Chapter 99: The Sudden Appearance of the Fire Spirit (9)

  "Clang, clang, clang!" The sound of the gong continued nonstop. Huo Xiaoyi was sleeping soundly when she was suddenly woken up by the noise. She heard someone banging on a gong outside her door and shouting: "Ladies and gentlemen! It's June 15th! Please hurry to the main hall for assembly, something important is about to happen! Don't be late! Don't be late!"

  Huoxiao Ye sprang up, and his sleepiness was gone. He quickly put on his clothes and heard Zheng Zedao knocking on the door outside, calling out: "Huoxiao Ye, are you up? Don't miss the time!" In the past few days, Huoxiao Ye had been addressing Zheng Zedao as "Zheng Dage" (Big Brother Zheng), while Zheng Zedao called him "Huxiao Xiongdi" (Younger Brother Hu).

  "Get up! Get up! He's coming!"

  Huoxiao Ye pushed open the door, and Zheng Zedao was standing at the entrance with a bright smile on his face, nodding at Huoxiao Ye.

  Two people walked quickly into the main hall of Qingyun Inn, where many people had already gathered, sitting or standing with serious faces. Huo Xiaoyao and Zheng Zedao found a table to sit down at, and more people came in one after another. After a moment, it seemed that everyone was present.

  Shopkeeper Xiao Yi to Shopkeeper Xiao Wu emerged from all directions, sizing up the crowd for a moment. One of them said, "Strange! There's still one person missing!"

  "Here! Here!" A shout came from the side, and a bald little fatty with a big sweat on his head ran out, not looking at anyone, and slipped into the crowd. Everyone was wondering what was going on, and then they heard someone shouting loudly from the side: "You glutton! Stealing your grandfather's recipe!" A bald big fatty flew out like a shot, holding two black shiny spatulas in his hand. This bald big fatty and the previous one were almost identical twins, except that he was bigger in size and had an eight-character beard on his face.

  The big fat man with a mustache yelled loudly, holding a frying pan like a savage elephant charging into the crowd, and chased after Little Fatty. Little Fatty ran away while scolding: "We agreed to just take a look! Who stole from you? You're spouting blood!"

  The big fatty wielded the spatula wildly, but somehow the little fatty was always one step ahead and couldn't be hit. The big fatty got angry and shouted loudly, knocking over tables and chairs, chasing after him desperately, and the hall became a mess.

  The big fatty chased after a circle, and the small fatty finally stopped in front of the empty space in the main hall. From behind his back, he pulled out a shiny yellow spatula and a black iron pot, and with both hands, he blocked the big fatty's fierce attack with his two spatulas. Both of them let out a loud cry, frozen in place.

  Fatso gritted his teeth and scolded: "You glutton, since you came, I've found that something's not right with you. You're always making me cook weird dishes! And still dare to say it's not because you want to steal my recipe!"

  The little fatty held the big fatty in a death grip and scolded: "I said I was just taking a look! After looking, I'll return it to you! Do I need to say it several times? I'm a guest staying at the inn! You're just a cook in the inn! Is there even a cook who chases and beats guests?"

  "Whoever steals my recipe, even the King of Heaven will get a beating! Damn it!" Fatso shouted. With a flick of his arm, he pushed Little Fatty away. The two of them yelled loudly and charged at each other again, wildly swinging their woks and clanging metal against metal, creating a loud din as they fought in a heap.

  The thieves were very curious, and no one came forward to persuade them, surrounding them on one side and watching the commotion coldly. Huo Xiaoyao watched with a shocked heart, these two fat men, although they looked like they were all flesh, but their movements were extremely agile, their footsteps light and nimble, like two large pieces of pork flying and colliding in mid-air, skin and flesh intersecting, slapping and thudding loudly.

  "Clang, clang, clang!" Another burst of gong sounds suppressed the loud noises of Da Zhui and Xiao Pang's fierce battle. The shop assistants shouted: "The boss is here!"

