Li Xinnian floated above the blood pool, staring blankly at the cavern's ceiling, as if watching Min Tiange ascend to the heavens.
What kind of realm that was, he did not know.
What exactly Min Tiange had done over these sixty thousand years, Nangong Qingya did not know either.
"Look upon him as the Heavens themselves... look upon him as the Heavens themselves..."
Li Xinnian's murmurs echoed continuously within the cave dwelling.
Watching her husband's state, Nangong Qingya could only sigh.
As a couple who had supported each other through thick and thin for many years, how could she fail to see his unwillingness to concede?
Though her husband had always appeared gentle and refined, in truth, he feared neither Heaven nor Earth.
Li Xinnian spoke faintly,
"Hasn't he yet to ascend to the heavens? He isn't even at the Mahayana realm.
What a supposed aptitude for the Imperial Throne!
I'd like to see just how he plans to ascend!"
...
Three months later.
Li Xinnian returned from the South Sea, bringing an old woman with him.
The old woman walked with a hunched back, her face heavily scarred by the crawling marks of time, and she held a jagged walking stick.
She was the Sect Master of the Nightmare Demon Sect, Dream Demon.
In the South Sea region, the various great demon sects called her "Old Madam Dream Demon" and also the "Dream-Devouring Heavenly Venerate."
For those who displeased Dream Demon, mortals would be stripped of their dreams and even suffer the agony of insomnia; as for cultivators, if their dreams were devoured by her, they would lose their "comprehension" and have their Dao path severed.
No one in the South Sea dared to provoke the Nightmare Demon Sect; otherwise, upon the slightest moment of carelessness during cultivation, Dream Demon would invade their dreams.
To die in a dream meant to perish in reality.
"The Deston Prefecture is wonderful. This old woman visited it thousands of years ago.
Deston Prefecture was prosperous, filled with singing and dancing, and the sweet dreams of the people there were truly a delicacy."
Upon arriving at Merit City, Li Xinnian walked ahead.
The old woman, holding her walking stick and taking small steps, followed closely behind.
Despite Li Xinnian's face being as dark as charcoal, she chattered incessantly,
"Patriarch Li, I heard there is a great war in Deston Prefecture. What a pity for such a fine place.
However, with the war against the Wu tribes, there will also be an abundance of delicacies. You must not stop this old woman from enjoying them.
Patriarch Li, observing your aura, the cultivation methods of my Holy Sect share an affinity with you.
You only need to cultivate in my dream for forty-nine years, and you can cross the threshold of dream-devouring..."
This journey brought them home.
One could see that around the old tree outside the main hall, powerful experts had already gathered in great numbers.
The Huan Gui was furrowing her brows tightly.
She glanced left and right, her nose continuously sniffing.
"Why do I smell the scent of corpse-stitching? The members of the Li family must have secretly learned the Corpse-Stitching Art of my Mountain of Esoteric Stratagems.
Where exactly are they hiding? Peak of the Nascent Soul stage... they have truly mastered it."
Guest Elder Dongfang Xuan held a painting scroll in her hand. In front of her, a child of the Li family was shivering uncontrollably, yet did not dare to move a muscle.
Dongfang Xuan's expression was completely stern.
"I am painting. If you dare to move, your soul will be sucked into the picture. My painting is filled with malicious ghosts who love to devour young children."
Looking closely at the painting, she wasn't painting the child at all; she was clearly painting the old tree.
Many fellow Daoists had arrived from the Azure Cloud Prefecture.
Wu Yazi of the Skyveil Sect boasted to everyone he encountered:
"The Patriarch and Matriarch of your Li family are this poor Daoist's disciples.
My disciple Su Chen is quite a credit to me; reaching the Void Refinement realm at the young age of four hundred is entirely due to my excellent tutelage."
Xuanji of the Black Tortoise Sect had matured into a middle-aged man, looking stern and steadfast at first glance.
He spoke in a solemn voice to an elderly man,
"The Wu tribes in Deston Prefecture are mighty. If they cross Whiteford Prefecture, they will reach Redmere Prefecture, closing in on Westfall and our Azure Cloud.
When the lips perish, the teeth grow cold.
This journey to Deston Prefecture is not only to seek opportunities but also to assist Deston Prefecture in their war against the Wu tribes. We absolutely must not take them lightly."
The Old Madam Dream Demon, who had originally followed Li Xinnian inside, saw Xuanji talking incessantly.
Her eyes lit up, and she said to Li Xinnian, "Patriarch Li, go about your business. This old woman will not bother you."
