Chapter 230: Technique (Two-in-One)

Xiao Yongling's expression changed slightly, and after hesitating for a moment, he said in a low voice:

"This... isn't this slighting your clan? I'm afraid it's inappropriate."

Li Tongya naturally understood the meaning of Xiao Yongling's words, which were just words on the scene, and bowed:

"Tongya understands the principles. Yongling brother has already arranged seats on the other side, and has staggered the seats of the Wangyue Lake families, placing them far away from the last seat. When the clouds and mist cover them, no one will rudely explore with spiritual sense, so it will be fine."

Xiao Yongling did things cleanly. Li Tongya nodded with a smile, thanked him, and went to the last seat. Xiao Yongling sent him off personally, then returned to the upper seat. The whole peak was still empty. Behind him, Xiao Jiuqing praised:

"Seeing brother and Tongya senior interacting, it is like the mountain ringing and the valley responding, the moon shining on the clear stream, which is amazing."

Xiao Yongling laughed, patted him on the shoulder, and smiled:

"You mouth! If you want to be second in praise, no one dares to be first."

Xiao Jiuqing laughed and apologized repeatedly. Xiao Yongling laughed, then became serious, and replied:

Xiao Jiuqing nodded hurriedly, and then opened his mouth:

"The small one received the teaching, but I heard that the southern border of the Qingchi Sect has demon disasters again, and people are being recruited to go to Yishan City. I don't know how much truth there is?"

Xiao Yongling shook his head and replied:

"The demon king of the southern border and the Qingchi Sect have been in collusion. It is just Chi Zhiyun's strategy. Fortunately, my family is no longer under the Qingchi Sect, so there is no need to worry."

Xiao family brothers were chatting, and Li Tongya had already found a seat and sat down. After waiting for a moment, people fell on the jade platform above. A white-haired old man sat down in the seat beside him, looking around, looked at Li Tongya, his expression was suddenly surprised, and said respectfully:

"Greetings, senior..."

The seats around Li Tongya were all Embryonic Breath and Qi Refining seats. He was a Foundation Establishment cultivator sitting alone among them. The people beside him were all afraid and avoided him. This person only dared to greet him, fearing that he was some eccentric Foundation Establishment loose cultivator, and didn't dare to say more, turning his head to drink wine silently.

Li Tongya was happy to be like this, looked up at the people on the jade platform above gradually filling up, and then heard a singing name.

"Xiuyue Sect, True Person Shangyuan arrives--"

"Three sects and seven gates, the first to arrive is the Xiuyue Sect."

The surroundings were whispering. Li Tongya looked up and saw a figure already on the high seat. The True Person was dressed in white, the clothes were loose, wearing green jade in front of the collar, his face was blurred, and a sword was swaying at his waist. He sat on the high seat, holding a jade cup and looking at it carefully, looking unremarkable.

"Actually bothering the senior to come from afar, bowing to give the treasure post, the humble peak is shining, Chuting is grateful and fortunate."

Xiao Chuting's voice echoed on the peak. Li Tongya felt solemn. He saw the True Person on the high seat put down the jade cup and nodded slightly, which was considered an answer. He couldn't help but secretly guess:

"Xiao Chuting actually put his attitude so low... This

Xiao Chuting's voice echoed across the peak. Li Tongya listened with a solemn expression. He saw the True Person at the head of the table set down his jade cup and nod slightly, which counted as a response. He could not help but think to himself:

"Xiao Chuting has actually lowered his attitude so much... This person is a True Person in the late Zifu stage, or perhaps even at the peak. Although the Xiuyue Sect has always kept a low profile, it is still one of the three sects and has a profound foundation!"

The crowd below was whispering to one another. The Xiuyue Sect ranked among the three sects, yet it was the most inconspicuous among them. Not only was its mountain gate ethereal and untraceable, but it also allowed the noble families under its rule to roam free, faintly maintaining an attitude of watching the clouds and winds from afar. It was also the only sect with a Zifu immortal family under its jurisdiction.

Li Tongya was still listening to the fragments of gossip around him when he saw a flash of red light appear at the head of the table. Another Zifu cultivator appeared, with white hair and a youthful face, holding a jade ruler, his white beard fluttering.

"The Xuanyue Gate, True Person Changxi has arrived—"

"Changxi pays his respects to the senior!"

As soon as True Person Changxi appeared, he hurriedly cupped his hands to show respect. True Person Shangyuan, who was sitting at the head of the table wearing white robes with a green jade pendant at his collar, responded softly. Only then did True Person Changxi dare to raise his head, turning to offer his congratulations:

"Congratulations to you, fellow Daoist, for breaking through to the Zifu stage."

Li Tongya, sitting below, watched carefully and was secretly startled. He lingered for a moment on the sword at True Person Shangyuan's waist, then hurriedly lowered his head, not daring to look again, thinking to himself:

"This True Person Shangyuan is likely a sword immortal; otherwise, it would be difficult to make several True Persons act so respectfully."

"The Tangjin Gate..."

"The Zhangxiao Gate..."

