The youth was brimming with confidence, as though scattering the rogue cultivators before them were the easiest matter in the world. Li Qinghong was mildly surprised and said softly, "Fellow Daoist, what is this...?"
Xi Zikang chuckled softly, gave his silvery-white sleeves a shake, and retrieved a bright silver miniature carriage from his sleeve. Barely the size of a palm, it had two tiny blue-and-white flags planted atop it, inked with talismans. He commanded:
"Governed by the Ministry of Xuan Thunder, under orders of the Northern Palace, bear the chariot and spur the lightning, deliver the world and cure its ills!"
The thunder chariot trembled and sprang to life in an instant, pulsing with immense and heavy force like a springing tiger. In the blink of an eye, it expanded to the size of a house. The two blue-and-white thunder banners fluttered high, crackling with silvery-white lightning that trailed downwind for dozens of paces.
"Our path of Xuan Thunder whips the gales and spurs the lightning... Scattering a rabble of cultivators is child's play!"
Thunderclouds churned in the sky, whipping up waves of storms across the sea. Xi Zikang landed atop the thunder chariot, pulled taut the silvery-white reins, and rose amid the gale, calling out clearly, "Senior, give me just ten breaths."
Wild winds were already sweeping across the sea, plunging everything into darkness where one could not see one's own outstretched fingers in the murky gloom. Only that archaic, domineering thunder chariot shone with dazzling silvery-white radiance, its two thunder banners trailing behind like two snapping thunder serpents.
Xi Zikang looked just like a god commanding lightning, his silver robes shimmering brightly with awe-inspiring majesty.
'Right... He also comes from a renowned Violet Palace immortal clan of the North Sea, and his lineage traces all the way back to the Thunder Palace... Hardly an ordinary family.'
The youth was not old, was amiable and deferential, and bore no overly lavish ornamentation upon his person, so Li Qinghong had temporarily forgotten his noble birth. Seeing him now, the majesty of this carriage rivaled that of Tuoba Chongyuan back then...
'Those few thunder-cultivating clans and sects of the North Sea are indeed remnants of the ancient Thunder Palace. This majestic thunder chariot makes it all too obvious...'
In a flash, Xi Zikang drove the storm forward. Dongliu Island was shrouded in gloom, so dark that the cultivators could not see their hands before their eyes. When they raised their heads to look, silvery-white lightning crashed down from above, throwing them into utter turmoil.
These people were merely a patchwork assembled from various forces. Panicking in terror, they scattered. The three Foundation Establishment cultivators opened their eyes and took to the wind; curses rose to their lips, but the moment they laid eyes upon this exalted, domineering carriage, their expressions shifted drastically, and they hesitated, daring not approach.
Xi Zikang formed an incantation hand seal, ripping lightning out as easily as tearing a bolt of white cloth and casually hurling it atop the trio's heads, uttering coldly, "The East Sea truly is full of demonic cultivators!"
All three were rogue Foundation Establishment cultivators of the East Sea. One reeked of surging bloody energy, and the other two were shrouded in foul, sinister murk. How could they endure such Xuan Thunder? Their wits were scared out of them on the spot, and howling in agony, they turned tail and fled.
Yet Xi Zikang's spell, though cast casually, was of an exceptionally high grade. Thunder was swift by nature, leaving the trio in unspeakable misery as they fled with billowing black smoke trailing from their bodies.
Xi Zikang was genuinely taken aback and marveled inwardly, 'What wretched cultivation... The East Sea may be vast, but it is the domain of dragonkind. The boundless undersea treasuries cannot be claimed, and they are isolated on a few islands... What good resources could they possibly have...?'
As he weighed this in his mind, the three cultivators had no intention whatsoever of exchanging blows with him. Most who survived in the East Sea were cautious. With such an overwhelming display and so exalted a carriage, who couldn't tell he was a direct descendant of an immortal clan? Not daring to utter another word, they kept their heads down and flew blindly, praying he wouldn't pursue them.
He had only intended to pin them down, but he had underestimated his own might. Now, everyone had fled clean away in the blink of an eye, leaving the entire sea around Dongliu Island deserted. He circled twice in the sky amidst thunder before sheepishly putting away his magical carriage.
