Danielle stopped Zachary from reacting and forced a smile.
"Tomato stewed tiger meat."
"It smells so good! I want to eat this."
At that moment, Mr. Zhi seemed like a simple old man who was just craving food.
Danielle glanced over and saw that it was about ready. She served Mr. Zhi a large bowl full of the dish.
Mr. Zhi took the bowl and sat quietly, not moving. Danielle and the others were free again.
Danielle's son Rain was rubbing his wrist in pain. "Sister, hurry up! My wrist is going to break."
But Danielle ignored him and continued to watch Mr. Zhi.
Mr. Zhi snorted, "Little girl, don't cause trouble. I mean no harm. Do whatever you want, just don't mind me."
Danielle felt like she had been punched in the chest, though the feeling quickly passed. She just didn't look pleased.
Danielle shook her head at him. "Let's eat first."
Especially the two little ones—they didn't get much of the food earlier since Mr. Zhi ate it all.
Rain's face fell. He didn't want to cut more meat, but fortunately, Mr. Zhi took over his task.
But, at this point, they didn't feel very free to eat.
When they finished, Rain wanted to go for some more tomato stewed tiger meat, but Mr. Zhi gave him a look that made him stop.
"You're young and still fighting for food with an old man. No shame."
Mr. Zhi said it bluntly.
He turned to the two little kids who were staring hungrily.
"Come over, Grandpa has something tasty for you."
Rain, being brave, saw that Danielle didn't stop him and walked over.
"Grandpa, can I eat?"
"Go ahead, go ahead. You're bold, I like it."
Rain ate, his face covered in sauce. Mr. Zhi even wiped his mouth for him.
The way they looked, it was as if they were a family.
Mr. Zhi's clenched fist finally relaxed, and Danielle's heart finally settled. She was glad her judgment was right.
If something happened to Rain, she probably would have gone mad.
Little Fei, seeing that everything was fine, also went over.
Mr. Zhi clearly liked Rain more, but his attitude towards Little Fei was okay.
Only Rain had a hurt look on his face as he awkwardly went up.
"Grandpa, I'm not yet an adult. I'm still a kid, so let me have a bite too."
Danielle sighed. This foodie didn't even care about his pride for a bite of food.
To his surprise, Mr. Zhi laughed loudly. "Although you lied to me, I like your shamelessness. Go ahead and eat."
Rain turned to Danielle and the others with a smug smile, then ran over happily.
By the time they were done, the pot was empty.
Zachary was told to go boil some water.
Mr. Zhi stood up lazily. "Where are you going? Take me with you."
Danielle hesitated, but she didn't dare refuse.
"We're going to the Fallen City."
"What are you doing there?"
Mr. Zhi noticed their bare wrists and seemed interested.
"You were exiled? Ha! You don't look like evil-doers. Did you offend those eight shameless families?"
Danielle was surprised. "Do you know them?"
"Of course."
Mr. Zhi's face flashed with anger. "Those eight families are a bunch of shameless people."
Danielle quickly nodded. "You're right, they're so shameless, so we exiled ourselves."
Danielle could clearly feel that after Mr. Zhi heard they had exiled themselves, his attitude improved a lot.
Mr. Zhi waved his hand, "Alright, don't be nervous. I just came out to stretch my legs because I'm bored. You all seem interesting, so I thought I'd play around. Don't stress too much."
A row of black lines appeared on Danielle's forehead. Play around?
Well, when it comes to strength, who dares to have an opinion?
Suddenly, Mr. Zhi's face changed. "But let me warn you, when you go to the Fallen City, make sure to stay away from a certain woman."
"Grandpa, what kind of woman is she? Is she scary? Are you afraid of her?" Little Rain asked curiously.
Mr. Zhi jumped up at once. "Afraid of her? How could I be? I'm warning you for your sake. That old witch, Madam Shan, is the worst. She loves to eat white and tender little kids like you."
He made a funny face at Little Rain, scaring him into crying loudly and running into Danielle's arms.
"Mama, Mama, I don't want to be eaten. I'm not tasty!"
Danielle frowned, looking helplessly at Mr. Zhi. Why was he still bullying kids?
"Mr. Zhi!"
"Alright, alright, she won't eat kids. But just remember to stay away from that crazy woman in the future. If something happens, I can't help you."
Mr. Zhi fell silent after that.
If it weren't for him being there, no one would have sensed anything.
Danielle and the others exchanged glances. What could they do? Just go.
As Danielle was about to send the two kids into the space, Mr. Zhi coughed twice.
"Leave them outside."
Seeing Danielle hesitating, Mr. Zhi awkwardly tilted his head to the sky and muttered, "I'll watch over them."
Danielle knew that with Mr. Zhi's strength, if he didn't want her to open the space, she couldn't do it. Besides, the kids were excited to be with the adults now.
They cheered and ran in circles around everyone, especially the ones wearing little cat and bunny costumes, looking adorable.
Mr. Zhi's face lit up with a smile. But when he caught Danielle and the others' surprised looks, he quickly wiped the smile away.
Danielle and Zachary exchanged a glance and nodded slightly.
It should be fine.
After walking a few steps, Zachary suddenly stopped.
Danielle looked at him in surprise. "Why aren't you walking?"
Zachary awkwardly tugged at his mouth. "Uh... I can't find the way."
Well, this was a big deal.
They looked at each other, unsure.
Danielle looked at Mr. Zhi, but he was busy playing with the kids and didn't seem to hear them.
Clearly, he didn't want to tell them.
"So, what now?"
Zachary took a deep breath. "It's fine. Let's walk and see if we can meet other teams. If we can get some all-knowing people, that'd be even better."
All-knowing people were a special resource of the Fallen City. They were similar to the handbands from the Blissful Pure Land, but without the positioning function or poison resistance. They were more like a useful tool, although strange, and could only provide information about their own faction's range.
Zachary looked up, trying to figure out the direction, and the group entered the gray mist again.
Mr. Zhi walked behind them, his eyes watching Danielle's back with a complex expression.
This girl... the aura around her made him feel so close. Could it be her? Did she have a connection with Lady Mei?