Chapter 475 382: Return from the Visit (Part 2)

Li Yuanjiao listened carefully. The fox looked much more relaxed now and squeaked:

"In that battle, the Lu Shui feathered serpent was swallowed by the True Chi. Seven years later, it birthed nine offspring, who devoured the True Chi. Lu Shui and He Shui then merged, and from that time forth, the two streams—Lu Shui within the seas and He Shui beyond the seas—have been entangled ever since, but now, at last, things have quieted down a bit."

Li Yuanjiao wanted to hear more, but the fox refused, only saying:

"Anyway… Hook Serpents are easy to bully, and you see plenty in the sea."

Li Yuanjiao followed up with a few more questions, but the fox wouldn't say more on the subject. Helpless, he could only lower his voice and say:

"Senior, that Foundation Establishment Pig Demon in the mountains… is there any way to move against it?"

The Pig Demon in the mountains had been entrenched by the Li Family's side for a hundred years. Li Yuanjiao had never stopped thinking about it. Now, with the Array Plate in hand, he was stirred to act, already making calculations in his heart.

"That big fool..."

The Fox Demon hesitated to speak, then said in a low voice:

"Killing it is doable. Just lure it out of Da Li Mountain, and if it dies outside, it's no great matter… Bring me some more spiritual objects and spirit stones. I'll make arrangements for you in its lair, and nothing will go wrong."

"I only worry about its Foundation Establishment Middle Stage cultivation level. If you don't kill it, and it manages to flee back inside its cave and calls its friends, your family will only suffer."

Li Yuanjiao nodded slightly, confidence building in his heart. He asked a few more questions. Seeing the fox demon uninterested, he could only cup his hands and take his leave.

Li Yuanjiao rode the wind away, only then did the Fox Demon let out a breath, lazily lying back under the tree, secretly thinking:

"This youngster has extraordinary talent, cautious and distrustful, a little less of Tongya's grandeur, but more ruthless. Tongya handing the clan over to him should be fine."

The Fox Demon took out a white, lustrous piece of quartz from under its fur and said quietly:

"Li Yuanjiao has reached Foundation Establishment!"

...

Li Yuanjiao soared out of Da Li Mountain, making plans in his heart, secretly thinking:

'This Fox Demon Senior has been on good terms with my family for generations, so she probably wouldn't deceive me. But for her to know so much, she's definitely not just an ordinary Fox Demon!'

When Li Yuanjiao descended riding the wind earlier, he had activated the [Mysterious Pattern Bottle]. If not within three feet, even Foundation Establishment cultivators couldn't detect him—yet that fox spotted him early, and when he reached the tree, saw no trace of her either.

'A Qi Cultivation level Fox Demon able to discover me so quickly, and come and go without a trace—this is simply… too obvious, almost like a warning, isn't it?'

He stroked his chin and came to a conclusion:

"It must be the Da Li Mountain Demon Cave!"

'Only, I don't know how my ancestor became connected with this fox demon… Xiao Chuting is convinced our family has a Zifu Monk, maybe also because of Da Li Mountain's stance...'

Li Yuanjiao pondered for a long time without any clues. Instead, his thoughts circled back to the Pig Demon, and when he landed on the peak, he found Li Qinghong keeping company with a cultivator. When they saw Li Yuanjiao descend, the cultivator quickly stood up with a smile, saying:

"Brother Yuanjiao! Long time no see!"

Li Yuanjiao paused in surprise, then smiled and answered:

"So it's Brother Changdie!"

Liu Changdie was now at the Ninth Layer of Qi Cultivation. His face was beaming, and he seemed quite warm, saying with a laugh:

"Haven't seen you in years, Brother, and who would've thought you'd reach Foundation Establishment so soon!"

But deep down, he was secretly disappointed, thinking:

'I never expected Yuanjiao's cultivation would be even faster in this lifetime… Even after living again, I still can't compare to him— the gap between people truly is this great!'

Li Yuanjiao gave a few humble responses, but his mind was on the great formation of Qingdu Peak, considering:

'The great formation on Qingdu Peak still isn't set up. With Liu Changdie here, the formation problem should be solvable! Since Uncle Xuanfeng has been gone for years, I should use this chance to ask around...'

The two of them sat down happily. Li Yuanjiao asked with a smile:

"I heard you went to Yi Shan City, Taoist Fellow. Did you ever hear any news of Uncle Li Xuanfeng?"

"But of course!"

Liu Changdie cupped his hands and replied:

"Congratulations, Brother! The Senior married into the Ning Clan and Concubine Daoist—he's now much favored by the Perfected Person and wields great influence in the city!"

