The next day, the early morning air was moist and fresh. Li Yan was striding along the small path leading to the mountain gate of Little Bamboo Peak. He would occasionally glance sideways at Li Wuyi, who had a strange smile on his face. Li Yan was a little puzzled.
Yesterday, after he and Gong Chenying had decided to go home, they had chatted for a while. Occasionally, their conversation would be interspersed with tender whispers. But every time, Gong Chenying would shyly change the subject, and Li Yan would smile knowingly.
By evening, Li Yan was about to go to the main hall to tell Wei Zhongran that he was going home with his Sixth Senior Sister. But after thinking for a moment, Gong Chenying said that she would go and tell him when she went back later, and that Li Yan didn't need to go.
Li Yan felt that it didn't matter. It was the same whoever went to say it. And he had just come out of the Secret Realm and did have some things to prepare.
Early this morning, Li Yan sent a message to Gong Chenying to set a departure time. A moment later, he received her reply, asking him to gather at the sect's base on the mountainside of Little Bamboo Peak. Li Yan smiled and checked the things in his "Earthen Mark" again. He didn't know how long he would be out this time, so he had packed everything he could into the "Earthen Mark" and put some commonly used items in the storage pouch at his waist.
But when Li Yan opened the courtyard gate, he saw a person standing outside, looking at him with a smile.
"Senior Brother?" Li Yan looked at Li Wuyi with some surprise.
"Little Junior Brother, I heard you were going back, so Master asked me to send you some things." After speaking, he threw a storage pouch to Li Yan with a smile. Li Yan caught it and swept his Divine Sense over it. He found that besides a large pile of Spirit Stones and seven or eight bottles of third and fourth-grade medicinal pills, there was actually a pile of glittering gold.
Just the pile of Spirit Stones, Li Yan roughly estimated, should be no less than twenty thousand. This was a huge sum of Spirit Stones. Even for a Golden Core cultivator, it was a considerable amount. Li Yan never thought that his master would be so thoughtful and so generous.
The grade of those medicinal pills was also not low. Fourth-grade medicinal pills were extremely precious to the cultivators of this continent. His heart was filled with gratitude for Wei Zhongran. Although he was now considered somewhat wealthy, it was all from unexpected gains. It would be difficult to obtain more. After deducting his recent expenses, his fortune had been halved. This made Li Yan sigh at the outrageously high demand for resources in cultivation.
What surprised Li Yan the most was the large pile of gold. A sweep of his Divine Sense showed that it was about ten thousand taels. This kind of worldly gold and silver had no value in the cultivation world. This was undoubtedly for Li Yan's family. Ten thousand taels of gold was enough for a small mountain village family to live comfortably for a lifetime. And Li Yan believed that with his master's status, it would not be a problem to produce another million or ten million taels of gold. It was just that giving so much would bring endless trouble to a mortal. He never thought his master would be so considerate. He himself hadn't thought of these things, and he didn't know where to find gold and silver.
After putting away the storage pouch, Li Yan bowed respectfully in the direction of the main hall. Seeing this, Li Wuyi smiled faintly. "Alright, Little Junior Brother. Your other senior brothers have all gone out. Only your Fourth Senior Sister and I are at home. This is also for you, as a gift from us for your first long trip." After speaking, Li Wuyi waved his hand, and another storage pouch flew over. Li Yan was a little stunned. He never thought Li Wuyi would also give him something. But he was puzzled. From his Senior Brother's tone, it should be a gift from all his senior brothers and sisters. His Foundation Establishment and his decision to go home were sudden. His senior brothers shouldn't have known.
Seeing Li Yan take the storage pouch in a daze, as if he had thought of something, Li Wuyi smiled and said casually, "Hehe, I paid for all the things in here. They don't know yet. I'll naturally get it back from them later. I imagine your senior brothers are not stingy people." After speaking, a trace of ill intent appeared in his eyes.
Li Yan had just withdrawn his Divine Sense from the storage pouch. This one only contained Spirit Stones, and the number was also a huge twenty thousand. In that case, each senior brother would also have to contribute several thousand Spirit Stones. Hearing Li Wuyi's laughter, Li Yan couldn't help but tremble. When he looked up, he happened to see Li Wuyi's gaze and immediately thought of a phrase: "forced transaction." After a brief thought, he held the storage pouch and handed it to Li Wuyi.
