It turned out that Qin An had rushed out at that moment, running anxiously towards the entrance of the cave.
Just then, a "click" was heard, and the stone door outside the cave opened.
Amidst the dust and smoke, a figure gradually came into view.
The moment Qin An saw the figure, he lost control and lunged at it.
"Master!" Qin An hugged Shu Lan tightly around the waist, buried his head in Shu Lan's shoulder, his voice full of dependence and affection.
After the smoke cleared, Shu Lan appeared before everyone unharmed.
After three years of growth, Shu Lan had reached the same height as in her previous life. Shu Lan was initially delighted with her 1.8-meter height, but the moment she saw her disciple, she suppressed her excessive joy.
It turns out that Qin An's height has already reached Shu Lan's nose, and he will probably surpass Shu Lan in a few years.
Shu Lan patted Qin An's back gently, feeling both helpless and amused. "Alright, alright, there are people watching here. Be careful. How old are you? You're almost as tall as your teacher."
"Hmm." Qin An then noticed his lapse in composure. He regretfully released his hands and lifted his head from Shu Lan's shoulder. He rubbed his nose sheepishly. "Master, I'm sorry. I was just too excited, so I lost my composure. Please forgive me."
"It's alright, I understand. After all, I haven't seen Xiao An for a long time, so it's normal to lose control of my emotions for a moment." Shu Lan raised her hand, then, realizing it wasn't close enough, raised it even higher before placing it on Qin An's head and gently rubbing it.
"Congratulations on your advancement to the Integration Stage, Junior Brother!" At this moment, Venerable Lieyang also walked over, his face full of smiles and his tone extremely cheerful.
"Mm." Shu Lan nodded with a smile.
"Grandmaster Uncle, Grandmaster Uncle! You've finally come out! You scared us to death!" Ye Feiyu rushed over and stood excitedly in front of Shu Lan.
Qin An glanced at Ye Feiyu indifferently, and Ye Feiyu subconsciously moved his feet back a couple of times.
Shu Lan immediately understood what had happened. It seemed that her disciple was still angry with Ye Feiyu after she was injured last time.
Just as Shu Lan had guessed, Ye Feiyu felt guilty after being injured in the battle against the Shadow Demon, and was somewhat afraid to face Qin An, resulting in a lukewarm relationship between them. Qin An, on the other hand, showed no intention of forgiving him, so their relationship was currently quite strained.
"Ye Feiyu, what happened during the three years I was in seclusion?" Shu Lan broke the ice when the atmosphere became somewhat tense.
Now, Ye Feiyu was like a chatterbox, talking nonstop.
"Grandmaster Uncle, you have no idea how difficult it has been for me! After cleaning the paths between the peaks, my master dumped me on Kong Xiang, saying that Kong Xiang would supervise my cultivation! Kong Xiang is simply inhuman! All he does all day is make me cultivate, cultivate, cultivate! He won't even let me go down the mountain! He won't even allow me to read storybooks..."
Hearing this, Shu Lan couldn't help but chuckle. He knew the sect leader's intention, because Kong Xiang was a very steady, reliable person who was also diligent in cultivation. Therefore, it was most suitable for him to look after the unruly Ye Feiyu.
"Oh, right! Grandmaster Uncle, our Star River Sect has recruited a new batch of disciples in the past three years, and one of our junior sisters is particularly outstanding, she is..."
"Greetings, Grandmaster Uncle." Just then, a strange girl's voice interrupted Ye Feiyu's speech.
Shu Lan turned her head and saw a stranger.
"Ah, Grandmaster Uncle, this is my junior sister, her name is Shangguan Xue!"
"Shangguan Xue?!" Shu Lan was immediately surprised. If he remembered correctly, in the original book, she was the protagonist's first concubine. All the protagonist's concubines were great beauties, so Shangguan Xue must be quite good-looking.
So, Shu Lan began to look at Shangguan Xue with curiosity.
Her eyebrows were like distant mountains, her eyes were like autumn waves, and her small, delicate nose was exquisite and lovely. She was indeed a beauty in the making.
Shangguan Xue stood smiling in front of Shu Lan, "Grandmaster Uncle, this disciple is Shangguan Xue."
Shu Lan glanced at Ye Feiyu on the left and Shangguan Xue on the right with great interest, wondering if the two of them were already together.
Even before Shu Lan had finished observing Shangguan Xue, Qin An had already begun to feel uneasy. A sour feeling welled up inside him, and an unnamed fire burned within him. Qin An didn't know what was wrong with him; he only knew that he didn't want his master's gaze to fall on others, especially women.
"Master, what are you looking at?" Qin An asked, his voice laced with jealousy.
"Huh? It's nothing." Shu Lan didn't notice the strangeness in Qin An's tone, and simply withdrew her gaze from Shangguan Xue and Ye Feiyu.
"Grandmaster Uncle, Junior Sister Shangguan is very powerful. She has already reached the Foundation Establishment stage!" Ye Feiyu excitedly introduced Shangguan Xue to Shu Lan.
"Hmm, not bad." Shu Lan nodded approvingly.
"Master, I'm now at the Golden Core stage." Qin An pouted and muttered under his breath, somewhat dissatisfied.
"Of course your little An is very capable. It seems that you haven't slacked off in your cultivation during the years I've been away. You've done a great job!" Shu Lan pinched Qin An's cheek with delight, and Qin An felt much better.
"Grandmaster Uncle, there's also..."
"Senior brother, it's time to go back and cultivate." Just then, Kong Xiang's voice came from afar.
"Ugh! It's that guy again! How did he follow us again?!" Ye Feiyu scratched his head in frustration.
While Ye Feiyu was complaining, Kong Xiang had already walked over.
"Greetings, Grandmaster Uncle!" Kong Xiang bowed to Shu Lan.
"Grandmaster Uncle, I must take my senior brother back to cultivate now, please forgive me." With that, Kong Xiang grabbed Ye Feiyu's hand and pulled him away from there.
"Grandmaster Uncle, I don't want to leave! Junior Sister Shangguan, aren't we friends? Please pull Kong Xiang away!"
Shangguan Xue watched with a smile as Kong Xiang dragged Ye Feiyu away. Zhang Keke, who had been standing to the side as a mere background figure, also wore a meaningful smile.
Shu Lan watched their behavior and felt that something was off. But after thinking about it for a long time, she still couldn't figure out what it was.
So, Shu Lan shook her head, banishing all those random thoughts from her mind.
"Come on, Xiao An, let's go back to the courtyard." Shu Lan took Qin An's hand, preparing to return to the summit of Tinglan Peak.
"Junior brother, would you mind if I went to sit for a while?" At this moment, Venerable Lieyang also came over, wanting to leave with Shulan.
"If you don't mind, senior brother, you can come too."
So the three of them left the back mountain and headed towards the summit.
Seeing that the main figures had all left, the disciples and elders also dispersed and left the area.
"Senior brother, you lost again."
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