"Dr. Chen, to be honest, my disciple and I are not on a leisurely trip; we are actually being hunted down..."
Fang Tao truthfully recounted the predicament they were facing to Doctor Chen.
"...Dr. Chen, I don't know when those Liuyun Sect disciples will catch up with us."
But they are not good people. If they come after us to the Taoist temple, it may implicate you, sir.
So if possible, Dr. Chen, perhaps it would be better if you left sooner rather than later.
"I never expected that you, Master Fang, had experienced such a tragic event. However, the wind and rain are strong outside, and the roads are flooded and muddy. Our carriage may have difficulty moving. Even if we leave now, we won't get very far."
Besides, since we're already here, we might as well make the best of it. The Flowing Cloud Sect is a major sect in Yunzhou, so they probably won't be so unreasonable. We have no grudge against them, and even if they do come after us, we shouldn't be targeted. Master Fang, there's no need to worry.”
After listening to Fang Tao's story, the old doctor did not show any panic, but instead comforted him.
Upon hearing this, Da Shi, who was standing nearby, couldn't help but say, "Doctor Chen, you don't know, although the Liuyun Sect claims to be a prestigious and righteous sect, it actually acts very domineeringly."
In Yunzhou, any family or small force that slightly disobeys them will be beaten and warned, or even robbed and annexed.
You shouldn't have too high expectations of their character.
"The Flowing Cloud Sect is so domineering, don't you have any other sects in Yunzhou that can counterbalance them?" Lu Qing asked with some curiosity.
Fang Tao sighed and said, "In our Yunzhou, there are three first-class sects. Among them, the Liuyun Sect is the strongest. It is said that there is more than one Xiantian Realm ancestor in the sect. So even if it acts domineeringly, other forces can't do anything to it."
"I see." Lu Qing nodded.
"So, Doctor Chen, we have offended the Flowing Cloud Sect, and it's hard to say whether it will implicate you. I hope you will be extra careful," Fang Tao said sincerely again.
"Alright, we'll set off once the rain stops," the old doctor nodded.
Fang Tao opened his mouth slightly, meaning he hoped the old doctor could leave as soon as possible.
But when he looked at the heavy rain outside, he thought it was unrealistic; he couldn't very well send his benefactor out into the storm.
So in the end he shut his mouth and stared blankly at the sky outside, looking worried.
Seeing him like this, Magu couldn't help but find it amusing.
These people have no idea just how powerful the person in front of them is.
No wonder, the Lu brothers and the old doctor were incredibly skilled at concealing their presence.
The two of them are only at the Qi and Blood Realm. Among their group, the most powerful on the surface are him, who is at the Great Completion of the Tendon and Bone Realm, and Zi'an, who is at the Lesser Completion of the Tendon and Bone Realm.
This level of strength is utterly insignificant to a major sect, so it's not surprising that Fang Tao is worried.
However, Fang Tao was not bad; he was not an ungrateful person, and his help to them was not in vain.
Because of Fang Tao and the others' silence, the atmosphere in the main hall became somewhat somber.
However, Xiaoyan and Xiaoli did not have such worries. Feeling bored, they took out the Animal Chess set from their luggage and started playing after obtaining Lu Qing's permission.
The old doctor also took out a medical classic and began to read it leisurely.
Even Lu Qing and Ma Gu were busy with their own things.
For example, Lu Qing simply immersed his mind in the acupoint between his eyebrows and silently began to refine the Earth Spirit Pearl.
Although he had previously left his mental imprint on the Earth Spirit Orb, thus recognizing the treasure as his own.
However, it is still far from complete mastery and requires continuous mental and spiritual refinement.
Moreover, as a supreme treasure of the earth element, the Earth Spirit Pearl inherently possesses Daoist charm.
During the process of refining, he was also comprehending these Daoist principles.
Lu Qing had a gut feeling that if he could glean some wisdom from this, it would be of great benefit to him.
And so, after Lu Qing and the others stopped speaking, the main hall fell completely silent.
However, the ticking sound of chess pieces quickly caught the attention of Fang Tao and the others.
At first, they thought Lu Qing and the others were playing chess, but when they turned around, they saw Xiao Yan and a small black beast sitting there, seriously playing chess. Their mouths involuntarily opened wide.
They still remembered Xiao Li, the little black beast, because they could see that it spent most of its time lying in Xiao Yan's arms.
However, they all thought that it was just Xiaoyan's pet.
After all, judging from their clothing, the doctor and his colleagues were probably not from ordinary families.
It's perfectly normal for wealthy families to keep pets.
But now Xiao Li is playing chess with Xiao Yan with a serious expression, which makes Fang Tao and the others feel a bit confused.
A little beast that can play chess? They'd never even heard of it, let alone seen one!
"Please don't take offense, everyone. Xiao Li is Xiao Yan's childhood playmate. They're used to playing around. If they're making too much noise, I'll ask them to keep their voices down."
The old doctor, who was reading a medical book, looked up and saw the stunned expressions on Fang Tao and the others' faces, and then explained.
"No, it's alright," Fang Tao quickly waved his hand.
However, he couldn't hide his curiosity.
"Dr. Chen, this little beast, does it really know how to play chess?"
"Its name is Xiao Li. Because it is quite intelligent, it has learned some things about our human race through exposure to its surroundings," the old doctor explained.
Fang Tao and the others immediately marveled at this.
I never imagined that a small animal could be so intelligent. Legend has it that in some famous mountains and rivers, there are monkeys that can communicate with humans. This little black animal is probably no less intelligent than that.
Out of curiosity, the group couldn't help but come over to Xiaoyan and Xiaoli and watch them play chess.
Then, after taking a few more glances, they were surprised again.
They discovered that the chess game played by Xiaoyan and Xiaoli was one they had never seen before.
"Miss Xiaoyan, what kind of chess are you playing? Why are there tigers and rats in the game?"
After watching for a while, Daishi finally couldn't help but ask a question.
"Animal Chess, it's so much fun!"
Xiao Yan answered happily, then casually moved a piece and captured one of Xiao Li's leopard pieces.
The little black beast's eyes widened instantly, seemingly not expecting this turn of events.
"Animal Chess?"
Fang Tao and the others were even more puzzled, as they had never heard of this kind of game before.
"This is a game that my apprentice came up with on his own when he was bored. The rules are simple, and it's just for Xiaoyan and the others to play around with. It's not something that can be played in a formal setting, so please excuse his poor performance," the old doctor said with a smile.
"I see."
Fang Tao looked at it for a while and found that it was indeed true; the rules of this Animal Chess game were not complicated.
It's simply a matter of the big eating the small; you don't need to learn anything to master it.
No wonder even an oddball like the little black beast could learn it; it turns out to be such a simple game.
Fang Tao shook his head with a wry smile.
He was genuinely a little frightened just now, thinking that Xiao Li really knew how to play those advanced chess games. If that were the case, her intelligence would be a bit too terrifying.
However, although the game of Animal Chess was simple, Da Shi and the other young men still watched it with great interest.
They usually spend most of their time practicing martial arts and don't have much access to entertainment. So when they first saw this new thing, they found it very interesting.
Just as Lu Qing and the others were leisurely waiting for the rain to stop in the Taoist temple.
In a dark cave hundreds of miles away from them, a disheveled figure stared at the scattered pebbles in front of him, looking somewhat mad.
