Fei Luoya

The Li family members watched from the air for a while before seeing several streaks of light arrive from the north and land one after another within Eastern Shanyue territory. Li Tongya and Li Xuanfeng exchanged a look, and Li Tongya murmured, "With a commotion this massive, I doubt a single clan on the lake failed to notice. Things are certainly going to get lively now." Sure enough, the foremost beam of light slowly came to a halt, revealing a middle-aged man in black robes. Standing with hands clasped behind his back, he possessed an imposing aura and hands smooth as jade. His gaze swept over Li Tongya, and he spoke softly: "Little Friend Tongya, after several years apart, your cultivation has advanced considerably!" "Li Tongya pays respects to Senior!" Li Tongya rode the wind forward to meet him, cupping his hands. The newcomer was none other than the Yu family's ancestor, father of Yu Mugao—the Foundation Establishment immortal cultivator Yu Xiaogui. Yu Xiaogui nodded, his eyes scanning him up and down. Another beam of light descended right behind him, revealing a middle-aged man in a brocade white robe landing before them with a warm smile. Dignified and charismatic, he was none other than Fei Wangbai, ancestor of the second Foundation Establishment clan on the lake. "Parted for many years, Brother Tongya's bearing remains as striking as ever!" Fei Wangbai's tone was warm and familiar, worlds apart from Yu Xiaogui's. Li Tongya cupped his hands in return, feeling helpless inside as he replied: "Greetings, Senior!" Glancing sideways, Li Tongya saw Yu Xiaogui snort coldly. Seeing Fei Wangbai's warmth and the unspoken rapport between the Fei and Li families clearly irked him. He remarked coldly: "Master Fei certainly has an easygoing temperament." Fei Wangbai chuckled. Soon after, several more streaks of light arrived in succession. At their head was An Zheyan, master of the An family, wearing a large fur hat and shamelessly tagging along behind the Yu family's patriarch, Yu Mugao. Before long, every clan on the lake with Qi Refinement cultivators had assembled. An Zheyan looked up to gauge the expressions of the two Foundation Establishment cultivators, cupped his hands, and asked: "Regarding this anomaly... do the two seniors happen to know the reason behind it?" Yu Xiaogui cast a glance at An Zheyan without speaking. Yu Mugao flicked his sleeve and stepped forward. With everyone's eyes turned toward him, Yu Mugao finally said in a heavy voice: "I received word from my younger brother that the Shanyue Purple Mansion cultivator was attempting to break through to the Golden Core, which caused this anomaly." "Your esteemed clan is well-informed as always," An Zheyan praised loudly. Yu Mugao shook his head with an unsightly expression. Looking at the Li family members standing below, realization finally dawned on him, and he thought with bitter resentment: *No wonder the Li family acted so out of character. It turns out they had the news all along and seized the chance to push west! How infuriating... With no Foundation Establishment cultivator backing us within the sect, and with Muxian in seclusion these past few years, we learned of it too late and let the Li family claim this territory so easily.* Yu Mugao's gaze swept over Li Tongya and Li Xuanfeng, growing increasingly uneasy as he thought further: *Now that the Li family has occupied Eastern Shanyue, there is no room left for us to intervene... Supported by the tribute and labor of hundreds of thousands of people, the Li family is no longer what it once was. They will only be harder to deal with.* Yu Mugao let out a cold snort and picked up on An Zheyan's words, saying: "How could we compare to the Li family? I imagine Senior Tongya learned the news long ago and had been planning this for quite some time!" The gathered cultivators instantly shifted their gazes to Li Tongya. Knowing he could not dodge it, Li Tongya had no choice but to take a step forward and reply: "We only just received word from the sect as well..." Hearing this, An Zheyan sneered and asked: "Then how is it I heard your esteemed clan took in a Shanyue royal heir years ago, nurtured him meticulously, and placed him on the throne right when the Shanyue Purple Mansion cultivator was attempting his breakthrough, using that to seize control of Eastern Shanyue? If you hadn't received news early and prepared, how could there be such a coincidence?" Li Tongya glanced at An Zheyan. Seeing his sarcastic jab, he gave a slight shake of his head and answered: "It was merely a stroke of fortune that yielded some benefit—hardly comparable to your esteemed clan's skill at playing both sides and sowing discord." "You...!" An Zheyan had not expected Li Tongya to rebut him so bluntly. His expression darkened, and just as he was about to speak, a figure flew over from the west, instantly drawing everyone's attention. Taking the opening, An Zheyan clamped his mouth shut, his face sullen as he turned to look along with