Family Cultivation: I Become a Mirror-Chapter 97 - 96 Loss
Mu Jiaoman and his party chased after them, red-faced with embarrassment, for over a dozen breaths, cursing loudly until they finally stopped and retreated, grumbling all the way back.
Li Tongya even had the leisure to turn his head and watch as Mu Jiaoman and his group left. The corner of his mouth slightly curved up. His mana had only circulated for a single cycle and the minor discomfort brought on by the sorcery disappeared. After pondering with his head clouded like fog, he could only conclude that the Shanyue leader's lack of skill was an embarrassment.
After regulating his breathing to recover his mana, Li Tongya returned to gliding close to the ground, the River Essence Qi he had consumed in his Sea of Qi Acupoint roiling continuously, making him feel light as a feather, feet barely touching the ground.
"Let's head back first to see if we can find any trace of the two children. If not, we might have to infiltrate their camp to look," he murmured.
Searching closely along the ground and flying slowly for half an hour, Li Tongya finally relaxed as he came within the range of his Spiritual Sense and spotted the dirty figures of Li Xuanling and his company.
Li Xuanling was holding Li Jingtian, with mana applied to his legs, emitting a faint white glow as he peered around cautiously in the forest, moving effortlessly through a thicket of trees and bushes, but they were moving so hastily they were covered in mud and water.
The child had not headed directly towards Lijing Mountain in the east, fearing he would run into Mu Jiaoman and his fruitless chasers, so he deliberately took a longer route which made it take a while for Li Tongya to find them.
Gently landing in front of Li Xuanling, Li Tongya watched the two with a smiling gaze that caused Li Xuanling to stare back blankly, his eyes reddening.
After several days of fleeing and being enslaved, even coming to the brink of life and death, Li Xuanling's heart was filled with pent-up grievances. Putting down the sobbing Li Jingtian, Li Xuanling choked up and called out:
"Dad!"
Li Tongya's heart clenched, and he quickly embraced him, saying softly,
"It's alright now... "
"It was us, your elders, who didn't do well and let you suffer."
Li Tongya sighed softly, and picking up one child in each arm, he leapt into the air and gently explained:
"That Ganixi is indeed a character, pushing our family to such a sorry state, and your uncle has had his retreat cut off, forced to flee to the west, with no word from him now."
As he remembered the cold "Bide Our Time" carved onto the Jade Seal of the Green Pond Sect, Li Tongya looked up into the darkening night sky and whispered,
"We still need to become stronger."
"Dad, I heard that the Family Head has entered deep into Shanyue territory, have you received any news?"
Li Xuanling, wiping away his tears yet still remembering the news he'd heard, asked repeatedly.
Li Tongya's expression froze momentarily before he reassured,
"Don't worry, your uncle will turn peril into safety."
————
When Li Tongya returned to Lijing Mountain, Li Xuanfeng was still in closed cultivation, while Li Xuanxuan had already organized the affairs of several villages, marshaling two to three hundred clan soldiers to maintain order.
Having just put the two children down, Li Xuanling dutifully went to the backyard to release the Dharma Mirror, while Li Jingtian, worn out from the many days of turmoil, went to a side courtyard to inform his mother, the Tian Clan, and to rest after cleaning himself up.
Li Xuanxuan also breathed a sigh of relief upon seeing the two children, but immediately inquired about Li Xiangping. Li Xuanling relayed the news he had gathered, leaving Li Tongya and her silent.
Suddenly remembering the "Evading Death and Extending Life" that Li Xiangping endured, Li Tongya felt slightly relieved and said solemnly,
"Let's not worry about Xiangping for now. Has the Misty Maze Array been repaired, and have the Formation Flags been retrieved?"
Li Xuanxuan hastily brought out three Formation Flags and said respectfully,
"As soon as the Great Formation broke, those six Formation Flags appeared scattered throughout the mountains. I've only recovered three; the rest must have been picked up by the Shanyue."
