Chapter 179: The End of the Li Clan (Part 1)

Chapter 179: The End of the Li Clan (Part 1)



In the depths of the valley, the howling wind carved furrows and gullies in the mountain rocks, as stray arcs of electricity and wild fires illuminated the once dim depths, only to be obscured by the swirling dust and debris.

Lei Jun lowered the divine-eye viewing stone in his hand and swayed unsteadily on his feet. He had rarely felt so depleted since embarking on his cultivation journey. Even the robust and abundant spiritual power of the Soil-Nurturing Banner seemed inadequate to replenish him at this moment.

Fortunately, the Five Elements Creation energy of the Great Five Phases continued to nourish him. Under its influence, his power gradually regenerated.

Lei Jun took a deep breath, and his Yin-Yang Sacred Body began to circulate his power relentlessly. With the harmonious interplay of yin and yang, his power swiftly accumulated and recovered.

After a few breaths, Lei Jun's power, which had been nearly depleted, now had a solid foundation once more. The Soil-Nurturing Banner also resumed its steady supply of power to him.

However, Lei Jun consciously controlled the banner to temporarily halt the flow of power into his body and instead directed it towards maintaining vigilance over their surroundings, lest some unknown danger take advantage of their weakened state and bring about a tragedy.

Thankfully, there were no other people in this area of the valley.

Holding the Soil-Nurturing Banner, Lei Jun cautiously approached Li Xuan's location once more. Initially, he walked slowly, but as his Yin-Yang Sacred Body and the Northern Xuanming Palace continuously nourished him, his power swiftly recovered.

Before long, Lei Jun was striding forward with vigorous steps, his body moving as swiftly as the wind. Like Li Xuan, Lei Jun also deployed the Dragon and Tiger Dual Spirits, releasing the Wind Tiger and Cloud Dragon to scout ahead and maintain vigilance.

Although this technique was not his innate magic, Lei Jun executed it with skill and precision.

Li Xuan was thoroughly dead, his body incinerated by the thunderfire with no remains left behind. After confirming that Li Xuan had not used any illusion techniques or resurrection methods, Lei Jun nodded slightly.

He then proceeded to tidy up the scene. The spiritual energy in this deep valley was in chaos, making it difficult for outsiders to discern that Li Xuan had perished here. Otherwise, Li Xuan wouldn't have chosen this place to get rid of Lin Shan earlier.

Ironically, this place had now become his burial ground.

Lei Jun surveyed the surrounding valley, the collapsed mountains, and the ravaged terrain, recalling the raging thunderfire from earlier. He couldn't help but shake his head slightly.

This Primordial Magnetic Sword Pellet was indeed powerful, but it was also extremely consuming and created a lot of noise. If one wanted to avoid interference from others, then the environment for making friends through cannons... no, through sword pellets, had to be chosen carefully.

If this had happened outside, it would definitely have attracted the attention of the Suzhou Chu clan's grand scholar or others. In that case, he might not have had the opportunity to become Lei Sanpao.

Or even if he had managed to kill Li Xuan, he would have quickly drawn the attention of those upper echelon experts from the Three Heavens.

By acting within the Sword Valley, the most that Li Xuan's father, Li Ziyang, might have felt was a vague sense of something amiss, but he wouldn't have known the specifics. Moreover, Li Ziyang was currently preoccupied with his battle against Yuan Mobai and couldn't spare attention for matters outside the mountain.

"Speaking of which, who is hiding upstream of the Golden Gorge Creek?" Lei Jun suddenly recalled that, earlier, one of the divination signs that indicated potential danger had pointed towards the upstream area of the Golden Gorge Creek.

However, as he had pursued Li Xuan downstream, neither of them had ventured to that area. Thus, he was unsure if the danger still lurked there.

For Lei Jun, who was currently concealed by the spirit-obscuring mist, the presence of danger could possibly indicate an upper echelon expert... Lei Jun shook his head slightly.

Although the Sword Valley was secluded, he still swiftly cleaned up the area and prepared to leave.

Li Xuan was dead and gone, his remains utterly obliterated. Most of the magical artifacts on his body had also been destroyed by Lei Jun's Primordial Magnetic Sword Pellet due to their protective response to their master.

However, there was one item that caught Lei Jun's interest. It was a peculiar iron book with a symbol on its cover.

Lei Jun remembered seeing something similar before. When the Tang imperial family had just established the Demon Guard, he and his master, Yuan Mobai, had discussed related matters, and he had seen a similar symbol.

It should be the emblem of the Demon Guard.

Since Li Xuan held a position of significance within the Demon Guard's secret service, this iron book should belong to them. Lei Jun waited for a while, and when the light sphere in his mind remained silent, he used the Soil-Nurturing Banner to collect the iron book.

