Chapter 200: Chapter 200: All the Tools Have Gathered

"You old rascal, I knew there was something fishy going on."

"Spit it out. Is she your secret love child? Are you trying to use this as an excuse to bring her into the sect?"

"I mean, Old Jiang, you know how close we are. Forget one, you could bring in ten of them with just a word."

"There’s really no need to be so sneaky about it."

’Your heart has grown corrupt.’

Elder Dan spoke with grave sincerity, certain that he had seen through Elder Jiang’s selfish scheme.

Some young girl? Some spicy rabbit heads?

They were all just excuses, just justifications!

"It’s really not like that."

Elder Jiang sighed.

"Um, they also said that if you don’t have time, Elder, we’ll just go by ourselves."

The disciple was still muttering.

The words had barely left his mouth when Elder Jiang’s oppressive gaze fell upon him.

What!

’My own disciples want to ditch me and go find Boss Lu? Impossible! Absolutely impossible!’

Seeing Elder Dan’s imagination still running wild, Elder Jiang couldn’t take it anymore. He clamped a hand over the other man’s mouth, hooked an arm around his neck, and started dragging him out.

"Come on! You’ll see what’s going on when we get there."

To prove his innocence, Elder Jiang dragged Elder Dan along. The Sect Leader, who hadn’t been able to get a word in, tagged along quietly behind them.

’He was also quite curious what Elder Jiang’s love child looked like.’

An hour later, the same Elder Jiang who had been so intent on proving his innocence was now staring at the two unstoppable animals, filled with regret.

’Rabbit heads... my precious rabbit heads...’

Well into his old age, Elder Jiang wiped away a bitter tear. He squatted on the ground, gnawing on the only rabbit head he had left.

The tender meat was rich and aromatic, and its vibrant color made one’s mouth water.

It became more fragrant with every chew.

The moment the skeptical Elder Dan took his first bite, he stopped caring about Lu Wu’s true identity.

’Rabbit heads this good? No wonder Old Jiang was in such a rush.’

CHEW, CHEW... PTOOEY!

Elder Dan spat out a bone, only to see a demon beast nearby giving him a disdainful look.

The demon beasts weren’t afraid of Lu Wu, but they still disliked contact with other humans.

They used Lu Wu’s stall as a dividing line. Behind her stood the Beast Beast Alliance; in front of her were the human foodies.

A clear line was drawn between the two.

Just then, the demon beast opened its massive maw and took a huge bite of a rabbit head, crushing and swallowing it, bones and all.

Deliciously fragrant.

The bones, long-stewed to tenderness, were just as flavorful. Their subtle aroma, mixed with the richness of the marrow, was a delicacy the beasts weren’t about to waste.

"Hey!"

Having been looked down upon by a mere demon beast, Elder Dan’s temper flared.

He copied the demon beast and bit down hard.

A cultivator’s teeth were like divine weapons; ordinary bones were no match for them.

But Elder Dan, who had only meant to prove his teeth were strong, discovered that the bones themselves had a unique flavor.

SLURP!

He slurped and slurped away.

He sucked on the rabbit skull, slurping up the sauce that dripped down his fingers.

As he ate, a strong aroma of wine wafted over. He turned to see Elder Jiang, who had produced a flask of wine. A bite of rabbit head, a swig of wine—he was having the time of his life.

His old face was flushed, and he looked as blissful as an immortal.

When he saw Elder Dan looking over, Elder Jiang shifted his rear and turned his back, a clear signal not to be disturbed.

The kick of the chili peppers shot through his mouth, the tingling sensation mingling with the lingering finish of the strong liquor.

The fragrant wine and the spicy heat performed a duet on his palate.

Seeing the two elders were about to go at it again, the Sect Leader, having just finished a rabbit head of his own, decided to step in and prevent a war.

"Gentlemen, show me some respect."

The middle-aged Sect Leader’s expression darkened, and he looked quite imposing.

"Get lost!"

"Beat it!"

But the two old men barked back in unison, each lifting a foot and kicking the Sect Leader.

WHOOSH!

Like a shooting star, the Sect Leader vanished over the horizon.

