Chapter 385: Both a Friend and an Immortal

The rain poured in torrents, and the wind howled violently. The entire stretch of Muyun Road was shrouded in a misty yellow haze of rain.

The downpour not only obscured vision but also made it difficult for voices to carry far.

“Daughter!”

“The rain is too heavy outside! Even this straw raincoat can’t keep you dry!”

“You should go back to the teahouse! If you catch a cold, it’ll be terrible!”

As he spoke, the burly shopkeeper Wu grabbed his daughter’s arm and tightened the raincoat around her.

“Father! I’m young and strong!”

“You should go back instead!”

Wu Lan replied before turning to leave.

“Little Hu! Little Hu!”

“Come out, don’t scare your grandmother!”

“Little Hu~~~”

An elderly woman, hunched over, groped her way through the heavy rain, calling out anxiously. Yet, the mischievous grandson who had run off onto Muyun Road gave no response.

Stumbling, the old woman slipped and fell to the ground. Seeing this, Wu Lan quickly rushed over to help her up.

With a dazed expression, the old woman clutched Wu Lan’s hand and repeated, “Good girl, help me find my grandson, help me find my grandson!”

Hearing this, Wu Lan immediately reassured her, “Don’t worry, ma’am. All the guests from the teahouse are out looking. A little child couldn’t have gone too far—we’ll definitely find him.”

“And this rain, though heavy, will stop soon. Once it does, it’ll be even easier to search. Why don’t you go back and rest for a bit?”

“I can’t rest. Everyone else is searching, I can’t just sit still.” As she spoke, the elderly woman tottered forward again.

Seeing how pale and frail she looked, yet so determined, Wu Lan had no choice but to support her as they walked together. If the child wasn’t found soon, they couldn’t afford to have the old woman collapse as well.

At this moment, the rain only grew heavier, showing no signs of stopping. The grassy fields on both sides of the road had turned into muddy swamps, and puddles of water had begun to form in several places.

If the child had accidentally fallen into one of those muddy pits, the consequences would be unthinkable.

If only Mr. Gu were here… Wu Lan thought to herself. He would surely find the child in an instant…

As she pondered, she suddenly heard a voice in her mind.

[Northwest. Walk eighty steps. Check the grass pile.]

Wu Lan gasped in surprise. “Mr. Gu! Mr. Gu!”

Beside her, the elderly woman looked puzzled. “Mr. Gu? Who is this kind-hearted tea guest?”

Just as Wu Lan was about to explain, an excited shout came from nearby—

“The rain has stopped! The rain has stopped!”

Upon hearing this, everyone instinctively looked up.

The thick, oppressive clouds suddenly began to part, slowly shifting to the sides. Then, as if swept away by an unseen force, they rolled into the distance.

In just the blink of an eye, the sky cleared, and a cool crescent moon quietly emerged above the horizon.

“Heavens have mercy! Now that the rain has stopped, finding the child will be much easier!”

“Don’t waste time! Start searching!”

“Yes! The weather on Muyun Road is unpredictable—let’s hurry while we can!”

The warm-hearted tea guests called out to one another, preparing to spread out again.

At that moment, Wu Lan shouted urgently—

“Northwest! Walk eighty steps! The child is in the grass pile!”

Hearing this, everyone turned to look at her. Though they had no idea how Miss Wu had pinpointed the child’s exact location, they decided it was better to believe than to ignore the clue. Without hesitation, they rushed in the direction she had indicated…

“Found him!” A tall man parted the grass and shouted.

The surrounding crowd immediately gathered around. They saw that the boy, Little Hu, had turned deathly pale from the cold. His legs were trapped in the mud, and he was crying weakly.

Before long, the child was rescued with everyone’s combined efforts, and the elderly woman repeatedly expressed her gratitude.

However, curiosity spread among the crowd—how did Miss Wu know exactly where the child was?

After all, the spot where the boy had fallen was well hidden, obscured by both the rain and the grass. If not for sheer luck, it would have been nearly impossible to find him.

Yet, Miss Wu had been nearly a hundred steps away. There was no way she could have seen him.

“Miss Wu! How did you know the boy was here?” someone in the crowd asked.

Wu Lan removed her rain-soaked hat and smiled. “Mr. Gu told me.”

“Mr. Gu?” “Who’s Mr. Gu?”

The crowd murmured in confusion, thinking Mr. Gu was someone among them.

At that moment, Shopkeeper Wu rushed over to his daughter, asking anxiously, “Mr. Gu? Mr. Gu was here? Where is he now?”

Wu Lan shook her head. “I don’t know. I just heard his voice. He told me where the child was… and then the rain stopped.”

“Ah…” Shopkeeper Wu sighed with disappointment. “So Mr. Gu isn’t nearby. If he were passing through, he would’ve stopped by for tea.”

“Good heavens! If that’s the case, we must have met an immortal today!”

“I was wondering how the rain, which should’ve lasted at least two more hours, suddenly stopped!”

“And those dark clouds—didn’t they part right down the middle, as if someone had pushed them aside by hand?”

“A god! It must be a god!”

A small-built man shouted excitedly, and his words made the crowd realize how extraordinary this event was.

“Shopkeeper Wu! Your family actually knows a god?”

“No wonder your tea tastes so good—it must be because a god taught you how to cultivate it!”

“That’s right! This Wishing Spring tea is a hundred times better than any expensive tea, yet you sell it so cheaply. It must be divine in origin!”

Seeing the tea guests fabricating tales right in front of him, Shopkeeper Wu immediately put on a stern face.

“Hey, hey, hey! What nonsense are you all spouting?”

“My Wishing Spring tea was already being made before I even met Mr. Gu!”

“Besides, gods and immortals are not the same! If you say Mr. Gu is an immortal, I won’t argue, but don’t call him a god. Mixing them up could lead to misunderstandings!”

Hearing this from Shopkeeper Wu himself—who was known for being straightforward and honest—the crowd only became more intrigued. They eagerly pressed closer, hoping to hear more about this immortal. Some were even willing to pay for the story.

However, no matter how much they offered, Shopkeeper Wu refused to speak further. He simply said, “The gentleman is both an immortal and a friend.”

His relationship with the man was something deeply cherished by the Wu family—how could he reduce it to a mere story for others’ amusement?

Seeing his reluctance, the crowd did not insist. Those with impatient tempers, having witnessed the immortal’s power, dared not push any further. After all, who would be foolish enough to offend an immortal’s friend?

Far away, thousands of miles beyond, Gu Ning’an controlled the swelling of his divine soul and chuckled softly.

“Didn’t I always say that I merely have some knowledge of spiritual arts?”

“But… if things are like this now, calling me an immortal wouldn’t be wrong either…”