“Thanks, thanks.
After picking herbs all day, having something hot to eat is simply perfect.”
Yue Guan did not show the slightest bit of malice; even toward a child like Su Chen, he was very polite.
He found a relatively flat stone and moved it over to sit down.
Only then did Su Chen notice that he was also carrying a herb basket on his back, filled with some unfamiliar medicinal herbs.
While sorting and processing the herbs, Yue Guan chatted with Su Chen:
“It’s been so many years since I’ve eaten the meat of a Sea Soul Beast; I really miss it.”
Spirit Hall had once launched an expedition against Sea God Island, but they suffered heavy losses.
Since then, people from Spirit Hall rarely went out to sea unless necessary.
When Yue Guan said he hadn’t eaten Sea Soul Beast meat in many years, it wasn’t necessarily a lie.
The Sea Soul Beast meat Su Chen was stewing was from the one he had killed in the sea several months ago.
In the pendant space, whether it was meat or fruits and vegetables, nothing would spoil.
Su Chen hadn’t been eating only the Sea Soul Beast meat during this time; his pendant space was stocked with a large amount of food, and he had been eating a variety of things, so quite a bit of the Sea Soul Beast meat remained.
With his reserves, even if he were stranded in an uninhabited area, the food in his pendant space could last for more than a year.
It couldn’t be helped; he was afraid of poverty and always liked to keep extra food on hand.
“Then you should eat more later.”
Su Chen did not feel afraid because Yue Guan was a Titled Douluo; he remained neither humble nor pushy, just as if he were treating an ordinary guest.
What a joke; he had someone backing him.
With the God of Destruction watching from above, if Yue Guan were to do anything against him, only Yue Guan himself would be the unlucky one.
Of course, if possible, Su Chen still hoped the God of Destruction wouldn’t have to take action.
If the God of Destruction were to come into conflict with other God Kings over such a small matter, it wouldn’t be worth it.
“Child, are you all by yourself?” Yue Guan asked again.
“I was by myself, but now I have you as a guest, don’t I?”
“Haha, that’s true.
I’m the one disturbing you.”
Yue Guan hadn’t come solely because he smelled the Sea Soul Beast; it was even more because he felt a sense of closeness from Su Chen, and he couldn’t help but feel fond of this child.
Seeing him here alone, and with the location not far from the Star Dou Great Forest, driven by curiosity and goodwill, Yue Guan took the initiative to come over and chat.
Chrysanthemum Douluo’s Spirit was the celestial chrysanthemum, and Su Chen possessed the blessing of the Goddess of Life.
The sense of closeness Yue Guan felt toward Su Chen must have stemmed from this.
“Since I’ve already shamelessly invited myself to a meal, may I ask what your name is?”
“Su Chen.”
“Su Chen, that’s a nice name.”
It was unclear whether Chrysanthemum Douluo truly thought it was nice or was simply making conversation.
“Su Chen, you must be a Spirit Master, right?”
“That’s right.
You must have already figured that out, right?”
His own Sea Soul Beast meat had already lured the person here; hiding his identity as a Spirit Master would be completely redundant.
Besides, Su Chen didn’t think Chrysanthemum Douluo couldn’t tell he was a Spirit Master.
“You child, you are quite interesting.
This place is so close to the Star Dou Great Forest; even if you are a Spirit Master, you are too young, and the powerful Spirit Beasts in the Star Dou Great Forest are as numerous as the hairs on an ox.
Aren’t you afraid of encountering danger?”
“It’s not dangerous.
I’ll leave after I finish eating; I won’t enter the Star Dou Great Forest.”
“That’s good.
You’re a child coming to such a dangerous place; don’t you have a teacher or an Elder from your family accompanying you?”
Chrysanthemum Douluo kept fishing for information.
He thought Su Chen couldn’t tell, but Su Chen was crystal clear about it.
“No, I am an orphan.
I don’t have any family, and I don’t have a teacher yet.”
Although the God of Destruction had essentially fulfilled the role of a teacher for Su Chen, he had not asked Su Chen to become his Disciple.
“That’s good, that’s good.”
A bright smile appeared on Chrysanthemum Douluo’s delicate face.
