How Could a Secret Cavern Be Mundane?

Tian Buyi was just about to make a move when he heard that brat of his cry out, wailing.

"Mother! The big fatty stole my food!"

"Pfft!" In the yard, three sounds like leaking air rang out at the same time.

Song Daren had never imagined that his own little junior brother would actually dare to complain to his mistress right in front of his master, so for a moment he choked on his own breath.

Su Ru was startled by her husband's childish behavior. She wanted to laugh, but still had to consider Tian Buyi's dignity, so she raised a hand in time to cover her mouth.

As for Tian Buyi, that sudden line from his little brat shamed him so badly that all the imposing aura in his body leaked straight away.

Su Ru looked at the eldest disciple beside her, who had his head lowered and dared neither look nor speak. "Daren, you go back first!"

"Yes! Mistress!" Song Daren did not even dare raise his head. After hurriedly bowing, he fled in a panic.

Su Ru watched Song Daren leave, then turned to look to the other side and gave a soft "heh," shaking her head with a smile.

At this moment, Luo Yunji and Tian Buyi, one large fatty and one small fatty, had twisted into a knot together. The little fatty wanted to snatch back his food, while the big fatty, determined to punish him, had steeled his heart and refused to give it back.

Su Ru walked over, gave each of them a slap, then snatched the oil-paper bundle from Tian Buyi's hand and stuffed it into Luo Yunji's arms.

Tian Buyi rolled a huge white eye, while Luo Yunji hugged the oil-paper bundle and smiled so happily his eyes disappeared.

The place used for lessons was originally He Dazhi's dormitory, but back then, because he liked reading, Tian Buyi had specially permitted him to build a study.

Through the bedroom window, He Dazhi saw the interaction among the three not far away. Moved by something in his heart, he walked to the desk, spread out paper, lifted his brush, and stroke by stroke set down on the paper the amusing events that had happened today!

After several initial sketches that could reflect today's events had taken shape, He Dazhi looked them over one by one with satisfaction, examining them carefully in preparation for revisions.

When he saw the painting of all the disciples kneeling in a row outside the house, He Dazhi first froze for a moment. Then the corners of his mouth rose in a high arc.

He finally knew why Mistress had worn that expression at the time.

In the painting, Tian Buyi sat in a chair, while Su Ru had already turned and left, only a small slice of her back visible. As for the row of disciples, they were actually kneeling neatly from tall to short.

If Third Senior Brother Zheng Dali had not moved his position, perhaps the disciples would not have knelt so neatly.

Smiling, He Dazhi carefully rolled up the drafts in his hands one after another and stored them to the side with great care, waiting to complete them when he had free time.

But judging from the effect of today's teaching, He Dazhi took a deep breath. The road was long, and the burden was heavy!

He Dazhi had also discovered the breadth of Luo Yunji's knowledge. It actually surpassed his by far, far too much. So he simply required him to practice writing for one hour each day.

Tian Buyi went from slow to fast, until at last, in a fit of anger, he flung the thick stack of Luo Yunji's calligraphy practice sheets in his hand all into the air.

Tian Buyi felt deeply helpless. The little brat's handwriting showed no sign of improving. After seeing the letters Tian Buyi had written in connected strokes, he had not learned the good parts, but had actually learned cursive connections.

Normal people connected one stroke into one character! His brat, however, was even better—casting off the old and bringing forth the new, one stroke could connect an entire line for you.

Tian Buyi simply stopped making things difficult for his fourth disciple. He would just treat that rotten little brat of his as illiterate!

"Little Junior Brother! This fruit wine has only been brewing for a little over a month. Isn't that not enough time?" Zhang Xiaofan looked somewhat strangely at the large jar in his arms as he walked toward the secret stronghold deep in the rear mountain's bamboo forest, asking the question that puzzled him as they went.

"Of course we can't open the jar now!" The little fatty's forehead was covered in beads of sweat. Exhausted, he panted roughly, clutching Zhang Xiaofan's sleeve and moving his feet with difficulty.

"Do you want to rest for a bit?" Seeing Luo Yunji's worn-out appearance, Zhang Xiaofan stopped and looked at him as he asked.

"It's all your fault! If you could also wield objects, then you could carry me and fly!" Luo Yunji shouted unreasonably, yet believed he made perfect sense, speaking with righteous confidence.

"I... I've only cultivated to the first level." Zhang Xiaofan drooped his eyes somewhat guiltily. "Little Junior Brother! Haven't you already cultivated the Taiji Mystic Purity Dao to the sixth level?"

"I... I don't have a magic treasure!" Luo Yunji's eyes rolled about as he argued sophistically.

"I don't have one either!" Zhang Xiaofan looked dejectedly toward Luo Yunji at his side.

"Hurry up and reach the fourth level. When the time comes, I'll help you find a magic treasure! That way, you can carry me and fly every day, and I won't have to walk such a long road anymore!" Luo Yunji's fox tail showed itself.

"Little Junior Brother! You're just lazy, so you want me to carry you every day, don't you?" Zhang Xiaofan looked at the little fatty beside him and muttered softly.

"What?"

"Nothing! You really don't want to rest for a bit?" Zhang Xiaofan raised his head and looked left and right. He definitely would not repeat what he had just said! He was not actually stupid!

The two of them walked for quite a while longer before finally arriving at their destination!

This place was actually not very far from Spring Lake, only its location was somewhat peculiar. It was a crack in the upper-middle part of a mountain slope. If the little fatty had not mischievously gotten stuck in the crack, the two of them would never have discovered this place.

Looking from the crack, one would find that this high ground was actually an absurdly enormous boulder. It could even be called a stone mountain, a small hill of a single complete giant rock. More than half of it was buried in the earth, while the part exposed above ground was also over sixty zhang tall. The two of them, bored for a moment, followed the crack and actually discovered a hidden cave entrance. After they plucked up their courage and went inside, they found that within, it was not as dark as they had imagined. Instead, it was just as bright as outside the cave.

The inside of the giant rock was hollow, with a few cracks all around. At the very top, there were several openings extremely well hidden from the outside, through which sunlight shone in.

Within the belly of the giant rock, it was like an isolated peach-blossom spring beyond the world. On one side was a hollow about seven or eight zhang in diameter. Mountain spring water seeping down the stone wall fell into it with a clear ding-dong sound, gathering into a pool of "green jade."

Because there was ample sunlight, quite a few green vines grew on the stone walls, along with glowing insects that danced among the vines, or else stopped, blinking on and off, among the flowers on the vines. The flowers came in many colors, all relatively paler than those outside.

A natural little path, made of broken sections like steps, extended downward. The two of them followed the stone steps all the way down, only to discover that below the pool were two other pools even larger than it. Their water was all formed when the first pool above filled up, overflowed, and flowed down to gather. As for the largest pool at the very bottom, it was formed from an earth spring in a small stone platform at the foot, its water accumulating and overflowing. The spring water was sweet. Sweet in the true sense—its trace of sweetness was not barely there, but something one could truly taste in the mouth.

Aside from the three large pools on the stone wall, there were also some stone platforms. Some of the stone platforms held soil, on which green grass and some wildflowers whose names they did not know grew. Seen from afar, they looked like enormous potted landscapes one after another.

The two of them fell in love with this place at first sight!