Feng Qingyang stretched out his hand. The empty teacup melted into the falling snow, turning into water, which he drank in one gulp. "My father," he began, "on his deathbed, he said that our Jun Prince's Mansion would never be able to truly dominate the Southern Barbarian Lands."
"But I, I see an opportunity, an opportunity brought by your Li family!"
"You are quite fascinating. Rising from the countryside, you dared to defy the world. People in the Azure Cloud region say that you are like wild beasts from the Silver Iron Forest. For the sake of a Demon King, you even dared to offend the Azure Cloud Pavilion."
"You even killed a Nascent Soul cultivator from Azure Phoenix Mountain for me."
He grew increasingly delighted. "You are perfect," he said, "making enemies of the entire Azure Cloud region, showing no regard for any faction. You even cleverly managed to win over those sects. Do you know how thrilled I was that day when you came to my Jun Prince's Mansion with the Skyveil Sect and Black Tortoise Sect backing you?"
"I knew it then," he continued. "With your Li family and those two sects, as long as I fueled the flames from the sidelines, you and the major forces in Azure Cloud region would at least suffer heavy losses on both sides! In fact, that very night, I informed the major sects about it, and they couldn't sleep a wink!"
As he spoke, his expression turned gloomy.
"But I also had my worries," he admitted.
"Oh?"
Li Yaowen was puzzled.
Feng Qingyang explained, "I saw the true nature of your Li family in Li Kuangren. You are ferocious, you are like wild beasts, beasts waiting to gather into a pack."
"Outsiders say that as long as a Li family member is alone, no one dares to touch them. But I've realized that it's when you gather together that you are truly fearsome, like a pack of wolves."
"The Li family has risen to such power in just over a hundred years, making everyone in the Azure Cloud region uneasy. I, too, am restless."
He took a deep breath. "Today," he said, "I thought I could finally rest easy, but I never imagined there would be so many chess players."
"I want to know," he continued, "with the Heavenly Secrets Pavilion's intricate calculations, how will your Li family respond? What makes you, Li Yaowen, so confident and certain?"
The corners of Li Yaowen's mouth curled upwards slightly.
She recalled how, over thirty years ago, their ancestor had instructed her to prepare for their plans in the Azure Cloud region.
Twenty years ago, when their ancestor had explained to her that everything was not as simple as it seemed, she knew that he was watching over everything. His ancient wisdom, accumulated over countless years in the immortal realm, seemed capable of seeing through everything, giving her inspiration!
Their ancestor had been manipulating everything from behind the scenes. Perhaps, many years ago, he had already sensed the complexities of the situation.
"Thirty years ago," she said, "we had the same thoughts as you, Lord Feng. We wanted everything."
"Twenty years ago, my Li family actively entered the game."
"A few years ago, we stepped off your chessboard, and..."
Li Yaowen sneered. "Do you really think it was your Jun Prince's Mansion that fueled the rumors about the Li family representing a new era, about the Li family controlling half of Azure Cloud region's destiny? Was it truly your Jun Prince's Mansion that instigated the conflict between the Li family and the other factions? No, it was us, the Li family!"
"The Azure Cloud Pavilion is a relic of the past. The Li family will be the new rulers!"
...
High in the sky, a deep voice resonated, causing Long Xuankong's eyes to glaze over. The Long family members looked around in terror. If even their ancestor was frightened, how could they not be?
But no one knew the true extent of Long Xuankong's fear.
The Li family had arrived...
His Nascent Soul saw a coffin, the same coffin he had seen outside the Skyveil Sect that day.
This time, the Li family had come with... four people!
Li Dalong, Li Yaozu, and also...
Elder Tianqing of the Azure Cloud Pavilion, and... the dead Xuan Tianzi!
The voices of the Li family members were still echoing, while the Long family members had already started calling for help.
"Reporting to Ancestor, the communication spirit stone from the Ghost Eye Sect has responded. They told us... to hold on a little longer, that they are very close. But... they said the same thing just now."
"Everlife Mountain has also responded. They said that Ancestor should act more pitifully... beg... beg for mercy. Perhaps Li Dalong will show kindness. What does that mean, Ancestor?"
"The Lumina Sect responded, asking if Ancestor was the one who said that the Long family would soar through the azure clouds? He said that at your age, you shouldn't say such shameful things!"
"..."
Listening to the reports from his clan members, Long Xuankong felt his heart pounding with fear.
He hadn't been this terrified even when facing that explosion outside the Skyveil Sect.
The flying ship was still speeding along, but his soul trembled. It was a bright, snowy day, yet his vision darkened, as if he were seeing a rainstorm in the middle of a cloudy sky.
The responses from those sects felt like mockery from the Li family.
It was as if a giant hand had appeared in the sky, the hand of the Li family, pressing down on him, threatening to crush him into dust.
In his entire life, he had never felt so vulnerable.
"Lies, they're all fucking goddamn lies!"
He realized it.
His compass was fake. The nine forces besieging the Li family were fake. Even... the claim that the Li family possessed half of Azure Cloud's destiny was fake, and even the legendary Heavenly Secrets Pavilion...
All these years, he had likely been living in a lie, hoping to become the new legend of the Azure Cloud region!
Like a clown, a laughingstock for everyone!
"Aagh!!!"
It seemed that a conspiracy against him had been in motion for the past thirty years, or perhaps... a conspiracy against the entire Azure Cloud region!
This compass had never been his hope. Instead, it was a tool to lure him out of the Long family's territory and destroy them.
A trap!
---
Loving the story? Fuel the adventure!
Unlock chapters: Donate on Ko-fi /darktea] Progress: [Progress: [0/15]]
Get Early Access to 30 Chapters: Search for "Dark Tea" on Ko-fi (Explore tab) and join my membership to read ahead!