That night, a news van was speeding down the road.

The editor-in-chief, along with the person who had been in contact with Hou Ling and several other burly colleagues, were rushing towards Immortal’s Rest Mountain.

They had all been working at the newspaper for a long time, often pulling all-nighters to meet deadlines, but this was the first time they were pulling an all-nighter to rescue a colleague.

After driving for some time, one reporter asked, “Should we call the police? What if they’ve captured Xiao Hou and won’t let him go?”

The colleague who had been in contact with Hou Ling quickly said, “Absolutely not. We don’t know what the situation is with Xiao Hou yet. What if he’s really been corrupted… ahem, we should at least get him out before calling the police. Right, Chief Editor?”

The editor-in-chief, sitting in the front passenger seat, was looking through the chat history between the colleague and Hou Ling. Hearing this, she actually smiled. “I have a feeling things are probably not what you think they are.”

The colleague asked, “Huh? Are you saying the guesthouse might be involved in other illegal activities?”

The editor-in-chief waved her hand. “No. I feel that this guesthouse is genuinely special. But there’s no point in speculating now. Let’s go and see for ourselves first.”

And so, at midnight, Zhao Xing was woken up by the sound of someone knocking on his door.

He groggily got up to open it, only to see several burly men and a woman in her forties standing at the entrance.

The sight shocked him awake. Had the mafia come knocking on his door?

The editor-in-chief sized up the young man. He was wearing ordinary pajamas and house slippers, his hair was a mess, and his handsome face had a dazed, just-woken-up expression. He didn’t look like someone who would engage in illegal activities at all.

Her confidence in her guess grew. She smiled and said, “Hello, boss. We’re looking for someone. Is a Mr. Hou Ling staying here?”

Zhao Xing came to his senses and looked them over. “We can’t disclose guest privacy. If you’re looking for someone, you can call them directly.”

The editor-in-chief was about to ask something else when a scream came from upstairs. “Ah! I’m sorry, I won’t do it again!”

Zhao Xing and the group in front of him looked up in alarm at the same time.

Zhao Xing: “Little Orange!”

The group: “Hou Ling!”

Their eyes met, and both parties rushed upstairs.

Just as they reached the door, they heard Hou Ling’s cutesy voice from inside. “You’re so soft and so fun to pet, just let me touch you one more time, please… Ah! I’m sorry, I was wrong!”

With a clatter, the door was pushed open from the inside. A yellow shadow shot out and leaped straight into Zhao Xing’s arms. “Meow meow meow meow!”

Zhao Xing looked at Hou Ling. “He was holding you and wouldn’t let you go? How could he do that? That’s just bullying. We’re respectable professionals… cats. We don’t do that kind of sleeping arrangement.”

The others: “…”

Colleague: “So, that’s Xiao Ju?”

Another colleague: “I think it’s Xiao Ju…”

The last colleague: “It really is very orange…”

The three of them turned to look at Hou Ling, their eyes saying: This is what you meant by special service?

Hou Ling hadn’t expected his colleagues to show up. He cleared his throat. “Ahem, it was all a misunderstanding. This guesthouse is great. The food is good, the sleep is good, and at night a little kitty even comes up to warm the bed…”

Little Orange: “Meow meow meow meow meow!”

Zhao Xing corrected, “Exactly! We don’t warm beds, we give massages. Professional massages!”

Hou Ling nodded vigorously. “Right, right, massages…”

His colleagues pulled him aside and, after a lengthy interrogation, finally understood that it was all a big misunderstanding.

Hou Ling had placed his phone in a hidden spot to secretly record, but he had gotten distracted playing with the cat and forgotten about it.

The phone had fallen onto the bed, the cat had stepped on it, and when the call came in, it was automatically answered, leading to the whole mess.

The editor-in-chief listened thoughtfully, then looked at the guesthouse owner who was still comforting the little cat. “Since it was a misunderstanding, let’s all get some rest tonight. We’ll talk about the rest in the morning.”

Zhao Xing naturally had no objections. There were enough rooms anyway. He registered them, gave them their rooms, and then went downstairs to sleep with Little Orange in his arms.

