Yu Yuwei’s voice was low, echoing in the cavern and giving the young man pause. Li Quantao’s lips trembled slightly, a flush rising on his pale face, which had yet to recover from severe injuries. Turning his head away, he said softly, “None of them are any good. My father was trapped on the mountain by Chi Wei for a lifetime, unable to take a single step outside, forced to refine pills like an alchemy slave. Violet Palace, Violet Palace—they are all the most heartless cultivators.”
Sitting trapped in the cavern, Yu Yuwei coughed twice. His expression was inscrutable as he replied in a low voice, “Quantao, we may not make it out alive, and I don't have many years left to live anyway. To speak plainly, if the one injured and trapped in the secret realm back then had been Li Encheng and he had attained the Violet Palace realm, he would have been even more terrifying than Chi Wei.”
Li Quantao had already harbored grievances against the old man. Hearing this, his expression stiffened, fury surged in his chest, and he sprang to his feet. The feud between Li Encheng and Chi Wei was ancient history. Suppressing his anger, Li Quantao said coldly, “What are you saying, Senior! How was Yu Yuxie harmed? Isn't this completely callous and ungrateful? Even if you harbor no resentment, you actually speak well of him! My father had his faults, but it is not your place to judge him!”
Yu Yuwei sighed and replied, “You are not like Li Encheng at all. Let us leave these stale old grievances aside.
“I saw through it long ago. Are you and I really any kinder in our attitude toward Qi Refinement and Embryonic Breathing cultivators? Looking at it from their position, if sacrificing a few completely unrelated Qi Refinement cultivators could secure treasures like Murong En’s Tianting or the Xinyou Swimming Marsh Seal, would any of you do it or not? Speak not of Violet Palace being heartless. Prominent clans whip tenant farmers, Qi Refinement beats Embryonic Breathing. Human blood can become miraculous elixir, immortal foundation yields divine abilities. Looking back across a thousand years, it is nothing but boundless blood and tears. Only without sentiment is one truly an immortal.”
Li Quantao opened his mouth, but hesitated and fell silent.
The old man sat in the cavern with arms folded. His words made Li Xizhi look sideways at him; an elder cultivator possessed rich experience, and having witnessed three hundred years of rise and fall in the State of Yue, he surely had countless stories to tell.
“Now is simply not the time to speak of these things,” Li Qinghong said with a slight shake of her head. After all, they were in perilous territory, only a few li from that cavern, and naturally had no desire to stir up trouble without cause.
Li Quantao glanced at the map in his hand and said in a deep voice, “I once cultivated here. Heading east from here, there should be a cavern in the earth vein east of Chengshui Tomb. That cavern leads to a water vein through which one can dive all the way to the East Sea. Though this land has turned into demon territory, if we follow that water vein to emerge in the East Sea, we can fly with the wind all the way to Fenkuai Island and return via the Near Sea.”
“Chengshui Tomb should probably be called Chengshui Marsh from now on.”
Hearing this, Li Xizhi immediately made a decision and said in a deep voice, “We cannot delay any longer! We must strike immediately, kill this person, and flee all the way to the East Sea. Any further delay will surely bring disaster!”
Li Qinghong and Li Encheng could think of no better plan and nodded in agreement. The group exited the cavern. Li Xizhi said in a low voice, “Yanshan Pass likely cannot hold. This land has already become demon territory, and more demon cultivators will arrive one after another. Though perilous here, departing an incense stick earlier means one more sliver of hope for survival.”
The group sped along the water's surface, skirting a few locust tree tops jutting above the water. They flew for over half the journey before encountering two Qi Refinement demon cultivators.
Flying out ten-odd li, the surroundings were grim, with billowing demonic qi. The original landscape of the great mausoleum with white locusts and white stones had long vanished; beneath their feet was only pitch-black water, from which a few floating corpses vaguely emerged.
Several demon cultivators pressed their flight low through the clouds, hurrying northward. They flew past only a li away from the group, leaving behind rolling plumes of demonic smoke, never pausing for a moment.
Further off, two demonic lights rose from the distance and plunged into the mist. White smoke ascended, and people came and went—not looking like a patrol, but rather exhibiting an air of panic and fluster.
Seeing this chaotic scene, Li Quantao felt a stir in his heart. He exchanged a glance with Li Xizhi, both noticing the demon cultivators' anomaly, thinking to themselves, *Could something unexpected have occurred up ahead?*
Just then, the two demon cultivators they had bypassed earlier slowly caught up and also paused above the water.
Those two demon cultivators were flying eastward while conversing via magic power. The two seemed somewhat hesitant.
One was tall and the other short, chatting animatedly. The tall one who had spoken first showed a strange expression and asked, “Which lord from the Shilou clan came?”
