Su Chan was bowled over by the tidal wave of plastic packages, but she quickly struggled to her feet. Her height of one meter sixty-five left only the top half of her visible in the room, now suddenly overflowing with small plastic bags. She stared dumbfounded at the sea of packages beneath her, casually picking one up to see the words printed on it: Fujian Tieguanyin!

Li Yundong also noticed that his room was now piled high with tea bags. He gaped, muttering, "What is going on? Why is there so much tea?"

As he pondered this confusion, he suddenly heard the sound of keys at the door, followed by the door being pushed open as Ruan Hongling and Ziyuan entered, both carrying large bags from the city.

The two female disciples of the Linggong Sect were startled to see so many people suddenly in the room, especially the female disciples of the Huchan Sect.

Ruan Hongling’s eyes widened, and she stammered, "What in the world is happening?" She immediately spotted Li Yundong, then caught sight of Su Chan submerged in the Tieguanyin tea, and burst into loud laughter.

Ziyuan, seeing Li Yundong and Su Chan standing amidst an ocean of Tieguanyin tea, couldn't help but smile faintly.

Ruan Hongling turned to Li Yundong and snapped, "Hey, who let you open the door? Don't you know how much effort Senior Sister and I put into piling all this tea up here?"

Li Yundong looked both amused and exasperated. "Why did you pile it all in my room?"

Ruan Hongling scoffed and laughed, "And you have the nerve to ask! Making the two of us girls come back to handle this while you're lounging around carefree in Dongwu City. We worked so hard hauling all this tea up from the first floor, and you're still complaining! Let me tell you..."

Ruan Hongling was about to continue, but Ziyuan shot her a glare and commanded, "Hongling, show respect to the Sect Master of Huchan Sect!"

Ziyuan’s implication was crystal clear: Li Yundong was no longer someone Ruan Hongling could casually shout at; he was a Sect Master!

Ruan Hongling finally realized her error. She huffed sullenly, swallowing the rest of her words.

Cao Yi, being quick-witted, reacted promptly. She stepped forward, bowed slightly to Ziyuan and Ruan Hongling, and said, "Wuliang Shoufu. Forgive the intrusion, Venerable Ziyuan and Venerable Hongling."

Ziyuan smiled faintly and returned the bow. "Not at all; what intrusion is there to speak of?"

The others from the Huchan Sect, seeing Ziyuan and Ruan Hongling enter, stood up, though not all approached to offer courtesies like Cao Yi. Most maintained a guarded and distant posture.

Ziyuan knew that although she had participated in the siege against Huchan Sect previously, secretly lending them aid, making her something of a benefactor.

However, the enmity between Huchan Sect and the Zhengyi Sect was too deep. Furthermore, Yan Fang was the Second Martial Aunt of the Linggong Sect and intimately connected to Ziyuan. Yan Fang had nearly caused the near annihilation of the Huchan Sect. It would be a lie to say the Huchan disciples harbored no resentment.

Ziyuan understood this perfectly and did not take offense, merely offering them a gentle smile. She then turned to Li Yundong and asked, "Venerable Li, might I speak with you privately for a moment?"

Li Yundong nodded. "Certainly, let me stuff all this tea back first."

With that, he channeled his true essence, sweeping the tea bags back into the room as if sweeping dirt, then used his essence to seal the space, ensuring not a single bag fell out. Su Chan seized the opportunity to quickly slam the door shut, patted her chest, and said with lingering fear, "That scared me! Did that Zheng Youming transport all this tea?"

Li Yundong spread his hands. "Is there any other possibility?"

Su Chan's eyes darted around. "Then where will you sleep tonight?"

Li Yundong managed a wry smile. "I suppose I'll spread out on the floor in the living room with you all."

Ziyuan spoke up then. "Venerable Li, if you don't mind, you are welcome to stay with us tonight."

Li Yundong hesitated. "Wouldn't that be inappropriate?"

Ziyuan smiled faintly. "No trouble at all, but I do have a couple of things I wanted to ask you."

Li Yundong agreed, and accompanied Ziyuan to Su Chan's bedroom. After closing the door, he asked, "Are you going to ask why I brought all the Huchan Sect disciples to my home?"

