Do you know what mythical life is?

Lu Pingan broke off a willow twig, threaded it through the catfish's gills, and carried the fish quickly toward the Su family's house.

As dusk deepened and the croaking of frogs filled the air, he had just stepped onto the small hill outside the village entrance when he saw two figures walking towards him at the end of the mountain path.

It was Su Yongfu carrying a hoe, and Su He following behind him.

"Grandpa, let's stew this field mouse for Brother Lu to help him recover faster, okay?"

Su He held the field mouse tied with straw rope, her little face full of excitement, and she couldn't help but lick her lips as she spoke.

Since her father passed away, the family has struggled to even have enough coarse grains, and she can no longer remember what meat tastes like.

On the hillside, Lu Ping'an paused slightly.

Looking up, Su Yongfu's back was slightly hunched, and the blade of his hoe was still covered in wet mud.

Eleven or twelve-year-old Su He, carrying a field mouse, her coarse cloth jacket covered in dust, looked at her grandfather with expectant eyes.

Upon hearing this, Su Yongfu paused, glanced at his granddaughter, and secretly shook his head and frowned.

At first, he thought Lu Ping'an was just a passerby who had fallen into the water and was in danger, which is why he rescued him and took him home. However, in the past two days, Lu Ping'an's body has been getting colder and colder, which is obviously not an ordinary drowning.

He was even worried that Lu Ping'an wouldn't make it through the night, but how could he say that to his granddaughter who was full of expectations?

"Yes, it's always good to supplement your diet."

Su Yongfu suppressed his concerns, softened his tone, and patted his granddaughter's head: "Add some wild mountain vegetables later to make it more fragrant."

"Yay!"

Su He's eyes lit up, and she gripped the field mouse's hand even tighter, hopping and skipping along beside her grandfather.

As the two walked down the hillside, Lu Ping'an immediately stepped down, raised his hand to shake the catfish in his hand, and called out with a smile, "Uncle Su, Xiao He."

Su Yongfu and Su He were both taken aback. When they turned around and saw that it was Lu Pingan, they quickly stepped forward.

Su Yongfu put down the hoe on his shoulder, his gaze first falling on Lu Ping'an's face. His usually pale and bluish complexion had regained some color. Then he glanced at the four or five-pound catfish in Lu Ping'an's hand, his tone full of astonishment: "Little Lu, your body..."

"It's all better now."

Lu Pingan smiled and waved the fish in his hand, his tone relaxed: "I just went for a walk by the river and happened to catch this one. We'll stew it for dinner tonight."

"alright?"

Su Yongfu was stunned. He had just been wondering if Lu Pingan could make it through the night, but he never expected that Lu Pingan would suddenly get better.

"Brother Lu, you're amazing!"

Su He, standing to the side, stared at the plump catfish in Lu Ping'an's hand with shining eyes: "This fish is so big!" As she spoke, she couldn't help but lick her lips again.

Seeing her excited expression, Lu Ping'an wanted to reach out and pat her head, but then remembered the fishy smell on his hands and held back: "Xiao He is really good at catching this field mouse!"

The group chatted as they walked home, and soon arrived at the dilapidated house of the Su family.

The adobe walls were cracked, and the door was ajar, creaking softly in the wind.

The group pushed open the door and saw Su Shi huddled in the corner of the stove, his clothes covered in dust, his hair disheveled, his face pale, and his eyes red-rimmed.

"Stone! What's wrong?"

Su Yongfu quickly stepped forward, put his arm around his grandson's shoulder, and spoke urgently.

Su He, carrying a field mouse, came over and asked, "Did you get into a fight?"

Su Shi raised his tear-streaked face and choked out, "Grandpa, there were strange noises in the woods, it was so scary... Li Hao and the others ran away..."

He finished recounting what had just happened, his cries growing louder.

A pang of guilt swept through Lu Ping'an's heart. He squatted down, patted him, and gently comforted him, "Don't be afraid. It's probably just the sound of wind passing through the forest. There's no monster."

Su He hugged her younger brother's arm, saying, "Yes, we're here for you!"

