looking at him. He was momentarily stunned.
Chu Jun calmly shifted his gaze to his son, saying nonchalantly, “He’s been very fond of the silver-chasing fire phoenix chicks lately, wanting to see them every day.”
Ning Buwei remembered the two “wild chickens” they had just eaten and immediately felt uneasy. Sure enough, the person beside him said, “When we went to see them this evening, those two little fire phoenixes seemed to have gone missing. That’s why he started crying.”
Ning Buwei nervously tugged at the corner of his mouth. “Silver-chasing fire phoenixes are indeed easy to lose if not watched carefully.”
“Mm, they’re easily mistaken for wild chickens and caught for roasting,” Chu Jun said, gently curling the corner of his mouth.
Ning Buwei: “……”
He knew there couldn’t possibly be such plump wild chickens appearing inexplicably in this bamboo forest.
One of the culprits was happily pouring tea, while the other came running over with a wooden tray, excitedly saying, “Peak Master, Father, freshly roasted sweet potatoes! Let’s eat them while they’re hot!”
“Ah~” Ning Xiu smelled the aroma and kicked his little feet against his father’s stomach, stretching his neck to see.
Smells so good~
Just as Ning Buwei was about to speak to stop him, Jiang Yizheng pushed the largest roasted sweet potato towards Chu Jun, saying happily, “Peak Master.”
Venerable Jinghe, who hadn’t eaten mortal food for nearly a thousand years since reaching Foundation Establishment, sat on the small stool in his ethereal white robes, reaching out to accept a roasted sweet potato larger than his own palm.
Unable to stop it, Ning Buwei simply watched him with an amused gaze, curious to see how this beauty would eat a sweet potato.
“Father, here’s one that’s a bit crispy for you,” Jiang Yizheng handed Ning Buwei a roasted sweet potato not much smaller than Chu Jun’s.
Ning Buwei, who instinctively took it: ... Thank you very much.
Jiang Yizheng and Feng Zizhang moved their small stools to sit opposite them, starting to eat without any restraint.
“Ah!” Ning Xiu reached out for the sweet potato, but Ning Buwei held his hand back.
“You can only have a little bit,” he peeled the sweet potato skin, pinched off a small piece, blew on it to cool it down, tested the temperature, and then put it into his small mouth.
Ning Xiu smacked his little lips, his eyes brightening, wanting more.
“No more,” Ning Buwei held the sweet potato further away. Seeing Ning Xiu still staring at it, he quickly ate the rest of the sweet potato in a few bites, tricking his son, “Look, it’s gone.”
As soon as he finished speaking, a peeled, still warm piece of sweet potato was placed in his hand.
Ning Buwei turned his head to look.
Chu Jun smiled slightly, “If you like it, eat more.”
Ning Buwei: “???”
