Lian Bud was adamant, insisting that Li Bufeng was trying to steal his oil.
Li Banfeng got angry. "This oil is stuck to me! I find it disgusting enough as it is!"
Lian Bud raged, "If you’re so great, then don’t take it with you!"
"Who said I was going to take it? If you’re so great, take it back!"
"Take off your clothes first!"
"The clothes are mine. Why should I just take them off?"
"If you don’t take them off, you’re trying to steal the oil!"
Unable to reason with him, Li Banfeng continued to flee.
The wind in the jungle was too fierce, and sand and stones frequently pelted his face.
Li Banfeng pushed against the wind, trying to break out, but Lian Bud caught up from behind and grabbed him. "There’s no time! Come with me."
"No time for what?"
"Just come!"
Lian Bud led Li Banfeng on a mad dash through the jungle. They arrived near a giant tree where they saw the entrance to an underground burrow.
Lian Bud said to Li Banfeng, "Get in!"
Li Banfeng frowned. "Why must I get into this one?"
"If you don’t, you’ll definitely die!" Lian Bud crawled in first.
Sensing the approaching danger, Li Banfeng realized this burrow was indeed a refuge, so he followed Lian Bud inside.
The burrow’s interior was complex. He could see the roots of the giant tree and many caves of different sizes along the rock walls.
Lian Bud found a cave high up to hide in and gestured for Li Banfeng to join him.
Soon after, water began to fill the underground passages, rising rapidly. The lower caves were submerged, and the water was even about to reach the entrance of the cave where Li Banfeng was.
Li Banfeng reached out of the cave entrance to collect some water and examined it.
Although clear, the water was slightly sticky.
Little Lian Bud rubbed his nose. "I just had a bit of a runny nose, clear stuff."
Li Banfeng seized the chance to wipe the "water" from his hand onto Lian Bud’s body and said sincerely, "I really didn’t come to steal your oil."
"Then tell me, how did you end up here?"
"I was hunting in the New Land and somehow fell into an oil lake," Li Banfeng lied.
"New Land? Which New Land?" Lian Bud still didn’t believe him.
Unable to provide a better explanation, Li Banfeng continued to fabricate, "The New Land in Greenwater Bay."
"Greenwater Bay? Is there such a place? I remember now! It used to be called Beggar Bay. But then Green Flower took over the territory, and it became Greenwater Bay. So, Green Flower sent you to steal the oil?"
Li Banfeng furrowed his brow. "I don’t even know Green Flower!"
"Then who sent you to steal the oil?"
"Why are you so sure I came to steal oil?"
"What else would you be here for?"
Li Banfeng couldn’t explain.
He thought of a solution. "How about this: you take all the oil off my body—don’t leave a drop. That way, you’ll be rid of a concern, and I’ll be cleared of suspicion. But the clothes are mine; I absolutely won’t leave them for you."
Lian Bud thought for a moment and said, "Alright. This place isn’t suitable. Let’s go out and get this sorted first."
Li Banfeng glanced at the clear liquid outside the cave, then turned to look at Lian Bud again.
"Maybe we should wait a bit before going out. Your... tide hasn’t receded yet."
"That’s easy to fix!" Lian Bud took a deep breath.
SLURP.
GULP.
He swallowed his snot.
Li Banfeng looked again; the tide had receded, leaving only a little dampness on the ground.
Following Lian Bud out of the burrow, Li Banfeng figured out the general structure.
This forest was Lian Bud’s nostril, and the lush trees were his nose hairs.
The burrow they had just been in was one of Lian Bud’s pores.
Lian Bud led Li Banfeng out of the nostril.
In the blink of an eye, they arrived in another forest. This one was even denser; it stretched endlessly, and the tops of the trees were out of sight.
Little Lian Bud stood before Li Banfeng and coughed. All the grease on Li Banfeng’s body vanished.
"Alright, the oil’s gone. You can go now!" Little Lian Bud waved Li Banfeng away.
"Farewell!" Li Banfeng turned and left.
He had only taken a few steps when Little Lian Bud bellowed, "There’s my oil on the soles of your feet! And you still say you didn’t come to steal it!"
Li Banfeng didn’t know how to respond. "Can’t we be reasonable? This place is covered in your oil; how could I possibly not get some on me?"
Little Lian Bud pondered for a moment. "I’m trying to be reasonable, but this isn’t logical. You were wandering around the New Land in Beggar Bay; you shouldn’t have ended up here!"
Li Banfeng said, "Many things are illogical. I was on your face, and now you’re in front of me. Do you think that’s logical?"
Little Lian Bud thought about it. Indeed, it was quite illogical.
By the time he looked up for Li Bufeng again, Li Bufeng was long gone.
"Where are you going? Stop right there!"
Li Banfeng didn’t look back, just kept running forward.
Little Lian Bud seemed to guess Li Banfeng’s intention and shouted, "Go on, try it! I’ll drown you! Drown you in yellow snot!"
「In Greenwater City, east of the city, Lu Chunying’s residence.」
Lu Chunying tilted her head back, letting Xiao Yeci lift her eyelids.
"Mom, look carefully. Are there any bloodshot veins in my eyes?"
"Nannan, Mom has been checking your eyelids for half an hour. Your eyes are completely red now, full of bloodshot veins!"
Lu Chunying rubbed her eyes. "Big Brother Qiu told me that after seeing Lady Duan, I have to watch my eyes carefully. If more bloodshot veins appear, something terrible is going to happen."
Xiao Yeci was also anxious. She examined Lu Chunying’s eyes for a long time before shaking her head. "Nannan, close your eyes and rest for a bit. Once the redness subsides, I’ll take another good look."