Chapter 144: Unexpected Disaster

A sudden chorus of screams erupted from Huaqian Mountain below as Lu Yuanlu’s headless body plummeted into the forest. The grand formation on the mountain began to waver, and only then did regret wash over the Lu family. Some cried, some shrieked, and others knelt and kowtowed. Below, Li family soldiers had the mountain completely surrounded, leaving no escape.

Before long, the grand formation on Huaqian Mountain collapsed with a rumble. Li Tongya descended, borne by the wind, landing on the mountain where a multitude of people were already kneeling. A middle-aged man, timidly bowing his head, repeatedly spoke:“Lu Anyu, head of the Lu family, greets the Li family’s Ancestor!”

Only then did Lu Anyu and the other Lu family members understand the meaning of the "imminent disaster" Lu Sisi had ceaselessly muttered before his death. Lu Sisi had been buried just that morning, and the calamity arrived before midnight, a fact that left them sighing with sorrow.

Li Tongya observed him, watching as he lifted his tear-stained face and cried out:“Please, Ancestor, spare our lives! My Lu family will disband instantly, and the Huaqian and Tiaoyun mountains will belong to the Li family. Our clan disciples will be at your Ancestor’s command; we dare not have any second thoughts…”

“Please, quickly rise!” Li Tongya said, surprisingly courteous, with a look of regret.“I greatly admire Senior Sisi. It was only because Lu Yuanlu went too far that I acted to punish him. Family Head, please do not blame me.”

“How dare this humble one!” Lu Anyu exclaimed. Li Tongya did not wait for him to speak further, but said gently:“Now that the Lu family has no Qi cultivation practitioners, it truly cannot maintain its standing in Moon Lake. Family Head, have you considered a solution?”

The middle-aged man paused, then finally understood, a mixture of joy and sorrow in his expression. He quickly said:“We are entirely at your Ancestor’s command!”

Li Tongya nodded and addressed the gathered direct descendants of the Lu family below:“The Lu and Li families were, after all, once on good terms, and I deeply respect Senior Sisi’s character. Therefore, I offer you all two choices.”

“First, you may integrate into my Li family’s four towns. The men will marry into our family, and the women will remarry. You may not retain the Lu surname. From now on, for generations, you will be no different from the people of my Li family’s towns. You will still live as wealthy gentlemen and enjoy your old age.”

“Second, if any of you still wish to rebuild the Lu family, we do not intend to exterminate you. We will grant you a path to survival by respectfully sending you out of our territory, where you may then seek your own opportunities.”

No sooner had Li Tongya finished speaking than Li Xuanfeng, having understood completely, stepped forward with an indifferent expression and smiled:“Those who wish to rebuild the Lu family may follow me down the mountain.”

The entire place fell silent instantly. Everyone kept their heads bowed, not daring to move. After a long while, a woman finally stepped out, standing indignantly before Li Xuanfeng. Li Xuanfeng glanced around and then led her down the mountain.

As the soldiers surrounding the mountain parted to clear a path, people gradually began to dare to follow. In an instant, a significant portion of the Lu family members, led by a few Fetal Breath cultivators, sheepishly descended the mountain. Li Tongya chuckled coldly to himself, then looked at Lu Anyu and smiled:“Family Head, are you not going down the mountain with them?”

Lu Anyu raised his head, a bitter smile on his face, and said:“We have no spiritual apertures; leaving the mountain would only make us servants to other cultivators. What good would that do? It’s better to submit to the Li family. At least we can still be wealthy gentlemen, without having to wander in our old age and die in some corner.”

Cupping his hands, Lu Anyu offered a fawning smile and whispered:“The Lu family still has several inheritances! I will go fetch them for you now, Senior.” With that, he naturally stepped forward to leave. Li Tongya looked him up and down and said coldly:“Stop!”

Lu Anyu froze, then dropped to his knees with a thud, not daring to speak.

