Li Zhouwei’s halberd pierced through Wenhu’s abdomen. He flexed his forearm and lifted the halberd upward to flip him over. Wenhu’s face was covered in blood and his complexion pale, yet the spell arts in his hands did not cease. Blood-red radiance surged, showing he still intended to fight to the death.
Raising his other hand, Li Zhouwei summoned the great sun’s radiance to shine upon Wenhu’s face, suppressing him. The Supreme Yang Resonance Radiant Art was a fifth grade technique and capable of endless transformations to subdue foes. Wenhu’s Hurricane Ghost Yin was already weak against Bright Yang, but it feared the Supreme Yang even more. The blazing light unraveled his spells and scorching heat surged into his mind.
His consciousness nearly slipped away, but Wenhu clenched his teeth and forced his eyes open in one last breath of defiance. Even though his eyes were seared white by the sunlight and his face charred black, his hand still reached for his storage pouch.
Good! Such willpower, thought Li Zhouwei.
Li Zhouwei drew back his halberd. Heavenly Radiance, Hidden Light shone from his brow as he severed Wenhu’s arms. Then, using the sun’s brilliance, he bound him fast so he could no longer move.
Elsewhere, Ding Weizeng had already beaten the other two into a miserable state. His Immortal Foundation was formidable, empowering his body with flowing red light and copper-yellow pupils. The weaker devil cultivator was already half-dead and unable to continue, leaving only the deputy cave master Wang He struggling desperately to hold on.
Now that Wenhu was subdued, Li Zhouwei turned his gaze, instantly making Wang He break out in cold sweat and falter in fear. Just as he was about to speak, a white light flared at the horizon.
The white light flickered in the sky, leaving a burning tail in the sky before landing at Wang He’s side and revealing a figure.
"I am Song Yunbai of the Capital Immortal Dao. Greetings, fellow Daoist."
The woman was already forming seals with her hands. Her face was slightly round, her brows sharp, and her white robes neat and crisp. She bore the features of Jiangbei. Her gaze was piercing as it swept across Li Zhouwei and Ding Weizeng.
Clearly, she did not recognize them. Her eyes skimmed over Ding Weizeng, pausing only for a moment before settling on Li Zhouwei.
Song Yunbai froze as she raised her head. A strange expression flickered across her face. She stepped back half a pace, hesitating.
Her bright eyes shifted away quickly, and her voice came out somewhat muffled, "Hidden Cloud Cave was enlightened under the Capital Immortal Dao. Why has your esteemed family suddenly raised blades against it without cause?"
Wang He and the others retreated behind her. Holding his halberd, Li Zhouwei replied, "So it is a fellow Daoist of the Capital Immortal Dao. Wenhu of Hidden Cloud Cave deceived a Daoist Master and offended the might of the Purple Mansion Realm. I came specifically to seize him. Now that he has been captured, I shall be taking him away."
Song Yunbai’s tone was courteous, and Li Zhouwei did not press with harsh words either. He merely faced her with his captive in hand. Yet in the span of a few seconds, thunder rumbled behind them, True Fire surged, and two figures arrived in succession.
The woman was striking and poised, holding a lamp in her hand. Meanwhile, the man’s eyes gleamed like drops of lacquer as he rode thunder. The siblings Li Minggong and Li Chenghui stood beside Li Zhouwei. Before they could speak, two more streams of light streaked in from the north and south and halted nearby.
The two streaks of light transformed into human form. To the left stood a tall woman in a rainbow-colored gown. She was holding a green sash and her face was twisted with anger. To the right stood a man wearing a bamboo hat and dressed in brown. He had a blade at his waist, and his gaze was sharp as he took in the situation.
"What does the Li Family mean by this?!" The woman in the rainbow gown was blunt and confrontational. Gripping her dharma artifact sash, she pointed at Wenhu and shouted in fury, "This cultivator was enlightened by our Daoist Head[1] Chidu. Your family is also an esteemed family of Jiangnan; do you not know that Hidden Cloud Cave is a vassal of the Capital Immortal Dao? It was already generous of us to allow your family to take the territory of Floating Cloud Cave, yet you overreach and now dare to trespass into Hidden Cloud Cave!"