  Big fatty was taken aback for a moment, jumped back several steps, glared at little fatty, and hastily knelt down on one knee, hanging his head in silence.

  The little fatty was panting with exhaustion, seeing the big fatty temporarily stopped fighting, and hearing that the shopkeeper had come out, he spat and retreated to one side.

  A thin old man with a dark red silk robe and a three-inch short goatee rushed out from the back of the front hall. His hair was gray and white, combed back to reveal a shiny scalp, and his appearance was ordinary, except for his rich clothes, he looked unassuming, just like an innkeeper who had made a small fortune.

  The shopkeeper came out and first pointed at the big fat cook, scolding in a low voice: "What nonsense! Still making a scene here?"

  The fat chef said with a grievance: "Someone stole my recipe while the guests were gathering in the main hall, I'm not reconciled to it, so I chased out."

  The shopkeeper scolded: "Get out first, I'll give you your money back."

  The fat boy nodded repeatedly, stood up obediently and ran back to the kitchen in a hurry.

  The shopkeeper put on a smiling face, bowed to everyone in the hall and said: "It's all because of my poor management that I let you see our shortcomings. My surname is Dian, I am the shopkeeper of Qingyun Inn, and today I will pass on the message from Huo Wang to everyone."

  Someone in the crowd snorted: "Shopkeeper, I thought Qingyun Inn was quite impressive, but it's still been stolen from! Today is a real eye-opener! Fire King's disciple? What a joke!"

  Someone immediately echoed, sneered and ridiculed: "Exactly! We came here with great difficulty, you guys are good at nothing but making trouble, show off your skills!"

  "The shopkeeper bowed repeatedly: 'Ladies and gentlemen! Don't worry, this is just a place to rest your feet. We'll take care of you eating well and sleeping well, but that's all.'"

  The little fatty who stole the recipe felt triumphant in his heart, took a step forward and shouted: "I didn't steal it, I just borrowed it to take a look! It's all because that fat chef is so jumpy! No wonder it was me!"

  The shopkeeper smiled and said, "Sir, if you really like to study recipes, don't be in a hurry! As long as you can become a disciple of the Huo family, not only can you borrow them to take a look, but all the recipes in the world will be yours."

  The shopkeeper said, flipped his hand, pulled out a dusty little book from his sleeve, waved it in his hand and said: "Let's return it to the cook for now, there will be plenty of opportunities later."

  The little fatty was stunned on the spot as soon as he saw the booklet in the shopkeeper's hand, and then reacted immediately, patting his own body to find something. It was clear that the small booklet was what Little Fatty had been hiding in his bosom all along. Little Fatty's eyes widened, his hands stopped on his body, and he exclaimed: "How is this possible! How did it end up with you?! This...this...when did you take it away?! I...I...!"

  The shopkeeper threw the little book to Xiao Yi and ordered: "Take it down."

  The shopkeeper hastily retreated to one side.

  The little fatty was still searching around, but sweat was dripping down like rain. He muttered to himself non-stop: "When, when, it's impossible, it's impossible."

  The shopkeeper's move was sudden, and the hall fell silent. The people who had just been coldly mocking him didn't even dare to breathe, standing quietly to one side. Who exactly was this person, when did he get close to Little Fatty, how did he steal it from such a skilled hand, and how did it suddenly fall into the shopkeeper's hands? No one saw what happened! This was simply unbelievable, just thinking about it made people shiver with fear! If they had been reckless in the Qingyun Inn, they would have been killed by someone's knife, and probably no one would have even seen their shadow. The thieves thought of this and who dared to say that the people of Qingyun Inn were incompetent?