“Hmm?”
Su Chen tilted his head and looked at him in confusion.
“No…
cough cough, I mean, you’ve had a really hard life these past years.”
Chrysanthemum Douluo quickly explained.
Laughing out loud at this moment made it seem like he was mocking the other person’s tragic background.
“Su Chen, are you willing to take me as your master?”
After explaining, Chrysanthemum Douluo changed the subject.
“My identity is actually an Elder of Spirit Hall.
I have some status in Spirit Hall; if you become my Disciple, you will certainly be able to receive key training from Spirit Hall.”
To increase the possibility of Su Chen taking him as a master, Chrysanthemum Douluo directly revealed his identity.
He didn’t even ask about Su Chen’s Soul Power Rank or what his Innate Soul Power was.
Just because of that sense of closeness that came from who-knows-where, even if Su Chen weren’t a Spirit Master, Chrysanthemum Douluo would still be willing to take him in.
But he didn’t know that his behavior looked very much like a villain abducting children.
Su Chen hesitated for a moment.
He wasn’t hesitating about whether or not to join Spirit Hall; with the God of Destruction as his backer, and having already found his own bodyguard, joining Spirit Hall would be a complete restriction on himself.
Su Chen’s hesitation was just him thinking about how to refuse.
Although Chrysanthemum Douluo’s attitude had always been friendly, if he were refused, it wasn’t certain whether his attitude would change.
It would be too rash to judge him as a purely good person based only on what little Su Chen knew of Chrysanthemum Douluo.
Who would have thought that before Su Chen could refuse, Chrysanthemum Douluo spoke first.
“It looks like you aren’t willing; what a pity.
You don’t need to be afraid; I wouldn’t get angry over such a small thing.”
Chrysanthemum Douluo just sighed, not forcing the issue.
This actually improved Su Chen’s impression of him.
In the eyes of Tang San and Yu Xiaogang, the people of Spirit Hall were all incredibly hypocritical; whether it was helping children with their Spirit Awakening or distributing Spirit coins to low-ranked Spirit Masters, it was all an ambitious act to buy people’s hearts.
If one set aside their status as protagonists, the merits and demerits of Spirit Hall could not be determined by a single word from them.
“The food is ready; you can eat.”
Su Chen had prepared plenty of food; besides a large pot of rice, a large basin of meat, there were also some vegetables.
Even for a picnic, the combination of meat and vegetables was very reasonable.
After receiving the blessing of the Goddess of Life, Su Chen’s physical fitness had become much stronger, especially his recovery ability and vitality.
Consequently, his appetite had also increased significantly.
Being able to eat was not a disadvantage for Su Chen; he himself was quite passionate about food.
“Hmm, this Sea Soul Beast meat is delicious, and your cooking skills are also quite good.
This should be the meat of a One-Horned Black-Fin Dolphin, right?”
“Your tongue is truly sharp; you knew as soon as you tasted it.”
It seemed that Chrysanthemum Douluo was also a gourmet; he knew what Sea Soul Beast it was just by tasting it.
It seemed he hadn’t eaten it little in the past.
As for Chrysanthemum Douluo’s praise of his cooking skills.
Living as an orphan, even if he could often go to other people’s homes in the village to mooch a meal, he inevitably had to cook for himself.
Over these past few months, he had been doing his own cooking more than half the time.
Cooking is the kind of thing where it’s not easy to reach a very high level, but it’s quite easy to reach a decent level, provided one isn’t lazy.
And Su Chen’s level was a bit higher than just decent, so he was worthy of the compliment that his cooking was good.
Chrysanthemum Douluo didn’t eat much; most of it went into Su Chen’s stomach.
“You have a really good appetite.
I can’t do it anymore; I’m old, and my digestion isn’t good.”
Chrysanthemum Douluo spoke as if he were an ordinary old man.
Su Chen had never heard of a Titled Douluo suffering from indigestion.
Chrysanthemum Douluo didn’t eat much, and he even helped Su Chen clean up.
“Xiao Chen, is it okay if I call you that?
Since you are unwilling to take me as your master, where are you going next?”
“Heaven Dou City!”