Chapter 54: Insane, the Grand Preceptor Has Completely Lost His Mind

An Xinjie's attitude inevitably filled the old man with deep disappointment.

The junior before him might possess some talent and a touch of cleverness, but she lacked grand wisdom. She might achieve some success in the future, but accomplishing anything truly monumental seemed entirely out of the question.

Since she did not want this heaven-sent opportunity, the old man naturally would not force it upon her. With a sigh, he set off alone to look for firewood.

Meanwhile, Wang Chu began to butcher Little Black.

Eager as she was to know how the subsequent plot of the book would unfold, Chuxue chose to put the book aside for the moment and asked Wang Chu,

"Do you need any help?"

Wang Chu waved a hand and replied,

"No need, just keep reading your book."

He explained,

"Killing this fish requires me to handle the blade entirely by myself. You can't help with this."

Hearing this, Chuxue had no choice but to pick the book up again.

"Alright, then I'll continue."

Wang Chu took the back of the blade and struck the fish's head heavily, knocking the black fish unconscious.

"Alright, I'll call you when it's done."

Chuxue smiled sweetly.

"Okay."

"Hmph."

The exchange between the two made An Xinjie inwardly sneer with extreme disdain.

*She really knows how to put on an act. I refuse to believe this fish couldn't be killed without you. He's acting so deceitfully that he's probably even fooling himself.*

Just as these thoughts crossed her mind, the old man who had gone out in search of firewood returned.

Finding ordinary firewood for a fire was no difficult task for the old man, so he had moved quickly.

Returning to see that Wang Chu was already holding a knife and butchering the fish, the old man piled the firewood on the beach, walked over, and said,

"Young master, I have finished gathering the firewood. Have a look, how is this?"

Wang Chu glanced at the firewood piled on the beach, nodded in satisfaction, and said,

"Good, it's enough."

Hearing the affirmative reply, Hong Zhongyuan beamed with smiles.

"That's great. Is there anything else you need help with?"

Wang Chu began to scrape the fish scales off with his knife, speaking to the old man as he worked.

"Go and start the fire."

The old man nodded.

"Very well. Should I use a special flame to start it?"

Wang Chu kept his eyes fixed on the fish body as he replied,

"No, an ordinary flame will do."

The old man cupped his hands toward Wang Chu.

"Understood, I will go start the fire right away."

***

Having said that, the old man walked over to the pile of firewood and extended his fingertips.

With a thought, a tiny flame instantly ignited at his fingertip.

Simultaneously, the top layer of firewood floated up into the air and quickly descended onto the adjacent sand, forming a smaller pile of firewood.

The old man pointed at that smaller pile, and the tiny flame at his fingertip flew directly toward it, igniting the wood.

Having done this, the old man rubbed his hands together, turned to glance back at Wang Chu, and waited in eager anticipation, much like a fledgling bird waiting to be fed.

Whether this endeavor would succeed or fail depended entirely on this mysterious young man before him.

Wang Chu removed the scales from the fish and then sliced open its belly.

Strangely enough, the belly of this black mist monster contained no internal organs at all; there was only a single pitch-black bead.

Wang Chu picked up the bead, held it up against the sky to examine it, and remarked,

"The quality isn't bad."

With that, he stored the bead away into his spatial ring.

The old man watched eagerly, his mouth opening as if he had more to say, yet stopping himself.

Ultimately, however, he said nothing.

Having lived for so many years, the old man understood all too well the truth that a snake trying to swallow an elephant will choke on its own greed.

Sometimes, being overly greedy and failing to restrain one's desires would only bring harm upon oneself.

The old man's reaction and thoughts were clearly perceived by Wang Chu.

He had to admit that he was already starting to appreciate this old man before him.

The man's character shared certain traits with the fisherwoman he had encountered earlier.

Thinking thus to himself, Wang Chu, having slit open the fish's belly, began cutting the fish into pieces.

Seeing the chunks of fish meat being sliced off, the old man could not help asking,

"Young master, are you planning to make fish soup?"

Wang Chu nodded.

"Indeed."

The old man flattered him with a sycophantic smile.

"The fish soup made by young master must be exceptionally delicious."

Wang Chu showed no false modesty.

"Naturally."

An Xinjie, standing nearby, rolled her eyes internally.

She simply found the old man foolish and flattering, and Wang Chu arrogant and conceited.

About a quarter of an hour passed.

The black fish, cut into numerous pieces, had now been placed inside a small iron pot set over the fire.

None of them noticed that Wang Chu had secretly added something to the flames, causing that ordinary fire to become far less ordinary than it appeared.

Another quarter of an hour later, the raw fish in the pot was thoroughly cooked.

Seeing this, Wang Chu immediately added his proprietary seasonings into the pot.

Gradually, a subtle, savory aroma of fish began to drift across the beach,

tickling the taste buds of everyone present.

Chuxue, having finished reading her book, sniffed the delightful fragrance, her mouth already watering.

The old man stared fixedly at the pot of fish soup, his gaze filled with intense longing.

Even An Xinjie, who had been inwardly rebelling the entire time, had to admit at this moment that the fish soup smelled genuinely wonderful.

If it were free and she could have just a small bowl of it, she would certainly be quite willing...

Wang Chu secretly observed the expression on everyone's face, smiled faintly, and retrieved a bowl and a soup ladle from his spatial ring.

He walked up to the iron pot, stirred the fish soup with the ladle, scooped up a tiny spoonful of broth along with a very small piece of fish meat, and handed it to Chuxue, saying,

"This is yours. Eat it while it's hot."

Chuxue took it with a smile, not asking Wang Chu why he had only scooped such a minuscule amount for her, and simply expressed her gratitude.

"Thank you."

Wang Chu turned around and scooped another bowl. This time, the fish soup in the bowl was slightly more abundant, and while there was still only a single piece of fish meat, it was somewhat larger than the previous one.

"This is yours."

Wang Chu handed the second bowl of fish soup to the old man and said.

The old man took it excitedly with his left hand while offering a ring to Wang Chu with his right hand, similarly without asking why Wang Chu had only scooped a single spoonful of soup and given him only a single piece of fish meat.

"Inside this ring are all my worldly possessions accumulated over the years. Please review it, young master."

Wang Chu stood on no ceremony. He took the ring from the old man's right hand, didn't bother to check what was inside, casually tossed it into his own spatial ring, and said,

"I trust your character."

The old man cradled the fish soup as if it were a priceless treasure.

"Many thanks for your trust, young master. May I drink this fish soup directly?"

Wang Chu placed the ladle back into the pot, scooped a spoonful for himself, and tasted it.

"Naturally."

The old man nodded solemnly, then began to enjoy the delicious fish soup.

An Xinjie, watching the entire scene unfold, found it utterly absurd.

For merely that tiny bowl of fish soup, the old man was willingly handing over all the assets he had accumulated over so many years to Wang Chu?

Not even the most expensive fish in the number one restaurant in the world, the Jade Full Restaurant, could possibly be priced this exorbitantly, could it?

He had gone mad; the senior elder of her Horizon Pavilion had completely lost his mind!

She was determined to see what kind of transformation would actually occur in the elder after he finished drinking this bowl of fish soup.

Shortly after, the old man finished every last drop of the fish soup, along with the fish meat, leaving nothing behind.

*Clatter!*

The very instant he swallowed the fish soup and meat down into his stomach, the old man's body stiffened abruptly, his grip loosened, and the bowl that had held the soup dropped straight to the ground.