Family Cultivation: I Become a Mirror

"Why has another one come hunting for autumn wind… damn… wonder how many tributes he'll demand this time."

His face was bloodless as he hurried out, opened the great formation, and looked up to see a man in the air.

This man indeed had a gloomy look, brows set close, gray eyes slightly narrowed like a serpent jiao, a black robe crackling in the wind, a sword at his waist wrapped tightly so its shape was hidden.

Zong Yan braced himself and came forward, bending so low it was almost to the ground, and said humbly:

"Junior Zong Yan greets Your Excellency; the presence of Upper Immortal at our humble island fills us with terror…"

Li Yuanxiu only glanced over—this man was but Seventh Layer of Qi Cultivation, not worth mentioning. Instead, he took note of the mortals on the island, each raising their heads in turn; by his estimation there were more than five thousand, which satisfied him greatly.

'To relocate mortals here is truly troublesome; the boundless sea offers so few places to land. Five thousand here is already as good as it gets.'

Seeing the clear air about him, Zong Yan finally let out a breath; watching Li Yuanxiu survey the mortals made him uneasy, thinking to himself:

"He should be a Foundation Establishment cultivator, with no sign of injury; he likely isn't here specifically to take tributes, so the demand shouldn't be too high…"

Thus, he welcomed Li Yuanjiao down to the island peak; all the mortals on the island also stopped what they were doing and looked up worried, Zong Yan tentatively spoke:

"Your Excellency, this is Sect Spring Island, in service to Ding Yuan Longzi of the Water Mansion."

All the islands in the East Sea must pay tribute to demons. He had heard of the rules in the East Sea and responded rather casually:

"And how many tributes does this dragon take each time?"

Zong Yan was puzzled but replied obediently:

"They require either three hundred mortals or three medicinal men."

Li Yuanjiao frowned and muttered,

"Only people?"

Zong Yan hesitated, then something stirred in his heart as he thought:

'Could this man be from the Inner Seas! He seems to have only passed through the offshore lands a few times, not knowing the details…'

At this, Zong Yan's gaze grew warmer. He quickly answered:

"Senior may not know—our island has neither mines nor spirit plants; everything below the sea belongs to the demon race, we're forbidden to touch it. The only thing we can turn over is human tribute…"

"Not just my small island—even those with Foundation Establishment cultivators or great Zifu powers on guard, all must pay the Dragon Kind with mortals and treasures. It only differs by amount…"

Li Yuanjiao had no expectation of mining or treasures coming to such a remote place. He nodded, troubled at heart and fell silent. Zong Yan feared he'd spoken amiss and was seized with terror, thinking:

"In the Inner Seas, there are still divisions of immortal and demon! Is he some ancient cultivator? One of those Xiuyue or Wanyu..."

Seeing the clarity on Li Yuanjiao's face, he instantly lost his composure, bowed in fright, and pleaded:

"Upper Immortal, spare us! We have no choice, never did this willingly!"

Li Yuanjiao only cast him a glance. This man was no Immortal Sect disciple—couldn't hide the turbid qi on his face no matter what, but he'd never had hopes for offshore cultivators anyway, so he spoke naturally, voice sinking:

"You pay human tribute to the Dragon Kind out of helplessness, but as I see your True Yuan circulate, throbbing strong, you've obviously consumed blood qi and resentment. What more is there to say?"

Zong Yan froze for two full breaths, then bowed his head to the ground, abased and said:

"My elders too were of orthodox lineage… How could I not know this… but!"

"But…"

He paused, looking up at the cluster of commoners behind Li Yuanjiao, and said in dejection,

"If I consume blood qi, I will forever deviate from the orthodoxy, but if I don't, I cannot protect them. Demon creatures crowd the seas—I have tried my best."

Li Yuanjiao gazed at him deeply and softly said,

"In this age, there's little orthodoxy left. Rise."

Zong Yan answered respectfully, stepped aside and stood. Li Yuanjiao looked across—the common folk were all on their knees, with one or two children stealing glances, terror in their eyes.

Yet Li Yuanjiao was lost in thought:

'On this island, tribute to the dragon is inevitable… If one wishes to gain a foothold in the East Sea, one must first fatten the Dragon Kind… But… what should be done!'

His own clan laws regarding this were harsh to say the least, and the Immortal Mirror in his bosom still gave off a faint chill that made his heart cold. The Taiyin Profound Light had never failed—bearing Taiyin was no casual matter.

