Li Qiuyang returned to the town several months before his father, Li Chengfu, passed away. The funeral was relatively grand, with representatives from the main family coming to offer condolences.
Li Qiuyang personally thanked each guest before spending time alone in the funeral hall, quietly reflecting in front of his father's coffin. His relationship with his older brothers was overly formal and respectful, and it was a little uncomfortable for him.
Li Chengfu's death had seemed to be peaceful, holding on just long enough to see Li Qiuyang return before passing away quietly in his bed. It was almost like a relief to him to say his final goodbye before his last breath, grasping Li Quiyang’s hand tenderly.
Looking at the funeral hall draped in white cloth, Li Qiuyang faintly remembered when he was seven when Li Chengfu, upon hearing that the main family was testing the children for spiritual orifices, took him and left the house without a word.
The two walked along the stone path for a while, and he asked his father, “Dad, where are we going?”
"To seek immortals!" Li Chengfu chuckled.
After returning to the family and reverting to the Li surname, the villagers and the members of the Ye Family came one after another to curry favor. Li Chengfu — keen and capable, not only kept his brothers in line and ensured that they never caused trouble for Li Qiuyang, but also made himself useful in the clan; his contributions, making this branch prosper day by day.
One day, Li Chengfu had simply drunk too much.
"When I was little and catching fat mice in the fields, I could tell there were three smart people in the village: one was Li Mutian, the other was Chen Erniu! One was fiercely calm, the other was clever and capable..." he chuckled softly in a drunken stupor.
"...And the third?" Li Qiuyang asked with a smile.
"It's Ye Chengfu."
Li Chengfu laughed heartily with his eyes blurred with drunkenness, the wine bowl shaking violently with every hearty chuckle.
Li Qiuyang was suddenly jolted awake from his memory flashbacks and glanced once more at Li Chengfu who was lying in the coffin.
Just then, a little child ran in, bouncing around with a white cloth tied around his forehead. He looked up at Li Qiuyang with eyes that were brimming with tears.
"Daddy!"
Holding his young son in his arms, Li Qiuyang’s thoughts wandered.
"All eight of you lack a spiritual orifice... where then does the hope for our lineage lie..? As your father, I can only ensure a life of wealth for you. Without a spiritual orifice... you might even pass before I do."
He murmured these words to himself, and his eyes were clouded with an unreadable expression.
Just as he spoke these words to the child, a clan soldier came entered, bowing deeply.
"Clan Uncle, the Family Head summons you."
Li Qiuyang quickly stood up, tidied his clothes, and hurriedly made his way to Mount Lijing. Walking along the stone path, he encountered a massive snake corpse sprawled on the ground that had intricate patterns.
"What a long creature!" Li Qiuyang exclaimed in admiration.
Without waiting for Li Xuanxuan to speak, he immediately bent down and began sealing the demonic creature with a Spirit Sealing Technique.
"How is your cultivation progressing, clan uncle?!” Li Xuanxuan asked with a beaming smile.
“I’ve condensed the Azure Essence Chakra and attained the fourth stage of the Embryonic Cultivation Realm,” Li Qiuyang chuckled fondly in response while Li Xuanfeng, who was polishing his bow, remained silent in his white clothes — clearly in a somber mood.
A clan soldier, panting heavily and drenched in sweat, rushed up and whispered urgently to Li Xuanxuan, "Family Head! News has arrived from the mountains beyond—Jianixi is dead! Assassinated during the grand ceremony on Mount Yue!"
Li Xuanxuan was momentarily stunned as he processed the news, and moments later joy sprang into his eyes. He quickly stood up and said to the two, "Jianixi is dead! To think he was assassinated at the grand ceremony... Now, we can finally sleep in peace. A great relief indeed!"
Both men were taken aback, but Li Xuanfeng was exceptionally stoic, not even blinking at the news.
"That was an easy way out for him."
His voice was cold, almost disbelieving.
Li Qiuyang's expression turned complex as he quietly said, "During my time in the Mount Yue territories, I saw how much the people revered him... how could someone so beloved be assassinated...?"
Li Xuanxuan nodded, taking over the conversation with a question, "Moreover, he was at least at the peak of Qi Cultivation Realm. Who else but a cultivator of the Foundation Establishment Realm could kill him? There are many doubts... the waters run deep."
