A year quietly passed. In the Eternal Night World, there is no concept of winter giving way to spring; it is perpetually shrouded in cold and darkness.
Without the rise and fall of the sun, Li Qing found it difficult to keep track of the passage of time. He estimated it based on the amount of food consumed from the supplies in the warehouse. He divided all the food according to his daily intake, estimating it would last about a year and a half, calculating the time based on his body's biological clock.
However, this calculation was ultimately somewhat inaccurate, as his appetite had significantly increased after stepping into the realm of external strength experts. The food that was originally enough for a year and a half was nearly consumed within a year.
Now, with very little food left hidden in the cellar, it was time for him to return to another world and gather some information.
"This past year hasn't been wasted; my external strength has become much more substantial," Li Qing spread his hands, feeling the surging power within his body, quite satisfied.
During his time hiding from the chaos in the Eternal Night World, he had practiced the Fierce Tiger True Intent Diagram, Ancient Hammer Technique, and Light Silk Leg to a small degree of success. Only the Turtle Breathing Technique progressed slowly, still lingering at the threshold of entry, having only cultivated a meager amount of internal power.
Li Qing did not feel particularly frustrated by this; instead, he held high hopes for this internal martial art. This internal martial skill might very well be the limit of his future martial path, and whether he could reach the realm of Martial Arts Master would likely depend on the Turtle Breathing Technique.
"During this time, some events have occurred in Obsidian City, but I wonder how the Maple Kingdom is faring now."
When he left, the bandits were ravaging the border, but the Wuli Army of the Maple Kingdom was also heading to Wangyuan City. He could not accurately judge whether the war was still ongoing.
Just as Li Qing was preparing to traverse back, a sudden knock echoed from outside the door.
Knock, knock, knock!
An elderly voice followed, belonging to Old An.
"Young Master Li, are you home?"
Li Qing walked to the front of the courtyard and opened the gate, raising his eyebrows in surprise.
Outside his gate stood not only the hunched and short figure of Old An but also a thin, malnourished little girl. The girl, looking no more than twelve or thirteen, had a pale complexion, but her eyes were clear and bright.
If nothing unexpected occurred, this girl should be Old An's granddaughter.
"Old An, why did you suddenly bring your granddaughter to find me?" Li Qing glanced at the little girl before retracting his gaze.
Old An's expression was bitter as he said, "Young Master Li, I want to entrust my granddaughter to you, to be your servant and help you with some tasks. What do you think?"
"Grandpa." The little girl clutched her grandfather's clothing, her face filled with fear and unease.
Take in a servant? How could that be possible! He possessed the secret of traversing between two worlds; how could he be willing to take in such a burden?
"Old An, why not take care of your granddaughter yourself? Why suddenly ask me to look after her?" Li Qing's tone was cold.
"Sigh, I plan to go out of the city to harvest black wheat mushrooms in the next few days. We haven't eaten at home for several days," Old An said, patting his granddaughter's head.
"Old An, are you out of your mind? At your age, you still want to go out to harvest black wheat mushrooms? Isn't it better to help others sew clothes or make shoes?" Li Qing raised his eyebrows slightly.
"How I wish I could! But not long ago, the Yan family declared that no one in the city is allowed to do business with me."
Then, Old An recounted the events that had transpired during this time.
It turned out that the second young master of the Yan family had taken a liking to Old An's granddaughter and wanted Old An to voluntarily send her to the Yan family residence.
Of course, Old An refused, gritting his teeth and standing firm, unwilling to let his granddaughter fall into the Yan family's fire pit.
In Obsidian City, the second young master of the Yan family had a notoriously bad reputation; any woman targeted by him would not have a good ending after entering the Yan residence—either going mad or committing suicide by jumping into a well.
However, what surprised Li Qing was that the second young master of the Yan family had not taken any coercive action for some reason. With the Yan family's power in Obsidian City, forcibly taking Old An's granddaughter would not be a difficult task at all.
Li Qing speculated that the second young master was likely trying to satisfy his twisted psychology, wanting Old An to voluntarily send his granddaughter to the residence, which was why he created so many difficulties for Old An.
Now, with Old An at his wit's end, unable to conduct business, he had no choice but to go out of the city to harvest black wheat mushrooms, earning a meager living to survive.
It is worth mentioning that all the land outside the city for cultivating black wheat mushrooms belonged to the Yan family, and practically everyone in the city could be considered a tenant of the Yan family.
Those without skills who wanted to eat had to go out of the city to help the Yan family plant and harvest black wheat mushrooms, just to earn a little black wheat mushrooms as payment.
Harvesting black wheat mushrooms outside the city was no easy task; beneath the land where black wheat mushrooms were grown lived a creature called the Black Sand Worm, which was extremely deadly for an old man like Old An.
Moreover, even if he did not encounter the dangerous Black Sand Worm, Old An might not safely return to the city after finishing the farm work.
An old man like him was unlikely to avoid encountering life-threatening situations on the way back to the city.
This was why Old An decided to entrust his granddaughter to Li Qing; he knew very well that this trip out of the city was fraught with danger.
After listening to Old An's account, Li Qing sighed inwardly.
The Yan family truly deserved to be damned, relying on their power to bully the common people of the city.
Now that he had cultivated external strength, he was not so afraid of the Yan family, but he had yet to gauge their depth and did not want to attract their attention too soon.
After all, besides the Ancient Hammer Technique, the other martial skills he learned were all from the Yan family.
Li Qing absolutely did not believe that the Yan family had not raised a few external strength experts as guardians!
"Sigh, Old An, you should take your granddaughter back. I won't take her in," Li Qing sighed.
As soon as these words were spoken, Old An's face grew even dimmer. He wanted to say something, but ultimately gave up.
"Very well, I have disturbed you, Young Master Li. The Yan family is indeed not someone to offend."
With that, Old An took his granddaughter's small hand and, with unsteady steps, walked back home.
As he turned around, Li Qing noticed the glimmer of tears in the little girl's eyes and felt a twinge of compassion in his heart.
"Wait, Old An." Li Qing called out to the grandfather and granddaughter.
"Young Master Li, if you feel troubled, then don't force yourself," Old An said awkwardly.
But Li Qing turned around and went to the warehouse in his home, bringing out the black wheat mushrooms he had earned from helping others with blacksmithing over the past year.
"Take these; they should be enough for both of you for a long time. After some time, see if the situation calms down; the Yan family can't possibly keep targeting you forever."
As Li Qing spoke, he handed the black wheat mushrooms to Old An.
"This... how can this be? Young Master Li, you..." Old An was momentarily flustered. He wanted to refuse but could not find the words.
Li Qing smiled and said, "Take it back; I don't lack this little bit of food."
"Xuan, hurry and thank your Uncle Li!" Old An urged his granddaughter to express her gratitude.
"Thank you, Uncle Li! Thank you, Uncle Li!" Tears streamed down An Xuan's cheeks like pearls falling to the ground.
Hearing the repeated thanks, Li Qing's lips twitched, and he waved his hand, saying nothing as he returned to the courtyard.
He was only eighteen years old, yet he was already being called an uncle. Though, in terms of mental age, he indeed fit that generation.
(End of Chapter)