Xiong Manniang and Xiao Shijiu told Yuan Hua they wished to pay their respects to his elder. Yuan Hua entered the cave to ask permission. Hearing that Xiong Manniang had arrived, Shi Feiyang felt a stir in his heart. He knew this woman had some connection to him. After concentrating on a round of divination, he told Yuan Hua to bring them in.
He had opened this Cave Abode only as a temporary dwelling, with no intention of staying long. It was very simple; even the walls had not been cut smooth. Still, it was exceptionally spacious, furnished with stone tables and chairs, wooden couches and beds that Yuan Hua and Lin Han had made.
Lin Han was meticulous by nature. Using the White Light Sword, he had cut every piece of furniture straight and square, fitting the mortise-and-tenon joints snugly together. He had also carved patterns of plum blossoms, orchids, bamboo, and chrysanthemums into them. His ancestors had served as officials for generations, and his grandfather was a Sword Immortal. His family had been comfortably off, and all their furniture had been finely crafted.
When he first began, he had been uneasy, worried that Shi Feiyang would think him a pampered young master unable to endure the mountains' austere life. He had only made a wooden couch with Yuan Hua, carved it with a Nine Dragons Playing with a Pearl design, and presented it to Shi Feiyang. He reasoned that if his master disapproved, he would make only that one bed as a filial offering and immediately stop and mend his ways. There would still be time to rein in his horse at the cliff's edge.
Feiyang had been delighted by the bed. First, his young disciple had shown such filial devotion; second, carving with an Immortal Sword could