"Senior Brother, I appreciate the thought, but I still have some Spirit Stones on me. Besides, I also have a gift from Master."
Li Wuyi looked at Li Yan with a smile, neither taking it nor speaking. After a while, Li Yan couldn't help but scratch the back of his head and hung the storage pouch on his waist as well. Then he looked at Li Wuyi with a serious expression.
"Senior Brother, I'm worried about you. What if Fourth Senior Sister doesn't give you her share then? Can you defy the heavens?" After speaking, he turned and walked toward the small path in front of the mountain, leaving a stunned Li Wuyi standing there. He never thought Li Yan would say such a thing. After a few breaths, Li Wuyi let out a long laugh and also walked over from behind.
"Little Junior Brother, I'll see you off to the mountain gate."
The two walked toward the front mountain all the way. Although Li Yan was somewhat surprised by Li Wuyi's somewhat dawdling behavior, he did not refuse his good intentions. He just thought that if it were his Second Senior Brother and the others here, after finishing the task given by their master, they would have floated away.
As they talked along the way, the two soon came to the ink bamboo passage in front of the Handyman Department. Looking at the star-lit passage, and then at Li Wuyi beside him, with specks of fluorescent light flashing past his hair, face, and body from time to time, which added a bit of demonic charm to his handsome face, Li Yan felt as if he had returned to the scene when Li Wuyi had first brought him here several years ago. He couldn't help but feel emotional.
Li Wuyi also thought of the same scene and smiled at Li Yan. He also remembered the young boy from back then, who was now as tall as himself. As their eyes met, the two couldn't help but laugh heartily at the same time. The laughter echoed through the passage and spread throughout the mountain peak.
The passage was long and winding, but it finally came to an end. The moment Li Yan and Li Wuyi walked out, a sea of bamboo appeared before their eyes. The verdant bamboo waves swayed in the wind. Looking ahead, the smile on Li Yan's originally smiling face suddenly froze. Because beside that sea of bamboo, two slender figures were standing, one in black and one in white, both unparalleled in beauty, just like two elven seagulls in the sea of bamboo. Even in this seemingly endless bamboo forest, they were eye-catching.
Li Wuyi at the side also noticed Li Yan's expression. He was also stunned. Seeing Li Yan's straight, somewhat dazed gaze, he couldn't help but ask in a low voice, "Little Junior Brother, Little Junior Brother, what's wrong with you?"
Hearing the voice beside him, Li Yan finally woke up from his astonishment. "Oh, it's nothing. I thought I saw wrong. I didn't expect that Senior Sister Min's cultivation has also reached the late stage of Foundation Establishment."
"Oh, that's right. You just came out of seclusion after successfully establishing your foundation. Min'er broke through to the late stage of Foundation Establishment a few months ago. I imagine you didn't know. Last night, Master told me that Sixth Junior Sister was going out with Min'er. This matter was also sudden. I came here to see Min'er off. By the way, Little Junior Brother, Min'er is going out this time. You have to take care of all the worldly matters. Don't let her get angry. Otherwise, I will definitely not spare you when you come back." Li Wuyi saw the two women in the distance, raised one hand, and while speaking to Li Yan, casually waved at them.
Although Li Yan didn't know what had happened, he could roughly guess some clues from Li Wuyi's words. He nodded with a calm expression on his face and repeatedly agreed. He knew that Gong Chenying would definitely tell him about this matter later.
Seeing Li Yan agree so readily, Li Wuyi patted his shoulder, withdrew his gaze from the two women, and showed a strange smile on his face as he looked at Li Yan. Then he strode forward.
How could Li Yan, being so smart, and with a guilty conscience at that, not understand the meaning in Li Wuyi's eyes? He couldn't help but rub his nose and also followed.
Gong Chenying and Zhao Min had been standing by the sea of bamboo, whispering to each other. When they saw the two men walk over, they stopped talking. Gong Chenying looked up at the two who were gradually approaching, while Zhao Min plucked a bamboo leaf with her pair of white, tender, and smooth hands, her beautiful eyes looking at the bamboo leaf in her hand, without looking up.
After the two approached, Li Wuyi walked a few steps faster to Zhao Min's side, then turned back and smiled at Li Yan. "Little Junior Brother, I'll have a few words with Min'er. It won't delay your schedule." After speaking, he walked to one side and beckoned to Zhao Min. Zhao Min glanced at Li Yan, then walked over with light, lotus-like steps.
