Qingdu Cave Dwelling.
The tightly shut stone door slowly creaked open as Li Qinghong stepped out, her aura steady and strong. The once-vivid lightning that had surrounded her was now more subdued, with only faint traces of electricity flickering at the edges of her hair and robes.
During her seclusion, Li Qinghong had managed to stabilize her cultivation. The dazzling brilliance that had marked her recent breakthrough had dimmed, making it harder to immediately discern her immortal foundation.
Li Yuanjiao had already informed her that he would accompany Li Xuanxuan and Li Xijun to the Hengzhu Dao Gate in Hengdong Prefecture with the protection of the profound spirit mist, leaving Li Qinghong to oversee matters at home.
She flew for a while before descending gracefully, her jade boots lightly touching down on the ground as she rode on purple lightning. In the central hall, Li Xicheng was busy at his desk, surrounded by two piles of letters.
As soon as Li Qinghong entered, the people in the hall immediately kneeled in respect. Li Xicheng also quickly stood and greeted her respectfully.
"Auntie, you've emerged from seclusion already! The thunder altar is already under construction. We are sixty percent through the process and should be able to complete it within a year."
"Good," Li Qinghong replied kindly. Her immortal foundation, the Profound Thunderpool, had the potential to channel thunder and draw down lightning, but its effectiveness had yet to be proven. She had therefore ordered the construction of a high platform as a testing ground for her abilities.
The altar was a complex endeavor, requiring engraved array formations, spirit items, and the crafting of thirty-six hexagonal bronze pieces. Even for Foundation Establishment Realm cultivators, it was no small task.
Fortunately, the Li Family had ample manpower. Li Qinghong only needed to engrave the necessary array formations while Li Xicheng took care of the rest.
Li Xicheng retrieved two small letters from the table and said, "The Jade Court Guards from Xu State and Zhao State have sent news for the family. Please review them, Auntie."
With a wave of her slender hand, the letters unfolded before Li Qinghong.
The first was from Zhao State. It reported that Chu Yi, the Li Fire Spear , had traveled north across Zhao State, where he eliminated three Jie noble families, razed six temples of various sizes, and managed to break through to the Purple Mansion Realm despite being pursued. He then retreated to a peak in Luoxia, where he continued his cultivation.
Li Qinghong was stunned by the news. For most Foundation Establishment cultivators, breaking through to the Purple Mansion Realm required painstaking preparation. One needed to find an ideal location to enter seclusion, gather numerous spirit items to create array formations and wait for the right alignment of heaven and earth's spirit energies with one's immortal foundation.
Even after such meticulous planning, success demanded years of seclusion with the protection of powerful formations and potent elixirs.
Chu Yi's breakthrough seems almost effortless... He has ascended to the Purple Mansion Realm after just a few months of seclusion. The ease with which he accomplished this was astonishing—it is virtually unheard of!
He has only taken about... only ten years to reach the Purple Mansion Realm... To break through so quickly... He must be the reincarnation of a Golden Core Realm cultivator!
Chu Yi's swift ascension from Foundation Establishment to the Purple Mansion made it almost certain to the world that he was the reincarnation of a Golden Core Realm cultivator.
The three Jie nobles and the six temples he destroyed were mere pawns and ignorant commoners who had no understanding of the true situation, pushed forward by Buddhist cultivators.
"Ten years... yes, that's only doable for a former Golden Core Realm cultivator," Li Qinghong murmured quietly with a small frown.
However, the letter offered no details about Chu Yi's immortal foundation or his divine abilities, likely because such information was impossible to uncover. Li Qinghong could not help but feel a twinge of disappointment.
Mount Luoxia and Jiangnan rarely have any contact. Now that Chu Yi has entered the mountain, he must be reclaiming his Golden Core's Fruition Attainment and is unlikely to return.
As for the clans in Yufu Prefecture that had been destroyed and the forces that had been eradicated, no one paid them much mind. Li Qinghong quickly scanned through the letter, memorized the key points, and then turned her attention to the next one.
This one reported that a group of devil cultivators had appeared in the barren mountains near the great river in the north, occupying several small hills. Initially, this seemed inconsequential. If not for a rogue cultivator who had escaped from the area, the Li Family might not have even known about it.
