As they were talking, Xiao Guiluan arrived, full of curiosity. She descended from the wind and bowed to Li Xuanxuan, saying respectfully, "Father."
Li Xuanxuan waved his hand, signaling her to speak. He then urgently asked, "What did Xiao Guitu say?"
Xiao Guiluan hesitated for a moment and then repeated her brother's words. Li Yuanjiao and Li Xuanxuan were both stunned, looking at her in disbelief.
"Our family's Purple Mansion Realm cultivator?!"
Li Yuanjiao was dazed for a few moments, frowning as he looked up and said in a deep voice, "Where would our family get a Purple Mansion Realm cultivator? If the Li Family had one, we would not be in our current state!"
Li Xuanxuan put away the talisman in his hand, still puzzled. Xiao Guiluan herself was also confused. Seeing Li Yuanjiao's genuine expression, she hesitated and said slowly, "Perhaps it is a good thing! But... I always feel uneasy for some reason."
Li Yuanjiao turned the cup in his hand silently and said softly, "No wonder Xiao Guitu was so courteous..."
"What should we do now?" Xiao Guiluan asked.
Li Yuanjiao, surprisingly calm, had a fleeting image of the immortal mirror in his mind before replying nonchalantly.
"Act as if nothing happened. Proceed as usual."
He had a guess: the family's immortal mirror was of extremely high rank yet excelled at concealment... Perhaps Xiao Chuting miscalculated due to this misunderstanding.
He could not send someone to the Xiao Family to clarify either. Whether Xiao Guitu believed it or not, if word spread to others, it could spell trouble.
"If Xiao Chuting can return safely and promptly... Everything will be fine. If he cannot return..."
Li Yuanjiao said this, but in his heart, he felt that Xiao Chuting was definitely not someone who would take risks rashly and get trapped. With the mysterious nature of the Man On Creek, it was more likely that he would be the one setting traps for others.
He shook his head and continued, "Xiao Chuting would never risk himself unnecessarily... It is likely a calculated exchange. Do not worry about the Xiao Family; let us prepare to deal with the devil cultivators first."
Seeing Li Yuanjiao casually brush off the matter, Xiao Guiluan had no choice but to nod. Suddenly, a moment of clarity struck her mind, and she felt inexplicably uneasy. She gasped, "Oh no!"
Both men looked over to see Xiao Guiluan's face turn pale as she murmured, "No wonder I felt so uneasy! Brother... has been hit by a divine ability... It is Buzi! No wonder... I understand now...I understand! Buzi intentionally met with him. No wonder he demanded the Purple Mansion Realm expert to come personally... he forced my brother to meet him!"
Xiao Guiluan continued, "Brother is only at the Qi Cultivation Realm, while Buzi is already at the mid-stage of the Purple Mansion Realm. He must have used his divine ability to confuse and shake his mind, forcing him to seek help. He probably wanted to see what the Xiao Family's backup plan was!"
Xiao Guiluan had only brief contact with him but was already influenced to the point of distraction, showing how deep Xiao Guitu's enchantments were. If it were someone less resolute, they would have broken down and revealed all secrets by now.
"What?!"
Li Yuanjiao was momentarily stunned but quickly reacted, horrified, "What level is the Xiao Family's formation?! Does the Xiao Family have the means to isolate from the outside? If Buzi overheard your conversation with your brother, his next step would be to come to our house!"
Buzi was no ordinary Purple Mansion Realm cultivator. If he learned that the Li Family had a Purple Mansion Realm cultivator, he would definitely visit personally. Their family did not have one, and they had a hidden treasure on the mountain. If it was seen by a Purple Mansion Realm cultivator, it would spell the end of the family.
If Buzi saw this treasure that absorbs the Supreme Yin Moonlight, he wouldn't care about the Azure Pond Sect or Mount Dali; he would slaughter our family and flee with the treasure!
Li Yuanjiao thought of the worst-case scenario.
"Impossible!"
