Li Changyao broke the silence:
"The Hall of Heavenly Principle's members have reached thirty thousand.
We have also been quietly developing members within the major sects and family powers, monitoring their movements.
Eternal Sun Prefecture is doing alright in this regard; the major powers all follow our lead.
The four native powers of Eternal Sun Prefecture have already accepted the current situation."
"By the way, Senior Mosquito Daoist has recently been using the 'Ethereal Immortal Grove' we gifted him to expand the forest, bringing many demon beasts from the Duravia Trade Prefecture and the Eternal Sun Prefecture.
Chang'an, go discuss this with Senior Mosquito Daoist. After all, within our sphere of influence, he must also pay taxes; otherwise, it will be difficult to convince the public."
Li Chang'an nodded slightly; he was a little afraid of Li Changyao.
In recent years, since Li Changyao took charge of the Hall of Heavenly Principle, she had become increasingly irascible, not to mention her methods growing ever more ruthless, always striking at people's vulnerabilities.
A few years ago, when Li Chang'an argued with this elder cousin over the deployment of the Hall of Heavenly Principle, Li Changyao flew into a rage, messing up Li Chang'an's house and his meticulously arranged hair right then and there, nearly causing him to break down.
From then on, Li Chang'an never dared to interfere in the affairs of the Hall of Heavenly Principle again.
"Very good. Eternal Sun Prefecture is already under our control, and the Ten-Direction Ancient Ridges are no cause for concern."
Li Dalong nodded slightly. He looked towards Li Tianyue and Li Xinghuo, "You two command troops outside the family. How is the situation?"
Having returned home, Li Tianyue had a rare occasion to wear casual clothes—a black dress that made her look somewhat cold and stunning.
As a woman accustomed to the battlefield, her words sounded icy, "Prince Yu and the Azure Dynasty have maintained a ceasefire for many years. In this child's view, Prince Yu has won without fighting."
"Won without fighting?" Li Dalong raised an eyebrow slightly.
"Mm," Li Tianyue said. "The Wu Clan invaded the Azure Dynasty. In the eyes of the major prefectures, Prince Yu's ceasefire at such a time was truly an honorable act.
His strength was already profound, and being the Human Emperor's fourth son, he naturally received great praise.
Rumor has it that two more prefectures are preparing to pledge their allegiance to Prince Yu."
"Great-Grandfather."
Li Tianyue hesitated for a moment before saying, "The ceasefire has lasted many years now. Prince Yu's power, conversely, has grown ever greater, while the Azure Dynasty faces internal troubles and external threats.
In a few more years, Prince Yu will no longer concern himself with the Wu Clan; sooner or later, he will wage war against the Dynasty again.
In this child's view, Old General Dongfang Lianwu cannot stop Prince Yu."
Li Dalong remained silent.
Li Xinghuo, however, spoke in a grave voice, "Great-Aunt Tianyue, what if the Grand Tutor returns with the great army of the Northern Border?"
"The Great Army of the Northern Border?" Li Tianyue's fine brows knitted tightly. "Xinghuo, you are in the Northern Border and understand best how powerful the Grand Tutor's army is. What do you think?"
"Great-Aunt, don't laugh, but the longer this child stays with the Northern Border army, the more terrifying I find it."
Li Xinghuo's voice was heavy. "Ever since the Azure Dynasty was established, the Grand Tutor has been constantly at war.
Cultivators from across the entire Azure Dynasty continuously join the Northern Border army.
Over a hundred thousand years have passed, yet the Demon Clan in the north seems impossible to defeat.
Every so often, many powerful cultivators who have survived the battlefield emerge from within the Northern Border army."
"But afterward, they vanish from the Northern Border army, and no one knows where they went.
Newcomers continue to appear in the Northern Border army, forming a powerful military force capable of rivaling the Demon Clan."
"The Demon Clan is the same. The two sides fight endlessly, yet both exercise restraint.
And... Great-Aunt, do you think Prince Yu could defeat an army that has been fighting for over a hundred thousand years?"
Li Xinghuo, seeing the gravity in his great-aunt's eyes, turned to Li Dalong and said, "Great-Grandfather, while the world is in chaos, as long as the Grand Tutor has not truly unleashed his full strength, our Li family absolutely must not choose to become enemies with the Dynasty."
"And the Imperial Preceptor," Li Changyao's voice sounded, causing everyone to look at her.
Gritting her teeth, Li Changyao said, "My Hall of Heavenly Principle originally intended to dispatch members throughout the Azure Dynasty. But when they actually reached the major powers, guess what happened?"
Growing increasingly furious, Li Changyao slammed her hand on the table.
"The Emberwing Guard! Our Hall of Heavenly Principle people infiltrated the major powers with great difficulty, but those dogs carrying golden tokens found our people the very same day!
They claimed they were giving our Li family face; otherwise, they would have made sure our people died silently."
"Now I suspect," she declared, "that the entire Azure Dynasty is just one giant Emberwing Guard!"
"Besides them, there's also the Heavenly Secret Pavilion. Those two groups are like ghosts that refuse to disperse! Sooner or later, I'll catch their leaders and shoot them in the butt with arrows!"
Cough, cough.
Such unrestrained words made Li Kuangren cough awkwardly, his face filled with embarrassment.
For the family's little princess to be so crude nearly made him lose face completely.
