"Master, are we just leaving like this?"
At the Li family's full moon banquet, Huang Xiujin had a long conversation with Li Dalong and his wife in the inner hall before finally departing.
In the sky, a spirit boat, a flying spiritual artifact, carried Huang Xiujin at its bow. He didn't dare look back at the seemingly ordinary mountain village below.
His subordinate beside him couldn't help but feel puzzled. Their master usually exploited every battle, often gaining a lot of resources or carrying out a bloody purge on the spot. It was rare for him to return empty-handed like this.
Huang Xiujin stood facing the wind, exuding the aura of a superior being. "The way of survival for the Cloudsea Pavilion is to make friends with everyone under the heavens. The Li family are all sensible individuals. They are now willing to be used by our Cloudsea Pavilion."
"I see! Master, you are truly a wise!"
Upon hearing this, Huang Xiujin's back appeared even more imposing in the eyes of his subordinates. They heard him continue, "Pass down the order, inform all sects and families in Azure Cloud City region that the Li family of Tailin is no longer a threat. The matter of the Dragon Tiger Sect's destruction will not be pursued further. The Li family's annual tribute... will be one hundred thousand low-grade spirit stones."
His subordinates were once again stunned. "One hundred thousand low-grade spirit stones? Master, the tributes from other families have never been this low."
"..."
How could his subordinates see Huang Xiujin's expression?
At this moment, he was drenched in cold sweat, far from the transcendent figure he appeared from behind. He gritted his teeth, forcing a calm voice, "It's just a small token of appreciation. Next year, it will be two hundred thousand."
"Master's wisdom is unparalleled in the world!"
The enormous spirit boat flew faster and faster.
But everything he encountered in the Li family, especially when he met Li Yaozu with the hundred-foot-long cyan sword above his head, remained vivid in his mind. And then there was the Li family's ancestral hall, where the cries of a dragon and a phoenix echoed in unison — a celestial phenomenon unheard of even within the Black Tortoise Sect.
Within, there were even two unknowable existences. He merely attempted to probe them, and in an instant, ten years of his lifespan were shaved away.
A single visit to the Li family cost him twenty years of his life!
And those two puppets brought by Li Yaozu, each one was an anomaly capable of taking his life.
The spirit boat sailed through the clouds, seemingly encountering turbulent waves. Huang Xiujin looked at his luck Qi, which was gradually increasing after leaving the Li family, and finally smiled.
"No matter the storms and waves in the world, disasters will always remain one step away from me!"
...
[Huang Xiujin, the Master of the Cloudsea Pavilion, entered the Li family's residence and met its members, feeling a sense of warmth and kinship.]
[He had a detailed conversation with Li Dalong and his wife, expressing his willingness to form an alliance with the Li family, considering each other as close allies. He generously offered to pay 100,000 spirit stones to the Black Tortoise Sect on behalf of the Li family as an annual tribute.]
[Congratulations! Your family has successfully resolved the crisis from the Azure Cloud City region, gaining 1000 incense points!]
"Did Huang Xiujin actually mean what he said?"
Watching Huang Xiujin's flying boat accelerate into the distance, Li Wei finally released the mouse button he had been holding down on the Violet Tempest Python's head icon.
Golden Core cultivators do have some tricks up their sleeves.
He had assumed that Huang Xiujin felt threatened by the Celestial Star Spirit Seekers and the Pig Demon King, leading him to feign friendship with the Li family. But unexpectedly, a pop-up window appeared on the game interface, indicating that the crisis from Azure Cloud City region, which had been troubling the Li family, was truly resolved!
While pondering the reason, Li Wei was startled as a notification popped up in the event panel.
[Your descendant, Li Yunlin, has secretly sent a top-grade spirit artifact - the Eight Directions Formation Disk!]
[Eight Directions Formation Disk: Can be activated by spiritual power and spirit stones, drawing upon the power of the earth to protect an area.]
"Hmm? Is this the trump card Yunlin mentioned when I saw him earlier, the one he wanted to bring back to the family?"
A hint of joy flashed in Li Wei's eyes.
The Li family had plenty of spiritual artifacts, and Li Yaotie could even craft low-grade ones himself. However, they only possessed two top-grade spirit artifacts. One was the 'heavenly Seal' that the family members took turns using, and the other was the 'Spirit-Infused Robe' that protected Li Yaowen.
Back then, the monk Shancai also had two top-grade spirit artifacts, but those could only be activated by Buddhist power.
Li Yaotie had been trying to melt down those two spirit artifacts for who knows how many years.
However, with the Li family's current strength, they couldn't even melt them with alchemical fire. The Demon King had also tried, but its demonic flames were repelled the moment they touched the Buddhist spirit artifacts.
A single top-grade Formation Disk spirit artifact could become the Li family's treasured heirloom!
"Excellent, excellent!"
Li Dalong held the formation disk with great joy, "My grandson Yunlin has learned to give gifts to his elders. This child has truly grown up."
He and Xu Cuihua were both beaming with smiles. They didn't care whether Li Yunlin had sent a top-grade spirit artifact or not; even the lowest-grade common artifact would bring joy to these two seventy-year-old elders.
The same went for everyone else present, filling the hall with warmth.