The other demon cultivator looked up with a knowing smile. The inquiring demon cultivator instantly understood and hurriedly passed over an item. The other accepted it with a chuckle: “That's easy to say! Bolie Commandery lies in Qi territory, and that lord's trusted confidants are all northerners. It should be King Bolie, Shilou Fu.”
The short, thin demon cultivator hummed in agreement, and the first man's expression changed, turning cautious. He said in a low voice, “More and more great cultivators are arriving from the north. After all, the north is vast, and Jiangnan cannot compare to it.”
The inquiring demon cultivator asked, “Has that King of Bolie already reached the Great Void?”
“Hard to say. I only heard that Tuoba retreated, a lord from the Helian clan arrived, and though the lord from the Shilou clan is in dire straits, he came as well... Believe it or not, nine times out of ten, another treasure has appeared.”
“Thanks for the trouble, Daoist friend. I was previously sent on other duties and hadn't run into any fellows to ask. I just wanted to inquire: does that lord consider himself of the Hu-Di tribes, or does he consider himself a northerner?”
The thin demon cultivator replied, “You have a point, Daoist friend. Though it all depends on the lord's whims, it is better to be prudent.”
“Could several lords have arrived? Murong En died just like that, yet there's been no word whatsoever...”
“Report to the lord? Likely so...”
Several Foundation Establishment cultivators concealed their forms; naturally, mere Qi Refinement demon cultivators could not detect them.
Everyone exchanged glances, all looking toward Li Quantao.
Listening to the two of them so tense, Li Quantao did not need to guess much: this King Bolie, Shilou Fu, was nine times out of ten a Violet Palace-level figure. Anxiety mounted in his heart, and he thought, *What a pity we don't have a stealth magic tool. Otherwise, why would we need to go through all this trouble?*
These words reminded Li Xizhi. The Mystic Pattern Bottle at his waist, when driven by Li Yuanjiao, could conceal traces. Now in his hands, it could only swallow and spew lightning and store mystic thunder.
*A pity none of us cultivates Vast Sea, and it is only enough to conceal one person.*
Li Xizhi nodded slightly, pondered for a few breaths, and said softly, “Should we capture them to interrogate?”
“A good opportunity!”
After all, Li Quantao's rosy dawn light capturing technique was unique, unmatched by anyone present. Although they were merely seizing a few Qi Refinement cultivators, they still acted prudently with full strength.
Li Quantao took the cue. With a gentle flick of his sleeve, two streaks of rainbow light leaped out and dove beneath the water, surging forward like swimming serpents.
While the two demon cultivators paused, two streaks of colored light suddenly erupted beneath their feet. They leaped up in terror, but could never dodge Li Quantao, who had prepared in advance. The rainbow light sprang up, instantly binding them tight!
Immediately, a swirl of white mist rolled in, sweeping the two demon cultivators inside. The tall and short demon cultivators tumbled about, their magic tools knocked down by the dawn light. Opening their eyes to look closely, they found five Daoists standing before them.
Five Foundation Establishment cultivators!
The two were scared out of their wits. Exchanging terrified glances, they kowtowed like pounding garlic and begged for mercy. But Li Xizhi had no intention of wasting time with them. Two sparks of thunder leaped from his fingers, hovering right at their foreheads, ready to strike down the next instant.
Ignoring their terrified expressions, Li Xizhi waved his hand slightly to separate them and asked in a deep voice, “What is the background of that demon head? Where is he from?”
Li Xizhi pressed with several questions. The Chimen clan was not a renowned tribe in the north, which put him somewhat at ease.
“Ancestor Difu is surnamed Chimen, originally a demon cultivator from the State of Zhao. It's heard he offended someone in Zhao... which is why he roams only between Xu and Yue.”
“Is there only one demon lord? Are there reinforcements nearby?”
The two demon cultivators could not see each other and could not collude. Facing a thunder-wielding Foundation Establishment cultivator, six of their seven souls were already scared away. How could they dare lie? They answered, “The cavern houses Ancestor Difu's subordinates. We do not know what mission the old master took to make him halt here. We are merely petty demons under him and have not incurred heavy slaughter. We only seek to survive...”
Their answers were largely consistent.
Li Qinghong asked in detail. Although there were no major demon lords nearby, this demon Difu seemed quite formidable—a seasoned old demon who frequently drifted between Xu and Yue, with unfathomably deep demonic arts.
With the five of them joining forces on Li Xizhi's side, they were not afraid of him; their only worry was that once a major clash broke out, it would attract a siege by swarms of demons. After pondering for a moment, he asked:
“How many cultivators are in the cavern?!”
“My lords, in the cavern...”
Li Xizhi looked at the location pointed out by the demon cultivator. Flying there with the wind would take less than a quarter of an hour. He had a clear count, glanced at the two, and Li Qinghong asked in a low voice, “What do you two think?”
