Family Cultivation: I Become a Mirror

"Heavenly Pure Essence...he who finds it..."

Following were a long string of commendations; Li Xijun read them and clicked his tongue twice. Such Affairs Hall tasks often ended up being futile. He quickly skimmed over them and found several long-term cultivation tasks listed at the bottom.

"Libu Prefecture market town...sit in cultivation...along with Qi collection, around ten years in total."

Others might find this task troublesome, being away from home and the time spent on Qi collection, but Li Xijun was very pleased. His heart was filled with joy as he quickly took down a jade token and thought:

"This is perfect for a trip home! To receive instruction and take pills! Helping out a bit here and there, what does it matter if some time is wasted!"

He quickly took down the token and upon closer inspection, noticed that a name had already been written on the back. It had been hanging there for too long without being taken, thus it had already been assigned to Qingdu Peak.

Qingdu Peak was even weaker than his own Qing Sui Peak, and its Peak Master had only reached the Qi Cultivating Peak. Li Xijun heaved a sigh of regret, looked at the jade token in his hand, and then had an idea.

He mounted his rainbow and rode it through the mountains, and quickly found the low and squat Qingdu Peak. He asked upon arrival, and the Peak Master hurried out to meet him.

"I am...Yu Fuyu...pleased to meet you, Taoist Fellow."

"Li Xizhi of Qing Sui."

Yu Fuyu was short and plump. Li Xizhi had heard some news about him; he was a cultivator from the Yu Family, but due to many internal squabbles, his branch had long been severed due to these scandals, hence he broke off relations with the Yu Family, living in hardship.

"Ah, from the Qingdu Li Family...I have long admired!"

Yu Fuyu humbly said a few words, and when Li Xijun stated his purpose, Yu Fuyu immediately said:

"Certainly! Certainly!"

Thus, he handed over the jade token to Li Xijun, who nodded politely, not engaging in further conversation. He went to the Affairs Hall to formally take over the task, and then he returned to Qing Sui Peak.

He had just set foot on the peak when Yang Xiao'er came to meet him, holding a swaddled infant. Li Xizhi gently embraced her and said softly:

"I've taken on the task. Now I can take Huai'er back home."

Yang Xiao'er just held the child, not saying a word. Li Xizhi felt guilty and whispered:

"No matter what, Huai'er cannot stay within the Sect...He is of the Li Family, not of the Green Pond Sect."

Yang Xiao'er sobbed and said:

"I understand...but he is only one year old, and now he has to leave us again. I can't bear it, nor am I at ease."

She spoke like this, but Yang Xiao'er was even less willing to leave him in Green Pond. She placed Li Cheng Huai into Li Xizhi's arms, then removed a jade pendant from around her neck and fastened it on the child, before saying:

"My husband, take great care outside."

Li Xizhi nodded, kissed her smooth forehead, and said softly:

"You be careful within the Sect."

The couple had already discussed their plans. After exchanging a few intimate words, Li Xizhi packed his things and immediately set off on his rainbow, leaving behind Yang Xiao'er with the hard-to-part motherly affection, staying silent.

Passing through layers of mist, Li Xizhi took out the Jade Token and passed through the "Heavenly Primordial Dao Spiritual Formation". After flying for a short while, the vast landscape of Si Min Prefecture appeared before him.

Si Min Prefecture was Yue Country's largest prefecture and the foundation of Green Pond. Once Li Xizhi left Green Pond, he felt a sharp drop in the Spirit Mechanism, by as much as two to three times. Regardless, he flew even faster on his rainbow, feeling a sense of freedom at last in his heart.

"Twenty years...I have finally come out..."

The scenery beneath him passed by like fleeting shadows, as Li Xizhi looked forward to being reunited with his clan, speeding up even more on his journey home.

...

Qingdu Peak.

Li Qinghong landed on Qingdu Peak, and Li Wushao had been waiting. The black-clad youth bowed neatly and reported:

"Reporting to the superior, I have already probed the north and confirmed a group of Devil Cultivators taking refuge in that temple, seemingly setting up formations, having cultivated there for some time."

"Among them are two at Qi Cultivating Late Stage, six at Qi Cultivating Middle Stage, and three at Qi Cultivating Early Stage, all very tacitly coordinated.

Li Wushao paused before continuing:

"Fearing to startle them, I didn't investigate closely, but I saw clouds of dark churning there, indicating something unusual was happening."

Li Qinghong nodded, pondered for a moment, and then said:

"I'll just take a quick look from afar."

Li Wushao hurriedly followed, and the two rode the wind, taking flight with Li Wushao leading the way.