"Call Qinghong over first."

He tossed out a talisman that flew into the sky, letting out a gentle brilliance; Zong Yan watched, heart pounding. Li Yuanjiao turned back and asked:

"Have you family or children?"

Zong Yan had already guessed much. He'd often heard of Inner Sea cultivators coming to settle offshore, but they rarely ventured to such remote places. Seeing that Li Yuanjiao did not match his fierce appearance and even seemed quite principled, he was quietly pleased and quickly replied:

"Reporting to Your Excellency, I am a ground-raised child—cannot sire offspring."

"Ground-raised child?"

Li Yuanjiao frowned. Zong Yan, now sure of his guess, replied with deference:

"Zhu Lu Sea stretches east past the foreign chasm, where lies an island named the Navel of the World. Within is a nation called Ground-Raised, whose many springs are called Good Nurturing Springs. Throw precious spiritual objects into them, and they will erupt with infants."

Zong Yan lifted the hem of his robe; his abdomen was smooth with no navel at all:

"These children are ground-raised, born without navels and cannot conceive. They taste as plain as water—without flavor at all. But as long as you offer precious enough spiritual objects, odds are high the child will bear a Spirit Aperture."

He smiled and went on:

"Cultivation is bitter, and often brings extinction of one's line. Many who cannot have heirs go there to inherit their lineages. My own father did likewise, though he's long since passed; now I manage this island."

Li Yuanjiao really was astonished and sized him up wordlessly. Zong Yan bowed his head and said:

"But people like us have no access to the mystical; we reach only Qi Cultivation. In Daoism, cannot reach Foundation Establishment; in Buddhist cultivation, cannot realize the Dharma; in darkness, cannot open mansions; in magic arts, cannot forge talismans…"

Now Li Yuanjiao found it reasonable, though still marveled:

"Such is the grand creation of Heaven and Earth."

...

Qingdu Mountain.

Li Xijun, clad in white robe, was sitting in the courtyard, the sword Han Lin resting thin and cold on his knees, and in his hand, a piece of white cloth being carefully wiped to a shine.

He was a bit out of it, mind wandering, as he wiped the sword again and again, making it gleam. A jade bottle stood on the desk before him; it was the Sui Origin Pill.

Li Ximing, reluctant to part with it, handed over the elixir before quickly going into closed-door cultivation to rest and heal, preparing for Foundation Establishment, leaving Li Xijun to watch the house. All the Foundation Establishment cultivators had gone out, and his status was suddenly the highest.

Li Xijun absentmindedly polished the sword when an elder in plain clothes approached, at Ninth Layer of Qi Cultivation, slightly stooped to bow, about to kneel. Li Xijun hurried to stop him, saying politely:

"Elder, what are you doing? I cannot accept such courtesy from you."

The man before him was Chen Donghe, among the oldest remaining elders. Li Xijun helped him up, and he had to give up his courtesy, speaking softly:

"Today I received word that the Taoist Hou Fu of Great Owl Sunflower View has broken through to Zifu and achieved Divine Skill. The Family Head wishes to have me bring gifts in congratulations, and sent me up the mountain to fetch them."

Li Xijun was exactly troubled by this. In principle, their family had little connection with Great Owl Sunflower View, so there was no need to give costly gifts. Yet he'd heard that Taoist Hou Fu had no special hobbies but valued face above all, so a simple gift might inadvertently offend him. Thus he was uncertain.

Seeing Chen Donghe arrive, he simply asked:

"Elder, in your opinion, what manner of gift should we prepare?"

Chen Donghe mused, his voice hoarse:

"We gave a precious medicine to the Perfected Chuting before. So for this occasion, the gift need not be more valuable than that. In my opinion, a magic artifact at the Qi Cultivating Peak will suffice."

"Hou Fu Perfected is not lacking in our trinkets; he is, however, young and, as rumored, highly values reputation. So let the most senior Family Head go in person, bring along six at Qi Cultivation, display humility and respect—as for the gift itself, that barely matters."

Li Xijun pondered and replied:

"This event has spread so widely—it's as if someone is stirring things up, or perhaps Hou Fu needs this for his Divine Skill. Then we should grant him all the face he desires, but remember—we must be careful."

He thought and said:

"Let us visit the Xiao Family first. The Xiao Family will be attending the celebration too—going together leaves nothing to worry about."