The night passed without incident.

The next morning, Zhao Xing used the Delicious Iron Wok to cook a large pot of mixed-grain porridge. The aroma of the woke the guests.

They lined up at the kitchen door, each receiving a bowl of porridge. Without any formality, they found a random table, sat down, and slurped it up.

On a chilly early spring morning, a bowl of porridge warmed them up, lifted their spirits, and marked the beginning of another beautiful day.

The editor-in-chief also went with the flow. After finishing her porridge, she stared at the empty bowl in thought for a long moment, then found Zhao Xing, who was about to go feed the birds.

“You’re saying,” Zhao Xing clarified, “that you want to interview me for a feature on young people starting a business from scratch and revitalizing the countryside?”

The editor-in-chief nodded. “That’s right. I don’t know if you have any reservations. If you’re not willing…”

“Of course I’m willing!” Zhao Xing exclaimed. “This feature will be published in the Qingyang Daily, right? That’s great! Let’s start right away. How will the interview work? Do I need to prepare anything?”

The editor-in-chief suppressed a smile. “You don’t need to prepare anything, but we’ll need half an hour to set up for the interview and lighting.”

“Oh, okay, that’s fine. You guys can set up however you like. I’ll be back in half an hour.”

He was ecstatic internally. “System, did you hear that? I’m going to be in the newspaper! Everyone in Qingyang City will see it, and our guesthouse will be famous!”

The System was also excited. “I heard, Host! Then we’ll have even more guests…”

Zhao Xing interrupted, “And then, I’ll eat meat every day!”

The System: “…” Hmph. I’m used to it by now.

Zhao Xing took a handful of grain from the sack, walked to the backyard, and scattered it on the ground.

The birds, which had been waiting for a long time, swooped down. A few of the thicker-skinned ones simply flew into Zhao Xing’s palm to eat directly from the source, only to be shooed away by him.

He used to feed the birds by crumbling steamed buns, but his hands started to hurt, so he switched to mixed grains. These foodies weren’t picky anyway.

The editor-in-chief, who was setting up the interview site, saw this scene and nodded slightly, signaling the cameraman to go over and film it.

Although the interview hadn’t started yet, she had already formulated the story in her mind.

A remote village and a young man starting from scratch, the harmonious coexistence of man and nature, and an extraordinary guesthouse… It was sure to attract a lot of attention.

For an established media outlet like theirs, reporting had to be based on facts, but you could never have too much of a hook.

Half an hour later, the interview officially began.

The editor-in-chief started with her usual line, “Don’t be nervous, we’re just having a casual chat. Nowadays, opening a guesthouse is a dream for many young people. First of all, congratulations on making your dream come true. But dreams aren’t built on thin air. Can you tell us, what was your initial investment when you started your business?”

The editor-in-chief had been made sensitive by previous interviewees. Several young entrepreneurs had claimed to have started from scratch, but upon further questioning, it turned out their families had given them a million or two.

So this time, she decided to get it out of the way right at the beginning.

Zhao Xing cleared his throat. “There’s not much to say about that. It wasn’t a lot of money in total. Less than a hundred thousand, I guess.”

The editor-in-chief nodded, then asked, “You opened a guesthouse here on Immortal’s Rest Mountain, a place with no tourist attractions. Was there a special consideration for this? Have you thought about profitability? Have you started turning a profit yet?”

Zhao Xing stood up in agitation. “Jie, can we please stop talking about money? Can we ask some questions related to the guesthouse itself?”

The editor-in-chief said, “Hmm… there is one question, actually, that the guests are also very concerned about. Why do you keep the exterior of the guesthouse looking so dilapidated? Is it to create a unique feature for the guesthouse?”

Zhao Xing slowly sat back down. “Let’s go back to talking about the initial investment…”

---

While Zhao Xing was being interviewed, in a higher dimension beyond the myriad realms, a magnificent, glorious, and exquisitely beautiful palace, beyond human imagination, suddenly trembled three times.

The gates, sealed for a thousand years, opened, and a figure slowly materialized.

He was nearly two meters tall, his posture as straight as a bamboo stalk.

