Chapter 201: Settling Down in Anzha and Anzheyu

"Uncle!"

Li Xuanxuan dropped to his knees inside the cave dwelling. Li Tongya sat quietly at the head of the room, watching Li Xuanxuan's tear-streaked face. He saw his nephew grit his teeth and ask, "Are we... just going to let this go?!"

"Let it go?" Li Tongya lowered his brows and said in a deep voice, "It's not about whether our Li family wants to let it go now, but whether the Yu family wants to cease. The two families are already enemies; it's not something that can end just because one side wishes it."

Li Xuanxuan looked up, wiped away his tears, and said, gritting his teeth, "It was Yu Mugao who harmed our Li family, and he even lost his own brother, yet he still hates us! He still won't give up! What kind of logic is that... We've had our disciple killed, and we still have to fear that the Yu family won't stop. Where is the..." Li Xuanxuan moved his lips, swallowing the word "justice" that had reached them. He was nearly forty years old and no longer harbored naive or childish thoughts, yet he still felt a profound sense of powerlessness and grief, bowing his head and weeping into his hands.

"That's just how the world is... The way of heaven is merciless, and all beings are like ants." Li Tongya's graying hair fell down as the old man sighed sorrowfully. Li Xuanxuan, his face still covered, choked out, "Xiu'er was the most sensible child; all the elders favored him as the family head. Now he's been lost here..."

"With Xiu'er gone, looking at all the disciples, Yuanjiao is fierce, Yuanyun is gentle and weak, and Qinghong is too unrestrained. Who will the family be handed over to in the future?"

Li Xuanxuan mumbled a few words. Li Tongya shook his head and said in a low voice, "The family matters are not urgent. You take over for now, but do not go down the mountain. Have Xie Wen organize affairs below and send the reports up. A Qi Cultivator has a lifespan of two hundred years; you've only just begun. If none of the 'Yuan' generation are suitable, wait twenty more years and then look at the next generation."

"Now, the Yu family is eyeing us like a tiger. Don't let the younger generation go down the mountain again. Especially keep a close watch on Yuanjiao. I'll send Qinghong to the Fei family... and wait a few more years."

Li Xuanxuan's lips trembled. He closed his eyes, squeezed out two tears, and uttered a single word: "Yes."

A cool spring rain had fallen for several nights, and spring over Wangyue Lake had passed. Warm summer winds swept across the lake from the north, crashing into Mount Dali, and the damp, cool moisture finally dissipated.

Winds from the southern shore of the Great Lake carried gray-black remnants of paper across the sky. As far as the eye could see, everything was draped in white, and cries of sorrow drifted through the air. From Mount Lijing to Mount Huazhong, and then from Mount Huazhong to Milin Commandery, there were homes adorned with white cloth.

Li Yuanxiu had been torn to shreds by lightning fire. In the collapsed backyard, there was nothing but fragments and flesh scattered on the ground. Li Xuanxuan and Li Xuanfeng cleared away the fallen debris, scooped out blood-soaked sand and soil, mixed it with bone fragments, and placed it into a coffin. A wooden effigy, bearing about seventy percent resemblance to Li Yuanxiu, was carved and laid upon the sand and soil before the coffin was closed and buried.

"Xiu'er!"

The coffin, draped in white gauze, was transported from the town up the mountain. The journey was silent, save for soft weeping. The clan uncles and cousins merely offered silent condolences, but the elder clansmen openly wept, their wrinkled faces drooping as they bent low, causing the clan uncles to nervously follow suit.

Li Yuanjiao carried two long, grayish-white wooden poles at the back, while Li Xuanxuan bore the front, with the coffin secured in the middle. Li Yuanjiao looked up, seeing everyone's gazes fall upon them. In the crowd, he noticed the grim faces of his several half-brothers, a mix of sorrow and anger evident on them all.

Although the main Li clan treated all members equally, and elders emphasized regarding each other as true brothers, there was ultimately a difference between clan members who grew up on the mountain (those with spiritual aptitude) and those from below. Only those with spiritual aptitude who grew up together truly saw each other as blood brothers. The distinction between a family head who was a full brother and one from a different branch was simply too significant.

Li Yuanjiao understood his brothers' thoughts with just a moment's reflection, but he had no time to dwell on it, consumed as he was by grief and anger.

