"Braised chicken wings, I love eating..."
Below Mount Longhu, Yang Ge, who looked like a wild man with disheveled hair and a dirty face, crouched in front of a fire pit skewering a sizzling, oily pheasant with his Cold Moon Blade, happily flipping it and sprinkling salt.
Suddenly, he paused in his salting, looked up with a smile, and said, "Arrived? Have you eaten?"
An old man in black Taoist robes, just as disheveled, walked slowly to the fire pit and replied, "Not yet!"
Yang Ge reached out and tore off a greasy chicken leg, handing it over, "Here, have a drumstick!"
The old man looked at the drumstick and declared confidently, "I want the wing!"
Yang Ge casually stuffed the leg into his own mouth, mumbling as he tore off a wing and passed it over, "Alright, alright, who lets you be older..."
The old man didn’t mind his greasy fingers and grabbed the wing to nibble on.
The elder and the younger crouched by the fire pit, thoroughly enjoying gnawing on the chicken bones.
Yang Ge: "Enough? If not, tear off your own!"
"Burp, that’s plenty."
The old man belched contentedly, snapped off a twig to pick his teeth, and remarked, "It’s a bit burnt, not seasoned well, remember that next time."
Yang Ge threw the chicken bone away, plucked the whole pheasant from the blade, and took a big bite, answering indistinctly, "Sure, I’ll try a different type of chicken next time."
The old man looked at him enviously and sighed, "Being young is great!"
Yang Ge glanced at him and responded, "Living to your age must be hard, huh?"
The old man, lost for words, said, "Can’t you speak nicely for once?"
Yang Ge: "If I didn’t speak nicely, I would have drawn my blade on you already!"
The old man had nothing to retort, so he just said, "Your money, I’ve had someone deliver it back to you without missing a cent."
Yang Ge: "Three million?"
The old man: "Five million."
"This..."
Yang Ge put down the roasted chicken and said somewhat awkwardly, "Suddenly being so sensible, I almost feel bad about chopping you down..."
The old man, furious: "Why must it be a matter of life and death? It’s not like I took your money!"
Yang Ge: "Bringing this up now, isn’t it a bit too late?"
The old man: "If not now, should we wait until you attack Mount Longhu or I invade your Lu Ting? Kid, it’s better to settle grievances than to let them fester!"
Yang Ge: "That’s true, but I’ve been here in these wild mountains for about seven or eight days eating game. I won’t be satisfied without a fight!"
"Again?"
The old man’s beard quivered as he exclaimed, "Are you not satisfied until you’ve broken these old bones of mine?"
To tell the truth, he wasn’t afraid to fight Yang Ge at all!
Even though every encounter with Yang Ge seemed to get more intense...
He could still hold his ground.
But... he was of such an age, how could he endure these frequent confrontations with Yang Ge, a fiery young man?
The same injuries that Yang Ge, a robust young man still in his prime, might recover from with a good night’s sleep,
would require the old man days of consuming and applying medicines, meditating and recuperating about seven or eight days to barely catch a breath.
"Let’s be reasonable!"
Yang Ge mumbled unclearly, "This wasn’t started by me, was it? Since they got to dictate when it started, shouldn’t I at least get to say when it ends?"
The old man stayed silent for a while before speaking with effort, "After today, let our families’ grudges be cancelled out, and from here on, let’s not interfere with each other’s affairs, how about that?"
"Not having it..."
Yang Ge replied nonchalantly.
The old man, infuriated and about to spew harsh words, heard Yang Ge continue, "The reemergence of the Five Poisons Cult has some hidden secrets. I’ve already come all this way; how can I stop without clarifying things?"
The old man was taken aback, his anger subsided slightly, and he asked puzzledly, "What hidden secrets?"
Yang Ge looked at him, "Shouldn’t I be the one asking you that? I was living well in Lu Ting and never interfered with the conflicts here. Why do you have to provoke me?"
The old man sighed helplessly after a moment of silence and spread his hands, "To tell you the truth, I’ve been devoted to the pursuit of transcendence for many years and have not interfered with worldly affairs. Why the younger ones clashed with you is not something I’m entirely clear on..."
Yang Ge grinned, "Are you really not clear, or are you pretending not to know?"
The old man: "Young rascal, do you really think I’m afraid of you?"
Yang Ge: "Fear or not, we can discuss that after our fight, but let me ask you, does your Heavenly Master’s residence have any relationship with Dongying?"
The old man’s eyes widened as he shouted, "Young rascal, even if you smear, you need proof, right? How can you tarnish the thousand-year reputation of the Heavenly Master’s residence so lightly?"
Yang Ge: "I asked this for a reason. You said yourself you haven’t gotten involved in worldly affairs for years. How do you know your followers haven’t been engaging in dubious dealings with Dongying behind your back? You better investigate it early. If there is anything, clear it up quickly... Otherwise, once I find out, it won’t just be a matter of pride anymore!"
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He looked at the shabby old man in front of him and said earnestly, "You’ve been reclusive for a long time, and you might not understand me well. Go and inquire around; Yang Erlang’s words hold weight, and I do as I say!"
Facing his threat, the old man merely smiled lightly, "Young man, don’t act tough in front of me. I was stirring up storms across the land when your grandfather hadn’t even been born..."
It sounded like an insult, but Yang Ge knew that the old fellow really wasn’t exaggerating.
He clicked his tongue, "No wonder your followers are so adept at causing trouble, it’s a craft passed down by ancestors... Zhang Xuansu, that’s your full name, right? I heard the Former Tang Dynasty fell by your hands?"