Shi An knew that his master had a restless nature and was more than capable of handling himself. Within the boundaries of the sect, no one could possibly put Yun Zhou at a disadvantage, so he simply let him be.
However, a balding elder from the Qinyinxin Sect came to the Hall of Self-Reflection to lodge a complaint, claiming that Yun Zhou was lawless, lacked respect for elders, attempted to murder a guest, and was undermining the friendly relations between the two sects.
When a junior disciple rushed over to report the news, Shi An remained entirely unconcerned—as long as his partner was happy, anything went. But the moment he heard that the three of them had been hauled off to the Hall of Self-Reflection, drinking tea was out of the question; he immediately teleported there to secure their release.
Upon arriving at the Hall of Self-Reflection, he discovered that while the trio had indeed been brought in, they were currently sitting comfortably drinking tea, leaving the balding elder stamping his feet in furious rage.
The Disciplinary Elder, meanwhile, was caught in an impossible dilemma, unable to offend either party.
The root of the incident lay in the complaining elder’s habitual behavior: he frequently berated his students, embezzled their cultivation resources, and practiced blatant favoritism. His reputation was abysmal, yet backed by powerful connections within his sect, the junior disciples could only harbor resentment in silence without daring to speak out.
To oppress students instead of guiding them, to embezzle their resources, and to act recklessly relying on one’s backing how could such a person ever be worthy of being called a teacher?!
Ling Wanxing had long wished to deal with this elder, but he simply never had the opportunity or the means to do so. Upon arriving at the sect and hearing that Shen Qingchen had the backing to keep things under control and play as wildly as he pleased, he eagerly inquired whether they were allowed to fight.
Upon hearing this, Shen Qingchen rolled up his sleeves in eager anticipation, Ling Wanxing was raring to go, and Tang Nanxi let out a quiet sigh.
In the end, the three of them conspired to ambush the elder, slipped a sack over his head, sealed his spiritual energy, gave him a thorough beating, and then meticulously healed away all physical bruises.
Still unsatisfied, they decided to match his usual noisy and grating persona by shaving his head clean.
Their tracks had actually been concealed quite well, but Yun Zhou had gotten a little too carried away during the scuffle; a few fox hairs drifted from his tails and landed on the scumbag elder’s robes. Because the hairs carried his distinct aura and possessed an extremely high level of recognizability, the culprit was easily tracked down and caught red-handed.
Ling Wanxing immediately stepped forward, insisting that he had instigated the whole affair, desperately trying to keep Shen Qingchen out of trouble. Although Tang Nanxi remained silent, he quietly stepped in front of Shen Qingchen to shield him.
When Shi An learned of what happened, he felt they had done a fantastic job. As for paying any compensation Shen Qingchen was someone backed by Immortal Venerable Yun Zhou himself and Immortal Lord Shi An his partner; throwing one’s weight around and bullying others based on power was sometimes a rather pleasant experience.
In the end, they compensated the elder with a single sixth-grade elixir: the Hair-Regrowing Pill.
The elder was nearly driven to the point of coughing up blood in rage, though he was largely blinded by his own fury. Had he known Shen Qingchen’s true background, he never would have rushed over to file such an aggressive complaint.
His original plan had been to exploit a seemingly blind junior disciple whom he could easily shift blame onto, thereby extorting some compensation from the Pinglan Sect. Now, however, he had no choice but to swallow this bitter loss.
As for Yun Zhou and the three youths, because their actions were still somewhat impulsive, each of them received a penalty of one day in confinement. Shi An, however, simply marched over and led his master straight back.
With Yun Zhou’s ears drooping disconsolately, he ultimately gave in, shifted back into his original fox form, and curled up in the corner, too embarrassed to meet Shi An’s gaze. He inexplicably felt the guilty sensation of a child being caught doing something wrong and hauled before their guardian.
Shi An found the sight immensely amusing. Fortunately, his master’s mental faculties had not yet fully recovered; under normal circumstances, Yun Zhou would have maintained his usual breezy, expressionless composure without missing a beat.
Once the confinement period ended, having gone far too long without tasting Elder Xiang Su’s liquor, Shi An figured the elder surely still kept his signature home-brewed Ruojia Drunk buried beneath the blossoming trees in front of the Scripture Pavilion.
It was high time to seek him out for a casual gathering and a chat if for no other reason, then certainly for that exquisite sip of wine.
Years ago, Elder Xiang Su had become utterly obsessed with brewing liquor, eventually succeeding in crafting a wine he was truly satisfied with. It was crystal clear and transparent, carrying a rich, lingering medicinal fragrance with a profound, lingering aftertaste.
Yet, for the longest time, he could never decide what to name it, until a journey into the mortal realm in search of inspiration finally led him to bestow upon it the name Umbrella-Prop Cheng Hua.