Dangerous. Absolutely dangerous!
Di Tanxue could instinctively feel a profound sensation of danger emanating from this burly Young Hero Li.
It was a feeling of unease even more intense than what he felt from Manager Huang of Gentle-Rain Merchant store.
Manager Huang who was a high-ranked Blood Elf, the natural predator race of Soul Devouring Phantoms and Pilgrims alike, was only capable of making Di Tanxue a little anxious and yet this Young Hero Li, a human, made him feel a similar but many magnitude higher level of threat.
This was especially surprising since Di Tanxue felt not a trace of cultivation from Young Hero Li, meaning that he was most likely a normal human.
Their stand off lasted for only a single instance after which, Young Hero Li walked away with a meaningful look in his eyes.
A few moments passed but Di Tanxue did not let his guard down. Even as he munched on various delicacies, his eyes never left the tavern entrance.
Young Hero Li had left the tavern but the feeling of unease Di Tanxue felt never waned. A moment later he witnessed the tavern welcoming a middle-aged man in shabby-looking clothes.
The middle-aged man cautiously scanned the tavern and spotting Di Tanxue, he appeared to heave a sigh of relief and respectively approached.
"Greetings, fellow daoist … please take me under your wing!"
The middle-aged man asserted as he bowed slightly with a fascinated look.
"....?"
Di Tanxue was so dumbfounded that no words could escape his mouth. He gazed at this middle-aged man gazing at him with shining eyes and immediately turned away, pretending as if he did not exist at all.
Instinctively, he took the chopsticks and began shoving food down his mouth while a complaint echoed in his mind.
Couldn't you have waited for me to finish eating in peace?!
'Sigh, Is it a disguise… or something else?'
Di Tanxue let out a sigh in his mind and eyed the middle-aged man once again. A feeble body seemingly in the seventh stage Mortal Transcendence realm and a goodwill for Di Tanxue overflowing from the eyes.
These were the only two points observable from outside and no matter how deeply Di Tanxue tried to probe, he could find no signs of his earlier appearance but… this middle-aged man was in fact Young Hero Li!
It had to be mentioned that this Young Hero Li's methods of disguise were top-notch. Were it not for the identical sensation of danger he had sensed from Young Hero Li also emanating from the middle-aged man, Di Tanxue could've never linked the both.
The difference between both of his appearances was as vast as heavens and earth. It was as if he had literally changed bodies….
A thoughtful look flashed through Di Tanxue's eyes. As for Young Hero Li's proposal, he did not consider it even for an instance.
Water and fire cannot co-exist, it was as simple as that.
Letting go of any thoughts, Di Tanxue ate with an empty head and content smile while being stared at by Young Hero Li.
"... Please pardon my impudence;"
Watching Di Tanxue remain indifferent to his existence, Young Hero Li, who was not young anymore, shamelessly sat on the seat opposite to him and apologized with a cheeky smile.
An incense stick worth of time passed and then some in absolute silence. Yet the middle-aged Young Hero Li instead of being dejected, seemed to have drowned in delusions with his gaze appearing increasingly excited with each passing moment.
Di Tanxue could even vaguely hear him muttering words such as; hehe.. darling I love you, muah muah, let's have lots of little monkeys hehehe!"
These words and his creepy laughter in addition to Young Hero Li's scorching gaze that seemed to be looking at his lover made a chill run down Di Tanxue's spine and he finally could not stay quiet anymore.
"What do you want?"; he asked in an irritated voice.
"Haha, Fellow daoist, I desire for you to make me your subordinate!"
"Why?"
"Why, of course, you're my fated Lord! Together we'll achieve great things and become the strongest!"
Young Hero Li declared boldly with a fervent look.
"Not possible;"
Di Tanxue rejected him flatly with a shake of his head and beckoned the young errand boy waiting at a distance responsible for collecting empty plates and replacing them with new dishes on Di Tanxue's table.
"I'm done, no need to bring anything more."
Saying as much, he reluctantly stood up, cleaned his hands and kept four phantom crystals on the table as payment for the meal before walking away.
"Fellow daoist, please wait for me!"
Young Hero Li shot an envious glance at the errand boy and ran after Di Tanxue. Left behind, the errand boy looked at the departing duo and silently pocketed three of the four phantom crystals, bringing the remaining crystal to the tavern owner.
Since the price for this extravagant customer's meal amounted to only one-fourth of a phantom crystal, the errand boy naturally treated the remaining as a reward for his attentive service.
"Fellow daoist, where are we headed?"
Outside the tavern, Young Hero Li quickly caught up to Di Tanxue and began pestering him for an answer.
"Is it Domain Lord's mansion? Gentle-Rain Merchant store or Crimson Cult's representative branch? Or…"
He listened one name after another with the hopes of obtaining a reaction out of Di Tanxue and he really did when Di Tanxue stopped his steps as the name of a random small-scale merchant house was brought up after numerous failed guesses.
"If it is Golden Steel merchant house, isn't it just around the intersection ahead;"
Young Hero Li kept quiet watching Di Tanxue remain motionless for a long moment only to ask a question with a complex expression under his hood.
"Why is its name Golden Steel instead of Myriad Iron? And where's the Myriad Iron merchant lord?*
Just now, he had extended his senses and observed the place where the Golden Steel merchant group estate stood.
Myriad Iron merchant house, his home, seemed to have changed its name along with its owner. And his parents, the former master and mistress of the place were nowhere to be found.
"Myriad Iron merchant lord, he.. he's dead;"
"Eight years ago right before the end of Devourer's Famine, the merchant lord and his wife… they poisoned themselves to death out of sorrow after the tragic disappearance of both their son and daughter."
Young Hero Li explained nonchalantly, although inwardly he seemed embarrassed with his role as the bearer of bad news.