Family Cultivation: I Become a Mirror

Kongheng naturally couldn't just stand by and watch; he hurriedly raised the Bronze Zen Staff. He needed to protect Li Xuanxuan and could not advance to attack, so he could only use the golden light from afar to interfere, but he was good at defense and not at offense; he couldn't break through the Golden Shield at all.

Situ Mo, with a somewhat mocking look, glanced at him and with a flick of his wrist, released six streams of light that unexpectedly fell upon his own face, twinkling over vital points like the bamboos pile acupoint, the pupil's bone, and the weeping acupoint, slowly bringing forth a golden light in his eyes.

In a life and death struggle, Situ Mo naturally wouldn't be foolish enough to voice his own moves aloud. However, Li Yuanjiao, who had read through the "Clear Vision Spiritual Pupil," understood that these acupoints were crucial to Pupil Techniques and realized that Situ Mo had sensed something.

'What a pity! This man's Magical Artifact is formidable; he hasn't revealed any flaws!"

If he continued to lie in wait, he feared he might be seen through, so he had no choice but to seize this momentary opportunity, draw his sword from its sheath, and with sword light sweeping across, the Moon Que Sword Arc pressed towards his face.

"Clang!"

The light of the cyan and white sword light suddenly brightened, and Situ Mo's spellcasting in his hands abruptly stopped. Rather than being startled, he was delighted, and the Golden Blade at his waist, which had been accumulating energy for some time, suddenly leaped out. He laughed and said,

"I knew it!"

Li Yuanjiao's sword light deflected, crashing into Situ Mo's Golden Shield, but it was blocked by the Sword Qi he had been preparing for a long time. He inwardly praised,

'How cunning!'

Situ Mo's spellcasting ceased at will, and he secretly gathered Sword Qi, seemingly having predicted Li Yuanjiao would definitely make a move, and it's possible that the man hadn't practiced Pupil Technique at all, merely feigning it to force a hidden enemy to act.

"It's really you, Li Yuanjiao!"

Although Situ Mo had forced him to make a move, the power of the Moon Que Sword Arc had greatly exceeded his expectations. The Sword Qi in his hands could only block it for an instant before crumbling to pieces. Situ Mo shouted,

"Decree!"

Before his words fell, three Golden Shields had already appeared in front of him, while he moved sideways in an instant, coughing up a perfectly round red pill. This pill rotated once and transformed into smoke before vanishing.

"The Spellcasting of the Tang Jin Sect!"

Li Yuanjiao sighed; even though Situ Mo hadn't yet shown a triumphant smile, he felt a chill behind him, and a cyan-gray serpent appeared, snapping at his neck.

"Clang!"

Li Yuanjiao knocked away the three Golden Shields, and the serpent was obstructed by the radiance that emerged from the Vestment robe Situ was wearing. Situ Mo formed a hand seal, and with his hand, he emitted golden light to smash the serpent, saying fiercely,

"What a Moon Que Sword Arc."

Before his words finished, three more streams of light shot out in front of him, bright and pure as the moon, rotating and flying with Agility, weaving back and forth within his three Golden Shields, spotting a gap to pass through, and attacking his upper, middle, and lower parts.

Situ Mo was startled and his hands showed golden patterns as he reached out above and below, but he caught only air.

The three streams of light were agile and fast, wrapping closely around him like three snakes slipping into his clothes, leaving him no time to form hand seals or cast spells, only to endure the three sword lights striking his body.

The golden Taoist robe Situ Mo was wearing emitted light again, bursting out a white vapor, which fended off the three sword lights, stubbornly forcing Li Yuanjiao to fail once more. Situ Mo then finally took a breath of relief, his forehead sweating profusely, and with resentment, said,

"Good...good...what a fine Swordsmanship!"

Li Yuanjiao felt the deep cyan serpent rising under his feet, the Sword Qi in his hand surging, inwardly helpless:

"I'm afraid I won't be able to take him down... I have not perfected the 'Three Strokes Moonlight,' possessing only Agility but lacking power... it's a pity."

Situ Mo formed hand seals and stepped forward, engaging in a probing bout. For a while, Sword Qi and Blade Qi collided, causing bursts of rumbling.

Kongheng was truly not adept at attacking; the Dharma Light released from his staff only extended a zhang (approximately 3.3 meters or 10 feet) from his body, striking with golden Dharma Light, which did little more than slightly divert Situ Mo's attention.

'The Tang Jin Sect has been established in Xu Country for many years, once a major power that contended with the Green Pond on a daily basis... Ultimately, they have a profound foundation, and although they have declined, they are still difficult to deal with.'

First, the Tang Jin Sect had a profound foundation, and second, this Situ Mo was not simple at all. Li Yuanjiao had lost the initiative; the most powerful part of his Swordsmanship had passed, and now he could not trouble Situ Mo.

Sure enough, Situ Mo waved his hand to disperse the two strands of Sword Qi and sneered,

"With only this sword, what else do your family have that's noteworthy?! You're just lucky to have obtained the legacy of a Sword Immortal, barely clawing your way to the position of a Noble Family in a hundred years, a mere fluke..."

