Beginning with the Ubume Bird-Chapter 611 - 43 Thunder Pool
"We’re here."
Hou Tu turned around, facing Li Yan and Lady Dan.
Apart from two rattan chairs and a square table set with tea utensils, the room was empty.
"Then, you two talk, I’m leaving."
As soon as Hou Tu had finished speaking, she really left.
"..."
Li Yan looked somewhat uneasy.
"Are you nervous?"
The light in Lady Dan’s eyes was cool and clear as water.
"That’s not it," Li Yan shook his head.
Lady Dan was rarely seen twisting her fingers, and it took her a long while before she seemed to muster up the courage to say something, but Li Yan interrupted her.
"I misspoke that day, I’m sorry. I have thought about what the meaning of existence is; it’s just that I don’t care. Life is just frolicking around; I’ll live even if there is no meaning to it, and I don’t need any destiny. But if you’re troubled, I’m happy to accompany you. The following words, I’m not afraid for anyone to hear, I am only afraid that I might no longer have the chance to make you believe that you are much more important to me than Yan Fu."
Lady Dan’s hand loosened then tightened; after a long moment, her lips trembling, her cool and soft palm reached under Li Yan’s clothes, gently caressing his chest as they embraced tightly.
"I’m sorry for making things difficult for you these past days."
"It’s okay."
Li Yan whispered softly.
Thump~
Lady Dan’s palm pierced through Li Yan’s chest, and the whole room was instantly filled with a green light.
————————————————
About half an hour later, someone knocked on the door of the room.
Without raising his head, Li Yan said, "Come in."
The person knocking was An Jing.
As soon as she entered, she saw Lady Dan lying on the table, with her pear-blossom-like face, eyes tightly closed, and an expression of tranquility like a child’s. She was resting on Li Yan’s arm, sleeping soundly. 𝗳𝚛𝚎𝚎𝘄𝕖𝕓𝕟𝕠𝚟𝚎𝕝.𝗰𝕠𝐦
"Uh~ The old master wants to see you."
"Got it."
Li Yan slowly withdrew his arm from Lady Dan’s embrace, took off his clothes to cover her, and then quietly said to An Jing, "Let’s go."
An Jing nodded, and with Li Yan, left the room. After walking for roughly two minutes, An Jing finally spoke, "Congratulations. When I last saw you, you were just a lowly attendee of Jiugong. It hasn’t been long, and you’ve already surpassed my position in the Yan Zhao Club. You even beat Yang Zheng, a loss I’ve never seen him take."
"I didn’t beat Yang Zheng. I was just lucky."
"Anyway, I’ll be looking up to you from now on, Representative of the Second Seat," An Jing said.
By the time the conversation ended, they had arrived at their destination.
"You go in by yourself."
An Jing gestured with her hand.
"Thank you."
After saying that, Li Yan walked in.
This was another room of about the same size, exuding an ancient charm. Especially eye-catching was the marble screen on the purple sandalwood frame in the center.
Su Ling and Hou Tu each squatted on a small round stool, handling their game controllers, playing a console game with Japanese subtitles on the television.
Zhan Yuejin leaned against the Arhat bed, sitting side by side with Zhu Jiuyin across a kang table, talking emphatically, "Classical economics is a practical science, not to be treated dogmatically. It certainly shouldn’t be talked about with blatant disregard for conscience. The so-called free market has become a religious belief in the eyes of some, untouchable, sacrosanct. If they had really read ’The Wealth of Nations,’ they would know that the economic theories of List and Adam Smith are not fundamentally conflicting. Both stem from objective laws..."
Zhu Jiuyin gestured repeatedly with his hands to interrupt, "I’ve long since stopped dealing with that trivial matter, brother. If it were about flowers, birds, fish, insects, or antiquities, we’d have plenty to talk about. But spare me the talk of classical economics, let’s just drop it."
Zhan Yuejin was silenced, smacking his lips as if left unsatisfied, with no choice but to lift his teacup and gulp down his tea.