"The Yu family... and Yu Mugao." Li Yuanjiao uttered the names through gritted teeth, then sighed helplessly at his own third-level Embryonic Breathing cultivation, secretly resentful: "The Yu family has Yu Yufeng, an old ancestor at the late Foundation Establishment stage, and Yu Xiaogui, at the early Foundation Establishment stage. Yu Mugao himself is a mid-stage Qi Cultivator. This revenge will be difficult to exact..."

Unlike the sounds of weeping beneath the white silk on Mount Lijing, Mount Huazhong, though also adorned with white silk, was filled with joyful laughter below.

"Congratulations, family head!"

"Congratulations! Congratulations! An Jingming and his son got what they deserved, eliminated by the Yu family. Now Mount Huazhong is finally our territory!"

The leading man, a fourth-level Embryonic Breathing cultivator, looked triumphant. Hearing the words, he nodded in satisfaction and declared: "An Zheyen was an ignorant fool who squandered all the family's resources on his precious son. The two of them, relying on their Qi Cultivation, levied oppressive taxes and extorted others, making me, An Zheyu, slave for them! Heaven's will is clear; those two finally lost their lives. With these two scourges gone and the main family's support, our An family is sure to prosper and flourish in the future!"

An Zheyu was, of course, a puppet supported by the Yu family. Despite being over fifty, he was only a fourth-level Embryonic Breathing cultivator. Without the Yu family's intervention, he would have remained a mid-level family member his entire life. Now, however, thanks to the Yu family's backing, he had become the family head and was celebrating with smug satisfaction.

"Indeed!" The man below, whose cultivation was only at the second level of Embryonic Breathing, had a face full of flattery and a servile demeanor. He curried favor, saying, "If those resources had been given to you, respected sir, earlier, you would have already reached Foundation Establishment! What a pity they were wasted on An Jingming!"

These words seemed to strike a sore spot for An Zheyu, who was seated at the head. He looked up fiercely and exclaimed, "What does that matter now! The Yu family has provided cultivation resources, and I'll be able to practice Qi Cultivation within three years!"

"Yes, yes, yes!" The man below slapped himself on the face, his eyes darting around. He whispered, "Family head, the Yu family took An Jingming's head, saying they wanted to cure and observe it thoroughly. An Jingming's body is still here, though... How should we dispose of it?"

An Zheyu's eyes widened, and he was immediately overjoyed, twin beams of greedy and hateful light shooting from them. He gritted his teeth and said, "I've heard that the bodies of geniuses often possess unique properties. Legend says if you enshrine them within the 'Temple of Five Organs,' you can gain one or two extraordinary abilities. Have someone finely chop it up and bring it to me in a basin. I want to examine it thoroughly and see what remarkable properties it has!"

These words caused the temperature in the hall to drop instantly. The guards on both sides stirred uneasily, unable to bear it. An Jingming had been generous in life, kind to his people, though harsh with the clan's dissolute members, thereby offending An Zheyu and his ilk. Yet, he was well-regarded among the common folk, and during his seven-day mourning period, every household wept. The guards exchanged glances, powerless, silently shedding tears.

The sycophantic man below was delighted to hear this and immediately gave orders. The two chatted and laughed for a while. Before long, an old servant brought a wooden tray and a brazier with a pot of soup. When the sycophant saw the old servant's tear-filled eyes, he immediately flew into a rage, kicking the man in the waist and shouting, "Why the mournful face on such a joyous day? Drag him out and beat him to death!"

When the words fell, the guards on both sides remained motionless, continuing to shed tears. The sycophant grew even angrier and yelled, "Do you all want to die too?!"

Only then did two guards step forward, dragging the old servant away. The old servant, with disheveled hair and beard, cried out in sorrow, "I have served the An clan since childhood, through four generations. Fathers were unworthy, sons undutiful, yet only Ming'er among them was virtuous and wise, but he was harmed by others. The entire clan has become dogs for the Yu family... An Zheyu, the fate of the entire clan rests on you alone..."

The old servant's cries faded into the corridor. An Zheyu, however, burst into laughter, saying, "When I was a child, I merely gambled away two gold bars, and this old fool reported me to my father, causing me to be beaten so severely I couldn't get out of bed for three days. Later, the old fool was protected by An Zheyen, so I couldn't get my revenge. I've harbored this grudge for decades, and now I've finally exacted it!"

After saying this, An Zheyu smugly lowered his head, set down his wine cup, and dipped a finger into the blood flowing from the wooden tray. He noticed only a faint metallic smell, completely devoid of putridity. He sniffed it carefully, then exclaimed in wonder: "I've often heard that the bodies of Qi Cultivators don't decay for days. It truly is no exaggeration!"