CHAPTER 1073: CHAPTER 1047: THE SLOPPY OLD MAN

After ordering, the waiter calculated the total and quickly came up with a number: "Honored guests, the total is 360,000 lower-grade Pure Yang Stones."

Wang Qiutian heard this and immediately grimaced: "So expensive! A table of food and drinks cost 360,000 lower-grade Pure Yang Stones—it truly is a high-class establishment." Normally, such spending would be unbearable for most people.

Holy Sun said, "Let me handle it. It’s not cheap, indeed. But since we entered Jiuzhou City, it was destined that we’d be thoroughly fleeced once. This is probably the only time in our lives we’ll have the chance to attend the Jiuzhou Immortal Sect disciple selection, so let’s spend a bit. Luckily, we brought enough money with us, haha."

If Wang Qiutian and his companions had to pay, they truly wouldn’t afford it. Except for Tangyu and Holy Sun, who had relatively more wealth, the rest were quite poor.

Tangyu had obtained a considerable amount of Pure Yang Stones through battles along the way, and he still had many trophies that could be exchanged for a fortune in Pure Yang Stones. For the time being, money was not a concern for Tangyu—it didn’t matter whether it was more or less since he didn’t really need it anyway.

After Holy Sun paid the waiter 360,000 lower-grade Pure Yang Stones, the waiter smiled and said, "Please wait a moment, honored guests."

Just as the waiter was about to leave, a ragged man appeared in the corridor. Not only was he ragged, but he also looked somewhat sleazy, with the smell of alcohol all over him. Seeing this man, the waiter immediately frowned and walked over, waving his hand at the ragged man like shooing a fly: "Go, go, go. Didn’t I tell you before? If you don’t have money, leave the Forgetful Palace quickly. Don’t disturb our business, and don’t affect other guests. Without money, we certainly won’t credit you with alcohol. Get out, or I’ll have someone forcibly remove you."

"You old man, how many times have I told you already? Why can’t you understand?"

Tangyu’s gaze also turned to the entrance. The person being shooed away by the waiter was an old man with a weathered appearance, disheveled hair, wearing a worn-out outfit full of patches, and straw sandals. In one hand, he held a yellowed gourd, and in the other, a broken fan—only lacking a hat to complete the look. His body was thin, but not hunched over; otherwise, he’d resemble a certain character perfectly.

Seeing this person, a character immediately popped into Tangyu’s mind: Ji Gong, the living Buddha.

The ragged old man’s gaze also turned towards Tangyu and his companions, with an innocent smile on his face. Despite being chased away by the waiter, he neither spoke nor seemed angry, yet he showed no intention of leaving.

Tangyu also took a closer look at the ragged old man. He didn’t sense any trace of aura from him; he seemed completely like an ordinary civilian, nothing like an immortal cultivator. It was peculiar—if he was indeed an ordinary person, how did he even manage to get in here? How did he pass through the gate?

Looking at him, it seemed he didn’t even have a single penny. Could he really afford the 10,000 lower-grade Spirit Stones as the entrance fee? Could he afford the drinks here? If he really wanted to drink, he could easily find a small shop outside to buy some.

Thus, Tangyu found it quite strange indeed.

Seeing the old man having no intention of leaving, the waiter rolled up his sleeves, intending to push the ragged old man away. But when he pushed, he found the ragged old man stood completely still, and he couldn’t move him at all, which left him utterly perplexed.

Could such a thing really happen? You must understand, to work as a waiter here, one must have a certain level of strength—at the very least, not weaker than the later stage of the Fundamental Realm. He was at the peak of the Fundamental Realm; although he hadn’t stepped into the realm of immortal cultivation, he was certainly not someone ordinary people could compare to.

"Hmm?" Tangyu also found it odd and had a faint suspicion that this old man might not be so simple.

Tangyu said, "Waiter, let him in."

The waiter was taken aback upon hearing Tangyu’s words. He turned back to look at Tangyu and said, "Honored guests, it’s alright. This old man often tricks our customers into giving him drinks. We’ve chased him away several times, yet he still won’t leave."

Tangyu waved his hand dismissively, "Forget it, just let him in."

The waiter was stunned, and the ragged old man immediately showed a beaming expression, even making a face at the waiter, "Haha, I told you, good people aren’t scarce in this world. Old man, I just love a bit of wine." Saying so, the ragged old man swaggered in and plopped down next to Tangyu, "Young man, your appearance suggests an exceptional talent for immortal cultivation, appearing but once in a thousand years. Today you’re treating me to drinks, and I assure you, you won’t regret it."

Upon hearing this, Tangyu was at a loss for words—why did this line sound so familiar?

Could it be that he’d encountered a charlatan today? If that’s the case, Tangyu might regret letting this ragged old man in.

Holy Sun and the others looked on curiously at the ragged old man. If it weren’t for Tangyu’s invitation, they definitely wouldn’t have allowed this ragged old man to join them for drinks.