Su Yongfu patted his grandson's head, brushed the dust off his clothes, frowned, and said sternly, "Alright, stop crying. From now on, you're not allowed to play in the grove at the west end. That place is remote, and there are often wild animals in the back mountains. It's too dangerous, understand?"

"I...I understand..." Su Shi nodded, choking back tears, and tightly gripped Su Yongfu's clothes.

Su Yongfu patted him on the back: "Good boy, go play with your sister over there first, and Grandpa will stew fish and field mice for you later."

Su Shi nodded, choking back tears, her gaze secretly drifting to the catfish in Lu Ping'an's hand, then glancing at the field mouse in her sister's hand. Her stomach growled twice, and her crying gradually subsided.

……

Su Yongfu prepared the catfish and field mice, but did not separate them. He put them together in a clay pot, added some wild vegetables and salt, and put it on the stove to stew.

Su Shi squatted by the stove, staring intently at the earthenware pot, while Su He stood by the stove adding firewood, her face flushed red in the firelight.

Before long, the aroma of meat wafted from the jar, mixed with a faint fishy smell.

Once the stew was ready, the group sat around a low table and began to drink the porridge, eat the meat, and drink the soup.

Because of insufficient seasoning, the fish tasted fishy, ​​and the porridge was so thin that you could see your reflection in it, but Lu Ping'an ate it with great relish.

More than a decade has passed, and this is the first time he has eaten so comfortably since being poisoned by the Xuanbing Cold Poison.

During the meal, he watched as Su Shi wolfed down his food and Su He carefully ate the meat, frequently putting meat on their plates.

Two days ago, he learned that the two men's mother died in childbirth while giving birth to Su Shi, and their father died at the hands of a group of bandits half a year ago.

Even their original house was burned down by bandits, and now they live in a dilapidated house salvaged from abandoned houses in the village.

"Brother Lu, you should eat too."

Su Shi picked up a piece of fish tail meat and put it into Lu Ping'an's bowl, her little face still flushed.

Lu Ping'an felt a warmth in his heart and smiled as he patted his head: "Okay, let's eat together."

……

After dinner, Lu Pingan took the initiative to help clear the dishes and wash the ceramic pot.

As night fell, the croaking of frogs drifted into the house through the broken window. The Su family's house was simple, with the grandfather, grandson, and granddaughter crammed into one room, while Lu Ping'an slept on a wooden bed in another room.

Moonlight streamed in through the window, and Lu Pingan opened his eyes to gaze at the night sky outside, his thoughts churning.

Since he was diagnosed with a cold poison twelve years ago and took refuge at his maternal grandfather's house, he has rarely returned to the Lu family. Now that his maternal grandfather's house has suddenly changed, the situation of the Lu family is also unclear, and it is unknown whether they have also been implicated.

He raised his hand and clenched his fist, feeling the power surging through his muscles and bones.

Now that the cold poison in his body has been completely removed, although his strength at the Qi Refining Realm is not too strong, as long as he is careful along the way, there should be no great danger in reaching Tianhai County.

The next morning, he prepared to say goodbye to Uncle Su and the others and set off to return home.

"Negative-image Tianzhu Turtle".

With a thought, Lu Ping'an's mind instantly left his body and merged into the body of the giant turtle in the Yunxi River, several hundred meters away.

The giant tortoise evolved from the original mountain tortoise and possesses a certain level of intelligence. After completing a contract with it and obtaining a trace of the bloodline of the Negative Map Heavenly Pillar Tortoise, its intelligence was also enhanced.

Normally, if Lu Pingan doesn't give any instructions, it will move around and forage for food on the water and on the shore by itself.

At this moment, Lu Ping'an possessed the body and instantly took control of it, making it as easy as an extension of his own arm. He could use the underwater vision and the body's strength to his advantage.

From the giant tortoise's perspective, Lu Pingan could clearly see the pebbles on the riverbed, the swaying water plants, and the cool river water flowing over the tortoise's shell, accompanied by a faint sound of flowing water.

He gently moved the turtle's limbs, and its scales opened up into webbed feet, allowing its massive body to move nimbly through the water.

"Let's go to the river and see if we can find that turtle."

Suddenly, a voice entered the giant tortoise's ears.

"They are from the Li family."

