The battle between the Celestial Master Mansion and the Jiangzhou Lin Clan had temporarily come to a close.

It was difficult to describe the atmosphere on Dragon Tiger Mountain in a single word.

However, outside the Ancestral Courtyard of the Sect, people from other branches of the Taoist Talisman Sect or other divisions of the mansion mostly let out a sigh of relief.

The same was true for Xianliu Palace on Xianliu Mountain, where Lei Jun was.

The faces of all disciples there now bore significantly more smiles.

Their vigilance shifted from being primarily against their fellow Human Cultivators to guarding against the sudden appearance of Demon Spirits.

Aside from cautioning everyone not to fully lower their guard, Lei Jun also arranged manpower to further restore the production of various resources at Xianliu Palace.

The output and scale had fluctuated due to the war, although supplies had never been completely cut off.

Now, everything could return to proper order and stability.

Such matters were typically arranged and conveyed by deacons at all levels within the palace. Aside from supervision and acceptance, Lei Jun and others did not need to overly concern themselves.

What caught Lei Jun's attention was a message from the Ancestral Courtyard of the Sect.

High Merit Elder Li Hongyu had temporarily resigned from all her duties, including those in the High Merit Pavilion, to devote herself to closed-door cultivation.

Upon hearing this news, many people's first reaction was to wonder: Is Hong Yu Zhan Lao determined to brave the Heavenly Moat Tribulation between the Seventh and Eighth Heavenly Layer?

Li Hongyu had been in the Seventh Layer of Heaven Realm for quite some time, and her progress had been almost as quick as the former Celestial Master Li Qingfeng.

But since then, she had been stuck at that level.

If, after many years of accumulation, she could break through the Heavenly Moat Tribulation, no one would find it surprising.

But the timing of this attempt seemed somewhat delicate.

It was unknown what had inspired Hong Yu Zhan Lao to finally feel confident in taking that last step after being stagnant at her current level for so long.

It was worth mentioning that Li Hongyu did not choose to undergo closed-door cultivation at the Ancestral Courtyard of the Sect on Dragon Tiger Mountain.

Rumors had it that she left for seclusion in a secret Cave Heavens she had created.

Before leaving, she even left her Celestial Master Robe on the mountain, entrusting it to the care of Li Song and Li Ziyang.

The news made Lei Jun feel that the situation was quite intriguing.

It's hard to say the Li Family is a monolithic bloc.

They only show such unity under significant external pressure.

And the one likely to have applied such pressure is Xu Yuanzhen.

To put it harshly, the Jiangzhou Lin Clan had employed their trump card and even did not hesitate to improve relations with the Youzhou Forest Clan for this cause.

Yet, after sacrificing two great masters, Clan Chief Lin Che and Elder Lin Feng, from their ranks, they still failed to defeat Xu Yuanzhen.

This result left the Jiangzhou Lin Clan extremely frustrated, and no doubt, Xin Zhou's Li Family also lost quite a bit of sleep over it...

For Li Hongyu, it was a case of succeed or die trying, a bold gamble.

Li Song and Li Ziyang would likely not hold her back at such a time.

However, conversely, it seemed that Li Hongyu was quite confident about this attempt...

Lei Jun thought of his Master and shook his head slightly.

Such decisiveness must have involved more than just stimulation from Xu Yuanzhen.

After the battle at Poyang Lake, the Jiangzhou Lin Clan suffered heavy casualties and lost many of their experts. Their losses were so severe that "Severely Damaged Vitality" was no longer an adequate description; they were only slightly better off than what the Xiao Clan from outside Long (region) endured during the demon chaos in the Western Regions.

On the other hand, the Longhu Mountain Celestial Master's Mansion fared relatively better, although they too endured losses among their key members.

The good news was that, aside from Xu Yuanzhen, whose whereabouts remained uncertain, and the injured Elder Shangguan Ning, no High Merit Elders had perished.

The bad news was that the casualties in the Middle Three Heavens were not minor.

Among them was a familiar figure Lei Jun had dealt with in the past: Elder Xia Bo, Li Hongyu's husband, who had perished in the battle at Poyang Lake.

When the news arrived, Lei Jun also lamented it in Xianliu Palace.

Although he disliked most of the Li Clan members, and the Xia family was related by marriage to the Li family, Lei Jun had no complaints against Xia Bo himself.

Over the years, they had even had some interactions.

Unfortunately, that Master Xia perished at Poyang Lake.

Lei Jun could only silently offer a stick of incense in his memory.

Li Hongyu and Xia Bo had no offspring.

With Xia Bo's demise, Li Hongyu was, to some extent, left alone.

Perhaps this was also part of the reason why she had made up her mind to take that final step.

I wonder if there are any other factors involved? Lei Jun shook his head softly.

He continued his process of assimilating the Great Five Elements Creation Qi, steadily advancing the construction of his third Tao Palace. This went on until—

"You've indeed made quite swift progress in recent years," a tall woman said, suddenly appearing in Xianliu Palace, beaming at Lei Jun with a smile.

It was none other than Tang Xiaotang, who had been absent for a long while.

Lei Jun was surprised. "What wind has blown you here, Senior Sister? Have you been back to Dragon Tiger Mountain before this?"

Tang Xiaotang plopped down in front of him and said, "I did go back. I've just left there and thought I'd swing by to see you on my way."

She wrung her hands in regret. "I wasn't in communication with the sect for a while. By the time I caught wind of what was happening, your battle with the Jiangzhou Lin Clan was already over. It's a pity I couldn't get back in time; otherwise, how could I let Senior Sister Xu steal all the limelight?"

Hearing her last remark, Lei Jun sized her up. "You're not planning to go to the Jiangzhou Lin Clan's ancestral land alone now, are you?"

Tang Xiaotang chuckled. "I did consider it, but not right now. Maybe later on."

Lei Jun asked, "Does that mean there's news about the Celestial Master's Sword?"

Tang Xiaotang's eyes danced with excitement. "I've reviewed the things Senior Sister Xu left behind. Although they're not as good as my own, combining the two, my chances are much better. I daresay I'm certainly more confident than Li Zhengxuan."

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