Hearing this, Li Yuanjiao was shocked. Li Qinghong was taken aback, and Li Xuanxuan's elderly brows furrowed deeply, but since Liu Changdie was present, no one spoke out. Li Qinghong immediately followed up with a laugh:

"That's wonderful news! Many thanks for telling us, Taoist Fellow!"

Liu Changdie hastily replied that he didn't dare take credit. Having lived twice, he could sense something amiss, and smiled awkwardly, quietly producing a storage bag and a letter from his chest, explaining:

"These are things the Senior asked me to bring back…"

Li Yuanjiao thanked him and set the items aside before turning to ask:

"I wonder, Brother, with your current Formation Path level, could you set up a Foundation Establishment Great Formation?"

The Li Family now had inherited traditions in formation, talisman, and elixir, but their Formation Path only went as far as Fetal Breathing. Although they had quite a few great formation manuals of the Qi Cultivation level, none could match Liu Changdie's effortless skill, let alone at the Foundation Establishment level.

As for the Talisman Path, it was supported by Old Li Xuanxuan alone. Unfortunately, his apprentices and clansmen were mediocre, only able to draw Fetal Breathing Talismans, which left Li Xuanxuan both angry and helpless.

After all, immortal cultivation arts were all about talent. Among the Li Family's main line, only Li Xuanxuan and Li Ximing had amounted to anything.

Liu Changdie heard the question, nodded a bit awkwardly, and said in a low voice:

"These years I've gained much from repairing formations in Yi Shan City. If there's an array diagram, I could give it a try, but it's beyond my means. I'm afraid the cost would be considerable..."

Foundation Establishment–level formations were rare. For a middling formation master like Liu Changdie, being able to lay one was a precious experience. Seeing that the Li Family was considering constructing such a formation, Liu Changdie was hopeful, and suggested:

"If your esteemed family could offer me the chance, I could even cover part of the materials myself. At most about four or five hundred spirit stones."

'That's ten years of tribute for my own family...'

The others were all startled by this price and fell silent for a moment. At present, the Li Family's full operations could only bring in forty spirit stones a year, barely enough to cover their tribute, and any surplus could only be accumulated via the Green Crow vein and Wanling Flower, saving thirteen or fourteen stones a year.

By this calculation, it would take the Li Family forty or fifty years to erect this great formation.

'Even after slaying the Devil Cultivators and getting some extra profit, after setting aside the tribute, we have only fifty or sixty stones in reserve—still way too little.'

With everyone falling silent, Liu Changdie hunched his shoulders and said nothing further. After a while, Li Yuanjiao replied:

"The cost is too great. My family cannot bear it for now. We'd better use a Qi Cultivation formation instead."

Liu Changdie hurriedly nodded, replying:

"I'll go survey the terrain and earth veins at once, and check the mountain's spirit mechanism. In a few days, I'll have the great formation set up."

Li Yuanjiao nodded and chatted a bit more as Liu Changdie withdrew.

"Jiao'er!"

Once Liu Changdie had left, Li Xuanxuan looked uneasy and immediately said:

"What does Yuansu want from our family..."

There's no such thing as a free lunch. Yuansu Perfected Person elevating Li Xuanfeng so abruptly, then marrying in a family member, made Li Xuanxuan feel anxious. The old man fretted for a while, then asked:

"Xuanfeng, what is he… what is he really thinking!"

Li Yuanjiao pulled out the letter that Liu Changdie had brought, unraveling it with a secret technique, and read carefully—then suddenly murmured in confusion:

"Descendants of Weili?"

He passed the letter around. Li Yuanjiao pondered. In the letter, Li Xuanfeng mentioned Yuansu's attitude toward their family and analyzed the rumors he'd heard, writing more than a dozen pages…

The group all read carefully. Li Qinghong vaguely felt it was good news, and whispered softly:

"If Yuansu believes our family is the main line of Weili, then the Spirit Aperture in each generation can be concealed. It's just that Yuansu probably means to do something with our bloodline."

Yuansu initially backed them casually, but once he learned of their Weili blood, he thought of marrying in his own clansman. The four figured it was about the bloodline.

Li Yuanjiao thought it over, but with too little information, he couldn't be sure. He picked up the storage bag to have a look: Li Xuanfeng had sent back thirty spirit stones and one Sui Origin Pill through Liu Changdie.

Li Yuanjiao took out the jade bottle, poured out a grayish pill engraved with patterns, and sighed to himself:

"So it really is a Blood Pill."

Li Qinghong was about to attempt Foundation Establishment, but this Blood Pill couldn't be used. Li Yuanjiao turned it over in his hand for a moment, having made up his mind.

"Though this pill can't be used, it's incredibly precious. If we sell it well, the benefits might not be much less than consuming it directly."