Chapter 15
“I’m back.”
Su Jiu followed Bai Qianyu to a large house with a distinctly rural feel. Beyond the entrance lay a spacious courtyard, where chickens and ducks raised for food chased one another, lending the place a lively, homey atmosphere.
“Qianyu, I heard you were bringing a classmate home, so I made a big dinner!”
A warm male voice came from the smoky kitchen on the left side of the courtyard. A moment later, a handsome man dressed in office clothes came into the yard carrying a generous plate of meat.
“This is my dad. Mom’s been sick lately, so he often comes home early from work to cook,” Bai Qianyu explained as she led Su Jiu into the courtyard.
Su Jiu nodded lightly and followed him into the living room. A wide square table was already covered with dishes, and Bai Qianyu’s father was ladling his homemade wine from a jar in the corner.
Knowing he had gone out of his way to host her, Su Jiu hurriedly greeted Bai Chen: “Hello, Uncle. I’m Little Bai’s deskmate.”
“Good, good. Thank you for taking care of Qianyu.”
Bai Chen laughed heartily, then walked over with the wine flask in his hand. He studied Su Jiu briefly, but unlike everyone else, he didn’t think she looked like a delinquent.
Although his cultivation had declined considerably and he had lived in seclusion for years, his discernment was still sharp. From Su Jiu’s words and manner, he sensed a familiar quality—she seemed less like a student and more like one of those Adventurers’ Guild members who lived by the blade.
She looked just like someone the school had sent to protect his daughter.
“Dad, why are you staring at her?”
Bai Qianyu rolled her eyes at her father, then turned and pulled the equally stunned Su Jiu into a seat.
Bai Chen scratched his head and chuckled, teasing her, “If you were more like your brother and had a bunch of rowdy friends, I wouldn’t be surprised that you brought a classmate home.”
“You know those are just my brother’s lousy friends. Su Jiu’s different.”
Bai Qianyu had always been rather aloof, and she couldn’t take her old dad’s teasing. She quickly made an excuse to leave for a moment. “I’ll go upstairs and get Mom for dinner.”
Su Jiu suddenly came back to her senses. Just now, she’d felt as if she were being watched by an abyssal beast. She struggled to turn her gaze toward Bai Chen, who was mixing salt water.
She’d only read half the novel. She’d had her theories about the male lead’s parents: with such an incredible bloodline, one of them had to have an exceptional lineage. But she’d never found out for sure.
The novel explained that Bai Ming and Bai Qianyu had inherited their bloodline from their grandfather, skipping a generation. Looking at things now, this Uncle Bai really was extraordinary—and had hidden it well.
“Su Jiu... Hmm, I’ll call you Little Jiu. You came to go to the back mountain with Qianyu, right?” Bai Chen finished what he was doing, sat down, and smiled as he offered her a cup of wine. Clearly, he didn’t think of Su Jiu as a high school student at all.
“Little Bai said there are some treasures in the back mountain, so she asked me to go take a look with her.”
Su Jiu nodded slightly and accepted the cup. She took a small sip. It was sweet, with just a little kick.
“There are all sorts of demons in the back mountain. If you run into one, the two of you won’t be enough to fill its teeth. Take it from me: don’t go fooling around with that silly girl.” Unlike Su Jiu, Bai Chen wasn’t reserved; he downed cup after cup as if it were a soft drink.
“Aren’t the powerful demons in the primeval forests, far from the cities? The ones around here are at most Warrior-level.” With Bai Qianyu and her mother still away, Su Jiu could only keep sipping her wine, looking utterly composed as she spoke.
“Oh? So you’re saying you’re not afraid of Warrior-level demons? But didn’t Qianyu say you were her deskmate?” Bai Chen lowered his eyelids slightly, thinking to himself that she really was a guardian the school had sent.
“Su Jiu really is my deskmate... Ah, Dad, why are you pouring her wine?”
Bai Qianyu came downstairs supporting Chen Ping, who looked haggard. The moment she saw her father pouring wine for her underage deskmate, she nearly lost it.
This was the first time she’d brought someone home to hang out, and Dad, you had to pull this?
“Warrior-level... Well, there are still some I can’t beat. Like that Blazing Wolf King or whatever.” At this, Su Jiu pictured the five- or six-meter-long Blazing Wolf King, drained her cup, and unconsciously licked the corner of her mouth.