They had barely left their own territory when a middle-aged man, flying at an incredible speed, came directly towards them and blocked their path.

Li Qinghong drew her Du Ruo Spear and eyed him warily, frowning as she asked,

"Senior... may I ask why you've stopped us?"

The middle-aged man before them had a plain appearance, dressed in golden robe adorned with bright white cloud patterns, with a sword tied at his waist. His vestment robe was quite extraordinary, such that they could not discern his cultivation level at first glance.

He glanced at Li Wushao, who felt a chill all over his body, as if his true form had been thoroughly exposed under this man's scrutiny.

Li Qinghong also became alert, silently mustering her strength, only to see the man remain silent and without drawing his sword, he simply reached out to grab her.

This hand, as white as jade, was magnified before their eyes in an instant, subtly emitting a suction force, bewitching the spiritual sense, making it hard to look away.

"Boom!"

Li Qinghong had been on her guard all along, with power ready at hand. Instantly a bolt of purple lightning struck down fiercely, while from beneath Li Wushao's black robe, two shadowy hooks emerged silently and spread out stealthily.

"Thunder cultivation,"

remarked the middle-aged man with ease. His two fingers pinched together, and in an instant, he scattered the purple lightning into dust. His cultivation level was undeniably at the peak of Foundation Establishment, and without even utilizing Immortal Foundation, he had already greatly alarmed them both.

Although Li Wushao's hooks were insidious, the middle-aged man's eyes gleamed with golden light, clearly having cultivated a Pupil Technique, and he saw through the hidden hooks amidst the shadows with one look. A flick of his golden sleeve left Li Wushao's face deathly pale.

"Command!"

With the brief opportunity Li Wushao fought for, Li Qinghong's eyes filled with purple light, and the jade armor she wore sparked with purple lightning. Her vermilion lips parted slightly, and as her jade teeth moved apart, she expelled a small purple dot of light. The dot, rounded and smooth, exploded to the size of a fist in an instant, emitting white flashes.

"Crackle!"

Suddenly, complex purple patterns manifested in the air, and an oppressive aura of destruction spread. The middle-aged man's expression finally showed a trace of fluctuation, and he said with some admiration,

"Li Tongya has an outstanding successor."

Li Qinghong, slightly puzzled, didn't have time to think too much about it, quickly launching the Mysterious Thunder while she and Li Wushao swiftly pulled back, riding the purple lightning to retreat several miles.

The golden-robed middle-aged man did not dodge or pursue them, looking curiously at the thunder talisman before him. He finally touched the long sword at his waist and uttered a light cry as he drew the blade from its sheath.

"Boom!!"

A round white light exploded in the sky, and the thunder was like a mountain collapsing and the earth cracking, shaking the lake into surging waves and causing the boulders on the mountainside to tumble down. The white thunder drifted down, transforming into a dense and cascading purple electricity that surged downwards.

"Clang!"

A bright white slash of light appeared, and the thunderous waterfall was forcibly split to either side; the middle-aged man stepped out leisurely, his fingers shaping a spell as he smiled and said,

"Stop."

The thunder in the sky and the surging lake seemed to dissipate like clouds, and Li Qinghong and her companion had reached the front of the mountain. The middle-aged man changed the spell in his hands and softly uttered,

"Come."

They both felt their bodies halt abruptly; the wind spirits at their side no longer obeyed their commands. Li Qinghong had already used the Blood Escape Technique, barely stopping in front of the mountain gate, just a step away.

But the golden-robed middle-aged man used an Escape Skill, and in two steps, he was in front of them, appraising Li Qinghong.

'This is not an ordinary Foundation Establishment Peak! This person is probably not far from Zifu... This must be a direct lineage of the Three Sects... These Spells are not of the third or fourth grade... This person... has an impressive background!'

Li Qinghong's mind conjured the image of Fei Wangbai, who could behead a man in twenty or thirty moves. Her heart quickly calmed, and she said softly,

"May I know which senior from the Immortal Sect this is? I am Li Qinghong of the Qingdu Sect, and I pay my respects to you, senior."

He raised his eyebrows and smiled lightly, saying,

"Li Tongya did indeed teach his successor well! Such an impressive Thunder Talisman! If I had been newly entered into Foundation Establishment and caught off guard, I would have suffered injuries from this move."

The middle-aged man's gaze lingered on Li Qinghong with interest as he casually remarked,

"As for me? My name is Zhang Yun! Just a wanderer with a blade from South River... Today, I happened to be looking after some juniors nearby, so I took the chance to check on the Li Family."