The Yu family, Milin Commandery.
"Li Tongya?"
Yu Xiaogui looked sullen as the stone door slowly closed behind him. His aura surged with vigor, showing clear advancement in his cultivation. Kneeling before the stone door, Yu Mugao was clad in black robes, his head lowered so that his expression remained hidden.
"A Maha from the north reincarnated to cultivate anew at Duanchen Temple and had already attained the cultivation of a Master. For reasons unknown, he killed Li Xuanling, only to be slain by Li Tongya."
Yu Mugao answered deferentially. Hearing this, Yu Xiaogui frowned deeply, then chuckled with disdain and waved his hand.
"How could that be possible!"
"I have fought against Li Tongya myself... He was only a cut above me. What level is a reincarnated Maha? Let alone Li Tongya, even if that sword immortal Li Chijing came in person, he most likely wouldn't be able to do a thing to him!"
Yu Mugao nodded in agreement and replied, "There is surely deception at play here."
Observing Yu Xiaogui's tightly furrowed brows, Yu Mugao lightly cupped his hands and said in a mild voice, "Father, Yu Muxian has already broken through to Foundation Establishment and coalesced an immortal foundation. Word is that in a few years, he will personally come to the lake when next collecting the tributes."
"What? Xian'er has broken through to Foundation Establishment?!"
Yu Xiaogui was instantly overjoyed and burst into hearty laughter. But a moment later, he looked at Yu Mugao with suspicion and said coldly, "We are all family—why refer to your younger brother by his name like that!"
"Younger brother?"
Yu Mugao lifted his head and gave a cold laugh. "You consider him a son, Father, but he doesn't consider you a father! There are things you do not know—Yu Muxian is now Tang Yuanwu's precious son-in-law. When he can even sell out his own family's ancestor to gain the Qingchi Sect's trust, who cares about your tiny Yu family?"
Both shocked and enraged, Yu Xiaogui snatched Yu Mugao by the collar and roared, "What did you say?!"
"Yu Muxian has long treated our Yu family as a stepping stone to his own advancement! He knew full well of the Ancestor's death beforehand! Our family nurtured him painstakingly since childhood, went to great lengths to send him into the sect, and provided for him for decades, allowing him to cultivate connections within the sect...
"Yet when the market fell into ruin and our family fell on hard times, he refused to utter a single word! What is more, he conspired with the Qingchi Sect to sell out the Ancestor, and specifically had Chi Zhiyan warn me..."
Yu Mugao had always been scheming and circumspect; piecing together all of Yu Muxian's actions, he had realized long ago that his brother was no longer who he used to be. Point by point, event by event, he laid it all out, leaving Yu Xiaogui stunned and incredulous.
"How could that be... How could that be... We held nothing but heartfelt sincerity for Muxian. How could he do this..."
Incredulity and grief-stricken fury intertwined across Yu Xiaogui's face, making him look in utter agony. Yu Mugao stared straight into Yu Xiaogui's eyes and said harshly, "Father had better harbor no more hopes for that man!"
Yu Xiaogui slowly let go of him and stepped back, seemingly still trying to digest Yu Mugao's words. After a long while, he finally said, "Summon your Fourth Clan Uncle."
"Fourth Clan Uncle is deceased,
" Yu Mugao answered in a low voice.
Yu Xiaogui's face changed drastically. He snapped his head up and cried in shock, "He had Qi Refinement cultivation and had only just passed seventy. How could he have died?!"
"He embezzled clan assets, so I executed him,"
Yu Mugao answered with utmost deference, yet the words he uttered left Yu Xiaogui feeling drained of all strength. Yu Xiaogui's face turned livid, his teeth clenched tightly. After a long silence, he said, "Have your Sixth Grand-Uncle come."
"Sixth Grand-Uncle colluded with rogue cultivators and sold off spirit rice at a pittance; I executed him as well."
Yu Xiaogui looked up at him in sheer disbelief, his lips trembling. He immediately sensed something was terribly wrong—while he had been secluded in closed-door cultivation, the world outside had likely been turned upside down. His face flushed crimson as he demanded, "How many people have you killed..."
