The First Venerable of the Prosperous Age

The woodcutter snorted coldly, "A mere monk has quite the arrogance. Fine, since you insist on going, I won't stop you. Just follow this mountain path deeper and you'll see it."

Lu Xiao stood on tiptoe, looking disdainful, and didn't take his sarcastic remarks to heart.

But Wen Ying turned around, her expression resolute. "He doesn't believe me, but I believe you." Her voice was soft, but every word was full of power.

She then turned to the woodcutter, her expression displeased. "Since that's the case, we won't stay any longer. Thank you again for your advice. We're confident we have a way to handle this. Farewell." With that, she pulled Lu Xiaosan away.

Lu Xiaosan was stunned by this sudden pampering for a long time, and was pulled away in a daze, leaving the old woodcutter sitting there dumbfounded.

The two continued along the mountain path, passing through the green forest along the stream, and finally saw a treeless place in the distance that caught their eye. There stood an earthen house on it, with rows of animal skins hanging in front of the house, and a long-extinguished fire in front of the door.

The two hid behind a tree, watching the house from a distance. Wen Ying's expression was solemn. "Be careful, that should be the place we're looking for."

Lu Xiaosan said disdainfully, "So this is the haunted place that old man was talking about?"

Having said that, Lu Xiaosan forced a contemptuous smile, raised his hand in the air, and shouted, "Come on!"

But after a long time, there was still no movement...

Wen Ying blinked her blue eyes and asked suspiciously, "Brother Lu, what are you doing?"

The atmosphere suddenly became awkward. Lu Xiaosan scratched his bald head and laughed awkwardly, "It must be because it's too far from Luocheng to here. We'll have to wait a while longer, hehe."

Wen Ying pouted, still looking puzzled, "What is so far away from here?"

"Hehe, it's my darling, everything about it is great, except it smells a little. You'll see when it arrives," Lu Xiaosan said.

Wen Ying's eyes lit up. "Great! I'd like to see what kind of treasure can fly over by itself."

Another incense stick's time passed, and there was still no movement. Wen Ying couldn't help but speak up, "Brother Lu, let's go check the house first, or it will get dark soon."

Lu Xiaosan shrugged. "Well, those monsters and demons probably won't dare to act recklessly in front of me."

When Lu Xiaosan arrived at the house, he touched a tiger skin that was several times larger than himself.

It felt smooth to the touch, but when you squeezed it deeper, it felt hard; then came bear skin and various birds of prey.

Lu Xiaosan couldn't help but exclaim, "It seems this hunter is quite skilled!"

"Come on!"

Lu Xiaosan was engrossed in his own world when he heard Wen Ying's call. He assumed that some demon or ghost had appeared, so he quickly ran over.

Following the sound, they arrived at the doorway and saw Wen Ying looking astonished. Beside her, only a few fallen leaves drifted on the lush green mountain scenery, rustling in the wind.

Lu Xiaosan frowned and asked, "What's wrong, Little Golden Retriever?"

Wen Ying pointed to the ground and saw a dead gray rabbit and three dead rats, all smelling foul, lying on the bloodstains that were not yet completely dry.

Lu Xiaosan looked disappointed. "That's it? I thought something big had come out."

Wen Ying excitedly grabbed his shoulder, her innocent eyes wide open, and said happily, "Didn't you notice? The bloodstains haven't dried yet, which means they haven't been dead for long. Those two hunters might still be here. That means you're saved!"

Wen Ying became even more excited after she finished speaking, and shook him so hard that he swayed back and forth.

Lu Xiaosan had long since accepted life and death, so he didn't feel much. But when he saw Wen Ying cheering because of him, his heart warmed, and he couldn't help but fondly cup her soft face in his hands.

Wen Ying gently took his hand, so that Lu Xiaosan's palm touched her beautiful face, the back of his hand touched her warm and slender hand, and his eyes reflected her radiant smile.

A surge of emotion welled up within him, and a foolish smile crept across his lips. He wished he could linger a little longer in this haven of tenderness…

After a long while, Wen Ying finally smiled and said, "Alright, alright, let's go in and take a look."

Lu Xiaosan nodded and reluctantly lowered his hand.

For some reason, he suddenly felt a surge of anger.

Thinking back to my past self, I always acted independently, doing whatever I wanted. But just now, I became like a woman, all lovey-dovey and cuddly. What am I going to do?