"Absurd!" Naturally, Li Chenghui would not let Li Zhouwei personally step into the quarrel. He stepped forward and said coldly, "Since fellow Daoist acknowledges that Hidden Cloud Cave is under your protection, have you managed your people properly? For ten years, Hidden Cloud and Floating Cloud has harassed the northern shores of my Moongaze Lake. Did we ever hear a word from you then? Only today do you finally arrive, and only now so quick to voice your concerns?"
"You—!" The woman in the rainbow gown was flushed with anger but forced a cold laugh.
The man in the bamboo hat finally spoke, clasping his hands, "I am Gongsun Baifan of the Immortal Dao, greeting the three esteemed young ones of an immortal family. With your family’s elder having attained the Purple Mansion Realm, such matters should have long been swept aside. Even if they could not be wholly forgiven, they ought to have been discussed under the Purple Mansion Realm cultivator’s mediation to resolve grudges, rather than acting so suddenly to seize our holdings."
He addressed the three, and Li Minggong replied, "Good. Since the Capital Immortal Dao still remembers that our Daoist Master has achieved the Purple Mansion Realm, then tell me, who did your sect send? And with what did you offer congratulations? When Floating Cloud and Hidden Cloud provoked us before, did our Daoist Master not give them a chance? Now, seeing the situation before you, does Capital Immortal Dao truly claim ignorance of how this came to be?"
Li Minggong’s tone was not forceful, but her words were sharp enough to silence Gongsun Baifan. Some things were not his place to answer, so he lowered his head in silence.
Watching the exchange of words, Li Zhouwei gradually pieced together the truth. No force was ever a monolith, much less the Capital Immortal Dao, which had been in Jiangbei for barely over a decade.
The first to arrive, Song Yunbai, was of the lowest standing among the three, and her strength was not great. She had simply arrived first because she was nearby. In truth, she represented the Song Family of Baiye territory in Jiangbei, a local power. Her role within the Capital Immortal Dao was much like Li Xizhi’s had been in the Azure Pond Sect in past years. She was hardly one to wield authority. Naturally, her words carried no hostility, and she kept a polite, detached tone.
As for Gongsun Baifan, he was clearly a guest cultivator or one with a Dharma Protector class, much like An Siwei in the Li Family. He might defend the Immortal Dao, but he held no power to decide matters. Thus, he spoke as politely as he could.
Only the woman in the rainbow gown burned with rage, so she must be the true direct lineage of the Capital Immortal Dao.
Indeed, when Gongsun Baifan fell silent, the woman in the rainbow gown gnashed her teeth and declared, " You can always find an excuse if you wish to condemn! It’s fine that your family covets territory, but why hide behind false pretexts? Our sect is in Jiangbei, and your family is in Jiangnan. There was never any need to offer your family congratulations in the first place, so why demand so much of us?"
Li Chenghui’s face darkened as she ignored Hidden Cloud Cave’s prior offenses and seized the only convenient ground. After all, Chengyun Gate, which was also a Jiangbei power, had sent their gate master in person!
At this point, having sorted out the identities of the three, Li Zhouwei finally spoke, "There is no need for further words. Hidden Cloud Cave has harassed my family for ten years and driven our direct bloodline into peril time and again. Such grudges cannot be brushed aside. Hongfu Mountain is already in our hands. The three of you should return to where you came from!"
Li Zhouwei had already sent Miaoshui to seize Hongfu Mountain. She carried the command token needed to enter the formation and had entered the mountain by now.
The woman in the rainbow gown had clearly expected this line of argument. She laughed coldly as she asked, "Does fellow Daoist truly think he has cornered us?"
1. This is not Daoist Master, it’s a new term/ ☜