Chapter 618: Ancient Powers

The heavy snow had been falling for days, cloaking the Dragon-Tiger mountain range in silver.

"Third Uncle, Third Uncle, come out and play!"

Two little rascals in thick padded jackets trotted through the door, their small faces flushed red.

"You two go play first."

Li Yuan set down his brush and looked up with a smile; the desk was spread thick with paper, the ink still wet.

"Third Uncle, what are you writing?"

The two little rascals scooted over, curious.

"This Wu Jing is a fine thing your Third Uncle has prepared to leave for you." Li Yuan smiled and ruffled the two little rascals' heads.

A Wu Jing is no mere martial manual; the two little rascals, who had already entered Dragon-Tiger Temple, were not short on Wu Gong to learn. This Wu Jing was more the experience and insights he had gained from years of martial training. Though it contained no specific Wu Gong, one could trace within it the marks of Ren He Wu Gong.

"Leaving it for us?" The little rascals' eyes sparkled.

"Mm, you must study it well in the future."

Li Yuan tidied the scattered papers on the desk. These two little rascals were only of middling talent; normally, even having entered Dragon-Tiger Temple, they would have no hope of entering the Dao.

But if they could truly settle their hearts and study the Wu Jing he left behind, there might be hope of entering the Dao; and with Dragon-Tiger Temple's cultivation, there might even be the possibility of going further.

This was the heritage he was leaving for the future Li family. He had prepared many similar Wu Jing; Dragon-Tiger Temple, Divine Weapon Valley, Old Han, Senior Sister Fang, Ba Wan Li, and other old friends all had copies.

"Go play on your own, don't disturb your Third Uncle!" At this moment, Li Lin came chasing after them and shooed the two little rascals out.

"Second Brother went to see him again?"

Li Yuan glanced at him.

"Mm…" Li Lin's expression was a touch unnatural. "Father and Mother might want to see him too?"

"You decide."

Li Yuan waved a hand, with no intention of interfering. He and Li Yue had met only a handful of times, but Second Brother had grown up alongside him since childhood.

"When are you planning to leave?" Li Lin changed the subject, a hint of worry in his eyes.

"If nothing unexpected happens, it should be after the New Year."

Li Yuan's brow furrowed almost imperceptibly. These past days, Pang Pang Wenlong had been making big moves, very much with the air of sharpening weapons and feeding the horses before a great battle was about to begin, while he himself had consulted Chi He Lian several more times.

The results were more or less the same—either both sides shattered like jade, or they perished together; not a single good word to be seen.

He did not fully believe it, but there was some hidden worry in his heart.

The Tong Shi Ball had vastly broadened his horizons and deepened his understanding of Daoist arts. The essence of Chi He Lian's Daoist art, Immortal's Guidance, was to stir the divine patterns to align with the rhythms of heaven and earth in the unseen, glimpsing one possible outcome.

"After the New Year…"

Li Lin opened his mouth as if to say something, but in the end merely turned his head away: "Your sister-in-law has cooked, stay and drink a few cups with me later."

"Alright."

Li Yuan agreed with a smile.

………….

Li Yuan had drunk his share of wine, and not only this bout with Second Brother.

Several Zhen Chuan disciples of Dragon-Tiger Temple, several martial brothers of Divine Weapon Valley, Lei Lei Jingchuan, Jing Jing Shuhu, and even Valley Master Gong Gong Yangyu had all come once.

Later, even Senior Sister Fang came to join the fun. A whole group drank for several days straight, and only stopped after they joined forces to overturn Master Li himself once.

Of course, in the process, every one of them had been overturned several times in turn.

In the days that followed, the movements of the several great Daoist sects grew ever larger; even ordinary disciples caught the scent of a great battle approaching.

Yet all this seemed to have nothing to do with Li Yuan; when he took the initiative to ask, he was sent away by Pang Pang Wenlong.