A moment later.
After Li Xinnian finished greeting his master, Wu Yazi, he saw Old Madam Dream Demon chatting happily with a bewildered Xuanji.
Breathing a sigh of relief, he immediately entered the main hall.
In the hall, several members of the Li family were discussing matters. They nodded slightly toward Li Xinnian.
Li Kuangren spoke in a deep voice,
"The fight to the death between Deston Prefecture and the Wu tribes serves as a natural barrier for our Dynasty.
Our Azure Cloud Prefecture ought to send people to assist. We must not let the matters of the Western Border affect the overall situation.
If Deston Prefecture is breached again, our Azure Cloud Prefecture will not be spared either.
However, we must also keep our guard up; the people of the Dynasty cannot be trusted."
"Changsheng, Changyao, you two will lead the experts of our Azure Cloud Prefecture and head out.
Leave the matter of commanding the troops to the Feng Family, with the Painting Ancestor holding the line. When it is time to flee..."
Li Kuangren left his sentence unfinished, his words heavily laced with worry.
Changsheng had slumbered upon the old tree for hundreds of years. Now that he had finally awakened, it was his first time handling such a monumental task for the family.
"Don't worry, Father." Li Changsheng and Li Changyao exchanged a glance, both siblings revealing a smile.
Li Changsheng said,
"Your son may not know how to lead troops, but when it comes to running away, I am first-rate.
Besides, Uncle is no fool; he will still listen to what I have to say. I know exactly what the people of the Dynasty are like."
Li Changyao said,
"Bi Shihu and Yun Manlou are currently in Deston Prefecture.
They hid from us for three years, and now they are openly in Deston Prefecture, fighting enemies for the Dynasty as condemned sinners.
To put it nicely, they are redeeming themselves through meritorious service; to put it bluntly, who knows what methods they used to bribe the Dynasty."
"The affairs of the Dynasty are complex. You all should head to Deston Prefecture first.
The people of the world are gathering in Deston Prefecture, meaning there are opportunities to be found.
If the people of the world can vie for them, our Li family can certainly vie for them as well."
Ever since returning from the incident at the Western Border, Li Yunbing's words had been filled with a heavy hostility over the past three years.
"As for Bi Shihu and Yun Manlou, regardless of where they got the audacity to drag out their ignoble lives in Deston Prefecture, I want them dead."
"Understood!"
Everyone responded in solemn agreement.
Within the family, if one were to ask who doted on Li Tianyue the most, it would undoubtedly be Li Yunbing.
Back in the day at the Azure Cloud border, the commanding generals had been Li Tianyue and Li Yunbing.
With that fellow Li Yundou having succumbed to the demonic path, and Li Yunbing having no children of his own, he had always treated Li Tianyue as his own flesh and blood.
Every time Li Tianyue returned home, she would always go to visit Li Yunbing first.
Three years had passed. Li Yunbing, whose hair had already been grizzled, now had hair that was half white. Every night, he would drink alone.
Li Yunlin patted Li Yunbing on the shoulder.
"Second Brother, on this journey to Deston Prefecture, you must absolutely not act impulsively.
The most crucial matter is to find the Lotus Ferry Nunnery and bring back Kuanghua.
Whether it is the Dynasty or the various factions of the Wu tribes, the cultivators all have their own schemes.
They are all old monsters whose ages are unknown. If you do not act cautiously, you will only fall into their traps.
With Fourth Aunt absent, we will have to rely on you to contend with those old fogeys."
"Xinnian, regarding family matters..."
Li Yunbing had just looked toward Li Xinnian, but Li Xinnian stood up and bowed.
"Your son also wishes to go to Deston Prefecture."
Hearing this, everyone was taken aback.
Li Changsheng said, "Xinnian, the Azure Cloud Prefecture requires you to maintain order. If you are not here..."
"I have already had Jianshu return home. In times of chaos, harsh measures must be applied.
There is no leniency in Jianshu's eyes; who within the Azure Cloud Prefecture would dare to cause turmoil in his presence? Qingya will also assist him.
With Zhiheng stationed in the Immortal Martial Grotto-Heaven, as long as Void Refinement realm experts do not emerge, Zhiheng is more than sufficient.
Furthermore, our clan still has backing in the Thunder Fire Demon Cave. Even the Westfall Prefecture poses no fear to us."
Li Yunbing was about to refuse, but then heard Li Xinnian say,
"I also want to see for myself—on what grounds do the people of this world treat our clan's elders as discarded chess pieces? I shall take them on to the very end."