Chapter 61: The Only Genius Liar in the Village
"Ouch!"
"This old man was trying to take a nap, and you woke me up!"
A boisterous voice came from behind a giant mushroom cap, and an old man crawled out.
His hair was white, with a rebellious tuft sticking up on top of his head, tied haphazardly with a grass rope.
He wore a loose robe made of grass and leaned on a wooden staff. At his waist hung a small woven vine basket stuffed with red and yellow berries.
The dwarf guards holding branches and stones froze instantly.
Even Cero put away his dagger, jumped down from the mushroom, hung his hands by his sides, and called out, "Boss."
The old man bounded over in three steps, giving Cero a flick on the forehead. "Little brat, coming out to embarrass yourself with that meager strength."
"This guy is way stronger than you. Aren't you afraid he'll eat you!"
"Ah?! Does he eat Tontattas too?!" The guarding dwarves looked terrified.
Cero rubbed the back of his head, frowning, wanting to argue. "Boss! He might be a bad guy. Lady Lin Lan..."
"Him..." The old man's eyes looked at Chen Yu as if piercing through everything.
Chen Yu raised an eyebrow. Before he could speak, he felt a gentle but distinct "gaze" sweep through his body.
Not seeing with eyes, but probing directly into his memories.
He was familiar with this sensation, except he was usually the active party. Now, he was the passive one.
"You know about Observation Haki too?"
Chen Yu's pupils constricted slightly. High-level Observation Haki!
He had never seen anyone else in this world use this ability. This old man wasn't simple.
The old man paused, then smiled, his wrinkles bunching together. "Observation Haki? That's a fitting name."
"It's just a trick I figured out from being stuck here so long. It can sense the thoughts deep in people's hearts and detect movements nearby."
The old man familiarly wrapped his arm around Chen Yu's shoulder. "Sorry about that."
"Peeked a tiny bit at your memories. You really are that girl Lin Lan's biological son!"
Chen Yu frowned. Having his memories read was psychologically uncomfortable, especially since he had secrets.
Seeing Chen Yu's expression, the old man waved his hand. "Do I look like the kind of person who spies on people's privacy?"
"Didn't look, didn't look. Just checked the memories about Lin Lan and the beast tide outside."
The old man chewed on a wild berry, mumbling, "This old man is called Old Kui. Back in the day, I hung out in a squad called 'Shadow Blade' with Lin Lan."
"She was the captain, in charge of looking cool and beating bad guys. I was the 'Logistics Minister,' in charge of finding food for the team."
"Shadow Blade?" Chen Yu was puzzled.
"Oh right, Lin Lan didn't tell you. We were classified by the Alliance."
"Then you're telling me?" Chen Yu's face clearly said he didn't believe it.
"Hahahaha." Old Kui scratched his bird's nest hair. "Forgot."
"..."
"Back to business. Shadow Blade was responsible for purging extremist organizations within the Alliance's territory, occasionally guest-starring in border defense."
"Eighteen years ago, we tracked down a group. This organization had no name, just a totem of a blood-red carnation."
"Looked like a bloody morning glory. Ugly as hell."
Chen Yu suddenly remembered the token he found on the assassin with the Lush-Lush Fruit.
It had a carnation carved on it!
"You mean this?" Chen Yu pulled it out and handed it to Old Kui.
"Hey?" Old Kui's expression darkened. "They targeted you?"
Connecting the dots to certain possibilities, Chen Yu nodded. "Perhaps."
"Pah!" Old Kui spat. "They had their eyes on the Tontatta Tribe's cultivation skills. Wanted to capture the little guys."
"We ran into that group. Couldn't beat 'em!"
"In that encounter, our squad was almost wiped out. Lin Lan, that girl, had a huge gash on her shoulder."
"Blood soaked through her coat, but she held on to open this secret realm and send these little guys in. Then she left alone."
"Then you..." Chen Yu looked at Old Kui's vigorous appearance. He didn't seem too heartbroken about his teammates' extinction.
"This old man has the will but not the strength..." Old Kui pulled open his grass robe. On his chest was a scab glowing with green light.
"Scratched by an Emperor (8th Rank), Eighth -Order Beast Emperor. Hurt like hell."
"Since then, I've been stuck in this realm."
"Hehehe, I have some skills too. The Alliance wouldn't let me die, so I brazenly survived in this realm."
