Chapter 58: The Moonlight of the Great Yin

"The Taiyin Lunar Essence is indeed as described: white as frost, flowing like water, luminous when the moon is full, and dim when it wanes!"

"The entire cultivation world of the Yue Kingdom scrambles for it..."

"Over three hundred years, only five strands were acquired, each meticulously safeguarded by Foundation Establishment cultivators, and even by Purple Mansion cultivators."

"One strand enabled the Moon Lake Peak Master to become a Purple Mansion cultivator centuries ago; another was refined into the Great Snow Unrivaled Blade by the Qingchi Sect Master. Two strands were quietly added to the treasury during the Three Sects' War, and the last one led to a fierce dispute that nearly caused the extinction of the Snow Wing Gate, one of the Seven Gates."

"Such was the precious Taiyin Lunar Essence."

Li Chijing swallowed hard, murmuring, "My family uses this for cultivating the Mysterious Scenery Wheel?!"

He tilted his head, pondered for a moment, and then burst into hearty laughter.

From above, Lu Jiangxian, overhearing Li Chijing's muttering, felt a surge of unease. "The Moon Essence Origin Mansion has remained hidden for years, yet the Taiyin Lunar Essence is being fiercely contested. Moreover, cultivators claiming to be heirs of the Immortal Mansion were brutally encircled and killed by the Three Sects and Seven Gates at Moon Gazing Lake. My mirror is deeply connected to this Taiyin Lunar Essence. It all points to a massive conspiracy!"

His conviction solidified: he should remain hidden deep in the mountains. Could an artifact spirit truly die of old age? He would wait until his subordinate cultivators grew strong enough and he himself was nearly restored before observing the changes in the situation.

"After all, a month passes in the blink of an eye. I must persevere and remain hidden for five hundred years without faltering! I'll use the Li family, my subordinates, to gather information about the Moon Essence Origin Mansion, while I simply stay out of sight."

Li Chijing chuckled for a while, then, observing the bewildered expressions of his surrounding kinsmen, he quietly said, "This mirror condenses Taiyin Lunar Essence! It's a type of spiritual energy used by Qi Refinement cultivators, far more valuable than things like Pine Forest North Wind or Golden Autumn in the Lake."

He then painstakingly described to them the bloodshed each public appearance of this Taiyin Lunar Essence had caused over the centuries. Only then did Li Tongya and the others truly grasp the significance of the Taiyin Lunar Essence.

"If, as Uncle Ji says, this Taiyin Lunar Essence is so incredibly valuable that it draws the covetous gaze of Foundation Establishment and Purple Mansion cultivators, then our family must absolutely never reveal its existence. We couldn't even take it out to sell." After his initial joy, Li Xuanxuan frowned, his voice still a little childish as he spoke.

"Exactly." Li Xiangping nodded in approval, though a ripple of unease also passed through him as he began, "Our family doesn't even possess the cultivation method for refining Qi with Taiyin Lunar Essence; we can't even use it ourselves. It's merely possessing a treasure that will only bring us trouble."

While everyone else merely understood the Taiyin Lunar Essence was valuable, only Li Chijing truly grasped the scale of conflict the mirror before them could provoke. He, too, replied with a frown, "There are only a handful of Qi Refinement methods that utilize Taiyin Lunar Essence, and all are controlled by the Three Sects and Seven Gates. I could, however, borrow the Moon Lake Reflection Autumn Art, though it would require me to swear a Mysterious Scenery Spirit Oath not to reveal its contents."

Li Mutian, who had been quietly observing from the side, finally spoke, interjecting an unexpected question. "Do you intend to cultivate that Moon Lake Reflection Autumn Art?"

"A fifth-grade cultivation technique..." A flicker of longing and inner conflict crossed Li Chijing’s face; his emotions a complicated mix. He opened his mouth but no words came out.

Li Tongya and the others also fell silent for a moment, none speaking. Only Li Xuanxuan, quick-witted, blurted out, "That technique is so formidable, of course, we must cultivate it!"

Li Mutian gently patted Li Xuanxuan's head and said gravely, "How will we explain this to the Immortal Sect?"

