The Mist Tide receded. Black Snake lay coiled at the cave entrance, gazing absently at the grass outside.
Weeds poked haphazardly out of the cracks between the rocks, an irritating sight. He remembered the Stone Terrace outside the Azure Cloud Monastery's Mountain Gate, where slabs of green stone lay neatly side by side, perfectly level. He wanted something like that too.
After pondering for a while, he turned and slithered down the mountain.
There were plenty of stones in the stream, their edges worn smooth by the water.
He picked up a few in his mouth and carried them back. He had never laid paving stones before, but surely it could not be too difficult. With patience, he could work it out slowly.
Once he had brought the stones back, he picked one up and pressed it into the ground. He tilted his head to inspect it, then set another beside it, only for the first stone to be squeezed upward. He carefully tried arranging them several times, but either one side was too high or the other was too low.
After all that fuss, he had left the cave entrance in utter disarray. It looked even worse than before.
It looked so simple. Why was it so difficult to do?
What a headache.
The clinking and clattering drew Xiao Yu over.
She landed on a stone and tilted her head to observe. Watching Black Snake make a mess of the entrance, she also figured out what he was trying to do.
At last, she could not help speaking.
"You could ask the Cloud Immortal Hall for help. They can build great residences with three successive courtyards, carved beams, and painted rafters. Laying a stone floor would be easy for them." Black Snake flicked his tongue. *Why hadn't I thought