He recalled his tender and affectionate demeanor just moments before, and the more he thought about it, the more something seemed off.

Slowly, his face turned red, he clenched his fists, and began to grind his teeth.

"What's wrong with you?" Wen Ying tilted her head, looking curious.

Seeing her innocent face, Lu Xiaosan's carefully constructed facade crumbled instantly, and he stammered in panic, "No, it's nothing..."

Wen Ying touched her chin and leaned closer, "Are you really alright?"

At that moment, Lu Xiaosan's face was less than half a foot away from hers. She felt her heart pounding rapidly and quickly took several steps back, clutching her chest.

Looking at the stunningly beautiful blonde girl with a puzzled expression, Lu Xiaosan thought to himself, "Compared to other girls, this blonde is perhaps a transcendent being. Sigh, I always feel much more vulnerable in her presence, hesitant and timid in everything I do, afraid... of losing her..."

Lu Xiaosan shook his head and sighed, "Alas, perhaps she is my destined calamity."

Just as he was feeling lost and confused, he suddenly felt a warmth on his hand. It was Wen Ying who had come up and taken his hand, saying in an almost commanding tone, "Stop spacing out, let's go inside and take a look."

"Yes, that's it. Any little move she makes can... can kill me," Lu Xiaosan thought bitterly.

In order to regain his freedom, he began to deliberately avoid such intimate behavior between them in order to suppress his feelings.

But how could he so easily suppress the most ardent feelings in his heart? He longed to hold her in his arms all day long, so that he could feel her by his side wherever he went, and feel that sense of security wherever he went…

Caught between a rock and a hard place, he could only mechanically let her pull him along, neither yielding nor refusing, completely forgetting about demons and ghosts.

Wen Ying held his hand with one hand and gently knocked on the door with the other, "Is anyone home?" She knocked again, but there was still no response...

Wen Ying knocked harder again, but there was no response for a long time.

Lu Xiaosan stood behind her, staring blankly at her back, a smile slowly and unconsciously creeping onto his lips.

"Strange, isn't anyone here?" Hearing Wen Ying speak, Lu Xiaosan quickly came to his senses.

He shook his head vigorously, anger rising within him. "Damn it, it's happening again. Show some backbone!"

Lu Xiaosan shook off her hand and said, "Let me do it."

"Oh, oh," Wen Ying said from behind him.

He arrived at the door and kicked it twice, yelling, "Open the door for me!"

Wen Ying wanted to stop her, but after thinking it over, it seemed that this was the only way, so she remained silent.

But he smashed it for a long time without any response.

"They might not be back from hunting in the mountains yet. Let's wait here for a while," Wen Ying said.

Lu Xiaosan simply nodded, then ignored Wen Ying and walked straight to the tree, picked up a twig, and sat down under the tree, looking extremely lazy.

Wen Ying didn't seem to mind Lu Xiaosan's sudden coldness and followed him with a smile.

Wen Ying sat down next to him, and Lu Xiaosan moved to the side.

Wen Ying rolled her eyes at him after seeing this, and after a long silence, she got bored. So she asked enthusiastically, "Brother Lu, did you often hunt wild game to eat before?"

Lu Xiaosan placed a leaf over her eyes, pretending to close them and rest, and coldly replied, "Occasionally, I can't remember."

"Oh," Wen Ying replied, her tone full of disappointment.

Upon hearing this, Lu Xiaosan's heart softened immediately. He quickly took the leaf and smiled, "It's strange, but I suddenly remembered something. Do you want to hear it?"

Wen Ying smiled and clapped her hands, saying happily, "Okay, tell me about it."

And so, Lu Xiaosan, with three parts experience and seven parts fabrication, started chatting with her about this and that, and Wen Ying couldn't stop laughing.

And so he fell into it again, unable to extricate himself.

"Ah—ah—ah—ah—wah~" A shrill scream suddenly came from nearby.

Wen Ying quickly covered Lu Xiaosan's mouth, which was babbling on and on. "Shh, listen, what's that sound?"

The two stopped talking and listened intently; the cry sounded like a baby crying.

"This...this is a baby? Where did this baby come from in this desolate wilderness?" Lu Xiaosan asked doubtfully.

Just as I was about to peek out, the sound stopped abruptly, replaced by creaking noises coming from near the house, as if something was about to arrive.