"Luo, who is this? It's rare to see you with friends!" Ji Changkong was momentarily stunned by the middle-aged man's demeanor, then smiled and asked Luo Tian.

"Someone here to buy wine," Luo Tian replied, glancing at the middle-aged man with indifference. "Stop wiping for now, sit down and wait a moment."

Hearing Luo Tian's words, the middle-aged man stopped polishing, bent over, found a stool in the corner, and sat down honestly, his large, bronze-bell eyes fixed intently on Ji Changkong.

Stared at by those tiger-like eyes, Ji Changkong felt a bit awkward. He gave a light smile towards the man, shot a sidelong glance at Luo Tian beside him, and then praised the middle-aged man, "Uncle has some real nerve, daring to come to Old Luo's place to buy wine! I've managed to drink quite a bit of liquor from Old Luo, and I’ve never tasted a single jar that was normal, hehe. I always thought Old Luo’s wine could never be sold, I never expected there were real, bold men like you in this world!"

"Cough, cough, cough..."

The middle-aged man suddenly began to cough violently. His Guan Gong-red face grew even deeper, as if stained with fresh blood. His cheeks puffed out, as if he desperately wanted to laugh out loud, yet seemed constrained by something, enduring it in agony. His expression was utterly bizarre!

Luo Tian didn't seem to care that Ji Changkong was openly criticizing the quality of his brewed wine in front of a customer. He casually set up a chessboard on the grayish-yellow wooden table before him, pushing a bowl of black pieces toward Ji Changkong. "Chess," he stated.

"Sounds good," Ji Changkong readily agreed, long accustomed to Luo Tian's eccentric ways.

Just as he was about to make the first move, Ji Changkong suddenly remembered there was another person in the room. He glanced at the middle-aged man whose chest was heaving violently, hesitated for a moment, then leaned toward Luo Tian and whispered, "In all these years, he’s the only one I’ve ever seen dare to buy wine from you. Leaving him hanging isn't very appropriate, is it?"

Seeing Luo Tian remain silent, Ji Changkong moved even closer, glancing again at the middle-aged man. He gauged the distance separating them, confirming the man likely couldn't hear anything, before lowering his voice conspiratorially, "This fellow is wearing fine clothes from the Cloud Silk Pavilion; he’s a truly wealthy big fat lamb! You finally stumbled upon a slow-witted one, and you aren’t going to fleece him properly? Hmph, anyway, he’s foolish, rich, and delivered himself right to your door—absolutely can't let him go!"

"Cough, cough, cough..."

The middle-aged man's red face seemed ready to burst. With a violent fit of coughing, he looked as though he might expel his lungs and heart. Suddenly, he stood up and volunteered, "Perhaps I should take a walk outside and come back later!" With that, he lowered his head and fled the room as if escaping.

"Uh... did he hear something?" Ji Changkong asked awkwardly, laughing wryly. "Just one customer, you didn't scare him away, did you?"

"It's fine, play chess," Luo Tian didn't even look at the middle-aged man, urging Ji Changkong to make his move.

A game of chess concluded quickly; Luo Tian won, Ji Changkong lost. An hour had silently slipped by.

"Changkong, we should go," at that moment, Ji Wanyun's voice called from outside the door. She stood outside Luo Tian's hut and shouted, but did not enter.

Ji Changkong, who had been deep in thought about where he went wrong in the game, was startled awake. He stood up straight, offered Luo Tian an apologetic smile, "I can't continue playing divination games with you today, I have to leave."

Luo Tian nodded. "Take two jars of 'Kudou' with you."

"I haven't finished the last batch yet; I'll come back for more after I finish it. Although 'Kudou' tastes awful, I really like it, and the best part is that it’s free! Don't worry, I’ll come get the wine after I finish it; you can't sell it anyway." Ji Changkong stretched leisurely and walked naturally toward Ji Wanyun waiting outside the hut.

Although Luo Tian’s temperament was extremely odd, Ji Changkong only felt completely relaxed and stress-free around him, without needing to dwell on his own plight.

