Shrouded Sky

Ye Fan knew that this place would not see peace in the coming days. Fierce battles were sure to erupt, with even more sects from the Eastern Wilderness arriving. The entire ruin would boil over because of the Demon Emperor's Yin Tomb.

Looking back from a distance, he could still see blood-red light shooting into the sky from the ruins and divine rainbows criss-crossing violently.

"Whether or not the Desolate Tower is in the Yin Tomb has nothing to do with me anymore…" Ye Fan was already satisfied. Now, he needed to find a quiet place to calm his mind and begin cultivation.

The exotic beasts and strange birds that had gathered near the ruins had long fled. Ye Fan encountered no ferocious animals along his way.

By now, the stars were twinkling and the bright moon hung high. Night had fully fallen.

Ye Fan passed by Desolate Spirit Grotto-Heaven without hesitation and continued on his way. It was time to leave. Although he had left some broken Buddhist relics from the Grand Thunderclap Temple there, he didn't plan to retrieve them, running into Elder Han would be too much trouble.

The most important thing, the Bodhi Seed, was always on him. Even if he temporarily lost the broken relics, it didn't matter, his life came first.

Ye Fan moved swiftly, traveling through the night, putting more and more distance between himself and the trouble behind him. But even then, his heart was not fully at ease.

Three days later, Ye Fan was two thousand miles away. He had eaten in the wind and slept under the stars, moving cautiously the whole time, avoiding towns entirely and sticking to the wilderness. Only now did he finally let out a long breath. Peace slowly returned to his heart.

It was deep into the night. Clouds shrouded the stars and moon, making the world unusually dark. Ahead, a few scattered lights marked a small town. Ye Fan felt he was far enough from danger and no longer needed to stay on the run. He walked forward confidently.

As he got closer, he realized it was just a small town. Most people were already asleep, and only a few lights still flickered.

Ye Fan wandered through the streets and eventually found a small shop tucked away in a quiet corner, it was still open.

It was a tiny little restaurant, with only seven or eight tables. The furniture looked quite old but was polished to a shine, clean and quaint in a charming way.

"Uncle, what food do you have? Bring me whatever you've got."

The shopkeeper was a white-haired old man, his face deeply lined by time. His clothes were patched, and life clearly hadn't been easy for him.

Seeing a boy of around eleven or twelve walking alone this late at night surprised him, but he greeted Ye Fan with a kind smile and said, "There's only half a roast chicken left, some beef, and a few steamed buns."

"Great, bring it all out."

"Alright, wait just a moment. I'll heat it up for you." The shop was so small and the old man so poor that he was not only the shopkeeper, but also the waiter and cook.

Before long, the fragrant smell of roast chicken and spiced beef filled the air. Ye Fan's mouth watered uncontrollably. For over a year now, he and Pang Bo had been eating vegetarian meals, Desolate Spirit offered no meat. This simple meal was enough to make his stomach rumble with hunger.

He grabbed chopsticks, bit into a soft white bun, tore off a chicken leg, and started devouring the food. At that moment, he felt like this was the most delicious thing in the world, no gourmet delicacy could compare.

"Slow down, don't choke. Drink some soup to help it go down easier." The old man brought over a bowl of hot soup with a warm smile.

"Thank you, uncle. Your cooking is so good, even my stomach is grumbling in appreciation," Ye Fan said with his mouth full.

The old man noticed that, judging by Ye Fan's clothes, he didn't seem like a poor kid. Yet he ate with such desperation. The old man wiped the already-clean tables with a rag and chuckled. "You must have been starving. When you're that hungry, anything tastes amazing."

"Grandpa, why haven't you closed yet…"

At that moment, a little girl of five or six walked out from the back. Her clothes were also patched and simple. She wore two pigtails and looked adorably sweet, her rosy cheeks like little red apples.

"Go to bed, I'll close up soon."

The little girl stared at the food on the table. Her big eyes lingered longingly before she swallowed a bit of drool and nodded. "Okay."

Soon after, Ye Fan had polished off all the food. He stood up and said, "Alright, uncle, you can close now." As he reached into his robe, he suddenly froze, embarrassed, he had forgotten that he had no money, no coins or gold or silver. He couldn't pay the bill.

"You're a bit short on cash, aren't you?" the old man asked gently, immediately seeing through Ye Fan's awkwardness.

"Yeah… I really didn't bring any."

"Ah, another bad man!" the little girl cried out, her big eyes welling with tears. "You're bad! Always coming here to eat and not pay! You're just bullying me and Grandpa! We can barely eat ourselves…"

She looked at the chicken bones on the table and her eyes turned red. "Grandpa said that if no customers came, I'd get a chicken leg tonight… But now you've eaten everything for free… You're bullying us too!"

She pouted, long lashes trembling as big tears rolled down her cheeks, staining her round red face. She wiped them away with her patched sleeves.

Clearly, they were struggling. And this wasn't the first time they had been taken advantage of.

"Don't cry, little sister…" Ye Fan felt deeply embarrassed and guilty. This old man and the little girl clearly had it tough and were just scraping by.

"It's alright, don't blame yourself," the old man said gently. "I can see you're not like those thugs and freeloaders. You must've just forgotten to bring money."

He pulled the little girl aside. "Don't cry. Grandpa saved a bit for you, some chicken and half a bun. You won't go hungry."

"Grandpa…" The little girl sobbed harder. "I'm not crying for myself… It's because you didn't have dinner either. We're always getting bullied by bad people. We don't have any savings left. If this keeps up… what will happen to us?"

Seeing the patched clothes they wore and hearing these words, Ye Fan felt a pang in his chest. His heart tightened, his nose stung. He was moved deeply by their humble yet powerful bond, ordinary lives filled with hardship, but rich with love and endurance.

"Don't cry, little sister. I'm not a bad guy. I don't have money, but I do have something that should cover this meal." Ye Fan took out a small jade bottle, the bottle of Hundred-Grass Liquid he had exchanged for during the trial outside the ruins.

"This is fine jade, it's far too valuable. I can't accept it," the old man said, shaking his head. "Everyone hits hard times. If you pass by here again, just pay me back then."

Ye Fan was touched. Even living in such hardship, the old man still held onto dignity and principle. With deep respect, Ye Fan said, "Please take it. It's nothing to me."

"It's too valuable. I really can't accept it. When you're traveling, you'll face tough times too. Don't feel bad," the old man said, pushing the bottle back with his callused hands.

Seeing that the old man wouldn't accept it, Ye Fan had no choice but to put it away.

"In that case, I'll stay and help out with some chores." He didn't have anywhere else to go and found the old man sincere and kind. He decided to stay for a while, focus on cultivation, and lend the old man a hand.

The little girl stared at her toes, eyes still red, and whispered, "We can't even feed ourselves…"

Ye Fan crouched down, gently patting her head. "Don't worry, I won't be a burden to you."