Chapter 492 - 270: Lu Ruyan
One day, Lu Yuan took Su Liyan, her mother, and their daughter Bengbeng back to Changliu Village to visit family.
When they reached the outskirts of Changliu Village, Lu Yuan had his retinue wait outside to avoid causing any unnecessary commotion among the villagers.
The people in the small village had never seen such a large entourage. The fewer people who went in, the better.
Their daughter Bengbeng, who rarely got to go out, ran ahead of them, frolicking and babbling things that only she found interesting.
Lu Yuan said, "Mother, darling, I want to head to the reservoir."
Su Liyan replied, "Why are you going there? It’s full of Da Xingzi. Aren’t you afraid of them anymore?"
Lu Yuan smiled. "At this point, why would I still be afraid? Besides, they helped us back on Elephant Island, didn’t they? I’m just going to pay them a proper visit."
Lu Yuan was surprisingly proper about it. Now that he knew the water and forest hid Da Xingzi with over a thousand years of cultivation, he felt he ought to pay them a neighborly visit.
In the past, Lu Yuan had treated these Da Xingzi quite well, too.
Su Liyan’s mother said unhurriedly, "Lu Yuan, if you want to go, it’s on the way. We can all go together. It’s been a long time since I’ve seen those old rascals myself!"
Su Liyan watched her daughter running ahead. "But what about Bengbeng? She won’t... revert to her ancestral form... will she?"
As she spoke, Su Liyan’s voice grew much quieter. ’If a child this young can already revert, what will she be like when she’s older?’
Lu Yuan had also found out later that his daughter could already revert. The last time they were by the reservoir, Bengbeng had absorbed too much Evil Qi, allowing her to revert at such a young age. She even had a vibrant, multicolored tail. It was absolutely adorable!
Lu Yuan produced two Talismans and, while Bengbeng wasn’t looking, slapped them onto her back. He clapped his hands together and said, "There, that should do it!"
Her worries eased, Su Liyan called out to her daughter, "Bengbeng, let’s go! We’re going to the reservoir to play with Uncle Monkey!"
Bengbeng ran back, her big, clear eyes wide and round. She blinked innocently and asked, "Mommy, is it the Uncle Monkey with the really white face and the really red butt?"
Su Liyan crouched down, opening her arms. "That’s the one!" she said gently. "Isn’t Uncle Monkey your favorite? Come, let Mommy hold you!"
Bengbeng grinned, showing her baby teeth. "I love playing with Uncle Monkey! He can fly with me! Mommy, I can walk by myself. You don’t need to carry me!"
Bengbeng waved her little hand, insisting on walking by herself.
Lu Yuan helped his wife to her feet. "The kid’s getting bigger," he said. "She doesn’t need to be carried. Just let her run."
Su Liyan had no choice but to relent. "But she’s only one year old!"
"We can’t exactly compare Bengbeng to an ordinary child, can we?" Lu Yuan said, putting his arm around Su Liyan.
The four of them arrived at the reservoir dam. The surface of the water rippled, disturbed by the many unknown creatures swimming to and fro beneath.
The nearby forest rustled. Xingzi of all kinds—those that ran on the ground and those that flew through the air—were hidden within the trees.
Sensing the arrival of Su Liyan’s mother and the others, Yunyun drifted over from a distance, giggling. "Granny, Big Sis, Brother-in-law, Little Niece! What brings you all here?"
Su Liyan’s mother was the first to speak. "Lu Yuan wanted to come see you all and thank you for your help last time."
Yunyun drifted to Lu Yuan’s side. "You’re being too formal, Brother-in-law. With your current abilities, I’m sure you could have handled them even without our help. Next time you visit, you don’t need to bring anyth—"
Yunyun floated a full circle around Lu Yuan, muttering to herself, ’Oh, he didn’t bring anything after all!’
Watching Xiao Yunyun’s expression change and recalling her unfinished sentence, Lu Yuan could easily guess what she was thinking.
Lu Yuan took the Space Storage Box from Su Liyan’s hands. The Space Storage Box was connected to his System Space.
Lu Yuan tipped the box, and a mountain of food poured out onto the reservoir dam. "I can’t agree with that," he said. "I must still thank you all!"
Lu Yuan cupped his fists and bowed first toward the reservoir and then toward the forest, paying his respects to all the Xingzi.
"Liyan’s man is so polite!"
"I can’t gauge his power!"
"My mouth is watering! I want meat!"
"Whoa! It’s been so long since we’ve had meat! He’s way more generous than Granny!"
...
The Da Xingzi in the forest chattered amongst themselves.
At the comment about being more generous than Su Liyan’s mother, she shot a cold glare in their direction. The Da Xingzi who had spoken yelped, "AOW!" and scrambled to hide behind another one, periodically poking its head out to sneak a glance.
The other Da Xingzi laughed. "Serves you right!" "Let’s not let it have any food in a bit!" ...
Su Liyan’s mother tucked a stray strand of hair behind her ear and gave an embarrassed laugh. "Back then, the family was poor and we couldn’t afford to feed all these Xingzi. I used to fill a basket with rocks and sand to fool them. Looks like they still remember that!"
Lu Yuan understood, of course. How could a family of farmers possibly afford to feed them all? He had seen his mother-in-law’s ghost-fooling tricks before.
Lu Yuan said, "Mother, let’s not make them wait any longer. Let them eat. If they want more, I’ll have the Mansion Guards deliver some next time!"
Su Liyan’s mother cleared her throat. The Black Mountain Demon emerged, treading on black mist. The white-faced monkey leaped about in the treetops. A Human-faced Two-legged Sheep approached with a refined, courteous gait. Numerous Demon Beasts leaped from the water...
All the Xingzi began to scramble for the food Lu Yuan had provided. Each of the Da Xingzi grabbed a share of the food and then hid themselves away again.
Lu Yuan scanned the crowd. There wasn’t a single Xingzi with less than two hundred years of cultivation, and there were too many to count with seven or eight hundred years.
However, he didn’t see the Flood Dragon or the fierce tiger. It was normal not to sense the Flood Dragon, as it was likely submerged in the undercurrents at the bottom of the reservoir.
Lu Yuan took Su Liyan’s hand and asked, "Where did the fierce tiger go? I don’t see any sign of it in the forest."