The debt-ridden trio were invited into the courtyard by Su Wan'er, who looked at them and said, "My master told me not to cause trouble these next two days and to stay here."
"And every time my senior sister or I advance in cultivation, or comprehend some other divine ability, Master rains a torrent of scolding down on us."
"It happened again today. Just because I got a bye into the next round, Master gave me another scolding."
"You three tell me: what is my master trying to say?"
Su Wan'er's questions stumped all three of them.
They exchanged looks, then thought to themselves.
Weren't those words easy enough to understand?
Elder Li just wanted you, our dear little tyrant, to stay home and stop stirring up trouble.
As for how quickly you comprehend things, you must have made Elder Li lose face, so he scolded you.
Each of the three could read the others' answers in their eyes, but they certainly could not say that aloud.
If it were that simple, why would Su Wan'er spend a million Spirit Stones to have them explain it?
A little time passed.
Su Wan'er began to grow impatient.
She looked at the three of them. "Don't tell me you don't know?"
"I'm warning you, don't try to fool me. If your answer doesn't satisfy me, I'll send Master to make trouble for you!"
Her words sent a jolt through all three. The eldest smiled. "Junior Sister Su, how could we dare deceive you?"
"Just give us three brothers a moment to put our heads together."
With that, the eldest slung his arms around the second and third brothers and led them to a corner of the courtyard, where they began whispering.
"My worthy brothers, you heard her. Whether we can shake off this debt of hundreds of thousands of Spirit Stones comes down to this moment."
"If you have any brilliant ideas, spit them out."
The second and third brothers fell silent for several seconds, then shook their heads. "Big Brother, you're clearly the brains of our trio. If even you don't know, there's no hope for the two of us."
"Honestly, what am I supposed to say about you two? Useless at everything, but first in line to eat and drink."
"Forget it. Just watch me perform."
The eldest had never expected anything from those two fools. He had only pulled them aside to confer so Su Wan'er would believe all three of them had genuinely thought it over.
They returned to the courtyard's stone table and sat down. Smiling, the eldest said to Su Wan'er, "Junior Sister, I think this is how Elder Li's words should be understood."
"Think about it. Doesn't your elder get upset or keep scolding you every time your cultivation advances?"
"Yes, yes, yes! Exactly. Keep going."
Su Wan'er felt he made a good point and let him continue.
The eldest first took a sip of the tea the third brother had poured, then continued, "Junior Sister, think about it."
"What matters most to those of us who cultivate the Dao?"
Su Wan'er shook her cute little head.
"Perseverance!"
"A Dao heart as firm as bedrock, unchanged through the ages."
"That's precisely why Elder Li only scolds you after your cultivation advances."
"The way of Heaven: seek it for tens of thousands of years, yet see neither its form nor its traces, and hear only its decree."
"Junior Sister, do you understand what that means?"
Having finished, the eldest quietly took another sip of tea beneath the second and third brothers' admiring gazes.
He felt his hand lacked a fan. If he had one to complete the picture...
This little performance would score at least ninety points.
"Senior Brother, if you keep saying things I don't understand, I'll make you pay me back right now."
"Cough, cough, cough, cough!"
The eldest nearly choked to death on his tea.
Carried away. He'd gotten carried away. He had nearly forgotten that the little tyrant before him was their creditor and had accidentally taken his act too far.
"Ahem. Junior Sister, the meaning is actually very simple. Elder Li just doesn't want you getting smug over one little advancement."
"You need to set your sights farther ahead. I believe Elder Li must have told you something similar before!"
Su Wan'er's eyes seemed to brighten at those words.
She remembered that Li Shouyi had indeed told her something like that a couple of days earlier, but she had promptly forgotten it.
Whenever her cultivation advanced, she could never resist running to her master to share her joy with him.
Putting that together with all the things this man had just said about the way of Heaven, seeing neither its form nor its traces, and so on...
She instantly understood one thing: whenever her cultivation advanced from now on, she should keep it hidden for a couple of days first.
She would wait until Master came to ask, then tell him.
Feeling she had figured it all out, Su Wan'er grinned and patted her chest.
Then she said, "You make a good point. You don't have to pay back the money anymore. Just return the principal."
The three were instantly overjoyed.
They hurriedly took out a Storage Bag containing a hundred thousand Spirit Stones and placed it on the stone table.
After thanking Su Wan'er, they dashed away in a flash.
From the way they ran, they looked as though they wished their parents had given them another leg.
Su Wan'er was delighted. Her confusion had been cleared away.
She felt her Great Dao of Cause and Effect had risen another level.
Taking out the Mahjong Li Shouyi had given her, she examined it carefully, then happily returned to her room.
Meanwhile, the disciples Li Shouyi had turned away...
Each returned to their own room.
After racking their brains for a while, their eyes began to light up one after another.
Then the greatest catastrophe of disciples abandoning their masters in the entire Cloud Cliff Sect unfolded.
On Law Enforcement Peak, Yan Hai was looking miserably at the silent Li Zuoshou.
Suddenly, several voices rang out outside his residence.
"Master, your disciples request an audience."
Hearing his disciples' calls, Yan Hai opened the door with a frown and saw five or six disciples in the courtyard.
He frowned. "Why have you come here instead of focusing on your cultivation?"
"Master, we've come today to ask you to expel us from your tutelage."
Their expressions were solemn, showing no sign of a joke.
Yan Hai grew annoyed. He felt they must have committed some offense again and were using this as an excuse.
He immediately sneered at them. "Out with it. What have you done wrong this time?"
"Uh, we haven't done anything wrong. If you don't believe us, Master, you can investigate. We simply came today to ask you to expel us from your tutelage."
They hadn't done anything wrong?
Their answer left Yan Hai puzzled.
Seeing his expression, the disciples exchanged looks, then gritted their teeth and said in unison, "Master, even if you won't expel us, we'll leave of our own accord and become Elder Li's disciples instead."
"What did you just say?!"
Yan Hai stared at them in disbelief. These little bastards wanted to leave his sect just to take that bastard Li Shouyi as their master?
"Uh, Master, the sect's rules allow disciples to choose their own masters. You won't make things difficult for us, will you?"
"Get out! Get out, and don't stop running!"
His face twisted with rage. Yan Hai pointed at them and roared, then clenched both fists and shouted, "Li Shouyi, you and I cannot exist under the same sky!"
"Achoo..."
Riding his flying sword, Li Shouyi sneezed. He wiped his nose and muttered, "What's going on? Are more unruly subjects plotting against their emperor?"
Before you continue