Chapter 212: The 4 Elders of the Wild Bamboo Forest

Chapter 212: Chapter 212: The 4 Elders of the Wild Bamboo Forest

Clearly, the Second Miss Qiao, or perhaps the Commandery Princess behind her, had some kind of leverage on these two old men.

It was to the point that they didn’t even dare entertain the thought of abandoning the Second Miss Qiao to flee.

Knowing death was inevitable no matter what they did, the two old men figured they might as well try to inflict as much damage as possible on Chu Fan. By doing so, they could buy the Second Miss Qiao a chance to escape, and their own families would be looked after in return.

For them, self-destruction was the best possible outcome.

However, what they hadn’t anticipated was the classic villain’s trope: they die from talking too much. The old man’s speech reminded Chu Fan of his encounter in the Secret Realm.

The destructive power of a Martial Artist’s self-destruction was simply too immense.

Chu Fan had unleashed the Fourth Technique of the Walking Dragon Sword Shadow almost instinctively.

Fortunately, both old men had the same idea—to self-destruct. And in that critical instant, as they gathered their energy to detonate, their defenses were at their absolute weakest.

That was when Chu Fan’s earth-shattering sword strike arrived.

Before they could detonate, he directly annihilated their Primordial Spirits.

To be safe, after killing the two old men, Chu Fan threw the Juntian Sword at the middle-aged man.

Seven people—two Nascent Soul, one Soul Emergence, four Divine Separation Realm—dead!

Chu Fan knew, of course, that with the Second Miss Qiao’s escape, he would face endless trouble.

But with Yun Xi and the White Fox at his side, he couldn’t just abandon everything to chase after her.

He didn’t think it was a ploy to lure him away, but he was afraid that if he was delayed while hunting the Second Miss, and Yun Xi ran into trouble, it would be too late for regrets.

"We definitely can’t stay here tonight. Can your body handle traveling now?"

Chu Fan had no intention of cleaning up the bodies. By tomorrow at the latest, someone would surely come to collect them.

The priority was to leave.

If the Second Miss Qiao returned with reinforcements, they would undoubtedly be even stronger than these old men.

How could Yun Xi say no when she heard Chu Fan’s question?

She was more worried about Chu Fan.

They supported each other through thick and thin. Many things didn’t need to be said aloud.

Yun Xi nodded.

Chu Fan stored the bed in the Juntian Mirror World, then, holding the White Fox in one arm and wrapping the other around Yun Xi’s waist, he soared into the air.

He sped toward Laojun Mountain for more than four hours, not stopping until daybreak.

There, he came upon a small village hidden deep in the mountains.

In truth, calling it a "small mountain village" was an exaggeration. It was really just four or five thatched bamboo huts facing the sun.

If not for the faint wisps of cooking smoke drifting into the air, Chu Fan would never have spotted it.

The huts were obscured by countless tall, sturdy bamboo stalks. From the sky, you wouldn’t notice them without looking very closely.

’Since it’s so well-hidden, there shouldn’t be a problem with letting Yun Xi rest here for a day, right?’

About a mile from what could generously be called a village, Chu Fan landed, bringing Yun Xi and the White Fox with him. He then supported Yun Xi as they slowly made their way up the path toward the huts.

When they were about a hundred feet from the outermost hut, Chu Fan saw a silver-haired old woman at the entrance, hunched over and sun-drying something. She held a small strainer in her hand, scraping it across a winnowing basket.

"Ma’am," Chu Fan began, "my wife and I were out enjoying the mountain scenery when she unfortunately caught a chill a couple of days ago. We’ve been wandering the mountains for two days and you’re the first person we’ve seen. I know it’s forward of me to ask, but could we trouble you for a place to stay for two days?"

Hearing Chu Fan’s voice, the old woman straightened up. Her eyes, full of caution, scanned him from head to toe.

After a long moment, she said, "That’s not for an old woman like me to decide. I’ll have to ask the others."

After saying this to Chu Fan, she cupped her hands around her mouth and bellowed, "You old geezers, get yourselves out here! We’ve got a couple of youngsters."