Lu Pingan's heart stirred.

According to the giant tortoise's memory, the person speaking should be a servant of the landlord Li family.

Are the Li family looking for a giant tortoise?

The giant tortoise is completely different from the one before; even if the Li family saw it, they wouldn't be able to tell anything.

However, to avoid trouble, Lu Pingan still controlled the giant tortoise, using its webbed feet to dive into the distance.

"Um?"

Just a few feet below the surface, an unusual red light suddenly burst into our underwater view.

It was a blood-red carp, about half a foot long, its entire body a vibrant red like molten iron, with winding, cyan-gold patterns on its sides, the patterns intertwined and interwoven.

"Azure Blood Carp!"

Lu Ping'an's heart stirred; the Azure-Gold Blood Carp was a precious fish that greatly benefited martial artists' cultivation.

The blue-gold blood carp in front of us looks to weigh five or six pounds, and just one is worth several dozen taels of silver.

Moreover, they are extremely rare.

"Whoosh!"

Without thinking twice, Lu Ping'an immediately controlled the giant tortoise to swing its tail and approach the Azure Blood Carp.

"Whoosh!"

Just as the giant tortoise approached, the cyan-gold blood carp flicked its tail and swam quickly away into the distance. The giant tortoise chased after it for a while, but its speed in the water was ultimately a little slower than that of the cyan-gold blood carp.

"That's enough."

Seeing the Azure Blood Carp getting further and further away, Lu Ping'an suppressed his regret and stopped insisting. Instead, he controlled the giant tortoise and continued to explore the Yunxi River.

Yunxi River is the largest river in Yunxi County.

The river in front of us is just a branch of the Yunxi River, but it is still several tens of meters wide and the deepest part is estimated to be two people deep.

Lu Ping'an explored the Yunxi River while simultaneously comprehending the giant tortoise's talent.

The giant tortoise's innate talent of the Heavenly Pillar Body makes its physique incredibly strong, allowing it to change size at will.

Lu Pingan gave it a try. Under his control, one of the giant tortoise's forelimbs swelled up, and with one swipe of its claw, a pebble weighing several tens of kilograms was instantly smashed into several pieces.

This level of strength is definitely much stronger than that of a martial artist in the Qi Refining Realm.

However, Lu Ping'an was unsure exactly how strong it was.

As for the giant tortoise's other talent, Divine Tortoise with Divination, it is a passive talent.

When it will be triggered depends entirely on chance.

Unfortunately, Lu Ping'an controlled the giant tortoise to swim at the bottom of the river for nearly half an hour, but he neither triggered the divine tortoise's ability to divine nor discovered any treasures, so he could only gradually give up his exploration.

"It's time to rest."

Unbeknownst to him, due to his mind being separated from his body for too long, a wave of fatigue surged up. With a thought, Lu Ping'an withdrew his consciousness from the giant tortoise's body.

He closed his eyes, the thought of saying goodbye to the Su family grandfather and grandson the next day flashing through his mind. Accompanied by the fading croaking of frogs outside the window, he gradually drifted into sleep.

……

"Uncle Subaru..."

The next morning, Lu Pingan ate a couple of mouthfuls of congee, put down his chopsticks, and was about to bring up the matter of taking his leave when a dark shadow suddenly swept in through the open window, bringing with it a wisp of breeze.

"Chirp chirp!"

A clear bird song rang out, and a bird the size of a pigeon fluttered its wings and landed precisely on his shoulder, nuzzling its head affectionately against his neck.

"Kuroba?"

Upon seeing the little bird, Lu Ping'an's eyes lit up.

Black Feather is a messenger bird, a gift from his grandfather. When he was attacked on the ship, Black Feather went somewhere to forage for food, but unexpectedly, a few days later, it found him.

Upon seeing the black feathers, Lu Ping'an's thoughts instantly began to stir.

He had originally planned to return to Tianhai County alone, but now that Hei Yu had come looking for him, it saved him a lot of trouble.

He only needed to write a letter home and ask Hei Yu to send it back to the Lu family to find out their situation. If everything was alright, he could ask his family to send someone to pick him up.

Doing so is undoubtedly safer than traveling alone.