"Peach Blossom Island" Agritourism looked like a large tourism site, occupying a vast area with very complete facilities, yet curiously, there were hardly any visitors, or rather, visitors were almost nonexistent.

The two of them felt as if they had entered a ghost town. Although the surrounding scenery was beautiful, there were no human traces. This gave them a somewhat eerie feeling.

However, since Liu Juyi had already seen Wang Xiaoqiang's abilities, she was naturally not afraid. Although Liu Juyi hadn't asked the questions in her mind yet, with her keen intelligence, she had also thought of Wang Xiaoqiang's extraordinary aspects.

The two arrived in front of a building. Liu Juyi looked up and saw a large sign that read White Cloud Inn. Liu Juyi exclaimed in surprise, "It seems like there's nobody here..."

"There should be someone inside, let's go in and check..." Wang Xiaoqiang said as he pulled Liu Juyi inside.

Inns were known as ancient hotels where people would find places to stay during long journeys, providing temporary lodgings for travelers. They originated to meet the needs of people traveling or going on excursions. The facility was a simple accommodation that could also handle cargo storage and transport for merchants. Now, the term "inn" has shifted from a tangible place to a metaphor for gathering spots, and even chat rooms or forums online are sometimes called inns.

Since ancient times, people seeking lodgings during their travels have known these places as inns. In the later Middle Ages, due to the booming commercial trade, the number of traveling merchants, foreign emissaries engaged in negotiations, and postmen carrying letters, increased, and hence the number of inns grew. Because back then travel was mainly by foot or carriage, inns were primarily located next to roads or relay stations. At first, inns provided just basic food and lodging that allowed travelers a place to stop. There were no entertainment services. During the Age of Exploration, inns grew in size; some could provide over thirty rooms and were equipped with wine cellars, pantries, and kitchens to meet more needs of the guests. The environment also started improving, with gardens and lawns next to inns, and with the addition of banquet halls and ballrooms, they moved towards modernization. Regardless of these changes, inn buildings were mostly wooden structures, which became a distinct image of inns in people's minds. Overall, however, old inns had a bad reputation and were often seen as a low-tier industry pursued by those scraping a living. Inns were also unsafe with frequent unlawful incidents like robberies, fights, and gambling. In modern times, inns started to be replaced by chain-operated hotels because modern hotels offer high-quality services and accommodation environments, and the ancient inns could not compete with them, thus disappearing over time.

Nowadays, places resembling ancient inns could be some hotels or guesthouses. Some still referred to as inns seem to project a unique flair, like this White Cloud Inn, which sounds quite ethereal.

But while the name of the inn is ethereal, the atmosphere inside feels suffocating. Not a single guest was seen, and at the cashier's desk sat a man with a stern face playing a computer game. Noticing the customers, he glanced at Wang Xiaoqiang and Liu Juyi, displaying an unfriendly expression and didn't utter a word.

The attitude of the innkeeper annoyed Wang Xiaoqiang. He knocked on the desk, "Hey, boss, we'd like to stay..."

"Single or double room?" the owner asked without looking up from his game.

"Shall we get two rooms?" Wang Xiaoqiang quietly asked Liu Juyi.

Liu Juyi, affected by the oppressive atmosphere, clutched Wang Xiaoqiang's arm, "Just one room, maybe."

"Boss, give us a single room," Wang Xiaoqiang called out to the owner.

"Three hundred," the owner threw a set of keys over.

Wang Xiaoqiang took out three hundred yuan, paid the bill, grabbed the keys, and noted the room number on the key, 203.

He then led Liu Juyi to room 203. The corridors and hallways remained desolate, seeing neither guests nor staff, completely silent. Once inside room 203, they found it rather clean, a large bed was there, and on the nightstand, there was a box of condoms marked with a price of twenty yuan.

Seeing the box of condoms, Liu Juyi seemed a bit uncomfortable. Wang Xiaoqiang said to her, "Sit down and rest."

So, they sat down on the bed to rest,

Liu Juyi asked, "Little Qiang, why is it so quiet here? It feels like a racket..."

"Don't be afraid, I'm here," Wang Xiaoqiang said openly, "I am a cultivator."

"A cultivator?"

"Yes, after I left Hong Kong, a master saved me, and I started cultivating," Wang Xiaoqiang explained vaguely.

"Little Qiang, you, you can fly..." Liu Juyi said, amazed.

"Cultivators who reach a certain cultivation realm can fly," Wang Xiaoqiang explained.

"Little Qiang, can you teach me to cultivate?" Liu Juyi asked eagerly.

"Sure, maybe later," Wang Xiaoqiang said.

After resting for a while, Wang Xiaoqiang said, "Let's go and get something to eat."

Liu Juyi nodded and got up to follow Wang Xiaoqiang outside.

Outside, there was still not a soul in sight. They went down to the ground floor, and at the front desk, there was still only the portly owner engrossed in his computer game.