"This time, five Spiritual Fields were ravaged, losing over three hundred jin of Spirit Rice and a dozen Spirit Fruit. Those damaged Spiritual Fields have been replanted, and after calculating, our losses amount to around twenty Spirit Stones."
Li Tongya nodded and noticed Li Xuanxuan's anxious tone as she spoke:
"However, with the Misty Maze Array broken by Ganixi, Lijing Mountain has now lost its protection, and we have no other formations."
"What did Wan Tianchou say?"
Li Tongya collected the three Formation Flags and placed them into his Storage Bag, asking softly.
"This fellow's knowledge of the arts is insufficient, having learned only two of the Wan Family's many array formations, namely the Concealment Formation and the Defensive Formation, both of which are minor formations at the Fetal Breathing Realm and cannot serve as Mountain Protection Arrays."
Li Xuanxuan shook his head, answering with some disappointment.
Upon hearing this, Li Tongya pondered for a few moments and responded with a heavy voice,
"The calamity that befell Lijing Mountain this time was largely due to insufficient array formations. You should set up some minor formations first to prevent mortals from wandering up here. In a few years, I will gather a portion of River Essence Qi. If Xiangping has not returned by then, we can sell it and ask the people of the Xiao Family in the county to see if they can set up an array formation for the Qi Cultivation Stage."
"This..."
Li Xuanxuan looked troubled and spoke in a low voice,
"That would waste the time you need for cultivation to condense this Qi..."
"It is of no concern."
Li Tongya shook his head and replied,
"None of you have broken through to the fifth layer of the Fetal Breathing Realm to give birth to Spiritual Sense, so you cannot gather this Qi. Even if you had Spiritual Sense, it would still be very slow for someone at the Fetal Breathing Realm to gather this Qi, possibly taking up to eight to ten years, which would end up wasting more time."
"It's a pity that nature's Spiritual Energy is so demanding that it would barely condense a portion from such a large expanse of reeds in five years."
Seeing Li Xuanxuan nod, Li Tongya continued,
"Moreover, now that someone from the Li Family has broken through in Qi Cultivation, the Green Pond Sect will likely send down higher-grade Spiritual Object seeds and alter the Tribute."
Li Xuanxuan hesitated for a while before asking,
"By doing this, our Li Family will have to offer more in Tributes, right? I am not sure if it can be concealed..."
"There's no need for that."
Li Tongya shook his head and replied,
"It's just a matter of another two or three decades. Sooner or later, our actions in combating enemies and hunting demons will be exposed. There's no point in needlessly offending the Green Pond Sect. Although the Green Pond Sect appears unconcerned as they foster various families each year, it is still better to be cautious. The Green Pond Sect is unpredictable and we must be wary of them."
"The Green Pond Sect treats us no better than cattle and sheep!"
A vigorous youthful voice could be heard. Li Xuanfeng walked into the room radiating with spirited energy, a smile on his face. Upon a sweep from Li Tongya's Spiritual Sense, he immediately smiled and said,
"Have you broken through?"
Li Xuanfeng nodded and replied,
"I've broken through to the fifth layer of Fetal Breathing and have formed the Yujing Wheel! This Spiritual Sense is indeed different, truly amazing."
Li Xuanxuan laughed out of envy, offering his sincere congratulations.
Li Xuanfeng shook his head, his mind still preoccupied with Li Xiangping, without showing too much joy. Lifting the longbow in his hand, he said with a deep voice,
"I'm going to hunt some demons in the surroundings to contribute some supplies to the family."
"Don't venture too deep,"
Li Tongya cautioned him. While Li Xuanfeng was capable of killing a few demons on the fringes of Da Li Mountain without much issue, Li Tongya was still concerned about his possible injury.
Watching Li Xuanfeng nod and leave, Li Tongya's gaze rested on Li Xuanxuan and he spoke softly,
"You too should not neglect your Cultivation, achieving Qi Cultivation as soon as possible will put my mind at ease."
"Yes!"
Li Xuanxuan nodded firmly, then from outside the courtyard came an announcement,
"Young Master! A visitor has arrived from the town, claiming to be from the Lu Family of the distant clouds to the east!"
