Li Xiangping watched Si Yuanbai's flying shuttle vanish into the horizon before rising to pick up the wooden slips from the table. He untied the cloth binding and spread the first slip open.
"Azure Origin Wheel-Nurturing Art — first grade." He skimmed through it. It was a cultivation method for the Embryonic Breathing realm. As he frowned over the text, Li Tongya made a soft sound of surprise.
"This breathing technique requires only daily inhalation and exhalation. It doesn't require refining lunar essence?"
"Naturally it can't compare to the mirror's — our family's technique," Li Xiangping started to mention the mirror, then caught himself, fearing Si Yuanbai might return. He changed his phrasing.
"Was that Si Yuanbai truly a peak master of the Qingchi Sect? Chijing left with him just like that — wasn't it rather rash?" Li Tongya said with a bitter smile.
"What choice did we have?" Li Xiangping replied. "If he were some evil cultivator, he'd have simply snatched the boy and gone. Why bother with all this talk — leaving techniques and a token of governance?"
Li Xiangping nodded and picked up the second slip. "Heavenly Origin Qi-Refining Art — a Qi Refining stage technique. Second grade."
Li Tongya picked up another slip and read: "Lixia Secret Codex." He scanned a few lines, and delight broke across his face. "This codex records all manner of cultivation knowledge — the power structure of Lixia Prefecture, the trading markets of independent cultivators. This is exactly what we need."
Li Xiangping took the slip, scanned it, and said thoughtfully: "So techniques are graded from one to nine — first grade the lowest, ninth the highest. Pills, artifacts, and techniques correspond to cultivation realms. I wonder what grade our family's technique is."
Seeing his brother absorbed in the codex, Li Tongya picked up the pale jade seal Si Yuanbai had left and channeled his spiritual power into it.
"Under Qingchi Governance."
Golden characters floated up from the seal's face, then faded. In their place, a bright white "Li" character appeared, accompanied by a small map.
"Lijing Village, Lichuan Pass, Jingyang Village, Lidaokou." Li Mutian squinted and read the names aloud. These four villages were the settlements along the Ancient Li Road at the foot of Greater Li Mountain that Si Yuanbai had mentioned.
"With the Qingchi Immortal Sect as our backer, the Li family has the strength to step into the open. No more hiding. We'll build our power properly." Li Mutian's voice carried a quiet steel.
"These villages belong to the Li family now." Li Xiangping, still reading, looked up. His expression was calm. "We begin tomorrow night."
Chen Erniu rose early and saw the Li family's tenants darting through the village like fish, going door to door gathering people.
"Auntie Li! Tell your son — after the fields are done tonight, come to the back of the village. Uncle Tian has important business!"
"Ah, right away!"
"Brother Liu! The Li family requests your presence..."
The village was in an uproar — chickens scattering, dogs barking. Everyone's belly churned with curiosity. Chen Erniu could barely wait. The moment he finished eating, he hurried to the village meeting ground.
The Li family was one of the two most powerful households in the village, and their pull was strong. Chen Erniu looked around and saw that every family, large and small, had come. Even Xu Wenshan, the refugee leader from years ago, stood respectfully behind Li Xiangping.
"Damn it, I'm late." Chen Erniu muttered under his breath. Xu Wenshan had since become a Li family tenant — smooth-tongued and shrewd, he had gathered a dozen-odd refugee families under his wing and quietly supplanted Chen Erniu as the head of the tenants. It made Chen Erniu's teeth grind.
Looking around, Chen Erniu noticed Li Mutian was absent. Li Xiangping stepped forward with a measured smile. "I apologize for disturbing everyone. I have good news to share."
The crowd fell silent, every ear straining. Li Xiangping continued: "Last night, an immortal from the Qingchi Immortal Sect passed through our village. He saw that my brother Li Chijing possessed exceptional talent and has taken him to the immortal mountain to study immortal arts."
The announcement struck the crowd like a boulder hurled into a still pond. Every face went blank with shock. They stared at Li Xiangping as though he were telling a fairy tale.
"Congratulations," said Han Wenxu, the village schoolteacher, with a long sigh. He was the first to offer his blessing.
Han Wenxu had come from the city and seen much of the world. When he heard "Qingchi Immortal Sect," he understood — Li Chijing must possess a spiritual aperture, and a cultivator from the Qingchi Sect had taken him away.
"Every person's fate is their own," Han Wenxu murmured. Then, louder, for Li Xiangping's benefit: "For Chijing to enter the immortal sect is a blessing upon the entire village."
Han Wenxu had lived in the village for twenty years, practicing medicine and teaching. He was the village's unquestioned authority. When he spoke, Li Xiangping's claim gained a measure of credibility. The villagers buzzed, whispering among themselves.
Li Xiangping's expression remained composed. He produced the jade seal and channeled spiritual power through it. Four golden characters blazed forth: "Under Qingchi Governance."
"Almighty immortal!" The crowd erupted. People dropped to their knees and kowtowed, crying out in awe. Even Chen Erniu started, staring with wide, disbelieving eyes.
Li Xiangping watched the "Li" character finish forming, then withdrew the seal and addressed the kneeling crowd. "The immortal also bestowed immortal techniques and commanded the Li family to govern and protect Lijing Village, Lichuan Pass, Jingyang Village, and Lidaokou."
He squeezed his palm, and brilliant golden light flared between his fingers. With a flick of his wrist, the light shot forth with a howling roar and plunged into the distant forested mountains. A muffled explosion echoed back, sending flocks of birds spiraling into the sky.
This single display of the Golden Light Art brought the entire crowd to its knees. Even Liu Linfeng, head of the Liu family, dropped to the ground, staring up at Li Xiangping in dazed wonder.
"There is no need for this, friends and neighbors. Xiangping does not deserve such reverence." He looked down at the kneeling villagers, standing perfectly still, and spoke softly.
Chen Erniu pressed his forehead to the dirt, his mind a tempest. Four words echoed in his skull: *The world is about to change.*
Li Tongya walked slowly out of Lichuan Pass. Behind him, Li Yesheng held a bolt of cloth in one hand and a charcoal pencil in the other, awkwardly recording notes.
"Lichuan Pass suffered through that great drought over twenty years ago and never recovered. Barely a hundred households remain. A tragedy," Li Tongya said, glancing back at his companion.
"Brother, we've cleared out the powerful families in Lichuan Pass and redistributed the land. The villagers have no rent to pay anymore — a ten-percent land tax is easy to manage," Li Yesheng replied respectfully. He tucked the pencil away, passed the cloth to a villager following behind, and bowed. "But we need to appoint someone to manage the place. The Li family's direct and branch lines are stretched thin — we haven't a single literate person to spare."
"Don't worry about that." Li Tongya waved his hand. Under Li Yesheng's envious gaze, he pinched a seal and cast the Robe-Cleansing Art, whisking the dust from his clothes. "Father and Xiangping will make the arrangements."