The members of the Li Family swiftly departed on the wind. Li Yuanjiao's face was slightly pale, but after consuming a Cold Dispelling Antidote and a pill to replenish his true essence, his complexion improved significantly. Beside him, Li Qinghong, who had also exerted considerable energy, took the same pill and regulated her breathing.
Despite his slight injuries, Li Yuanjiao maintained a smile on his face. The storage pouch in his hand glowed with runes, suggesting that it was no ordinary item.
He chuckled and said, "That devil cultivator seems different from the other minor devil cultivators we usually encounter... He's likely one of the core figures like Zhang Huaide and Qiu Ji. I expect we'll find something of value in this pouch."
However, Li Yuanjiao did not open the storage pouch but instead played with it in his hand.
Li Xuanxuan looked at him in concern and asked, "Jiao'er, how are your injuries?"
"It's nothing serious. I'll get Guiluan to help me recover for a couple of days, and then I'll spend the next few months stabilizing my cultivation. After that, I should be able to break through to the ninth heavenly layer," he replied, hinting that he would be using a talisman pill.
Since the old monkey flying behind them, Li Yuanjiao did not want to talk about the talisman pill openly. The four of them flew on for a while until Li Yuanjiao suddenly halted and whispered, "Found it!"
Below them, a minor Embryonic Breathing Realm family was being ruthlessly attacked by a devil cultivator. Li Yuanjiao descended, drawing his sword to strike.
Soon, he returned with a captured Embryonic Breathing Realm devil cultivator, whose limbs had been cleanly severed. The devil cultivator's eyes widened in fear as he pleaded for mercy.
Li Yuanjiao stared at him emotionlessly, then threw the limbless devil cultivator onto the ground before tossing the devil qi cultivator's storage pouch on him.
"Open it with your spiritual sense," he ordered.
The Embryonic Breathing Realm devil cultivator complied instantly, and the pouch's contents spilled out. There were no visible traps or seals.
Li Yuanjiao, not interested in finding out whether the devil cultivator had been marked for revenge, ignored his pleas for mercy. With a swift motion, he crushed the devil cultivator's skull under his foot and incinerated the remains with a fire spell, then picked up the storage pouch and its contents.
All of this happened in a matter of breaths. Meanwhile, Li Qinghong, who was meditating with her spear in hand, remained detached and seemingly unaffected by the scene. Li Xuanxuan, however, frowned and interjected, "A single slash would have sufficed... There was no need to sever his limbs and make such a bloody mess."
"It's better this way. At least, there's no need to worry about him using any talismans," Li Yuanjiao replied with a laugh.
With that, they soared into the air. Li Yuanjiao examined the contents of the storage pouch as they flew and in no time, they had arrived at the border of the Yu Family's territory.
Yu Family's Milin Prefecture was engulfed in smoke and fire. Spells and streams of mana light clashed in the air, leaving marks of battle and ruin on the ground.
Li Xuanxuan paused to observe for a moment and then remarked softly, "There are only four generations from Yu Yufeng to Yu Chengyi. To think that the situation of their family has deteriorated so much that recovery seems impossible..."
Li Qinghong, who was holding her spear and watching the bright flames engulf the prefecture, commented, "When clans are founded, their ancestors are either exceptionally gifted and cunning, generous and resourceful, or cautious and ruthless. The first generation built their foundations, and the second maintained them but were less successful than their predecessors... The descendants indulge in comfort and focus solely on cultivation, detached from the hardships of the world. They attain the Foundation Establishment Realm and suppress the other clans, or they risk planting the seeds of future troubles if they don't."
Li Yuanjiao rested his hand on the sword at his waist and murmured, "From our family's high ancestor, Li Mutian, we have seen four generations... The current generation of Xi and Yue is the fifth."
He turned and asked suddenly, "Is there any descendant comparable to the high ancestor?"
Li Qinghong, caught off guard by his serious tone, quickly laughed and said, "Each generation faces its own circumstances. There's no need to compare, Big Brother."
Li Xuanxuan listened silently to the discussion between Li Yuanjiao and Li Qinghong without saying a word. Upon returning to Lijing Town, he ascended the peak to draw talismans, while Li Yuanjiao and Li Qinghong landed in the central hall to divide the spoils with Li Yuanping.
There were ten spirit pouches of the Embryonic Breathing Realm. After filling the vault with dharma artifacts and spirit items, the remaining forty Spirit Stones were added to the clan account. This replenished the gap left by the Spirit Stones for Li Qingxiao's lineage from Mount Yu.
When they poured out the savings from the Qi devil cultivator, there were twenty Spirit Stones, not accounting for the rest. Li Yuanjiao handed them over to Yuanping, only to see him frown and say, "You should keep some for yourselves too, Big Brother and Big Sister. If you give everything to the clan, you two won't have anything left for your own cultivation. Big Brother is on the verge of reaching the Foundation Establishment Realm... You should think more about yourself."
The siblings exchanged glances with each other briefly, then decided to split the Spirit Stones among themselves. They also took a few bottles of useful pills for themselves. Li Yuanjiao sifted through the remaining devil techniques for a while before his eyes finally lit up.
"There's a Grade Four technique!" he exclaimed in delight.
Most of the widely circulated manuals in the Wu and Yue States were of Grade One and Two. Grade Three and Grade Four techniques and spells were generally kept secret by clans, while those beyond that grade were monopolized by the immortal sects.
Upon hearing this, everyone gathered around him eagerly. Li Yuanjiao read the manual carefully before remarking, "How rare! This is a Grade Four spell from the Slaughter Jun Gate, a minor sect in the Wu State! It's known as the Slaughter Jun Kui Light , requiring different types of cold qi or cold water in its practice. To learn this spell, nine different cold qi or three types of cold water are needed. To master it, one would need nine different cold qi and nine types of cold water to make eighty-one variations!"
"Typically, these cold qi and water are to be absorbed into the left index finger... On the battlefield, a hand seal can be performed to unleash the Slaughter Jun Kui Light. This can obstruct an enemy's mana circulation. Once mastered, it could freeze even Qi Cultivators," he continued explaining.
Once Li Yuanjiao finished his explanation, Li Qinghong took the manual and examined it. With a regretful sigh, she said, "I can't use this. Thunder is associated with fire, and this spell relies on the cold. It's unsuitable for me, especially since the cold must be absorbed into the index finger..."
Li Yuanjiao nodded. His family practiced the River One Qi Technique and Cold Pine Dew Snow Technique Manual , both of which were compatible with this spell. The Cold Pine Snow Qi , gathered by the Cold Pine Dew Snow Technique Manual , could even be used to cultivate this spell.
The Earth Fiend's Cold Spring spirit water at home could also be used.
"Slaughter Jun Gate..." Li Yuanjiao repeated the name, feeling a sense of familiarity with it.
"I think that old monkey used to train in this sect... The White Monkey's Travel Notes described the cultivation techniques of this sect as gloomy and cold. The ancestors of the sect were wealthy and possessed several secret techniques. This gate was later destroyed by the devil cultivators, which is why this manual has ended up in our hands."
The spell required numerous types of cold qi and cold water, with nine varieties needed just to begin. Given the difficulty of starting the cultivation itself, Li Yuanjiao decided to set it aside for now. He planned to gather cold qi from other families before attempting to cultivate it.