"Ancestor."
The Twin Serpent Seal hovered before him, and the Spirit Qi of Heaven and Earth had already entered his body, yet Li Dalong's brow remained furrowed in worry.
He stared at the Human Emperor's Imperial Decree, at a complete loss.
As long as he was willing to accept it, he would be the Lord of Eternal Sun Prefecture, and his cultivation would instantly break through to the Mid-stage of Divinity Transformation.
But the Human Emperor's rewards not only exceeded the two powerful ministers' expectations, they also surpassed the Li family's.
Never mind becoming Prefecture Lord, Li Dalong had never even considered becoming something like a Region Prince.
He had seen many, many high officials and felt an incomparable repulsion in his heart.
But... could he truly escape it?
Li Dalong looked towards his clansmen.
The Li family members, held aloft by the Old Tree, all gazed at Li Dalong, their eyes resolute.
The Old Ancestor's spirit tablet began to glow.
From his clansmen's eyes, he saw desire.
Even Cuihua, who had once been so indifferent to fame and fortune, was now nodding at him in encouragement.
This was different from Li Dalong's own vision.
He wanted to return to the past; he had thought that once this affair was concluded, he and his clansmen could live in seclusion in Azure Cloud, in Merit City, asking nothing of worldly affairs, just like the Heavenly Light Sect.
But when he saw the spirit tablets of the children upon the Old Tree behind his clansmen, Li Dalong understood.
No matter what plans the Human Emperor had, he should accept the position of Prefecture Lord.
His clansmen were all watching him.
He had to strive upwards, for they had always been at the foot of the mountain.
Only by climbing higher could they eliminate the dangers on the mountain for their descendants, and prevent the great boulders on the high slopes from rolling down and crushing them.
And if there was a loose boulder on the mountain, then...
Move it!
To hell with the Prefecture Lord!
To hell with Min Youguo and Lin Jiu!
To hell with the Human Emperor!
"Li Dalong, are you still not going to receive the decree?"
Min Youguo's voice rang out once more, interrupting Li Dalong's thoughts.
He slowly looked towards Min Youguo and Lin Jiu.
He let out a long breath, then accepted the Twin Serpent Seal, his jaw clenched tightly as he received the Heavenly Dao's bestowed technique.
In an instant, his cultivation base began to rise, the power of the Heavenly Dao coursing through his body!
"Your subject, Li Dalong, receives this decree!"
"I thank His Majesty for his profound grace!"
As Li Dalong bowed, all the members of the Li family bowed as well.
"We thank His Majesty for his profound grace!"
The yellow-gold radiance surged, and Li Dalong's aura skyrocketed.
The Twin Serpent Seal landed in his hand, and in the sky, two great serpents rose, entwined with each other as they soared into the air.
Everyone from the Azure Cloud Region was cheering; only the cultivators of Eternal Sun Prefecture had hearts like dead ash.
They knew that the Azure Dynasty now had one more true Immortal Clan Aristocratic House, and that a Prefecture Lord had emerged from the Azure Cloud Region!
Li Wei's panel flickered continuously.
[Your descendant, Li Dalong, has received the Human Emperor's reward and obtained the identity 'Lord of Eternal Sun Prefecture.'
By the grace of the Heavenly Dao's bestowed technique, he has broken through to the Mid-stage of Divinity Transformation.
He has acquired the Earth-rank Official Dao Technique: Hell-Suppressing Heavenly Jade Formation.
He can use the Official Seal to summon the Spirit Qi of Heaven and Earth to form a Formation.
Within this Formation, numerous Gates of the Underworld will open, allowing him to summon Nether Spirits to fight on his behalf.]
[Received Heavenly Dao Prefecture Lord's Official Seal 'Righteous Qi Twin Serpents,' a mid-grade Dharma Treasure.
Can summon the Righteous Qi Twin Serpents to act as one's left and right arms.
Anyone bitten by the twin serpents will be marked with the 'Righteous Qi Killing Seal'.
If the invading Righteous Qi is too strong and the seal cannot be removed, the victim is guaranteed to die, though the exact time of death may vary.
Depending on the target's cultivation level and how deeply the seal has taken root, death may come in up to a hundred years.]
[Your descendant, Li Dalong, has had an epiphany. Upon accepting the position of Prefecture Lord, he has acquired the Trait: Mountain Climber.]
[Only by climbing the mountains and crossing the ridges can one find the bright light. The higher his position and the greater his authority, the stronger his combat power!]