Li Xizhi reflected carefully. He could already be considered a cultivator with substantial backing, yet the formation used earlier was merely at the Qi Refinement stage. Chimen Difu would naturally be no better off.
Reaching a consensus, two bolts of thunder bound the two demon cultivators securely. Li Qinghong held the two and led the way, riding thunder downward, while the other four followed cautiously in sequence.
Li Qinghong rode thunder, boosted by the green feathered robe Queqing Collar, flying faster than the others. Li Quantao flew upon rosy dawn light, equally swift, though he slowed down slightly to wait for Li Encheng and the other.
The white water rippled. Li Xizhi soon halted at one spot and observed carefully.
This place was already in shambles. The stone steps and tablet at the cavern entrance were smashed to pieces and submerged by water, pitch-black and fathomless, leaving it unclear whether demon cultivators were within.
Although the entirety of Chengshui Tomb was now drowned in water and the terrain unidentifiable, spiritual sense swept within and was quickly compared against memory, pinpointing the cave entrance.
Luminescence quickly welled up from the dark water. Li Xizhi soon spotted the glowing light of magic power. Looking closely, the barrier before them was merely a Qi Refinement-stage formation.
Li Encheng glanced at it and transmitted via magic power, “That makes sense... After all, when finding an arbitrary place to rest for a month before leaving, one wouldn't use too high-grade a formation.”
“We've just seen too many direct lineages and grown accustomed to it.”
Li Qinghong had brought the two captives down to trick open the grand array in case it proved sturdy. She had not expected this Chimen Difu to be so empty-pocketed—an old demon established at Foundation Establishment for many years still using a beginner Qi Refinement formation.
Since there was no need for the two captives, two bolts of thunder erupted instantly, reducing both demon cultivators to ash!
Li Qinghong’s Duruo Spear was already in hand. With a thrust and a smash, she struck directly at the formation!
Finger-thick white lightning detonated within the water. The clear marsh waters immediately rushed in with a roaring surge. Behind them, Li Quantao cast a beam of dawn light, blocking the water, and flicked his sleeve, wiping away the sound cleanly.
Throughout this entire sequence, the surface of the marsh remained unruffled, mirroring the white clouds above like glass, revealing no sign that Foundation Establishment cultivators were fighting below.
Chimen Difu was at Foundation Establishment; the formation's purpose was clearly not defense, but merely an early warning. As they broke the formation, a vast cavern appeared before their eyes.
“Rumble!”
“Who goes there?!”
An aged voice rang out in shock and suspicion—evidently Chimen Difu. Fierce black wind swept out along the earth vein. The formation cracked like an eggshell, startling the old demon.
As white clouds rolled before the cavern, the remaining Qi Refinement demon cultivators fled into the cave with cries of alarm.
Two demon cultivators had been guarding the entrance. Now terrified out of their wits, they sprang up before their bloody light could turn into escape light, but Li Qinghong and the others were already right in front of them!
Lights flared on both flanks: a purple dragon of flame roared out, instantly blasting one demon into a cloud of white smoke, while a bolt of thunder crashed down, wiping the other out of existence!
Chimen Difu wore white robes, his hair snowy white, looking every bit the seasoned old demon. He held a bizarre black hoop in hand, and his robes were fairly decent, gleaming with dark luster.
“How dare you scoundrels barge into my cave and slaughter my followers!”
Chimen Difu’s freshly summoned spell was blown away into nothingness. Even though he had drifted between Xu and Yue for years and possessed considerable experience, he was caught completely off guard, nearly stunned by what he saw.
The roaring purple fire dragon and thunder intertwined before him—glorious purple flame on one side, dazzling thunder on the other. He would have had to exert his full strength against either one, yet both struck straight at his face, giving him no time to prepare!
The long feathered robe on Li Qinghong lit up, azure-white light mingled with thunder descending. Her strike with Duruo Spear was delivered with full force, lightning flashing bright, illuminating the scene in blinding white!
Li Xizhi likewise understood this was a critical moment. Water and fire lights surged upon his body, and a purple-red cauldron flew out, summoning two purple dragons with a boom that swept toward the black fog!
Li Encheng’s Bishui Pill churned once more, summoning white water that blew away the black mist, scattering it backward to reveal the stunned old demon.
With Li Xizhi and Li Qinghong joining forces, supported by Li Encheng and Li Quantao, the sheer might of their combined strike would have stunned even a resurrected Tuoba Chongyuan. Though bearing injuries, they had gathered momentum for this strike; the impact shook the entire cavern, showering down broken stones!
“Rumble!”
The old demon's eyes filled with terror and bafflement, and he nearly spat out a mouthful of old blood!
Chapter 576