Li Xiangping sat quietly by the fire which illuminated his face with a golden-red sheen. His clothes were worn and torn, and he seemed utterly exhausted.
The ends of his leg hair were curling up from the heat of the flame, but yet, his gaze remained laser-focused on the yams roasting in the fire pit.
He had been fleeing from danger to danger these days and had narrowly escaped death at the hands of Qi Cultivators multiple times now. He has already grown accustomed to deaths having killed countless Mount Yue’s generals, and having experienced rallying people to assault Great Jueting.
Li Xiangping’s demeanor had changed from that of a privileged courtyard dweller to that of a rugged man. The blood and flames of the multitude of battles have toughened him up, gradually turning him into another Jianixi.
“Great King! Mu Jiaoman has gone to Mount Wu... and no one knows what his intentions are!”
Instead of correcting his way of addressing Li Xiangping, Ahuici, and his men even managed to influence Li Qiuyang and Chen Donghe to refer to Li Xiangping as the Great King as well.
Chen Donghe’s leather armor bore a cut, revealing a crimson wound beneath the dirt and dried blood stains. With a map in hand, he traced the routes and patterns with his fingers thoughtfully.
“You must tread carefully, Great King!” he advised with a grave expression.
“Indeed.” Li Xiangping chuckled as he silently grasped the crystal-clear pearl in his pocket.
He’s most likely seeking help from a cultivator of the Foundation Establishment Realm. I can’t continue wasting any more time and I ought to think of a way to send this... thing home as soon as possible!
Li Xiangping had been fighting westward and had acquired the transparent pearl from the altar of a major tribe.
Sensing the Profound Pearl Talisman Pearl in his Qihai acupoint reacting to it, he decided to take it along with him as he figured it probably bore a connection to the mirror at home.
Glancing mischievously at Chen Donghe, who had an extremely serious look on his face, Li Xiangping decided to tease him.
He looked up at the boy with a mischievous smile.
“Hey, He’er, are you smitten with my daughter, Tian’er? Shall I arrange a marriage for you?” he teased with a cheeky tone.
Chen Donghe’s handsome face immediately flushed and his eyes darted down to stare at his toes silently, embarrassed. Li Qiuyang burst into laughter immediately which earned him a kick from Chen Donghe in response, though the boy did not dare to meet Li Xiangping’s gaze.
Li Xiangping shook his head and chuckled. “If Tian’er accepts it, I have no objections! My only condition is that you must take her as your first wife!”
Hearing the approval of his potential father-in-law, Chen Donghe blushed even more, struggling to speak.
“I-I’ll... never... disappoint Tian’er...” he mumbled, stumbling over his words in deep embarrassment.
The crowd erupted into laughter, and Chen Donghe immediately wished the ground would just swallow him then and there.
Ahuici laughed so hard that he coughed.
“Sheesh, the men on Mount Yue snatch any woman they fancy as their wives, no one does things like you people.”
“You want to try doing that?” Li Xiangping asked with an eyebrow raised and a teasing smile.
Ahuici quickly begged for mercy, his quick reaction amusing Chen Donghe so much that he even forgot about his own embarrassment earlier.
The aroma of roasted yams filled the air as Li Xiangping savored his meal. It reminded him of his younger days when he and his elder brother, Li Changhu, would secretly roast yams by the fire pit. Li Changhu always found ways to make him snacks back when he was just a twelve or thirteen-year-old boy.
Beside him, Li Qiuyang scanned their surroundings with caution, ever watchful for the piercing gaze of the eagle eyes in the sky. His gaze then fell upon Li Xiangping, his eyes brimming with profound reverence.
Li Xiangping has led them through countless perilous situations and has achieved remarkable victories. Just as the people of Mount Yue revered Jianixi as their king, Li Xiangping’s soldiers believed their leader to be invincible.
While everyone’s attention was on Li Xiangping, he suddenly dropped the yam he was eating which fell onto the ground with a thud. His expression was frozen in disbelief.
The Evade Death Prolong Life talisman qi, which had crossed his mind countless times in moments of crisis and peril, suddenly illuminated brightly. A profound sense of danger gripped Li Xiangping as he glimpsed a vision of himself kneeling on the ground, blood spewing from his mouth, surrounded by desperate cries for help.
“I’m going to die... There’s no escaping it...,” he gasped quietly, “There’s no delaying it!”
He felt a chill run down his spine and immediately felt lightheaded.
Hands trembling, he snatched the map from Chen Donghe and grabbed a piece of burning charcoal from the fire pit with his bare hands. Closing his eyes for a moment, he began scribbling on the map.