As the old woman’s voice echoed, a few coughs sounded from behind the huts. Then, Chu Fan saw two old men and another old woman emerge from three other huts and walk toward them.

The man who was coughing violently had a head of messy white hair, and his face was smudged with soot, as if he’d just been caught in a cloud of smoke.

The second old man, though his face was a web of wrinkles, had jet-black hair. It was combed so impeccably that it shone, clearly coated with some kind of pomade.

The last was another old woman, a short one, maybe four-foot-nine at most. Her salt-and-pepper hair was tied in a bun, and she wore a blue triangular kerchief on her head.

The four elders were actually dressed quite well in brocade fabrics. Only the first woman looked like a simple peasant; the other three seemed more like the family of retired officials living in seclusion.

With a single glance, Chu Fan could tell these four were no ordinary elders. He couldn’t see a single thread of the light of Cause and Effect on any of them.

Likewise, there wasn’t the slightest flow of True Qi in their bodies. This meant they were either ordinary mortals or true hidden masters.

As Chu Fan was sizing them up, they were doing the same to him, Yun Xi, and the little fox in his arms.

Before Chu Fan could speak, the eyes of the old man with the sooty face lit up as he stared at the White Fox.

"Well now, this little thing isn’t half bad. If we stew it, this old man could down three bowls of wine with it!"

"Get outta here, you old coot! All you know is stewing. A little thing like this? How could a simple stew be enough? You have to braise it! With some wild mushrooms and dried bamboo shoots... Hmm, then I could drink five big bowls."

"Drink, drink, drink! Drink yourselves to death, you old animals!" The first old woman, the one Chu Fan had initially spoken to, shot the two men a glare before clapping her hands. "Look at this little one, not a single blemish on its fur. Isn’t it adorable? I want it. It’ll make a fine watchdog."

"Watch what door? What’s worth stealing in this dump of ours? Besides, this place is deserted for hundreds of miles. Anyone who wanders into these mountains will just get lost and eaten by tigers. Who’s going to come here and steal from us? End of discussion—we stew it!"

"Stew my foot! I said braise it!"

"’Stew my foot,’ ’braise it,’ is that right? You think this old woman’s whip doesn’t work anymore?" The old woman suddenly pulled a whip out from under her winnowing basket and started lashing at the two old men, cursing all the while.

The two men hopped and dodged. Watching them, Chu Fan was genuinely worried they’d throw out a hip.

"Hey, hey, hold on, esteemed elders!" Chu Fan called out. "This little fox is mine! You’re talking about stewing it and braising it, but has anyone considered my feelings?"

"Kid," the soot-faced man said, his hands clasped behind his back. "Didn’t you say your wife has a chill and you need to stay for a couple of days? If you’re asking for lodging, you have to pay, right? We old folks don’t want for food or drink, and we have no need for money. We’ll just take that little thing in your arms."

"Right, right! What Old Hour said is exactly what I mean."

"What do you mean ’right’? I saw the little fox first! If you two have any funny ideas, I’ll fight you to the death!"

They had barely exchanged two sentences before the four of them started arguing again.

By now, Chu Fan would have to be a complete fool not to realize there was more to these four than met the eye.

"Four great seniors," Chu Fan said with a sense of helplessness. "Is it really right for you to toy with a junior like me?"

"Great seniors? Kid, what are you talking about?" the ash-faced man replied.

Chu Fan bowed deeply to the four elders. After straightening up, he spoke again. "This junior is Chu Fan. My wife is ill, and I am searching for the Hundred Flowers Wanderer to cure her. We were unfortunately ambushed by enemies along the way. My wife is frail, and I had no choice but to intrude upon your esteemed home. I told a small lie earlier, and for that, I apologize to this good lady. We only wish to stay for a single day and will leave at dawn tomorrow."

"See, kid? You should’ve just said that from the start," the silver-haired old woman said with a laugh.

But when she laughed, the deep wrinkles on her face made it look more like she was crying.