Chapter 165: Planning the Mountain Yue

Stepping on bluestone slabs, Li Yuanxiu ascended the mountain. The grand courtyard was desolate, as several elders had already gone into seclusion for cultivation. Only Li Xuanling remained in the garden, holding a teacup in one hand and a white jade slip of the "Overflowing River Torrent Step" in the other, reading. Seeing Li Yuanxiu enter with a joyful expression, he softly asked,

"What good news makes you so happy?"

"Dongshanyue was attacked by a demon. Mu Jiaoman died violently, and his son Shamoli has sought refuge with our family. He is now waiting at the foot of the mountain."

Li Yuanxiu finished speaking concisely. Li Xuanling quickly put down his teacup, put away the jade slip in his left hand, and nodded with a smile.

"Indeed, that is good news!"

Noticing Li Yuanxiu's eager eyes and his hesitation to speak, Li Xuanling inquired,

"By your look, do you have a plan in mind?"

"Precisely."

Li Yuanxiu cupped his hands, clearly having formulated his plan on the way. He laid out his thoughts one by one:

"Since Shamoli is in our hands, we will undoubtedly support him as the lord of Dongshanyue. However, in this nephew's opinion, there are many irregularities concerning Dongshanyue. Although we have Shamoli in our control, we must not underestimate Wushan. We should wait a bit, first gather intelligence, and then discuss matters of dethronement and enthronement."

"Well said."

Li Xuanling nodded solemnly and asked,

"How is Shamoli?"

"This nephew has already met Shamoli. He appears ignorant of schemes and incredibly dull-witted, but we must be wary that he might be feigning it for our family's benefit. For now, let us keep Shamoli here, provide him with beautiful women and singing girls, and test him several times. Ideally, he should leave behind some offspring here."

"Oh?"

Li Xuanling pondered for a few moments, then suddenly thought of something and inquired,

"He hasn't cultivated Qi, has he?"

"No, he hasn't!"

Li Yuanxiu looked up, meeting Li Xuanling's gaze, clearly thinking along the same lines. Li Yuanxiu chuckled,

"Our family also possesses a copy of the 'Purple Thunder Secret Origin Art.' Once he has left offspring here, we can have him take the Profound Scenery Spirit Oath, then secretly bestow the cultivation method upon him while concealing its side effects, rendering him infertile. He might even be overwhelmingly grateful. When he returns to Dongshanyue, regardless of any disloyalty that might arise as he ages, he will ultimately have no direct heirs. In such a scenario, our Li family can send over one of the royal successors we have educated for years. This way, everything will be firmly in our Li family's hands."

Li Xuanling nodded approvingly, taking over the conversation, and said in a low voice,

"We don't even need to refine a whole portion of Profound Yin Lightning Liquid. If we extract just one or two tenths and mix the rest with impure Qi, we can give it to him for cultivation. Even if the 'Purple Thunder Secret Origin Art' is powerful, if he cultivates impure Qi, what kind of outcome could he achieve? After he reaches Qi Condensation, he will be nothing more than a mediocre individual. This prevents him from becoming too powerful with a third-grade cultivation method and escaping our control..."

Li Yuanxiu nodded vigorously, his thoughts aligning with Li Xuanling's. The two exchanged glances, and in a few words, a thoroughly binding plot was hatched against Shamoli. Li Xuanling laughed heartily, then said seriously,

"That is indeed the plan, but I must discuss this matter with Father and inform him. He knows many secrets and can also tell us more about Wushan."

Li Yuanxiu cupped his fist and said gravely,

"Then this nephew will proceed with the arrangements. Shamoli is particularly close to Brother Yuanjiao, so Yuanjiao should be more involved in this matter."

"Go ahead and do it."

Li Xuanling acknowledged, thought for a few moments, then patted the storage bag at his waist. He rummaged through it, taking out several jade boxes, and instructed,

"These jade boxes contain several spirit fruits of various colors, all at the Fetal Breath stage. Most are gifts received from various families during exchanges. Their main effect is to enhance cultivation. However, our family doesn't have enough elixir recipes, and rashly consuming them directly can easily make one's foundation unstable, needlessly increasing the difficulty of future cultivation. That's why they've been kept here with me, unused, on the verge of losing all their spiritual energy and turning into ordinary fruits."