"All thanks to this treasure!" Old Kui pulled out a palm-sized gold nugget from the bottom of his vine basket like he was offering a treasure. It emitted a faint halo in the sunlight.
Chen Yu's eyes widened. "Pure Gold?!"
"Yo, you know your stuff!"
"This thing slows down time. I use it to store wild berries; they stay as fresh as just picked for half a month. I also use it to extend the shelf life of snacks."
"Look at the fruit in my basket. Raised with Pure Gold. Sweet as can be!"
Chen Yu looked at the pure gold, then at the basket full of fruit.
An emperor (8th rank) Beast Emperor didn't kill him in one hit? How strong was he at his peak?
The Alliance wouldn't let him die, keeping him alive with Pure Gold...
"Ah... you don't need to worry about those things." Old Kui shook his head.
He continued, "Before leaving, Lin Lan told me the dwarves would be of great use in the future."
"It's just that their nature is too pure."
"After years of my teachings!" Old Kui suddenly got excited, lifting Cero up. "I cultivated the only genius in the Tontatta Tribe who knows how to lie!!"
Cero's face turned beet red instantly. He reached out to cover Old Kui's mouth. "Boss! Stop talking nonsense! That was... because you tricked me so many times!!"
"Yo yo yo, still stubborn." Old Kui pried Cero's hand away, deliberately raising his voice.
The surrounding dwarf guards laughed, dispersing the tense atmosphere from earlier.
Cero stomped his foot and looked away but secretly tugged at Old Kui's beard. The movement was practiced, clearly done countless times.
"Ah!!" Old Kui yelped in pain, cursing, "Cero!!"
Watching this scene, the corners of Chen Yu's mouth lifted.
This old and young pair looked like a bickering grandfather and grandson.
"Business, business."
Old Kui cleared his throat and fished out a black stone token from his robe. The token had a blurry cross-slash totem carved on it, with some nut crumbs stuck to the edge.
"I know you want to leave. This old man can help you."
"But you have to promise me one condition. Take Cero and Princess Aisha out. Find a girl named Qu Tian and give this token to her."
"Princess Aisha?" Chen Yu paused.
"Over there." Old Kui pointed to a cluster of ferns nearby.
Chen Yu looked over and saw an exquisitely delicate dwarf with silver hair, wearing a fluffy dress, politely waving at him.
Old Kui walked over with a smile and poked Aisha's cheek. "This girl is the princess of the Tontatta Tribe. She has a soft personality. Once outside, Cero needs to protect her."
"After all, Cero is the 'Little Liar' I taught. He has ways of dealing with bad guys."
Aisha nodded and whispered to Chen Yu, "I... I will listen, and I'll bring you nectar berries to eat."
Old Kui leaned into Chen Yu's ear and whispered, "Aisha has the Heal-Heal Fruit (Chiyu Chiyu no Mi) ability."
"She can't heal my injury only because her rank isn't high enough."
Chen Yu leaned back tactically. The Heal-Heal Fruit really liked finding these kind-hearted dwarves.
"By the way, you have to be careful with that Qu Tian girl." Old Kui leaned in again, whispering as if sharing a secret.
"She used to be a reserve for the Special Squad. Don't know if she's a full member now, but her temper is explosive. Matches Lin Lan back in the day."
"Don't argue with her, or she'll shove that Dyna Stone in your pocket right up your ass!"
Chen Yu was stunned. "How did you know I have a Dyna Stone?"
"Smelled it!" Old Kui wiggled his nose proudly. "The gunpowder smell on that thing—I can smell it from two patches of mushrooms away."
"Just as well. The barrier of this realm needs a strong energy fluctuation to blast open. Your Dyna Stone is perfect."
"But you have to be careful. Don't blow up my fruit; I haven't eaten enough yet."
Chen Yu pulled out the Dyna Stone he had looted from Chen Chen's corpse. The egg-shaped stone had purple veins creeping across its surface and was suspended inside a small test tube.
Old Kui leaned in to touch it but was stopped by Chen Yu. "This thing explodes on contact with air. You'd better keep your hands to yourself."
"Tch, I used to throw these for fun." Old Kui pouted but still took two steps back.
"The weakest point of the barrier is behind the giant fern cluster to the west. There's an energy imprint left by Lin Lan."
"Detonate the Dyna Stone next to the imprint, and you can blow a hole."
"But first, go get your girlfriend, plus Aisha and Cero. Don't leave anyone behind."
( TO BE CONTINUE )
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