Chapter 844: Old Enemies

Back then, when the East Fire Cave Heaven was tossed about by Chu Yi, it plummeted from the Grand Void. Countless spiritual objects and magic treasures fell into the mountains, and the entire East Li Mountain saw spiritual energy surge and various types of Qi drift about, nourishing who knows how many cultivators. Among the Three Sects and Seven Gates of Jiangnan, the better-off ones made a fortune, while the lesser ones could at least share in the soup. The two True Persons who presided over the matter, Qiushui and Yuansu, gained even more treasures…

Now that this Cave Heaven had fallen, the magic sword that the Li family was determined to obtain was right before their eyes; it absolutely could not be lost. If such a major event were truly happening, they would likely have to cross the river to snatch it.

"It won't be an easy task…"

If True Person Tinglan delayed her return, without this True Person to preside over the overall situation, how could the north of the river allow people from the Three Sects and Seven Gates to come and go as they pleased? Even if True Person Tinglan returned, she could not be compared to the Qiushui and Yuansu of the past. Those two were people from the era of Li Jiangqun, and Qiushui even had the backing of a Jin Dan. At that time, the Solar Daoist lineage could even enter in a continuous stream, dividing the territory to scour the Cave Heaven! He, on the contrary, grew worried again.

If True Person Tinglan could carry out the actions of the old Yuansu and Qiushui, although the probability of this sword falling into the hands of the Li family was truly very low, it was still possible to exchange for it later. If Tinglan lost control of the north of the river, whose hands the Cave Heaven would eventually fall into, and how it would be disposed of, would be a cloud of mystery.

Li Jiangqian picked up several jade slips and had someone make rubbings to send to the clan. Li Que Wan reminded him:

"True Persons Tinglan and Qiuhu are not here. Since Li Quantao has come to ask, we must give an answer. He has good intentions toward our family, so we should try our best… try our best to help."

Li Jiangqian glanced at Li Minggong on the side, and seeing her nod in agreement, he bowed his head and said:

"That is well said. After all, it is a friendship of many years. How about we answer like this… tell him to let the people pass, saying that the True Persons are currently not to be seen and that the north of the river is likely to have changes, telling him to be cautious in his words and actions, and to be very careful in his dealings."

Li Jiangqian naturally would not reveal anything more. Before the two could reply, he doubted:

"Has Li Quantao ever mentioned his offspring?"

"Never."

Li Que Wan replied: "This one entered the north of the river like a stone cast into the sea, unable to stir up even half a ripple. We haven't seen any reply letters from him either; we only know that his Life Jade is unharmed."

While listening, Li Jiangqian finished writing the letter and replied:

"Then it is even less appropriate to say more. Let it be like this… tell him that with the prestige of Qingchi, the forces in the north of the river will not dare to do anything to his child… he can rest assured."

Li Minggong, who had been waiting for a while on the side, finally spoke:

"I have heard of a matter; the Retired Emperor of the Northern Shanyue, called something like Brother Dili Youjie, recently came to the lake to pay respects, saying he is preparing to attempt Foundation Establishment and hopes to obtain a favor from the lake."

"Brother Dili Youjie?"

Li Jiangqian frowned. He was still somewhat familiar with this name, so he replied: "I remember him. Having sat on the throne of North Shanyue for so many years, he has finally reached this point. His junior, Brother Dili Guang, is still serving by Uncle Zhouluo's side and is considered a loyal servant. I wonder what cultivation technique he has practiced?"

"'Geng Metal'."

Li Minggong responded, smiling:

"His cultivation technique was prepared, but although it is not much to look at, there are those in the clan with the same Qi who can replace it, which shows he has also put his mind to it. I am prepared to take him to the clan to have a look, change his technique, and send him to seclude himself…"

Li Jiangqian agreed, which counted as consent. Li Minggong said softly: "Also, I heard that the 【Thirty-Two Prefectures Purple Vast Spirit Needle】 in the clan is nearing its end, so I came to ask you."

"I know."

Li Jiangqian shook his head. He had been supervising this matter all along and knew it the clearest: "It is indeed nearing completion. The amount of inventory consumed by this Zifu formation is unprecedented in a hundred years. It has almost emptied the relevant spiritual resources in our family's hands, and even caused the price of such spiritual resources in the entire Yuebei to rise by half a percent. In the later stages, we even added a lot of spiritual rice to supply the Ziyan Sect."

The Li family's system was different from other families, so their spiritual rice production was considered to be among the top few among the many Zifu forces in the Yue State. And things like spiritual rice were not worth much when there was too much of them; the Ziyan Sect had clearly also sold them a favor.

"The next step is for Zifu cultivators to set up the formation, but True Person Tinglan is missing… even if she were not missing, with the True Person not returned, we would not dare to let the Zifu of other families set up the formation alone… I estimate we will have to wait two years."

Li Minggong nodded and replied:

"This formation is not urgent. What is important is that the matter is settled and the people of the Ziyan Sect are sent away first… Now that the north and south are in turmoil, the matter of Daoist Cao has set a precedent. If more people come to the lake to take disciples later, it will be a troublesome matter."

