LONG TIAN: THE DRAGON'S SECOND CHANCE

Ch 10

Inside the modest inn, the atmosphere gradually became quieter as the night progressed. The merchants who had filled the ground floor since late afternoon began returning to their rooms after finishing dinner.

After ordering a room for the two of them and several dishes for them to eat, Xuan Mo led Long Tian upstairs to the second floor.

The room was not particularly spacious, but it was clean enough. There were only two simple beds, a small table, several wooden chairs, and a window overlooking the trade road outside.

As soon as the food was placed on the table, the aroma of roasted meat, warm soup, stir-fried vegetables, and several other dishes immediately filled the room.

Xuan Mo pointed toward the food.

"Tian'er, eat as much as you want. Your body is still growing, so you need enough food. During the past few days in the forest, I could only give you dry bread and water. I know the food was not very good, but we didn't have many choices at the time."

Long Tian respectfully cupped his hands.

"Thank you, Master. This disciple will remember your kindness. During our time in the forest, the dry bread you gave me was already enough to keep me from starving, so I didn't mind it at all. Since Master has been kind enough to provide so much food now, this disciple certainly won't waste it."

After saying that, Long Tian sat down and picked up his chopsticks.

Xuan Mo was briefly stunned.

His gaze fell upon Long Tian's small hands.

The boy held the chopsticks with remarkable skill. Not once did his movements appear awkward. Even when picking up slippery pieces of meat, his hands remained perfectly steady.

Xuan Mo was quite surprised.

"Tian'er, you really have surprised me. You're only five years old, yet you can already use chopsticks this well. Most children your age still need quite some time to learn how to use them properly.

"A child who grows up in a wealthy family with servants attending to everything might naturally be accustomed to such things, but judging from what you've told me, your previous life was clearly nothing like that."

Long Tian merely smiled faintly.

"Master praises me too much. Perhaps I just happened to learn quickly."

He did not explain any further.

Of course, how could a man who had lived for nearly a hundred years still not know how to use chopsticks?

The two of them then began eating.

For a while, neither of them spoke.

Long Tian remembered one of the rules Xuan Mo had once taught him: never speak while eating.

Therefore, he simply ate quietly.

Occasionally, Xuan Mo would pick up some food for himself, while Long Tian enjoyed dishes he had not tasted in a very long time.

However, as the night grew later, another coughing sound could be heard.

"Uhuk... uhuk!"

Long Tian immediately stopped eating and turned his head.

Xuan Mo covered his mouth with one hand before taking a deep breath.

"Master, are you sick?"

"Don't worry. It's only an ordinary cough."

Long Tian stared at his Master with an indescribable look in his eyes.

He knew.

That was not an ordinary cough.

In his previous life, he had watched Xuan Mo's illness gradually worsen.

The internal injuries his Master had suffered when he was young had never truly healed. Every time he cultivated, those injuries would become increasingly severe.

At first, it had only been a mild cough at night.

Then came coughing up blood.

Ten years from now, Xuan Mo would no longer be able to get out of bed.

Two years after that, his Master would die.

Long Tian tightened his grip around his chopsticks.

"Master... this time, I won't let that happen."

He muttered those words inwardly.

After finishing their meal, Xuan Mo sat cross-legged on the bed and began practicing a breathing technique to suppress his internal injuries.

Meanwhile, Long Tian stood up.

"Master, this disciple would like to go downstairs for a while and take a look around the inn. May I?"

Xuan Mo opened his eyes.

"Go ahead, but don't leave the inn and don't cause any trouble."

Xuan Mo knew that Long Tian had never been particularly fond of sleeping for long periods. Ever since they had been in the forest, the boy often woke up after only a few hours of sleep.

He also understood the reason.

After losing his parents, sleeping for too long might make him feel unsafe.

Long Tian nodded.

"Thank you, Master. This disciple will be careful."

He then left the room.

At first, Long Tian thought everything was fine.

When he had first entered the inn, the place had seemed completely peaceful. There had been no signs of danger.

However, after dinner, the ominous feeling returned.

The longer he waited, the stronger it became.

That was why he went downstairs to the ground floor.

He chose a seat in the corner of the room where he could observe almost the entire inn without attracting attention.

A few moments later, the sound of a crying baby suddenly rang out.

"Waaaah! Waaaah!"

The crying was so loud that almost the entire ground floor fell silent.

Long Tian raised his head.

Near the entrance stood a red-haired man.

He appeared to be around thirty-five years old. A sword hung from his waist, while he carried a crying baby in his arms.

The man's expression looked panicked.

He awkwardly rocked the baby in his arms, clearly unfamiliar with taking care of a small child.

Finally, he called for a servant.

"Waiter, doesn't this place have any milk? I really don't know what else to give him. This child has been crying for a while now. I've already tried everything I can think of, but he simply won't stop.

"Please find some milk. Any kind will do, as long as it can calm him down. I'm willing to pay whatever it costs."

The waiter looked even more nervous.

"I'm sorry, Sir, but our inn doesn't provide milk. We only serve food and drinks for adult guests. I also don't know where we could find some at this hour.

"Sir, please be patient. The baby's crying is quite loud, and some of the guests are beginning to feel disturbed."

The red-haired man lowered his head and looked at the baby in his arms.

The baby's crying only grew louder.

The man's expression became increasingly anxious.