"Impressive strength, Fellow Daoist."
Li Qinghong approached with a smile. Xi Zikang looked slightly sheepish. Meanwhile, the grand formation below flickered and dimmed, and an old man clad in red robes flew out, glancing cautiously before calling from afar, "Which senior is out there?"
This was the Li family's affair, so Xi Zikang said nothing and simply turned his head away in silence. Li Qinghong merely nodded without replying. The old man took a couple of looks, came to a sudden realization, and hurried forward, "It is actually..."
"Wait," Li Qinghong interrupted him. The old man caught on, drew closer, and whispered, "Please, Seniors, enter the formation to speak in detail!"
Li Qinghong did not wish to waste time, however, and replied gently, "No need."
With the future of this journey out to sea uncertain, Li Qinghong had not only left the Chongming Dongxuan Screen behind, but had even kept the Six Thunder Xuan Punishment Tokens at home. She had no choice but to say a quiet word to Xi Zikang. Understanding, the youth retrieved an apricot-colored miniature pagoda from his sleeve, enveloping their surroundings and isolating inside from out.
This action gave the red-robed elder quite a fright, but he gritted his teeth and held his ground, allowing the light cast by the pagoda to envelop them all. Only then did Li Qinghong ask softly, "May I ask which fellow Daoist you are?"
"This humble one is Han Shihai! I once had the honor of meeting Fairy..."
"It's you!"
Li Qinghong genuinely recognized the man. When she had visited Dongliu back then, he was the one who received her. Yet back then, he had looked like a middle-aged man; now, he was suddenly white-haired and frail, his aura completely transformed...
Han Shihai showed deep gratitude and replied, "I exhausted my lifespan defending our clan's grand formation. I have made a laughingstock of myself before Fairy..."
Han Shihai had long since reached the end of his rope, and now old tears streamed down his face as he poured his heart out.
Han Shizhen and his servant had been the pillars of the Han family. After they died suddenly in the dragons' territory, the Han family had collapsed almost overnight, their strength dwindling by the day...
This was already a perilous situation, and the Han clan's ancestor had been in seclusion striving for the Violet Palace realm, cultivating the "Return to Earth" of Earth Virtue. Caught entirely off guard by the anomaly of water receding and thunder rising, he had lasted barely a year before dissolving into another sky-spanning omen of death.
The surrounding families immediately rose against them. The Han family's remaining Foundation Establishment cultivators perished one after another, leaving only Han Shihai and a female cultivator. Trapped on the island with no way out, they had already prepared themselves for the annihilation of their entire clan and the slim hope of escaping with only their lives.
Yet Han Shihai could not have imagined in ten days and ten nights that Li Qinghong would be the one to rescue them. Overwhelmed by extreme sorrow giving way to joy, tears washed over his face, and he nearly prostrated himself on the ground.
Li Qinghong simply helped him up and asked in a low voice, "Your family has operated in the East Sea for many years. Do you have any intelligence on the Miao family of the South Sea?"
Han Shihai didn't even ask what she needed it for. Searching carefully, he produced a jade slip directly from his storage bag and said solemnly, "Benefactor, the Miao family once conducted business with us. Everything we know is recorded within."
Li Qinghong took it without rushing to inspect it, saying gently, "Good. We merely scared those people off. Hurry and arrange for your clansmen to evacuate. If you delay any longer, I fear those clans will descend upon you the moment we depart."
"Ah?"
Han Shihai was entirely bewildered now. He had long prepared himself for the Han family to be absorbed into the Li family, and his demeanor earlier had already been that of a subordinate. Who could have known that Li Qinghong's words would shatter all his expectations?
'But! But why would they help my family for no reason whatsoever!'
The lessons of Han Shihai's century of living in the East Sea completely failed him now. Staring blankly at Li Qinghong, he mumbled, "Fairy shielded our family before the immortal sect before, and now you have rescued us from dire peril... How could my family simply walk away...?"