Li Yan, on the other hand, smiled faintly at Zhao Min, then turned his head and saw Gong Chenying with an apologetic look on her face. Li Yan knew she had something to say, so he also strode over.
Seeing Li Yan stand before her, looking at the man who was already a head taller than her, Gong Chenying said with some embarrassment, "I... I... I was a bit presumptuous."
"Hehe, that's why you had to personally go and tell Master yesterday, right?" Li Yan chuckled. Actually, he had an indescribable feeling about Zhao Min's arrival, a mix of joy and worry, but ultimately more joy, even a pleasant surprise. A sudden happiness welled up in his heart. The worry was that with the two women together, he didn't know which sentence would cause one of them to be unhappy. He had also vaguely guessed the meaning behind Gong Chenying's action this time, but he didn't know how she had persuaded Zhao Min to come.
Seeing that Li Yan was not unhappy, Gong Chenying's heart relaxed, and at the same time, she also sighed. If she were to say that Min'er had no feelings for Li Yan, she would not believe it even if she were beaten to death now. She had only mentioned it to Zhao Min yesterday, and after a brief moment of contemplation, Zhao Min had agreed. But she was not jealous in her heart. This was the result of her careful consideration. For the past year, Gong Chenying still had guilt and worry in her heart. With her and Zhao Min having grown up together, how could she not notice the change in Zhao Min? Although Zhao Min was silent, a girl's thoughts were ultimately delicate. She was even more worried that her intervention would hurt Zhao Min's extremely sensitive heart. Now it seemed that her action this time might really have a chance to make up for it. But ultimately, there was still a knot in her heart, which made her a little unhappy. No woman was willing to share her husband with others.
But she was very clear about Zhao Min's background. She felt that this younger sister's experience was almost exactly the same as her own. Decades of her life were filled with helplessness and bitterness. After coming to the sect and slowly getting to know each other, they had both developed a feeling of being in the same boat. Perhaps this was destined by heaven, Gong Chenying thought.
Gong Chenying looked back at Li Wuyi and Zhao Min in the distance, who were talking in low voices. Li Wuyi seemed to have a lot to say. As he spoke, he kept gesturing with his hands, a very serious and earnest look on his face. She knew Li Wuyi's feelings for Zhao Min. He was someone who would use his life to protect his family from all dangers. She also knew that Li Wuyi was worried about what Zhao Min would encounter on her first trip out, so he had a lot to say. Even with her and Li Yan there, she believed that if Li Wuyi didn't say everything he wanted to, he would definitely be restless. She imagined this was also Master's and Martial Mother's intention.
After glancing over there, Gong Chenying turned back to see Li Yan looking at her calmly. She gathered her thoughts, and her red lips parted lightly.
Looking at Li Yan, Gong Chenying said apologetically, "I thought about it yesterday. If the two of us go out alone, it would seem sudden to others. This might... might make Third Senior Brother's reaction... stronger. Although I don't care about his feelings, the person he will look for then will be you. So I wanted to find a way to buffer it, so that after Third Senior Brother notices, and because we are not on the peak, he will go from being agitated to thinking rationally."
"And I also know that it's not just that you and Min'er can get along well. The reason is that I was the one who came in between." As Gong Chenying said this, a bitter look appeared on her face, but her eyes were extremely serious.
Li Yan was still calm. He listened quietly. When Gong Chenying talked about the matter between Zhao Min and him, he did not deny it. He, Li Yan, was not a gentleman, nor was he a promiscuous person. If he had feelings, he had them. Just like through this year and a half of interaction with Gong Chenying, he had long since developed feelings of love. At this time, even if Yun Chunqu came to fight for her, he would not give in, unlike his initial impression of Gong Chenying's beauty, which was just a stunning surprise in his heart, without any indecent thoughts.
"For the past year or so, I have also spoken with Min'er a few times. Although she hasn't shown anything, based on my understanding of her, how could I not know her thoughts? I have been with her for more than ten years, cultivating and playing together. We are like sisters. I'm sure she is also very clear about what I'm thinking."
"So, I thought of letting her go out with us. This way, in the eyes of outsiders, it's not a man and a woman alone, which will add a bit of a buffer," Gong Chenying said softly.
But at this moment, a strange look appeared in Li Yan's eyes.