Chapter 42

Yun Cong scratched the back of his head, chuckled, and was not angry at Yun Yong's actions. Instead, he became more concerned about the little beggar. He quickly walked over and found that the little beggar had fainted.

Hunger and overwork had pushed the little beggar to his physical limits. Yun Yong's push was the last straw, causing the already exhausted little beggar to collapse and faint.

Yun Cong tried to lift the little beggar, but despite the beggar's thin and weak body, it was still too heavy for Yun Cong, who was also thin and weak.

"Hey, come and help me," Yun Cong had no choice but to ask Yun Yong, the brute, for help.

Yun Yong covered his ears and ignored him.

With no other choice, Yun Cong had to lift the little beggar himself. He didn't care about the dirt and the smell, and just supported the beggar's arm, slowly dragging him towards the temple.

Yun Cong's body was very weak. Although the little beggar looked thin and weak, his body was quite large and heavy, making it very difficult for Yun Cong. He slipped and almost fell.

Yun Cong knelt on one knee, the pain in his knee was unbearable, and he cried out. He struggled to keep the beggar from falling, but his knee was scraped and bleeding. Just as he was struggling, he felt the weight on his shoulder lighten, and the arm around his neck was lifted.

He turned around and saw that it was Yun Yong who had come to help.

Yun Cong chuckled at Yun Yong, but before he could say anything, Yun Yong, with a dark face, scolded him, "What are you looking at? Consider it a debt I owe you, ancestor... Are you going to help me or not?" Yun Yong put the little beggar on his back and shouted at Yun Cong, who was grinning foolishly. "I don't know what I did in my past life to deserve this... I spit! Bad luck, and he stinks too."

Yun Yong kept complaining as he quickly walked into the temple.

Yun Cong had long known that Yun Yong, who was mean on the outside but kind on the inside, would help. They had lived together for more than two years, and Yun Cong knew Yun Yong's character well.

"What happened?"

As soon as they entered the temple, they were met by Daoist Qing Song. Seeing the temple boy carrying a child, he quickly welcomed them in and asked softly.

"Uncle Qing Song, Second Master has returned. He told us that someone was following him and asked us to receive them. Then we saw this child climbing the mountain and... and... and he fainted at the foot of the mountain. Yun Yong and I carried him back, but we don't know if he's the person Second Master was waiting for." Yun Cong paused when recounting Yun Yong's push, to avoid unnecessary trouble, and omitted that part.

Yun Yong, feeling embarrassed, lowered his head and blushed, knowing the little beggar had fainted because of his push. Although he didn't feel entirely responsible, Yun Cong's act of covering for him made the straightforward Yun Yong feel very grateful and moved, looking at Yun Cong with admiration.

"Oh? Second Master has returned? That's great." Hearing that his fellow disciple had returned, Daoist Qing Song was very happy and didn't notice anything unusual. He was about to leave but stopped, thinking: Second Master must have gone to see the Master. If I go now, I'll be a disturbance. I'll wait until they finish talking before I go to catch up.

With this thought, he didn't rush to leave.

"Um, I'll check on the child first."

Daoist Qing Song sat on the edge of the bed and gently felt the child's pulse. After a moment, he stroked his short beard, his round face creased in thought. He then sighed and instructed, "Yun Yong, go get a basin of water... Yun Cong, find some food, something liquid. If there isn't any, ask the kitchen to cook some porridge."

"Yes, Third Uncle."

The two bowed and left.

Daoist Qing Song turned to look at the little beggar, thinking: This child has a unique bone structure and excellent physical condition. He must be a disciple that Second Master brought back. But why didn't Second Master bring him directly to the temple and instead let him follow behind? Also, this child has a blockage in his chest and signs of atrophy in his meridians. If he doesn't recover soon, he might have a lifelong illness, and his martial arts progress will be hindered, and his life might be shortened... It seems this child has many secrets.

After some thought, he decided that it was best for Second Master to handle this matter. With two disciples watching over, nothing serious would happen.

After instructing Yun Yong and Yun Cong, Daoist Qing Song saw that the little beggar was still unconscious and assumed there was no immediate danger. He then left to attend to the temple's affairs.

What Daoist Qing Song didn't see was that as he left the room, the little beggar, who was lying on the bed, moved his fingers slightly and then opened his bright eyes.

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Xiao Feng, not Xiao Feng from *Demi-Gods and Semi-Devils*.

He is not the heroic Xiao Feng from *Demi-Gods and Semi-Devils* and does not know the *Eighteen Dragon Subduing Palms*.

He is just a child, maybe five or six years old, who knows? Even Xiao Feng himself hasn't counted. Children in the mountains don't have birthdays. As long as they don't starve to death and can survive, that's a blessing.

As the child of a common hunter near the border of Yunzhou, Xiao Feng started hunting with his father from a young age. He couldn't help much, just watching from his father's back or picking up things and gathering mushrooms and wild vegetables.

The hunter's family lived a hard but carefree life. In the mountains, such a child would usually grow up to be an excellent hunter, but fate often has unexpected twists, and not everything goes as planned.

In Yunzhou's Kunwu Mountain, the most brutal bandits, the Purple Gold Bandits, came down the mountain to do business. They chose Xiao Feng's home as a temporary hideout and killed his entire family. His mother and sister were brutally raped and thrown into a well to die. Xiao Feng, who was in the cellar picking wild vegetables, escaped but witnessed his sister and mother being violated and saw a bandit with a purple scarf and a scar on his face repeatedly stab his father with a steel knife... The sound of his father's dying groans, mixed with the screams of his family, was etched into Xiao Feng's memory. He was haunted by his sister's cries for help, his father's roars, his mother's sobs, and the bandits' cruel laughter in his dreams.

To avenge his family, the six-year-old Xiao Feng endured many hardships. Using the traps he learned from his ancestors to hunt animals, he caused trouble and even killed a few enemies.

One winter, during a heavy snowfall, Xiao Feng hid in a snow pile for three days, waiting for the enemy to come down the mountain. He then dug a deep trap on their return path, using tiles and his hands for three days and nights. After camouflaging it, he waited for three more days. When the enemies returned, two of them fell into the trap. One died instantly, and the other was injured. Xiao Feng used a sharpened tile to beat the injured bandit to death, taking about fifteen minutes. The blood soaked through Xiao Feng's clothes and froze into ice. For nine days, Xiao Feng survived on snow and two steamed buns, showing his resilience and determination. His patience and ruthlessness in dealing with enemies were like those of a lone wolf in the snow, appearing weak and pitiful but striking with deadly precision.

Despite his efforts, Xiao Feng's actions drew the attention of the bandits. His last few attempts at revenge failed, and he nearly lost his life.

In a moment of crisis, a Taoist saved him. The Taoist, dressed in a green robe and carrying a long sword, had a pair of slightly curled mustaches that made him look very free-spirited.

His sword was as free-spirited as he was.

Xiao Feng would never forget that encounter.

With a few swift movements, the Taoist cut off the heads of several of the bandits' main henchmen, who had been wreaking havoc for years. In that moment, they couldn't even resist for a few breaths before losing their lives.

From that moment on, the Taoist with the two small mustaches and a free-spirited appearance became Xiao Feng's idol.

Xiao Feng also set the most important goal of his life, a goal that would accompany him for the rest of his life.

He wanted to learn swordsmanship.

He asked the Taoist to teach him.

The Taoist stared into his eyes, then looked at his blood-soaked, frozen chest, and seemed hesitant.

The Taoist made a simple but difficult request.

Follow him back to the temple.

It was clear that the Taoist hoped he would give up... but he persisted and followed through.

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