Nonsense! How could my adopted son be a villain?

Amidst the banter and jokes, the group arrived at their dining venue.

Xu Lingguang then realized that Dongyang Li had brought them to eat grilled fish. Wenling Slope was a desolate wilderness with no inhabitants, so naturally there wasn't much good food there. If they wanted to eat well, they would have to go to Qingyu City.

However, these cultivators came up with a unique idea to earn some spirit stones. They actually made use of the local conditions and set up bonfires along the river. They placed cushions and small tables next to the bonfires, and the guests who came to eat could either take the marinated fish and grill it over the bonfires themselves, or have the owner grill it and bring it over.

Order another pot of wine, and with the setting sun over the long river, a few close friends and acquaintances create a unique and rustic atmosphere.

Dongyang Li was clearly acquainted with the owner. When the owner saw him coming, he asked, "We have some newly brewed wine today. Would you like to try some?"

Dongyang Li nodded: "Bring two jars, we'll grill the fish ourselves."

The shopkeeper chuckled and responded, then Dongyang Li, familiar with the area, led Xu Lingguang to a secluded campfire to sit down. Seeing Xu Lingguang curiously looking around, he said smugly, "There's not much to eat around here. Many cultivators saw a business opportunity and started setting up stalls to sell food. The ingredients are quite good, but the taste..."

He clicked his tongue and shook his head, looking disgusted.

"This place was hard for me to find. They use silver-edged fish from Xuyuan Lake, which have rich scales and oil, and delicate, boneless flesh. You don't need to remove the scales before grilling. After grilling, the scales melt into the oil and blend into the fish meat, making it melt in your mouth and leaving a lingering fragrance."

As he spoke, a look of reminiscence crossed his face: "These days, I've been busy in this godforsaken place, and I've been craving this silver border food the whole time."

As we were talking, the owner brought over the cleaned and skewered fish and wine.

Xu Lingguang and Dongyangli each had a jar of wine. Youyu was too young to drink, so he ate grilled fish with the other cubs.

Because Dongyang Li was there, the cubs couldn't urge him, so they all gathered around Youyu, eagerly waiting for him to grill the fish.

Seeing this, Dongyang Li put down the wine jar, picked up a fish to demonstrate: "The fish shouldn't be grilled for too long. Just wait until the scales have completely melted into oil and seeped into the fish meat."

Xu Lingguang followed his example and slowly grilled two fish. This fish, called Silver Edge, was indeed as Dongyang Li had described, with an extremely delicious flavor. After grilling it over the fire for only a short time, the scales gradually turned into oil, and a rich and fresh aroma filled the air.

The fry were so hungry they couldn't move their eyes, staring intently at the fish with shining eyes.

Their greedy expressions were so adorable. After grilling a fish, Xu Lingguang cut the whole fish into small pieces and placed them in four portions on the cubs' plates.

The baby fish, finally cooked, slurped them up without even looking up.

Seeing that they enjoyed the food, Youyu cut up the fish he had roasted and placed it on the cubs' plate. Xu Lingguang glanced at him and handed him another fish, saying, "You can eat some too." He smiled and said, "Today is Brother Dongyang's treat, so we can eat as much as we want."

Upon hearing this, Dongyang Li laughed and raised his wine jar to clink with his; "Yes, eat as much as you want, I can still afford this amount of spirit stones."

The dinner table is always the easiest place to build rapport. After a jar of wine, Xu Lingguang and Dongyang Li were already arm in arm, practically calling each other brothers.

Xu Lingguang was alright; he was still thinking about the cubs and didn't dare to drink too much. He stopped after finishing one jar. But Dongyang Li got carried away and drank four jars of wine all by himself. He must have had a pretty good alcohol tolerance, but he was still a bit drunk. He pulled Xu Lingguang aside and started complaining and grumbling.

"Luckily I met you, otherwise I'm afraid I would have been so frustrated in this competition."

His face flushed red as he cursed, "That bastard Chai Feng, I'll make him kneel down and call me grandpa, make him kowtow and admit his mistake..."

Listening to his drunken ramblings, Xu Lingguang coaxed him to take the wine jar from his hand: "Hmm, eat some fish first, you'll have the strength to go find him when you're full."

The drunken Dongyang was surprisingly easy to coax, and he took the fish that Xu Lingguang handed him and began to eat it bite by bite.

The cubs saw this and whispered among themselves.

Yu Rong said disdainfully, "This person is so stupid."

Yun Feng thought even more deeply: "He's drunk, who's going to pay for the spirit stones?"

Mu Yun was quite knowledgeable. With a wave of his hand, he said, "We can pawn him here!"

Zhaoling flapped its wings, and the little bird pecked at the rice and nodded: "Chirp chirp!"

Xu Lingguang couldn't help but smile as he listened to the cubs' whispers.

Summer days are long and it gets dark late. It was already quite late, and more and more people were gathering along the riverbank. The grilled fish restaurant was doing better and better business. Xu Lingguang thought he had almost finished eating and was about to pay the bill when he overheard people talking about the highlight of the Fufeng City auction.

"Have you all heard? The grand finale of the Qianjinlou Auction in Qianfufeng City this time is actually a giant crossbow forged from black rock underground, which is said to be a treasure of the Fire Refining True Monarch."

"Really? Hasn't True Lord Fire Refining not personally taken action for many years? Even if there are still some in stock, they shouldn't have ended up outside, right?"

"Who knows? When True Monarch Fire Refining went into seclusion, weren't there rumors of internal strife and power struggles within Nine Revolutions Manor? Perhaps those rumors were leaked at that time."

"The treasures of True Monarch Fire Refining are circulating outside. If Nine Revolutions Manor finds out, they'll have to spend a fortune to bid for them, right? This auction will be quite a spectacle."

"I heard that several big shots who have been in seclusion have accepted the invitation, and it might fetch an astronomical price."

"..."

Xu Lingguang, who was listening intently, felt his heart race when he heard that the auction might fetch an astronomical price.

Manager Zhao's efficiency is incredible! He delivered the giant crossbow to Fufeng City so quickly and even spread the word. Judging from what those people said, the auction is in ten days.

Wouldn't that coincide with the Hundred Refinements Competition?

He can conveniently stay out of it.

Moreover, if Nine Turns Manor were to acquire the giant crossbow and seek out its seller, they would never suspect that they were among their competing disciples.

From this perspective, his acceptance of Dongyang Li's invitation was, unintentionally, a wise move.

Xu Lingguang didn't rush to leave. He stayed and listened to the diners talk about Fufeng City and the auction. He was listening intently when Dongyang Li, who had been sitting quietly eating fish, suddenly stood up and said, "I'm going back."

He stood ramrod straight, only his face was flushed from being drunk.

Xu Lingguang thought he had sobered up: "Why are you in such a hurry?"

"I need to go back and tell my master that the giant crossbow that the manor lord personally forged is going to be auctioned in Fufeng City, and he will definitely have to come out of seclusion."

Dongyang Li did not deliberately lower his voice; he spoke each word loudly, so much so that everyone around him heard him and looked at him in surprise.

Dongyang Li stared blankly at Xu Lingguang and said, "I'm leaving."

Then take long strides and move forward.

Xu Lingguang then realized that he was not sober at all, but still drunk.

He quickly pulled the person back, saying, "You're drunk. I'll take you home later."

Dongyang Li frowned and stared at him: "I'm not drunk."

Xu Lingguang: "Oh right, you're not drunk. Wait for me, I want to go back with you. I'm scared to go alone."

Dongyang Li tilted her head to look at him, hesitated for a moment, and then said, "Okay."