“Great King!” Chen Donghe was flabbergasted and did not know what to do, falling onto his knees helplessly as he watched Li Xiangping worryingly.
After Li Xiangping had finished scribbling on the map, he shoved a transparent pearl into his hand.
“Mu Jiaoman will definitely be back after I’m gone. Follow this path eastward to return home!” he instructed hastily, his voice filled with curt urgency.
But before Chen Donghe could respond, Li Xiangping cut him off.
“No matter what happens, you must deliver this pearl to Li Tongya!” he hissed through tightly gritted teeth.
“Everyone!” Li Xiangping rose to his feet, ignoring Chen Donghe’s stunned silence.
“After I’m gone, all of you must head east with Donghe. Do not linger here!” he commanded loudly, his voice full of conviction.
Li Qiuyang and the others were at a loss for words, watching as Li Xiangping’s voice grew softer as he sank to the ground weakly.
“Great King!”
“Family Head!”
Li Xiangping lifted his gaze and watched the blazing sun in the sky as an array of illusions danced before him. It was as though a piece of the sun itself had broken off, hurtling toward him like a shooting star.
The broken piece burned brightly before landing on his chest, scalding his senses. He once roasted a chief from Mount Yue alive and now... the same pain and agony consumed him.
“Great King!”
The world darkened around Li Xiangping. Although he could not see anything, he felt someone’s weight on his body and wet tears falling onto his cheeks.
Despite the agony, a faint smile tugged at his lips.
“What a low blow...” he murmured weakly.
Li Xiangping’s long hair fell in disarray, revealing sparse white strands. He has lived to an age where ordinary farmers would have had grandchildren of their own and would have suffered very few grievances in life.
Yet... the only thing on his mind was the Li Family, surviving amidst myriad forces.
From the void emerged thick black qi, enveloping his gray-black eyes and withering his body. Li Xiangping coughed up black blood.
“I’ve... lived a great life!” he proclaimed with all his might, his voice hoarse and strained.
Memories flashed before him before finally settling on a meandering river where a teenager had just caught a green-tailed fish, then picked up a broken bluish-gray mirror with a curious look on his face. The sunlight illuminated his face and a dazzling smile graced his lips.
The black qi dissipated as quickly as it had appeared, snaking its way back into the void as Li Xiangping’s body withered completely.
However, a gray light suddenly burst forth from Li Xiangping’s Shenyang Mansion.
Every last trace of the black qi was absorbed by the talisman qi in his Shenyang Mansion like a hungry ghost devouring a feast.
Only Li Xiangping’s withered corpse remained kneeling on the ground, a final white light exuding from his Qihai acupoint before gently fading into the void too.
Almost instantly, the crowd let out a loud cry in unison.
“It’s a curse! He was killed by a curse! Jianixi, you coward!” Ahuici cried out in anguish.
“Family Head!”
Chen Donghe wept before Li Xiangping’s body, clenching his fists with such might that they bled.
Sobs filled the air as Li Qiuyang made his way forward, eyes red and glistening.
The sound of flapping wings suddenly filled the air, silencing Chen Donghe’s cries. He was stunned for a moment before immediately pressing his ears to Li Xiangping’s chest.
“Everyone, quiet!” he yelled at the crowd with a deep frown as he tried to focus. The cries and commotion immediately ceased at his command, and after listening for a few moments, he carefully laid Li Xiangping’s body on the ground.
With trembling hands, Chen Donghe placed his fingers gently on Li Xiangping’s pale lips. He applied a little force to part them and immediately heard the flapping noises growing louder.
Ahuici and Li Qiuyang, standing on opposite sides of his body, were visibly stunned. They, too, kneeled down to check.
Buzzzz...
With a sudden force, Chen Donghe watched as a grayish-black locust burst out violently from Li Xiangping’s mouth. Its body was adorned with barbs, the patterns on its wings resembling leaves.
It bounced in Chen Donghe’s hand for a moment before taking flight, its wings flapping rapidly as it whizzed away.
“This is...”
“Locusts! So many locusts!”
The people shouted in alarm as thousands of grayish-black locusts emerged from Li Xiangping’s body, soaring into the sky like a dark storm. People stumbled backward in pain as the swarm of locusts flew past them, their barbs hurting their skin.
“Donghe... This is...” Ahuici’s voice slowly trailed off.
Chen Donghe, with tears still streaming down his face, grabbed Li Xiangping’s Ebony Bow and cast a glance at the disappearing corpse.
As the locusts slowly escaped into the night sky, Chen Donghe gritted his teeth in anger.
“Move out! Don’t let them catch you!” he commanded fiercely.