The Long Journey to Immortality

When I met Han Lu today, I saw that she was not a cold-blooded and heartless person.

So the young cultivator took on the task, leading the elderly couple into the inn to find Han Lu, the "outsourced" one, to resolve the issue.

Arriving at Han Lu's door, the young cultivator bowed respectfully and said, "I hope you will help me again, senior, and not let these scoundrels disgrace us cultivators."

Judging from these words, the young cultivator's motivation to help the elderly couple was completely different from Han Lu's.

He simply felt that cultivators should be extraordinary beings in this world, and that such behavior of exploiting mortals and bullying the weak was a disgrace to cultivators.

Han Lu genuinely affirmed the close relationship between cultivators and mortals, which is why she showed sufficient humanistic care to mortals who were weaker than herself.

However, this slight difference does not prevent Han Lu from making the decision she believes is correct.

She channeled her spiritual energy, causing the door to open. She sat cross-legged on the Dharma seat, adopting the demeanor of a senior expert, and said slowly, "Come in first."

The elderly couple were slightly surprised to hear that it was a young woman's voice.

Han Lu did not show up last night.

In the elderly couple's imagination, this senior monk should be a kind-faced old man.

When they entered the room and saw Han Lu's appearance, their hearts pounded with anxiety.

"How could such a beautiful young girl possibly defeat those three thugs?"

However, the elderly couple could only think these words in their hearts; they dared not show their thoughts on their faces.

The young cultivator, relying on the fact that he had exchanged a few words with Han Lu, acted as if they were old friends and eagerly praised Han Lu, saying, "Senior's magic power is so high that even if there were a dozen or twenty villains occupying your house, they wouldn't be able to withstand a single move from you."

Based on the young cultivator's judgment, most cultivators who would do such a boring and despicable thing are only Qi Refining stage cultivators. His boasting that "Golden Core cultivator" Han Lu could fight twenty people at once is an understatement.

Upon hearing this, the elderly couple's faces lit up with joy, and they repeatedly said, "Thank you so much, Immortal Master, thank you so much, Immortal Master."

Like the young cultivators, Han Lu also judged from some details in the two old people's stories that the three cultivators who forcibly occupied the houses must not have high cultivation levels.

After all, a Foundation Establishment cultivator like Han Lu only needs one meal every five days to meet his body's needs, so these three cultivators who had the old couple cook for them must only be at the Qi Refining stage.

For Han Lu, this was a simple matter; lending a hand was just a blink of an eye.

Han Lu was too lazy to explain her actual cultivation level to the young man she had deceived. She simply looked at the two old men and said...

"There's no need for you to be grateful to me."

“I don’t like such scoundrels either; I just helped you two out.”

Han Lu was well aware that her theory would not work in the Great Yu Dynasty, would not be accepted by other cultivators, and would be regarded as an outcast.

So Han Lu simply used the young cultivator's theory to follow her own heart and do this good deed.

"Tell me where you live, and you can rest here for a while. I'll be right back."

The elderly couple were overjoyed and quickly pointed out their home.

Han Lu repeated herself to confirm that everything was correct before leaving the guest room at a leisurely pace.

It wasn't that Han Lu didn't want to use her sword-flying technique to leave, but flying out the window would be too disrespectful to a senior expert, so it was better to be more practical.

No sooner had Han Lu left than the young cultivator caught up with her.

"Senior, I'll help too."

Chapter 338 Expelling the Unpleasant Guest

Han Lu walked ahead at a leisurely pace, while the young cultivator followed beside her, sometimes to the left, sometimes to the right, his mouth never stopping as he tried his best to introduce himself to Han Lu, this senior expert, with his limited vocabulary.

"Senior, my name is Wenren Ou. May I ask your Daoist name?"

"Senior, what are your plans for dealing with those three scoundrels who have tarnished the reputation of us cultivators?"

"Wouldn't it be a bit cruel to just kill them? How about we teach them a lesson and then send them away?"

"Senior, may I ask where your sacred mountain is? Do you remember my father?"

……

Although Wenren Ou's constant use of the term "senior" annoyed Han Lu, Han Lu was too embarrassed to say anything harsh or drive away this rather endearing young man.

Han Lu simply said in a deep voice, "Be quiet. If you're going to follow, then follow. Don't talk nonsense."

Upon hearing this, Wenren Ou immediately shut his mouth, fearing that he might really anger Han Lu, this easy-going senior, and leave this world before those three villains.

The village was small, and the two of them walked for about five minutes at a normal walking pace before finding the house where the elderly couple lived.

Clearly, the elderly couple's actual living conditions were much better than depicted in their story.

It was a small courtyard, roughly the size of the courtyard where the inner disciples of the Zhengyi Sect lived. Two stone lions stood in front of the courtyard gate. The plaque at the entrance was a bit old, but the words "Zhang Mansion" alone suggested that the couple's children were likely officials in the county or prefecture.

Han Lu and Wenren Ou were not stupid; upon seeing the house, they knew that the old couple had told a little lie.

But Wenren Ou showed no anger whatsoever. Instead, he spoke up for the elderly couple, saying, "Senior, the elderly couple were just desperate for help, so it's understandable that they told a lie. Please don't take it to heart. Let's punish the wicked first before discussing anything else."

Han Lu nodded slightly; she, too, didn't take the matter to heart.

The door was partially closed when Han Lu and Wenren Ou pushed it open and entered, one after the other.

