Chapter 60: Hai Bodong: You Really Think This is Your House, Don't You?

Huncang intended to stay for a long time. First, he cast a simple protective barrier around the area to prevent his aura from leaking. Then, he took out the Dark Jade Lotus Platform and his medicinal cauldron.

Before beginning his cultivation, he refined several medicinal pills that would aid the process.

With everything prepared, he placed the object containing flame energy into the groove.

As the flame energy gradually diminished, Huncang commenced his cultivation.

......

A city stood amidst the golden desert.

Inside a shop in the city, an elderly man holding a rag was wiping the dust off the counter.

In the desert, where the wind blew incessantly, dust was an inescapable constant.

If left uncleaned for long, the entire room would be blanketed in grit.

After wiping the final corner, the old man tossed the rag heavily onto the table and sighed, "It's been almost half a year. Why is there still no word at all?"

Hai Bodong harbored a faint suspicion that the fellow might have deceived him.

Why had he forgotten to ask for an exact timeframe back then?

Every time he recalled the scene of Huncang's departure, deep annoyance washed over him.

Day after day, he had no idea how much longer he would have to wait.

What if the other party came by while he was out and missed him?

Yet what if he had to wait for a decade or half a lifetime?

Daily self-reproach had become compulsory for Hai Bodong, almost turning into a knot in his heart.

At that moment, footsteps sounded from outside, accompanied by a voice calling out, "Hey, are you Old Man Hai?"

Hai Bodong raised his head to see a young man walking into the shop with his head held high. The weapon strapped to the youth's back, which rose noticeably above his shoulder, was particularly striking and eye-catching.

He frowned slightly. "I don't know you. You've got the wrong person."

"Wrong person?" Xiao Yan froze, retreated a few steps to the doorway, looked up at the signboard, and walked back in. "It is this shop. People said the owner here is surnamed Hai; how could it be wrong? Look here, old man, call your boss out; I have business with him."

"Who are you? What business do you have with him?" Hai Bodong asked, casting a wary glance at him.

"None of your concern," Xiao Yan said indifferently, casually rummaging through the shelves. Suddenly, an ancient map with a rather peculiar texture caught his attention.

Xiao Yan let out a startled gasp and picked up the map, discovering obvious trimming marks along its edges. Looking at the jagged gaps, it seemed to match the one he had previously found in the cave dwelling within the Magical Beast Mountain Range.

At this thought, he immediately produced the other map, placing the two side by side. The edges matched perfectly.

"I didn't expect an unexpected harvest here." Delighted, Xiao Yan directly stowed both maps away. This concerned information regarding the Lotus of Purity Demonic Flame.

Beside him, Hai Bodong slammed his hand on the table. "Kid, do you really think this is your own home? You just take things directly without anyone's permission?"

Xiao Yan glanced at him. "Are you Old Man Hai?"

"That's right." Hai Bodong dropped his disguise. After observing the youth for a while, he had determined that the fellow was merely an ordinary Seven-Star Dou Shi, not even a Grand Dou Shi.

Even with his strength sealed, he was still a Dou Ling at heart, and there was no need for fear.

Hearing this, Xiao Yan's eyes lit up. Was this the bodyguard his eldest brother had arranged for him?

Just as he was about to speak, he felt a wave of chill washing over him, and the shop door behind him slammed shut on its own. He froze for a second. "Old man, what are you closing the door for?"

"What do you think?" Hai Bodong's voice was frigid. With a wave of both hands, several ice-crystal spears condensed around him and shot straight toward Xiao Yan.

The piercing sound of breaking air made Xiao Yan's scalp tingle. Though he hadn't experienced it directly, he could feel the immense momentum contained within those spears—certainly not something he, a mere Dou Shi, could resist.

"Old man, come out and help!" Xiao Yan shouted immediately.

Hai Bodong paused, casting his gaze around with a vigilant expression. Was someone else hiding in the shadows?

"Tsk tsk, what did someone just say? Who was it that claimed they had a bodyguard coming right away and looked down upon my old bones? How do you have the face to cry for help now?" A voice drifted out.

Simultaneously, the several ice spears seemed bound by an invisible force, freezing mid-air and unable to move.

"Hah..." Xiao Yan stared at the ice spears, which had stopped less than a fist's length away from him, the biting cold radiating from them already palpable. He let out a long breath of relief.

Hai Bodong's gaze narrowed as he looked at the transparent figure materializing beside the youth. "A soul body? Who on earth are you people? Having roamed the Gama Empire for many years, I don't recall ever offending you."

Though they hadn't fought yet, long years of experience kept sounding alarm bells in his heart, as if warning him that the soul body was an entity he could not afford to provoke.

Xiao Yan reached out, grabbed the ice spears, and smashed them hard onto the ground. Watching the ice shatter into multiple pieces, he looked up at Hai Bodong. "Listen here, old man, are you suffering from senile dementia? Why did you attack without asking clearly?"

He caught his breath. "Besides, do you know what the consequences will be if you hurt me? Do you have any idea that I have an eldest brother backing me?!"

"Eldest brother? Who?" Hai Bodong's expression tightened, cursing his bad luck inwardly. Having lived in seclusion for decades in peace and quiet, why were all sorts of troubles happening at once this year?

First, a young Dou Huang had inexplicably shown up, and now an impulsive boy had burst in, treating the shop like his own home and stuffing items directly into his storage ring without a single greeting.

Truly, this was madness!

At first, he had thought the youth was just an ignorant punk, but never had he expected the other party to not only possess a terrifying soul protector but also be backed by a hidden faction!

No, once today's business was settled, he would move away no matter what. He could no longer stay here; it was far too unsafe.

Hai Bodong's mind raced as he made his decision, just as the youth across from him declared, "My eldest brother is Huncang. You must have heard of his great name."

What?! Hai Bodong was stunned, and then excitement surged across his face. "Say that again. You're not joking, are you? You really know Huncang?"

Xiao Yan snorted. "What sense would it make for me to trick an old man? To tell you the truth, my eldest brother sent me to deliver something to you."

With that, he took a porcelain bottle containing medicinal pills from his storage ring and tossed it over.

With an anxious cry of "Ah," Hai Bodong vaulted over the counter, caught the bottle carefully, and uncapped it. Gazing at the pill inside, he asked in disbelieving awe, "What is the name of this medicinal pill?"

"Forgot." Xiao Yan thought for a moment and replied.

Hai Bodong's mouth twitched. He could forget something so important? Should he take it or not, then?

He looked at Xiao Yan, feeling thoroughly that this kid was unreliable. Although he could say Huncang's name and the two were definitely acquainted, given this attitude, he was deeply worried the fellow might have handed him the wrong pill.

Yaochen took in all of Hai Bodong's expressions, glanced at Xiao Yan, and sighed helplessly. "This is the Breaking Grief Pill. If this old man is not mistaken, your strength should be more than just a Dou Ling; rather, it was sealed by some kind of power within your body, am I right?"

"Yes, the old gentleman is very perceptive." Hearing this, Hai Bodong stared at the porcelain bottle in his hand, unable to conceal the joy in his eyes. Too impatient for idle chatter, he offered a brief excuse and hurried toward the back rooms.

Clearly, having lived in seclusion for decades, Hai Bodong could no longer wait to recover his strength.