Chapter 82: Chapter 82: Unsettled Thoughts

The Wang family’s ancestral grounds.

Several days had passed, and a group of Loose Cultivators still surrounded the place, shouting curses. Many other Loose Cultivators had gathered to watch the spectacle.

It made the place feel less like a tranquil cultivation ground and more like a bustling marketplace.

...

In a room on the top floor of a three-story building not far from the Wang family’s ancestral grounds.

A figure sat by the window, watching the commotion near the Wang family’s grounds with a triumphant look in his eyes.

Just then, a series of urgent knocks rang out, and a low voice came from outside the door. "Fellow Daoist Ye, it’s me."

"One moment, Fellow Daoist Hu." Hearing the voice, the figure called Fellow Daoist Ye stood up and opened the door.

The door opened, and the person who walked in was none other than Master Hu Feng. He glanced out the window and remarked meaningfully, "Fellow Daoist Ye certainly knows how to pick a spot."

This "Fellow Daoist Ye" was the same scholarly-looking Junior Brother Ye whom Dai Sangyu had once sent to "invite" Li Ping.

Hearing Master Hu’s words, he simply smiled. "You jest, Fellow Daoist Hu. I had no special reason for choosing this place. It was merely a coincidence."

Master Hu nodded and sat down directly in a chair. He said bluntly, "I heard that after the Wang family’s Foundation Establishment Cultivator died, you, Fellow Daoist Ye, were put in charge of the Immortal City’s Secret Skill Pavilion. The Tier Three Pill Master legacy you promised me... you can give it to me now, can’t you?"

"Heh heh... Of course." A smile touched Junior Brother Ye’s lips. "Things went so smoothly thanks to your help, Fellow Daoist Hu. How could I possibly neglect you? I have the Tier Three Pill Master legacy with me right now and can give it to you anytime. However..."

As he spoke, Junior Brother Ye’s gaze sharpened. "You won’t be running your mouth outside, will you, Fellow Daoist Hu?"

"You worry too much, Fellow Daoist Ye." Master Hu shook his head. "We’re two grasshoppers on the same rope. If I were to leak this, wouldn’t I just be asking for trouble?"

Hearing this, Junior Brother Ye finally laughed. "It’s good that you understand, Fellow Daoist Hu. The Master and I have a teacher-student relationship. If this gets out, nothing much will happen to me, but I’m afraid you won’t be able to escape death."

"Here is the Tier Three Pill Master legacy you wanted." As he spoke, Junior Brother Ye took a Jade Scroll from his Storage Bag and placed it on the table.

Overjoyed, Master Hu immediately reached for it, but Junior Brother Ye stopped him. He stared at Master Hu and said calmly, "For this Pill Master legacy, you must swear an oath not to teach it to anyone else."

Hearing this, Master Hu couldn’t help but look displeased.

However, under Junior Brother Ye’s gaze and the allure of a Tier Three Pill Master legacy, he ultimately had no choice but to swear a Heavenly Dao Oath as requested.

Picking up the Jade Scroll from the table, Master Hu carefully inspected its contents.

Junior Brother Ye’s gaze returned to the window, and what he saw made him let out a soft "Huh?" of surprise.

Just then, a cultivator in black robes had suddenly appeared at the Wang family’s ancestral grounds and was directly dispersing the cultivators who were blocking the gate and watching.

He recognized the black-robed cultivator as a Foundation Establishment Cultivator from the Meng family of the Immortal City!

’The Meng family is getting involved?’ Junior Brother Ye thought to himself.

While he was lost in thought, Master Hu had already finished inspecting the Tier Three Pill Master legacy. After confirming there were no issues, he announced his departure.

After watching Master Hu leave, Junior Brother Ye also departed in a hurry, seemingly rushing off to deal with the Meng family’s intervention.

...

Seeing that the Loose Cultivators blocking their gate had been driven away, the Wang family cultivators finally dared to step out of their Array.

One by one, they thanked the Foundation Establishment Cultivator from the Meng family who had helped them. "Thank you, Senior Meng!"