His silver-white hair fell to his waist, his brows were sharp and angled, and his pupils actually shone with a faint golden light.

He wore a silver robe, and the faint silver dragon patterns on it swirled for a moment before settling motionlessly on the sleeves and hem.

The aura he exuded was like that of an ancient beast, or a cold, deep abyss—terrifying to behold.

The servant at the gate bowed his head deeply. “Greetings, My Lord.”

Ling Yuan did not speak.

The servant began to report the major events of the recent period on his own accord. “The Myriad Realms Transit Station has reopened. The new owner is from the Blue Star Realm… In addition, in the past thousand years, three thousand five hundred and forty-seven small worlds have disappeared, while one thousand four hundred and fifty-two new small worlds have been generated… The lifespan of the Flying Spirit Realm’s Lord’s consort is about to run out. He has been waiting at the palace gates for a long time, pleading for you to save her…”

As the servant reported, Ling Yuan slowly walked out of the gate, seemingly indifferent to everything.

Just then, the sound of an argument came from not far away.

“Let go! Let me in! I know He has awoken! Let me see Him…”

The sound of the argument grew closer.

A man draped in magnificent bird feathers, with white wings sprouting from his back, burst in. He was carefully cradling an unconscious woman in his arms.

The woman, like him, also had wings, but her feathers were mottled and falling out, and her face was ashen.

The man saw Ling Yuan, and a bright light burst forth from his eyes. He fell to his knees before Ling Yuan with a thud. “My Lord, I implore you to save her! Please, save her! I am willing to offer the entire Flying Spirit Realm with both hands! I beg you…”

Ling Yuan continued to walk outward, his steps not faltering in the slightest. The hem of his silver-white robe brushed past the kneeling man without a shred of pity.

The Lord of the Flying Spirit Realm subconsciously reached out, trying to grab the robe, but the hem dispersed like a cloud of mist, only to reform into its original shape after its master had walked a few steps further.

The Lord of the Flying Spirit Realm was stunned. He immediately turned to see the tall, straight back of the other man growing more and more distant.

He suddenly screamed hysterically, “You are not worthy to be the Lord of the Myriad Realms! You are so heartless and unfeeling! Sooner or later, you will be devoured by the great power of the myriad realms!”

The servant’s face changed. “Quick, drag him away!”

A green flame ignited around the Lord of the Flying Spirit Realm. “Ling Yuan! You emotionless monster! I will wait to see the day you are abandoned by the myriad realms!”

With a boom, the flames flared, and the Lord of the Flying an his beloved were burned to nothing, not even a pile of ashes remaining.

The servants were trembling with fear, but Ling Yuan’s figure did not pause for a second as he walked further and further away.

He rode the clouds, making his routine inspection of the myriad realms. As he looked down, his eyes held the accumulated loneliness and weariness of millions of years.

Thousands upon thousands of worlds flashed past his divine consciousness. Suddenly, he sensed a familiar aura.

A dragon? Is there a second dragon in the myriad realms?

No, this aura…

For a rare moment, Ling Yuan frowned slightly and followed the direction of the aura.

After finishing his interview, Zhao Xing went to the vegetable garden. The system-generated plots were very effective; the vegetables grew much faster than in ordinary soil. They had only been planted for a few days, but they had already sprouted into seedlings a finger’s length tall.

All Zhao Xing had to do was occasionally pull some weeds.

And so, when Ling Yuan descended, he saw a young man who had just finished weeding stand up.

And he was wearing a silver robe, very similar to his own. The familiar aura was emanating from that very robe.

Ling Yuan recalled that he seemed to have lost a dragon scale a long time ago. It appeared someone had made it into clothing.

His slightly furrowed brow slowly relaxed. It was of no consequence…

Then, he saw Zhao Xing look left and right. Seeing no one, he lifted the hem of his robe, clutched it in his hand like a rag, and gave the outer wall of the guesthouse a vigorous wipe.

Like a computer special effect, the stain vanished inch by inch, revealing—

Zhao Xing said happily, “As expected, this robe has a self-cleaning ability. It works much better than a rag!”

Ling Yuan: “…”