After Li Minggong finished speaking, she drifted away. Li Jiangqian then sighed:

"The elders have practiced good flames these years, breaking through from the struggle between the north and south, and have become increasingly formidable."

Although Li Minggong was not as outstanding as Li Cheng, as she grew older, her cultivation base gradually deepened, and she was qualified to be a Peak Master among the Three Sects and Seven Gates. Li Que Wan responded, and then reminded him: "Jiangliang is growing older. We can let him come back to see Qingdu and Yuting. It is time for him to walk around and test his quality."

Li Jiangqian nodded thoughtfully, but did not rush to give the order. He let her leave, turned around in the main hall, and looked to the north. The heavy rain still did not stop, a patch of dark clouds.

"If the 【Gui Ming Xuan Ling】 is truly the design of True Person Tinglan… which family does not want the Solar Daoist lineage to benefit…"

He walked forward quickly, but found that the rain clouds in the sky were dense. A stream of light came from afar and landed in the continent. Soon, a sound of footsteps approached. Chen Yang, in black armor, stopped before him and bowed: "Family Head, news has come from Qingchi in the south. The adult of the 【Hengzhu Dao】 has broken through to Zifu and attained the Dao of Divine Abilities. The Dao title is 【Nanzun】."

"【Hengzhu Dao】?"

Li Jiangqian was slightly stunned, feeling a bit of regret, and asked: "Which generation of people is it?"

Chen Yang hesitated slightly and replied: "It is said that this True Person spent nearly thirty years breaking through successfully, but the seniority is actually very high, close to True Person Hengxing. The secular name is: Bi Chengjuan."

"Bi Chengjuan… I have never heard of it."

Li Jiangqian nodded silently. It was indeed a name he had never heard of. He only sighed: "【Hengzhu Dao】, I don't know if this blessed land is formidable, or if there is some good method. It is truly a great blessing to have added another Zifu. Now it is about to become the leading Daoist lineage of the Yue State!"

"It is just a pity that this Daoist lineage… has a strange temperament… is out of tune with the masses… and is even more at enmity with Jin Yu. I don't know if it is good or bad!"

He pondered for a moment and replied: "In terms of reason and emotion, we must send people to offer congratulations. You reply to Qingchi again, saying that the True Person has not shown divine abilities for a long time, and ask if they can contact them, to give Tantai Jin a warning."

……

Xiaoshi Mountain.

The Xiaoshi Mountain range was undulating, with sparse vegetation, and even somewhat desolate. Because of this rare heavy rain, it appeared even more bleak. Pale yellow rainwater flowed down the gullies on the mountain, taking away all the little sand and soil.

This sand and soil poured down, continuously flowing eastward along the tributaries of the river, soon merging into the dilapidated river channel of the Ancient Huai River and pouring into the Baijiang Creek.

In this torrential rain, several colorful divine abilities floated in the dark clouds. In the heavy night sky stood a man in brown clothes, with light gray eyes, both hands behind his back, stepping on divine abilities like dark light, his gaze sweeping across the mountain.

Xiaoshi Mountain was once the mountain gate of the 【Mifan Sect】 and was also the source of the current Mifan Daoist lineage. Although it had been occupied by the Buddhist monks once, the broken walls and ruins all over the mountain still had a lot of ancient charm, appearing even more desolate in the heavy rain.

He only took this one look, put his hands together in front of his chest, and blew out a dark yellow radiance, which spread out along this place. He then concentrated on operating his divine abilities, seemingly searching and calculating something.

On the other side was a woman in red clothes, whose face was somewhat youthful. She stood one step behind him, bowing her head slightly, appearing very respectful, and said in a low voice:

"True Person Kuiqi… have you gained anything?"

This woman was naturally True Person Zhu Gong. She was from overseas and practiced the Earth Virtue. In her early years, she was also called a demonic cultivator. Facing this cultivator of the Solar Daoist lineage, she was naturally very respectful.

The man in brown clothes had a resolute face, his gaze sinking into the mountain. He shook his head and opened his mouth:

"It is unclear. Just wait a while. In any case, the Northern Buddhists cannot run… and it is even more than one family."

True Person Zhu Gong immediately felt it was troublesome, revealing a look of fear. She clearly knew it was the matter of 【Qiwang Xuantian Ting】, and said in a low voice:

"What should be done about this? If it is truly those people of 【Pijia】, how can they resist with only two early-stage Zifu? If something happens, it will be earth-shattering…"

"Relying on him?"

True Person Kuiqi was clearly much calmer than her, and even frowned somewhat impatiently. He clearly did not have much good feeling for Zhu Gong in his heart, only being polite for the sake of Tinglan. Having encountered a critical moment, he could still speak in a good-natured way:

"Not only 【Pijia】. Relying on 【Pijia】 alone cannot do it. Back then, Senior Zipei snatched the Gold Nature, but it was snatched from the hands of a group of monks, offending that senior Maha 【Zhelu】. This one already has the strength of a late-stage Zifu!"

"I was not on the scene at that time, and I don't know which families are still involved… If they act together, that is the troublesome thing."