Li Qinghong couldn't help but chuckle and asked, "You are an East Sea cultivator after all, yet you say such things. If I tell you to leave, just leave. Must I carve off a piece of your flesh before you feel at ease?"
Seeing the profound bewilderment on the elder's face, she adopted a serious tone: "The deaths of your kinsmen were, after all, somewhat connected to my family's affairs... The past friendship still stands. Your noble clan has fallen suddenly; lending a hand was merely an effortless gesture... There is no need for Senior to say more. Quickly take your people and go!"
Han Shihai could hear the genuine sincerity in her words now. Choking up, he said, "Fairy's benevolence is as weighty as a mountain. This old man's lifespan is exhausted, and my demise is a matter of days; I cannot repay this grace... The Han family shall engrave this debt of rebirth into our bones... If there is an afterlife, I shall knot the grass and carry rings in my mouth to repay it..."
Rescuing the Han family was to honor past ties, but Li Qinghong did not wish to become entangled too deeply. She answered softly, "My family is also treading on thin ice; I will likely never live to see that day. As you seek a new life elsewhere, do not mention my Li family, lest it bring disaster upon your clan."
Grief surged anew within Han Shihai. Covering his face, he excused himself and rushed like the wind back to the island. Spirit boats rose and fell as the group departed in frantic haste. Only when everyone had vanished did Li Qinghong and Xi Zikang take to the skies together upon thunder.
The youth seemed quite shaken, flying in silence for a long time. Li Qinghong paused, then asked, "Does Fellow Daoist know about the matter of the Thunder Palace? It seems the whole realm is in an uproar..."
"Of course I know!"
Xi Zikang was somewhat absentminded and said softly, "The Immortal Monarch departed this world, and two Earth Virtue fruits were attained simultaneously. The sects and aristocratic clans had been restrained for far too long; with heaven and earth of one mind, the Twelve Thunder Palaces naturally collapsed. There was never much to say about it."
Seeing Li Qinghong deep in thought, Xi Zikang even anticipated what doubts lingered in her mind and remarked casually, "As for the common folk having suffered under the Thunder Palace for so long... Earth Virtue represents the state altars and the people's livelihood—'The people hear as I hear, the people see as I see; my heart is the heart of the realm.' Is it not natural for the realm to rise in furious revolt? It was nothing more than the work of a single thought! I know what you wish to say, Fellow Daoist. I have heard how the world denounces the Thunder Palace, but I merely smile without a word."
'My heart is the heart of the realm... How terrifying!'
Li Qinghong lived within the seas and in the era following the upheaval of heaven. She had hardly ever seen a proper Earth Virtue cultivator; even among Violet Palace experts, only Real Person Changxi, who merely practiced art-type divine abilities, was relatively well-known. This was the first time she had heard of the divine abilities of Earth Virtue, and she was secretly stunned:
'If this is so... then it is no wonder Earth Virtue has only art-type divine abilities left... With a single thought, the populace follows. Which power could ever tolerate such a thing?'
Her heart weighed heavily, leaving her speechless for a long time. Other conjectures even arose in her mind:
'Qingxuan is also Earth Virtue, but it does not seem to concern the state altars and the people's livelihood. Perhaps only one or two of the Five Earths possess such divine might.'
Among the Five Virtues, Five Waters, Five Fires, and Three Metals were manifest in the world, while the rest were obscure, their names even harder to learn. Li Qinghong probed gently, but Xi Zikang—whether because he did not know or was unwilling to say—revealed nothing.
'I wonder what method the Han clan's ancestor cultivated. The phenomenon of water receding and thunder rising surged and killed him... Was it by design or mere accident? Secret lore like this is likely known only to people of Xi Zikang's background...'
She was somewhat preoccupied, while Xi Zikang was still lost in thoughts over Han Shihai's words earlier. After remaining silent for a long time, he whispered, "I thought those who practice demonic arts were all irredeemable villains, yet even among them exists such devotion—exhausting every drop of his lifespan just to protect his clansmen. Though my family cultivates the orthodox Xuan Thunder arts... it would be hard to find even a few men like him among us."
