Li Mutian’s funeral procession was a sight to behold, transforming the somber occasion into one that resembled the passing of a high-ranking official rather than a common elder.
The villages were decorated with long, white cloths, and the direct descendants of the Li Family, clad in white, solemnly pulled the hearse along the stone path.
News had spread rapidly through all the villages. Chen Erniu had just begun his day when Chen Sanshui relayed the news to him, leaving him shocked and speechless.
Chen Erniu set down the willow branch in his hands. He washed his face and sat by the table, engulfed by a wave of sadness that was difficult to put into words.
“Regardless of one’s status or power, it is impossible to escape death. Without attaining immortality, we’re all destined to return to mere yellow soil.”
Chen Sanshui, however, disagreed with him. He curled his lips and commented, “Only the three brothers of the Li Family are immortal cultivators. Do they have to cause such a scene over an old mortal’s death? It’s not like Li Mutian is someone important.”
Chen Erniu narrowed his eyes and proceeded to beat Chen Sanshui with a willow branch while scolding, “Fool! Your ignorance will be the death of you!”
“Fiiiiiine. Fourth Brother is the best for possessing a spiritual orifice,” Chen Sanshui muttered under his breath in response, dismissing Chen Erniu’s anger as he left the table and walked out of the courtyard.
Meanwhile, on Mount Lijing.
Lu Jiangxian gazed upon the courtyard, now draped in white, and the absence of Li Mutian from his usual spot on the wooden chair in the backyard, feeling a pang of melancholy.
As he watched Li Mutian’s burial, he was suddenly alerted by his divine sense to a stream of light darting across the sky, coming to a stop just outside Mount Lijing’s protective formation.
“It’s me, Xiao Yuansi from the Xiao Family! Kindly grant me entry to the mountain.”
Although the protective formation of the mountain was useless against him, a cultivator at the eighth heavenly layer of the Qi Cultivation Realm, the man waited respectfully at the foot of Mount Lijing.
Shortly after, Li Xiangping and Li Tongya deactivated the formation. Xiao Yuansi slowly walked into the courtyard on the mountain.
Upon noticing the courtyard draped in white and the two brothers dressed in white mourning attire, Xiao Yuansi’s smile faded as he solemnly asked, “Is your father...?”
Seeing the two brothers nodding in response, Xiao Yuansi sighed and offered his condolences.
“Jing’er and I will soon embark on a journey to the southern border, and it may be decades before we’re able to communicate again. Junior Brother managed to secure a qi cultivation method and qi gathering method for both of you, and he has requested me to pass the manuals to you since I’m making a trip home.”
“This is the River One Qi Technique, a Grade Three manual that requires harnessing the River Pure Qi. Seek out areas where the river network is dense and wetland plants thrive. Harvest the qi at dawn or dusk, that’s when pure qi rises and murky qi settles. Using the qi gathering method, you can gather a wisp in six months. Ten wisps make a portion.”
Xiao Yuansi then took out a brocade pouch and retrieved a few jade slips from it.
“This is the Pure Spiritual Essence Technique manual. It’s a Grade Two technique that uses Minor Pure Spiritual Qi, a type of spiritual qi that can be easily gathered. Although it pales in comparison to the River One Qi Technique, it still surpasses the common techniques available in the market.”
Li Tongya quickly accepted the jade slips from Xiao Yuansi and expressed his gratitude.
Xiao Yuansi sighed softly before a conflicted look appeared on his face. “Qingsui Peak can only offer so much protection. In a time of changes, please take great care of yourselves!”
His mentor, Si Yuanbai, had suddenly gone into seclusion without leaving a word for his disciples on Qingsui Peak. On top of that, the escalating pressures from the sect to deploy them to the southern border made Xiao Yuansi extremely suspicious.
Recalling the Mushroom Forest Plain, one of Qingsui Peak’s assets, being silently forfeited to the raiders from the Golden Tang Gate sent shivers down Xiao Yuansi’s spine.
He felt as vulnerable as a mere pawn in the grand schemes of those cultivators of the Purple Mansion Realm.