"Mhm, remember to drink plenty. There's the most 'Kudou' in the back room; don't worry about running out," Luo Tian said, unusually speaking a few extra words.

"Huh? Wine buyer, you actually came back?" Ji Changkong exclaimed in surprise as he stepped outside and suddenly saw the red-faced middle-aged man return. After a moment of hesitation, Ji Changkong offered a forced laugh, "Old Luo's wine tastes poor, but it has a special, unique charm. You’ll know once you drink it. Uh... I was just joking with you just now, don't take it seriously."

"I am foolish, rich, and came voluntarily, this has nothing to do with you!" The middle-aged man walked into Luo Tian's hut with a sullen face and a grunt.

Ji Changkong, still wanting to say something, was immediately grabbed by Ji Wanyun and pulled away from the premises.

Only after Ji Wanyun dragged Ji Changkong away did the middle-aged man bow respectfully to the impassive Luo Tian, but he dared not sit down, saying with a forced laugh, "That kid is quite interesting!"

"Continue collecting medicinal herbs; what we have now is still not enough," Luo Tian did not answer his remark, but commanded in an undeniable tone.

"No problem!" The middle-aged man immediately agreed. After a pause, he asked with a trace of apprehension, "He hasn't even condensed his Yuan Power yet, and you have already refined ten jars of 'Fire Dragon Roast.' Isn't that a bit too early? It's precisely because the medicinal potency of 'Fire Dragon Roast' is too intense that its effects start to diminish after half a year. Shouldn't you wait a bit longer?"

"I'd rather waste it!" Luo Tian’s face was grim as he said coldly, "I observed him closely today; he only lacks one catalyst for transformation. Once he crosses that threshold, he will immediately transform into a dragon and soar to the heavens! He could break through the shackles at any moment; I have guarded him for seventeen years! For him, wasting any more materials is worth it!"

"I understand!" The middle-aged man looked solemn, his eyes suddenly flashing with sharp, substantive light, like a streak of lightning.

Gazing from afar at Ji Changkong and Ji Wanyun, who were gradually walking away, the lightning-like sharp glare shot from the middle-aged man's eyes slowly retracted back into his pupils. He took a light breath and asked, "The four scars on the Ji family girl's face were inflicted by Zhao Meilan of the Zhao family in Tai'an City. Should I...?" As he spoke, the middle-aged man's face turned cold, and he made a throat-slitting gesture.

"No need!" Luo Tian shook his head and cut in sharply, "The favors Changkong owes must be repaid by him personally in the future!"

"This... how long will that take?" the middle-aged man muttered quietly.

Luo Tian suddenly rose to his feet, his eyes fixed directly on the middle-aged man, and spoke coldly, "He Lao Liu, I hear your son is named He Zhizhang, what kind of genius Heavenly Scholar is he?"

After a pause, Luo Tian continued, enunciating every word, "Let me tell you! Ten He Zhizhangs are not equal to one Ji Changkong!!"

The middle-aged man was struck mute with fear, nodding repeatedly with a pained expression, not daring to say more. In his heart, he cursed himself for being so talkative, daring to belittle Ji Changkong in front of him—truly asking for trouble!

On the other side, Ji Wanyun, who had forcefully pulled Ji Changkong away from Luo Tian's tiled hut, had a face full of confusion where her long hair didn't cover half her cheek. She kept turning her head to look back, frowning as if contemplating something...

"Aunt, didn't you always say Old Luo was weird, and you felt uncomfortable standing near him? What's wrong today? You've looked back eight times already!" Ji Changkong, seeing her still glancing back even though they were far away, finally couldn't resist asking.

"I wasn't looking at that Luo Tian; I was looking at that red-faced middle-aged man just now." Ji Wanyun thought for a moment, then suddenly stared at Ji Changkong and asked, "You seemed to speak with him just now. How do you know him? What was he doing at Luo Tian's place?"