Li Dalong smiled. "The Grand Tutor and the Imperial Preceptor—which of them doesn't have deep foundations? Below the Human Emperor, it is just those two.
Xinghuo is right. As long as they haven't played all their hidden cards, we should never think of contending with them.
Managing our own patch of land is already exceedingly difficult. However..."
Li Dalong's voice trailed off. Everyone in the clan turned to look at the usually silent Li Yunlin and the youngest, Li Xinnian.
Li Yaozu's face suddenly filled with a fatherly kindness. "Yunlin, ah, I heard you've been getting quite close to Fairy Hongxiu recently?"
"Yes, Father."
Li Yunlin paid no mind to the teasing gazes of his clansmen; the so-called Great Dao valued frankness, after all.
"Fairy Hongxiu's Dao arts are profound," he stated openly. "This child still has much to learn. Rest assured, in a little while longer, this child will be able to learn the cultivation methods of the Perennis Immortal Palace from Fairy Hongxiu."
"..."
These words almost made Li Wei, who was half-leaning against a roof beam, fall right off.
Nearby, Li Kuanghua's face darkened. She spread her hands toward the assembled family members, looking somewhat helpless.
Decades had passed; even two pigs put in a sty would have filled the whole village with piglets by now. But... these two insisted on just discussing the Dao.
Everyone looked toward Li Xinnian.
This child was thirty-eight years old this year, truly an outstanding young talent.
The gazes of the family members were quite satisfied; this kid was definitely the one with the most heaven-defying aptitude in the family's history, and also the one with the best temperament, always wearing a gentle smile.
Especially since the children of previous generations in the family either grew up amidst disaster or amidst war.
Li Xinnian was different. From childhood until now, he had lived within a stable family, protected by his clansmen, experiencing a life none of his clansmen had ever experienced.
His thirty-eight years were a happy time that many in the family couldn't even imagine.
If a child from another family had such conditions, they would likely have long since been raised as a profligate scion. Li Xinnian was different; this kid was also very motivated.
"Xinnian, during the Great Ceremony, you said you wanted to propose marriage?"
Li Dalong's eyes filled with joy. Although the world was turbulent now, the family was stable.
Xinnian had grown up safe and sound. Future children born into the family would also grow up peacefully, just like Li Xinnian. The family's hope rested entirely on Li Xinnian.
Li Xinnian nodded slightly. "Yes, propose marriage. This child has a brother named Su Chen".
"..."
Hearing this, the family members were greatly disappointed.
Only Li Tianming, currently dominated by his simple and honest personality, tilted his head in confusion and weakly looked at his junior,
"Ah? Isn't that... improper? Judging by the name, he's a man. That goes against human relations".
"You stupid fool! What's going on in that head of yours?"
Exasperated, Li Tianyi slapped his younger brother on the back of the head and cursed fiercely, "Can't you tell Xinnian wants to help Su Chen propose marriage?"
"Just as Great-Great-Grand-Uncle Tianyi said."
Li Xinnian still wore a smile.
"Brother Su's family background is ordinary. A few years ago, while adventuring with this child in the Duravia Trade Prefecture, he became acquainted with an inner sect disciple from the Aeternus Sect.
His aptitude is quite good, but if he were to propose marriage alone, I fear trouble would arise.
Because of this, he has made enemies with some powers in the Duravia Trade Prefecture these past two years.
This child wishes to lend him a hand."
The Li family members were still frowning.
Conversely, Li Yunbing narrowed his eyes. "Su Chen? I know him. He's three years older than you, at the Golden Core realm, and a rare genius in the world. Xingchen, what do you think?"
Li Xingchen had been spacing out in the hall.
This kid was actually the one in the family who lived the most carefree life; decades had passed, and he didn't manage anything...
The moment Li Yunbing called his name, he quickly straightened up and said seriously.
"This child thinks the Wu Clan people should swim in the sea region, Min Youguo and Lin Jiu should get married, then we'll destroy Duravia Trade Prefecture and offer incense to the Old Ancestor."
"..."
After a sound beating, Li Xingchen finally started speaking like a human again.
The family members held no hope for Li Xingchen in these matters anyway.
This kid was different from most in the family; he was more suited to the world of adventurers, always thinking about adventuring everywhere, and didn't care one bit about power.
Li Yunbing simply ignored Li Xingchen and instead looked towards Li Xinghuo.
"Xinghuo, take this opportunity to recognize Su Chen as your godson. That Su Chen is no simple character, but for the sake of the girl from the Aeternus Sect, he will likely agree."
"Yes!"
Although he didn't know what was special about Su Chen, Li Xinghuo still accepted the task. Whatever the elders said, he would simply do it.
The clan members in the hall dispersed.
Everyone went off to attend to their own affairs.
...
The long night stretched on.
Within the Perennis Immortal Palace, upon the Red Spider Lily Platform, beneath the fur of some unknown demon beast, Li Yunlin lay half-naked, gazing blankly at the starry sky.
Long hair cascaded down onto his chest like a waterfall, where a small face rubbed comfortably against him, its flush not yet faded—whether from shyness or something else, it was unclear.
She asked softly, "Grand Elder Yunlin, what are you thinking?"
Li Yunlin still looked utterly bewildered.
"Isn't... Didn't I come here to discuss the Dao with you? How did..."
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