The Meng family cultivator gave a casual wave of his hand and left without another word.

But at that moment, Wang Quyan stepped forward and announced loudly, "The old ancestor has committed a grave error! We will go to Cyan Dragon Mountain together to plead for forgiveness from the Master!"

Originally, with Loose Cultivators blocking their gate, the Wang family could only remain in their ancestral grounds and wait for the final judgment from the Immortal City’s upper echelon.

But now, the Meng family’s intervention had given them a chance to struggle.

However, the outcome of that struggle would not be decided by them, but by a single thought from the lord of the Immortal City!

...

’I’ve finally gotten my hands on the Alchemy Dao legacy left behind by Xu Pingsheng, the "Pill and Sword Dual Master,"’ Master Hu thought excitedly as he returned to Immortal Peach Mountain.

Originally, after receiving a reply from his uncle, he could have returned to his sect directly.

He had been willing to risk entering the Immortal City for two main reasons.

First, the egg of the Tier Three Fierce Arrowhead Eagle was still with Miaorou, and he needed to retrieve it.

And the second reason was the Tier Three Alchemy Dao legacy that this "Fellow Daoist Ye" had promised him!

Now that he had the Tier Three Alchemy Dao legacy in hand, he could leave.

’The mission to obstruct the Sword Cultivator from reaching Core Formation is complete, and I’ll get the crucial Core Formation Spiritual Object as soon as I get back. Even though I used a Thousand-Li Traceless Talisman, getting a Tier Three Fierce Arrowhead Eagle egg in return makes it a fair trade. And on top of that, Xu Pingsheng’s Alchemy Dao legacy...’ Master Hu, or rather, Yan Kun, felt as if he had reached the absolute peak of his life.

His trip to the Immortal City was, one might say, perfect!

Once he returned to his sect and successfully reached Core Formation, he too would become one of the nearly one hundred revered figures in the Western Wilderness!

Instead of rushing to retrieve the Fierce Arrowhead Eagle egg from Miaorou, Yan Kun, disguised as the sallow-faced, short, and stout old man ’Hu Feng,’ first returned to Immortal Peach Mountain to pack his things, preparing to leave for good.

But before he left, he also left a Jade Scroll for the Meng family.

The Jade Scroll contained a detailed record of his collusion with Junior Brother Ye of the Immortal City, and how they had tampered with the Pills the Wang family’s old ancestor used to break through to the late stage, as well as the Foundation Establishment Pills he himself had refined for them.

He was leaving anyway, and the person ’Hu Feng’ would cease to exist, so he wasn’t afraid of being hunted down by the Immortal City.

He would take this opportunity before leaving to stir up more chaos in the Immortal City!

"Heh heh... Meng family, I’ve been staying on your Spirit Vein for so long. Consider this my parting gift to you." Yan Kun let out a treacherous smile, as if he could already see the two factions of cultivators within the Immortal City becoming mortal enemies after his departure.

After taking care of everything, Yan Kun summoned his disciple, Feng Qufeng, and refined him into a ’Blood Corpse’ on the spot, making him "get cozy" with his own junior brother inside a Storage Bag.

...

"Oh, right. I almost forgot about you, my dear neighbor." Just as Yan Kun was about to leave, he suddenly seemed to remember something and turned his gaze toward Li Ping’s cave-dwelling.

Previously, the reason he had gone to such great lengths to lure Li Ping out of the city instead of acting within its walls was twofold.

First, a fight between two Foundation Establishment Cultivators within the city would create too much of a commotion and easily alert the Immortal City’s authorities.

Second, even if he was confident in his extraordinary methods and believed he could eliminate Li Ping without a trace, the disappearance of a Foundation Establishment Cultivator within the Immortal City would trigger a massive search by the authorities, which could very well lead them to him.

But now, he was preparing to leave the Immortal City and return to his sect for secluded cultivation to break through to Core Formation.

So, naturally, he no longer cared about whether his identity was exposed.

In truth, for Yan Kun, he had already successfully completed his mission with his uncle’s guidance and obtained the Core Formation Spiritual Object from his Sect.

