"I'm Li Tongya from the Li Family of Lijing!"
Following Li Tongya's introduction, Lingyanzi also introduced himself, "Lingyanzi from the Purple Gale Peak of the Purple Smoke Gate!"
Finally, Lingyanzi reached Mount Lijing and entered the courtyard where he was warmly greeted by Li Xuanling with a polite smile.
"Greetings, Senior!"
Lingyanzi nodded politely but was taken aback when Li Xuanling responded.
"I've already gathered all the clan members, they are eagerly awaiting to witness Senior's profound techniques!"
Lingyanzi was momentarily speechless, recalling his hasty promises of techniques and spirit items during his escape.
Li Tongya and Li Xuanfeng could not help but smirk internally, rejoicing with the outcome of the situation in their hearts.
Even so, Li Xuanfeng said sternly, "Ling'er, show some respect! Senior Lingyanzi is a skillful cultivator from one of the three sects and seven gates; you need not worry about him going back on his word."
Lingyanzi sighed deeply and said with a bitter smile, "Come now, I'm no skillful cultivator from the three sects and seven gates. Not only have I embarrassed myself in front of you all, but tens of thousands of mortals at the foot of the mountain also saw me being hunted down and fleeing in such a sorry state... I'm just an ordinary man, afraid of death and desperately clinging to life!"
After sipping his tea and carefully savoring it, Lingyanzi continued calmly, "Regardless... I survived. Those two from Changxiao Gate, on the other hand, died by my hands. You have no idea how good it feels to be alive!"
He paused suddenly as if drawing in a deep breath of the spiritual qi from the mountains after having narrowly escaped death. Then in a cheerful tone, he said, "It beats any other feeling in the world!"
His words made Li Tongya hold him in high regard, while the younger members of the Li Family from the Xuan generation paused to reflect.
Lingyanzi laughed and continued, "The abilities I wield come from my gate, and I've sworn a Profound Scenery Spiritual Oath... so I can't share them with you. My Spirit Stones and medicinal pills were used up on the way here, and most of the techniques and scriptures I possess are from my travels and wouldn't be of much use to you. However, I do have one secret technique called Purple Thunder Secret Origin Technique , a standout even among Grade Three techniques and is quite valuable. What do you think, Brother Tongya?"
"Please, do tell us more about it!" Li Tongya urged after Lingyanzi finally broached this topic and listened intently.
"This technique originally came from the ancient Thundercloud Temple, a Grade Four technique that used to involve consuming Purple Gold Thunder Liquid to achieve Qi Cultivation Realm... The Dao foundation formed during the Foundation Establishment Realm was known as Winter Thunderclap . However, after Thundercloud Temple was destroyed and Purple Gold Thunder Liquid disappeared, it was modified to be used with Profound Yin Thunder Liquid instead; thus degrading it to a Grade Three technique. The resulting Dao foundation is known as Profound Thunderpool, but it's still much better than ordinary Grade Three techniques," Lingyanzi explained patiently in great detail.
"Oh? Since it's a secret technique, it must have some side effects right?" Li Tongya asked, a frown appearing.
"Very minor... Just infertility and a few years off one's lifespan," Lingyanzi answered.
Li Tongya's interest visibly faded upon hearing this. For a sect, such consequences might be acceptable, but it was not ideal as a family technique as infertility would compromise the very foundation of the Li Family.
Seeing Li Tongya's reaction, Lingyanzi quickly added, "There's more! I also have the method for gathering Profound Yin Thunder Liquid, which I can also share with you."
Noticing the embarrassed look on Lingyanzi's face, Li Tongya merely nodded and said in resignation, "Thank you, Senior."
"As for these pouches..." Lingyanzi nodded, lifting the two plain pouches from the disciples of the Changxiao Gate. "These pouches can resonate with the techniques of the Changxiao Gate members, so they shouldn't be opened. Keeping them within your family would only invite trouble... It's better if I take them. Next year, I will send someone to exchange the items inside these pouches for Spirit Stones and have them delivered to you."
Li Tongya did not trust him entirely but realized that he had no other choice. He decided to give in, hoping to leverage this favor in the future.
"Please take them with you then, Senior," he conceded with a nod.
Lingyanzi then took with him the storage pouches. The Changxiao Gates cultivators' dharma swords and flying shuttles naturally fell into the Li Family's possession.
Those two dharma swords were even better than Li Tongya's, yet he dared not use them. The flying shuttles, though ordinary, were a welcome addition to the Li Family.
Since Spirit Stones were important resources to be spent wisely, the Li Family never bought any flying shuttles. Now that they had received two of them, they hesitated to use them, hence Li Tongya planned to sell them all in the future.
After talking for a bit longer, Lingyanzi recuperated on Mount Lijing for a while before bidding farewell and flew back on his flying shuttle to report back on his mission.
With peace returning to Mount Lijing once again, Li Xuanfeng and Li Tongya went into seclusion, while the rest busied themselves with their own tasks.
————
In Lixia Prefecture, the bustling streets were filled with all kinds of people. On both sides of the streets, numerous small vendors pushed their carts along, selling cakes and porridge.
The crowd moved deeper into the streets where the alleyways became quieter and less populated.
In one such alley, a large courtyard paved with green stones appeared even more serene. Verdant vines wrapped around the wooden sticks supporting two rows of drying clothes, gently swaying in the glow of the setting sun.
"Mommy!"
The crisp voice of a boy broke through the silence.
Jiang Yunu looked up at the boy. Her face which was once round and cute had now slimmed down considerably.
"Yu'er," she responded to the boy, who was dressed in simple clothes. Although they were not anything fancy, they were clean and well-washed.
The boy looked at her with round and gleaming eyes, saying, "Mommy, a beggar came asking us for coins."
Jiang Yunu raised an eyebrow at him but pulled out two copper coins from her chest pocket with a smile, then handed them to him.
"Go on... but be careful," she instructed softly.
"Got it!"
Watching the boy head out clumsily, Jiang Yunu felt a wave of concern and quickly followed him.
She gritted her teeth while murmuring, "It's been five whole years... Has that bastard become addicted to seclusion, or has he been killed in a duel with someone? Not a single word from him in five years... If I wasn't pregnant with Yuanyu before he left, these five years would have driven me insane..."
Approaching the entrance of the courtyard, she saw that the beggar was a middle-aged man with perfectly working limbs and a rosy face. Yet, he shamelessly lay on the ground feigning pain while little innocent Yuanyu tried to comfort him.
Fearing the man might be a kidnapper, she called out hurriedly with a worry-stricken voice.
"Yu'er! Come back here!"
Li Yuanyu looked back at her and approached his mother cheerfully.
"Mommy, this man is so strange! He didn't take my money but thanked me and told me to move away... He even gave me this large, round copper coin!"
He then produced a flat copper coin which was dark gray in color, bearing four ancient characters indecipherable to them. Jiang Yunu paid it little mind but kept her eyes on the beggar.
"There are bad people in the prefecture who kidnap children, so you need to be careful."
After advising him, Jiang Yunu scooped her son up into her arms and headed back into the house.
"Would you like to go to your teacher's place this afternoon to learn some writing?" she asked softly.
"Yes," Li Yuanyu answered in a childish voice, and as the mother and son stepped into their yard, the splendid morning sun suddenly dimmed.
Thick clouds swiftly covered the sky from the east. Several faint silhouettes stood in the sky above Lixia Prefecture, occasionally letting out loud laughter. They looked down on the mortals below as if they were mere delicacies on a plate.