Chapter 96: Loss

Mu Jiaoman and his group chased for over ten breaths, their faces flushed with embarrassment and curses on their lips. They soon stopped and grumbled their way back.

Li Tongya even had time to turn and watch Mu Jiaoman’s group depart, a faint smile playing on his lips. With just one circulation of his spiritual energy, the minor discomfort caused by the curse vanished. Puzzled, he pondered for a moment, concluding that the Shanyue leader was simply incompetent and had made a spectacle of himself.

After recovering his spiritual energy, Li Tongya turned back, flying stealthily close to the ground. The pure river energy he had absorbed into his Qi Sea pulsed continuously, making him feel light and ethereal, barely touching the earth.

He thought, "First, I should go back and see if I can find any trace of the two children. If not, I'll have to infiltrate the stronghold once more."

He searched meticulously, flying slowly and low for half an hour. Li Tongya's expression finally relaxed as his spiritual sense detected the two dirt-covered figures of Li Xuanling and the other child.

Li Xuanling was carrying Li Jing tian, a faint, glowing white light emanating from his spell-enhanced legs. He moved cautiously through the forest, traversing dense bushes and undergrowth as if on level ground, but had hurried so much that he was covered in mud and water.

The child had not headed directly east towards Lijing Mountain. Fearing an encounter with Mu Jiaoman's group, who had failed to capture Li Tongya, he had deliberately chosen a longer route, which was why Li Tongya took so long to find them.

Li Tongya gently landed in front of Li Xuanling and smiled warmly at the two children. Li Xuanling froze for a moment, his eyes immediately turning red.

After days of fleeing and facing the very real prospect of enslavement and even death, Li Xuanling had bottled up his grievances. He gently put down Li Jing tian, who was already weeping, and choked out a cry, "Father!"

Li Tongya's heart ached. He swept the boy into his arms and said softly, "It's alright now, everything is fine… It's our fault as elders for letting you suffer such grievances."

Li Tongya sighed softly, then picked up a child in each arm and ascended into the air, explaining gently, "That Gani Xi is indeed a formidable individual; he has driven our family into a desperate situation. Your uncle, furthermore, had his retreat cut off and was forced to move west. Now, there's no news of him at all."

Recalling the cold inscription "Yield and Endure Temporarily" on the Qingchi Sect's jade seal, Li Tongya looked up at the darkening night sky and murmured, "We still need to become stronger."

"Father," Li Xuanling asked urgently, wiping away his tears but still remembering the information he had gathered, "I heard that the Patriarch has already gone deep into the Shanyue territory. Have you received any news?"

Li Tongya paused, then simply offered reassurance: "Don't worry, your uncle will overcome the danger."

When Li Tongya returned to Lijing Mountain, Li Xuanfeng was still in secluded cultivation. Li Xuanxuan had already sorted out all the village affairs and organized a clan militia of two to three hundred people to maintain order.

As soon as the two children were set down, Li Xuanling conscientiously went to the backyard to release the spiritual implement. Li Jing tian, utterly exhausted after several days of turmoil, went to the side courtyard to inform her mother, Madam Tian, that she was safe, then washed up and rested.

Li Xuanxuan also breathed a sigh of relief upon seeing them. He immediately inquired about Li Xiangping, and Li Xuanling relayed the information he had gathered, which left Li Tongya and Li Xuanxuan silent.

Li Tongya suddenly recalled the four words "Avoid Death and Prolong Life" from the spiritual talisman Li Xiangping had received. His heart eased slightly, and he said solemnly, "For now, don't worry about Xiangping. Since the Misty Illusion Array has been broken, have the array flags been recovered?"

Li Xuanxuan quickly took out three array flags and said respectfully, "As soon as the grand array was broken, the six array flags appeared and scattered throughout the mountains. I only managed to recover three; the rest must have been picked up by the Shanyue. This time, five spiritual fields were raided, resulting in the loss of over three hundred jin of spiritual rice and a dozen spiritual fruits. The affected fields have already been replanted. Carefully estimated, the total loss should be around twenty spiritual stones."

