Having 'allowed' Nangong Yazhi to escape, the Li family members were in no particular hurry to make their next move.
Every few days, they relocated, employing a combination of spiritual arrays, array discs, talismans, and spirit artifacts to thoroughly conceal their presence.
This was to avoid accidentally running into any masters they couldn't deal with, as they had no intention of rashly joining the already fiercely chaotic scramble for treasures within the Tian Xing Abode without full preparation.
Even when they came across Foundation Establishment cultivators who had managed to acquire some rare treasures, Li Changsheng would consistently dissuade his more impulsive elders from attempting to seize them, wary of falling into unforeseen traps.
At present, the Li family group was holed up in a concealed refuge they had excavated three hundred meters beneath the earth.
The sole illumination came from the faint glimmer of the bronze mirror before them, which displayed a continuous feed of everything Nangong Yazhi was seeing, from her own viewpoint.
"This Tianxing Abode is vast, easily the size of a region," Li Changsheng stated, his voice grave.
"Our recent battle has undoubtedly drawn the investigative attention of numerous other cultivators. Some of our capabilities were revealed, and I'm afraid we've already become far too conspicuous. Therefore," Li Changsheng concluded in that same grave tone, "it's best we remain concealed for a while. Nangong Yazhi will surely be driven half-mad now, desperately trying to find ways to destroy us. Her movements... they will become our opportunity!"
Everyone nodded in agreement with Li Changsheng's plan.
Thus, they waited for several days, all the while observing Nangong Yazhi's movements through the mirror.
After her initial flight, the woman had, in fact, acted with considerable rationality. After all, she had occupied a position of authority for many years. Leveraging the significant status and prestige of her Nangong family of the Hundred Treasures Pavilion, she had quickly amassed a following of numerous lesser cultivators, creating a force formidable in its sheer numbers.
Through this, she had even managed to ally herself with a Peak Nascent Soul expert from a major sect, the two now 'huddling together for warmth' against the perceived threats.
They even witnessed... certain scenes that those present arguably should not have laid eyes upon: specifically, sordid acts of dual cultivation...
"Xue," Nangong Yazhi's voice cooed to the elder, "Never mind whether this humble self was cowed by those Azure Cloud Region Li's. The fact is, within this Tian Xing Abode, countless experts are now fending for themselves, all scrambling for resources. And as time goes on, resources will dwindle. Bitter struggles between all of us here will be inevitable. We should have anticipated and prepared for this eventuality much sooner."
The mirror showed them a mountain cave.
Inside, upon a large bed, Nangong Yazhi was nestled intimately against the chest of the refined-looking Elder Xue, her delicate fingers idly tracing patterns there.
This rather steamy scene, which now played out before the Li family observers, was, in the grand scheme of things, not considered particularly shocking by them. After all, education on the complexities of relationships between men and women was practically a required course in their clan, precisely to prevent them from making naive or foolish blunders in such matters.
The man who had shared a bed with Nangong Yazhi had evidently not been entirely swayed by her charms.
He was already slowly getting dressed, his mind clearly working.
"Regarding that day's confrontation between your Nangong clan and Azure Cloud Region Li's," he began thoughtfully, "it wasn't just me watching; Nascent Soul experts from numerous factions were all probing the situation. Yazhi."
He continued, "If this is about cooperation, then very well; it's simply a tactic for survival in these circumstances. But remember this: I have no intention of fighting a life-or-death battle against the Li family on your behalf."
A glint of ice flashed in Nangong Yazhi's eyes, but just as quickly, she became the epitome of feminine charm once more.
With a dazzlingly sweet smile, she entwined herself around the cultivator surnamed Xue like a graceful serpent. "Heheh~ And here I was," she purred, "thinking you saw this humble one as something more, Xue. Am I truly so calculating in your eyes? All this humble one desires now is to live on, in safety."
"You had best mean that."
Watching Xue Huairen's retreating figure, the warmth vanished from Nangong Yazhi's eyes, leaving only an icy glint.
She turned onto her side, pulling the bedcovers around her.
Clear tears traced paths down her cheeks, but when she finally spoke, her voice was still frigid.
"I, Nangong Yazhi... when have I ever been reduced to this...?"
