After a quick walk around, Qin Yan decided he needed to get things moving.
"Hey! You two, come over here for a second."
Qin Yan stepped out of the wooden cabin and waved to Luo Fei and Er Niu, who were resting in the shade of a large tree.
"What is it, Qin Yan?" the two asked as they walked over.
Just then, Luo Xuanyi and Xiao Bei stepped out of the house as well.
In front of everyone, Qin Yan made a proposal. "Your task right now is to help Xiao Bei clean the house and the courtyard."
"It's okay, Qin Yan. I can do it myself. You all should get some rest!"
Xiao Bei gave him a grateful look but declined his kindness. She knew everyone was already exhausted from their morning cultivation, so she didn't want to trouble them any further.
Qin Yan understood her feelings, but she wasn't doing much better than the rest of them. If everyone helped, the work would go much faster. He remained firm in his persuasion.
"It's fine. Many hands make light work, and we'll see results much sooner. The earlier we finish, the earlier we can all rest."
Luo Xuanyi chimed in from the side, supporting him. "That's right, Xiao Bei. Qin Yan makes sense. Just let everyone help; it's no big deal."
"What about you two? Any objections?" Qin Yan looked at the men.
Luo Fei and Er Niu glanced at each other before responding enthusiastically, "Sure! No problem at all."
"See, Xiao Bei? Everyone is happy to do it. Let us help you!" Qin Yan said, looking at her.
"Alright then... Thank you, everyone. I really appreciate it." Seeing how passionate they were, Xiao Bei was deeply moved. She stopped refusing and thanked them repeatedly.
"Great! Let's get moving!"
As soon as Qin Yan spoke, the group got busy with the exception of one small figure. That was Xiao Liya, who was currently hopping around the courtyard.
She seemed to be bursting with vitality and never grew tired. It made sense; given Xiao Liya's strength, the morning cultivation was well within her limits.
Watching Xiao Liya chasing things and playing around the yard, Qin Yan called out to her, "Xiao Liya!"
Hearing his call, Xiao Liya trotted over to Qin Yan and tilted her head, looking up at him with a puzzled expression.
"You! Be careful when you're playing. Don't go ruining the flowers and plants in the courtyard."
Looking at her adorable, dazed face, Qin Yan felt a wave of helplessness. The main reason he called her over was to give her a reminder, fearing she might get too rowdy and destroy the greenery Xiao Bei had tended to so carefully.
The little girl looked at Qin Yan, then at Xiao Bei behind him, and finally nodded. "Mhm!" she answered in a milky voice.
Seeing her agree, Qin Yan let her go back to her play.
"It's actually okay, Qin Yan. Let her play as much as she wants." Watching the bouncing Xiao Liya, Xiao Bei wore a bright smile. She loved the lively atmosphere and valued her friends dearly.
"It's fine, a little restraint is good." Since they had just arrived, there were things they needed to be mindful of. Then, as if remembering something, Qin Yan said to Xiao Bei, "By the way, I'm heading out for a bit."
"Where are you going?" Xiao Bei was taken aback.
"I'll be right back!" Leaving behind those words, Qin Yan leaped up and flew toward the depths of the forest.
"Where are you going, Qin Yan?" the others shouted toward the sky, but they received no response.
In the deep forest, Qin Yan found a thick, sturdy tree. After circling it once and nodding in satisfaction, he chopped it down with his bare hands.
Crack!
Thud!
The tree crashed to the ground, the massive sound vibrating through the entire mountain forest and startling the birds into flight. Once the tree was down, Qin Yan cut off the crown, leaving only the thick, straight, and smooth trunk. Hoisting it onto his shoulder, he brought it back.
"Qin Yan, where did you find such a massive log? What are you doing with it?" Their jaws dropped when they saw him return with a piece of timber nearly as large as a small house. They were all baffled as to what it was for.
"Oh! It's for patching the holes in the house."
As he spoke, Qin Yan raised his hand and processed the tree into neat, uniform planks.
When Qin Yan mentioned the wood was for repairing the house, Xiao Bei's slender frame trembled slightly.
The others were stunned yet again; Qin Yan's strength had once more redefined their understanding of what was possible.
Before long, with everyone's combined efforts, the cleaning was finished and the holes in the house were fully repaired. However, the wooden cabin was originally in such a dilapidated state that no amount of patching would make it last much longer. They would eventually need to build a new one when they had the time.
"Thank you, everyone!"
Looking at the transformed courtyard, Xiao Bei gazed at them with immense gratitude, her thanks never-ending. As she spoke, her eyes flickered and grew moist, until finally, the tears began to flow uncontrollably.
Seeing this, Luo Xuanyi quickly stepped forward and gently embraced Xiao Bei's shoulders, whispering softly in her ear, "There, there. We're all friends; helping each other is only natural."
"Yeah, that's right!" Seeing Xiao Bei suddenly burst into tears, Luo Fei and Er Niu were thrown into a fluster, not knowing what to do.
"Alright! Since we're all done, everyone should get some rest. The cultivation this afternoon will be even more taxing." Qin Yan couldn't stand it when people started crying at the drop of a hat. After speaking, he turned and walked back toward the shade of the large tree.
"Mhm!" Watching Qin Yan's retreating back, Xiao Bei wiped her tears and smiled again, following the others.
Qin Yan lay down in the cool shade, resting his head on his hands and closing his eyes to rest. Beside him, the others also lay down, their heads close together as they formed a circle.
In this moment, the sky was peaceful, and the only sound was the chirping of birds.
📢 MASSIVE UPDATE FOR BINGE-READERS! 📢
Hello everyone! Thank you so much for reading and supporting my work! ❤️
A lot of you have asked for an easier way to unlock all 400+ Advance Chapters at once without dealing with a monthly commitment.
I listened to your feedback! I have completely restructured the full-story bundles on my P a t r e o n to make them much more accessible for everyone.
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