Li Tongya nodded, then observed Li Xuanxuan speaking with a worried expression: "It's just that with the Misty Illusion Array broken by Gani Xi, Lijing Mountain has now lost its defenses, and our family has no other arrays."

"What did Wan Tianchou say?" Li Tongya took the three array flags, storing them in his storage bag, and asked softly.

Li Xuanxuan shook his head, replying with some disappointment, "That fellow isn't very skilled. Of the many array formations passed down by the Wan family, he only learned two: the concealment array and the defensive array. Both are small arrays suitable for the Fetal Respiration stage, not powerful enough to be a great mountain-protecting array."

Li Tongya pondered for a few moments upon hearing this, then said solemnly, "Lijing Mountain's recent tribulation was largely due to our inadequate array formations. You should first set up some small arrays to prevent mortals from wandering up. In a few years, I will gather another portion of pure river energy. If Xiangping hasn't returned by then, we can sell it to invite the Xiao family from the prefecture to help us establish a Qi Refining stage array."

"This..." Li Xuanxuan looked troubled and said in a low voice, "But that would waste your cultivation time to gather this pure energy..."

"It's fine," Li Tongya shook his head and replied. "You haven't broken through to the fifth layer of Fetal Respiration to gain spiritual sense, so you cannot gather this pure energy. Even if you had spiritual sense, gathering this pure energy at the Fetal Respiration stage is very slow, potentially taking eight to ten years, which would only waste your time. Unfortunately, the spiritual energy of this world is quite demanding. Even such a large reed marsh can barely yield one portion in five years."

Seeing Li Xuanxuan nod, Li Tongya continued, "Furthermore, if someone in our Li family breaks through to the Qi Refining stage, the Qingchi Sect should issue higher-grade spiritual object seeds and adjust our tribute accordingly."

Li Xuanxuan hesitated for a moment and asked, "In that case, our Li family will have to pay more tribute, won't we? I wonder if we can conceal it..."

"There's no need," Li Tongya shook his head and replied. "It would only delay it for twenty or thirty years. Confronting enemies and killing demons will expose us sooner or later, and we would unnecessarily offend the Qingchi Sect. Although the Qingchi Sect annually nurtures various families and appears indifferent, it's still better to be careful. The Qingchi Sect acts strangely, and we must guard against their schemes."

"The Qingchi Sect merely raises us like cattle!" Then a spirited young voice was heard. Li Xuanfeng, full of youthful vigor, walked through the doorway with a smile on his face. Li Tongya swept his spiritual sense over him and immediately smiled, "You've broken through?"

Li Xuanfeng nodded and replied, "I've already broken through to the fifth layer of Fetal Respiration and achieved the Jade Capital Wheel! This spiritual sense is truly different, absolutely marvelous."

Li Xuanxuan chuckled, looking at Li Xuanfeng with envy, and offered his congratulations.

Li Xuanfeng shook his head, his thoughts still on Li Xiangping, so he didn't show much joy. He lifted the longbow in his hand and said solemnly, "I'll go hunt some demonic beasts in the surrounding area; that can also help supplement supplies for the family."

"Don't go too deep," Li Tongya advised him. While Li Xuanfeng's strength was certainly sufficient to hunt a few demonic beasts on the outskirts of Great Li Mountain without much trouble, Li Tongya was still afraid he might get injured.

Watching Li Xuanfeng nod and leave, Li Tongya's gaze settled on Li Xuanxuan, and he said softly, "You too, don't neglect your cultivation. Achieve Qi Refining soon, and I can be at ease."

"Yes!" Li Xuanxuan nodded vigorously. Just then, a voice reported from outside the courtyard: "Young Patriarch! Someone has arrived from town, claiming to be from the Liaoyun Lu family to the east!"