Li Qinghong said softly, "The East Sea is flooded with blood pills, and demonic methods and arts circulate everywhere. Even normal cultivation requires getting some blood on one's hands. That is why they all look like villains in your eyes, Fellow Daoist..."
Xi Zikang paused, a trace of anguish showing on his face after all, and muttered, "Yet taking blood pills is taking blood pills, and cultivating demonic methods is cultivating demonic methods. No matter how much loyalty and devotion he has, no matter what difficulties forced his hand, he cannot wash away a body of turbid blood. While I admire this man, if I encountered him in the North Sea, I would strike him down with thunder arts all the same. The Zhenren of my family once said that while the fault may not be theirs, the evil is indeed their evil. Even if we lack the might to sweep away every demon and right every wrong, we cannot turn a blind eye to evils that we are capable of subduing."
Li Qinghong hesitated, falling silent. Not knowing how to reply, she felt a quiet weight in her heart:
'His ancestors inherited the mantle of the Thunder Palace. They do not seem as wretched as described in the Shen family's records, yet nor do they possess much pity or compassion. The tangled affairs of antiquity are murky beyond reckoning, and the reputation of the Wei Li was hardly any better... There is nothing more to say...'
Traveling across the East Sea, she changed direction and headed toward Yuezhou Island of the Xuanyue Gate:
'This information is unusual. I must send a letter home through the Xuanyue Gate.'
***
Lake Wangyue.
Li Zhouwei finished settling the family's affairs and properly distributed various responsibilities. Since his father, Li Chengliao, was in secluded cultivation, he could only arrange for several elders, including Li Minggong and Li Chenghuai, to look after things for the time being, before heading toward the hall.
Bai Rong strolled barefoot in the main hall. Li Xuanxuan accompanied him by his side, appearing to be in very high spirits as they chatted and laughed.
There were truly few people Li Xuanxuan could have a heart-to-heart talk with. The old man preferred talking about the past, but those he could speak with at length were fewer still—counting on one's fingers, there were only Li Qiuyang, Chen Donghe, An Zheyan, and a few others.
Li Qiuyang had been injured time and again and had even been scorched by Combined Fire, aging beyond recognition. When Li Xuanxuan went to visit him, they could barely exchange a few words; Chen Donghe and An Zheyan were both deeply deferential, making extended conversation difficult.
This fellow Bai Rong, with his grumbling and endless muttering, had surprisingly hit it off with Li Xuanxuan. Standing outside the hall, Li Zhouwei heard bursts of laughter and was somewhat reluctant to interrupt.
Yet after waiting only a few breaths, Bai Rong scampered out and exchanged a few parting words with the old man. Li Xuanxuan had no desire to hinder the younger generation's business, and he saw them off with a smile.
The two rode the wind away from the lake. Only then did Bai Rong grumble, "We white foxes can perceive the human heart to some extent. The old man has many knots tangled in his chest; his twilight years haven't been easy."
A rare gloom shadowed Li Zhouwei's expression. Bai Rong fished a magical artifact out of his sleeve while muttering, "You'd better cultivate properly and not go out brawling and picking fights. Those who fight fiercely will die sooner or later. Don't go copying those elders of yours, throwing their lives away for their clan... Live a few more years, if only to spare the old man another heartbreak."
"This junior understands."
Li Zhouwei replied with heartfelt sincerity. Bai Rong tossed a spirit boat into midair, which in a flash transformed into an unadorned wooden handcart. Its two wooden wheels were crooked, and its bark was whittled unevenly, patchy here and there, with several twigs still protruding.
Bai Rong introduced it with immense pride, "This is my demon carriage! Back in Beilu, I used it to ferry the cubs of my clan! Later, after I reached the cave, I conveniently refined it into a magical carriage. You can consider yourself the first white lin to ever ride in it!"
"Right..."
Li Zhouwei felt a bit strange listening to him. It was truly his first time seeing someone travel by sitting in a handcart. He sat cross-legged inside the cart. Bai Rong landed beside him, grinning from ear to ear for reasons unknown, and conjured a burst of azure gale.
"Let's go!"
Chapter 666