Xiao Guiluan, freed from Buzi's divine influence and much clearer-headed, said decisively, "Our Xiao Family's main hall was personally refined by our ancestor! It has a barrier with the Great Void. Even Buzi would have to lower himself, land on the mountaintop, and then enter the hall. It is impossible for him to overhear our conversation. Once isolated from the Great Void, even if someone died inside, their soul lamp in the sect would not extinguish immediately, let alone leave any means to eavesdrop!"
Li Yuanjiao glanced at her, still feeling a chill run down his spine as he murmured, "Let's hope that's the case..."
————
The water on Moongaze Lake rippled as a green-robed cultivator descended with the wind, landing on a small island in the lake.
"Moongaze Marsh."
He gazed silently at the blue water, calculating that it had been over a hundred years since he last came to this place.
In the records of the Azure Pond Sect, the spiritual energy here was once the greatest in the Yue State, a treasure land of the immortal mansion with white mist curled around the vast marsh. Five hundred years ago, it plummeted, and later, the siege of Li Jiangqun severely damaged the spiritual energy, almost depleting it entirely.
Daoist Master Buzi looked around. His grandfather and uncles all died in that great battle. Now, hundreds of years old, he still felt that the green water had a tinge of red to it.
"Jiangqun is dead, the bright moon rises in the east, its light like frost. Snow falls in the prefecture, the lake sparkles with a myriad of lights, red and green intertwine..."
The Purple Mansion Realm cultivators who died in that battle were countless. Some returned home with an indelible sword intent, slowly awaiting death. But the spectacle over the lake was more magnificent than the previous hundred years combined.
Li Jiangqun never had the chance to transform into a spirit object. His flesh was divided among the three sects, treated as precious treasures. What followed was the reckoning with Lingyu Gate and the extermination of a few immortal clans.
He snapped out of his recollections, shook his head, and withdrew his gaze, extending his spiritual sense to search the bottom of the lake repeatedly.
"I'll search three times. If there is nothing, I'll leave."
The lakebed of Moongaze Lake churned, treacherous and filled with numerous demons, some of which were Foundation Establishment Realm creatures. Usually domineering, they now trembled in the mud, cowering in fear before the Purple Mansion Daoist Master.
Buzi ignored them, carefully searching three times. Finding nothing, he could not resist searching two more times. Finally, he shook his head and sighed. "Still nothing... I supposed it's not so easily found."
In fact, the sects had long given up on finding the Supreme Yin Moonlight in Moongaze Lake. It was more likely to be found in the ruins of the Eastern Sea. However, Buzi could not resist coming after hearing Li Xizhi's account.
"The Purple Mansion Realm expert aiding the Xiao Family did not show up... It might be Xiao Xianyou's favor. It is best to release Xiao Chuting first, to avoid further complications."
Buzi glanced at Mount Dali, swung his sleeve, and vanished into the Great Void.
Watching Buzi vanish into the Great Void, Lu Jiangxian finally let out a long sigh of relief, "Thank goodness... he was not coming for me."
When Daoist Master Buzi passed by the Ding Family and stepped into Moongaze Lake, Lu Jiangxian was immediately alerted. Seeing this man with such a formidable aura, he briefly feared that he had been exposed.
As he secretly calculated whether he could escape from Buzi, a mid-stage Purple Mansion Realm cultivator who had mastered three divine abilities, he realized that Buzi was just passing by to search for the Supreme Yin Moonlight.
In the future, the Li Family must not expose the Supreme Yin Moonlight again... If another one appears, this lake will constantly be visited by Purple Mansion Realm cultivators. The three sects might even start fighting over the ownership of Moongaze Lake...
As he pondered this silently, he noticed a ripple in the Great Void once more. Buzi, dressed in green, returned. He was stepping lightly over the water, which startled Lu Jiangxian.
This guy! What is he up to now? Lu Jiangxian cursed.
Buzi had a slight smile on his face as he calmly landed on the lake, looking toward the glittering grand formation on Mount Dali.
Isn't there still the Li Family? That Li Xizhi is just a young brat and might not know the family secrets. If the cave dwelling contains such a precious item as the Supreme Yin Moonlight, there might be other treasures as well!