He had known that the cloud hornets altered cloud composition to make them more solid, but he didn't know that they were solid enough to serve as the bedrock and foundation for extensive civil engineering atop them.
"You have a village atop a cloud?" Rui asked in disbelief.
"Hoho... Impressive, isn't it?" The man smirked. "The infrastructure is also constituted of cloud bricks and cloud cement. Amazing isn't it?"
Rui had to admit that he was impressed. It was actually quite amazing to see such a fantastical sight right before him.
"Wait a minute," Rui frowned. "So you're telling me that in order to find you, one would literally need to search the clouds? Searching the forest is futile?"
"That's right, haha," The man laughed.
"..." Rui stared at him with a dubious expression.
"I don't accept just about anybody who reaches the center of the forest. Only those that pique my interest, like you did. And that worked out well, didn't it?"
"Right..." Rui sighed before stepping on the cloud himself with an expression of curiosity.
It had an unusual sensation to it. Firm and solid at its core, but very soft at the very exterior. Almost as if someone had covered steel with a thick layer of cotton.
Suddenly, Rui's attention was drawn as he felt two figures approaching them. Two women walked up to them in unison, facing Master Zeamer.
"Welcome back, master," They bowed their heads.
"Hohoho..." The master's attitude shifted as he grew more bashful and soft, much to Rui's shock. "It's good to be back, listening to your soft and sweet voices soothes this old man's weary heart."
"Would you like a massage?"
"Would you like a bath?"
"Or perhaps would like..."
"Hohoho..." The man's smile grew more. "How about all of the above?"
Rui's mouth subconsciously curled with a hint of disgust as he watched the lecherous Master's smile grow more obscene as his demeanor grew more lustful. 'This is a Martial Master?'
He would be lying if he said he wasn't disappointed. One thing that he had long learned was that Martial Artists were far from principled and pure like those from fictional media back on Earth. They were crude and materialistic mercenaries rather than principled saints or ascetics.
Still, he had hoped that the Upper Realms would be different. Master Reina had a strange and quirky personality, but she had not done anything that Rui considered depraved.
'Then again, she was an assassin for hire. The best.' He sighed, shaking his head.
"...hohoho..." The Martial Master paused, turning towards Rui with a less enthused expression. "...Also make sure to guide our new guest to his new living quarters and show him around."
"We aren't training?" Rui frowned.
"I'm a little busy with, ahem, some 'important' matters of vital importance," The Master flashed a lecherous grin as he pulled the adoring women to his side, fondling their bodies as he walked away.
"Hah, are you that desperate to get your rocks off, pervert?"
"Shut up!" The man barked. "I'm a Martial Master you know?! Show some respect!"
Rui simply stared at him with an expression of disdain as the man walked off laughing alongside the cooing girls, and another set of girls walked over to him, bowing to him.
"Please come follow us, sir. We will guide you to your personal quarters," The women informed him.
Rui nodded. "Thanks."
While they led him around, he had to admit, he couldn't help but admire the architecture. He had no idea how Master Zeamer had come to build such an admittedly remarkable place on top of a cloud and out of a cloud, but it was worthy of his admiration.
He did see a lot of people, but they were all women and had the same attire as the two women from earlier.
'That horny geezer.' Rui facepalmed. 'He created a harem!'
It was actually astonishing how far this old man went to satisfy his lust. Rui had thought that Martial Masters transcended ordinary human psychology, but this one Martial Master had singlehandedly overturned that impression.
"How many women work here?" Rui asked.
"More than a thousand," One of them replied.
"Do you get paid?"
"Not at all. We do however get food and comfortable living quarters free of cost, among other things." The other smiled at him.
"Hmm..." Rui considered their circumstances with a hint of skepticism. 'Not the worst deal in the world, I suppose, especially in this world.'
This world had much greater food and shelter insecurities, not to mention the many risks and dangers associated with living in a fantasy martial arts world, being protected by the Martial Art equivalent of an entire nuclear arsenal was a pretty good deal.
"How did all of you come to work for Master Zeamer?" Rui asked, raising his eyes.
"He made us an offer," One of them replied. "He would free us from the forces that tormented and shackled us in our lives, and bring us to a heavenly place where we would be fed, sheltered, and protected in exchange for servicing him in any way that he desired, within our capabilities."
"Interesting..." Rui considered the matter. 'Honestly, I thought he abducted them, but maybe I'm slandering him too much.'
Then again, he was a master of hypnosis, so Rui wasn't sure. Yet his eyes narrowed when he spotted underaged pre-pubescent boys and girls playing in the gardens of the palace.
"Don't tell me they also..." Rui gestured to them.
"They are his daughters," One of them informed him. "They've spent their entire lives in Cloudia."
"Oh," Rui glanced back at the children. To the Hypnomaster's credit, they seemed to be happy and content as they played around with each other boisterously in the gardens. 'It's not just a harem, it's a clan or a dynasty.'
It was an interesting way of setting one up, probably the most unique clan or dynasty that ever existed, but it worked. It was quite insular, considering that not even the Beggar's Sect knew about this establishment.