Although Li Tongya saw that all the Lu family members appeared useless, he was very cautious. Fearing that Lu Anyu was merely feigning submission and actually intended to destroy the inheritances, he whispered to Li Qiuyang, who stood alertly beside him:“You, go with him and watch.”

Li Qiuyang nodded, understanding the unspoken command. He pulled Lu Anyu and walked a few steps, warning him:“Follow me honestly, and don’t get any crooked ideas!”

Not long after, Li Qiuyang emerged from the courtyard with three jade slips, followed by Lu Anyu, whose face was full of obsequious flattery. Li Qiuyang said respectfully:“Clan Uncle, there is a spirit spring in the Huaqian Mountain cave. Its spiritual energy concentration is quite high, even ten percent higher than the Meichi Peak cave. It is indeed a good place.”

Li Tongya nodded, took the three jade slips from his hand, probed them with his spiritual sense, and praised them:“Excellent.”

All three jade slips contained Qi cultivation techniques. Two were common Grade-1 Qi cultivation techniques, which did not duplicate any in the family’s collection, so Li Tongya naturally accepted them. The last one, however, was quite unique, called the “Cave Spring Clear Spirit Art,” a Grade-3 cultivation method that utilized "cave spring clear qi" for Qi cultivation.

This resolved a lingering confusion in his mind. The vitality and prolonged strength achieved through "cave spring clear qi" cultivation explained why Lu Sisi had insisted on Huaqian Mountain; he must have been after the spirit spring within it. No wonder Lu Sisi himself used common Qi cultivation methods, while Lu Yuanlu was already using the “Cave Spring Clear Spirit Art.”

Li Tongya waved his hand, and immediately, clan soldiers escorted the Lu family members back to the four towns. Li Xuanxuan and Li Tongya, meanwhile, entered the Lu family’s mountain cave to inspect the spirit spring.

Li Xuanfeng led the Lu family members who wished to rebuild down the mountain. His gaze swept over them, discerning more than a little hatred in their eyes. He smiled sarcastically, and after walking with the group for a while, another group of people emerged before them.

“Feng-ge’er, are they all here?” Li Xuanling asked, smiling, armored and holding a Qingfeng sword, while the cold glint of his clan soldiers’ weapons behind him sent shivers down one’s spine.

“They’re all here,” Li Xuanfeng confirmed. “I watched them carefully on the way; not one slipped away.”

The expressions of those behind them instantly changed. One person, trying to remain calm, spoke up:“Your Ancestor promised to send us out respectfully! You mustn’t act on your own and make your elder lose credibility!”

Li Xuanfeng sneered. Only then did the people realize that they were already surrounded by Li family soldiers. Li Xuanfeng glanced at the speaker and smiled:“This place has long been outside the Li family’s territory, so how is this not ‘respectfully sent out’? You all encountered bandits on the road, suffered many casualties, scattered, and are now unaccounted for. Therefore, you cannot rebuild the Lu family.”

“You… you…!”

The surrounding clan soldiers silently swarmed them. Cries and pleas for mercy erupted instantly, and cold, glinting blades splattered the ground with blood. The group fell like wheat being mown down.

Li Xuanfeng raised his bow and shot down each of the Fetal Breath cultivators who were still stubbornly resisting. Li Xuanling watched as everyone fell, then personally stepped forward to inspect each body. Only then did he quietly say:“These clan soldiers were carefully selected and are utterly loyal. Nothing about this matter will ever be spread. This truly kills two birds with one stone!”

“Indeed.” Li Xuanfeng slung his bow behind his back. The clan soldiers below had already begun digging pits to bury the bodies. He mused for a few moments, then said:“We must still guard against any clever individuals among those who surrendered who harbor ill intentions. We must monitor them closely once we return to the towns, so they don’t cause any unrest.”

“Leave these matters to Xuan-ge,” Li Xuanling said with a slight smile. Being able to report back to Lu Wanrong now made him feel much lighter. The two brothers exchanged a smile and led their troops into the forest.