Chapter 744: True and False Hard to Discern

The subordinate Black Guest Minister already had the item in hand. As soon as Kong Guxi gave his assent, the Guest Minister immediately brought forward a stand. Two rows of soul lamps were neatly arranged on a base made of dark wood, their faint blue flames flickering softly.

The bottom row displayed only life jades, clearly belonging to disciples and minor guest ministers, indicating their lesser importance. Above them were the soul lamps of individuals like Kong Qiuyan; most of these were extinguished. Higher still were the soul lamps of Kong Guxi's generation, which were larger and more ornately decorated, though only three out of ten were lit.

On the next layer, almost all the lamps were extinguished, with only a single one still glowing. Li Ximing could discern it belonged to Kong Tingyun. One level higher, with a gilded base, another solitary lamp shone, likely corresponding to Kong Haiying.

The last and topmost lamp, an extinguished jade-seated soul lamp adorned with gold and silver patterns, belonged to Chang Xi. This single lamp made the stand remarkably heavy, but fortunately, the Black Guest Minister, being a Foundation Establishment cultivator, could hold it steady.

The Guest Minister was clearly fawning, but for the Xuan Yue cultivators present, witnessing ancestral soul lamps—normally untouched in the ancestral hall—being presented like common dishes brought a sense of dishonor. They hung their heads in shame.

Yet, no one paid attention to them. Each person gazed at the lamps with a mix of wonder and curiosity. Only a crimson-robed youth, standing with his hands clasped behind his back, behind Li Zhouwei, observed the Xuan Yue group intently, his golden eyes fixed on their faces.

Nearby, Sun Bai gently tugged Kong Guli's sleeve in an attempt to comfort him. Kong Qiuyan bowed her head and closed her eyes. Only Kong Guxi, the Xuan Yue sect leader, stood at the very front, maintaining a respectful posture. Noticing the youth's gaze, he lowered his head even further.

Li Jiangqian averted his gaze and subtly gestured to Li Quewan, who stood beside him. The woman in the cloud-patterned satin dress also turned her attention to Kong Guxi and, using a secret technique, inquired:

"Is that the Xuan Yue sect leader? The True Lord wishes to ascertain this so he can cooperate fully."

Li Jiangqian replied:

"Without Kong Guxi, the Xuan Yue lineage would have collapsed long ago; it wouldn't have survived until today. I've heard Uncle Cheng speak of him before. Let's both observe how he responds."

The onlookers remained silent, though privately, their minds were already abuzz with various thoughts. Li Ximing was aware of this and simply instructed:

"Sect leader, please proceed."

Kong Guxi promptly agreed, pulled up his sleeve, and pointed to the brightest soul lamp—the one with a gilded base, positioned one level above Kong Tingyun's—and introduced it:

"This is the soul lamp of Uncle Kong Haiying."

Everyone looked up at it. Li Ximing remained silent, but Li Zhouwei, standing to his side, spoke:

"Bring forth the portraits."

Before Kong Guxi could react, someone below had already brought the portraits. Li Wen took one and unrolled it, revealing a square-faced, broad-foreheaded middle-aged man. Beneath it lay more than a dozen other portraits, all strikingly similar.

Kong Guxi didn't need to ponder; these portraits were surely drawn separately by their disciples and guest ministers. He simply lowered his head and remained silent. When the Black Guest Minister stepped forward, he carefully examined the soul lamp and respectfully stated:

"Reporting to the True Lord, although Lord Haiying frequently isolates himself for cultivation, he did appear once before his breakthrough. This humble one has seen him, and his aura matches the one on this soul lamp. This is undoubtedly the Lord's soul lamp."

The consistency between the soul lamp's aura and the cultivator's true essence was beyond question. Several more individuals stepped forward to confirm it, including rogue cultivators who had personally met him, all verifying its accuracy.

Only then did Li Ximing sweep his spiritual sense over it, carefully noting the aura.

Li Ximing could have summoned the Dharma Mirror to uncover the identities of those in seclusion within the secret chambers. However, the critical issue was the need for secrecy; furthermore, among the Xuan Yue cultivators, Li Ximing had only ever met Kong Tingyun.