With the item temporarily sealed away, Lei Jun planned to study it later when he had more time, as he didn't yet know how to open it. He wasn't particularly interested in the Demon Guard itself, but if they possessed any valuable intelligence or secrets, it could prove useful.

Lei Jun left the depths of the valley and returned to the surface. There was no immediate danger above ground, so he quietly changed his position and observed the direction of the Dragon and Tiger Mountain's main peak once more.

The mountain was awash in a dazzling display of purple, gold, and blue hues, with the nine-colored radiance symbolizing the Celestial Master's robe flashing from time to time. Even with the aid of the divine-eye viewing stone, Lei Jun could only see a brilliant blur and no clear details.

Evidently, the battle atop the main peak had reached its climax. In such a battlefield, not only would it be difficult for a Mid Three Heavens cultivator to approach, but even a powerful Upper Three Heavens expert of the Sevenfold Heaven realm would have to proceed with caution.

Lei Jun retracted his gaze from the peak and scanned the surrounding area. As for the Chu clan's grand scholar, who had openly supported the Li clan, that was another matter altogether.

If it were someone like Elder Qi Shuo, who held grudges against both the Li and non-Li factions within the Celestial Master's mansion, or someone who intended to take advantage of the situation, what were they planning at this moment... Lei Jun wondered.

...

Far away, amidst the mountains, a group of people gazed into the distance towards the direction of Dragon and Tiger Mountain. They were dressed as Taoists, but unlike the disciples of the Celestial Master's mansion, who wore purple, red, and yellow Taoist robes, this group wore similar outfits primarily in black and white.

The leader was an elderly Taoist, who stroked his beard as he watched the brilliant thunderfire illuminating the peak of Dragon and Tiger Mountain. His expression was one of sighing emotion.

"Elder Lu..." A middle-aged Taoist beside him asked softly, "What should we do now?"

The old Taoist was none other than Lu Jinduan, the elder of Pure Yang Palace, another sacred site of Taoism who had previously visited the Celestial Master's mansion.

Elder Lu did not answer the question but instead sighed softly, "What a pity, what a pity. Alas, alas!"

The Pure Yang Palace disciples behind him had complex expressions on their faces. Their original purpose for coming here was something that was difficult to disclose openly.

If you were to ask Elder Lu at this moment whom he hoped would win the battle between the Li clan and the outsiders, his answer would be... the Li clan.

This was not because Elder Lu was friendly with the Li clan. On the contrary, he valued the other side more.

Tang Xiutang.

The person who shone the brightest on Dragon and Tiger Mountain at this moment.

It was precisely because Elder Lu valued Tang Xiutang that he hoped for the Li clan's victory. If the Li clan won and maintained control of Dragon and Tiger Mountain, Tang Xiutang would be forced to leave the mountain.

Elder Lu sighed again. "Ah, if only we could lend a helping hand and forge a benevolent connection. Perhaps in the future, that pure Yang girl might have the chance to return to the right path and join the Pure Yang Palace."

Even though she had practiced the Taoist Talisman Sect for many years and her foundations were already set, Lu Jinduan still hoped that one day, he would be able to accept Tang Xiutang into the Pure Yang Palace.

As long as she was willing to come, everything else could be discussed.

If there were other problems, they could be addressed gradually.

However, with the Heavenly Master's Sword suddenly returning to Dragon and Tiger Mountain and falling into Tang Xiutang's hands, Lu Jinduan's plans were thwarted.

At the moment, outsiders were gradually gaining the upper hand in the Heavenly Master's Mansion.

The more outstanding Tang Xiutang was, the more Elder Lu regretted it.

Helping her now would, of course, be beneficial and create a benevolent connection.

But it was a matter of whether it would be adding flowers to the brocade or sending charcoal in the snow.

It was a matter of whether it was possible or not.

With the Heavenly Master's Mansion in civil war and the outsiders victorious, the Li family fleeing, even if Lu Jinduan helped as much as he could, Tang Xiutang would only be grateful at most and would never change her allegiance.

Moreover, it was even more impossible for Elder Lu to personally take action and assist the Li family, attacking the outsiders.

He could only secretly hope that the Li family would pull through on their own.

But now...

"Ah!"

Elder Lu sighed once more.

"Master, why don't we lend a hand and forge a benevolent connection? The future is still uncertain." The middle-aged Taoist suggested, "We just need to be careful and pretend that we just arrived to provide aid. As long as no one finds out that we've been here for a while, it'll be fine."

Lu Jinduan had already considered this.

The reason he hadn't made a decision was that he needed to weigh his options.

Every family had their own difficulties.

