Li Congxin

At this moment, Li Guanqi felt more powerful than ever before! Even now, he felt as though he were living in a dream. He had originally thought his Ethereal Dao Body, capable of resonating with heaven and earth, was already defying the natural order. Yet now... "The Spirit-Devouring Dao Body, is it..." The corners of Li Guanqi's mouth curled upward. It seemed that from this very moment, he finally possessed the confidence to declare war against the entire Immortal Realm! Clenching his fists, his thoughts churned with profound emotion. Tearing through the void with a flick of his wrist, he looked up at the curling immortal mist overhead, lost in thought. Taking a deep breath, Li Guanqi slowly closed his eyes and murmured to himself, "Soon... I will ascend soon..." Yet right then, a certain person came to mind, and a smile played on his lips. "It is time I go see him." *** Meanwhile, in a major city within the southern Luoxia Domain, preparations for a grand auction were underway in full swing. Fenhe City. Outside the city walls, the river surged swiftly, its water striking irregularly clustered stones beneath the warm sun to produce crisp, tinkling sounds. Across the lush green grass stood vast groves of towering trees. The midday sun was just right. In the shade of a tree, a man in a red robe lay sprawled on the ground with a blade of foxtail grass dangling from his lips. Beside him rested a vermilion wine gourd. The white-haired young man possessed handsome features with sharp, defined contours. Listening to the youth chattering beside him, the corners of his mouth curved up. Leaning against the tree trunk, the youth frowned slightly, looking thoroughly distressed. "Brother Li, are you even listening to me? Qingqiu is always blowing hot and cold with me... I can't even tell if she really likes me or not... "And another thing—are you actually an expert or not? I keep feeling like you're some traveling swindler just trying to cheat me out of wine!" Li Congxin smiled wryly. A youth's innocent feelings were always so endearing. "Your Brother Li is naturally an expert! The kind that can't get any higher. "Here, this is the IOU for the wine." He opened his eyes, glanced at the young man, and casually handed him a slip of paper. Dressed in green robes, with jade-like skin and handsome features, this was the eldest son of the Gu clan in Fenhe City, Gu Qingzhou. "Another wine IOU! Brother Li, are you really this poor? You owe me every single time..." Watching the youth roll his eyes, Li Congxin could not help but chuckle. "I really don't understand why you have to fixate on Ling Qingqiu. Are none of the other fine maidens good enough for you?" Gu Qingzhou tilted his head back, his gaze turning distant as if picturing that young woman. With a smile touching his face, he murmured, "For some people, once you've set your heart on them, you can never forget them." Li Congxin shook his head with a bitter smile. Ever since he arrived in the city, this boy had clung to him, insisting on being his lackey. Who knew whether the kid possessed some sort of sixth sense—from the very first moment he laid eyes on Li Congxin, he insisted Li Congxin was an expert. Unfortunately for him, Li Congxin only swore brotherhood and had no habit of taking lackeys. However... Fenhe City's Ling clan was vastly more powerful than the Gu clan. The gulf between a first-rate clan and a third-rate clan was enough to extinguish any unrealistic, naive love Gu Qingzhou harbored in his head. Moreover, from what Li Congxin had gathered, the Ling clan seemed to already be preparing to betroth Ling Qingqiu to the direct descendant of some prominent clan. Gu Qingzhou was still unaware of this, and for a time, Li Congxin did not know whether he should tell him. After a moment's thought, he sighed, deciding against revealing the matter. Even if he told him, the boy had no power to change anything... As for Ling Qingqiu, that gentle and quiet woman would likely agree to the marriage out of consideration for her clan's interests. Looking back at Gu Qingzhou, who had just experienced the stirrings of first love yet was mired in distress, Li Congxin was unsure of what to say. Taking a sip of wine and sighing, he rose and said softly to the young man, "A youth's love is simply love. If you haven't even told her to her face, what use is grieving in secret?" Upon hearing this, the youth's eyes lit up. He leapt to his feet, hugged Li Congxin, and laughed heartily. "Hahahaha! Brother Li, you really do have high hopes for the two of us! "Brother Li is right—if you love her, you have to tell her!!" With that, the high-spirited youth took to the air, flying straight toward the city. Just as he took off, he tossed over a flagon of spiritual wine. "Hahaha, I