"Alright, our new disciple has only just arrived—don't start lecturing him the moment you see him!" ** shot a glance at Han Li's uneasy expression, a hint of amusement flickering in her eyes, and spoke softly to Li Huayuan.
"Very well! Your husband understands. No matter what, this fine apprentice of mine is the benefactor who saved my wife's life. As his master, I will certainly make sure to compensate him properly!"
Li Huayuan gazed at ** with a tender expression, then turned his head to address Yu Kun, who was still standing to the side.
"You may leave for now. Your master and I need to have a private conversation with your junior brother Han. There's no need for anyone else to be present!"
"Understood, Master!"
Yu Kun replied respectfully, then cast a envious glance at Han Li before quietly withdrawing.
"Benefactor? Compensation?"
Han Li was thoroughly bewildered now. He had no idea why these words were being applied to him! When had he ever done such a thing? How could he not remember?
Seeing Han Li standing there looking dazed and confused, ** couldn't help but cover her smile and say:
"Husband, you should explain properly! Our disciple here has no idea what's going on—don't leave him in the dark!"
After hearing **'s words, Li Huayuan gave a slight smile, nodded, and then addressed Han Li.
"Han Li! By now you should understand why I took you as my disciple that day! There's no need to be embarrassed about it. I, as your elder, was indeed coveting those natural spirit herbs. That's why I used the pretense of taking you as a disciple to forcefully claim half of your share. Otherwise, you would have received two Foundation Establishment Pills instead of just one! However, I believe that although I reduced your reward without reason, I also ensured that in the days to come, you could use my name as protection and wouldn't be easily bullied. That should make up for it, in a way. After all, given your aptitude at the time, even with an extra Foundation Establishment Pill, it seemed unlikely you would succeed in Foundation Establishment!"
Li Huayuan spoke with an unchanged expression, seemingly feeling there was nothing wrong with his actions that day.
"But things turned out differently later. Shortly after I obtained those spirit herbs, just as I was about to refine some pills to enhance my cultivation, my wife suddenly encountered a mishap during her practice and her life hung in the balance. Fortunately, the spirit herbs I received from you hadn't been used yet, which allowed her to be kept alive temporarily. And over the following years, using the remaining herbs, I was able to refine a remedy that finally allowed my wife to recover a few days ago! Therefore, when I told my wife about the origin of the spirit herbs, she immediately insisted that you must be compensated. After all, her life was entirely saved thanks to those herbs. You could be considered her benefactor as well!"
When Li Huayuan spoke of **'s life being in danger, his expression shifted several times, as if recalling the peril of that day. It seemed his feelings for ** by his side were truly deep and genuine.
"I agreed with her reasoning and decided that even if you hadn't succeeded in Foundation Establishment, I would formally take you as my disciple. But unexpectedly, before I could even take action, I received word that you had succeeded in Foundation Establishment. That truly surprised me! Since I had said before that once you entered the Foundation Establishment stage, I would formally accept you, this no longer counts as compensation. It seems I'll have to think of another way to make it up to you within my means!"
Li Huayuan had finally recounted the whole story, leaving Han Li somewhat stunned.
He never expected such a windfall to land on his head. Even after hearing Li Huayuan say he wanted to compensate him with his own ears, Han Li still found it hard to believe. He stood there in a daze, still somewhat dumbfounded.
"Why don't you stay in the cave dwelling for a day and night first—since you haven't made up your mind yet. You can make your request to your master tomorrow morning. Think carefully about it; your master isn't usually a very generous man. This is a rare opportunity!" ** gave Li Huayuan a sidelong glance, then said gently to Han Li.
Li Huayuan let out a few embarrassed chuckles, looking rather sheepish!
Han Li finally came back to his senses. After a moment of hesitation, he had originally intended to ask for cultivation techniques, but hearing his master's wife say this, he felt he couldn't decline her kindness. So he nodded in agreement.
Then, Li Huayuan called Yu Kun back in and had him accompany Han Li for a tour around the expansive cave dwelling.
The eldest disciple immediately agreed with a beaming face, then led Han Li out. Before they had even left the main hall, he had already started introducing the entire cave dwelling.
"This Green-Wave Cave of Master's covers an area of several hundred mu, with buildings..."
After watching Han Li and Yu Kun gradually walk away, ** suddenly smiled and said to Li Huayuan:
"Do you think our new disciple can handle Kun'er's pestering? I get a headache just hearing Kun'er open his mouth, before he even says a word! That endless nagging of his is truly mind-numbing."
"Sigh! Don't just say you, even I can't do anything about him now! Han Li won't last long at all!" Li Huayuan said with a look of helplessness.
"That's true! But what do you think your disciple will ask for?" ** suddenly widened her round eyes, a glint of mischief in them.