The Zifu cultivators at the head of the table had all arrived one by one, and they all gestured and cupped their hands to True Person Shangyuan before taking their seats. Except for True Person Shangyuan of the Xiuyue Sect, the others all brought Foundation Establishment disciples. Li Tongya looked carefully and saw that, in addition to the positions of the three sects and seven gates, there were also several Zifu immortal families.

"The Qingchi Sect, True Person Buzi has arrived!"

Once the True Person of the Qingchi Sect arrived, seeing that the seats at the head were full, Xiao Chuting cupped his hands with a smile and spoke a few polite pleasantries. Consequently, immortal music played, and the scene was one of ease and peace.

Li Tongya looked up for a while and saw a familiar face among the crowd at the Ziyan Gate's table. That person was stroking his beard with one hand, drinking wine with great pleasure, flipping and picking at the food in his plate with jade chopsticks, and humming some kind of tune.

"This guy is living quite comfortably now!"

Li Tongya was amused and shook his head helplessly. Seeing him seated under the True Person of the Ziyan Gate, he realized he must have reached Foundation Establishment by now. He shook his head helplessly and thought to himself:

"It's just not very convenient right now. I'll see if I can find an opportunity to ask him. This Senior Ling Yanzi said he would send the spirit stones to my house, but there has been no news for many years, yet here he is, living it up."

This person was naturally Senior Ling Yanzi, the Ziyan Gate cultivator who had arrived at Mount Lijing during the chase years ago. Li Tongya had conspired with him to kill the two Zhangxiao Gate cultivators, but since they had two used storage bags that could not be utilized, he had let this guy take them back to exchange for spirit stones, saying he would send them back.

Li Tongya had never expected this guy to deliver them personally. Sure enough, more than ten years had passed, and Li Tongya hadn't even seen a hair of them. Now that he saw this person, he thought about asking him about it.

"I'm afraid this old guy will welsh on the debt. I'll just ask him once; if it doesn't work out, I'll just consider it money down the drain!"

————

Xu Gongming was riding his horse along the mountain path. It had just rained, and the ground was very muddy. The horse's hooves kicked up bursts of mud on the ground, and the dripping sound of water in the forest and the changed tone of the wind came through, making him frown slightly.

He was now at the fourth level of Embryonic Breath cultivation, and he could run much faster than the horse beneath him, but people are always lazy, and even after becoming an immortal, this is no exception. Asking him to walk himself on this rainy day would be worse than hiding in the house and not coming out.

Xu Gongming was now over thirty years old. Master Xu passed away last year, and the mountain sent someone to offer condolences. After all, Master Xu was the son of Xu San, and there was still some sentiment left with Li Xuanxuan and Li Xuanfeng.

Xu Gongming thanked them repeatedly and sent the messenger back. While grateful, he also felt a sense of sorrow; this meant that the bond between the Xu family and the main family had thinned by another degree. He handled the funeral and hurried to the Huaqian towns to take up his post.

Upon arriving at the place, he first went to visit the person in charge of the main family's affairs. Xu Gongming rode without stopping to the small courtyard behind the town to meet the representative of the Tian family's interests in the Huaqian towns—Tian Zhongqing.

Xu Gongming dismounted, and a small servant came forward to take the rope and lead the horse away. Xu Gongming knocked on the door lightly and said to the gatekeeper who walked up:

"Please report to my lord that an old friend, Xu Gongming, has come to visit."

Both the Xu family and the Tian family were veterans of Lijing Town, and their old residences were close to each other. Xu Gongming and Tian Zhongqing had played together when they were young. Later, they were separated for many years and could not recognize each other, but since meeting a few years ago and working together often, their relationship could be considered quite good.

Hearing the door creak, a handsome young man walked out with a sword tied to his waist. He stepped forward and said happily:

"I haven't seen you for months, Gongming!"

Xu Gongming laughed, entered the courtyard politely, and Tian Zhongqing closed the courtyard gate. He had a servant serve tea and exchanged pleasantries with him. Xu Gongming cupped his hands and offered congratulations:

"Congratulations, Brother Zhongqing! It seems the second Qi Refining cultivator with a different surname is destined to be from your family!"

"This is all thanks to the main family's generous treatment. We are deeply grateful in our hearts, and if we are to offer congratulations, we should congratulate the main family."

Immediately, he straightened his expression and replied:

"My clan uncle is already over fifty years old. He was discovered when we re-tested the bone structure of the older farmers back then. He has excellent talent, but it's a pity he started cultivating too late and missed the best opportunity for nothing. Now he can only gamble on Qi Refining. If he succeeds, that's best; if he can't, he can only become a miscellaneous Qi cultivator."

Xu Gongming nodded slightly. Li Qiuyang had failed his breakthrough, and the Li family had only issued new rules a few months ago, letting everyone know about this news regarding Qi Refining and miscellaneous Qi. He first offered a few words of congratulation and said some auspicious things.

Tian Zhongqing responded to each one, then lowered his voice and said:

"Brother Gongming, you came here this time... does the clan have any instructions?"

