"What are you doing with that cane?"
"Is there really a dog?"
"A demi-human?"
Three different questions jumped out of the mouths of three people.
It was evident how shocked Big Yellow Dog had made them.
Big Yellow Dog scratched his head, waved his paw, and replied, "Don't rush, let me answer you one by one. My head is about to burst."
First, he answered Chen Xia's question, "Recently, my legs have also been somewhat problematic, so I made myself a cane too. It should be the same model as yours, right?"
Then he turned his head to look at Zhen Hu and Bai Jie, greeting them enthusiastically, "Hello there, I'm a talking dog. You can call me Big Yellow."
At last, Zhen Hu also breathed a sigh of relief that he didn't have to bark like a dog. He nodded and said, "Hello, hello."
Chen Xia, on the other hand, frowned and limped out, "Why are you limping too?"
Zhang DaoMing stood to the side with his hands behind his back and commented, "I think it's mimicking you."
"That's not true. My legs really have some problems." Big Yellow Dog explained, raising his paw to show them.
Chen Xia was also helpless. Even if it was mimicking, what could he do? Beat the dog lame?
Make believe into truth?
Impossible things.
He shook his head and asked Big Yellow Dog again, "Have you made dinner? We have guests today."
He pointed back to indicate that Zhen Hu and Bai Jie were the guests.
"What are we eating?" Big Yellow Dog asked.
"Anything, just make what you'd eat." Chen Xia waved his hand.
"They can eat shit too if I eat shit?" Big Yellow Dog said indignantly.
"Fuck, no, just make some simple stuff. No need to be elaborate." Zhen Hu reached out to stop him as his heart raced wildly.
Bai Jie's face turned pale with fright, and he almost lost his good name.
"Then I'll just whip up three dishes and a soup." Big Yellow Dog hobbled with his cane towards the kitchen.
In the distance, many onlooking cultivators watched the dozen or so shuttles hovering in the sky anxiously. They had been panicking for a while and now frowned, saying,
"Why haven't they started fighting yet?"
They were still waiting.
Big Yellow Dog's three dishes and one soup were ready quickly. He brought them to the table, along with some wooden stools that he had made himself.
These stools were also made by Big Yellow Dog. They were old and dilapidated, creaking and shaking.
Zhen Hu and Bai Jie sat upright, waiting for Chen Xia to speak.
"Go ahead and eat. We've already broken our fast anyway. This is just for show to taste the flavors." With that, Chen Xia picked up his chopsticks and started eating.
Zhang DaoMing opened a jug of wine and asked around, but no one else wanted any. So he poured himself a cup and started sipping.
Though just a small one.
His face quickly turned red. These celestial wines had an intoxicating effect. Even Destruction Realm cultivators might not necessarily be immune.
Zhang DaoMing also became chattier as the alcohol took hold. He pointed at Chen Xia and laughed to Zhen Hu,
"Although I'm just an average-ranked alchemy master, he is extremely talented - truly peerless in pill-refining talent in the whole world."
"He can already refine Dao medicines now. After another few thousand years, at the very least he'll be a Dao Master, capable of refining truly supreme medicines."
"As for me, I'm useless. It's normal for the Starry Sky Pill Sect to look down on me. That's to be expected. But you must pay attention to him. Don't cause any conflicts in the future. Anything can be talked over nicely."
Zhen Hu nodded quickly. "I understand."
Chen Xia leaned on the table with one hand supporting his cheek. "Are you drunk?" he asked.
Zhang DaoMing nodded, the flush on his face showing his embarrassment. "A little, a little bit. When people get drunk, they can't help but talk more. I'll try to control myself. Sorry, sorry about that."
"It's fine, say what you want." Chen Xia chuckled.
So Zhang DaoMing went on, "I'm also from the mid-levels of the Realm, probably mentioned it before. The Zhang family in the mid-levels, one of the few human factions.
"I'm just an ordinary descendant of an elder in the Zhang family, nothing special, just some talent in alchemy probably.
"But the talent isn't very noticeable."
At this, Zhang DaoMing laughed at himself first before remembering to drink his wine.
Zhen Hu sat listening and nodded slightly. He knew of the Zhang family, quite a power in the mid-levels. Especially in the last hundred years, after the Zhang family leader broke through to the 4th level of the Heaven Mending Realm, the family's status had risen another level.
"Life in the Zhang family was still good in the early days. But later, my father died, ambushed and killed by two level 7 Destruction Realm ancient beasts. His body was never found."
"That year, I was 537 years old, at the mid YuanYing stage. I swore I would avenge my father, which led me to leave the Realm to cultivate at the Blue Sky Sword Sea, before turning to alchemy."
"At 3,300 years old, I could still only swear vengeance."
"Afterwards, there was no need for swearing anymore." Zhang DaoMing's aged face smiled as he shook his head.
"Those two Destruction Realm ancient beasts died of old age."
His muddy eyes seemed to glisten with some tears, as if containing his entire life story, yet ultimately did not spill over, turning instead into a resigned smile.
"Looking back on my whole life, failure runs through it all."
"Never mind." Chen Xia consoled, "You were just unlucky. Maybe it'll be better next life."
What else could he say?
To be blunt that you're useless?
Chen Xia didn't have such a cruel heart to say such cruel words.
The elderly view life and death very plainly, and may even look forward to their next life.
This was meant as a comforting remark.
Zhang DaoMing smiled. "Maybe there is no next life."
"Why do you say that?" Zhen Hu beside them suddenly asked.
"Because I've never seen one." Zhang DaoMing shook his head.
How can you say something exists if you've never seen it?
That was his thinking.
The wine cup was placed steadily as he stopped drinking after starting to talk. He wasn't actually very drunk, just an old man wanting to get something off his chest.
Chen Xia leaned on the table, deep in thought. He suddenly frowned, thinking of a problem.
When he grew old, would he ramble on like Zhang DaoMing?
He considered it briefly and felt he probably wouldn't.
Because he wouldn't grow old.
Literally wouldn't age.
After that, Zhang DaoMing didn't say much more, just drank his sorrows alone with head lowered, unknown thoughts weighing on him.
Every so often, Big Yellow Dog would space out, also seeming a bit strange, as if half-asleep half-awake.
Chen Xia leaned on the table, barely eating. Instead he started counting at the dinner table.
Three dishes one soup, one meat, two vegetables, and a meat broth.
No different than usual.
Just no taste to the food, probably forgot to add salt.
He glanced at the dazed Big Yellow Dog, and suddenly slapped its head lightly, laughing as he asked,
"Who am I?"
Big Yellow Dog woke up, rubbed its head, and frowned,
"You...you're Chen Xia."
Zhen Hu and Bai Jie watched their antics, finding the three of them somewhat eccentric. What was with inviting them to eat but not giving chopsticks?
In the end, no one really ate the three dishes and one soup since they were all fasting cultivators. Usually it was just for show.
But the show didn't happen this time.
Zhen Hu felt it was mainly because they didn't give him chopsticks.
Otherwise he would've shown off completely!
Bai Jie +1.