Losses

Mu Jiaoman and the others gave chase for a dozen breaths in utter embarrassment, spewing curses the entire time, before finally stopping and retreating grumblingly. Li Tongya even had the leisure to turn his head and watch Mu Jiaoman's group depart, the corner of his mouth curving slightly. After circulating his magical power for merely one cycle, the slight discomfort caused by the curse dissipated completely. After puzzling over it for a while, he could only conclude that the Shanyue chieftain was clumsy in his craft, making a fool of himself. After regulating his breathing and recovering his magical power, Li Tongya turned back and flew quietly close to the ground. The mouthful of river clear qi swallowed into his Qihai acupoint churned continuously, allowing him to float lightly without his feet touching the earth. "Let me head back first to see if I can find traces of the two children. If not, I can only sneak into the stockade again to look." Skimming the ground and searching carefully, he flew slowly for half an hour. Li Tongya's expression relaxed as he finally spotted the filthy figures of Li Xuanling and Li Jingtian within the range of his spiritual sense. Li Xuanling was carrying Li Jingtian. Having cast a spell on his legs that radiated a faint, lustrous white glow, he poked his head out watchfully through the woods, traversing the thickets and shrubs as smoothly as on level ground. Yet, because he was hurrying so fast, he was covered in mud and water. The boy had not headed due east toward Mount Lijing; fearing he might run into Mu Jiaoman and the others returning after their fruitless pursuit of Li Tongya, he had deliberately taken a roundabout route. Thus, it had taken Li Tongya quite a while to find them. Landing lightly before Li Xuanling, Li Tongya looked at the two with a beaming smile. Li Xuanling froze in a daze, the rims of his eyes reddening. Enduring days of flight and enslavement, driven to the point of contemplating life and death, Li Xuanling had bottled up deep grievances. Setting down Li Jingtian, whose face was already streaked with tears, Li Xuanling choked out, "Father!" Li Tongya's heart twinged. Gathering him into an embrace, he said softly, "It's all right, it's over now..." "We elders failed to do our part and let you suffer." With a low sigh, Li Tongya lifted one in each arm, rose into the air, and gently explained, "That Jianixi is indeed quite a formidable figure. He pushed our family into dire straits, and your uncle had his retreat cut off and was forced to head west. There has been no news of him since." Recalling the cold four words on Qingchi Sect's jade seal—"Endure for now"—Li Tongya looked up at the dimming night sky and whispered, "We must grow strong on our own." "Father, I heard the clan head has penetrated deep into the Shanyue heartland. Have you received any news?" Li Xuanling wiped his tears, yet still remembered the news he had gathered, asking eagerly. Li Tongya paused for a moment, then reassured him, "Don't worry, your uncle will turn danger into safety." *** When Li Tongya returned to Mount Lijing, Li Xuanfeng was still in closed-door cultivation. Li Xuanxuan had already settled the affairs of the various villages and organized two to three hundred clan soldiers to maintain order. As soon as the two were set down, Li Xuanling conscientiously headed to the backyard to return the magical mirror. Li Jingtian, exhausted after days of torment, went to the side courtyard to report safe and sound to her mother, Lady Tian, before washing up to rest. Seeing the two, Li Xuanxuan also breathed a sigh of relief. He immediately asked about Li Xiangping, and Li Xuanling recounted the news he had gathered, leaving Li Tongya and Li Xuanxuan silent. Li Tongya suddenly remembered the four words of the talisman qi Li Xiangping had received—"Ward Off Death and Prolong Life"—and felt somewhat reassured. In a deep voice, he said, "For now, let us not worry about Xiangping. The Lost in the Mist Array was broken; have the formation flags been recovered?" Li Xuanxuan hurriedly produced the three formation flags and said respectfully, "Once the grand array broke, the six formation flags materialized and scattered across the mountain. I only recovered three; the rest were likely picked