While he spoke, his hands did not slow in their movement, defending himself against Li Yuanjiao with that Foundation Establishment Magical Instrument; he continuously formed six Spells, and finally with both hands together, the ring finger passing over the back of the middle finger, securing the index finger while the other three fingers adhered:

At that moment, Situ Mo's palm emitted a golden light with a 'pop,' turning into a pointed blade the size of a fingertip, circling in the sky once, racing across like thunder, with a whistling sound as it cleaved through the air.

Situ Mo knew everything about his enemy's background, whereas Li Yuanjiao knew nothing of him and felt a profound sense of danger; a coldness crept up his back. He slapped his pouch and summoned a large brown shield.

"Six Stones Cloud Disk!"

The Golden Blade arrived with such swiftness that Li Yuanjiao didn't even have time to draw his Talisman; he could only channel all his Mana into it, and the deep azure dragon-snake coiled atop it.

"Bang!"

He felt a great force transmitted through his hand, the Six-Stone Cloud Plate rang out loud, and golden light pierced through in an instant, bringing a sharp pain to his wrist, gritting his teeth as he retreated.

"Whimper..."

The Six-Stone Cloud Plate let out a mournful cry, with a bloody hole now visible on Li Yuanjiao's wrist, too late to inspect the wound, the Golden Blade had already circled behind him and thrust towards his heart from behind.

Situ Mo, having released the Golden Blade, paused only to catch his breath before promptly picking up the blade and swinging down a golden light, Li Yuanjiao's Six-Stone Cloud Plate now bore a small hole, the Golden Blade's stabbing motion chilling him to his core with looming danger.

Li Yuanjiao instantly drew his sword and turned around, using the Green Ruler Sword to narrowly separate himself from Situ Mo, tilting the Six-Stone Cloud Plate upwards to block the Golden Blade.

"Screech..."

Though the Golden Blade was not as terrifying as when it first appeared, it still managed to stagger him, Li Yuanjiao taking several steps back as the "Mysterious Pattern Spiritual Mist" wafted around him, increasing the distance; the Golden Blade, like a venomous snake, twisted and turned, ready to strike again.

"Hummm!"

Li Yuanjiao's hand clutched the Talisman, sword poised to defend, only to hear Kongheng behind him emit a chant, arresting the Golden Blade midair; Situ Mo, irritated and angered, shouted:

"You monk! Are you determined to oppose me?"

Kongheng's intervention gave Li Yuanjiao the chance to activate the "Mysterious Pattern Bottle" and vanish from sight with his concealed form.

Situ Mo immediately grew cautious; Li Yuanjiao was no ordinary Foundation Establishment Cultivator, and posed a significant threat if caught off guard, he scanned his surroundings with a sullen gaze, then pinched a spell with his hand, the Golden Blade obediently dissolved back into his palm, disappearing from view.

'I should have cultivated another Pupil Technique... Alas, I was too focused on perfecting this "Golden Shone Blade" that I missed the opportunity. Otherwise, I could have killed all three today!' he thought regretfully.

He took a deep breath; since he could not achieve a kill, Situ Mo was unwilling to take risks any further, unwilling to deplete his condition needlessly, and the idea of retreat formed in his mind.

He did not utter any threats, but rather, with a wave of his hand, the Formation Flags from all around the forest rose and returned to him, the Golden Great Formation disappearing from sight.

Golden light surged below Situ Mo's feet, as several Golden Shields encased him for protection; his silhouette was tall and imposing, yet his spoken words bore a sinister tone:

"We shall see!"

Before his words fell, he had already transformed into a golden flash and taken off, his speed exceeding fast, vanishing into the horizon in no time.

"Uncle Grandfather!"

Li Xijun was finally able to enter, calling out twice as Li Xuanxuan pressed on his shoulder and pulled him close, examining him thoroughly twice before exhaling heavily:

"You gave me quite the scare!"

Li Yuanjiao's complexion was somewhat pallid as he dispersed the "Mysterious Pattern Spiritual Mist," revealing a large hole the size of an eyeball on his wrist, with the white of his bones chillingly visible.

Without uttering a word, he beckoned with one hand, summoning a stream of water into his wound, and with a stroke of his other hand, it seemed to instantly restore to normal.

Kongheng knew this was merely a cover for appearances and advised gently:

"Such injuries should not be neglected. Please use some Spirit Pills and Spiritual Medicine to heal the wound sooner. If you delay, it may affect your cultivation path."

Having received Kongheng's timely help, Li Yuanjiao's expression appeared grateful as he responded:

"Thank you, Mage, for coming to my rescue."

Li Xuanxuan, who was attending to Li Xijun's wounds, quickly made his way to his second son to examine him, but being merely of Foundation Establishment Cultivation, he couldn't discern the severity of the injury, and the elder could only fret:

"Oh dear! Oh dear..."

Li Yuanjiao looked at him in surprise, his mouth curling slightly in an instant, then hastily turned back with a note of regret:

"It's a pity... that man was quite skilled, we didn't get the better of him..."

"Uncle!"

He saw Li Xijun smiling as he pulled out a shiny magic artifact from his Storage Bag, presenting it with both hands and bowing respectfully:

"Perhaps that is not the case."