almost forgot the wine! "Brother Li, I'm off!" The boy was barely fifteen, yet he was already a cultivator who had stepped into the Core Formation realm—a genius in his own right. However, his clan was weak; their highest-ranking member was only an ancestor in the mid Nascent Soul realm. The Ling clan, by contrast, was one of the three most powerful clans in Fenhe City. Li Congxin shook his head with a wry smile. It seemed this young fellow was bound to suffer a knot in his heart. After lying down for a little while longer, Li Congxin opened his eyes. A trace of worry flickered within them. He stood up, patted the grass off his robes, and muttered to himself, "Sigh, I'd better go have a look, or who knows what kind of trouble that silly kid might stir up." Sipping his wine, Li Congxin wore his usual gentle smile. His visit to Fenhe City was for the auction, where a spiritual herb capable of enhancing his strength was to be sold. The moment he entered the city, he was enveloped by bustling clamor. The calls of street peddlers filled his ears, and quite a few cultivators mingled amidst the crowded streets. Yet Li Congxin drifted among them like a fish through water—no one could come within a foot of him. Whenever anyone drew near, an unseen force gently pushed them aside. Along the road, an old beggar was emaciated with hunger. After Li Congxin passed by, two copper coins suddenly dropped into the broken bowl before the man. The old beggar hurriedly snatched up the coins, scrambled to his feet, and headed straight for the steamed bun shop. When he looked back at the crowd, his eyes were filled with profound gratitude, though he had no idea who had dropped them. Before Li Congxin could reach the Ling clan residence, however, a crowd blocked his view. Li Congxin frowned, a sense of foreboding rising within him. Squeezing through the throng, he heard a man's sinister voice ring out: "Little bastard, who do you think you are to fight over a woman with me?" Li Congxin narrowed his eyes and made his way to the front of the crowd, finally taking in the scene before him. A middle-aged man dressed in magnificent brocade robes had Gu Qingzhou pinned under his foot, his face sinister and his eyes gleaming with malice. Gu Qingzhou lay sprawled on the ground, his arms and legs brutally snapped. He was drenched in blood, a mangled mess. With disheveled hair, the youth glared fiercely at the man and snarled, "Xiang Chun!! You'll die a miserable death!" Hearing this, the man threw his head back and laughed loudly. He was burly, with triangular eyes and slightly high cheekbones—far from handsome. With one hand, he hoisted Gu Qingzhou into the air. He then turned to look at the main entrance of the Ling clan residence behind him. The Ling clan cultivators stood by the gates in utter silence. A gentle, quiet woman wearing a green dress stood near the gateway, her eyes rimmed with red. In front of her was a middle-aged man with an unfriendly expression, looking at Gu Qingzhou with an inscrutable gaze. This man was none other than Ling Qingqiu's father, Ling Borong! "Gu Qingzhou, I told you long ago that Qingqiu is already betrothed! You pestered her time and again—everything that has happened today is of your own making!" The man's gaze was resolute, yet his words were like daggers, cutting straight to the heart! Gu Qingzhou's eyes turned bloodshot at the words, and he glared at the man, roaring, "Bah!! Hypocrite!! "Talking so much... Isn't it all just an excuse to sell your own daughter for status and wealth? "You sicken me!" Ling Borong kept the young woman shielded behind him. No matter how she tugged at his sleeve, the man remained unmoved. "Hmph!! Arrogant brat, you don't know the difference between heaven and earth! "Do you have any idea how powerful Young Master Xiang's clan is? Even if your Gu clan develops for another ten thousand years, you wouldn't match them! "You still dream of being with Qingqiu? Let me tell you, over my dead body!" Hearing her father's words, the maiden behind him knew there was no hope left. With tear-filled eyes, she looked at the young man, whose face had flushed a deep purplish-red from suffocation. Unable to bear it any longer, Ling Qingqiu spoke in a trembling voice: "Father... I will marry him!! "Save him, I beg you..." *Slap!!!!* A crisp, resounding slap rang out. Ling Borong started slightly, a barely perceptible flash of fury flaring in the depths of his eyes. Ling Qingqiu's cheek swelled visibly. Xiang Chun slowly lowered his left hand, narrowing his eyes as he looked at the maiden and said coldly, "A wretched thing meant to be my concubine, and you dare plead for him?" Li Congxin narrowed his eyes, watching the scene as he continuously suppressed the fury surging within his heart.