up by the Shanyue. "This time, five spirit fields were raided. We lost over three hundred jin of spirit rice and more than a dozen spirit fruits. People have already been sent to replant the affected spirit fields. By careful calculation, our losses this time should be around twenty spirit stones." Li Tongya nodded, and saw Li Xuanxuan speak with worry, "Only, now that the Lost in the Mist Array has been broken by Jianixi, Mount Lijing has lost its defense, and our family has no other formations." "What did Wan Tianchou say?" Li Tongya lifted the three formation flags with his power, swept them into his storage bag, and asked softly. "That fellow has barely mastered the trade. Of all the Wan family's formation inheritances, he only learned two: a concealment array and a defensive array. Both are minor formations of the Embryonic Breathing realm and cannot serve as a mountain-protecting grand array," Li Xuanxuan replied with a shake of his head, somewhat disappointed. Hearing this, Li Tongya pondered for a few breaths and said in a grave voice, "The disaster that befell Mount Lijing this time was largely due to the deficiency of our formation. Set up some minor formations first to keep mortals from wandering up. In a few years, I will harvest another portion of river clear qi. If Xiangping has not returned by then, we will sell it and hire someone from the Xiao family in the commandery to see if they can lay down a Qi Refinement formation." "This..." Li Xuanxuan showed a troubled look and whispered, "That would waste Second Uncle's cultivation time to condense this clear qi..." "It does not matter," Li Tongya shook his head and answered. "None of you have broken through the fifth layer of Embryonic Breathing to birth spiritual sense, so you cannot harvest this clear qi. Even with spiritual sense, harvesting this clear qi in the Embryonic Breathing realm is exceedingly slow—it might drag on for eight or ten years, which would only waste time. "A pity that heaven-and-earth spirit qi is so exacting. Such a vast stretch of reed marshes barely condenses a single portion every five years." Seeing Li Xuanxuan nod, Li Tongya continued, "Moreover, now that someone in our Li family has broken through to Qi Refinement, the Qingchi Sect should grant higher-grade spiritual seeds and adjust the tribute." Li Xuanxuan hesitated for a moment and inquired, "Then our Li family will have to pay a higher tribute. I wonder if we could conceal it..." "There is no need," Li Tongya shook his head. "It would only delay things for twenty or thirty years at most. Facing enemies or slaying demons, it would be exposed sooner or later, and we would offend Qingchi Sect for nothing. Although Qingchi Sect leaves the families to themselves year after year, acting largely indifferent, it is better to be cautious. The Qingchi Sect acts strangely; we must remain on guard against them." "The Qingchi Sect merely rears us like cattle and sheep!" a spirited youthful voice rang out. Li Xuanfeng walked into the room exuding vigor, a smile on his face. Li Tongya swept him with his spiritual sense and instantly smiled. "You broke through?" Li Xuanfeng nodded and answered, "I have broken through the fifth layer of Embryonic Breathing and achieved the Yujing Wheel! This spiritual sense really is different, truly wondrous." Li Xuanxuan chuckled, looking at Li Xuanfeng with envy, and offered his congratulations as well. Li Xuanfeng shook his head. With his mind on Li Xiangping, his joy was muted. Lifting the longbow in his hand, he said solemnly, "I'll go hunt some demons in the vicinity; it will help supplement supplies for the family." "Do not venture too deep," Li Tongya cautioned. With Li Xuanfeng's strength, killing a few demons on the periphery of the surrounding Mount Dali wouldn't pose much danger, but Li Tongya still feared he might be hurt. Watching Li Xuanfeng nod and take his leave, Li Tongya's gaze settled on Li Xuanxuan, and he said softly, "Do not neglect your cultivation either. Achieve Qi Refinement soon, so I can put my mind at ease." "Understood!" Li Xuanxuan nodded vigorously. Just then, an announcement came from outside the courtyard: "Young Clan Head! A man has arrived in town, saying he is from the Lu family of Tiaoyun to the east, here on a visit!"