Chapter 152: Purple Thunder Secret Essence

"Li Tongya of the Li Family of Lijing!""Lingyanzi of Ziqi Peak, Ziyan Sect!"

Lingyanzi finally arrived at Lijing Mountain. As he entered the courtyard, he saw Li Xuanling smiling as he came forward to greet him. "Greetings, Senior!" Li Xuanling said with a smile.

Lingyanzi nodded reservedly. To his surprise, Li Xuanling chuckled softly, "I've already gathered all the clan members; we are eagerly awaiting your wonderful methods, Senior!"

Lingyanzi choked for a moment. He then recalled how, in his frantic escape earlier, he had recklessly promised cultivation techniques and spiritual items. Li Tongya and Li Xuanfeng struggled to suppress their laughter, secretly applauding in their hearts. Li Xuanfeng, however, spoke sternly, "Ling'er! Don't be rude. Senior Lingyanzi is a high-level cultivator from the Three Sects and Seven Gates; you shouldn't worry about him breaking his word."

Lingyanzi sighed deeply, sat down, and offered a bitter smile. "Don't talk about high-level cultivators from the Three Sects and Seven Gates," he said. "I was chased and looked utterly pathetic. Not only you, but probably tens of thousands of mortals down the mountain witnessed my contemptible state. There's no longer any semblance of a high-level cultivator; I'm just an ordinary person who fears death!"

Lingyanzi took a sip of tea, savoring it carefully, his expression calm. He continued, "No matter what, I survived. Those two Changxiao Sect members, on the other hand, died by my hand. You don't know... this living!" He paused abruptly at this point, as if forcefully inhaling the hard-won spiritual energy of the mountain after his ordeal. Lingyanzi then smiled and said, "It's better than anything else!"

This statement made Li Tongya look at him with newfound respect, while a few of the Li family disciples of the "Xuan" generation paused slightly. Lingyanzi chuckled, "All my magical power originates from my sect, and I have sworn the Xuanjing Spiritual Oath, so I cannot pass it on to you. My spirit stones and elixirs were all used up on the journey. Most of the cultivation techniques and secret manuals I have were obtained during my travels, and many of them wouldn't be useful to you. However, I do have this one secret technique, called 'Purple Thunder Secret Origin Art.' It's considered outstanding among third-grade cultivation methods and is quite valuable. What do you think, Brother Tongya?"

"Senior, please tell us more," Li Tongya said. Li Tongya, finally hearing the man willing to speak, listened intently.

"This cultivation method was originally a fourth-grade technique from the ancient sect, Leiyun Temple," Lingyanzi explained. "At that time, one would consume Purple-Gold Thunder Liquid to achieve Qi Condensation, and the immortal foundation formed after Foundation Establishment was called 'Winter Thunder Sound.' Later, Leiyun Temple was destroyed, and the Purple-Gold Thunder Liquid became unobtainable. It was then replaced with Profound-Yin Thunder Liquid, and the cultivation method degraded to a third-grade one, with the immortal foundation becoming 'Profound Thunder Pool.' However, it is still much better than ordinary third-grade cultivation methods."

"Oh?" Li Tongya frowned, then asked in return, "Since this is a secret technique, I presume there are side effects?"

"Very slight... just infertility and a few years off one's lifespan..."

Li Tongya's previously interested expression immediately turned grim. For a sect, it might be acceptable, but as a family cultivation method, infertility would surely undermine the very foundation of the Li family.

Seeing his reaction, Lingyanzi also looked quite embarrassed and quickly added, "Not just that! Not just that! I also have the method for gathering Profound-Yin Thunder Liquid; I will give it to you as well."

Li Tongya shook his head, looking at him, and said helplessly, "Then I thank you, Senior."

"As for these brocade pouches..." Lingyanzi nodded, holding up two plain brocade pouches that belonged to the Changxiao Sect members. He spoke softly, "These pouches resonate with the Changxiao Sect's techniques and cannot be opened. Keeping them in your clan would only bring trouble. It would be better if I took them. Next year, I will send someone to convert the items inside into spirit stones and deliver them to your clan."

Li Tongya naturally didn't trust him, but at the moment, there was no other way. He decided to consider it doing Lingyanzi a favor and said in a low voice, "Senior, please take them."

Lingyanzi took the storage bags. The magic swords and flying shuttles of the two Changxiao Sect cultivators naturally fell into the Li family's hands. These two magic swords were even better than Li Tongya's, but they didn't dare to use them often. The two flying shuttles were quite ordinary. The Li family used spirit stones for many things and had never bought flying shuttles. Now, they had received two, but similarly, they didn't dare to use them openly. Li Tongya thought about finding a day to retrieve them and sell them together.

Lingyanzi chatted for a couple more sentences, recuperated on Lijing Mountain for a while, said goodbye to the others, and then flew back to report on his mission. The people on Lijing Mountain finally settled down. Li Xuanfeng and Li Tongya went into seclusion, while the others got busy with their respective tasks.

***

Lixia Commandery.

The bustling main street was filled with people of all kinds. On both sides, many small vendors pushed carts, selling pastries and rice porridge. Following the flow of people further in, the alleys became much less crowded, growing somewhat desolate. The large courtyard with bluestone paving in the alley was even more deserted. A few green vines grew there, and two rows of clothes, supported by wooden poles, gently swayed in the setting sun.

"Mama!" A clear boy's voice rang out. Jiang Yunü gently raised her head. Her formerly cute and round face had become much thinner, making her appear quite emaciated.

"Yu'er." The boy wore simple clothes; although they lacked elaborate patterns, they were clean, clearly having been carefully washed. His small face was chubby, and his eyes, smiling, stared at Jiang Yunü. "Mother, a beggar came to the front, asking us for copper coins!"

Jiang Yunü raised an eyebrow, looked at him, and then smilingly took out two small tablets from her pocket. She put them into his hand and whispered, "Go on, be careful."

"Mhm!" Watching her child stumble out the door, Jiang Yunü grew uneasy and quickly got up to follow him. She gritted her teeth and muttered, "It's been five full years. Has that scoundrel become addicted to seclusion, or did he get killed in a fight with someone? Five whole years with no news... If I hadn't been pregnant with Yuan Yu before he left, these past five years would have driven me mad..."

Jiang Yunü followed him to the front of the courtyard and saw that the beggar was a middle-aged man. He had all his limbs and some color in his face, yet he was shamelessly lying on the ground, groaning in pain. Little Yuan Yu was softly comforting him.

"Yu'er!" Fearing the man was a kidnapper, Jiang Yunü quickly called out, "Come back quickly!"

Li Yuanyu turned his head to look at her, then quickly walked over with a smile, saying in a childish voice, "Mama, this person is so strange! Not only did he refuse my money, but he thanked me and told me to move. He even gave me a copper coin, a really big, round one..." As he spoke, he pulled out a flat, greyish-black copper coin with four ancient characters engraved on it, which she couldn't decipher. Jiang Yunü didn't pay much attention to the coin, her eyes still fixed on the beggar.

"There are bad people in the commandery who abduct children; you must be careful." After cautioning him, Jiang Yunü picked up her child and started walking back, asking softly, "How about I send you to Mr. [Teacher] this afternoon to study some characters?"

"Mhm," Li Yuanyu replied in his childish voice. As mother and son stepped into the courtyard, the brilliant morning sun suddenly dimmed, and thick dark clouds swiftly gathered from the east. Faintly, several tiny figures stood above Lixia Commandery, and occasional bursts of loud laughter echoed down. The figures looked at the mortals below as if they were roasted meat on a platter.