...
Ignoring his daughter’s complaints, Bai Chen looked into Su Jiu’s eyes again to make sure. Her dark pupils were full of confidence, as if she really could casually kill Warrior-level demons.
“Dad, look what you’ve done! You’ve gotten Su Jiu drunk, and now she’s talking nonsense.”
Bai Qianyu was genuinely a little angry with her office-drone father. She’d gone to all that trouble to bring her big baby... No, her good friend home.
“Huh? I’m drunk? This is just a malt drink, not alcohol!”
Su Jiu blinked, clearly not understanding. As she spoke, she waved her cup at Bai Chen, signaling for another one.
“Hurry up and eat.”
Bai Chen smiled and refilled Su Jiu’s cup, as if it really were malt juice. He had already come to a conclusion about her: a top-tier Advanced Warrior.
A high school student? Who’d believe that?
Only a top-tier Advanced Warrior would dare challenge the leader of an entire pack. Although the Blazing Wolf King was a low-tier Lord, it was no weaker than some of the weaker Battle General-level demons.
“Dad! Why are you still pouring wine for Su Jiu?”
Bai Qianyu was about to lose her mind over her office-slave father. Why couldn’t he act normally for once? She turned to her mother and called softly, “Mom, say something to him! How can you let a girl drink?”
“But Little Jiu used to drink here at the barbecue stall all the time. I never expected her to be your deskmate.” Chen Ping clearly recognized Su Jiu, who often came by her stall.
Back then, Su Jiu had a bottle of Laobaigan in one hand and snacks in the other. She’d been quite the sight.
“Uncle Bai, another cup!”
“Huh?”
Bai Qianyu gave Su Jiu a strange look and saw that she was already clinking cups with Bai Chen, drinking with gusto. A whole herd of profanity galloped through her mind.
I treat you like a sister, and you’re buddying up with my dad?
Before long, Bai Chen’s face was bright red. He looked at Su Jiu, who seemed completely unaffected, and the corner of his mouth twitched. Then he started rambling:
“Have you seen the warning issued by the Dragon Hunters lately? Demons have been running rampant. There have been frequent signs of them outside Huayang, and they’ve specifically warned ordinary people like us not to leave the city.”
“Huh? Is it really that bad? My younger brother’s class even went on a group picnic in the back mountain.”
Su Jiu had read quite a few books over the past year. Demons generally stayed far from human settlements, and the major organizations—the Enforcement Hall, the Dragon Hunters, the Adventurers’ Guild, and the government—regularly patrolled and cleared them out to keep the cities safe.
“Hehe, you really shouldn’t dismiss it. Think about it: what mayor doesn’t want their city to be peaceful and prosperous? Even if demons invaded, they’d probably say everything was under control to prevent a panic... The truth is, there have always been demons around our city. But with the ruins, their habitats may have been disturbed, triggering an uprising.” Bai Chen spoke cheerfully, though there was a clear note of disdain for the officials in his voice.
...
Su Jiu fell silent. Her own dad was the mayor, after all...
“A few days ago, I saw some huge footprints around here. The Dragon Hunters came around then... In the end, I heard they killed a white-browed tiger over four meters long.”
Bai Chen continued. When he mentioned the giant tiger, he spread his arms to show just how huge it was, describing it so vividly... He might not have learned much during his years in seclusion, but he’d certainly learned how to spin a yarn.
Seeing Bai Chen’s expression, Su Jiu felt he didn’t seem to be making it up. Her willow-like brows furrowed slightly.
That thing was huge, nearly as big as the Blazing Wolf King. If it showed up, it would be hard to deal with.
Su Jiu looked again at Bai Chen, who was vividly recounting his tale, and thought to herself: But with Uncle Bai here, nothing should go wrong.
Unbeknownst to her, Bai Chen was also glancing at her, and he too felt slightly reassured.
With this girl around, Qianyu should be able to claim the opportunity in the mountain—the one that had made its spring water capable of boosting cultivation.
He didn’t dare spend money to hire anyone to explore it. Opportunities like this... well, if you know, you know...
He’d originally planned to wait for his son to come back and explore it. He hadn’t expected his usually solitary daughter to bring home a friend she seemed close to—and one strong enough to handle these demons.
The Bai family would have to take this opportunity, tears in their eyes and all.