Xi Yunhuai glanced indifferently at the stone stele and murmured, "Clan Master Tang, go ahead and move this stele aside. In the future... I doubt it will be needed anyway."
Tang Wei frowned slightly, yet he still raised a hand and cast several streaks of spiritual light. The jade pendant at his waist flew out, slamming directly against the surface of the stele.
Buzz!
A staggeringly powerful spatial tremor swept outward.
The billowing aftershocks whipped their robes, snapping loudly in the wind.
Li Guanqi frowned slightly. This aura... the demonic energy was rather thick!
Buzz!
The stone stele vaulted several tens of yards off the ground, shooting straight into midair.
Beneath the stele, countless intricate runic arrays were inscribed, radiating bursts of golden light to suppress the pitch-black abyss below.
When the three men saw what lay inside that abyss, their hearts turned cold.
Within that abyssal fissure spanning a hundred feet across, dense swarms of demonic silhouettes incessantly battered against the array lines!
Surging black demonic energy steadily eroded the formations, and the flickering spiritual light upon the runes was clearly on the verge of failing.
This was precisely what had troubled Tang Wei for so long.
Thump! Thump, thump, thump!
The dense impacts sounded like a flurry of moths hurling themselves against a paper window.
Xi Yunhuai gave a cold snort. His majestic pressure detonated, instantly freezing the surrounding space!
A flash of light illuminated his hand, and a golden array brush about a foot long abruptly appeared.
Ordinarily, an array master of his caliber would have no trouble sketching formations straight from thin air, but faced with the seal on the Abyss Sealing Grounds, he remained exceedingly thorough.
Grasping the golden brush, Xi Yunhuai soared above the abyssal fissure.
Primal energy surged through his body as he wielded the brush with blazing speed, carving out golden array runes. One profound symbol after another settled atop the original sealing formation.
As the two arrays overlapped, the ripples across the seal grew increasingly powerful, while the sounds of the Abyss Demons battering from below turned ever fainter.
Watching this, Tang Wei finally let out a sigh of relief.
Li Guanqi smiled faintly. Seeing things proceed according to plan, he turned to the man and chuckled softly.
"Uncle Tang, since the matter here is resolved, I will head over to find Tang Ru first."
Upon hearing this, Tang Wei cupped his fists hurriedly. "Go right ahead, young friend. I will send him a transmission shortly as well."
At this point, the man paused briefly. After a moment's thought, he sent a voice transmission: "Furthermore... I will keep my other two sons under control. If they are secretly resentful and happen to cross you, I hope... for my sake, you might spare their lives."
Li Guanqi gave Tang Wei a deep look and nodded with a smile.
"As long as they do not cross my bottom line and have not slaughtered the innocent, I will."
Tang Wei cupped his fists with deep gratitude written across his face.
In his heart, his resolve to stand by Li Guanqi's side grew even firmer.
After leaving the Tang family's domain, Li Guanqi headed straight for Wuzi City in the Southern Domain!
Buzz!
Li Guanqi stepped out from the void, momentarily taken aback as he looked down at the brilliantly lit, bustling streets of Wuzi City.
Why did it feel like Wuzi City was at least three times larger than when he had last visited?
And that towering, colossal structure at the heart of the city... Treasure Pavilion?
Gazing at the pavilion bathed in radiant evening light, Li Guanqi was genuinely astonished.
He had not expected that in just a few short years, Tang Ru would develop the Treasure Pavilion to such an extent!
A sharp glint flashed through Li Guanqi's eyes. In truth, he wanted to pull Tang Ru slightly away from the merchant trade.
The fellow possessed respectable strength and talent; wasting his life immersed entirely in commerce was somewhat of a shame.
Besides, Qianqiusui had a fine knack for business. With Tang Ru's guidance, she would surely get the hang of it in no time.
Buzz!
Whoosh!
With a single step, Li Guanqi arrived before the main entrance of the Treasure Pavilion. A woman of striking beauty immediately came forward to welcome him.
Her forearms swung lightly as she walked, a warm, alluring smile gracing the corners of her lips.
With a wasp waist and generous hips, her silhouette swayed gracefully with every step.
Stopping before Li Guanqi, she bowed in greeting and spoke softly.