"What about Second Uncle? He might be the only one who would know the crux of it,” Li Xuanxuan asked, looking up.
"He went to slay demons," Lu Xuanfeng replied with a shake of his head.
————
Li Tongya followed the mountain's veins towards a location he remembered, and under a cliff, he found a large banyan tree with whitening leaves. It stood proudly on the slope with its white leaves scattering all over the ground, creating a patchwork of white.
Having found the spot from his memory, he indeed saw a large, red fox sound asleep beside the tree. He stopped dead in his tracks and the fox's ears perked up sharply, squinting to focus its beady eyes on him.
Li Tongya watched quietly for a while. This demon was around the fifth heavenly layer of the Qi Cultivation Realm. He had seen it before when he was seeking a talisman qi offering. Back then, he was intimidated by its aura from a distance... but now, with his increased cultivation, he thought it a good opportunity to test his sword skills.
The fox's eyes were quite lively, looking at the sword in his hand and then licking its paws. It opened its mouth and spoke slowly, much to his surprise.
"I’ve... never eaten... humans."
Li Tongya was momentarily stunned, scanning the fox with his spiritual sense, confirming that it was indeed at the fifth heavenly level of the Qi Cultivation Realm and not at the Foundation Establishment Realm. It was his first time encountering a demon with such spiritual intelligence, as well as the ability to refine bones.
"Fellow Daoist... I merely wish to spar with you, that’s all."
Noticing that the fox was tongue-tied, Li Tongya could not help but laugh, raising his hand to strike at the fox. The fox leaped up immediately on the spot, extending its paws to block his attack, and for a moment — the sound of metal clashing rang out in the silence.
After dozens of moves between the man and the fox, Li Tongya slowly gained confidence, steadily creating distance to unleash sword qi for slicing.
The demon fox was clearly caught off-guard by this attack but still managed to block several blows of his sword qi before opening its mouth to spit out a series of fox fires.
The fox fire was blazing red and headed directly toward Li Tongya, who stumbled several steps backward in shock. Thankfully, Li Tongya was protected by his true essence. The fox fire, following him like a determined shadow, sizzled against Li Tongya's protective true essence.
Li Tongya used several true essence attacks to extinguish the fox fire, but this had given the opportunity for the fox to pounce, ready to engage Li Tongya in close combat.
However, Li Tongya was well-prepared and had already sheathed his sword to gather strength. His hand glowed brightly, and he unleashed the Celestial Moon Slash technique, causing the fox's fur to stand on end as it retreated, spitting out several fox fires in a desperate attempt to neutralize the sword qi.
Only then did it manage to fend off the Celestial Moon Slash, and as several sword Qis approached, the fox yelped.
"Stop! No more... My superior is a demon general, you... cannot kill me!" the fox screeched, its speech appearing to have gotten smoother.
Li Tongya paused and his sword hung in the air, deciding to seize the opportunity to gather some information. He sheathed his sword and smiled.
"Your fox fire is quite formidable!" he commented, an eyebrow raised as he glanced at the fox.
"Not as formidable as your sword...” the fox muttered in response.
The fox sighed softly, showing a hint of humanized defeat, before settling down under the large banyan tree.
"Are you... the immortal from the clan at the foot of the mountain? There's one who uses a bow and has killed many demons... do you know him?"
Immediately after hearing the fox mention a bow user, he knew right away who it was the fox must be referring to. He cupped his fist before responding.
"Thank you for your leniency, fellow Daoist... indeed, he is a younger member of my family."
The fox smacked its lips and started grooming its fur, not responding immediately.
"How many dies doesn't concern me... just don't disturb that giant boar. The demons on the outskirts are yours to hunt," he drawled lazily.
"...May I ask about this demon general?" Li Tongya inquired as he cupped his fist.
The fox stood up and stretched, grinding its teeth.
"It's a pig demon at the Foundation Establishment Realm, managing all the demons in this area. Very... domineering, I must say — eating this and that, demanding I offer spirit bamboo shoots to him every year..."
Li Tongya nodded slowly, taking in the fox’s words.
There indeed are demons of Foundation Establishment Realm in these mountains... luckily for me, I did not penetrate deeper into the terrain and just circled the outskirts.