Xu Gongming shook his head and replied in a low voice:

"How could there be any instructions? I was just sent to the Huaqian towns. After all, there are more cultivators in Lijing Town now, and the spiritual energy is not as abundant as before. It's not rewarding to cultivate there. Those old guys who have no hope of Qi Refining and are just waiting to die don't care, but I can't just waste my time there."

Xu Gongming took the tea, took a sip, and continued:

"My master passed away a few months ago. He still had some sentiment with the mountain, so someone came down to offer condolences. I mentioned this matter and found an opportunity to be sent out."

"So that's how it is!"

Tian Zhongqing nodded, raised his eyebrows, and cupped his hands:

"Please accept my condolences, brother."

"Oh."

Xu Gongming waved his hand, his face showing a bit more bitterness, and replied:

"The legacy of the predecessors has been used up. I am the only cultivator in the Xu family now. If I don't succeed in Qi Refining, I'm afraid the family will decline, no different from commoners or humble families."

Tian Zhongqing paused slightly. The Tian family under the Li family's rule was currently the most powerful, so naturally, he had never had such worries. He could only sigh comfortingly and reply:

"Brother Gongming has outstanding talent, so Qi Refining is naturally not a problem."

It would have been better not to mention this. Xu Gongming felt it was particularly ironic to hear the words "outstanding talent." He laughed, his face bitter, and replied:

"Brother Zhongqing has been in Huaqian for a long time, so I'm afraid your information is not well-informed. If you knew the news from the clan, I'm afraid you wouldn't be able to say the words 'outstanding talent'!"

"Brother, why do you say that?"

Tian Zhongqing was stunned for a moment and couldn't help but ask. Seeing this, Xu Gongming raised an eyebrow, put down his cup, and said with a smile:

"Brother, take a guess: what is the cultivation level of those two from the main family now?"

"Those two?"

Tian Zhongqing pondered slightly, knowing that Xu Gongming was referring to Li Yuanjiao and Li Qinghong, and smiled:

"I don't know about the other one, but I have already witnessed Young Master Jiao's cultivation speed. Could it be the fourth level of Embryonic Breath?"

"The fourth level of Embryonic Breath?"

Xu Gongming sneered and replied:

"They have both cultivated the Jade Capital Wheel and achieved the fifth level of Embryonic Breath!"

"What?!"

Tian Zhongqing suddenly felt a bitter taste in his mouth. He had to know that among the Tian family, his talent was the highest, yet he was only at the fourth level of Embryonic Breath. Li Qinghong and Li Yuanjiao were only seventeen or eighteen, yet they had already reached the fifth level of Embryonic Breath. He sighed:

"I have truly wasted a dozen years!"

Xu Gongming also sighed and said nothing. Both of them were silent for a while. Only the bleak autumn wind and the sound of rain and dew remained in the courtyard. Xu Gongming drank two large gulps of tea and then whispered:

"Is the bloodline of Foundation Establishment really this noble? Three generations have all reached Qi Refining; it truly makes us envious."

"Qi Refining?"

At this point, it was Tian Zhongqing's turn to sneer. He interrupted and whispered:

"The ancestor has not left seclusion for many years. It's not impossible that he has already refined six wheels, broken through to Foundation Establishment, and recast the noble family!"

】

Xu Gongming was shocked. He calmed his mind and thought carefully, feeling more and more that it was possible, but he did not fully agree, only replying:

"It has only been three or four years. Foundation Establishment is a matter of life and death. The ancestor is most likely in seclusion breaking through to Foundation Establishment and is at a critical juncture. As for whether he succeeds or not, it is still unknown."

When the two reached this topic, they both fell silent at the same time, drinking tea to hide their embarrassment and fear. After a full dozen breaths, Tian Zhongqing calmed his mood and asked suspiciously:

"It's just that this cultivation speed is truly astonishing. The Yu and Fei families are also Foundation Establishment families, but I heard that the Yu family only produced a genius named Yu Muxian. Apart from that immortal sect disciple, Yu Mujian and Yu Mugao were already nearly thirty when they reached Qi Refining..."

The Tian family had produced spiritual aperture children for three generations, and they collected a lot of information from all aspects, having connections both on and off the mountain. Tian Zhongqing's words truly opened Xu Gongming's eyes. He nodded repeatedly and replied:

"Started cultivating at seven, and at seventeen, they have only cultivated for ten years, two years per wheel..."

The two looked at each other, and Tian Zhongqing whispered:

"I have also been to Mount Lijing. The spiritual vein is not as good as Mount Huaqian. The gap between the Embryonic Breath realms should not be this large."

Tian Zhongqing paused, stretched out his left hand, his young eyes becoming brighter and brighter. He pressed his fingers one by one and said in a deep voice:

"Talent."

"Elixirs."

"Spiritual energy."

"..."

Both were stunned. Xu Gongming opened his mouth and lowered his head like a thief. Tian Zhongqing also spoke slowly, and the two said in unison:

"Cultivation techniques!"