"Mountain Climber?"
Seeing the trait that had suddenly appeared for Li Dalong, Li Wei was stunned.
He truly couldn't figure out when Li Dalong had gone off to climb a mountain behind his back.
But seeing the phrase "the higher his position and the greater his authority," he seemed to have an epiphany of his own.
He stared intently at the silent Grand Tutor before him, and at that hypocritical Imperial Preceptor.
"No wonder so many people love power and are willing to risk their lives for it."
Li Wei smiled.
Now, the Li family had it.
They had once detested these powerful ministers, but now, they were going to become powerful ministers themselves!
With a single imperial decree from the Human Emperor, Min Youguo and Lin Jiu could only watch with wide eyes as their Li family devoured Tian Xing bit by bit, and these two high-and-mighty existences were completely powerless to stop it!
[Your descendant, Li Kuanghua, by absorbing the power of a Tian Xing avatar, has obtained the special constitution: Asura Body.
Physical strength and recovery speed are enhanced.]
[From the Rank-5 spirit object 'Qilin Crystal,' She (Li Kuanghua) has obtained a drop of Qilin blood and acquired the 'Qilin's Heart.'
The Qilin's Heart contains the effect of Blood of Recovery, which restores physical damage.]
[Li Kuanghua has absorbed a massive amount of cultivation base. The cultivation base is now stored within the Qilin's Heart.]
...
[Your descendant, Li Kuangren, has received an inheritance of Tian Xing's techniques.
He has acquired the Earth-rank technique: Nine Cauldrons True Words.
He can use the Qi of Heaven and Earth to forge Nine Cauldrons; when the words are spoken, the cauldrons act.
This is a technique of the Kingly Way; for one who speaks with the Nine Cauldrons, the might of their techniques can reach the Heaven-rank.]
[Having obtained a massive amount of cultivation base, Li Kuangren has broken through to the peak of the Nascent Soul realm.]
...
[Your descendant, Li Yaowen, has obtained a massive amount of power. Having glimpsed Tian Xing's attempt to break through to the Void Refining realm, she has gained new enlightenment in the volume of her Classic of the World.]
[For using fate techniques to seize Tian Xing's techniques, has acquired the Trait: Fate-Teaser.]
[Comprehension of fate techniques +5%]
...
[Your descendant...]
One by one, descendant after descendant grew stronger, until at the very end, the power of the Tian Xing avatars was completely drained.
The descendants of the Li family also finished their lightning tribulations.
With the exception of Li Changsheng, who still possessed a mortal body, every Li family member present was now above the Nascent Soul realm!
The flow of life essence from the common people across the Azure Dynasty also ceased, for with Tian Xing's capture by the Li family, cultivators everywhere had destroyed those spiritual arrays.
The people of Eternal Sun Prefecture were still watching.
The Grand Tutor and Lin Jiu were still there.
"Old Tree! Old Flood Dragon!"
As Li Dalong's voice fell.
The Old Tree abruptly drained the blood from all the Tian Xing avatars, its branches and leaves growing ever more lush and vibrant.
Upon the Old Tree's massive trunk, a pitch-black grotto suddenly appeared, opening towards Tian Xing.
This man, who had shaken the entire Azure Dynasty, did not struggle in the slightest, remaining dejectedly motionless.
Perhaps knowing the Li family would never let him go, he left behind only a long sigh and allowed the Old Tree to pull him inside, plunging him into endless darkness.
The giant red tree swayed. One by one, the corpses of the Tian Xing avatars were tossed by the Old Tree into Old Flood Dragon's cavernous, bloody maw, causing Old Flood Dragon to let out a long, ecstatic roar as it circled the tree.
Then, under the light of dawn.
The people of Eternal Sun Prefecture saw Li Dalong, this newly promoted powerful minister, lead three of the Li family's "children" towards Grand Tutor Lin Jiu and Imperial Preceptor Min Youguo, and together, they all headed towards the Imperial Capital.
That Jiang Region Prince, Jiang Chenghuan, walked back to the ranks of the people from Azure Cloud and cupped his hands in salute to the crowd.
"Everyone," he declared, "This Eternal Sun Prefecture... is now ours."
Amidst the beast-like cheers of the people from Azure Cloud, the remaining members of the Li family, along with the red leaves floating in the sky above Qilin Mountain, drifted away with the wind under the morning light, their destination unknown.
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