"Good evening, distinguished guest. This humble one is named Diehua. Please let me know however I may assist you."
Li Guanqi smiled faintly, clasping his hands behind his back as he looked up at the magnificent, gilded pavilion.
"I am here to see Tang Ru."
The woman was visibly taken aback. Nearby, a young man holding a folding fan could not help sneering.
"What bold words, demanding to see Pavilion Master Tang right off the bat.
"Take a good look in the mirror first."
Li Guanqi cast a sideways glance at him. In an instant, the young man's face turned deathly pale!
In that single second, he felt as though he had been plunged into a mountain of corpses and a sea of blood!
Countless hideous, mangled bodies reached toward him!
Blood-drenched palms clung to shredded flesh, and the sticky, sickening sensation made him tremble uncontrollably.
With a loud thud, he collapsed to the floor, soiling himself in sheer terror.
Li Guanqi retracted his gaze and called out softly.
"Dead fatty, an old friend has arrived, and you won't even come out to greet me?"
Buzz!
The entire Treasure Pavilion flared with dazzling radiance!
Beneath the radiant glow, a plump young man came trotting out from the pavilion.
Dressed in sumptuous robes, the fat youth looked down the steps toward the visitor with shining eyes, a grin spreading so wide that his eyes vanished into creases of flesh.
Tang Ru waved his arms in wild excitement, bellowing, "Hahahaha! Brother Li!"
Cultivators lingering outside the entrance dropped their jaws in disbelief.
Tang Ru was the Pavilion Master of Wuzi City's Treasure Pavilion, a figure of formidable standing, yet here he was sprinting out with complete disregard for decorum.
Seeing Tang Ru charging toward him, Li Guanqi quickly held up a finger. "Don't you dare hug me! I'm afraid you'll crush me to death."
The fat youth stopped beside Li Guanqi, scratching his head in slight embarrassment as he chuckled. "What brings you here? I was just saying you ought to be returning soon! Hahahaha, come on, come on, let's head inside and talk."
Li Guanqi teased him as he looked over the increasingly portly young man. "Can't you lose some weight? Look what you've become."
Tang Ru chuckled sheepishly, using both hands to hoist his round belly.
"Sigh, with a mountain of trivial matters every day, I sit there from dawn to dusk without moving an inch. Come on, let's talk inside."
A faint, curious smile tugged at the corner of Li Guanqi's mouth.
"Inside it is, then. I'll be leaving shortly anyway."
Under the shocked gazes of the onlookers, Li Guanqi followed Tang Ru into the Treasure Pavilion.
All the pavilion stewards and maidservants lined up along both flanks, bowing respectfully. "Greetings, Pavilion Master! Greetings, Yanluo Sword Venerable!"
Only then did many realize in horror that the white-robed figure... seemed to be Li Guanqi himself!
In an instant, cultivators throughout Wuzi City were stirred into action, soaring through the sky toward the Treasure Pavilion.
In just that short span, the Treasure Pavilion's sales surged by a staggering seventy percent!
Yet none of them managed to catch a glimpse of Li Guanqi.
Inside the private study, Li Guanqi laid out everything that needed to be said.
Tang Ru jumped to his feet, leaving Li Guanqi baffled by his reaction.
Instead, Tang Ru declared eagerly, "Then what are we waiting for? Let's go! Hahahaha, I'm finally free!"
The corner of Li Guanqi's mouth twitched. He suddenly felt that going out of his way to do Tang Wei a favor had been entirely unnecessary.
He could have just come directly to Wuzi City and whisked the fat fellow away.
Buzz!
"Guanqi, if nothing else is keeping you, prepare to head back. Tomorrow is the recall ceremony!"
Lu Kangnian's voice drifted from a jade slip. Li Guanqi set it down and smiled faintly.
Upon hearing this, Tang Ru's eyes flashed with shrewd light. Leaning in with an air of mystery, he sent a low voice transmission to Li Guanqi.
"Tell me the truth—that ridiculously powerful Guanyun Pavilion that popped up recently, is it yours?"
The corners of Li Guanqi's lips curled into a slight smile. He nodded and chuckled, "Indeed it is. Once you come with me, you will have full authority over all of Guanyun Pavilion's commercial affairs."
Chapter 734