"Boss, where can we find a restaurant? We're looking to eat," Wang Xiaoqiang knocked on the desk and asked.

"Go out and turn left, keep walking, and you will see the restaurant," the owner said absorbed in his game, still not lifting his head.

Following his directions, they went out, turned left, and walked straight ahead; indeed, they saw a restaurant, but just like the inn, it was deserted, without a single customer. Upon entering, they found only one staff member, a middle-aged woman, wiping tables.

Seeing someone, the middle-aged woman looked up at them briefly, but said nothing.

Wang Xiaoqiang asked, "Is there any food?"

She glanced at them again, "None left," she said shortly.

"How can such a big restaurant have no food left? Where's your boss?" Wang Xiaoqiang grew slightly irritated.

"Our restaurant only operates until five in the afternoon," the middle-aged woman said coldly, "The boss and the others have all gone home, leaving only me to watch the store,"

"Dammit," Wang Xiaoqiang cursed in annoyance, then asked, "Where is there a store?"

"There are no stores here..." the middle-aged woman replied coldly. "If you're looking for a restaurant, you have to go to Shekou Town, but there are no cars available now. You'll have to wait until tomorrow."

"Alright, I get it. In that case, sell us some of your restaurant's salt and spices," Wang Xiaoqiang said impatiently.

"We don't sell those here."

"I'll pay double the money,"

"Even for double, we won't sell."

"Nonsense," Wang Xiaoqiang snapped. He headed straight for the kitchen.

Seeing this, the middle-aged woman's face changed, she pursed her lips and whistled sharply.

Whoosh...

Suddenly, a dark shadow darted in, and with a loud bark, it was a German Shepherd.

It barked furiously at the two of them.

Naturally, Wang Xiaoqiang wouldn't stoop to arguing with a dog; with a thought, Sea Dragon flashed out of the ring and perched on a customer's table, roaring at the German Shepherd.

Though Sea Dragon's body had shrunk to the size of a cat, its roar was still quite frightening, especially to the dog, which recoiled, but upon seeing its small opponent, the Shepherd lunged at Sea Dragon. Suddenly, Sea Dragon's head transformed, growing to the size of a basin, and with a wide-open mouth, it clamped down on the Shepherd's head.

Wah~

The German Shepherd yelped painfully, its body shaking like chaff.

Seeing this, the middle-aged woman finally showed a look of shock on her face.

Sea Dragon released the Shepherd, which shrank its head and, frightened, turned tail and ran away.

Sea Dragon then immediately reverted its enlarged head back to normal. It hadn't harmed the Shepherd; otherwise, it could have bitten off and swallowed the dog's head completely.

Wang Xiaoqiang sneered, then strode into the kitchen and took a bag of salt, several packets of spices, and a bottle of cooking oil, walked out, and said to Liu Juyi, "Give her two hundred yuan."

Liu Juyi took out two hundred yuan and tossed it on the table, then left with Wang Xiaoqiang.

Sea Dragon sprang up, whizzed, and perched on Wang Xiaoqiang's shoulder. "Master, was my performance just now okay?"

"Not bad, I'll take you for a spin overseas later..."

"Little Qiang, it, it can actually talk?" Liu Juyi pointed at Sea Dragon, her voice filled with astonishment.

"Parrots can talk too, what's so strange about that?" Wang Xiaoqiang shrugged.

"But, parrots mimic speech unconsciously, while it, it actually asked a question consciously... That's too magical..."

"It's my Pet Beast," Wang Xiaoqiang said proudly.

Uh...

Liu Juyi stared, stunned. Everything about Wang Xiaoqiang now made her doubt and overturned her way of thinking, as if she was getting to know him all over again.

"Little Qiang, what are we going to do now?" Liu Juyi asked curiously.

"Do it yourself, and you shall have plenty to eat. There's no food in the restaurant, so we'll find our own," Wang Xiaoqiang said. "We grew up in the countryside; this won't be difficult for us."

Wang Xiaoqiang said this and headed straight into the wild. This place was truly rural bliss, with fields of crops, fruits, vegetables. Although it was deserted, it had flowers, birds, insects, and fish, so finding something to eat wasn't hard.

The sun was setting, the sky aflame with red.

Apart from being sparsely populated, the scenery here was quite nice. The two of them walked along a small path, passing fields and vegetable greenhouses. The greenhouses contained off-season fresh vegetables. Wang Xiaoqiang entered one, casually picking a few tender eggplants and placing them into the Misou Ring, then picked some tomatoes, cucumbers, and also stored them in the ring. He also picked two large watermelons and threw them into the ring. When he came out, he saw a bespectacled man blocking his path, hands on his hips. "Thief, don't run, you've been caught red-handed..."

Damn, it seemed deserted, but at the crucial moment, an actual living person popped out...

Wang Xiaoqiang muttered. (To be continued. If you liked this work, please come to Qidian (qidian.com) to vote for it and give monthly tickets. Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users, please read on m.qidian.com.)

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