Chapter 54: The Aunt's Imminent Arrival

Du Muqin did not bring up seizing food from the tiger’s mouth again.

As they traded compliments, she gave Li Ji’an plenty of reassurance. Her manner was poised and measured, and she guided their conversation along easy, pleasant paths. She touched on nothing that might make him uncomfortable, and made no attempt to pry into his secrets or test his limits.

They talked with the ease of old friends.

At the end, she even admitted that the value of the Essence-Forging Pills he had made this time exceeded that of the tendon-and-bone elixirs she had provided before. She offered either to make up the difference in spirit stones or to give him another treatment.

Li Ji’an had already said he would accept no spirit stones, so in the end he accepted another cleansing of his sinews and bones.

It felt wonderful.

It even gave his body-refining cultivation a modest boost.

After taking leave of Du Muqin, Li Ji’an returned to the Li residence and reflected on her conduct that day. He soon guessed what was on her mind.

“As one would expect of an expert in the heart and soul—her mind is no ordinary one.”

Though she clearly saw that the situation was on the verge of chaos, and wanted to seize an opportunity for herself, the more urgent things became, the more she managed to keep her composure.

A musician’s art appeared to be the shaping of sound waves from magical power. In truth, it was the use of the soul—not to affect the sea of consciousness, but the heart.

Li Ji’an could not tell whether she had practiced any secret arts involving the soul.

Half a year earlier, he had used his spiritual sense to glimpse her true face. Yet even with spiritual sense comparable to that of a late-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator, he had been unable to see through that thin veil.

He could not tell whether the reason lay in her soul or whether the veil itself was a rare treasure that warded off spiritual probing.

“Looking at it this way, she is certainly no reckless fool… Which means that what she said six months ago was probably not entirely true.”

After pondering for a moment, Li Ji’an suddenly understood.

If she really was like the other rogue cultivators, coveting the gains of the Azure Cloud Sect and hoping to snatch them from under its nose, that would have been extraordinarily foolish.

In the half year they had known one another, Li Ji’an had already seen that she was gentle on the outside, steely within, and remarkably perceptive.

Would someone like her be swayed by rumors like an ordinary rogue cultivator without being absolutely certain of her chances?

“Could she know of some place where there’s an opportunity worth taking a risk for?”

At once, Li Ji’an saw things clearly.

But why seek me out?

The next moment, his own assessment of himself won out.

In the eyes of others, he was now just as Physician Bai had said: not strong enough in battle, and still in need of protection.

Apart from Du Muqin’s claim that he was young and had a chance of reaching Core Formation, he could offer her little help in seeking an opportunity. He might even be a burden.

“A decoy to draw attention?” For now, that seemed to be the only possibility.

Li Ji’an gave a self-mocking smile, tinged with helplessness.

——

As more and more people arrived from the Immortal City, visitors to the central district where Li Ji’an lived grew steadily more numerous.

People came seeking pills, magical artifacts, puppets… and an increasing number of Foundation Establishment cultivators.

The businesses of the Hua, Li, and Gou residences were especially brisk.

Faced with more pill requests than he could handle, Li Ji’an had no choice but to say that his time and energy were limited and he could refine no more than ten batches a month. He left the many petitioners to settle among themselves on the order and number of places.

As expected, they ended up bidding for a place in line.

At first, when a petitioner supplied the medicinal ingredients, he charged only twenty percent of the pills’ value as his fee. In just a few days, those people had driven the minimum up to fifty percent.

A few were so desperate that they willingly bid the fee for a single batch up to twice the pills’ market price.

That batch was a second-tier Soulflight Pill, which could temporarily strengthen one’s spiritual sense and dispel illusions, protecting the user from the effects of illusion arts.

Pills related to the soul were rare to begin with, and the merchant guilds in the Immortal City had run out of stock. Nearly all the available supplies had been snapped up.

In just three months, Li Ji’an earned more than he normally would in three years—and, quite reasonably, kept several kinds of rare medicinal ingredients for himself as payment.

Most of the pills he refined during that period were useful for exploring ruins, strengthening combat prowess, or guarding against danger.

Three months later, people were still streaming to his residence to request pills. Across the street, visitors to the Bai residence were also beginning to arrive in greater numbers.

More and more people were injured.

More and more were buying detoxification pills.

At the same time, under Li Ji’an’s probing spiritual sense, the number of unfamiliar Foundation Establishment rogue cultivators kept growing.

