Chapter 97: Chapter 97
【Today’s Intelligence has refreshed!】
【Intelligence 1: Xiao Wu. Child of Destiny. Favored by heaven, destiny-blessed, instinctively drawn to fortune and away from peril, cultivation without limit. Realm: mid-Hidden Strength (four of nine apertures opened). Carries one of Diaohailou’s four main-peak inheritances: the Divine Ape War-Treading Void-Stepping Mystic Chapter. Additional arts: Spirit Ape Force at Perfection, Dark Eagle Stance at Perfection, Vajra Ape Bone at Perfection, Great Ape Heaven-Shaking Art at Full Mastery, Spirit Ape Nine Turns at Full Mastery…】
Child of Destiny!
A mid-Hidden Strength expert!
Watching the pale golden text cascade before his eyes like a waterfall, Shen Xiuhan’s pulse skipped half a beat.
He had never imagined that this youth in rough cotton clothes was a Hidden Strength martial artist who had opened four of his nine great apertures.
What shook him even more was the revelation that the man carried the inheritance art of Ape God Peak — one of Diaohailou’s four main peaks: the Divine Ape War-Treading Void-Stepping Mystic Chapter.
The name was clearly distinct from the Scripture of the Divine General Who Gazes into the Void and Illuminates the Heavens and the Abyssal Frost-Fiend Sea-Overturning True Scripture he had encountered before.
One was a “Mystic Chapter.”
The other two were “True Scriptures.”
Ancient sects of this caliber were always exacting in how they titled their arts. The difference in suffix surely carried significance.
But Shen Xiuhan had no time to puzzle over such secrets.
Because of two words at the very top of the intelligence —
Xiao Wu.
He had heard the name at Mei Hall. Xiao Wen had mentioned that his big brother went by this name.
And given the resemblance between their faces…
It was all but certain: this man was Xiao Wen’s elder brother.
But the problem was…
Xiao Wen had once said:
‘My big brother works as a miner at the Bai family quarry outside the city. He goes down the shafts every day, scraping by, barely saving enough to cover my tuition so I could have a chance at a better life.’
And now this Bai family miner had somehow transformed into a Hidden Strength fighter.
Could it be…
Because he was a Child of Destiny?
All of this passed through his mind in two or three breaths.
Shen Xiuhan drew a deep breath, clasped his fists, and spoke in a measured tone.
“May I ask, sir… do you know Xiao Wen of Mei Hall in the inner city?”
“…Oh?”
Surprise flickered across Xiao Wu’s face, but beneath it, a sharp wariness surged through his eyes. Force coiled silently within his four opened apertures. His voice, however, betrayed nothing — he simply smiled.
“You know my little brother?”
“It seems we were fated to meet.”
Meeting his gaze, Shen Xiuhan answered openly.
“I also train at Mei Hall. Xiao Wen and I are fellow disciples. The moment I saw you, something about your face struck me as familiar — that’s why I asked. My surname is Shen, by the way. I wonder if Xiao Wen has ever mentioned—”
“Shen Xiuhan?!”
Before he could finish, Xiao Wu’s brows shot up and the name burst from his lips.
“…That’s right.”
“I see…”
Xiao Wu studied Shen Xiuhan for a long moment, threads of connection weaving together at speed inside his mind.
‘My little brother mentioned that his Senior Brother Shen had been posted to the Ji clan’s Yunyi Island. And this reed marsh sits squarely within the island’s patrol waters. It all fits…’
The surprise in Xiao Wu’s eyes faded. The more he thought, the clearer it became, and his wariness dropped by half.
He rose to his feet and broke into a hearty laugh.
“Ha ha ha! Truly a case of the flood washing out the Dragon King’s own temple — family failing to recognize family!”
Xiao Wu strode out of the cabin, clasped his fists, and his tone took on genuine warmth.
“Brother Shen, my sincere apologies!”
“This spirit pet of mine is a glutton with an unruly streak. The moment it scented the treasure fish’s qi-blood underwater, it couldn’t help itself… Golden Tail! Get over here and apologize to Brother Shen this instant!”