Zhao Jianzhong lay on the nanmu armchair, brows drooping as he warmed himself by the fire, saying nothing. Only when he saw Li Yan enter did he nod and say, "Make yourself comfortable."
Zhan Yuejin and Zhu Jiuyin also looked toward Li Yan, nodding slightly. Su Ling tilted her head to nod at Li Yan as a greeting, her hands busy with the controller, thoroughly defeating Hou Tu.
"I’d rather not sit, elder, were you looking for me?"
"There are some things I need to discuss with you. The talisman that Mountain Spirit placed on you, everyone believes there’s no issue. You should be aware of that too."
Li Yan fell silent, subconsciously touching his chest.
"We don’t wish to be the bad guys either, yet sometimes, to do things properly means we can’t save face, and that’s just how it is. We understand if you feel resentful, but we’ve done our best to consider your dignity."
Li Yan shook his head, "I understand the difficulties you guys are facing. I’m not so petty."
"That’s good, that’s very good."
Zhao Jianzhong nodded with a smile, "You’ve expressed interest in joining the work of recycling fruit cores, and I’ve agreed to it. As for why, I won’t ask. But you need to be clear on it in your own mind. If you’re happy to, have a cup of tea here. If not, feel free to leave."
As Li Yan hesitated over how to reply, Su Ling, who was playing a game beside Hou Tu, suddenly heaved a sigh and said with feigned gravity, "I spoke out of turn that day, I’m sorry."
Lil’ Hou Tu promptly took on a pose of profound depth, "I’ve thought about what the meaning of existence is, and it’s not that I don’t care. Life is for playing around, and I’ll live even if existence has no meaning, I don’t need a destination."
The muscles on Li Yan’s face twitched.
Zhan Yuejin put down his teacup and said leisurely, "But if you are troubled, I am willing to keep you company."
Even Zhu Jiuyin, who had never interacted much with Li Yan and was seldom lighthearted, said with lowered brows, "The following words, I’m not afraid of anyone hearing, I just fear that I won’t have another chance to make you believe..."
"You are much more important to me than Yan Fu."
Zhao Jianzhong concluded.
Li Yan felt utterly ashamed, his face flushing red as he bowed deeply to them all, and then he awkwardly withdrew from the room.
Su Ling laughed shamelessly, while Zhan Yuejin and Zhu Jiuyin’s faces were also tinged with slight smiles.
Imperceptibly, the barrier that had once separated Li Yan as a newcomer to the Yan Zhao Club seemed to have dissipated completely.
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The design of this building was exceedingly complex. Aside from the main hall used for Yan Zhao Club meetings, there were also more than ten spacious and high floors that could accommodate hundreds of people, including a card room, basketball court, shooting range, and swimming pool. It had all kinds of modern facilities, yet once you stepped out of the sealed door, what lay before you was utterly astonishing.
Below was an immeasurable abyss, and the entire structure, along with a piece of green land, floated aimlessly in the darkness. Massive chains spanned the horizon, with thick clouds full of Thunder Plasma swirling around. In the overwhelming darkness, the building looked lonely and insignificant.
All of a sudden, a golden-red Albatross flapped its wings and swooped down, its size comparable to a Boeing series passenger jet, its round eyes staring at Li Yan.
"These clouds are called Thunder Pool, and the electricity and water used in the meeting place are drawn from the Thunder Pool,"
Yang Zheng walked over to Li Yan with a cigarette dangling from his mouth, "What you saw before – the plaza dotted with black pillars, and the separate bedrooms in the branches of the fruit trees. This is the main trunk of the Yan Fu fruit tree, with neither sky above nor earth below. The chains and the Albatross serve as roads and means of transportation for Yan Fu."
Li Yan asked, "Aren’t there teleportation gates?"
"Only a small portion of the Five Immortals Category can do that. As someone with Yun Zhongjun’s protection, you don’t need to worry, but some others don’t have that capability. Besides, the trunk is much too large."
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