This meant that even if Li Ximing used the Dharma Mirror to identify the cultivators in seclusion, he wouldn't recognize them personally. He could only rely on their physical appearance, but appearances can be easily altered, especially by Purple Mansion cultivators who can fundamentally change their looks. Only an individual's aura cannot be falsified.

With the soul lamp's aura now recorded, he dispatched individuals to bring forth Fu En's aura, cultivation level, and physical characteristics. Although Kong Guxi was puzzled, he complied with every instruction.

Fu En was rumored to be dead, so naturally, there was no soul lamp for him. Fortunately, after a thorough search, they discovered a magical artifact he had refined with his blood. The accompanying portrait depicted a man with a scarred face, whose appearance was far from flattering.

Li Ximing was now confident in distinguishing the secluded cultivators. However, he had gone to such great lengths not solely to identify individuals by their aura, but also to establish a plausible justification for his subsequent decisions and actions, be it through divination or sorcery, thereby preventing others from growing suspicious.

Kong Guxi, firmly kneeling, finally heard the True Lord speak from above:

"Do you have any personal belongings of these individuals?"

Kong Guxi answered respectfully without hesitation:

"Decades have passed, and most items are now lost. Aside from this one artifact of Fu En's that was unexpectedly preserved, most other magical implements have changed owners and lost their efficacy. Fortunately, Lord Haiying still has blood descendants, but as for Lord Tingyun..."

"It's alright. Bring whatever you can."

Li Ximing nodded. This entire exercise was merely a formality, harmless in itself. Having items from Kong Haiying and Fu En was sufficient. At his command, someone immediately departed to make the necessary arrangements.

At this point, the display for the various families was deemed sufficient. The mere mention of "personal belongings" left ample room for their conjectures, making any subsequent actions seem perfectly reasonable. Only then did he wave his hand, dismissing the outsiders and retaining only Kong Guxi.

Li Ximing stated:

"I visited Ziyan and spoke with True Lord Tinglan. Shanji Commandery cannot be held, and your sect's mountain gate will be difficult to protect."

Kong Guxi's heart turned cold upon hearing this, but fortunately, Li Ximing offered a comforting remark:

"You don't need to worry excessively. The elder True Lord understands these matters clearly. Those two may not even be within the sect's boundaries. I am currently seeking a True Lord skilled in divination to pinpoint Kong Haiying's exact location. If neither of them is at the mountain gate, we can certainly make arrangements much sooner."

These words were like a cascade of scalding hot water, completely melting the ice in Kong Guxi's heart. His eyes instantly reddened.

"That's right... The Old Ancestor poured his heart into this; he must have foreseen it. There's no need to overthink! No need to overthink!"

Seeing that Kong Guxi had understood, Li Ximing dispersed into the void and vanished. Kong Guxi kowtowed deeply, then quickly exited the courtyard. Though tear stains still marked his face, his steps were noticeably lighter.

Li Cheng was waiting outside the courtyard and casually uttered some words about maintaining secrecy. However, with so many eyes and ears present earlier, such a request was merely a pretense, an attempt to hide the obvious. Nevertheless, Kong Guxi respectfully gave his solemn vow.

The moment Li Cheng departed, the entire mountain instantly fell silent. All the previous hustle and bustle vanished as quickly as a gust of wind. Kong Guxi, feeling somewhat weak, emerged from the hall. He saw the table with the soul lamps had been placed in the courtyard, where Kong Guli sat on the steps, staring blankly.

He walked closer. Kong Qiuyan was nowhere to be found. In the distance, he saw Kong Yu kneeling outside the courtyard, kowtowing towards the table laden with soul lamps. Kong Guxi halted abruptly, not daring to approach or forcefully command him. He merely asked:

"Grand Uncle..."

Kong Yu continued to kowtow relentlessly, producing dull thuds, nine consecutive times. The old man then exhaled a long breath and lay motionless against the ground. Kong Guxi waited a moment, but then his spiritual sense registered something amiss. His expression abruptly changed, and he rushed forward, crying out:

"Grand Uncle!"

He lifted Kong Yu, and a dark, viscous stream of blood began to trickle steadily from Kong Yu's nose.