"We'll simply say that Uncle Ji encountered a fortunate opportunity at Moon Gazing Lake upon his return. What could the Immortal Sect say? If five strands have appeared over centuries, what difference does it make if Uncle Ji acquired a sixth?" Li Xuanxuan tilted his head and murmured.

Li Xiangping slowly knelt down, gently stroking the boy's head as he whispered, "Then why did Li Chijing return neither earlier nor later, but conveniently rushed home just as he was about to reach the Qi Refinement stage? And why, in these few short days, did he just happen to stumble upon an opportunity at Moon Gazing Lake?"

"Xuan'er, dealing with the Immortal Sect is nothing like handling village laborers. You can command our villagers with any pretext; they don't understand cultivation, so they fear us and obey us, often without needing any explanation from us." Taking Li Xuanxuan's hand, Li Xiangping gazed steadily into his eyes and continued, "To the Immortal Sect, we are but ants. With even the slightest suspicion, they could freely turn our entire Li family upside down, take whatever they desire, and then effortlessly eradicate us. When dealing with them, we must exercise extreme caution, deliberate a thousand times, and leave not a single loophole."

"As the head of a family, you must understand how to manage your subordinates, how to appease those above, and how to balance surrounding powers to secure advantages."

Observing Li Xuanxuan nod thoughtfully, Li Mutian contentedly withdrew his gaze from the two, cleared his throat, and stated gravely, "Didn't Tongya discover a cave dwelling and find a jade bottle within it? Let's exchange this 'cursed Qi' with the Taiyin Lunar Essence, and claim that our Li family discovered this Qi in that dwelling years ago, and called you, Li Chijing, back to examine it. Would that deceive the Immortal Mansion?"

Li Chijing lowered his head, pondering for several breaths, before finally speaking, "The credibility would be seventy to eighty percent. The Sect would likely dispatch someone to investigate the dwelling. If it proves to be over three hundred years old, then the credibility rises to eighty or ninety percent."

"Even Foundation Establishment cultivator Si Yuanbai failed to discover the mirror back then. For a simple investigation, the Qingchi Sect surely wouldn't send a Purple Mansion cultivator, would they?" Upon hearing this, Li Xiangping quickly inquired.

"Of course not! How many Purple Mansion cultivators does the Sect even possess? Centuries ago, the Moon Lake Peak Master acquired the Taiyin Lunar Essence and cultivated the Moon Lake Reflection Autumn Art while still in the Fetal Breath stage. The Sect even only dispatched a Qi Refinement cultivator to handle the predecessor's remains." Li Chijing replied definitively, then pondered for a moment, his expression easing slightly before he continued, "Who would imagine a mirror that continuously condenses Taiyin Lunar Essence, or even that two strands of Taiyin Lunar Essence would appear in the same location simultaneously? The Sect's dispatching of personnel is merely a routine measure to search for clues about the Moon Essence Origin Mansion. It seems we were overly cautious."

"Then it is settled." Li Tongya nodded, retrieved the slender green jade bottle from a nearby shelf, and handed it to Li Chijing.

Li Chijing accepted the bottle and meticulously examined its contents, comparing them mentally with the hundreds of types of heaven and earth spiritual energies he had memorized. After a moment of hesitation, he began to explain, "This substance appears to be Fiery Malevolent Qi, often harvested from subterranean fire vents. It's not considered particularly valuable among spiritual energies and isn't widely circulated in the Yue Kingdom. Its primary use is in forging spiritual artifacts to refine their quality."

Unclasping the white jade bottle from his waist, Li Chijing performed a Qi extraction art, drawing a reddish, brownish-grey stream of energy from the slender green jade bottle. After guiding the Fiery Malevolent Qi into the white jade bottle for Li Tongya to store, Li Chijing picked up the now empty, slender green jade bottle and turned his gaze to the Taiyin Lunar Essence on the mirror.

Bringing his fingers together, he performed a Qi absorption spell. Immediately, the Taiyin Lunar Essence on the mirror flowed like water into the slender green jade bottle. Once the entire portion had transferred, Li Chijing sealed the bottle's opening with a spirit-sealing spell. Watching the lunar essence gradually re-form in scattered points on the mirror, he softly said, "Come, let's go inspect that cave dwelling."