the others. The approaching figure wore splendid robes with a storage bag tied at his waist. Though dressed as a cultivator, his facial features were unmistakably Shanyue. With a cultivation at the middle stage of Foundation Establishment, he came to a stop not far away, eyeing the crowd warily. "Someone from Mount Wu..." The expressions of Yu Xiaogui and Fei Wangbai turned solemn, uncertain whether the Shanyue Purple Mansion cultivator had succeeded or failed. After facing him in silence for a breath, they heard the Shanyue Foundation Establishment cultivator call out: "Are those ahead men of Qingchi?" Because the name sounded identical in speech whether written for the pool or the Chi surname, and the Shanyue cultivator had merely shouted it aloud, no one thought anything was amiss. As the one with the highest cultivation, and with the Yu family standing as the overlord of the lake, Yu Xiaogui said in a deep voice: "Indeed... Might Your Excellency be of the Mount Wu throng?" Unexpectedly, the Shanyue Foundation Establishment cultivator sneered and called out: "There is no longer any Mount Wu! Duanmu Kui failed his breakthrough; his body perished and his Dao was extinguished. Mount Wu's treasures and secret arts have been carved up by the Purple Mansion cultivators, and we have already submitted to the Qingchi Sect. From now on, we are colleagues—I hope for your guidance!" These words caused Yu Xiaogui to stiffen slightly, his expression turning sour. The cultivation of the Mount Wu throng ranged from the early stage of Foundation Establishment to its peak. Furthermore, they practiced shamanic arts, making them even harder to deal with than ordinary Foundation Establishment cultivators. If they surrendered to the Qingchi Sect and one or two were stationed here to branch out and establish roots, that would mean several new Foundation Establishment clans. The Yu family had maintained stability on the lake for many years, having built a system where the various families paid tribute. If several more Foundation Establishment clans were added, that hard-won stability might very well be shattered. Naturally, Yu Xiaogui's face darkened. Seeing that the crowd below still looked puzzled, he explained: "The Shanyue Purple Mansion cultivator was named Duanmu Kui." "A Purple Mansion cultivator has fallen..." Everyone froze in disbelief. Seeing a lofty Purple Mansion cultivator perish before their eyes left them all sighing with emotion. Someone murmured: "Perhaps it is for the best that he died... How many years has it been since the State of Yue produced a Golden Core? If he had achieved the Golden Core... none of us would be calling ourselves subjects of Qingchi anymore. Along with the Three Sects and Seven Gates, we would all have had to unbind our hair and become Shanyue." Though blunt, and even prompting faint smirks from some in the crowd, these words truly gave voice to what everyone was thinking. Yu Xiaogui flicked his sleeve, cupped his hands, and said: "If Fellow Daoist settles here for the long term, we shall be close neighbors henceforth. When you establish your immortal mountain and lay down your clan's lineage, we shall come to attend the ceremony." "Naturally." Still cautious and unsure of the local situation, the Shanyue Foundation Establishment cultivator merely replied politely. Yu Xiaogui nodded and rode the wind away with Yu Mugao. With Yu Xiaogui gone, the atmosphere immediately grew lively. Many cultivators rode the wind forward to offer congratulations to Li Tongya. Li Tongya thanked them one by one before turning to cup his hands toward the Shanyue Foundation Establishment cultivator, saying in a steady voice: "Might I inquire after Senior's name? I am Li Tongya of the Li family. Since our families will be living side by side from now on, I hope for Senior's guidance." "Fei Luoya." The Shanyue Foundation Establishment cultivator spoke his name in a low voice. Though he looked down on a mere Qi Refinement cultivator, not knowing whether the Li family had a Foundation Establishment cultivator holding down the fort, he nodded politely. Gazing down at the Eastern Shanyue palace beneath his feet, he raised an eyebrow and said: "Though I rarely left Mount Wu, I know that back then the Qingchi Sect and Mount Wu drew the boundary at Dayu Brook. What do you mean by coming across from the east?" Fei Luoya glared coldly at Li Tongya. As soon as he finished speaking, the aura of Foundation Establishment pressed down upon them, yet Li Tongya remained entirely unfazed, smiling as he replied: "Senior must be joking. Since Mount Wu is no more, this land has become masterless. It is only natural that my family expanded westward." Seeing that he showed not a shred of fear, Fei Luoya narrowed his eyes slightly and said softly: "When my fellow disciples divided the lands, everything west of Dayu Brook was counted as my territory. I will not suffer such a loss for no good reason. Your cultivation is meager—summon your elders out to speak with me!"