The Conspirators

"Fit for Emperors and Kings..." As soon as the words were spoken, a profound sense of antiquity and domineering majesty washed over them. Both Li Yuanxiu and Li Tongya paused. Li Yuanxiu was less affected, but Li Tongya had seen many immortal foundations in his time, yet this was the first time he had ever heard of one named after sovereigns and emperors. He could not help but muse inwardly: *The immortal foundation forged by the River Unity Qi Formula is called 'Vast Sea,' while the one formed by the Dongquan Limpid Spirit Formula is 'Sound of the Cavern Spring.' An immortal foundation is intimately tied to its cultivation method. Jianixi's art must surely have followed an overbearing and uncanny path as well.* Beside him, Li Yuanxiu wore a look of yearning. Hearing the name of this immortal foundation, an uncontrollable longing welled up within him. *To forge an immortal foundation and roam the boundless dark... The splendor of Foundation Establishment is so alluring. I wonder if I will ever behold the realm beyond Qi Refinement in this lifetime...* The direct line of the Li family's main branch had already produced three Qi Refinement cultivators, and Li Xuanling was only a hair's breadth away from breaking through. The juniors of the Yuan-Qing generation had essentially set their cultivation expectations beyond Qi Refinement, which was why Li Yuanxiu harbored such an ambition. Li Tongya asked Li Feiruo for further details, and she answered each in turn. Mu Jiaoman had been wary of Li Feiruo while alive and had not spoken much to her, so no further useful information was gained. "Very well." Li Tongya had no choice but to let the matter rest. Turning to Li Yuanxiu, he said in a warm voice, "We mobilized a great host for this undertaking, and countless eyes are watching... For fear of drawing greedy designs, we should not remain away from home for too long. I will stay here for one month. Your father and several elders are in the city keeping watch together. Work with your father to put the affairs of the Shanyue lands in order, and then we will return to the mountain together." "As for Feiruo." Li Tongya looked at her, and Li Feiruo hurriedly explained her wish. Li Tongya nodded. "You have labored hard all these years. Assist Xiu'er in settling these affairs, and then return together to Lijing Town to live out your days in peace." "Yes!" Li Yuanxiu and Li Feiruo responded respectfully. Only then did Li Tongya nod and fade from sight, riding the wind away and taking with him that brown eye-pill. Left in the courtyard, Li Yuanxiu and Li Feiruo exchanged a look. Li Feiruo made an inviting gesture, and Li Yuanxiu took the seat of honor, saying in a gentle voice, "I must trouble Aunt to explain the situation to me!" "It is only right." Li Feiruo nodded gently and lowered her voice. "Eastern Shanyue currently has a population of over two hundred and twenty-six thousand, with eleven towns and sixty-three villages. There are sixty-two Embryonic Breathing cultivators and eight Qi Refinement cultivators. All of them cultivate mixed qi and are unfit for major tasks, though putting them to work planting spirit rice would be reasonable enough. "The Eastern Shanyue nobility consists of six great clans, headed by the Mulu clan. Most of the cultivators hail from them, and they have hoarded ninety percent of the wealth and spiritual items. The Shanyue are inept at farming, so most of the spirit fields lie fallow." Li Yuanxiu nodded and said in a low voice, "This Shanyue land is far more fertile than our Li family's territory. The area is roughly the same, but the population is far larger. The Shanyue sustain themselves by hunting in the mountains and gathering wild crops. Though they farm, they are not skilled at it. Once we educate and civilize them, this land could support over a hundred thousand more people. "As for the spirit fields, my father has already dispatched people to investigate them. Within a few days, an overview should be clear." Li Yuanxiu paused, and seeing that Li Feiruo had something to say, he stopped and looked at her. "The Young Patriarch speaks true. But as for the spiritual items currently held in the hands of the nobility... how does the Young Patriarch intend to handle them?" Li Feiruo asked softly. Her ability to ambush and kill the grand shaman-priest within the palace had relied entirely on the aid of these nobles. Yet now that she was leaving the royal court to return to Lijing Town, she felt no hesitation in selling