Chapter 319: Chapter 176: The Marvelous Uses of the Dao Fruit, a Technique Is Not Taught Lightly

"Huh, this little guy is really something. He’s not crying or fussing at all in your arms."

Lin AhSan looked with some surprise at Wang Xiao, who was being held in Wenren Hu’s arms.

The horse ride was so bumpy.

Forget a baby, even an adult might not be comfortable riding for the first time.

But this infant kept his eyes shut, sleeping soundly.

If not for being able to feel the baby’s faint breathing, Lin AhSan would have thought he was already dead.

Wenren Hu glanced at Wang Xiao in his arms, his eyes flickering.

"His breathing is steady, long, and deep. It seems even more refined than Chief Yang’s."

Lin AhSan’s eyes widened.

"Are you kidding me? Chief Yang is a master in the Meridian Passage Realm. In our Qingshui City, his strength ranks in the top three, at least. And you’re comparing a baby to Chief Yang?!"

Wenren Hu pursed his lips.

"This baby survived for a day and a night without food or drink. There must be something extraordinary about him. He can’t be judged by common sense."

Lin AhSan became pensive.

"Are you saying this little guy could cultivate even in his mother’s womb?"

"That’s the mark of a future Celestial Venerable! I remember reading in some ancient texts that some Celestial Venerables were born with innate knowledge and could cultivate from a young age. Within a mere hundred years, they reached Dragon Transformation!"

"And we just happened to pick up a baby with that kind of talent?!"

Wenren Hu shook his head.

"I can’t say for sure. But remember, don’t breathe a word of this. If the Demon Race finds out, I fear this baby won’t live to be a month old, and we’ll both be killed."

Lin AhSan’s expression turned serious.

"Of course I know that. But these days, it’s useless even if you cultivate to become a Celestial Venerable. In the end, you’ll just be slaughtered by the Divine Race. The higher your Cultivation Realm, the faster you die!"

He had heard that back then, the Carefree Celestial Venerable of the Dragon Transformation Realm had led the experts of the Human Race in a rebellion against the rule of the Divine Race that controlled them, only for all of them to be executed!

Their blood stained an entire mountain red.

The Carefree Celestial Venerable himself fell on the spot, his body destroyed and his Dao erased.

This was also the reason Lin AhSan had always been lax in his martial arts training.

Even the strongest of the Human Race were no match for the Divine Race. What was the point of cultivating so hard?

It was better to just get by.

Wenren Hu clenched his fists.

"Since ancient times, our Human Race has strived for self-improvement without cease. How can we let a single failure stop us in our tracks?!"

"Whether it’s to slay the Demon Race or overthrow the Divine Race, practicing martial arts is our only path!"

Lin AhSan knew that whenever this topic came up, Wenren Hu would get all fired up.

He couldn’t be bothered to argue and just waved his hand.

"Heh, well, you’d better protect this baby then. If he really can cultivate from the womb, he might actually achieve something great in the future."

"Who knows, maybe he’ll really do something earth-shattering. Then we could bask in his glory and go down in history!"

Wenren Hu glanced at the closed-eyed Wang Xiao but didn’t comment.

He would never place his hopes on others.

Much less a baby!

The rest of the journey was uneventful.

After an hour, Wenren Hu and Lin AhSan finally returned to Qingshui City on their swift horses.

The city was surrounded by mountains on one side and water on the other.

A long, sparkling river flowed down from its upper reaches, irrigating the farmlands and supporting nearly half the population of Qingshui County.

Wenren Hu passed the City Guard’s inspection and rode into the city.

He looked at Lin AhSan beside him and said,

"You head back to the Government Office and report in first. I need to take this child home."

Lin AhSan waved his hand dismissively.

"Tch, report what? We went out on our own authority this time. County Magistrate Fu would rather not know about this. If we report in now, aren’t we just causing him trouble?"

Wenren Hu raised an eyebrow.

"Some things can’t be solved by hiding from them. Never mind, you head back first. After I get this baby settled, I’ll go report to County Magistrate Fu myself!"

Lin AhSan said,

"Alright, you’d better hurry then."

The two parted ways.

「A short while later.」

Wenren Hu rode to a rather dilapidated house in the western part of the city.

He knocked on the door.

CREAK—

The door to the house opened from the inside, revealing the face of a thin girl with pale skin.

The girl was clearly malnourished. The paleness of her skin wasn’t a healthy white, but something more sickly.

She looked to be only about ten years old. Upon seeing Wenren Hu, she quickly opened the door wider.

"Brother, you’re back."

Wenren Hu nodded.

"Mmm, lock the door. Don’t open it for anyone while I’m gone."

This Qingshui City was divided into an outer city and an inner city.

The inner city was generally inhabited by wealthy merchants or the children of the Officials’ Family, while the outer city was home to common folk like Wenren Hu.

Most of the city’s garrison was stationed in the inner city.

Therefore, the inner city was relatively safe.

The outer city, however, was more chaotic. Robberies and gang fights were commonplace!

There were even demons that openly entered the city to eat people, and no one dared to intervene.

Although most people in the outer city knew Wenren Hu was a government official at the Government Office and wouldn’t dare to harm his sister, Wenren Hu would still have his sister lock the door tightly whenever he was out on a case, just to be safe and prevent any accidents.

"I know, Brother. Huh? Brother, why did you bring a baby back?"

The girl looked curiously at Wang Xiao in Wenren Hu’s arms.

Wenren Hu said,

"I pulled him from a pile of dead bodies. I remember we still have a little goat’s milk, right? Go heat it up with some water."

"Oh."

The girl pressed her lips together, a trace of reluctance in her eyes, but she obediently went to do as he asked.

Seeing this, Wenren Hu couldn’t help but say,

"Don’t worry. We’ll buy more when it’s gone."

The girl asked,

"Brother, is this baby going to live with us from now on?"