The Great Forest, Jade Dragon Fall
After Li Jing, Li Yuxong, and others left.
"How long do you want to keep hugging, dear husband? We shouldn't get too close before our marriage!"
Li Gang instantly retracted his hands.
Wang Xueyao narrowed her eyes. "Did you think I would kill them?"
Li Gang looked at her and replied, "No. You won't, but I don't want to take risks."
Wang Xueyao mocked, "You really love your family. Are you aware of him?"
Li Gang looked at her deeply.
"Is it about the dual Spiritual Imprint?"
Wang Xueyao looked at him and replied, "Yes, he possesses a second Spiritual Imprint. Rank 9 Warp Walker."
Li Gang looked at her and smiled.
Wang Xueyao saw his expression, immediately guessed what he was thinking, and poured cold water on it.
"Dear husband, I only told you this because any person with a dual Spiritual Imprint is as much a genius as a person with a Special Ability. They also possess extraordinary intuition against dangerous situations. He should already be aware that I am very strong."
Li Gang immediately turned serious.
'She is threatening me. She means she could very well kill me and ally with Li Yuxong instead since he has more potential than me. But this threat is just a warning not to go overboard again like I did earlier. She wouldn't ally with someone like Li Yuxong. She could use him as a tool for the short term, but he isn't suitable for long-term planning. He is too righteous and prideful in nature and wouldn't blindly follow her commands at all.'
Li Gang nodded. "I will bear it in mind."
Wang Xueyao smiled and came closer. "If you do what I say, I will give you a beautiful gift on our wedding night."
After saying this, she disappeared as if she had never existed there.
Li Gang broke into a cold sweat. He realized the horror of Wang Xueyao. Her acting was flawless. She could blend into any character she wished—flirtatious, cold and arrogant, shy little girl, ethereal, innocent-faced, and so on. He couldn't even keep up with her constant changes.
'She is too dangerous. But I can use her to carve my path. Being with her is both dangerous and also the safest choice.'
His thoughts were straightforward. If he stays by her side, then there would be no other threat to him beside her. And, he can understand her thoroughly while staying beside her.
Thinking so, he started returning home.
As he was going, someone stopped him on his way.
"She is very dangerous," Li Yuxong said seriously.
Li Gang looked at him indifferently, as if waiting for him to continue.
"Wang Xueyao is very dangerous. She is very strong, big brother," Li Yuxong repeated.
Li Gang looked at him and said coldly, "You better keep that to yourself. If I hear this spread, I will make sure your dual Spiritual Imprint becomes known throughout the region."
Li Yuxong's heart shook. It was his biggest secret.
"How did you know?"
Li Gang looked at him deeply and said indifferently, "Do you think you can hide it from me? You are too naive if you think you can hide something like a Rank 9 Spiritual Imprint!"
Li Yuxong was shocked. "Why? You know Wang Xueyao is dangerous, right? You have always been very good at judging people. Others may not know, but I know it. I'm only saying this for you. I know you might like her, but she really is dangerous."
"You don't have to worry about my affairs. You better cultivate properly. Otherwise, I might surpass you even in cultivation."
Li Yuxong didn't dare to question his words. He had never seen Li Gang boast. Whatever he said, he always achieved.
He still remembered that day, five years ago.
Li Minghui was coldly reprimanding Li Gang for his various poison experiments when he found out.
Li Gang didn't even care about his reprimands and said coldly,
"You mind your own business, and I will mind mine. Don't try to come in my way, because you are not capable enough to stop me."
Li Minghui looked at him deeply and said, "Within three years, I will crush your pride and arrogance. And Li Yuxong will be the one to do that."
Li Gang looked at the little kid standing behind his father.
He looked back at his father and said with disdain, "You better not try anything funny, otherwise I will crush your dream of making a great Village Head."
When Li Yuxong thought of those lines, he clenched his fist. Everyone thought I was a genius, but I realized that day big brother was even more of a genius. No, he was a monster. With just D-grade aptitude, he reached Rank 1 Warrior before me. When we fought, I was a bit stronger than him, but his methods were devious.
Li Yuxong knew his temperament had changed after their fight later on. He no longer possessed as much confidence as before. Even other higher-ups now said he was no longer suitable for the Village Head's throne.
'I will defeat you sooner or later. And I will prove to them that I am worthy of their expectations.'
Li Gang didn't know about Li Yuxong's thoughts at this moment. Even if he did, he wouldn't bother about it.
He walked ahead.
As soon as he reached Li Mansion, he directly went to his father's room.
Li Minghui was sitting at a table, looking over various scrolls, when he suddenly heard a knock.
Hearing the pattern of the knock, he knew it was Li Gang. Everyone's knocking style was unique, and even an ordinary person could judge one or two.
"Come in."
Li Gang slowly entered the room and bowed respectfully. "Father."
Li Minghui looked at his son and nodded. He liked Li Gang's character, and he wished Li Yuxong could learn one or two things from him. The only thing he didn't like was his rebellious nature.
He asked, "You are going to the Inheritance?"
Li Gang replied, "Yes."
