Boom!
A clap of thunder tore across the sky, driving the wind and rain as they relentlessly washed the earth.
The elderly man called Old Dong held a dim kerosene lamp and led Gu Qijun and Chen Hao to seats in the middle of the living room.
From beginning to end, Old Dong kept his face hidden in the darkness, so neither of them could make out his features.
Both found this strange, but out of respect for their host, Gu Qijun did not ask.
While the two chatted, Chen Hao activated his Heavenly Eye Art and examined Old Dong from head to toe.
What he saw left him stunned. Old Dong was actually a Qi Refiner, and an extremely powerful one at that.
But that was not what shocked Chen Hao most.
An ordinary person's resting heart rate was normally around eighty beats per minute, yet Chen Hao discovered that Old Dong's was as high as a hundred and forty.
A heart rate like that only occurred during strenuous exercise. An ordinary person could not sustain it for long.
Yet Old Dong maintained this extraordinary heart rate while talking to them. Chen Hao found it unbelievable. There is definitely something wrong with Old Dong.
Outside, the wind and rain raged. Together with the deep gloom inside, they made the entire room feel unbearably oppressive.
After the two had chatted for quite some time, Gu Qijun finally could not resist asking, "Old Dong, do you live alone now? Why have you made it so dark in here?"
Old Dong chuckled. "I've always lived alone. A few years ago, I came down with a strange illness that made me afraid of light, so I sealed all the doors and windows."
Hearing this explanation, Gu Qijun finally put his doubts to rest.