As they spoke, the ragged old man acted like the host and told the waiter, "Hurry up and serve us drinks and food, what are you standing there for?"

The waiter nearly spat out blood, but he could only leave quickly.

The ragged old man glanced at Tangyu and the others, "Why are you all staring at me like this? Do you also want me to read your palms and predict your future?" The ragged old man’s gaze fell on Holy Sun, his eyebrows arched as he shook his head, "You have a looming disaster; be careful."

"..." Holy Sun was speechless for a moment, wanting to curse. Being told out of nowhere that there was a disaster looming over him, but Holy Sun was too lazy to argue with this scruffy old man.

The scruffy old man glanced at Xing Tian again, a glint of brightness flashed in his eyes, "Not bad, not bad, a person with Great Destiny, you’ll soon have a major opportunity." He glanced at Wang Qiutian and the others, directly ignored them without any comment. Then his gaze fell on Hua Wuliang, and he immediately started cursing, "Brute, to be so wanton and unrestrained, I’m severely damaged."

"Cough, don’t say that." Hua Wuliang pouted.

The scruffy old man’s gaze finally landed on Zhou Xi and her two companions, and the old man suddenly had a lecherous look, showing a few hints of depravity on his face, "Hello beauties, can we get to know each other?"

"..."

Everyone felt the urge to kill the scruffy old man, where did this lunatic come from? His brain must have something wrong, right?

Hua Wuliang also glared at the scruffy old man angrily, "Hey, check yourself, pull it together quickly, or I’ll be rude to you."

"Hehe, I’m just looking, I won’t say anything." The scruffy old man grinned, revealing a mouthful of yellowed teeth.

Tangyu had been paying attention to the scruffy old man all along. From his somewhat strange behavior, Tangyu also found the man quite peculiar. Initially, it seemed the scruffy old man was saying something profound, but now hearing him, perhaps he’s just out of his mind?

After a while, the servant boy brought the food and drinks to the table, and before Tangyu and companions could even touch their chopsticks, the scruffy old man unreservedly grabbed the wine and poured it into his gourd. Quickly, all the wine Tangyu and the others ordered was poured into his gourd. After finishing pouring, the scruffy old man directly told the boy, "Too little wine, bring more wine!"

Wang Qiutian couldn’t help but comment, "I say, old man, aren’t you too quick? Just packing it up to take away, leaving us with no wine to drink? This is too unscrupulous, isn’t it?"

"Hehe, why are young people so stingy, don’t you know it’s a blessing to suffer losses? It’s good for young people to suffer some losses. If the wine is gone, just order more. Old man here just enjoys a drink." The scruffy old man responded nonchalantly.

Everyone was left speechless.

However, Tangyu noticed a detail—the scruffy old man’s seemingly shabby ordinary gourd could actually contain all the wine? This gourd, seemingly, is not simple. Could the owner of such a gourd truly be an ordinary person?

This question left Tangyu pondering, though there was always a strange feeling lingering, but for now, it couldn’t be articulated.

Tangyu told the servant, "Bring more wine, please." So, Tangyu spent another ten thousand lower-grade Pure Yang Stones to order more drinks.

This time, Wang Qiutian and the others were ready, and as soon as the wine arrived, they only gave one jug to the scruffy old man, keeping the rest, "Old man, this jug is yours. Once you finish it, don’t ask for more."

"Sigh, such stingy kids, no wonder they’re not people with Great Destiny. I was planning to gift you a major opportunity. Seems like it’s not needed." The scruffy old man shook his head with a look of regret.

"Hah, we don’t need your gift." Wang Qiutian didn’t believe him at all.

Unable to snatch more wine, the scruffy old man turned his attention to the dishes, exhibiting an expression as if he hadn’t eaten in years, and indeed started devouring vehemently.

"Oh geez, shouldn’t have let you join us, you’re going to eat the whole meal by yourself." Wang Qiutian complained, quickly stopping the scruffy old man which made him a bit more restrained.

With the scruffy old man’s disruption, the drinking session was a bit uncomfortable.

After a wave of devouring, more than half of the food and drinks on the table ended up in the scruffy old man’s belly. After satisfying his hunger, the scruffy old man contentedly patted his stomach, grinning, "Though only half full, it was satisfying. Haven’t eaten so heartily in a long time. Haha, you young folks are quite amicable. I’ll be going now, wishing you good luck. Old man, I calculated on my fingers; your futures are boundless, but there will be many hardships. It’s up to you if you can overcome them, haha!" With that, the scruffy old man swaggered away.

"He’s seriously ill." Wang Qiutian shook his head, looking at the mess on the table, he was also quite annoyed, "I haven’t even eaten, didn’t get to taste the flavor, and the whole table is gone."

Watching the back of the departing scruffy old man, Tangyu’s brows furrowed slightly, that strange feeling in his heart seemed inexplicably intensified.

Why does he have such a feeling? This question also puzzled Tangyu quite a bit. Could it be that this scruffy old man is truly not simple?