Family Cultivation: I Become a Mirror

The sturdy young man was sitting upright in the courtyard, his hands forming a spell, as streams of black flames surged from his palms, flowing all around. Several black talisman scripts transformed into assorted glimmers that flickered by his side.

Li Xijun swept a glance over him, careful not to let him sense anything, and averted his gaze, only keeping watch on him out of the corner of his eye.

'Chengliao has not been influenced by him, this person is no Chu Yi; he likely doesn't have the Zifu manipulating from behind, perhaps he has some destiny on him, has discovered some inheritance treasure... received guidance from some expert.'

Li Xijun didn't act rashly at the moment but instead called Chen Mufeng over:

"The Jade Courtyard Guards searching for the shuttle are too dense, easily arousing suspicion. Spread out along the boundary, his sweetheart is still up in the mountains, I'll have elder Wushao personally watch over Xu Xiao."

Chen Mufeng's mouth was full of bitterness; in his heart, all he could think about was making up for his mistake, to avoid being demoted too severely.

At that time, he had only sent his trusted subordinates there; that Chen household relative of his was corrupted by association. He has now silently dispatched him to Shanyue, isolating him from the town's affairs, just waiting for this matter to be over before dealing with it.

As he was pondering, he responded and hurried down to carry out his tasks.

Li Chengliao had offered Liu Lingzhen the qualifications to cultivate on the mountain, originally to sow discord. Now it had led to this female cultivator falling into the hands of the members of the Li family. Li Xijun arranged for two people to go down and probe her, while on the other hand, he said to Li Wushao:

"Elder, do you know of any power or cultivation technique that is known for black flame? Preferably something that can bewitch minds and threaten lives."

Li Xijun was very clear about the powers in the Yue Country; he had never seen any that wielded black flames that could bewitch minds and puppeteer lives. He was already considering powers from overseas.

Li Wushao thought for a moment, then said hoarsely:

"Numerous Taoist lineages at sea have come and gone, and countless more lie sunk beneath the sea's depths. Black flames... there is one that is quite renowned."

He paused, then added in a grave voice:

"Red Reef Island, a major sea power; their direct lineage cultivates from the Fire Virtue, specifically the joint fire, most of which emit black flames and excel in beguiling witchcraft."

"Red Reef Island..."

The only concern Li Xijun had was whether this person was a pawn of some Zifu, but there was no message from Li Xizhi's end, and with the power that the Li Family currently held, if it were just the Zifu acting, they could have simply notified the Li Family, avoiding causing issues.

With no message received so far, and Xu Xiao's means being limited, Li Xijun harbored a thought of killing, suspecting someone behind Xu Xiao was plotting against his family in secret. Yet, the family had no involvement with Red Reef Island, and he was uncertain of how to proceed, so he called another person over and instructed:

"Send a shrewd female cultivator down to probe Liu Lingzhen about the news from outside, to provoke and agitate her, but make it discreet, and see what her stance on the Immortal Sects is."

This person hesitated then nodded. Several capable helpers departed, and this person clearly couldn't keep up with his conversation. Li Xijun had to point it out:

"Just send a female cultivator over, talk about news from several overseas Immortal Sects, deliberately leave some errors, speak with certainty to annoy her a bit, and see if she can discern the truth and what her attitude towards these sects is."

Having arranged everything on this end, Li Xijun had yet to take action, planning to probe further and drag out the time. It would be best to wait until a few of the senior ancestors returned.

"It would be good if he could leave on his own... I just fear he holds a grudge in his heart, in which case he can't be let go."

Li Xijun stayed suspended in the sky for a while, unable to put his mind at ease. He was the only one in the family with the Pupil Technique capable of seeing through illusions, and he found a place to settle on Lijing Peak with a view overlooking the large town.

Having spent one night, a person approached riding the wind and respectfully reported:

"My lord, following your instructions, we sent people over, and Liu Lingzhen has spilled some news."

The people below, following Li Xijun's orders, sent an arrogant female cultivator over to boast for a bit and introduced the overseas in a mysterious manner. Liu Lingzhen, being simple-minded, couldn't stand her bragging and arrogance, and retorted a couple of times.

"This woman pointed out the mistakes of our two people we sent and postured with her own boasting. Once she started talking, she couldn't be stopped; she also holds the Immortal Sect in high regard, describing several magical treasures in detail."

'Xu Xiao is still cautious, but his sweetheart is only pleasing to the eye and not of much use... leaving behind too many handles.'

Once Liu Lingzhen's words came out, they were promptly delivered to Li Xijun. The word "overseas" echoed in his mind, and Li Xijun, with eyes cast down, said:

"A woman who, by birth, has never left the town, actually knows about the Immortal Sects' treasures overseas."

After this probing, many possibilities were eliminated. Xu Xiao is either fated, having received the inheritance of Red Reef Island and his nature changed due to being bewitched, or someone from Red Reef Island has taken over his body.

If this person really has deep ties with Red Reef Island, it might be some special technique of reincarnation and avoidance of death, making the threat he poses even greater and harder to kill.

Li Xijun pondered for a moment, then set aside this answer for now:

"If it really is a technique of reincarnation and avoidance of death, he would just present it straightforwardly... give us a heads up here, and my family would naturally ensure his safe return to the island... unless he's a traitor to the sect..."

Li Xijun was meticulous in thought. In the short time since receiving the news, he had already considered many possibilities. The more he thought, the harder it became to decide, so he silently exhaled, then his thoughts drifted to the enigma within the womb.

"Regardless, it must be related to Red Reef Island."

Setting aside these considerations, he flipped through the records of affairs his subordinates had submitted. That night, Li Xijun went through the events of the past few years in great detail. He had to admit that with this person's temperament, it was very likely that he had harbored resentment, and coveted the Li family's possessions.