True Person Zhu Gong heard this, and became even more uneasy. Her heart immediately sank:

'Although this Kuiqi is polite on the surface, deep down he still has the high-and-mighty temper of the Solar Daoist lineage, and has no good intentions toward me. If I get close to him, I won't have a good end!'

She was vigilant in her heart, but fortunately, her heart to rescue Tinglan did not waver. At the moment, she had to follow this person, bowing her head and restraining her color, while Kuiqi sank his spirit and said:

"No need to worry too much. We have already arrived at this place. They cannot hide for too long. Tinglan and Ning Wan will at most suffer some minor injuries. These Buddhist monks have their own ulterior motives and cannot tear their faces with our Solar Daoist lineage… not to mention that these two have plenty of treasures on them, so there will be no major events."

Zhu Gong heard this, and immediately let out a heavy sigh of relief. Kuiqi soon loosened the radiance in his hand, as if he had broken some cover, and pinched his fingers to calculate.

But just at this moment, the heavy rain stopped abruptly. Infinite colorful light emerged in the sky, turning into a huge curtain of light descending from the sky, pressing down with fierce momentum. True Person Kuiqi reacted extremely quickly. The calculation in his hand dissipated immediately, and a copper sword flew out from his sleeve.

This copper sword presented a dark green color, hanging with a golden sword tassel, agile as a swallow, rushing into the sky, temporarily resisting that colorful light: "Boom!"

Between heaven and earth, dark light and colorful light collided, shining with colorful radiance, causing the surrounding dark clouds to be washed away immediately. Kuiqi's voice turned cold:

"Which Maha is here?"

A rainbow like a blessed land appeared in the sky. A solemn and dignified golden body sat in it, coiled with a black snake, with a long head like a horse on its neck. Its two eyes were large and round, presenting dark black light. It opened its big mouth and laughed:

"Fellow Daoist Kuiqi! I have long heard of your great name!"

This Maha was truly ugly beyond compare. Although it could terrify the common people, in the eyes of cultivators of the same cultivation base, it was only ugly. True Person Kuiqi stared at it, revealing a look of disgust, his expression becoming even colder, and opened his mouth:

"So it is Maha 【Tuixi】. Not staying in your broken place, why, do you want to take action to stop me!"

Maha Tuixi saw his expression, but still had a smile on his face, and replied: "I have long heard of your great name, thinking of exchanging pointers. I wonder if your 【Dahe Kui Copper Sword】 is formidable, or if my 【Kongxi Subduing Demon Bowl】 is better?"

As soon as his voice fell, a purple bowl with a smooth surface immediately appeared, covered by a purple-black edge, from which raging karmic fire sprayed out.

"【Tuixi】!"

Kuiqi was knowledgeable, while Zhu Gong had been in the East Sea for many years and did not recognize these Buddhist monks. Only now, seeing this iconic magic treasure, did she recognize the person in front of her, and sorted out the cause and effect: 'So it is another enemy made by True Person Zipei! Back then, on the river, he deliberately let people not be able to receive their fate, and stubbornly protected that Li Xuanfeng, causing people to die with many mages, and losing face. This Maha has always held a grudge in his heart…'

'This great True Person was too domineering in his later years and made too many enemies… Now that he has passed away, it is retribution!'

She felt terrified in her heart, but saw Kuiqi sneer, pull out his sword and rise, bringing up a piece of dark light, divine abilities flashing in mid-air, and shouted: "You dare to compare your randomly assembled treasure with my Xiukui's spirit treasure? Then let's try!"

Xiukui's Daoist lineage was strange and changeable, and he was full of spirit treasures. How could he be afraid of this newly promoted Maha in front of him? He even thought he had a chance to injure 【Tuixi】, and then go to find Tinglan.

But he was not afraid. True Person Zhu Gong on the side felt her scalp go numb, not knowing whether to go or stay. But before she could ponder more, many figures appeared on both sides, white mist swirling, huge golden bodies with three heads and six arms, numerous faces, Sanskrit sounds in bursts, appearing one by one.

It was indeed the crowd of pitying ones of Maha 【Tuixi】!

These manifestations of compassion were not as massive as the golden bodies in the sky, yet they had distinct expressions, gradually emerging from the Great Void, one after another.

"One, two… four, five…"

Five pitying ones!

Maha Tuixi was a newly promoted Maha. These five pitying ones under his command were likely his entire family fortune! Even if there were more, there could not be many more. Now that they were all out, one could see the hatred in his heart!

And the combined strength of the five pitying ones was enough to make her worry about her life!

And Zhu Gong stood blankly on the spot, watching the five pitying ones appearing one after another around her. There was absolutely no prestige of Kuiqi on her face, but extreme embarrassment, and a chill surged in her heart.

"It's over!"

Characters appearing in this chapter

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Li Minggong 'Zhili Xing' 【Mid-stage Foundation Establishment】

Li Jiangqian 'Dali Shu' 【Early-stage Foundation Establishment】

Li Que Wan 'Houshenshu' 【Early-stage Foundation Establishment】

Kui○qi 【Mid-stage Zifu】

Zhu○gong 【Early-stage Zifu】

Chen○yang 'Jing Long Wang' 【Early-stage Foundation Establishment】 ===== CHAPTER 845 =====