This pill was a pale red color, slightly smaller than the previous one, with a smooth and round surface. After flipping it over a dozen times, Li Yuanjiao could not find a single pattern on it.
I knew it! No wonder the Azure Pond Sect collects blood qi and resentment qi every year; most of them must be used for this! The Azure Pond Sect releases thousands of pills annually, sustaining half of the Yue State... How many circulate in the market?
Li Yuanjiao slowly closed his eyes, knowing that even within the Li Family, almost everyone had taken these pills. Only a few from the generation of Xi and Yue, who had just started cultivating, had not yet taken any...
Seeing his brother's inexplicable expression, Li Yuanping grew extremely anxious. Li Yuanjiao spoke in a low, deep voice, "Brother Ping, all the pills released by the Azure Pond Sect are made using mortal blood qi... Their high-level techniques remove the resentment qi, leaving only the blood qi and essence qi, making it just another ingredient, letting it go unnoticed by people... That pill Granduncle took back then was not an Essence Gathering Pill. The Chi Family knew Lord Chejing would never take that pill but would leave it for our family. They used another's immortal foundation to specially refine it... It might have been the Boundless Ocean !"
After explaining his deductions in detail, Li Yuanping stood still, staring at his brother, speechless for several moments. He slowly sat down, his face bewildered, muttering, "We have all consumed them... Every cultivator in Yue State takes these pills... The Azure Pond Sect has existed for five hundred years. Rogue cultivators, sect cultivators, clan cultivators—whether they know it or not—have been consuming these pills for generations! I have taken them, my father took them, my grandfather took them, and so did our ancestors... You and I... we have been eating humans, and we are also descendants of those who eat humans."
After finally processing this shocking news, he trembled and asked, "In your opinion, do any other clans know?"
"I have no idea."
Li Yuanjiao shook his head slowly, his expression complex, and said, "It is hard to say about the Yuan Family, but Xiao Yuansi is a righteous gentleman and must be unaware of this. As for the Xiao Family, having dominated for so many years, I cannot believe... not a chance, that they do not know."
————
At the peak of Mount Lijing.
Li Qinghong slowly clenched her fair and delicate hands into fists. The bluish-gray mirror faintly reflected her fine features. The spiritual sense magnified by the mirror covered not just Lijing Town but far beyond. She had heard every word exchanged between the two clearly.
"So that is how it is..."
She recalled the few pills she had consumed, wondering how many men, women, children, and elders had contributed their blood qi to those pills. A wave of nausea swept over her. Beside her, Lu Jiangxian was stunned, his heart sinking.
"The Azure Pond Sect... what kind of trickery is this? This means that the entire Yue State, and even all of Jiangnan, have been consuming these pills..."
For a moment, he was at a loss for words. After all, Lu Jiangxian came from a society that was governed by strict laws. Internally, he drew a line for the Li Family.
No slaughter, no blood sacrifice... I cannot bear to see that. If the Li Family gets involved in this, I might as well use the Profound Light to destroy them... But now, what should I do?
Lu Jiangxian's already limited knowledge was concentrated in the realm of shamanic spells and talismans. When it came to alchemy, his understanding remained at the level of those few alchemical books he had studied. Naturally, he could not identify the issues with these pills.
Furthermore, back when Li Tongya took the pills, Lu Jiangxian was just a novice. If Wang Xun had not pointed it out, he would have had no awareness of the problem contained within.
"Forget it. If they have unknowingly eaten these human meat buns , can it really be considered a crime...?" He sighed as he focused intently on the mirror, its profound light radiating and clearing the minds of the people below him, waking them from their state of growing inner demons.
Seeing the gradually awakening group, Lu Jiangxian felt troubled again. If the Li Family knowingly continued to consume these blood qi pills in the future... what then?
"Logically, past actions cannot be judged, and addressing it now would be too conspicuous. Moreover, these pills, refined from pure blood qi, would not trigger the talisman seeds' warnings... It is impossible to monitor the Li Family constantly..." Lu Jiangxian sighed deeply, shrinking within the mirror's world.
He murmured quietly, "The world is filthy... it is impossible to climb up cleanly. Let's take it one step at a time. Now that the Li Family has their own alchemist, they have room to maneuver. Let's see how they handle this!"
————
The members of the Li Family were deeply shaken by the news that had just been revealed to them. Meanwhile, in the side courtyard, Wang Xun gently held the long sword in front of him, hesitating for a moment as he appeared lost in thought.
"This Li Family still adheres to the righteous path, a rarity under the rule of these Jiangnan powers... But I wonder how long they can endure in such a corrupt world..."
The young man's eyebrows slightly furrowed, showing a hint of compassion. Even his own Wang Family could only avoid the world, what more could a mere Foundation Establishment Realm family achieve?
The currents of the world were like a torrent, and even his family's True Monarch could only protect the clan, let alone consider anything beyond that.
"The Heaven Dao is flawed, and we are powerless... If it were not for my family's teachings of seclusion, we would have been destroyed in that great calamity..."
Wang Xun brought his two fingers together and gently stroked the green-white sword. The clear, bright sword aura reflected in his eyes, filled with innocence, kindness along with... deep pain and guilt.
Although he came from a prestigious family, he had traveled the world, but he was unfamiliar with southern customs. Knowing that the Li Family dared not offend him, he could have easily given a few pills to appease them and avoid further entanglements.
However, as he traveled, he saw only joy and strict laws under the Li Family's governance, making him find them endearing. He felt compelled to offer something better, hence he had taken out the spirit root and given it to the Li Family willingly.
"Jiangnan is indeed as described in the books, with various factions pulling strings and everyone being powerless. Only the Yue Cultivating Sect seems somewhat righteous..."
With this thought, Wang Xun could not help but feel a sense of doubt and pondered, "That True Monarch is not a benevolent person, yet the Yue Cultivating Sect has adhered to the rules set by the Immortal Lord for so many years without overstepping their boundaries... which is truly puzzling."
He mulled over it but could not figure it out. Naturally gifted with an innate connection to the way of the sword, he was not adept at pondering these schemes and conspiracies. He shifted his thoughts and felt the grief and indignation within the spirit of the Qingche Sword.
"That Li Family Sword Immortal has indeed suffered an unjust death..."
Wang Xun let out a bitter laugh. Having traveled in the north, he found it to be dead and stagnant under the Buddhism rule, with everything remaining the same year after year. The Maha forever remained Maha, and the lowly commoners forever remained lowly commoners, filled with despair.
Jiangnan, on the other hand, was constantly chaotic, filled with betrayal and slaughter. Today, someone might break through the Qi Cultivation Realm and forge an artifact to annex another clan, and tomorrow, that person might be killed, resulting in the annihilation of their clan... It was not any better.
Placing the Qingche Sword on his knee, Wang Xun formed a seal and performed a spell, extracting strands of white sword intent. He sighed as he muttered quietly to himself, "If I had to choose, I would rather be born in Jiangnan... At least there is a path to take."