Chapter 756 535: Father and Son

The two returned to Qingdu and flung the two cultivators to the ground. They first sealed the six senses of the white-robed old Taoist, tossing him aside like a rotten log, before releasing the black-robed cultivator's banishment.

The black-robed cultivator immediately flipped over to kneel and said respectfully,

"I have seen two seniors. My name is He Yitao, a cultivator from Xu Country who practices on the borders of Yan Mountain. As Buddhist practitioners moved southward, we had nowhere to stand and were forced to cross into Xu Country. If there were any offenses, I am willing to make full compensation!"

Li Xijun simply waved his hand and asked,

"What is the current situation in Xu Country?"

The black-robed cultivator hurriedly replied,

"As the Buddhists traveled southward, they reached the southern part of Xu Country and fought fiercely around Bianyan Mountain. Even the great Demon General of Bianyan Mountain couldn't sit still; his Demon Generals were caught and eaten by others, and the great demon fled to Da Li Mountain on the wind, leaving chaos behind..."

"But did Zifu or Maha make a move?"

Li Xijun inquired carefully, and the black-robed young man replied,

"I haven't seen them. Only two aspects of Compassion led their efforts, with Jin Yu and the Green Pond Sect sending a group of Foundation Establishment cultivators. There was also no sign of Maha making a move from the north."

He lowered his gaze, observing silently, and whispered,

"However, Xu Country is rife with landslides and strange occurrences. It is said that a giant rock fell in the northern part of Xu Country, a thousand feet tall, and in the east, a river dried up with fish and shrimp singing on the riverbed... Countless such oddities."

Li Xijun asked twice more, then added,

"Which branch do the Buddhist practitioners follow?"

The young man before him, He Yitao, suddenly hesitated, biting his lip as he recalled for a while before saying,

"I've only heard they belong to the Aspects of Compassion and Great Desire... and another called Aspect of Emptiness. The two aspects of Compassion from Ziyun are from what Taoist lineage, I, someone of low status, truly do not know."

Li Xijun nodded, and Li Xuanxuan, who was beside him, not entirely reassured, asked,

"Is there any trace of the Furious Aspect?"

He Yitao paused, looking somewhat uncertain, and said,

"Your Excellency may not know, but the Furious Aspect had reincarnated. In the past, the body was slain by Li Tongya with the Tongya Sword, and the original aspect was besieged and killed by the Zifu, with their lineage greatly diminished, and unresponsive in seeking the law. Nowadays, they are seldom seen."

Li Xijun nodded slightly, scrutinized for a moment, then asked thrice more, infusing mana into his body, confirming this man was indeed a Devil Cultivator.

Without waiting for him to speak, Li Xijun sealed his six senses as well, and then released the old Taoist's banishment to see him kneel with a thud, saying in a trembling voice,

"Your Excellency..."

Li Xijun, with a fierce snowstorm about him, said warmly,

"Old man, where are you from and why have you come here?"

"Xu Country... Loose Cultivator from Floating Cloud Cave on Xiao Lake Mountain..."

He said sorrowfully,

"The Aspect of Emptiness's Wumu and several mages... descended on Xiao Lake Mountain, scattering our sixteen families in a frenzy... Those who ran slowly... either took their own lives... or cut off their hands, legs, ears, noses, jumping off the cliffs..."

"Having cultivated for over a hundred years, I just happened to run fast, escaping with my life from the grasp of Mage Xu Mu... until I reached this boundary."

Li Xijun clutched his sword, his brow furrowing in doubt. Before he could speak, the man quickly added,

"Wait, Your Excellency! Please, slow down! Perhaps we're on the same side!"

He raised his head slightly, one eye rolling upwards, trying to gauge their expressions. Shrinkingly, and with urgent words spilling out, he said,

"My teaching uncle has also been cultivating on the lake for many years! I came here intending to seek refuge with him! Please, Your Excellency, one step at a time... maybe we're kin!"

With more experience, Li Xuanxuan became interested upon hearing this and simply asked,

"When... do you have an honorific?"

The old Taoist, seeing this reaction, suddenly felt hopeful and plastered a flattering smile upon his face, saying,

"My name is Fu Yuan, and my uncle's Taoist name is Spirit Turtle Son... He probably broke through Qi Cultivation about one hundred and thirty years ago and came to the lake searching for an opportunity. I'm not sure if he's broken through to Foundation Establishment by now..."

Li Xuanxuan found it odd and his smile faded as he gave the man a quiet look, saying,

"It seems you've addled your brain, daring to talk nonsense here... How can a Loose Cultivator who breaks through Qi Cultivation not take sixty years? One hundred and thirty years ago you came here! Nowadays, you probably don't even know where you've died?"

"What coincidence for someone to come here and cultivate!"

Daoist Fu Yuan was terrified and shook his head frantically, hurriedly saying,

"Your Excellency! My uncle has an opportunity on him! It's not an ordinary one!"

But by then, Li Xuanxuan had already lost faith in him and simply asked,

"What sort of opportunity?"

Daoist Fu Yuan couldn't explain clearly, muttering stammeringly,

"On his deathbed, my master was still thinking of him, saying that it was our ancestor who passed the opportunity to him..."

He couldn't make it clear, and what opportunities could a Qi Cultivating Loose Cultivator possess? Daoist Fu Yuan himself understood this all too well and could only continue to kowtow without saying anything else.

Li Xuanxuan saw that his vital energy was not too murky, which was already quite precious in a place like Xu Country, and had no intention of mistreating him. He was about to speak.

"Hold on..."

Li Xijun suddenly interrupted him, frowning and shaking his head.

Daoist Fu Yuan became even more frightened, looking up in a combination of fear and shock, thinking to himself,

"The older man is kind; this young gentleman seems harsher."

Li Xijun just quietly observed him and asked softly,

"Old man, how did you manage to escape from the Compassion and the mages?"

Daoist Fu Yuan looked bewildered, as if trying to remember. After a significant pause, he said in amazement,

"Oh my... I've completely forgotten!"

Blood seeped from his mouth and nose. He cried out in pain, his body falling over like a bundle of wood, crashing to the ground without uttering another sound, lifeless.

Li Xijun stepped back, using his mana to turn him over. Daoist Fu Yuan's complexion was pale, his skin cold. Li Xijun formed swords with his fingers and tore open the man's abdomen.