As these successive scenes played out before the eyes of Li Wei and the other Li family members on the mirror, a heavy, oppressive gloom settled over their hidden refuge.
Li Wei could more or less gauge the varied emotions of the Li family members observing.
Li Tianyue, for instance, had her own past experiences with such affairs of the heart and had even, on occasion, wielded her beauty as a potent weapon; thus, she naturally lowered her gaze, offering no comment.
Li Changyao, though still naive regarding the complexities of such worldly matters, could nonetheless perceive a measure of the underlying bitterness and desperation in Nangong Yazhi's actions.
The two young women among the Seven Ironclads, however, simply couldn't understand it.
As women themselves, why, they wondered, would one not stake everything on their own power and fight to the death, rather than stoop to such manipulative tactics?
As for the Li family men... well, despite many being bachelors, who truly knew if they'd ever frequented pleasure houses or similar establishments over the years?
Li Wei had even heard a persistent rumor: that in Azure Cloud Region City's grandest brothel, one could often spot a gaggle of Azure Cloud Region's top-echelon unmarried cultivators, all awkwardly staring at each other from their respective private rooms.
"Ai, damn it all!" Li Yundou suddenly grumbled.
"For men of honor conducting themselves, there's nothing more despicable than bullying the aged and infirm, or forcing good people into depravity!"
Li Yundou ran a hand through his already disheveled hair in frustration. "If I'd known it would come to her using these kinds of methods against us," he muttered, "I'd have advocated for killing her cleanly from the start!"
Li Tianyue's fine, dark brows drew together. "And yet," she countered quietly, "one must sometimes concede that such methods are the most effective tools available. Her spirit artifacts are gone; she no longer possesses the strength that once placed her on the Nascent Divinity List. This manipulation is likely the best strategy she has left. Otherwise, how could she possibly hope to contend with our Li family?"
Li Tianyue's words prompted another round of sighs from the group.
Li Yunlin then turned to Li Changsheng. "Sheng," he inquired, "This man surnamed Xue – is he the one from that Xue family we know of?"
"He is the Grand Elder of the Xue family," Li Changsheng replied.
"The Xues are a clan with Nascent Soul-level standing. I've heard that this Xue Huairen, despite being regarded as an Old Ancestor figure within their family, has only been cultivating for around a thousand years."
Li Changsheng continued in a more serious tone, "As an individual, he possesses no exceptionally remarkable traits. However, in this child's view, what's clear is that Xue Huairen truly has no desire to engage our Li family in a life-or-death struggle merely for Nangong Yazhi. However, from his perspective, Nangong Yazhi was, for a long time, an unattainable, lofty figure. And that which one can never possess."
Li Changsheng mused, "It often becomes an unforgettable obsession. If Nangong Yazhi genuinely sets her mind to manipulating Xue Huairen, she has countless ways to achieve it."
"Looking at it this way," Li Yunlin concluded thoughtfully, "there will likely be many more individuals susceptible to her influence."
And so, in the days that followed, by merely observing Nangong Yazhi through the Heavenly Spirit Mirror, the Li family members, without ever leaving their refuge, managed to acquire a wealth of intelligence.
Inside the Tian Xing Abode, numerous factions had rapidly coalesced in an exceedingly short span.
The main impetus behind this was that top-tier powerhouses – figures like Xu Dingsheng (Nascent Divinity List #23), Red Star Fort's Bai Heng (#8), and Wuwen Scholar of True Yang Faction (#10) – were all aggressively plundering resources.
The majority of these newly formed factions consisted of relatively weaker Nascent Soul cultivators, often acquaintances from different origins, who banded together for mutual protection, lest they be bullied by the truly formidable masters like Xu Dingsheng and the others.
The Mang Monk of Great Ming King Temple (ranked 19th), however, presented a stark contrast.
He was tirelessly rushing about all corners of the Tian Xing Abode, genuinely playing the part of a savior relieving distress, and wherever he went, he actively intervened to prevent bloodshed.
Whenever he came upon two sides engaged in combat, he would first thrash them both soundly, yet without taking any lives, typically leaving the combatants on both sides completely frustrated and at a loss.
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