The rogue cultivator shared that most of the devil cultivators were not particularly strong, except for one that wielded a blood-colored mirror. Additional details were appended at the end of the letter.
Li Qinghong's eyes narrowed as she wondered aloud, "A blood mirror? Zhang Huaide?!"
Li Xicheng nodded and replied, "According to the rogue cultivator's description, that seems to be him!"
During the Devil Plague, a group of devil cultivators, including Zhang Huaide and Qiu Ji, had come from the west. They had killed Tian Youdao, injured Li Xuanxuan and Xu Gongming before they fled.
Zhang Huaide, who seemed to have powerful connections, had escaped unscathed, using his blood mirror artifact and an escape spell.
Li Qinghong did not particularly care about Zhang Huaide. Qiu Ji was the one who had killed Li Yuanyun, her younger brother, and nearly killed Li Xuanxuan. Her hatred for him ran deep.
"How strong is he now?" she asked in a low voice.
"It's said that he has reached the ninth heavenly layer of the Qi Cultivation Realm. All of the devil cultivators are at the Qi Cultivation Realm, with most of them in the middle or late stages," Li Xicheng replied, his expression tense.
While he was trying to think of a way to dissuade his aunt, Li Qinghong's expression had already turned pensive.
Why does Zhang Huaide have to return just when Big Brother and half of the family's fighting force are away?
Despite the hatred in her heart, Li Qinghong knew this was likely not a coincidence. She took a deep breath and composed herself before instructing softly, "This is too strange. Send someone to investigate."
"Understood!" Li Xicheng replied promptly, relieved by her calmness.
Li Qinghong added, "Find out their exact location. I'll have Wushao go and investigate further. Zhang Huaide has an unusual backing—he could be a spy for the three sects. There's something odd about him lingering here."
Li Xicheng responded respectfully. Before leaving on the wind, Li Qinghong repeated her instructions.
"Be sure to get to the bottom of this! It's too much of a coincidence for that rogue cultivator to come to our doorstep at this time... Do not trust his story too easily."
Li Xicheng nodded, watching her depart before returning to his seat. He opened the account book and glanced at Dou Yi, who was standing at the side of the room. In a low voice, he remarked, "181 jin... Is this all the Ni Water Cold Iron we've collected this year?"
Along with his gray hair, Dou Yi now looked a lot more mature and reliable than he was in the past.
"Yes, Young Master. This is all of it," he replied with a nod.
"Alright," Li Xicheng said, waving his hand to dismiss him kindly.
As Dou Yi left, Chen Mufeng stepped forward. Li Xicheng remarked softly, "This amount of Ni Water Cold Iron doesn't match the figures reported from the ore vein by An Zheyan. Send the Jade Court Guards to investigate this matter discreetly. If they uncover anything, report directly to me first."
Chen Mufeng, a trusted ally for many years, replied in a deep voice, "This seems like a foolish method to embezzle resources. The ore vein reserves can be checked easily. If the quantity mined doesn't match the reported figures, it's clear there's a discrepancy... How could they hide it?"
The Li Family possessed the Earthly Court Detection Technique , which made tracking the changes in ore veins straightforward. Most clans like the Xiao Family relied heavily on this method as it allowed them to entrust their ore veins to their subordinate families for mining, leaving no room for deceit.
Li Xicheng shook his head, explaining, "The official report says the ore vein produced 181 jin, but I secretly sent people to check the warehouse—it actually holds 190 jin of iron, so no one has taken anything yet."
"They must be testing me since I'm new at managing the family. If I made any drastic moves, they'd simply recount the stock and correct the amount to 190 jin. In that case, at worst, I could only accuse them of carelessness, and they'd likely scapegoat a minor sect cultivator from accounting while they were trying to throw me off."
After having assisted Li Yuanping for nearly a decade, Li Xicheng has gained a great deal of experience. Though his capabilities remained to be seen, he understood the covert politics at play.
He thought for a moment before adding, "You can investigate first and report back once you have news. Auntie's matter is more pressing, so we can delay this for now."