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For the next few days, Suning had to hide in the Fan family's house.

Although Constable Wang didn't say it explicitly, what Fan Erniu brought back was quite clear.

If a person of unknown origin, without a household registration or travel permit is found by the government, he will be arrested and sent to the army at best, and treated as a fugitive at worst.

When Fan Erniu said these things, his face was very ugly, and he was too embarrassed to look Su Ning in the eye.

Military service? Suning isn't afraid.

Even if he were beheaded, his head would grow back, let alone be sent to the army.

But Suning didn't want to cause trouble, or rather, didn't want to attract too much attention.

Having just arrived in this godforsaken place, completely unfamiliar with the people and the land, not even knowing what dynasty or era it was, there was really no need to go against the government.

Besides, Fan Erniu and his wife have treated me well. It wouldn't be good if I caused trouble and dragged them down with me.

Then, Meng Lihua tidied up the west wing for him to live in.

The room was small, with a bed, a table, a chair, and some jars and pots piled up in the corner.

The window paper was newly pasted and bright, and the kang (heated brick bed) was heated so hot that your bottom would feel hot when you sat on it.

Fan Erniu patted the edge of the kang and said, "Brother Su, please make do with this place for now. I'll think of something else and we'll get the household registration sorted out."

Suning said, "No rush, take your time."

Fan Erniu nodded, looking as if he wanted to say something but hesitated. In the end, he didn't say anything and turned to leave.

And so Su Ning settled down at the Fan family's house.

I don't dare to go out during the day; I can only move around in the yard.

Fan Erniu and Meng Lihua felt embarrassed, but they knew what was important and dared not let Su Ning go out and show her face in public.

Meng Lihua said to Su Ning, "Brother Su, just stay inside and rest assured. Let me know if you need anything. I'll have Changyu bring your food in, so you don't need to go out."

"Good work."

"Brother Su, you're too kind."

And so, the task of delivering meals fell to Fan Changyu.

On the first day, Fan Changyu brought in a bowl, placed it on the table, and said with his head down, "Brother Su, it's time to eat."

"Thank you."

Then Fan Changyu turned and ran, faster than a rabbit.

In the days that followed, she continued to do the same thing: she would bring in a bowl, put it down, say something, and then turn and run away.

Finally, Su Ning couldn't hold back any longer, "Why are you running? I'm not going to eat you."

Fan Changyu stood at the door, frozen in place, as if someone had struck his pressure points.

She slowly turned around, her face as red as a boiled shrimp, and stood there motionless for a long time.

After a long while, she slowly walked back, still with her head down.

Su Ning picked up the bowl and glanced at her.

The little girl is really pretty.

Her big, watery eyes seemed to speak volumes, and just one look at them made your heart melt.

Her eyelashes were very long, fluttering like two small fans, making people itch with desire.

Her nose was straight, her mouth was small, and her chin was pointed. Her whole face looked clean and delicate.

She was tall, half a head taller than girls her age, but she was a bit too thin.

The cotton-padded jacket hung loosely on her body, as if she had stolen an adult's clothes; her wrists were as thin as firewood sticks, as if they could break at the slightest touch.

"Changyu, are you often hungry?" Su Ning asked.

Fan Changyu was stunned for a moment, then looked up at him. "What?"

“You’re too thin,” Su Ning said. “Your wrists are like chopsticks.”

Fan Changyu blushed again and looked down at her wrist.

She immediately pulled her sleeves down, trying to cover it up. "I eat well at home, but... but I just don't gain weight. My mom said I'm like my grandma, I can eat whatever I want and never get fat."

"It's not good for a girl to be too thin."

"Okay, Brother Su, I'll eat more from now on."

Suning didn't say anything more and lowered his head to eat.

Today's meal is multigrain pancakes with a bowl of cabbage soup. Although the pancakes are made of multigrain, they are fluffy and easy to eat without getting a sore throat.

There were a few pieces of fatty meat floating on the surface of the soup, glistening with oil.

Fan Changyu glanced at him furtively, several times, then quickly lowered her head again.

After a while, he looked up again, then looked down again.

They went back and forth several times, like thieves.

The days passed by.

During the day, Su Ning stayed indoors, sitting on the kang (a heated brick bed) meditating and practicing the cultivation techniques he had obtained from Sun Wukong.

Occasionally, his spirit will travel out and explore the world directly through his soul.