"Take these spirit fruits and give them to Shamoli when the time is right, so he can quickly raise his cultivation. This will prevent his cultivation level from lagging behind our plans and make it easier to bring him to the Qi Condensation level sooner."

"Yes!"

Li Yuanxiu took the jade boxes, holding them respectfully in his hands.

"Uncle's considerations are always so thorough. Your nephew will attend to it now."

Li Xuanling watched him leave the courtyard, then sorted out the entire matter before heading to Meichi Mountain to find Li Tongya.

"Mu Jiaoman died violently..."

Li Tongya put down the jade slip, listening as Li Xuanling recounted the causes and effects of the Shanyue unrest. A cloud of doubt flashed through his mind. He murmured,

"Mu Jiaoman had his own ways of contacting Wushan. Logically, by paying some price, he could have requested a Qi Condensation disciple from Wushan to intervene. How could he have been directly beaten to death by a demon like that..."

Li Tongya pondered for a few moments, recalling that Xiao Yuansi had mentioned that the Purple Mansion cultivator of Shanyue was also nearing the end of his lifespan. Based on the history of Shanyue's presence in this territory, this Shanyue Purple Mansion cultivator was likely the most senior among all Purple Mansion cultivators, having lived for nearly six hundred years and reportedly used secret techniques to extend his life multiple times.

"The one on Wushan is probably preparing to break through to the Golden Core stage. The Xiao family is also at a critical juncture right now. We should write a letter to inform them and also inquire about the specific situation to assess Wushan's current degree of control over Shanyue."

"Go and call Chen Donghe up here."

Li Xuanling nodded and withdrew. Li Tongya picked up a jade slip from the stone table, then, after thinking, put down the blank jade slip and instead took a cheaper spiritual cloth. He dipped it in ink and wrote a brief letter, sealed it, and then picked up the jade slip to resume reading.

Chen Donghe had broken through to Qi Condensation over four years ago and was currently at the second level of Qi Condensation. He cultivated using pure spiritual energy of heaven and earth and practiced orthodox methods; his true essence was rich and clear. He respectfully came forward and said in a deep voice,

"Chen Donghe greets Senior!"

Li Tongya waved his hand, handed him the letter, and said gently,

"I need you to make a trip to the commandery and deliver this letter to Senior Xiao Yuansi of the Xiao family. If he can reply immediately, please bring the reply back with you."

"Yes!"

Chen Donghe bowed and withdrew, then rode the wind out of the cave dwelling. Li Tongya turned to look at Li Xuanling, who was standing nearby, and softly asked,

"Have you broken through to the sixth layer of Fetal Breath, the initial spiritual cycle?"

"Yes, Father, I broke through last month."

Li Tongya swept him with his spiritual sense and nodded.

"You are now twenty-five years old. This pace is just right; there's no need to rush. Accumulate for a few more years, and you can break through to Qi Condensation before you turn thirty."

"Your son understands."

Li Xuanling acknowledged, then presented his and Li Yuanxiu's plan. Li Tongya listened without changing his expression and replied,

"Yuanxiu is a careful planner. Dongshanyue transports large quantities of grain and materials to the east every year, including many spiritual items. This concerns the food and clothing of over a hundred thousand people under our governance, and is also related to the amount of incense at next year's ancestral sacrifices. We must not fail. If Wushan is truly stretched too thin, we can boldly exert further control over Dongshanyue."

"Your son understands. But what if that person from Shanyue really achieves Golden Core..."

Li Xuanling was also cautious, cupping his hands to ask. Li Tongya then chuckled,

"In the path of cultivation, the earlier one breaks through, the better, provided their foundation is stable. Only these Purple Mansion cultivators wait until they are nearing the end of their lifespan, delaying until their vitality begins to dissipate before being forced to attempt a breakthrough. This shows they had little confidence to begin with."

"I have also consulted many historical records. The Yue Kingdom was established after the War between Immortals and Demons. During that period, there were still individuals who broke through to Golden Core. Later, Yuetingyuanfu secluded themselves, and the Three Sects and Seven Gates entered the world one after another, leaving the Yue Kingdom existing in name only. No cultivator broke through to Golden Core then, let alone this Shanyue cultivator."