The words had barely left his mouth.
The golden-tailed rat — which had been puffed up and defiant on Xiao Wu’s shoulder, baring its teeth and squeaking at Shen Xiuhan — went stiff.
Two bead-sized eyes went perfectly round, staring up at its master in disbelief.
Seeing his solemn expression — clearly not joking —
The rat swiveled its head and looked at Shen Xiuhan, who was watching with a faint, knowing smile.
In that instant, the entire rodent deflated.
“Squeak squeak… squeak…”
Under Xiao Wu’s stern gaze, the golden-tailed rat’s eyes brimmed with reluctant, aggrieved resentment. It rose slowly onto its hind legs, then pressed its two front paws together in a tiny, mimicked bow.
The gesture was so lifelike, so absurdly solemn, that it was impossible not to laugh.
“No harm done. A spirit beast protecting its master and hunting for treasure — it’s in their nature. A small matter.”
Shen Xiuhan waved it off, a warm smile on his lips.
But inwardly, everything clicked into place.
The golden-tailed rat!
He finally remembered why the creature had seemed so familiar.
Months ago, out in the foothills of the Dali Mountains, he had found a hidden stash inside an old hollow tree and cleaned it out — lock, stock, and barrel.
He’d come away with an impressive haul of wild mountain delicacies and dried fruits, and had even dug up an origin stone.
That was a treasure useful even to Astral Strength practitioners!
Recalling the way the golden-tailed rat had been baring its teeth at him just now, a thought surfaced.
‘This little creature… could it have recognized me as the one who raided its nest?’
Shen Xiuhan rubbed his nose and kept his mouth firmly shut regarding hollow trees and origin stones.
He stepped forward, picked up the fish-basket, and grinned at Xiao Wu.
“Brother Xiao, the wind’s cold on the water. Please, come into the cabin. Let me offer you a cup of rough tea.”
“Gladly! I’d be honored.”
Xiao Wu accepted without hesitation.
The two entered the cabin and sat down.
Shen Xiuhan stirred the embers in the small red-clay stove, set the iron kettle over the heat, and before long, boiling water met tea leaves and fragrance filled the space.
Xiao Wu took a light sip and sighed. “Truth be told, I owe Brother Shen a debt of thanks.”
“Oh? What for?”
“Does Brother Shen remember? You worried that my little brother Wen was going hungry at the hall, so you often slipped him corn-flour flatbreads mixed with minced meat.”
Xiao Wu’s smile was open and easy, a flicker of tenderness crossing his face.
“The silly kid couldn’t always bring himself to eat them. He’d tuck them inside his shirt and sneak them back to the mine for me. I must say, Brother Shen, your cooking skill is superb. The flavor stays with me to this day.”
Shen Xiuhan laughed.
“Brother Xiao gives me too much credit. Those flatbreads were my Ma’s handiwork. She’s set up a little shop in the south of the city now — runs a noodle house called Shen Family Eatery. If you find yourself in the inner city, you should stop by for a taste.”
“Is that so? I’ll make a point of it!”
Steam curled upward. Tea fragrance wound through the air.
A few pleasantries later, the mood eased into comfortable warmth.
As the conversation flowed, Xiao Wu found his regard for Shen Xiuhan growing steadily.
‘Brother Shen clearly suspects there’s more to me than meets the eye. He knows I carry martial cultivation. Yet from the very start, he hasn’t asked a single prying question.’
‘He talks about friendship, not secrets. His sense of boundaries is impeccable.’
Xiao Wu cradled his teacup, silently impressed.
‘That kind of temperament and poise… he’s cut from the same cloth as Brother Han Li, Brother Ji Ning, and Brother Wang Lin. A man of integrity, well worth knowing.’
The thought deepened his desire to befriend Shen Xiuhan. His words grew warmer, his manner more genuine.
And yet, he had no idea.
Sitting across from him, wearing a look of serene composure, Shen Xiuhan had long since split half his attention — and was quietly reading the remaining intelligence entries scrolling before his eyes.
【Intelligence 2: …】