They soon learned that this was a fictional ancient world with a strict social hierarchy and the ravages of war.

Moreover, this is a fictional dynasty called Dayin, where social classes are severely rigid, and there is a clear divide between the common people and the powerful.

However, beneath the seemingly peaceful and prosperous surface, undercurrents are surging...

Fierce factional strife within the royal family and imminent border war.

The power structure of this world is mainly dominated by three forces, and the grudges between them form the main axis of the story:
The Great Yin Imperial Family: Intense internal struggles.

Sixteen years ago, the Crown Prince and General Xie Linshan died when the city fell due to isolation and lack of support while guarding the border, which became a far-reaching unsolved case.

The current emperor, Qi Sheng, is merely a puppet supported by powerful ministers, and he is always looking to regain real power.

The faction led by General Qi: the most powerful force in the court, with General Qi as its leader, and including the powerful minister Wei Yan in civil affairs and generals such as Xie Linshan in military affairs.

This faction harbors a deep-seated hatred for the royal family due to the death of the crown prince 16 years ago, and the conflict between the two sides has been constantly emerging and intensifying.

The Changxin Prince Sui Tuo faction: a powerful vassal king who held military power. Sixteen years ago, due to a "disagreement in the use of military tally," they failed to rescue the crown prince. Later, they formally launched a rebellion and became a formidable opponent that shook the foundations of the dynasty.

At the same time, this is also a world that values ​​birth, social status, and power calculations.

There are also so-called fairylands such as "Qingqiu Mountain," but in Suning's view, they are nothing more than chickens fighting each other.

Once he realized that there was nothing that could threaten him, Su Ning felt relieved.

I believe that the warning I gave to Governor He Jingyuan of Jizhou that night should deter any large forces from coming here for the time being.

After dark, Su Ning went out to the yard to stretch his arms and legs, punch and kick a couple of times, and then went back inside.

Fan Changyu brings meals every day, three meals a day, without fail.

Sometimes it's millet porridge with pickled vegetables, sometimes it's multigrain pancakes, sometimes it's hot noodle soup, and occasionally there's a plate of braised meat, thinly sliced ​​and neatly arranged.

The ingredients are simple, but they are made with care. The bowls and chopsticks are wiped clean, and there is a poached egg on the surface of the soup. The yolk is half-cooked and will run when poked.

As Su Ning ate, he thought the girl was quite nice.

He doesn't talk much, isn't annoying, is efficient, and is meticulous.

A few days later, when Fan Changyu brought food, he no longer ran immediately.

He brought in a bowl, placed it on the table, then sat down in a chair, resting his chin on his hand as he watched Su Ning eat.

She would occasionally say a few words, her big, bright eyes making Su Ning's heart flutter.

"Brother Su, what did you eat when you were in the mountains?"

"Wild vegetables, wild fruits, and sometimes a rabbit."

"So you're very good at hunting?"

"good."

"Then will you teach me?"

Su Ning looked up at her. "Want to learn hunting?"

Fan Changyu nodded and said earnestly, "My dad said that girls who can hunt can get married easily. The daughter of the Li hunter in our town is a good hunter. She married a man who owns a cloth shop in the county town and is very rich."

Su Ning laughed. "Your dad said that?"

Fan Changyu nodded, then shook his head, his face turning red, as red as a monkey's bottom. "I just... I just want to learn a skill."

Su Ning suppressed a laugh and said, "Okay, I'll teach you when I can go out."

Fan Changyu was happy, and the corners of her mouth turned up, revealing two small dimples.

It's always like this; she blushes after only a few words.

Such girls don't exist in the real world.

In the real world, girls are all very generous, proactive, and wild. They have a lot of witty remarks and can easily ensnare men. There's no such thing as a girl who blushes so easily.

Su Ning found it quite amusing. Sometimes he would deliberately tease Fan Changyu, and seeing her blush and twist the hem of her clothes made him happy.

……

That night, Su Ning sat on the kang (a heated brick bed), closed his eyes, and began to sense the idle world of another world.

The spirit drifted out, passing through the rooftop, through the night sky, through layers of space, and landed beside the monkey.

Now that Sun Wukong has left the Cave of the Crescent Moon and Three Stars, he did not immediately return to Flower Fruit Mountain, but instead began to travel around the Four Divine Continents.

They were in an unknown, deep mountain, where a huge tiger was crouching in front of them.

