Chapter 588: Hearts Known in a Foreign Land

The shopkeeper’s teasing words greatly uplifted the scholar, who quickly pressed for more information.

“Shopkeeper, do I just walk straight north? Will I need to take any detours?”

“What? Are you really going?” the shopkeeper asked, adding a special reminder. “It’s not safe here at night. There are many stray dogs, and even wild beasts roaming around. There might even be ghosts outside. As a weak scholar, won’t walking at night scare you to death? How about this: whatever books or writing implements you have, I can have someone take them to the pawn shop for you. That should be enough…”

“Thank you for the information, shopkeeper. I won’t be staying here. I’ll go by myself, I’ll go by myself!” The scholar had initially thought the shopkeeper was kindly offering him lodging, but upon hearing about pawning his cherished books and writing tools, he was no longer willing to stay. He immediately put on his book satchel and left the inn. He had traveled with his satchel before, enduring wind and dew, so his courage wasn't as small as it appeared.

Seeing the scholar walk away without looking back, the shopkeeper instinctively stood on his tiptoes behind the counter and called out, “Hey, scholar! Pawning them doesn’t mean you can’t get them back! What are a few books?”

The scholar still didn't turn back. After waving his hand, his pace quickened instead, as the sky was indeed growing darker. In the west, only the faint glow of the setting sun illuminating the evening clouds was visible.

Ji Yuan and his two companions stood at the street corner opposite the Riverside Inn, witnessing the scholar's arrival and departure. Once the scholar jogged away with his book satchel, Yang Hao couldn't help but speak up.

“Mr. Ji, he’s gone. Should we follow him quickly?”

“No hurry. We can walk slowly.”

After their brief exchange, the three of them began to leisurely walk north.

“Woof woof woof… Woof woof woof woof…”

“Howl…”

“Woof woof woof woof…”

“Meow…” “Meow… whimper…”

From various parts of the town, constant barking and meowing could be heard. Occasionally, groups of stray dogs could even be seen running by. Some of the cries were truly eerie, like children wailing.

Ji Yuan was a cultivator with profound spiritual attainment, one companion was a revered figure facing his end, and the third was a martial artist of innate grandmaster level. In such an environment, they remained composed. The scholar, however, was far from calm. With his hands pressing his book satchel against his back, he ran as fast as he could, panting all the way north.

“Why haven’t I seen it yet? Why haven’t I seen it yet? Why is it so far? That innkeeper wasn’t lying, was he?”

The scholar had been walking for quite some time with his book satchel. Now, even the desolate night streets of the town were out of sight. Weeds and trees grew thicker around him, and the chilling dog barks sounded like weeping. The scholar’s steps involuntarily slowed. It was dark now, and he was in an extremely awkward position. The town buildings behind him were quite distant and barely visible in the early night’s darkness. All around him were weeds and trees, some of which looked eerily strange. Ahead, there was no sign of the so-called River God Temple, or even a river for that matter.

“Howl howl woof.”

Dog barks came from behind him. The scholar looked back and faintly saw several pairs of gleaming green eyes in the distance. His scalp tingled, and he broke into a sweat. These looked more like wolves than dogs.

“Woof woof woof…” “Woof woof woof… howl…”

The scholar was truly terrified. Gritting his teeth and stomping his foot, he could only run forward again. Even if he wanted to return to town, he’d have to take a detour. Fortunately, it seemed heaven heard his prayers. After walking along the dilapidated path for a while, just as he was about to leave the path and detour back to town, he stepped past a few withered trees by the roadside. Not far in front of him, a temple building appeared.

“The River God Temple? It’s really here! This is great, this is great!” The scholar ran quickly towards it, covering ground in huge strides. At that moment, the moon also emerged from behind the clouds, providing some visibility. The temple didn’t seem too dilapidated; at least its doors and windows appeared intact. There was even a courtyard outside, though the courtyard gate was missing.

After passing through the courtyard gate, the scholar quickly reached the front of the temple, where his steps instinctively slowed. The inside of the temple looked pitch black and somewhat frightening. He bent down, picked up a branch from the ground, and began knocking on the temple door.

“Thump thump thump thump…” “Thump thump thump…”

After a few knocks, seeing no movement inside, he wiped the sweat from his face and carefully pushed open the temple door with the branch.

“Creak.”

Under a slightly sharp creaking sound, the interior of the temple was revealed to the scholar’s eyes. Faintly visible in the moonlight, the temple chamber was actually quite large. Although it was called a River God Temple, the statue was long gone, with only its base remaining. Inside, there were some wooden planks and other debris, as well as dry grass and even traces of campfire charcoal, indicating that others had stayed there before.

This boosted the scholar’s courage significantly. He walked in with his book satchel, then set it down and tidied the ground. After clearing a suitable spot, he remembered he needed to start a fire.

“Oh no, my flint…” He rummaged through his book satchel for a long time but couldn’t find his flint. He also noticed a small tear in one corner of his satchel’s flap, most likely from when the flint had fallen out during his hurried escape earlier. Fortunately, his books and writing tools were all still there.