During the previous Western Regions War, the master of the Pure Yang Palace, Elder Huang, went to the Western Regions to assist in the battle.

His contribution to pacifying the demon chaos in the Western Regions was undeniable.

Moreover, if it weren't for Elder Huang and the Empress joining forces, Emperor Zhang Qilong would not have been able to return to the capital, and he might have died in the Western Regions.

However, the price was that Elder Huang was injured.

After returning to the mountain, he had been recuperating from his injuries.

The affairs of the Taoist Pill and Cauldron Sect were left to Lu Jinduan and others to handle.

In the Western Regions War, not only was Elder Huang injured, but everyone else in the Pure Yang Palace also suffered heavy losses.

Hence, in recent years, the Pure Yang Palace had also kept a low profile and had been quietly recuperating.

Lu Jinduan's trip south was a rare occasion for him to leave the mountain in many years.

If they could get Tang Xiutang to join the Pure Yang Palace, then the price of wading into this muddy water would be well worth it.

Otherwise, if it was just to forge an uncertain benevolent connection in the future, they would need to consider carefully.

Opposite of a benevolent connection was an evil bond.

So-called karmic connections were not limited to benevolent ones.

The Li family was not the only ones involved; there were others as well.

"The current situation in the world is chaotic and tumultuous. One wrong step could lead to an unpredictable outcome," Lu Jinduan sigated.

The Pure Yang Palace disciples behind him understood why their elder was saying this.

One of the four sacred sites of Buddhism, the Bodhi Temple, had met its fate.

Annihilated.

Perhaps a few monks and nuns might have escaped and survived, but overall, this ancient and prestigious Buddhist sacred site of Zen martial arts had suffered a catastrophic disaster.

The relationship between the Pure Yang Palace and Buddhism was relatively less amicable.

However, seeing the destruction of the Bodhi Temple, Elder Lu and the others couldn't help but feel a bit of a complicated emotion.

"By the way, has it been confirmed?" Lu Jinduan suddenly asked, "Are the Xiao siblings both in the East China Sea?"

The middle-aged Taoist behind him replied with a solemn expression, "Master, it has been confirmed. They are indeed accompanying the Empress in the East China Sea. Additionally, the Moon Abbey Master, Chu Yu, of the Suzhou Chu family, has appeared in Wu and Yue, assisting the Tang Dynasty in suppressing the rebellion of the King of Wu, causing a stir in the entire Jiangnan region."

"The Moon Abbey Master is most likely acting on her own accord and does not represent the Suzhou Chu family."

Lu Jinduan looked towards the distance, in the direction of the Suzhou Chu family elder. "It's not surprising for the Suzhou Chu family to place bets on multiple outcomes. Only when that elder of the Chu family personally makes a move can it be considered the attitude of most of the Chu family. As for the Xiao family beyond the passes..."

The demon chaos in the Western Regions had far-reaching consequences.

But if one were to discuss the top power that was most affected, it was undoubtedly the Xiao family beyond the passes, one of the former Five Surnames and Seven Families.

Not only did the incumbent clan head perish, but the high-ranking members of the clan also suffered heavy losses, almost to the point of being wiped out.

To put it bluntly, the Xiao family beyond the passes might be removed from the Five Surnames and Seven Families at any time.

In the situation where most of the clan's elders had perished, the Xiao family beyond the passes was now mainly supported by a few young people.

And now, it seemed that these young people had made a different choice.

The Xiao family beyond the passes, a prestigious family for generations, had changed their stance and completely thrown themselves into the arms of the Tang imperial court.

Their stance was much more decisive than that of the Li family of Xinzhou.

From what Lu Jinduan currently understood, the Xiao family beyond the passes was currently led by three siblings.

While the eldest brother, the new clan head, remained in the ancestral land beyond the passes, the second brother and third sister accompanied the Empress to the East China Sea to suppress the demons.

Perhaps it was the will of Heaven that after the Xiao family beyond the passes suffered a great disaster, consecutive new stars rose.

Both the second brother and third sister of the Xiao family had performed exceptionally well on this trip to the East China Sea, earning the Empress's favor.

They were exceptionally promoted and treated as confidants.

It almost made one suspect that they had a prior relationship with the Empress.

Together with Chu Yu, the number one talent of the Chu family in Wu and Yue, who was also fighting for the Empress, the core members of the Empress's new regime gradually took shape.

Given the special circumstances of the Xiao family beyond the passes, it was unlikely that the Empress had changed the stance of the previous two generations of emperors and sought reconciliation with the aristocratic families.

Instead, it seemed more like she was digging into the walls of the Five Surnames and Seven Families...