The tiger was pure white, without a single stray hair, and had a single golden horn on its forehead that shimmered in the moonlight.

Its eyes were also golden, like two lamps, sending chills down one's spine. This was a white tiger, a white tiger spirit that had cultivated for countless years.

Sun Wukong didn't fight or make a fuss. He squatted down and talked to it like an old friend, "Brother White Tiger, your fur is quite beautiful. How did you take care of it?"

Are you teasing me?

"How could that be? I genuinely think it's beautiful."

"You give me a strange feeling, you don't seem like a monkey at all," the white tiger said slowly, flicking its tail and stirring up a gust of wind.

Sun Wukong nodded. "Then could you teach me?"

The white tiger glanced at him, its golden eyes expressionless. "What do you want to learn?"

Sun Wukong said, "I'll learn whatever you know."

Next, the White Tiger taught Sun Wukong a breathing technique, saying it could refine the body and make it as strong as iron.

Sun Wukong learned it, and he learned it quite well. He squatted there, breathing in and out, and his breathing became longer and slower.

Suning's spirit followed along, learning as well.

A warm current rose from my dantian, flowing through my meridians and throughout my entire body. My bones, muscles, and skin were all washed by that warm current, as if I were soaking in warm water, feeling extremely comfortable.

After learning the breathing techniques, Sun Wukong went to the South Sea and found an old dragon.

The old dragon had lived for countless years. Its hair and beard were all white, its horns were bald, and many of its scales had fallen off, revealing its grayish skin.

It lay basking in the sun at the entrance of the Dragon Palace, its eyes half-open and half-closed, as if it were about to fall asleep.

Sun Wukong squatted down at the entrance of the Dragon Palace and chatted with it, "Old Dragon King, your Dragon Palace is quite magnificent, how was it built?"

"Let's build it slowly." Old Long yawned and exhaled a puff of white breath.

How many years has it been under construction?

"I can't remember. It was built and demolished, demolished and built, over and over again." Old Long said, changing his posture to let the other side of the building bask in the sun.

Sun Wukong then asked it if it could teach him.

Old Long asked what you wanted to learn.

Sun Wukong still said, "I'll learn whatever you know."

So the old dragon taught Sun Wukong a method to control water.

It's not the kind of skill that can overturn great rivers and seas, but rather a refined, ingenious, and subtle approach that can achieve great results with minimal effort.

A drop of water can wear away stone, and a river can carry a boat; it all depends on how it is used.

As the old dragon spoke, it gestured, its claws lightly touching the water's surface, creating ripples that grew larger and slower until the entire sea surface seemed to move, yet not a single wave was splashed.

Sun Wukong learned it, and he learned it with great enthusiasm, squatting by the sea practicing all day long.

Suning followed suit.

The river in his soul, which had been quiet, now came alive, its waters churning and shimmering, meandering through his body as if a real river were flowing within him.

After learning how to control water, Sun Wukong went to the southern border and found a phoenix.

The phoenix perched on the parasol tree, its feathers fiery red, as if on fire, its tail feathers trailing long, hanging down several feet, like a red ribbon hanging on the tree.

It lowered its head and pecked at its own feathers, pecking once and shaking once, shaking off a string of sparks.

Sun Wukong squatted under the tree, looking up at it, "Your feathers are amazing, how did you do that?"

"Nirvana," the phoenix said, its voice high-pitched and thin, like singing.

"Nirvana?" Sun Wukong scratched his head.

"Burning once, it grows back once. The harder it burns, the stronger it grows." The phoenix shook its wings, and a few feathers fell off, which caught fire as soon as they hit the ground, sizzling loudly.

Sun Wukong thought for a moment and then asked if he could be taught.

Phoenix glanced down at him, tilted her head, and said, "You can't undergo Nirvana."

Sun Wukong said, "I can perform seventy-two transformations."

He suddenly transformed into a phoenix, perched on a tree branch, staring intently at the other phoenix.

The phoenix he transformed into was also fiery red, but its tail wasn't as long, and its feathers weren't as shiny, making it look like a half-finished product.

The phoenix laughed, its whole body trembling with laughter, and the flames on its feathers flickered.

After laughing, it taught him a method for controlling fire.

How to start a fire, how to put it out, how to make the fire burn brightly, how to make the fire burn for a long time, how to use fire to hit people, and how to use fire to protect oneself.