The dark blood flowed like rivulets across the old man's face, tracing down his nose and neck. His usually cheerful, smiling countenance darkened, solidifying into a rigid expression.

The old man's upper eyelids were pulled up to an alarming degree, revealing an excessive amount of white. The corners of his mouth, twisted from repeated struggles, formed a contorted, almost mocking smile. A profound terror was deeply suppressed within his expression.

Kong Guxi was horrified. The old man was unequivocally dead.

His mind felt as though it had been struck by a hammer, and his vision swam with golden stars. An unbelievable horror transfixed him. After a full two or three breaths, he finally registered Kong Guli's cries from behind him. Kong Guxi asked blankly:

"Why?"

Kong Guxi had mentally prepared himself for every conceivable hardship, yet he had never once considered that Kong Yu would commit suicide so abruptly. Although Kong Yu was frail with age and often melancholic, Kong Guxi had never perceived that the old man was at the point of seeking death...

While the previous situation had been awkward, it was nowhere near as profound as the despair revealed by the Old Ancestor's dying will on that day. Perhaps this truly signaled the Xuan Yue lineage's impending loss of its mountain gate, but that day hadn't arrived yet, had it? Was it truly necessary?

If it was the influence of some divine ability... Li Ximing himself was on the mountain, so any such influence could only have originated from the True Lord himself. Could someone have acted within the mere dozens of breaths since he departed? What benefit could possibly be gained from harming old man Kong Yu?

His mind, full of previously formed judgments, was utterly fractured by this illogical situation. For a moment, he couldn't even bring himself to put down Kong Yu's body, not until Kong Guli came to take it from him.

Kong Guli and Kong Yu belonged to two very closely related branches of the family, neither of which had been particularly prominent, leading to a deeper bond between them. Kong Guli, crying out, took the old man's body. Kong Guxi remained rooted to the spot, his pupils slowly dilating. He quickly grasped the grim reality and wailed:

"Grand Uncle could not bear witness to the destruction of the Xuan Yue mountain gate, and so he took his own life."

The Xuan Yue Mountain Gate.

Li Ximing rode his light, tearing through the void, and landed before the mountain. With a flick of his finger, a jade pendant flew from his sleeve. He aimed it at the grand formation, and the Purple Mansion's Hundred Mountains Concealing Spirit Array opened of its own accord. Li Ximing effortlessly stepped inside.

By this juncture, the majority of the Xuan Yue mountain gate's assets were already under the effective control of the Li family; only the Daoist scriptures and treasury remained untouched. The Hundred Mountains Concealing Spirit Array was no exception; Li Ximing's authority within the array far exceeded that of Kong Guxi.

Now, his radiant light manifested within the array, and his spiritual sense connected to the array's control panel, ensuring the void was sealed off. Every single thing within the Xuan Yue mountain gate, large or small, was instantly revealed. There were pitifully few disciples within the gate; only one or two could be spotted across several peaks.

As his thoughts turned, the locations of numerous seclusion chambers also appeared one by one:

"Connected to the grand array... there are five active seclusion chambers... The one Kong Guxi took me to was even detached from the grand array, meaning... there are six in total."

He assumed a contemplative pose, while secretly chanting in his mind:

"I, Li Ximing, a disciple of the Li clan, respectfully invite the Dharma Mirror: survey the hidden, explore the minute, perceive the profound, illuminate all directions, apprehend spirits, investigate deities..."

He felt a sudden coolness surge from within his Ascending Yang Palace. Neither the void nor the material world showed any alteration, yet Li Ximing's spiritual sense abruptly expanded, and the entirety of the Xuan Yue mountain gate, both its tangible and intangible aspects, manifested within his mind.

"Indeed... The chilling sensation from the Immortal Mirror doesn't originate from the void... it's beyond the scrutiny of even spirits and gods..."

It is important to know that few things in this world can function effectively over long distances. Whether it be soul lamps, life jades, array formations, or secret techniques, their medium is entirely the void. Consequently, when Purple Mansion cultivators engage in battle within the void, these items often become unreliable; theoretically, someone's life jade could even be inexplicably destroyed, or a family's minor array could suddenly weaken or strengthen...

Yet this refreshing coolness, clearly originating from the Immortal Mirror, appeared out of nowhere, utterly defying Li Ximing's understanding, chilling him to the core.