out these Shanyue aristocrats. She suggested, "These people are slippery as eels. Unless a few heads roll, they will never submit obediently." "Indeed." Li Yuanxiu pressed his hands against the table and said warmly, "I shall ask Clan Uncle Qiuyang and Uncle Donghe to lead the clan soldiers and search house by house. Under their spiritual sense, those people will have nowhere to hide. We will find an excuse to seize their younger kin and demand spiritual items in exchange for them." Li Yuanxiu paused slightly and sighed. "I did not wish to employ so crude a method, but we only have a month. We cannot afford to waste time wearing them down slowly. That leaves no choice but to raise the butcher's blade and cow them through slaughter." *** Shamoli rode the wind over the eleven towns beneath his feet, placing his followers into each town one by one. His low spirits from Qimu's crazed ravings had improved considerably. Leading the four Shanyue Qi Refinement cultivators behind him, he made a circuit of the realm before descending toward Mulu Town. "Departing in disgrace, returning clad in silk..." Shamoli let out a sigh, reciting a couple of poetic lines from the meager literary knowledge he had picked up from the Eastlanders. Having exhausted the ink in his belly, he stuttered, unable to squeeze out another word. Suddenly turning his head, he looked with great disdain at the garments worn by the Shanyue Qi Refinement cultivators behind him and barked, "You lot! Tie your hair up properly! Wearing these tattered rags, what kind of spectacle are you making of yourselves!" The Shanyue cultivators were dumbfounded and asked blankly, "Tattered rags?" Shamoli let out a low sigh, grabbed the hand of the man in front, clapped him on the shoulder, and explained, "You have lived your whole lives inside this mud hole, never seeing the prosperity of the outside world. After you observe for another two years, you will understand what is good and what is bad." As they spoke, they rode the wind down into the town, only to see clan soldiers crisscrossing everywhere before them. Carrying weapons, they ran in formations along the streets in a hurry, their cold armor clattering crisply. They did not head for the homes of wealthy commoners or ordinary folk, but specifically targeted the grand estates of high standing. Led by Embryonic Breathing or Qi Refinement cultivators, they strode up the stone steps and barged straight in. Enraged roars soon rang out, and the clan soldiers silently dragged out bodies bloated with the fat and marrow of the populace. Unlike the Li clan, which was disciplined by the Clan Rectory, the Shanyue nobles engaged in no production and had gorged themselves as fat as pigs. Screaming and flailing as they were hauled along, each required two clan soldiers working together to lift him. Dumped before the steps, one of them was still howling: "Do you know who I am?! My uncle is a Qi Refinement cultivator!" The clan soldier promptly drove a boot into him, sending the man rolling in agony and choking on his words. The leader of the squad, at the third level of Embryonic Breathing, stood expressionless, his long saber pointing directly at the man on the ground. Shamoli's expression changed at the sight, an uneasy feeling rising in his heart. Stopping a patrol of clan soldiers, he asked in a deep voice, "What are you people doing?" The man in the lead looked solemn and earnest, carrying himself with meticulous discipline. Holding a long saber in hand, he replied steadily: "I am Xu Gongming. Greetings, Your Majesty. Word has come that someone among the six great clans has colluded with Qimu's remnants. By order of Young Master Jiao, we are conducting arrests throughout the six clans. May I ask what Your Majesty desires...?" "Ah." Hearing that they were rooting out Qimu's remnants, Shamoli's expression shifted from alarm to delight. The gaze he turned toward those noble clans instantly turned venomous, and he cried, "Splendid! My Brother Jiao is truly thorough! Do not hold back, carry on with it! If anything happens, I will take full responsibility!" With that, he turned and glared coldly at the four men behind him. Those four Shanyue Qi Refinement cultivators hailed precisely from the six great clans; hearing this, they lowered their heads in guilt, not daring to meet Shamoli's eyes. "Then this humble one shall carry out the order!" Xu Gongming answered in a low voice and signaled with a wave of his hand. The clan soldiers beneath him sprang into action once more.