The Immortal Sect has been increasingly active lately, taking control and governance over mortals time and time again. Could it be that one of the cultivators of the Purple Mansion Realm within the sect is nearing the end of their lifespan?
This thought alone was enough to send a shudder through him.
Roused from his contemplation by the repeated calls of Li Tongya and Li Xiangping, Xiao Yuansi managed a forced smile and responded to them, “What did you say?”
Li Tongya cupped his fist and repeated, “I was asking if you have any River Pure Qi with you right now, Immortal Master. We have some savings and would like to purchase a portion.”
Xiao Yuansi was lost in his own thoughts after saying something so cryptic, stirring unease in the two brothers.
Spending up to five years to collect the River Pure Qi, and another four or five years to break through to the Qi Cultivation Realm was too long. Li Tongya would like to break through to the Qi Cultivation Realm as soon as possible, given the looming threats from Mount Yue and the Ji Family.
The items they obtained from the old Daoist that Li Xiangping previously killed probably worthed about thirty to forty Spirit Stones. In addition to the old Daoist’s storage pouch, that should be a total of eighty to ninety Spirit Stones. This amount was definitely sufficient to buy a portion of River Pure Qi.
“I do,” Xiao Yuansi affirmed with a nod. With a smile, he untied a little jade bottle at his waist and said, “I have a portion of it. This is usually priced at about fifty Spirit Stones. Are you able to afford it?”
Li Tongya nodded, then took out a block of pale green metal from the storage pouch that they acquired from the old Daoist.
“Can you appraise this item?” he requested respectfully.
Xiao Yuansi took a look at it and frowned, then weighed it in his hand. After a moment of silence, he said, “This is probably Green Patterned Steel, a material of the Qi Cultivation Realm. This should be worth about twenty Spirit Stones.”
After exchanging a glance, Li Tongya and Li Xiangping nodded to each other. They took out the twenty-five Spirit Stones from the old Daoist’s storage pouch and an additional five that were saved over the years by their family.
They handed this sum to Xiao Yuansi in exchange for the River Pure Qi.
The old Daoist’s storage pouch had a capacity of one cubic zhang[1], about the size of a courtyard. This made it extremely useful for both travel and storage, so the two brothers were reluctant to sell it.
They presented the jade bottle, which used to contain the Fire Baleful Qi, to hold the River Pure Qi, then showed Xiao Yuansi the old Daoist’s Jade Sprout Pill.
Xiao Yuansi took a whiff of it and then commented with a smile, “This is quite a decent item of the Qi Cultivation Realm. It’s worth about seven or eight Spirit Stones.”
The brothers expressed their gratitude and then conversed a little more with Xiao Yuansi before the man took his leave.
Once he had departed, Li Tongya carefully examined the jade bottle’s contents. Looking at the River Pure Qi which shimmered as though it was under the sunlight, Li Tongya felt the six chakras of the Embryonic Breathing Realm stirring within him, as well as the urge to consume this spiritual qi of heaven and earth right away.
Li Xiangping chuckled and said, “Once Second Brother attains the Qi Cultivation Realm and we find a demonic creature of the Qi Cultivation Realm, we’ll be able to perform that sacrificial ritual for the mirror and explore the potential of the talisman qi.”
Li Tongya’s face lit up with irrepressible joy as he carefully picked up the jade slip of the River One Qi Technique, allowing his spiritual sense to gently sift through its contents.
The complexity and length of spells and techniques of the Qi Cultivation Realm were extremely long. If transcribed onto wood, they would probably amass into a small mountain.
Hence, such spells and techniques were recorded in warm jade, a material that allowed one to access vast amounts of information through a mere touch of spiritual sense.
However, the fragility of jade meant that it was typically reserved for documenting techniques alone, while more robust materials like spirit silk fabrics were used for important information meant to be preserved.
After carefully reading the technique detailed in the jade slip, Li Tongya stood up in excitement and announced, “I’ll be ready to seclude myself and make a breakthrough to the Qi Cultivation Realm after a few days of meditation!”
1. 1 zhang = 3.3 meters ☜