Compared with the local clan cultivators of Cangyun Province, these newcomers shared one trait: they were poor.

Half a year passed in a flash.

“Uncle Li, the screening formation is ready. There are two layers, one inside and one outside.” That day, just after Li Ji’an had seen off two clients seeking pills, Xiao Qiao reported back, looking rather tired.

Over the past two years, since Xiao Qiao had begun setting up formations herself, her progress had been swift.

Just as Li Ji’an did not rely on his own magical power when refining pills, Xiao Qiao did not need to use her own power to inscribe the formation patterns. She only had to place the formation bases and nodes in the proper positions, and the spiritual energy of the earth would flow in on its own.

As a result, her skill in formations could no longer be measured by her cultivation level.

In only a few years, she had become proficient at setting up late first-tier formations. She could even apply what she had learned in new ways, without needing to follow a formation diagram step by step.

The screening formation she had set up this time was her own insight: two layers of formations working together. Its effect was even better than the second-tier screening formation Master Qian had constructed.

“Not bad. A Foundation Establishment cultivator in the early stage won’t be able to see through it. You’ve worked hard.” Li Ji’an tested it briefly and gave Xiao Qiao a thumbs-up.

Her talent for formations was extraordinary. The only thing he could not understand was the strange way she sensed the earth. What exactly was it—and could it grow stronger?

If it could not, then her ability with formations would be capped at the first tier.

Xiao Qiao smiled, relieved. “Being able to help you is the greatest happiness I could ask for.”

“Silly girl. Go and get some proper rest. Leave everything else to me.” Li Ji’an nodded and placed a hand on her shoulder, sending a little magical power into her to help her recover.

“Mm.”

Just then, Physician Bai sent word summoning everyone to a gathering.

Over the past year, the eight of them had met several times, sharing intelligence and information as it came in.

Today, only seven had come.

That was also why Physician Bai had called them together.

“Yesterday, someone forced their way through the restrictions at a ruin site sealed off by the Azure Cloud Sect. They killed a sect disciple, and the sect was enraged.”

“Afterward, they found the remains of a destroyed puppet there. Tracing its origins led them to Fellow Daoist Gou.”

Physician Bai was brief and to the point. He told them what he had heard while treating a sect disciple who had summoned him that day.

“Looks like they can’t keep a lid on it any longer.”

“This battle may be what finally sets the whole powder keg alight!”

“The Azure Cloud Sect is bound to make an example of someone.”

…

They all knew the situation of Master Gou, the puppet-maker. They understood the crisis facing the Azure Cloud Sect and the circumstances surrounding it, and knew that he would probably be all right. The real question was whether he could identify the buyers of the puppets he had sold.

Otherwise, he might lose his freedom for quite some time.

Still, for Master Gou, being kept under guard inside the sect might not be a bad thing.

“The rest of you should be largely unaffected. Fellow Daoist Hua, Fellow Daoist Zhou, be especially careful in your dealings. Better safe than sorry. If the Azure Cloud Sect truly loses its temper, anything could happen,” Physician Bai warned them in closing.

“Thank you for the warning, Physician Bai. I’ll keep it in mind.”

“Besides that, five more serious incidents broke out in the city today. They still involved only minor Qi Refining cultivators, but the situation is growing more and more unstable.”

“Hmph. The Qi family has been so timid that many people have already tested the waters and learned their stance. The city will only grow more chaotic from here.”

“We can’t blame the Qi family entirely. Their roots aren’t here, after all. Besides, a great many Foundation Establishment cultivators from Tianyuan Province have arrived in the Immortal City. There’s no guarantee some of them aren’t people the Qi family is unwilling to offend. In short, we’ll have to rely on ourselves.”

——

After returning to the Li residence, Li Ji’an was not too troubled by the disorder in the Immortal City that Physician Bai had described. Those with real strength had already gone to the Great Marsh Mountains.

Those still in the city were either timid and cautious, lacking in strength, or unprepared.

Whichever they were, he had nothing to fear.

Just as he was about to draw another life-saving talisman, his message talisman trembled.

At the message, Li Ji’an’s brows lifted slightly.

“Yan Qingwan is coming to the Immortal City—and she’s even going to guard the ruins.”

Moreover, she had been summoned by her sect.

Every Foundation Establishment clan in Cangyun Province had to send one cultivator. In the Yan family, the old ancestor of the previous generation was too old, while the new Foundation Establishment cultivator was too young. Yan Qingwan had volunteered to shoulder the burden.