Seeing that Yun Huizhou understood his meaning, the South Island Lord finally turned his head and nodded, indicating that was exactly what he meant.
Immediately after, Lian Li and Yun Huizhou once again received the South Island Lord’s intent.
【Xiyu sent a letter back with the basic situation. That old thing dared to treat you as a vessel for nurturing Gu insects; he should have known the consequences once we found out.】
It was one thing for the East Island Lord to go and rescue them. If they had merely been seriously injured, perhaps the matter would have ended once they were brought back.
Had they been killed before the East Island Lord arrived, the elders of Drunken Dream Island—all being Transcendents—would have faced many complications trying to retaliate against a Spirit Cult that lacked a Transcendent Master, but it wouldn’t have been impossible.
Although there were tacit rules among Transcendent Masters, they stood at the very peak of the world.
The rules were set by them.
There was no higher existence to establish rules for them or to constrain them.
Adherence to the rules relied entirely on self-discipline, as well as the mutual supervision and restraint of other Transcendent Masters.
But the Spirit Cult had happened to recognize the Internal Cultivation Method Lian Li practiced and had the audacity to try and capture him as a vessel for nurturing Gu insects.
This was practically handing the elders of Drunken Dream Island a reason to cause trouble.
Had they not done so, the West Island Lord would never have returned to the Spirit Cult after the pair was out of danger to tamper with their Gu.
And as the Master of Yun Huizhou and Lian Li, he would naturally remember this debt.
It was just that since the West Island Lord had already gone, it wasn’t appropriate for him to go again for the same reason. After all, although those two from the Spirit Cult could act as Transcendents, they hadn’t actually reached that level yet.
However, he would not let this grudge go so easily.
The moment the Spirit Cult produced a Transcendent Master, he would naturally go and wreck their place once more.
Lian Li was moved by the protectiveness of his elders, and his expression reflected his feelings.
Then, in the next second, he received a disgusted brainwave from the South Island Lord.
【Don’t make that face. It’s too mushy.】
Lian Li’s expression instantly froze.
Seeing this, Yun Huizhou immediately changed the subject: “Master, let me tell you about our experiences during this trip.”
Since it was time for a report, Lian Li also turned serious.
Yun Huizhou recounted their experiences during this period, with Lian Li adding a word or two at the appropriate times, while the South Island Lord nodded occasionally.
By the time they finished the report, half an hour had passed.
The sky had already darkened. The South Island Lord had no intention of keeping them for a meal; he simply stood up and waved his hand, sending the two of them outside the Waterside Pavilion. Then, with a flash, he vanished.
Looking at the empty pavilion, Lian Li said to Yun Huizhou, “We’re finally back. Even though we were only out for about two months, it feels longer than a year.”
Yun Huizhou glanced at him and said, “Mhm. Let’s head back.”
The lakeside pavilion where they lived was not close to this spot. For once, the two of them did not use their Lightness Skills to fly around Drunken Dream Island, but instead walked slowly back along the long corridors.
When they reached the door, Yun Huizhou stopped. Lian Li assumed he was just waiting for him and didn’t pay it any mind. Reaching the door, he placed his hand on it and pushed.
“Wait a moment!” Yun Huizhou shouted hastily.
However, his warning came too late. Lian Li had already pushed the door open, and simultaneously, he felt a cloud of dust billow up.
“Ugh—” Lian Li quickly covered his nose and backed away. “Such thick dust!”
Yun Huizhou also reached out to fan the air, saying, “I suddenly remembered. Last time I made Master worry while I was away, so Master wouldn’t have someone clean the room in advance.”
“So our room hasn’t been cleaned for two months, right?” Lian Li glanced inside. “Master usually only calls people to clean a few days in advance; he doesn’t let people in to clean normally.”
Yun Huizhou nodded, then shook his head. “If no one is living here, it’s usually cleaned once every six months.”
“So, Master means for us to clean it ourselves, right?” Lian Li walked into the room and did a quick scan, finding it was actually quite clean, much the same as when they left.
Even the clothes he had casually left on the bed before leaving were still in their original positions.
It was clear that no one had entered at all during these two months.
“Let’s find the tools.” Yun Huizhou set his blade aside and walked toward the room where the tools were kept. “Since Master didn’t have someone clean in advance, even if we go find them now, they won’t come to help us.”
Lian Li also looked down, unfastened his whip, and placed it with Yun Huizhou’s blade. He pulled two cloths out of a cabinet before following Yun Huizhou into the tool room.
Yun Huizhou had already brought the broom and mop to the door; now he was grabbing a bucket and rags.
Seeing Lian Li approach, he said, “Go and collect the clothes we left on the beds and put them in the basket. We’ll have them all taken to be washed later. I’ll go get some water first, then we’ll wipe down the tables, chairs, and cabinets.”
“Okay.” Lian Li handed a cloth to Yun Huizhou. “Cover your nose and mouth when you wipe the tables and cabinets later.”
Yun Huizhou took the cloth and gave a grunt of affirmation.
After dividing the labor, the two went their separate ways.
Lian Li threw all the clothes on his and Yun Huizhou’s beds—whether worn or unworn—into the basket. He reached out to touch the bedding; there wasn’t much dust.
However, after a moment’s hesitation, he decided to change everything later anyway.
Yun Huizhou soon returned with water. Each taking a rag, they began to wipe the tables.
A house that hadn’t been lived in or cleaned for two months wasn’t that difficult to tidy up.
Lian Li even discovered that aside from the thick layer of dust when he first pushed the door, the room was actually quite clean.
After finishing the cleaning, he sat in a reclining chair and looked at Yun Huizhou. “The dust when I opened the door was so thick it made me doubt if this was even our room.”
“Don’t doubt it,” Yun Huizhou said with certainty. “Master did it on purpose. He specifically placed a thick layer of dust on top of the door.”
Lian Li didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. Was this Master’s punishment for them running off to the Spirit Cult and nearly failing to make it out?
Yun Huizhou was quite used to it. He pulled up a stool and sat beside Lian Li, saying, “Reasonably speaking, the Senior Martial Uncle won’t drag us off to practice martial arts immediately after his return. If nothing goes wrong…”
“Stop!” Lian Li suddenly bounced up. “Don’t say things like that!”
Yun Huizhou snapped his mouth shut, clearly remembering Lian Li’s previous saying: “If nothing goes wrong, then something is about to go wrong.”
He looked up at Lian Li with a bit of a guilty conscience, only to find that Lian Li wasn’t looking at him at all. Instead, Lian Li had his fingers interlaced in front of his chest in the posture of a maiden’s prayer.
“Bad luck stay away, good luck stay. Please don’t let Yun Huizhou’s crow’s mouth come true.”
After Yun Huizhou heard clearly what he was muttering, he was practically moved to angry laughter. How was he a crow’s mouth? It hadn’t even come true yet, so how was he a crow’s mouth?
