Chapter 115: Disheartening News

Li Muyang’s eyes welled up with tears as he nodded, his voice choked with emotion. "Grandfather, I... I will not let you down. I will become a person of worth, I will grow stronger, and I will certainly repay the kindness you have shown in raising me all these years. If it weren't for you, I would have starved on the streets long ago; if it weren't for you, I would never have felt the warmth of human kindness; if it weren't for you, I..."

As he reached the end, Li Muyang could no longer control his emotions and threw himself into the arms of Elder Qi Luotian. The elder patted his head with a smile and said, "You foolish boy, why are you crying? Do you want people to laugh at you?"

Li Muyang straightened his posture, his eyes still red. He wiped away his tears and looked at Elder Qi Luotian, saying, "I'm not crying anymore."

Elder Qi Luotian nodded with a smile and said, "That’s right. A real man does not shed tears easily."

Li Muyang gave a firm nod. His master then stepped forward and said, "Elder Qi Luotian, I shall return to collect him in five days."

Elder Qi Luotian nodded in agreement. His master smiled, then turned his gaze toward Qi Han; his expression turned cold as he said, "Qi Han, do not be so temperamental in how you carry yourself and your affairs. You may be riding high today, but you could fall into a trough tomorrow. That is the reality of the supernatural world. Do not throw away your own future. I hope you learn to be grateful and not act so entitled. I hope these three strikes today serve as a warning to you from an elder. If you continue like this, to put it bluntly, you might one day be suffocated to death by the very constraints of this world. I am doing this out of respect for Elder Qi Luotian, not for you. You are not yet qualified to challenge me. In the end, you are simply too young. Very well, enough said. Elder Qi Luotian, we shall take our leave now."

Qi Luotian turned to his master and said, "Very well. Qi Han, apologize to them. Hurry!"

Qi Han fidgeted, looking at his master with a look of complaint, but his master ignored him and said, "No need, Elder."

Elder Qi Luotian could only nod. He then turned to me and said, "Head of the Lin family, before you leave, let me offer you a word of advice."

I was taken aback and looked at him in confusion. "Elder, what is it? I am listening."

Elder Qi Luotian nodded and said, "The world is currently in turmoil and chaos. Your destiny in this life is fraught with peril. Though you will overcome many dangers, you must remain cautious. Fate is unfathomable. I hope you remain vigilant. Both the burdens that are yours and those that are not have all been placed upon your shoulders. Keep going!"

After he finished, Elder Qi Luotian fell silent. I was left bewildered, and my master, seeing my confused expression, brushed it off with a laugh. "Elder Qi Luotian, we take our leave."

The elder cupped his hands in a salute, as did my master, and then we left the Qi residence and returned to the hotel. I let out a long stretch and shouted. My master slapped my arm and said, "What are you shouting for?"

I lowered my arms, poured a glass of water for my master, and asked, "Master, what do you plan to do over the next five days?"

My master took the water, took a sip, glanced at me, and said, "Play, of course. What else? Honestly, how is it that we run into supernatural incidents everywhere we go? It’s almost like Tang Sanzang’s pilgrimage to the West."

"Tang Sanzang’s pilgrimage? That’s a vivid metaphor, Master. So, where shall we wander next?" I grinned.

Seeing the look in my eyes, my master smiled as well; we both understood each other. In the coming days, we went out to play during the day and returned to the hotel at night. If we went further afield, we stayed there for the night. I also decided to buy a new phone, as my previous one had been smashed inside the Dragon-Locking Well and the screen would no longer light up.

On the afternoon of the third day, after spending the morning playing and having lunch, we went to a mobile phone store. I prefer domestic brands over foreign ones; after all, it is our own technology, and as a true Chinese citizen, I felt I should support it. We walked into the store, and a warm salesperson welcomed us. After some persuasive selling, I finally selected a new 15th-generation model. After paying, I inserted my SIM card and logged into my account. A long string of messages popped up—birthday notifications for friends, daily news, and the like. I ignored them and deleted them one by one. As I kept scrolling and deleting, I finally noticed a message from someone I knew.

I looked at the contact name and smiled to myself. It had been a long time since I had chatted with this girl. I opened the message and saw that Chu Mengxi had sent over a dozen messages, all from the past few days, the oldest being from a week ago. As I scrolled up and read from top to bottom, my smile faded, and my heart gave a sharp jolt. I saw three messages from Chu Mengxi: "Lin Xuan, I might be going abroad to study. It’s my parents' decision. I don’t know when I’ll be able to see you again after I leave."

"I’m already at the airport, the plane is about to take off. I’m going alone, and I’m a little scared. What should I do, Lin Xuan? I wish you were here."

"Lin Xuan, I’ve arrived. It’s still broad daylight here, and it’s full of blond-haired, blue-eyed foreigners. I feel so bored being alone. I have to go, my aunt is here to pick me up."

Seeing this, I checked the timestamps. It had been the night before last. I immediately tried to dial Chu Mengxi’s number, but to my disappointment, the number was now disconnected. I gripped my phone tightly, my nose stinging. My master noticed that something was wrong and asked, "Kid, what’s the matter?"

I didn't speak, just shook my head. My master patted my shoulder and said, "Come on, you’ve got your phone now. Let me take you to explore more of this great city of Beijing."

He walked out of the store, but I remained rooted to the spot, my mind filled with Chu Mengxi’s messages. My master stopped, turned back, and said, "Kid, why are you still standing there? Let's go."

I finally moved my feet. I didn't say a word for the rest of the day. My master seemed to be enjoying himself, but he noticed my behavior. Ever since I had inserted the SIM card, I had been lost in thought, and he saw it all, though he chose not to speak.

As night fell, we returned to the hotel. My master sat on the bed, and I looked at him and said, "Master, can you give me Li Xin’s phone number?"

My master paused, looked at me, and said, "What’s wrong? You’ve been off since noon. Do you have something on your mind? Tell your master, maybe I can help."

I shook my head and said, "Just give me Li Xin's number."

Seeing my stubbornness, he nodded. "Fine, fine. Hold on, let me look it up." He took his phone out of his pocket and said, "131... 152. Did you save it?"

I looked at the number on the screen, nodded, and walked outside. My master didn't follow. I went to the end of the corridor and dialed Li Xin’s number, unaware that my master was actually leaning against the door frame, watching my back.

After a moment, the call connected, and Li Xin’s voice came through. I spoke up immediately: "Hello, Uncle Li."

"Uh... Uncle? Who is this?" Li Xin asked.

"My name is Lin Xuan, I am my master's disciple. Do you know me?" I explained quickly.

The line went quiet for a few seconds, then Li Xin chuckled: "Oh, Lin Xuan! Yes, I know you. How did you get my number? And where is the Elder?"

"Master is in his room. I just asked him for your number because I need a favor," I said.

"A favor? What kind of favor? Speak up," Li Xin said straightforwardly.

I nodded, watching the traffic below the window. "Could you help me look into someone?"

"Look into someone? Who?"

"Her name is Chu Mengxi, she is the daughter of Elder Chu Feng. Could you help me find out where she is? If you could get her current phone number, that would be even better."

I explained the situation and waited.