Li Yuan could only press down his thoughts. In the many days that followed, apart from taking time to custom-forge several divine weapons for Senior Sister Fang, Ba Wan Li, and others, the vast majority of his time was spent either listening to sounds or gathering intelligence within the Tong Shi Ball.

In the blink of an eye, it was already before the New Year's Eve.

…………

"Though the Grand Void Divine Mirror connects the myriad realms, each realm has its own ruling holy land and sect, and so there are barriers that ordinary people cannot cross. Among my Mirage Dragon clan, only very few possess Tong Shi Balls that can cross barriers—those are truly fine things…" In the room, Li Yuan toyed with the Tong Shi Ball, his attention split: while gathering and sorting intelligence, he was also listening to the little mother dragon's endless chatter.

"Not necessarily, is it?"

Li Yuan glanced at her, bringing up the few mysterious sects he had seen in Wan Yu Shan Xuan Zong that required rituals to enter:

"Those sects shouldn't be sects of Tian Shi Yuan, should they?"

"Those sects…"

The little mother dragon was somewhat muttering in her heart—this native was picking it up far too fast. Back in the day, even with her clansmen guiding her, she hadn't picked up the Tong Shi Ball this quickly:

"Those sects…I once asked Grandfather about them back then. The old man was very tight-lipped, but unable to withstand my pleading, he still let slip a little, but…"

The little mother dragon paused and stated her condition: "One hundred thousand Yuan coins!"

"Why don't you just go rob someone?"

Li Yuan flatly refused.

"Clearly marked price, no cheating young or old—how could that be called robbery?"

The little mother dragon was a little displeased: "Even within the Grand Void Divine Mirror you may not necessarily find this kind of intelligence. You've run into plenty of matters where the great conceal their names, haven't you?"

!

Li Yuan was at a loss for words. When he had been desperately searching, naturally he had run into plenty. He haggled:

"Ten thousand at most."

"A hundred thousand!"

"Ten thousand."

"Fifty thousand, can't go any lower!"

"Ten thousand!"

"…You don't raise the price at all? Who haggles like this!"

The little mother dragon was hopping mad.

"Just ten thousand."

Li Yuan spread his five fingers, and a wisp of seventh-tier incense rose from his palm.

The little mother dragon couldn't look away — heaven knew how long it had been since she'd gotten any Origin Fire: "Ten thousand it is!"

"Go on."

Li Yuan closed his five fingers — goods first, payment later, naturally.

"It's said that among the various realms, besides the great sects and clans that govern domains, there are also some ancient sects left over from the Origin Era. Unless one has great fortune, one cannot even touch them — entry is extremely demanding…"

"That's it?"

Li Yuan frowned: "You earned that ten thousand Yuan-coins far too easily!"

"You don't actually want to know how to join these sects, do you?"

The little mother dragon rolled her eyes.

"…"

Li Yuan casually wrapped her around his waist, closed his eyes, and with a divided mind, began exploring the Universal Sphere while entering the Soldier Space to listen to sounds.

The Universal Sphere did contain a sea of information, but because of those damned 【Relevant Regulations】, comparatively speaking, though listening to sounds was more random, the intelligence gained wouldn't be vague.

Hum!

Flowing light intertwined, incense drowned the wooden scroll, and various sounds came to mind one after another.

Li Yuan focused his attention, sorting and categorizing, but couldn't help being moved to listen to the Heavenly Sound.

Over the past few years he hadn't listened to the Heavenly Sound — the chances had all been saved up.

He had originally planned to wait until reaching Tian Shi Yuan, or at least until he was on the way, before listening.

The sounds obtained from the Sound-Listening Scroll were not only related to himself, but also greatly tied to his current environment. In theory, listening to the Heavenly Sound upon reaching Tian Shi Yuan would yield greater benefits.

But now…

"There are still quite a few chances left — using one or two won't hurt…"

Daoist Li was not one to be indecisive. The thought moved, and he had already begun listening to the Heavenly Sound.

(End of chapter)