Sun Wukong learned it, squatted on a tree branch, and breathed fire from his mouth, nose, and ears, burning himself up like a fireball.

Suning followed suit.

The fire in his soul, which had been quiet, was now burning.

After learning how to control fire, Sun Wukong went to the Northern Sea and found a roc.

When the roc spread its wings, it blotted out the sky and blocked out the sun.

One wave of the fan can send you flying 90,000 miles, two waves and you're gone.

It stood on the edge of the Northern Sea, its wings folded, like a mountain standing there.

Sun Wukong stood on its back, "Great Roc, how can you fly so fast?"

Dapeng said, "What's so good about being fast? Being slow is a skill. If you fly fast, you'll miss all the scenery. When I was young, I also liked to be fast, and I would just whiz by without seeing anything. Later, when I got older, I couldn't fly as fast anymore, so I walked slowly and discovered that there were many things along the way that I had never seen before."

Sun Wukong thought about it and felt it made sense. "Then can you teach me?"

Dapeng readily taught him a method of flying, not the kind of fast flying that involves somersaults, but a slow, leisurely way of flying to enjoy the scenery.

How the wings flap, how the wind is borrowed, how the breath is supported—it all comes down to rhythm.

Too fast or too slow is no good; it has to be just right.

Sun Wukong learned it, spread his arms as wings, and ran around on the edge of the Northern Sea, flapping his wings every two steps, just like an old hen.

Suning followed suit.

My soul floated slowly in the night sky, watching the stars light up one by one, watching the moon slowly move across the zenith, and watching the clouds drift past my feet.

As the days went by, Sun Wukong traveled everywhere in Xiniu Hezhou, Nanzhanbuzhou, Beijuluzhou, and Dongsheng Shenzhou, learning from each other.

If you encounter a powerful monster, make friends with it, squat down and chat with it, humbly ask for its advice, and learn diligently.

The monsters treated him politely and humbly because he was a monkey, and spoke nicely. Most of them were willing to teach him a few tricks.

Some taught him transformation, some taught him formations, some taught him alchemy, some taught him weapon crafting, some taught him medicine, and some taught him divination.

There are all sorts of things, but the most common are various body-strengthening techniques.

Sun Wukong learned it, and Suning followed suit.

Breathing exercises, body tempering, water control, fire control, wind manipulation, transformation, formations, alchemy, weapon crafting, medicine, divination...

Learn one thing at a time, practice one thing at a time.

Write down what you can learn, and leave what you can't learn for later.

Su Ning's cultivation level rose steadily, just like Sun Wukong's.

Taiyi Loose Immortal, Taiyi Loose Immortal Peak, Taiyi Loose Immortal Perfection.

He is only one step away from becoming a Taiyi True Immortal.

This step is neither too far nor too near.

It depends on the opportunity.

Suning is not in a hurry.

Sun Wukong wasn't in a hurry.

A human and a monkey, separated by countless worlds, quietly cultivate together.

……

That evening, Fan Changyu brought dinner. When he pushed open the door, he saw Su Ning sitting on the kang (a heated brick bed) with her eyes closed and a smile on her lips, as if she were having a good dream.

"Brother Su, what are you laughing at?"

Su Ning opened her eyes. "Nothing. I just thought of something happy."

Fan Changyu sat down in the chair, rested her chin on her hand, and looked at him. "What's making you so happy? Tell me, and I'll be happy too."

Su Ning thought for a moment, "I've learned a lot of skills."

Fan Changyu blinked, her eyes sparkling. "What skills do you have? Hunting?"

Suning smiled. "Pretty much."

Fan Changyu handed him the chopsticks, tilted her head and asked, "When are you going to teach me? You've been talking about it for days, but you never actually do it."

Su Ning took the chopsticks. "I'll teach you when I can go out. You can't go out now, so even if I teach you, you won't be able to practice."

Fan Changyu nodded, then lowered his head and began twisting the hem of his clothes again and again.

After a while, she asked softly, "Brother Su, will you... will you stay here forever?"

Su Ning looked at her meaningfully but didn't say anything.

Fan Changyu's face instantly turned red, down to her ears, and soon even her neck turned red.

Then he turned and ran, but stopped at the door. "Brother Su, you can stay here as long as you want."

Then they ran off in a flash.

Su Ning, holding the bowl, looked at the doorway and smiled.

This girl is really interesting.

...(End of this chapter)