  The shopkeeper still spoke politely to the crowd, "Let's not talk too much! First of all, congratulations to everyone for arriving at Qingyun Inn before June 15th. This time, thirty-five Black Stone Fire Tokens were issued and eighteen were collected back, which means it's all of you present here! From today on, you will undergo the trial of Huo Jia Zei Dao, consisting of three stages, known as the Fire Gate Three Stages. Those who pass the three stages can become disciples of the Huo family. Although these Fire Gate Three Stages are used to test your fire attribute thieving skills, they are extremely dangerous and may put your lives at risk. So I'm warning you in advance, if anyone wants to back out now, it's still possible to withdraw. Is there anyone who wants to quit?"

  Among the crowd of thieves, someone shouted loudly: "Shopkeeper, we were able to find the Qingyun Inn, it's not easy! I believe no one wants to quit! Please make arrangements from now on."

  A swarm of thieves all responded, no one wanted to quit at this time. These people, with their heads hung low and walking with their waists bent, didn't care about the danger to their lives, it was like a gentle breeze in their ears, they couldn't even get a face full of spittle.

  "Good! Shop assistant, bring the signboard!"

  The young shop assistant had long been ready, carrying a pile of long rectangular red wooden plaques, walked to the side of the shop owner and stood still, with one hand handing over a letter of receipt.

  The shopkeeper unfolded the letter and said, "Now, I will distribute the cards to everyone. This card is a symbol of each of your identities as the three gates of Huomen. If you lose it, it will be considered as quitting! The number cards are distributed in the order of arrival, I'll read out the names, please come forward."

  The shopkeeper looked around at everyone and began to read: "First, Atim from Turpan."

  "Oh, here it is! Oh la la!" A shout with a Western accent came out, and a tall man wearing Uyghur clothing jumped out of the crowd, wearing an octagonal hat, with a thick mustache under his nose, dancing along the way. He came to the shopkeeper's front, looking very festive. The shopkeeper handed over the signboard to Atim, Atim took the signboard in his hand and showed it to everyone, only to see that there was a huge "壹" (one) character engraved on it. Atim said with a mixture of languages: "Oh la la, I am one, one, oh yeah!" and jumped back into the crowd. Some of the thieves couldn't help but reveal their sinister intentions, not expecting this barbarian to be the first to find the Qingyun Inn!

  "The second one, Four Seas as Home, Monk Suffering Lamp!"

  "Amitabha Buddha!" The crowd chanted the Buddha's name loudly, with Suteng Monk walking out with his hands clasped together. He slowly walked up to the shopkeeper, took the plaque and said, "Thank you for the donation." After that, he slowly walked back.

  "The third one, Su Bei Zheng Zedao, alias Xiaobuwei!" Someone in the crowd whispered softly, it seems that this nickname is very famous in the Jianghu.

  Zheng Zedao stood up, made a bow with his fists clasped together to the crowd and smiled: "I am Zheng Zedao, at your service!"

  Zheng Zedao smiled and glanced at Huo Xiaoxie, walked forward, took the token, put it in his bosom, slightly bowed to the shopkeeper and said humbly: "Please forgive me, shopkeeper!" The shopkeeper smiled and stroked his beard, seemingly quite satisfied with Zheng Zedao's behavior.

  Huǒ Xiǎo Yī thought: "Zhèng Zé Dào has never told me that he was the third person to find the Qingyun Inn, hiding it so deeply. Cough, maybe he's too embarrassed to say it, thinking it's showing off."

  "The fourth one, Zhabdrung Ngawang from Lhasa."

  One by one, short-statured lamas walked out silently and quickly stepped forward to the shopkeeper, took over the number plate and then walked back into the crowd.

  "The fifth one, Wang Xiaoxian from Shanghai, nicknamed Sickly."

  The man wearing round gold-rimmed glasses, dressed in a Western suit, and looking rather ill, coughed several times, slowly walked out, took the signboard away, but after just a few steps, he stopped to have a violent fit of coughing. He pulled out his handkerchief to cover his mouth, which was full of fresh blood. He sighed, then shakily walked back.

  "The sixth..." The shopkeeper continued reading.