Seeing Li Yundong get straight to the point, Ziyuan was momentarily stunned, as she had expected him to sidestep the issue.

Noticing her reaction, Li Yundong chuckled. "I knew seeing this scene would make you think too much. Yes, the Huchan Sect members are all spirits who have attained sentience—all peerless beauties in the mortal realm. Having even one show up in the human world is enough to cause a stir, let alone this many at once. So, you have doubts, perhaps questioning whether I have some selfish motives, right?"

Ziyuan laughed as well. "Wuliang Shoufu, Venerable Li is so forthright; perhaps I was being overly suspicious."

Li Yundong waved a hand. "If I were in your shoes, I would overthink it too. However, I brought them down the mountain for a very pressing reason. Even if you hadn't asked, I was going to tell you."

Ziyuan inquired curiously, "Oh? Even the famous Venerable Li has unavoidable difficulties?"

Li Yundong sighed. "Don't tease me. There's no one else here, and given our friendship, we don't need to be so formal." With that, he recounted the events he had recently encountered, concluding, "Such a tragedy befell our Huchan Sect, even involving an innocent mortal. This matter is truly a thorn in my side, leaving me restless."

Ziyuan pondered, her face serious. "You suspect there is a mole within the Huchan Sect?"

Li Yundong confirmed, "Yes! Currently, the Huchan Sect faces both internal and external strife; the situation is dire. Not only has our financial lifeline been severed, but providing food, clothing, shelter, and transport for everyone is becoming a problem. Moreover, the major sects still harbor ill will toward us. Just yesterday, I caught a villain spying on the Nine Revolutions Golden Elixir Art in our secret chamber. If news got out that the Nine Revolutions Golden Elixir Art is in the hands of the Huchan Sect, we will have no peace whatsoever."

"Right now, I don't know how many enemies covet us outside, nor do I know if we have an internal mole—and if so, who. That is why I brought them all down the mountain. Keeping everyone together will make it easier for us to monitor each other."

Ziyuan nodded slightly, a look of admiration flashing in her eyes. She asked, "Do the other members of the Huchan Sect know about the internal mole?"

Li Yundong shook his head. "No, I’ve only told Su Chan, Zhou Qin, and you about this. If I let the others know, suspicion might arise among them, causing the entire sect's spirit to scatter. Then, my role as Sect Master would become merely nominal."

Ziyuan sighed softly, giving Li Yundong a sympathetic look. "Being the Sect Master is truly not easy for you."

Li Yundong chuckled. "I accepted the role in a time of crisis. Besides, for Su Chan's sake, I must persevere. I can't let her master's sect be ruined by my hand."

Ziyuan's heart stirred. She looked at Li Yundong with a complex expression and sighed, "You truly are a man of deep feeling and righteousness."

Li Yundong waved his hand. "I suspect I will be causing you a lot of trouble from now on. After all, there are eleven of us from the Huchan Sect plus Su Chan. I can't watch over everyone by myself. Tomorrow, I need to find housing for them, and we must quickly secure a storefront to open a business. Otherwise, living off our savings, this eighty thousand will soon be reduced to eighty yuan."

Ziyuan smiled faintly. "You are right; we definitely need to increase income and reduce expenditure. Otherwise, if a group of cultivators were to starve to death, it would truly be the greatest joke in five thousand years of cultivation history."

Li Yundong laughed. "However, tonight, I need to ask you for a favor."

Ziyuan asked, puzzled, "What favor?"

Li Yundong said, "I want to go see if the corpses of those two golden snakes are still there."

Ziyuan was curious. "Why do you want to see them?"

Li Yundong pondered. "I'll tell you the reason tonight. I need to see them first before I can answer."

Ziyuan smiled and changed the subject. "Very well. Since we've cleared the air between us, now we face a bigger problem."

Li Yundong asked, "What problem?"

Ziyuan pointed toward the door. "With this many people, how do we solve the problem of feeding them? Eat out, or eat at home?"

Li Yundong felt a headache coming on. "With so many people, eating out might cause too much commotion. Let's eat at home."

Ziyuan began rolling up her sleeves and laughed. "Then we should get started now; cooking for over a dozen people won't be quick."

