"Zhongguo, can there be fish in this pond?"

Ma Linghua frowned slightly, her eyes full of suspicion, as she repeatedly examined the pond.

The surface of this small pond was so calm it was almost unbelievable that there were no fish in it.

She really couldn't understand why Li Zhongguo would choose to fish here instead of going to the vast reservoir right next to him.

"Yes, believe me. I came here a few days ago to bait the area, there are definitely fish."

Li Zhongguo patted his chest, his tone full of confidence, his expression as if he had already seen the fish take the bait.

"But... are you sure they haven't caught all the fish in this pond?" Ma Linghua's lips twitched, and she looked around helplessly.

The pond was packed with people. A group of veteran anglers sat as still as bells, their fishing rods standing tall, almost filling the entire edge of the pond, leaving barely any room to step.

This isn't fishing, it's more like people coming to watch.

Ma Linghua glanced at the weather subconsciously. The sky was gloomy, like a huge lead plate pressing down on her head. The wind howled over the pond, cutting across her face like sharp knives, stinging painfully, and mercilessly messing up her carefully styled hair.

She reached out to fix her hair, but the wind seemed to be deliberately working against her, blowing it messy again as soon as she finished.

She couldn't help but mutter, "This awful weather, this crowded place, if I don't catch any fish, it'll all be for nothing."

But looking at Li Zhongguo's persistent and confident appearance, she could only sigh helplessly, hoping that, as he said, there were still fish to catch in the pond.

"Then you go and fish, I'll go and light the fire." Ma Linghua said as she walked away quickly, soon disappearing from the sight of the group of fishermen by the pond.

Li Zhongguo was a little worried, so he shouted loudly in the direction she left, "Linghua, don't go too far."

His voice carried far on the wind, his eyes filled with worry, fearing that Linghua might get lost in this somewhat unfamiliar place and not be able to find her way back.

"Damn it, do you think I don't know the way?" Ma Linghua pouted and muttered to herself, feeling a little uneasy.

She felt that Li Zhongguo was treating her like a child, and wondered how she could not even handle such a small matter.

So, since they hadn't seen each other for a long time, she wanted to grill some fish for him.

There was a small grove of trees beside the pond, and Ma Linghua walked straight in.

Once inside the woods, she began to bend down and gather firewood.

Just as she was concentrating on picking up the branches, she suddenly heard a whisper.

"Have you heard? Sanqing Temple, Longhu Mountain, Maoshan, Emei Temple... and some other famous Taoist temples went to the sinkhole." A soft voice said.

"What? Does that mean if we weak little demons go, we'll just get slaughtered?" Another rough voice said, clearly panicked.

Ma Linghua's heart skipped a beat, and she subconsciously softened her movements, crouching slightly as she furtively hid behind a bush to eavesdrop.

Her eyes shifted slightly, fixed on the fox spirit and dog spirit talking not far away.

Sanqing Temple, humph! Ma Linghua sneered at the thought of the name. Those old guys actually got involved in the sinkhole incident.

During this time, ever since they returned from somewhere, rumors about sinkholes have been constantly circulating in our ears like the wind.

The image of Master Baige flashed through her mind, and recalling his somewhat strange state, she pondered to herself.

Perhaps... the answer to the mystery of the White Dove Taoist Priest will be found in the sinkhole.

She subconsciously touched the bag at her waist, and the moment her fingers touched it, she could clearly feel the movement inside.

That was the female ghost she had finally managed to catch, but unexpectedly it was devoured by Master Baige.

Given the current situation, if we were to release Master Baige, aside from that girl Lihua, probably no one could suppress his evil nature.

She never expected things to turn out this way. Originally, the captured ghosts were useful, but now she dared not put the newly captured ghosts with Master Baige, for fear that they would be absorbed by him again, which would be a huge problem.

However, Ma Linghua was in a pretty good mood today, and she temporarily put those worries behind her.

Looking at the firewood he had gathered on the ground, he thought, "I won't kill those little demons today. I'll go back and grill fish for Zhongguo first."

Zhongguo loved the taste of grilled fish the most. Thinking of his satisfied look, Ma Linghua's lips curled up slightly. Holding the firewood, she walked briskly towards the pond, her figure gradually disappearing into the woods.

Ma Linghua carried firewood to the lakeside and found a suitable spot to start working.

She pulled out the long-forgotten flint from her pocket, "Click, click, click..."

The monotonous sound echoed by the lake, again and again, each friction like a struggle against a stubborn stone.

It took four or five minutes of scorching before the spark finally ignited, licking the firewood and slowly turning into a warm flame.

"Linghua, what are you doing?" Li Zhongguo heard the noise, turned around and looked at her starting a fire, his eyes full of curiosity.

"What are you doing? I'm just grilling fish for you! You used to love it the most."

As Ma Linghua spoke, she poked at the fire with a small twig, making the flames burn brighter.

Li Zhongguo's lips twitched, and he secretly groaned inwardly, "Oh well, forget it!"

He hadn't forgotten the fear he felt when Linghua grilled fish; the taste was simply indescribable.

"By the way, how many have you caught?" Ma Linghua asked, as if she had just remembered something.

Li Zhongguo glanced awkwardly at the two fish in the bucket, which were thrashing about. He even wished he could release them immediately.

"No...not many, just two fish," he replied somewhat guiltily.

"Two fish? Okay! That's enough, we'll have to make do!" With that, Ma Linghua quickly grabbed the fish, ignored its struggles, stuck it on a tree branch, and put it on the fire to roast.

The flames licked the fish's body, and soon the fish's surface turned black.

"Linghua, this fish...aren't you going to clean it?" Li Zhongguo frowned, staring at the fish that was gradually changing color as it was grilled over the fire.

The fish's belly was bulging, and its internal organs hadn't been cleaned out. He simply couldn't imagine how good the fish could taste after being grilled like that.

"Isn't this how we always grill fish? You seem to be enjoying it very much." Ma Linghua didn't even look up, continuing to rotate the branch to ensure the fish was heated evenly.

Li Zhongguo was taken aback by her words.

Memories of those tough days flooded my mind. Back then, conditions were terrible, and having fish to eat was a blessing; we didn't care about how to prepare it.

He not only has two sons to support, but he also has to frequently carry out secret missions. It's really tough for him.

But now things are different; he longs to taste a more refined and delicious grilled fish.

Looking at those two fish was like looking at two creatures about to bring "disaster," and I felt utterly helpless.

He opened his mouth, wanting to persuade Linghua again, but seeing her focused expression, he swallowed his words and could only watch helplessly, hoping that the grilled fish wouldn't taste too bad.