But just as quickly, another star twinkled in the sky. The Sect Leader reappeared, a few leaves stuck in his hair and two perfect footprints on his rear.

Facing the two old men’s ferocious glares, he offered a placating smile.

"Please, continue. Continue."

’All right, so his ’face’ wasn’t worth much after all.’

"*Cough, cough!*"

Lu Wu, who was enjoying the show, almost burst out laughing. ’Now that’s a man who knows how to be flexible.’

’No wonder he’s the Sect Leader.’

The beasts were far more direct than Lu Wu. They roared with laughter at the humans’ pathetic display.

A few of the bolder ones were clutching their bellies, rolling on the ground with laughter.

"Dirty butt, hee hee."

"He got beat!"

A fox’s eyes crinkled in mirth, a squirrel’s tail twitched with glee, and a small deer laughed so hard its head drooped.

Amidst this harmonious scene of man and nature, somewhere at the border between the Ten Thousand Mountains and the Southern State, Qin Zhan was hiding behind a tree, watching the furtive Lou Xiaotian in silence.

"This is the entrance to the shortest route through the Ten Thousand Mountains, right?"

Lou Xiaotian muttered to himself, a map clutched in his hand.

He had known about Boss Lu’s disappearance for a while. Thankfully, Uncle Li had vouched for her safety, so he believed she was fine.

As it happened, just last night he’d been scrolling through posts and stumbled upon one detailing Boss Lu’s whereabouts.

The tip came from someone in the West State, and while many thought the person was just trying to stir up trouble, Lou Xiaotian thought otherwise.

’Knowing Boss Lu, she could turn up anywhere.’

’Since there was a lead, he had to check it out.’

’If it turned out to be real, he’d be kicking himself for missing it.’

Of course, he hadn’t shared this information with anyone else. He wanted to have Boss Lu all to himself.

"Heh heh, I’m so smart."

Lou Xiaotian smirked. Qin Zhan and the others had left him out before, so this time, he was doing the same to them.

"What are you laughing about?"

Lou Xiaotian was lost in his own little world, mentally beating up on a few of his rivals, when a voice spoke up from behind him.

The voice was so familiar that his mouth answered before his brain could even catch up.

"Thinking about Boss Lu."

The moment he answered, his brain caught up, and Lou Xiaotian’s face fell.

"What are you doing here?"

"And why shouldn’t it be me?"

Qin Zhan sneered. He flicked his sleeves and looked down at Lou Xiaotian with an air of detached superiority.

"You think you’re the only one who could come?"

’For all we know, the tip could have come from one of Boss Lu’s alternate accounts. It’s happened before. Better to come here for nothing than to miss out entirely.’

"Well then, Qin, how about we go together?"

After wilting for a moment, Lou Xiaotian perked right back up. He slung an arm over Qin Zhan’s shoulder, wiggling his eyebrows.

"If there’s any good stuff, we’ll split it."

"The two of us?"

"Heh. It’s not just us."

"Everyone can come on out now."

Qin Zhan called out to the empty woods, but aside from the whisper of the wind and the chirping of insects, there was no response.

Facing Lou Xiaotian’s suspicion, Qin Zhan remained perfectly composed.

"If you don’t come out, don’t blame me for getting rough."

As soon as he said it, a peal of laughter drifted from nearby.

"A gentleman uses his words, not his fists. Qin Zhan, where have your manners gone?"

The newcomer was none other than Jiang Yunhe. He beamed at the two of them, pointedly ignoring Qin Zhan’s all-knowing stare.

’There’s no shame in it when good food is on the line.’

"Anyone else?"

Qin Zhan asked again. This time, after he spoke, two more people emerged from the trees.

It was Zhang Yue and Octopus Balls.

’So those two teamed up.’

Qin Zhan said nothing, merely glancing in another direction. From there, Shan Hanzhi emerged, dressed in fiery red robes.

"Didn’t you say you weren’t coming?"

The moment Long Zhang saw Shan Hanzhi, he could practically hear his own heart breaking. He had invited her, but she had flatly refused, and yet here she was.

’Humans... so cold-hearted.’

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.