Although the three cultivators who forcibly occupied the Zhang residence were domineering, they were actually quite diligent in their cultivation.

After sending the elderly couple out to buy groceries and cook, the three Qi Refining cultivators, hungry, competed in the courtyard.

Two people fight, and one person stands by as the referee.

The spells flying everywhere broke several trees in the courtyard, and the flower trellis that had been built for some time collapsed due to the fight between the two cultivators. Only the small pond in the corner of the wall remained intact.

In the short period of time that Han Lu decided to help the elderly couple after their tearful pleas, the courtyard had already become a complete mess.

If Han Lu had arrived any later, several sections of the courtyard wall might have collapsed.

When it's not their own yard, they fight without any restraint or concern.

Suddenly, two uninvited guests barged in, naturally attracting the attention of the three people in the courtyard.

Because they had fled from a war-torn prefecture nearby, the three were more vigilant than ordinary cultivators from Dongzhou Prefecture.

The two who were just fighting fiercely immediately separated, still holding the magical tools they had taken out for their duel.

"Who are you?" The cultivator acting as the referee had already placed his hand on the storage bag, his eyes fixed on Han Lu.

Han Lu remained silent, but gave Wenren Ou a look.

Wenren Ou really does have a talent for being someone's lackey or underling.

He coughed, feigning superiority, and said in a stern voice, "We're here to clean up the scum of the cultivation world. We heard you robbed an elderly couple of their house and wanted them to be your slaves?"

"What?" a cultivator wielding a spirit sword said irritably, "Is it any of your business?"

These words left Wenren Ou, who was traveling for the first time, speechless.

Han Lu sighed inwardly, said nothing, and simply raised her hand.

The three assumed that Han Lu was about to launch a surprise attack, and subconsciously tried to activate the magical tools in their hands to summon their magical treasures.

But then, a cold gust of wind swept past them, and that was the end of it.

The cultivator wielding the spirit sword pointed it at Han Lu and shouted, "What, are you trying to scare us? Do you think we three brothers are easily frightened?"

Han Lu maintained her aloof and detached demeanor, offering no reply.

The one who seemed to be the leader of the three noticed what Han Lu had just done. He looked in the direction the cold wind was blowing, and then he couldn't help but shiver, as if the wind had blown on him.

"Second brother, let it go, bear with it." The leader grabbed the hand of the cultivator next to him, afraid that he would take the initiative to attack.

"What's wrong, brother?" the cultivator holding the spirit sword asked, puzzled. "The three of us can take on two and drive these two busybodies away. It's so comfortable living here."

The older brother gestured with his lip, "Look over there."

Looking in the direction pointed out by their eldest brother, the other two of the three gasped in shock at what Han Lu had done.

It turns out that the calm pond water in the corner of the courtyard has changed its appearance.

Three aquatic creatures clad in ice armor and wielding ice spears were eyeing the three of them menacingly.

The aura emanating from these three water figures was comparable to that of ordinary Qi Refining Stage 7 or 8 cultivators.

Seeing this, Wenren Ou was also amazed by Han Lu's casual use of such methods.

The three brothers didn't know the cultivation level of the cultivator who could perform such a technique silently—whether it was at the Golden Core or Foundation Establishment stage—but they knew that the cultivator's cultivation was definitely higher and their strength stronger than theirs.

Seeing that things were not going well, the cultivator who had been so arrogant just moments before quickly sheathed his spiritual sword, smiled apologetically, and said, "Senior, we were in the wrong. We'll leave right away."

Not far away, the sound of ice breaking came from the pond, and the three of them immediately felt relieved.

Wenren Ou questioned, "Leave? Is leaving all that's going to do? What about this destroyed courtyard?"

"Pay up, pay up," the eldest of the three said decisively. With a determined look, he took out three spirit stones and some gold and silver from his storage bag and presented them to Wenren Ou. "These gold, silver and spirit stones are our compensation."

Wenren Ou showed no intention of accepting it, and pointed to the steps in front of the house, saying, "Just put it there."

"Okay, okay."

"Where do you plan to stay after you leave?" Wenren Ou asked again.

Even if the three of them were thinking of taking over another family's house to live in, they wouldn't say it out loud.

"Let's find a random spot in the wilderness, build a temporary cave, and settle down." Even they themselves didn't believe it when they said it.

Wenren Ou said, "That's not necessary. I'm leaving soon, and the room I rented at the inn will be available. It'll be just right for the three of you to stay there."

Since the person had apologized and realized their mistake, Wenren Ou naturally changed his attitude towards the three as he would towards fellow cultivators.

"Thank you, fellow Daoist," the three reacted quickly, bowing in unison to express their gratitude. "We'll go pack our things now."

Just as the three were about to return to their room, Han Lu, who had just used a method they couldn't understand, suddenly spoke up, "Wait, I still have something to ask you."

"Did you flee here from other states?"

"Yes, senior, we escaped from Jiang'an Prefecture."

"Jiang'an Prefecture? Then tell me about the situation there."

Han Lu's eastward journey was to continue, so she naturally wanted to find out more about the situation in the east from a cultivator who was familiar with the area.

Chapter 339 The Situation Deteriorates

"What? There's fighting in Jiang'an Prefecture too?" Han Lu still remembered the frontline battle report that the owner of the weapon-refining shop in Jiulong Mountain had told her a few days ago, and she was slightly surprised that these cultivators had fled from Jiang'an Prefecture to Dongzhou Prefecture.