“Ah… I’ll just make do for the night…” The scholar, resigned, went and closed the temple door, then lay down on the dry grass, accepting his fate.

At this moment, Ji Yuan and his two companions were slowly approaching the River God Temple. In Ji Yuan’s eyes, the surroundings indeed felt a bit eerie. After reaching the courtyard entrance, Li Jingchun looked around and spoke.

“Why is this called the River God Temple? I don’t see any river.”

Yang Hao, having read this part of *The Shameful Fox*, explained to Li Jingchun. “There is a river. That overgrown path we took with the strange trees beside it *is* the river, but it dried up many years ago. The temple naturally became desolate. Mr. Ji, shall we go in?”

Ji Yuan smiled. “Young Master Yang, you came here specifically to see the fox maiden. Why are you suddenly so reserved?”

“Hehehe, I’m just being polite.” Having said that, Yang Hao took the lead and walked directly inside. Li Jingchun followed, while Ji Yuan lagged a step behind, surveying the surroundings before proceeding. This world was created by his magic, but he could not directly control the actions of every person and animal, nor could he detail every blade of grass or tree. After reading the story, he used the wondrous methods of heaven and earth to extend everything, creating a world that was indistinguishable from reality. Apart from the events of the story itself, all living beings, common people included, had their own thoughts and wills.

Meanwhile, Yang Hao had already started calling out at the door. “Is anyone in there? Is anyone there? This abandoned temple is ownerless. We are passing by. May we stay here for the night?”

The scholar, who had been dozing off, was startled awake by the sound outside. Then, he was pleasantly surprised. He stood up and looked out, seeing people standing there. He quickly went to the door to check and saw what appeared to be other scholars. Overjoyed, he took the plank propping the door shut and personally opened it for those outside.

“Yes, there’s someone! Please come in if you wish to stay. There’s plenty of space.”

“Thank you, thank you! I am Yang Hao, greetings!” Yang Hao, without any awkwardness, transitioned from his emperor identity to that of a scholar, even taking the initiative to bow to this commoner. The latter, naturally, quickly returned the bow.

“No need to be polite. My name is Wang Yuanming, and I’m just someone lodging in this abandoned temple.”

“Oh, oh, oh, I’ve heard much about you!” Yang Hao smiled and stepped into the temple. Although Wang Yuanming was momentarily puzzled as to why he would be “much heard about” by the other party, he immediately realized it was just a polite formality and shifted his attention to the two people behind Yang Hao.

“Li Jingchun, Young Master Yang’s attendant. Hello, Young Master Wang!” Li Jingchun bowed and entered the temple. Wang Yuanming quickly turned sideways to return the greeting. At this moment, Ji Yuan also entered the temple and nodded slightly towards the scholar.

“My name is Ji Yuan. Hello, Young Master Wang.” Ji Yuan’s demeanor was distinctly different from the previous two. He looked more like a person of profound learning. Wang Yuanming inexplicably felt a sense of reverence, like encountering a venerable teacher in his childhood, and became even more respectful.

“Hello, sir. Please come in.”

After they entered, they discussed starting a fire. Although none of them had a flint, Ji Yuan claimed he had one. When someone brought some kindling, he secretly flicked his finger towards it, and a bean-sized flame appeared in the dry grass used for tinder. Soon, the bonfire was lit.

Once the fire was lit, the temple became much warmer. With more people around, all appearing kind, the scholar Wang’s previous fears quickly dissipated, and he chatted eagerly with the three.

“Oh, so you three also couldn’t find lodging?”

“Yes, both inns were completely full. The people here are also very wary of outsiders; few answer their doors after dark, and even if they do, they refuse us lodging. Thankfully, we heard about this place and came to try our luck.” Wang Yuanming nodded repeatedly upon hearing this.

“Ah, I was even unluckier. I could have stayed at an inn, but my money pouch went missing. I don’t know if I lost it or if it was stolen, so I had no choice but to come here.” As the scholar said this, his tone was heavy with lament. Besides his anger at his misfortune, there was also a slight sense of relief that he didn’t have to feel embarrassed about his meager money pouch.

“Oh, I was so busy talking. I see none of you brought much luggage, so you probably don’t have any food either. I still have a few dry biscuits in my satchel. Shall we roast them and share?”

“That would be wonderful, Young Master Wang! Yang only had some rice cakes today and has been hungry for a while!”

“Thank you very much, Young Master Wang!” “We humbly accept! We’ll eat Young Master Wang’s biscuits tonight, and one day we’ll surely treat you to several better meals!”

“Hahaha, we scholars should understand the sages’ teachings: we must be learned and reasonable, but also eager to do good deeds. There’s no need to be so polite!” Their conversation grew more and more congenial. Especially with Young Master Yang Hao, chatting with him gave Wang Yuanming a sense of excitement, like finding a soulmate in a foreign land.