"What could he ask for? Nothing more than pills, cultivation techniques, and magic artifacts! If it weren't for you insisting on compensating this good disciple, I really couldn't bear to be so generous." Even though Li Huayuan hadn't yet taken anything out, he already seemed to be feeling the pinch.
"What do you mean? If I don't repay this life-saving grace, my Ice Heart Technique will develop flaws in my mental state, and I won't be able to achieve the Great Perfection realm! How could I then advance to the Core Formation stage and fly with you through eternity?" ** first gave Li Huayuan a reproachful look, but her next words were filled with such deep affection that Li Huayuan was greatly moved! He immediately thumped his chest and declared that he would definitely satisfy Han Li's request, ensuring that his wife's cultivation would have no future troubles.
Han Li naturally had no idea that the windfall falling on his head was actually connected to **'s cultivation technique.
Right now, he was following Senior Brother Yu on a leisurely stroll through the grounds, but in his heart he kept feeling that this stroke of luck had come too suddenly! It gave him an unsettling, strange feeling.
"Oh, Senior Brother Yu, what brings you to the Sword Discussion Hall? Shall we two brothers exchange some techniques?"
When Yu Kun brought Han Li near a very large stone house, a sturdy man just happened to walk out. Upon seeing Yu Kun, he spoke casually, but his eyes kept scanning Han Li up and down.
"Everyone knows that Fourth Junior Brother's Five Elements techniques are the best among Master's disciples! I'll pass—I won't make a fool of myself!" Upon hearing the man's words, Yu Kun's expression shifted briefly before he laughed it off and declined.
But then, he suddenly turned and pointed at Han Li with a grin.
"I haven't introduced you yet—this is the formal disciple Master is about to take in, who will become our Eighth Junior Brother, Junior Brother Han!"
"And this is Fourth Senior Brother Song Meng—you can call him Senior Brother Song! Come and meet each other, since we'll be fellow disciples from now on!"
"Eighth Junior Brother!"
The Fourth Junior Brother's eyes blazed with intensity the moment he heard this, fixing his gaze on Han Li without blinking!
Han Li's expression didn't change, but he sighed inwardly. This was clearly some kind of battle maniac—being stared at by him couldn't lead to anything good.
So, before the man could speak first, Han Li quickly said:
"Fourth Senior Brother, greetings. I've only recently succeeded in Foundation Establishment. Please look after me in the future!"
With that, Han Li gave a bow.
But these words caused the man to show a look of disappointment. He immediately lost interest in Han Li, gave a few indifferent nods, and then didn't spare Han Li another glance. Then he walked straight past the two of them with a cold demeanor and went on his way!
Only Han Li and Yu Kun were left standing there, staring at each other in bewilderment for a long while.
"Haha, Junior Brother Han, don't mind him. Junior Brother Song just has that kind of eccentric personality. Though he may seem cold on the surface, he's actually quite a good person!" Yu Kun was the first to recover his composure, dispelling the awkward atmosphere with a few words.
Han Li naturally adopted an understanding attitude, and the two of them continued on their way, chatting and laughing once more.
Although the cave dwelling wasn't small, for such a large place, besides Li Huayuan and his wife, Yu Kun, and that Song Meng, there was no one else. Han Li didn't see a single one of the other five fellow disciples. But later he learned that, like him, the others all had their own cave dwellings outside and only occasionally came to pay respects to Li Huayuan and his wife.
As for Yu Kun and Song Meng, they had grown up by Li Huayuan and his wife's side since childhood. Having developed deep bonds with them, they naturally stayed here and hadn't established their own dwellings.
Through his casual conversation with Yu Kun, Han Li finally gained some understanding of the other fellow disciples, and without realizing it, had completed a tour of the entire dwelling.
But this eldest disciple seemed to have warmed to the conversation and simply pulled Han Li toward his bedroom, wanting to continue their marathon chat.
Although Han Li was slightly surprised, he didn't think much of it and followed along indifferently. After all, this was the senior brother—one had to show some respect.
At first, he listened attentively to everything the eldest brother said, hoping to find something useful.
But before long, Han Li gradually came to realize the terrifying nature of Senior Brother Yu's rambling.
That ceaseless stream of words drilled into his brain like bewitching music. After listening for several hours, Han Li's head began to ache.
Only then did Han Li realize that when this eldest brother had first come out to receive him, that wasn't enthusiasm at all! It was simply that he rarely had a guest, and he was taking the opportunity to satisfy his need to talk!
After another while, unable to bear it any longer, Han Li finally made an excuse of being exhausted and hastily fled the other's bedroom. He found a guest room and went in to rest.
After enduring that verbal bombardment from Senior Brother Yu, he was truly mentally drained!
Han Li was completely won over by this man! To think there existed a man in this world who could talk this much and be this long-winded—it was truly an eye-opening experience!