Li Yundong laughed. "Thankfully, I have you here. Otherwise, just me alone, I fear my back would break from the labor."

Ziyuan said, "Li Yundong, I’m telling you this for your own good: you need to find a way to detach yourself from these mundane affairs, or you won't even have time to cultivate. Your progress will stagnate. You must understand, cultivation is like rowing against a current—if you don't advance, you fall behind. If you don't improve, someone might defeat you next time."

Li Yundong recalled the young man from the Bi Dong Sect who had come to provoke him, and his expression immediately sobered. He said, "You are right. Once I solve the Huchan Sect's basic needs, I can focus on my cultivation."

Ziyuan nodded without further comment.

After leaving the room, the two headed into the kitchen and began working tirelessly. Ruan Hongling followed in to help. Su Chan, however, remained confined to the living room by Li Yundong's decree, so she obediently watched television. The little foxes, curious, surrounded her, chattering incessantly. After watching for a while, they grew tired of it, and more gathered around Su Chan, urging her to tell them about her experiences encountering the mortal world.

The little girl thrived on attention. Seeing a group clustered around her, she became animated and spoke eloquently about her time in the secular world. Since arriving in the mortal realm, she had never left Li Yundong's side, so naturally, every three sentences mentioned him. Especially when recounting how she punched a television screen, leading Li Yundong into heavy debt, and the days they lived closely together in their small room, depending only on each other, her face shone with a look of blissful happiness.

Her storytelling, instead of being helpful, prompted one little fox to exclaim thoughtfully, "Oh, so you had to get the Sect Master into deep debt before he would even notice you!"

The other little foxes nodded in unison, their eyes darting around as they started scheming about what small thing they could break to get the Sect Master to remember them. They scanned the room, their gazes finally settling on the television, all looking eager to act.

Su Chan was horrified and immediately shielded the plasma television like a mother hen protecting her chicks. "Hey, what are you planning?"

The little fox from Huchan Sect said sourly, "You're allowed to cause trouble, but we aren't allowed to do something to make the Sect Master remember us?"

Su Chan was internally frustrated, sweat beading on her forehead. She shouted, "Yundong works hard to earn money! Shouldn't we help him shoulder that burden? Causing trouble now will only make him angry and dislike you!"

Her reaction made Zhou Qin, standing nearby, bite her lip to suppress a smile. However, feeling that she wasn't truly one of the Huchan Sect, she refrained from speaking up, choosing instead to enjoy the spectacle.

Su Chan’s words made the little foxes hesitate. Cao Yi also scolded, "Nonsense! What are you fooling around for? Aren't you afraid the Sect Master will send you all back?"

Having finally descended the mountain and witnessed this dazzling world, these little foxes were in no mood to return. They shook their heads like rattles and abandoned their plan, settling down quietly.

Su Chan patted her chest with lingering relief. "That was close; those unruly devils nearly tore this house apart! No, these rascals are too mischievous; I need to help Yundong keep an eye on things!"

Just then, Li Yundong emerged from the kitchen carrying a platter, revealing a plate of golden-brown Braised Lion's Head meatballs, and called out, "Little ones, get ready to eat!"

His culinary skills were already exceptional, producing dishes that were a feast for the eyes, nose, and palate. With Ziyuan assisting in the kitchen, the two master chefs produced nothing short of perfection.

Instantly, everyone in the room—the entire Huchan contingent—had eyes wide open, fixed intently on the platter Li Yundong held.

Cao Yi and the other elders managed to maintain some composure, though they inwardly wondered, How is the Sect Master so skilled in cooking? The aroma alone is mouth-watering. It seems we are in for good eating from now on.

If the elders were like this, the little foxes were even less restrained. They watched intently as Li Yundong placed the dish on the table, collectively swallowing. They could barely hold themselves back, but the moment Li Yundong turned to go back to the kitchen, they let out a cry and rushed toward the dining table like bandits, forgoing chopsticks entirely and grabbing with their hands!

Su Chan stood dumbfounded for a moment before stamping her foot in annoyance. "Scoundrels! Grabbing food—that's my patented move!" With that, she bared her teeth and claws and pounced, joining the fray.