Li Minghui said, "I want you to help the Li family members with some chores."
Li Gang looked at him and said, "Can I refuse?"
Li Minghui immediately frowned. "Why?"
Li Gang said, "Wang Xueyao is also going. I want to accompany her. She personally invited me yesterday."
Li Minghui frowned. 'This was a bit unexpected. They did say he met with her, and he was even intimately hugging her when they found them.'
Li Gang had deliberately hugged Wang Xueyao back then. He had guessed what they came for, and immediately thought of using her to discard this 'opportunity'.
Li Minghui couldn't reject them, or they would think Li Gang had no freedom. Wang Jinlong might even cancel the marriage using this excuse. He had already obtained half of the promised Spiritual Mine as dowry and he isn't righteous enough to return them back.
Li Minghui sighed. "Okay, you can do as you wish. But take Li Ming and Li Cheng with you."
Li Ming was also a Rank 2 Warrior in the early stage. Li Cheng was the tutor assigned to Li Ming, and also served as his protector until he reached Rank 4. Li Cheng was a middle-aged man at the late stage of Rank 4. He was already around 90 years old.
In this world, Mortals live for 100 years, and Warriors live for thousands of years!
Beginner Warriors:
Rank 1 Warrior: 100–120 years
Rank 2 Warrior: 140–160 years
Rank 3 Warrior: 180–200 years
Intermediate Warriors:
Rank 4 Warrior: 250–300 years
Rank 5 Warrior: 350–400 years
Rank 6 Warrior: 450–500 years
Advanced Warriors:
Rank 7 Warrior: 900–1000 years
Rank 8 Warrior: 2000–3000 years
Rank 9 Warrior: 5000–10000 years
This also showed the difficulty of improving in later stages. As one advanced through the ranks, the difficulty increased drastically!
Mountainview Village had been dominating Azure Mountain for over 700 years, but in the last 40–50 years, with the rise of the twin stars Li Minghui and Li Hao, Tranquil Vale Village reached the level of Mountainview Village. But the accumulation of the Li family was far from comparable to the Wang family.
Be it Li Hao, Li Minghui, or even Song Yunlan, they were all over 100!
Li Cheng was around 90 years old. He was very experienced. With age, people became cowardly and shrewd.
Li Gang looked at his father and thought, 'He still cares for me. That's to be expected since I am his son. His responsibility toward the Village and his firm attitude keep him from showing affection. This should be the same for Li Yuxong. It's a pity I can't accept this favor.'
Li Gang nodded, bowed, and left.
As soon as he came out, he saw Li Hao coming.
Li Hao looked at Li Gang and said with a meaningful smile, "I hope you take care of Li Ming on the way."
Li Gang looked at him deeply and said, "Remind Li Ming to suppress his overconfidence and take care of his attitude. Otherwise, he might accidentally offend an Intermediate Warrior! Even if I wish, I won't be able to save him then. He could easily mistake poisonous fruit for something edible in the forest.."
Li Hao narrowed his eyes. "Are you threatening me?"
Li Gang looked at him innocently. "What do you mean, Uncle Hao? I'm doing it for Elder Brother Ming's sake. You know, the Wang family and Li family have been enemies all these years. Suddenly traveling with them might be dangerous!"
Li Hao looked at him coldly, snorted, and walked ahead.
Li Gang looked at his back and smiled coldly. 'Don't think I am not aware of why Li Ming is going with me. It must be your idea, old fox. You are not satisfied with my earlier answer, so you are sending Li Cheng to monitor me. Li Ming is just a lustful idiot who thinks about girls all day long. He wouldn't even understand why you put him with us. You must have enticed him with Wang Xueyao's or Wang Xiaoyan's beauty, but this is the most dangerous plan you've ever made. And I have no intention of going along with it.'
Li Gang started walking back to his room to prepare for the upcoming Inheritance.
The Monarch Inheritance would open within a week! He had already trained sufficiently. Now, he needed to give his body a rest to consolidate. He couldn't go in an exhausted state! He could use this time to think about his further plans.
At the same time, somewhere in Wang Mansion—
Wang Xueyao was looking at the sky. Her eyes were as dark as an abyss.
"Didn't they say that Wanderers are low in intelligence? And they also possess Special Abilities," Wang Xueyao murmured in a voice that only she could hear.
"This level of understanding is usually only possessed by Rank 7s and Rank 8s, and that too because of their high thinking speed. This is also why I didn't reveal my strength—so that I wouldn't be noticed before I reached their level. It is very likely he possesses a Special Ability that helps in deduction. If that were true, then even his terrible acting might have been part of his act! But I don't believe he has reached that stage, after all, he is still in his early stage with no real-life experience."
Wang Xueyao thought of something.
"Either way, it is better to make him an ally through marriage. Even if I give myself to him, my 'True Self' is unattainable—after all, I am just a 'temporary' existence! I will also obtain a potentially strong 'pawn' without losing anything, which will be crucial in the upcoming war!"
She glanced at a red thread in her hand and smiled faintly.
"Marriage is less about trust, love, or faith, and more about fate—the weaving of two paths into a single thread."