Chapter 818 - 245: [Running Interference]
Chen Yan hadn’t even picked up his first chopstick when he suddenly heard laughter coming from outside the courtyard.
"Shanhe, as soon as I arrived, I smelled the aroma of meat! It seems I came at just the right time!"
Outside the door, Nangong Sheng in wide sleeves, with his clothes flowing, presented the image of a classical handsome gentleman amidst the misty, rainy scene overhead; he indeed had an air of a banished immortal.
Nangong Sheng walked in with large strides, carrying a jar of wine in his hand, his steps light, and in just a few steps, he reached the table and sniffed with his nose: "What a fragrant meat! It seems we have something to go with the wine!"
Saying this, he nodded to Old Wang, who was sitting there holding a bowl: "Old Wang, you’ve returned from the mountains? Did you bring anything good this time?"
Seeing him seemingly familiar with Old Wang, Chen Yan couldn’t help but feel curious—how could a prestigious Inner Sect Disciple be acquainted with a lowly, cunning old man from the Outer Sect like Old Wang?
Old Wang just rolled his eyes and didn’t rise to greet him; instead, he pulled his bowl back and glared: "Nangong Sheng, don’t even think about getting what I have. I said last time, if I find anything good again, I won’t let you have it cheaply."
Nangong Sheng didn’t reply, he simply turned his head and looked around, then beckoned with his finger, and the stool that was originally placed at Old Wang’s door, which he sat on while carving wood, flew over automatically.
Nangong Sheng set the stool in place, sat down on his own, placed the wine jar on the table, gently opened the seal of the jar, and a rich aroma of wine immediately wafted out!
Chen Yan couldn’t help but blink.
He had never smelled such a fragrant wine before!
"This is my homemade ’Eighteen Days Drunk’! Let’s have a sip together." Nangong Sheng puffed out his chest and laughed.
Old Wang sneered: "What ’Eighteen Days Drunk,’ you made it? The recipe was stolen from me."
"The recipe was yours, but it was me who brewed it." Surprisingly, Nangong Sheng wasn’t the least bit angry.
Chen Yan took out three white porcelain bowls from his storage equipment and set them up, then Nangong Sheng poured a bowl first for Old Wang.
"Old Wang, try my wine, isn’t it richer in flavor than what you brewed originally?"
Old Wang squinted his eyes, took a sip, smacked his lips a few times, and surprisingly nodded: "Not bad! Seems like you put in the effort."
"Indeed, I got distracted with wine-making and even suffered three ruler strikes from my master." Nangong Sheng laughed freely and looked at Old Wang: "After drinking such good wine, if you got anything nice this time, let me have a look, will you?"
Old Wang shook his head: "Just wandered around this time, didn’t gain much, just picked up some trash."
"...Fine then," Nangong Sheng nodded closely at Old Wang and said: "But if you do come across good stuff, remember to keep some for me."
Then, he and Chen Yan each drank a bowl of wine, picked up chopsticks, and tried a piece of the steamed preserved meat, chewed it in the mouth, and his eyes lit up: "Oh, this seasoning has quite an interesting taste."
"It’s just ordinary green onion and ginger." Old Wang said indifferently: "It came from the Otherworld many years ago, but in the Domain Realm, it’s only grown and eaten by families in the mortal areas. You aristocrats haven’t tasted peasant food before, have you?"
"Nangong Sheng nodded and said: "The hunt beast meat of the Fierce Beast Race is hot-tempered, to accompany it with wine, the wine needs to be chilled to taste better."
After saying that, he placed his hand on the wine jar, and suddenly, a layer of white frost appeared on the jar.
Chen Yan didn’t speak, letting the two bicker while he held the wine bowl, sipping mouthfuls.
This wine... truly excellent!
Its mellow flavor aside—after all, any wine, when it comes down to it, is just fermentation and brewing, just that simple.
But upon entering the mouth, what surprised Chen Yan was the rich presence of Primordial Qi, with a subtle hint of nourishing and repairing the Primordial Spirit.
A bit like the feeling of a "Nourishing God Pill," although not strong, but after drinking it, gave a refreshing, soft, light, and ethereal sensation.
The three drank wine with the steamed meat dish, but the steamed rice, like gold ingots, was barely touched.
Fortunately, Chen Yan had cooked a considerable amount of meat today; with the three sharing one jar of wine, they just finished a large bowl of meat.
The wine was quite exceptional; with Chen Yan’s tolerance, this small jar of wine only divided into thirds, left him somewhat tipsy after drinking.
Nangong Sheng and Old Wang seemed the same way. However, Nangong Sheng laughed and said: "Drinking is all about this feeling, the wonders of intoxication; if you’re going to use your powers to sober up, you might as well just drink water."
He said as he got up, pacing back and forth in the courtyard, sweeping his sleeves, unintentionally ending up before Chen Yan’s talisman drawing table.
"Oh? Junior Brother Shanhe, you’re drawing talismans?"
Nangong Sheng lowered his head and picked up a piece of talisman paper, it was a "Six Yang Righteous Qi Talisman" drawn by Chen Yan with his Sealing Spirit Technique.
"A talisman to restrain evil, the penmanship is quite good." Nangong Sheng nodded in approval: "I heard before that you were selling talismans at Snow Cliff Pass, it seems you indeed have some talent."
Suddenly he raised his eyebrows: "Oh? How come there is a thread of primordial qi between the strokes of your talisman?"
Hearing this, Chen Yan couldn’t help but be dumbfounded.
The Sealing Spirit Technique of talisman crafting, Nangong Sheng...
Doesn’t recognize it?!
This prodigy of the Saint sect’s Inner Sect, the favorite of the Artifact Refining Hall, actually doesn’t know the Sealing Spirit Technique?
Just as he was surprised, Old Wang calmly spoke up, his tone carrying a mocking edge: "You don’t know, before you came, this little boy was drawing talismans, I jested with him about several spells, and he unknowingly infused primordial qi, resulting in its contamination on the talisman paper."
Chen Yan: !!!
He suddenly turned his head, eyes narrowing, staring wide-eyed at Old Wang!
But Old Wang’s expression remained unchanged, giving Chen Yan a teasing, smiling look.
And on the table, his fingers lightly twitched.
Chen Yan felt a burst of realization in his heart!!
This Sealing Spirit Technique...
Esteemed Inner Sect idol Nangong Sheng doesn’t recognize it!
But this crafty old man from the Outer Sect does!
Moreover, he seems... to be covering for me!!
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