Upon seeing the child's photo, Lu Fan felt a surge of excitement. However, realizing the child was already three years old, he was suddenly struck by how long he had been away. He felt an immediate longing to go home.
"Master! What's wrong?" Zhan Tai Ruo Mei asked, noticing Lu Fan smiling foolishly at his phone.
"Huh? Master! Whose photo is this?" Zhan Tai Ruo Mei asked in surprise, looking at the photo on Lu Fan's phone.
"Hehe! It might be your junior brother! Come on, let's go home!" Lu Fan said with a happy smile, pulling Zhan Tai Ruo Mei along.
"Master! Feng... Yuan Feng! Aren't we here to find Yuan Feng?" Zhan Tai Ruo Mei said urgently.
"Alas! Here there is only a skeleton of Yuan Feng, but no trace of her soul. Nor is there any formation set up by Yuanshi Tianzun. Perhaps she has long since reincarnated," Lu Fan said, glancing at Luofeng Slope. Below the slope, he saw only the white bones of Yuan Feng. Nothing else. Although Yuan Feng's remains were as precious as rare treasures, Lu Fan had no intention of disturbing them.
"Oh... alright then, let's go!" Zhan Tai Ruo Mei said with a hint of regret.
As the two turned to leave, a chick, no bigger than a fist, suddenly emerged from the grass beside Luofeng Slope. It peeked around cautiously, seemingly sensing no threat, and then hopped out of the grass to search for food.
Gulp... Lu Fan swallowed hard. He sensed an unusual aura from the chick.
Swish...! Lu Fan instantly appeared beside the chick and gently scooped it into his hands.
The chick was clearly terrified and remained still in Lu Fan's hand, not daring to move.
"Master! Wh-what are you doing with a chick? It's so cute, please let it go!" Zhan Tai Ruo Mei came over, looking at the fluffy chick with a touch of reluctance.
"She's so small, if she stays here, she'll inevitably be eaten by small animals, or caught by tourists to be played with. Why don't we take her back and raise her?" Lu Fan said with a slight smile.
"Okay! Then, Master, can I hold her?" Zhan Tai Ruo Mei seemed to be very fond of the fluffy little creature.
"Wait a moment, she seems very hungry. Let me feed her something," Lu Fan said, his eyes twinkling. He took out some food from his storage ring and placed it in his palm.
However, the chick, though appearing very hungry, refused to eat. It only chirped twice.
Lu Fan smiled slightly, then took out a bottle of spiritual liquid and poured a tiny amount into his palm. The chick immediately seemed to catch a scent and stood up, greedily drinking the spiritual liquid.
"Let's go!!" Lu Fan pulled Zhan Tai Ruo Mei and left. Legend has it that a phoenix will only perch on a parasol tree, eat only ripe grain, and drink only pure springs. It would be a miracle for this little thing to survive. Fortunately, she drank the spiritual liquid, so she should not starve to death back home.
"Master... Master... Wait for me... I'm still here!" Li Jingjing, who had been enthusiastically taking photos, saw Lu Fan and Zhan Tai Ruo Mei leaving and shouted urgently from behind, chasing after them.
"Jingjing! If you go back looking like this... I won't be able to explain to your father! Can't you... can't you transform and return to your original appearance?" Lu Fan was in a terrible state looking at Li Jingjing's current form. How could he explain this to Li Mantang? That he had been away for three years and had performed a sex change operation on his daughter?
"Transform? I can try!" Li Jingjing scratched her head, suddenly muttered some incantations, and with a flash... she transformed into a pig.
"Ah..." Several tourists who had intended to chase after them for photos were startled and screamed, turning to flee.
"You... you really are a foolish pig! Don't you dare say you know me." Lu Fan pulled Zhan Tai Ruo Mei and vanished from the spot in a flash.
"Master... let me try again..." Li Jingjing suddenly flickered and disappeared from her original position.
Leaving behind many people in front of Luofeng Slope with astonished gazes. No one knew how the few living people had suddenly vanished.
Twelve Gully Village had long since developed into a bustling tourist attraction. Small villas had replaced the previous bungalows throughout the village. The original village structures were gone, replaced by an eight-story office building and a vast parking lot. Beside these were several restaurants and various specialty product shops.
Several nearby mountains had been entirely developed into tourist attractions. It was currently teeming with people, and one could see crowds of hikers from afar.
Upon entering the village, Lu Fan and the other two almost didn't recognize the place they used to live.
After several transformations, Li Jingjing finally returned to her original appearance, though it was still somewhat unnatural. After all, this body was not originally hers, and anyone changing to a new car would need some time to get used to it.
Lu Fan glanced at his own villa. Fortunately, his home had not changed. Although many people were taking photos in front of the villa, the gate was closed, and two burly men stood guard at the entrance. No one seemed to be disturbing it.
Lu Fan was puzzled. He wandered around the village and didn't seem to see any of the villagers. So, he headed towards his own villa.
"Hey! Xiao Fan! Is that you, Xiao Fan!" a voice suddenly called out. Jiang Hua, the wife of Old Man Wang, ran out from a small shop nearby.
"Auntie! You've become so beautiful!" Lu Fan turned back and was somewhat shocked to see Jiang Hua. Jiang Hua was dressed very fashionably and seemed to have become younger, no longer looking like a simple village woman.
"What you say! It's all thanks to your help. Now that everyone in the village has money, they can dress up more!" Jiang Hua said somewhat bashfully.
"Xiao Fan! This is the small shop my family opened. Why don't you come in and sit for a while!" Jiang Hua gestured to a small restaurant nearby.
"Auntie, you're amazing, becoming a shop owner. Are Uncle Lao Wai and sister Yajie doing well?" Lu Fan asked with a smile.
"Your uncle is on the back mountain, where there are many tourists and the wild chickens, rabbits, and wild boars he raises for photos. He can't leave! Yajie is now a sales manager at Bufan Group, upstairs in that building!" Jiang Hua said, pointing to the office building opposite.
"Xiao Fan! Where have you been these past few years? How come there's been no news at all? Your mother misses you terribly. She's always doting on Wang Yan's son, saying how she wishes he were her own grandson!" Jiang Hua said with a slight hint of reproach.
"Ahem... Ah! Then Auntie, I'll go back and see my mother. We'll chat again later! Oh, and please all come over for dinner tonight!" Lu Fan coughed awkwardly and quickly took his leave.
"Okay! We'll all come tonight!" Jiang Hua readily agreed.