"Just a buyer, Aunt. Why?" Ji Changkong asked, surprised.

Shaking her head lightly, Ji Wanyun looked very puzzled and murmured to herself, "It shouldn't be him... He doesn't care for alcohol, and with his status, he shouldn't be visiting such a place..."

"Aunt, have you met him?" Ji Changkong asked, quite surprised.

"No, he just resembles someone." Ji Wanyun glanced back towards Luo Tian's place again and said dismissively, "I once saw someone from afar at a grand gathering in Blood Rain Mountain. He looked very similar to that man, but I was standing far away and didn't see clearly. Hearing what you said, it probably wasn't him; I must have been overthinking."

"Who was the person you saw in Blood Rain Mountain?" Since Ji Changkong had nothing else to do, and the journey to Wushan was still long, he casually asked.

"That man was called He Haoran, the patriarch of the He family of Blood Rain Mountain. He reached the Seven Star Heaven realm many years ago. Years ago, when the major sects of Heavenly Scholars held a grand event in Blood Rain Mountain, I only caught a glimpse of that man. He was surrounded by many Heavenly Scholars as the center of attention, a figure of supreme status. Naturally, he wouldn't go to a dirty, messy place like Luo Tian's," Ji Wanyun recalled for a moment before slowly saying.

"A Seven Star Heavenly Scholar!" Ji Changkong was startled, exclaiming, "Isn't that as powerful as Uncle Nie?"

"Your Uncle Nie only reached the Seven Star Heaven realm two years ago, but that man reached this realm over twenty years ago. Your Uncle Nie... probably isn't his equal. Moreover, the power of the He family is not something your Uncle Nie can compare to."

Ji Wanyun smiled faintly, stroked Ji Changkong's head, and said lightly, "This world is much larger than you imagine, and there are far too many exceptional Heavenly Scholar powerhouses. Your Uncle Nie is still far from the strongest!"

Ji Changkong was aghast. To him, Nie Yuanshan, who could reduce a hundred large bluestone blocks of Green Rock Mountain to dust with a wave of his hand, was already an unimaginably powerful existence!

Hearing Ji Wanyun’s implication—that there were still many Heavenly Scholars more formidable than Nie Yuanshan—Ji Changkong could barely conceive how terrifying those even stronger experts might be!

"Don't think about figures like Nie Yuanshan or He Haoran. If you can reach the realm of He Haoran's son in your lifetime, your aunt will be content!" Seeing the shock in his eyes, Ji Wanyun couldn't help but smile and lower the benchmark for him.

"He Haoran's son? Is he very strong?" Ji Changkong asked after a moment of bewilderment.

"His name is He Zhizhang, known as one of the three great young genius Heavenly Scholars of our Water Cloud Nation. He is only twenty-seven this year. He is naturally somewhat inferior to his father, He Haoran, but compared to the so-called geniuses of Green Rock City..." Ji Wanyun stopped, seemingly realizing she might upset Ji Changkong.

Ji Changkong was sharp-witted and immediately understood Ji Wanyun's intention. He smiled and said, "Aunt, haven't I suffered enough setbacks over the years? When have I ever been afraid?"

Taking a deep breath, Ji Changkong seemed prepared to face the reality and asked, "How does that He Zhizhang compare to Ji Changxiao?"

"One day and one world apart; there is no comparison!" Ji Wanyun laughed dismissively, then explained to Ji Changkong, "Changxiao is still lingering around the Two Forms Heaven realm, while He Zhizhang has already reached the peak of the Four Symbols Heaven. Do you think they can be compared?"

Ji Changkong wore a wry smile. After a long while, his expression hardened with resolve. "Wushan! Wushan! I hope the Old Mother of Wushan can help me condense my Yuan Power. I am already seventeen years late; I cannot afford any more delays!"

"You will! You definitely will!" Ji Wanyun nodded heavily and whispered, "My Ji family's Changkong will certainly not be worse than anyone else!"

... : Remember to bookmark and vote ^__^