The aristocratic families presented the Bodhi Temple as a gift to the Empress upon her ascension.

The Empress also returned the favor.

The Xiao family beyond the passes was naturally much weaker than before.

But this set a precedent.

Who would be next? ...The next step, would it be continued recruitment, or would there be other means and outcomes? Recruiting the Xiao family into her fold was indeed a retaliation for the destruction of the Bodhi Temple, but the retaliation might not end there.

As the chaos in the world began, it seemed that everything was just the beginning... Lu Jinduan had a heavy heart as he gazed towards the main peak of Dragon and Tiger Mountain in the distance.

…………

Even with the divine-eye viewing stone, Lei Jun couldn't see the specific details on the main peak at this moment.

But seeing that Yuan Mobai was still able to hold on to the mountain-guarding formation and prevent outsiders like the Chu family's grand scholar from approaching, the situation didn't seem to be at a disadvantage.

Lei Jun was pondering this when a light sphere suddenly flashed in his mind, and words appeared:

【Dragon and Tiger Mountain is in turmoil, with hidden dangers and opportunities lurking. Fortune follows the wind.】

Along with this were four fortune sticks.

After reading them clearly, Lei Jun held his breath for a moment:

【Upper-middle fortune stick, after the upheaval on the main peak of Dragon and Tiger Mountain, at the foot of Nine Stars Ridge, there will be a fourth-grade opportunity. However, there may be karmic entanglements involved, so one must act with caution. Auspicious.

】

【I drew a medium-high fortune stick. After the upheaval on the main peak of Dragon and Tiger Mountain, there will be a fourth-grade opportunity at the foot of Nine Stars Ridge. However, there may be karmic entanglements, so one must proceed with caution. Auspicious.

【I drew a medium fortune stick. After the upheaval on the main peak of Dragon and Tiger Mountain, there is a chance for a sixth-grade opportunity at the foot of Yunjin Mountain by the upper stream of Golden Gorge Creek. However, there may be dangers, so one must act with caution. Neutral.】

【I drew a low fortune stick. After the upheaval on the main peak of Dragon and Tiger Mountain, there is an opportunity for a sixth-grade opportunity within the Reincarnation Gorge. However, it is extremely perilous and deadly, so one must be extremely cautious. Great calamity!】

The low fortune stick that Lei Jun wanted came at last!

Lei Jun exhaled the breath he had been holding, his excitement evident despite himself. He quickly calmed his mind and turned his head to look into the distance.

Reincarnation Gorge, part of the mountain range surrounding Dragon and Tiger Mountain, was quietly situated in the distance, facing the main peak.

At this moment, it looked serene and peaceful.

However, hidden dangers may lurk within, posing a significant threat even to Lei Jun, who possessed the Spirit-obscuring Mist, the Soil-Nurturing Banner, and the Serpentine Bone.

Lei Jun had no intention of testing his luck there.

Instead, he naturally chose the path of the upper fortune stick, leading to Nine Stars Ridge.

However, on his way to Nine Stars Ridge, Lei Jun pondered how he could get someone else to seize the sixth-grade opportunity in the Reincarnation Gorge.

Interestingly, the Nine Stars Ridge of the medium-high fortune stick and the Reincarnation Gorge of the low fortune stick were not far from each other.

After the upheaval on the main peak of Dragon and Tiger Mountain...

Lei Jun arrived at the foot of Nine Stars Ridge and turned to look back at the ancestral court of his mountain gate.

What kind of upheaval would it be?

Indeed, the decisive moment had come on Dragon and Tiger Mountain.

At this moment, Tang Xiutang was bathed in the purple Nine Heavens Godly Thunder and the golden Pure Yang True Fire, her body exuding an aura of ultimate yang energy. Wielding the Celestial Master's Sword, she completely dominated Li Hongyu and the Celestial Master's Robe.

Seeing this, the other three high-achieving Li family cultivators felt anxious.

"Third Uncle, Zheng Xuan, we have no other choice!" Li Ziyang shouted.

Li Song looked up and sighed, "Ancestral Masters of generations past, please forgive this disciple's disrespect."

Li Zhengxuan remained silent.

He and Li Ziyang performed hand seals, their chests glowing with purple light.

The purple light flashed, and the Nine Heavens Godly Thunder spread out, covering nearly an acre of land. A massive talisman formation hung in the air above their heads.

With the talisman formation at its center, thunderclouds gathered, and lightning bolts exploded, revealing the massive bodies of thunder dragons.

Li Song also backed away, performing the same actions.

Three Nine Heavens Thunder Ancestor effigies.

Three Yang Thunder Dragons.

At this moment, they appeared together on Dragon and Tiger Mountain, right above the Wanfa Zongtan.

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end