These distracting thoughts quickly passed. Li Ximing suppressed them and directed his spiritual sense to the nearest seclusion chamber, passing through the wall as if the array formation were nonexistent. Inside, he found a pitch-black secret room. On a meditation cushion knelt a skeleton, with tiny, golden specks of light scattered around its form.

"A failed Foundation Establishment breakthrough. It's a Heaven Gold Helmet."

This was most likely a henchman cultivated by Chang Xi who failed to pass this trial. After his death, the Xuan Yue sect was left deserted and utterly unmanaged, so the body simply remained in the cave dwelling.

Li Ximing withdrew his spiritual sense and then sought out another chamber. He passed into it, only to find the stone room entirely empty, with merely an array formation operating in mid-air.

He then examined the remaining three rooms one by one. Aside from another corpse, the other two chambers were similarly empty. After some searching, he finally arrived at Kong Tingyun's seclusion chamber, the one indicated by Kong Guxi.

This location was specifically hidden, even disconnected from the Purple Mansion's grand array. The door, crafted from Dark Vein Stone, insulated the interior and exterior, favoring earth virtue. Li Ximing's spiritual sense passed through the wall, revealing a thick layer of spirit earth within, where spiritual energy was extremely rich, and a cold, star-like wisp of profound mystery flickered.

The cultivator's physical body seemed to have largely converted into spiritual energy to fuel the breakthrough, concealed within the dense spiritual energy. However, the aura was unmistakably present, and Li Ximing recognized it in an instant:

"It's Fu En..."

The so-called seclusion chamber of Kong Tingyun actually contained... Xuan Yue Guest Minister Fu En!

"Such potent spiritual vitality! Xuan Yue has truly provided optimal conditions... The spiritual energy here, augmented by spirit stones, is far superior to what I had in Wushan back then. And though this individual is merely a guest minister... his cultivation is remarkably solid..."

"But Chang Xi, oh Chang Xi... who was it that truly died back then?!"

With both Kong Haiying's and Kong Tingyun's soul lamps still lit, True Lord Chang Xi's plan became clear. He knew the Xuan Yue mountain gate would inevitably be occupied. He had arranged for the two of them to be hidden somewhere unknown, leaving only Fu En within the mountains!

As for the one who perished back then... it was highly probable that they were merely a sacrificial pawn!

"Therefore... when my Li family can no longer withstand the pressure and abandons the Xuan Yue mountain gate, it will only be Fu En who has died. As for Kong Tingyun and Kong Haiying... they will be safely undergoing their breakthroughs in some unknown location..."

"Then... we can't wait any longer..."

If the individuals inside had been Kong Haiying or Kong Tingyun, direct descendants of Xuan Yue, Li Ximing might have gritted his teeth and devised a rescue. But it was merely a guest minister, Fu En, with no familial ties to him. He simply could not continue to bear the pressure of holding Shanji Commandery and the Xuan Yue mountain gate for such a distant connection.

Li Ximing sighed faintly. After all, someone was in the midst of a breakthrough, while the mountain gate itself had passed into another's hands; the despair of the secluded cultivator was easily imagined. Yet, Li Ximing considered himself no benevolent figure, bearing no obligation to make a futile sacrifice for this individual and thereby invite misfortune. He could only exert efforts that would not harm his own family, sighing inwardly:

"Since the mountain gate can be relinquished, I should try to negotiate with Ziyan. When a Purple Mansion cultivator enters the mountain... let him remain here to complete his breakthrough. In any case, this person has little hope; when he inevitably perishes, he can still contribute spiritual energy to this place! And if, by some million-to-one chance, he does succeed... he is merely an outsider anyway... Let's discuss this further."

He mentally reviewed the situation, carefully formulating his prepared words, and mused to himself:

"Alright... From this moment on, the narrative will be that Chang Xi tampered with the soul lamps. The first to die was Kong Haiying, Fu En is within the sect, and Kong Tingyun's whereabouts are unknown. Releasing the mountain gate with this explanation will both ease tensions with Duxian Dao and provide a justification to Ziyan Gate! As for whether they believe it, that will be a concern for later."