"Fifty-eight clan grand-uncles, sixty-seven clan uncles, and one hundred and ninety-four clan brothers. All with irrefutable evidence, their crimes heinous and full."
Yu Mugao's expression remained reverent, but the words leaving his mouth were chillingly grim. Yu Xiaogui stumbled a step backward, staring at him in disbelief.
"You... you... You beast! You!"
Yu Xiaogui raised his hand high and slapped Yu Mugao violently across the face, sending him stumbling back several paces. Uncontrollably enraged, his eyes bloodshot, he cursed: "Animal! Scum! Is there anyone you dare not kill?!"
Flushed crimson, his aura surging wildly, Yu Xiaogui rasped: "Fourth Uncle carried you in his own arms when we came to Milin Commandery, and he personally sought a wife for you! Sixth Grand-Uncle watched me, your father, grow up... You... you... These are our own flesh and blood! Mugao! You fool!"
"Your son understands."
Half of Yu Mugao's face was fiery red. He slowly straightened his back, fresh blood dripping from the corner of his mouth, yet his expression remained flat. In a calm, quiet voice, he said, "Extraordinary times call for extraordinary measures. Were it not so, our Yu family would perish within three generations."
***
Li Tongya rested in the forest for a while. Using his finger as a sword, he cut a block of wood from a tree, hollowed it out with a wave of his hand, and placed Li Xuanling's severed head inside. He then shaved another piece of wood to serve as a lid, carefully sealing it away.
His eldest son had died a gruesome death. Li Tongya spent half a day mending and restoring it with dharmic power until it finally appeared presentable.
Holding the wooden box in his arms, Li Tongya flew and rested in turns along the journey, finally arriving at the Li family's territory. He formed an incantation gesture to disperse the mud and dust from his clothes, concealed his figure, and slipped quietly into Mount Lijing.
The small courtyard atop Mount Lijing was spotless; clearly, people had been sent to clean it over the past few days. Li Tongya set the wooden box onto the table, sent down a voice transmission with his dharmic power, and turned into the inner courtyard. After changing his robes and composing his expression, he found the younger generations already gathered before the courtyard to pay their respects.
Seated high at the head of the room, Li Tongya looked out over the hall. Li Qinghong was the most heartbroken, weeping with her face buried in her hands below, her lovely almond eyes red from crying as she whimpered softly.
Li Xuanxuan had returned from the market. These years spent in commerce had imparted to him a calculating air. Strands of white were threaded through his beard and hair, giving him an aged look. He stood blankly below, staring vacantly at that wooden box, saying nothing, his thoughts unknowable.
Li Yuanping's pale face looked all the more grim, his eyes burning with intense indignation. In the center, Li Yuanjiao wore a look of mourning, though his emotions were much more subdued; his left hand gripped the Jiaopanying sword tightly, his lips pressed into a hard line.
Li Tongya let out a sigh and passed the wooden box into Li Qinghong's arms. Li Qinghong wiped away her tears and silently took it without uttering a word. Li Tongya's voice was slightly hoarse as he asked, "Has Yuanyun not arrived yet?"
Li Yuanjiao stepped forward and answered, "We have already sent people to Eastern Shanyue to bring him back."
Li Xuanling had one son and one daughter: Li Yuanyun and Li Qinghong. However, lacking a spirit aperture, Li Yuanyun had never had much of a presence, and this was the very first time Li Tongya had summoned him back to Mount Lijing. Hearing this, Li Tongya nodded and fell silent.
For a time, only Li Qinghong's faint sobs lingered in the courtyard. The younger generations stood in grim silence, and seeing Li Tongya's exhausted, pale countenance, they harbored an ominous premonition.
A full incense stick of time passed before footsteps sounded from below. The courtyard gate creaked open, and a middle-aged man scrambled and stumbled inside on all fours. He was slightly plump, with dark circles beneath his eyes and trembling lips.
With a thump, the middle-aged man dropped to his knees before Li Tongya. Choking back a sob, he murmured in a trembling voice:
"Your unworthy grandson Yuanyun pays respects to Grandfather..."
Chapter 304