Xie Lian asked, "What's going on?"
San Lang, sitting down and spreading his hands, also asked, "What's going on?"
Fu Yao frowned and asked, "Who are you?"
Xie Lian replied, "He's a friend of mine. Do you know each other?"
San Lang looked innocent and asked, "Brother, who are these two?"
Hearing him call Xie Lian "brother," Nan Feng's mouth twitched and Fu Yao's eyebrow raised. Xie Lian waved to San Lang, "It's okay, don't be nervous." But Nan Feng shouted, "Don't talk to him!"
Xie Lian asked, "Do you know each other?"
"......"
Fu Yao coldly said, "We don't."
Xie Lian asked, "If you don't know each other, then why are you..." Before he could finish, he suddenly noticed something glowing on both sides.
He turned his head and saw the two of them were gathering a ball of white light in their right hands. A bad feeling arose, and he quickly said, "Stop, stop. Don't be impulsive!"
The two balls of white light that appeared out of nowhere looked quite dangerous, definitely not something ordinary people could produce. San Lang clapped twice, politely applauding, "Amazing, amazing."
These compliments were truly insincere. Xie Lian managed to hold onto their arms, and Nan Feng turned back to him, angrily asking, "Where did you meet this person? What's his name? Where does he live? What's his background? Why is he with you?"
Xie Lian replied, "I met him on the road. His name is San Lang. I don't know anything else. Because he had nowhere to go, I let him stay with me. Please don't be impulsive."
"You..." Nan Feng held his breath, seemingly wanting to scold but forced it down, questioning, "You don't know anything about him and you dare let him in?! What if he has bad intentions?!"
Xie Lian thought Nan Feng sounded like his father. If it were another god or person, hearing someone younger talk like this, they might not be happy. But Xie Lian was already numb to all kinds of scolding and sarcasm, and he knew these two ultimately meant well, so he didn't mind. At this moment, San Lang asked, "Brother, are these two your servants?"
Xie Lian gently corrected, "Servants isn't the right word. More accurately, they are assistants."
San Lang smiled and said, "Is that so?"
He stood up, grabbed something casually, and tossed it to Fu Yao, saying, "Then help out a bit?"
Fu Yao caught it without looking, glanced down, and immediately black smoke seemed to rise from his head.
The young man had thrown a broom at him!!!
His expression seemed like he wanted to smash the broom and the young man into pieces.
Xie Lian quickly took the broom and said, "Calm down, calm down, I only have this one." Unexpectedly, before he finished speaking, Fu Yao released the white light in his hand. He shouted, "Show your true form!"
San Lang didn't even try to dodge, remaining seated with his arms crossed, only tilting slightly.
The dazzling white light hit one leg of the offering table, causing it to tilt, and plates and bowls crashed to the ground.
Xie Lian rubbed his forehead, feeling this couldn't go on, and with a wave of his hand, the ruoye ribbon flew out, binding Nan Feng and Fu Yao's arms. They struggled but couldn't break free. Nan Feng angrily asked, "What are you doing?!"
Xie Lian gestured for a pause, saying, "Let's talk outside, let's talk outside." With another wave, the ruoye ribbon dragged the two of them out. Xie Lian turned back to San Lang and said, "I'll be right back."
He closed the door and went to the front of the shrine. He first retracted the ruoye ribbon, then took the sign from the door and placed it in front of them, saying, "Please read this and tell me what it says."
Fu Yao read the sign, "This shrine is in disrepair, sincerely seeking kind donors to contribute for repairs and accumulate merit."
He looked up, "A donation request for repairs? You wrote this?? You're a god who ascended, how can you write such things? Where's your dignity?"
Xie Lian nodded, "Yes, I wrote it. If you keep fighting inside, I won't be asking for repairs but for rebuilding, and there will be even less dignity."
Nan Feng pointed at the Pugilistic Shrine and said, "Don't you find that young man strange?"
Xie Lian replied, "Of course I do."
Nan Feng said, "Then why, knowing he's dangerous, do you keep him by your side?"
Seeing they had no intention of donating, Xie Lian put the sign back and said, "Nan Feng, that's not right. People in this world have countless personalities and encounters. Strange doesn't mean dangerous. You should know that in others' eyes, I must seem very strange too, but do you think I'm dangerous?"
"......"
That was indeed irrefutable. This person clearly had an ethereal, graceful appearance, yet he was always collecting junk. Isn't that strange to the extreme?
Fu Yao said, "Aren't you afraid he has ulterior motives?"
Xie Lian asked, "What do you think I have that he could want?"
At this, Nan Feng and Fu Yao were at a loss for words.
That question made a lot of sense. If someone has ulterior motives, it's usually because they have something valuable. But sadly, thinking about it, there's nothing on Xie Lian worth wanting. No money, no treasures, unless they want the junk he collects every day?