His best option now was to avoid any unnecessary complications and obediently return to his sect!

But he just couldn’t swallow his anger!

He had spent so much effort on Li Ping, trying to lure him out of the city.

But the result was utterly frustrating. The man had just hidden in the Immortal City like a turtle in its shell, refusing to go anywhere!

Before he returned to break through to Core Formation, he had to vent this frustration. Otherwise, he felt his thoughts would be obstructed, which could affect his cultivation!

Besides, as far as Yan Kun was concerned, he was the one who had sold Li Ping his Foundation Establishment Pill.

He knew perfectly well that the other party was just a newly-promoted Early-stage Foundation Establishment Cultivator who had only broken through four short years ago.

And him?

He was a Late-stage Foundation Establishment Cultivator who practiced the Dual Cultivation of Body and Technique. He was completely confident he could eliminate Li Ping without a sound.

"JIE JIE JIE..." Yan Kun could almost see the image of himself crushing that cowardly turtle’s head.

...

Cyan Dragon Mountain.

As the very core of the Immortal City, only the highest echelons were permitted to enter and exit freely.

The Wang family’s Qi Refining Cultivators naturally had no right to enter.

When Wang Quyan led the large group of his clansmen to Cyan Dragon Mountain, they were, as expected, stopped outside by the Immortal City guards.

But just then, Meng Qingyi flew down from the mountain.

Upon seeing her, the Immortal City guards hurriedly bowed respectfully. "Greetings, Senior Meng."

Meng Qingyi nodded, her expression incredibly complex as she looked at the several hundred Qi Refining Cultivators of the Wang family.

She knew that in the two hundred years since the Immortal City’s founding, the numerous disciples her master had taken and the Heroic Clans like the Meng and Wang families had fought and schemed against each other many times over the city’s resources, creating deep-seated conflicts.

Meng Qingyi was a cultivator of the Meng family, but at the same time, she was also a disciple of Fenglan Master.

With her family on one side and her fellow disciples on the other, she was caught in the middle, in a difficult position.

This was especially true since she was the Immortal City’s grand steward of logistics, controlling the distribution of numerous resources, a position of critical importance.

Even though she did her utmost to maintain a balance between her family and her fellow disciples, trying to bridge the divide between them.

In the end, they had still reached the point of no return, where daggers were drawn.

And when it truly came time to pick a side, Meng Qingyi chose her family without hesitation.

She, Meng Qingyi, was a cultivator of the Meng family first, and a disciple of the Master second!

Meng Qingyi’s gaze gradually firmed. Remembering her ancestor’s instructions, she looked at Wang Quyan and the others and asked, "Do you have business at Cyan Dragon Mountain?"

Wang Quyan recognized her and knew she was there to help the Wang family. He quickly shouted, "Our old ancestor has damaged the Immortal City’s reputation! We are guilty! Please, Senior Meng, permit us to enter and plead for forgiveness from the Master!"

The other Wang family members also began to shout.

Meng Qingyi nodded repeatedly as she listened. She then ordered the guards, "Since they have come to plead for forgiveness from the Master, let them enter the mountain!"

Hearing this, the guards couldn’t help but look troubled.

But in the end, under Meng Qingyi’s cold stare, they still answered respectfully, "Yes!"

The Array protecting Cyan Dragon Mountain opened a gateway, and the several hundred cultivators of the Wang family filed into Cyan Dragon Mountain.

Reaching the foot of the mountain, they made no further moves. Led by their Clan Leader, Wang Quyan, they silently knelt as one!

...

At the same time as the Wang family cultivators were entering Cyan Dragon Mountain.

In his cave-dwelling on Immortal Peach Mountain, Li Ping, having received a Sound Transmission Talisman, also smiled as he opened his Array and welcomed the visiting Master Hu inside.

"Fellow Daoist Hu, what brings you here today?" Li Ping said with a chuckle. "My concubine has not yet returned, so I’m afraid I don’t have any Spirit Tea to offer you. You mustn’t blame me for the poor hospitality."

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