Xie Lian continued, "Besides, I haven't tested him."
The two of them looked serious and asked, "How did you test him? What were the results?"
Xie Lian explained the few times he tried, saying, "No results. If he's not an ordinary person, there's only one possibility left."
Supreme!
Fu Yao sneered, "Maybe he really is Supreme?"
Xie Lian said, "Do you think a ghost king like that has time to hang out in a village collecting junk with me?"
"We're not idle!"
"Yes, yes..."
On the small hill, outside the Pugilistic Shrine, the three of them could only hear the young man leisurely walking around inside, sounding very relaxed, as if he wasn't worried about anything.
Nan Feng said seriously, "No, we still need to find a way to test if he's Supreme."
Xie Lian rubbed his temples and said, "Then go ahead and try. But don't go too far. He might really just be a runaway young master. I get along well with this young friend, so be nice and don't bully him."
Hearing "don't bully him," Nan Feng looked speechless, and Fu Yao rolled his eyes almost to the back of his head. After reminding them, Xie Lian opened the door again. San Lang was bending over, seemingly checking the table leg. Xie Lian cleared his throat and asked, "Are you okay?"
San Lang smiled, "I'm fine. Just seeing if this table can be fixed."
Xie Lian gently said, "That was just a misunderstanding earlier. Don't mind it."
San Lang smiled, "Since you said so, how could I mind? Maybe they thought I looked familiar."
Fu Yao said coolly, "Yes. You do look a bit familiar, so maybe we mistook you."
San Lang grinned, "Oh. Coincidentally, I think these two look familiar too."
"......"
Though the two were still wary, they didn't act out again. Nan Feng said gruffly, "Make some space for me to draw the 'Shrinking Earth' array."
"Shrinking Earth" is a technique that makes distant places seem close, allowing one to travel great distances in a single step. It's very convenient, though it uses a lot of spiritual power each time. Xie Lian cleared the mat from the floor and said, "Draw here."
Fu Yao, who hadn't paid attention to the shrine's furnishings earlier, now stood in the crooked little shack, looking around uncomfortably, frowning, "You live in this kind of place?"
Xie Lian handed him a stool and said, "I always live in places like this."
Hearing this, Nan Feng paused for a moment, then continued drawing the array. Fu Yao didn't sit down, his expression slightly changing, showing a mix of surprise and, oddly, a hint of gloating.
But he quickly hid this look and asked, "Where's your bed?"
Xie Lian held up the mat and said, "This is it."
Nan Feng glanced at the mat and then looked down. Fu Yao glanced at San Lang and asked, "Do you sleep with him?"
Xie Lian replied, "Is there a problem?"
After a while, the two couldn't come up with anything to say, so it seemed there was no problem. Xie Lian turned and asked, "San Lang, you were interrupted earlier. What is the Half Moon Demon Daoist? Please continue."
San Lang, who had been watching them with a thoughtful look, his eyes dark, smiled slightly when Xie Lian asked him, "Alright."
He paused and said, "The Half Moon Demon Daoist is the national teacher of the Ancient Half Moon Kingdom. One of the twin demon teachers."
Xie Lian asked, "There must be two demon teachers. Who is the other one?"
San Lang answered every question, "The other has nothing to do with the Half Moon Kingdom.
It's a demon teacher from the Central Plains, called the Heart's Desire National Teacher."
Xie Lian widened his eyes slightly, listening intently.
It turned out, the people of the Half Moon Kingdom were incredibly strong, fierce, and loved to fight.
They were located in a strategic position, controlling one of the key passes between the Central Plains and the Western Regions. The two countries often had conflicts at the border, with frequent skirmishes and battles. Their national teacher was skilled in dark arts, and the Half Moon soldiers were very loyal, following him wholeheartedly.
However, two hundred years ago, a dynasty from the Central Plains finally sent troops to attack and destroyed the Half Moon Kingdom.
Though the Half Moon Kingdom was gone, the national teacher and soldiers' resentment lingered, causing trouble.
The land that was once a green oasis became the Half Moon Pass, seemingly eroded by evil energy, with the oasis gradually swallowed by the surrounding desert.
It's said that at night, people often see tall figures with spiked clubs wandering the desert, patrolling and hunting.
Originally, there were tens of thousands of residents, but they gradually couldn't survive and moved away. Meanwhile, a legend spread: "Every time someone crosses the pass, half go missing." Anyone from the Central Plains passing through must leave behind half their "toll"—their lives!
Fu Yao smiled insincerely, "You sure know a lot, young man."
San Lang smiled, "Not really. You just know less."
"......"
Xie Lian couldn't help but chuckle, thinking this young friend was quite sharp-tongued. San Lang lazily added, "It's just some folklore and strange tales from old books. Who knows if there really was such a national teacher? Or if the Half Moon Kingdom even existed."