The story of the Desolate Nether Ghost King and the existence of Ghost King Ridge dealt a heavy blow to the upper echelons of Qingxiao Sect. After the council meeting ended, every one of them wore a grave expression.
Li Dongyue sat beside Li Qingqiu and said, "Eldest Senior Brother, you shouldn't go out searching for Sifeng anymore. Perhaps he'll return after some time."
Li Sijin followed up, "Exactly. My brother might already be on his way back."
With Li Qingqiu absent, nothing major had happened within Qingxiao Sect, yet they had felt uneasy. Even though the sect had already produced many powerful disciples, his absence left them unsettled.
"Mm. I won't descend the mountain for now," Li Qingqiu nodded.
Afterward, he had Li Dongyue arrange for female disciples to take care of the Prison Qilin. Having lost all 4 limbs, it required dedicated care.
Though the Prison Qilin appeared crippled, Li Qingqiu believed it might not be impossible for it to regain mobility in the future.
He had previously observed that flesh was slowly regenerating at the stumps of its limbs. Perhaps it truly could regrow them.
After all, it was an auspicious beast, not an ordinary wild animal.
Bringing Jin Lang with him, Li Qingqiu returned alone to his cave dwelling. He needed time to restore the vital energy within his body to a full and abundant state.
…
The turmoil caused by the Desolate Nether Ghost King did not spread into Jiuzhou. However, the soldiers at the border of Cangzhou discovered that the Northern Barbarians no longer launched invasions and had even withdrawn completely. When the news reached the prefectural government, the officials were all puzzled.
Even with the Northern Barbarians retreating, the atmosphere in Cangzhou remained tense. As long as Li Sifeng had not returned, Cangzhou could not rest easy. Everyone awaited his return.
Meanwhile, starting from Southern Chu Prefecture, Liu Jing rapidly annexed Yuzhou and Guzhou and continued advancing northward.
Liu Jing's army marched straight ahead, encountering only minor friction and no major battles for the time being. It was as though the hearts of the people across the realm had already turned toward him.
In the days that followed, Qingxiao Sect's Scripture Pavilion added several ghostly Dao spells to its shelves, such as Yin-Yang Eyes, Sensing Ghostly Qi, and Soul-Seizing Hand. These aroused the curiosity of the disciples. More and more of them, through these spells, began to glimpse the existence of souls. It felt as though they had stepped through the gates of a new world, and they were exhilarated. As word spread, even more disciples were drawn to cultivate ghostly Dao spells.
Early August.
Within Lingxiao Courtyard, Li Qingqiu was listening to Chu Jing explain the new ghostly Dao spells he had created.
All the ghostly Dao spells in the Scripture Pavilion had been created by him. The entry threshold was very low, and the names sounded intimidating. In truth, when facing a real evil ghost, much would still depend on one's own cultivation.
Li Qingqiu did not have high requirements for these ghostly Dao spells. They only needed to help disciples perceive the boundary between yin and yang. However, every single spell had to undergo his inspection, and he was responsible for setting the price. After all, only he in the sect was capable of properly evaluating them.
"They're passable. Let's set the price at 1,500 Dao Fate for now," Li Qingqiu said after some thought.
Chu Jing nodded without objection.
He then added, "As for Hall Master Li Sifeng's whereabouts, we are still searching. However, half a month ago, he had already entered the territory of Zhongtian Prefecture. It seems he is heading back to Qingxiao Mountain."
From the moment Li Sifeng entered the territory of Cangzhou, Li Qingqiu had received word. The boy was fairly clever—he had first released a Piercing Cloud Thunder to send a message to Qingxiao Sect's disciples.
It was just unclear what had delayed him, causing his southward journey to be so slow.
His wife, Pei Miao'er, had already returned to Qingxiao Mountain and was personally caring for Li Shouzheng and Li Shoumin. Once Li Sifeng returned, the family would finally be reunited.
It was worth mentioning that Li Shouzheng and Li Shoumin were rather distant toward Pei Miao'er. They preferred Li Qingqiu and Yun Cai and the other 8 women, which often left Pei Miao'er sulking in silence.
The two boys were naturally intelligent and mentally more mature than other children their age. No matter how many kind words Pei Miao'er said, it was difficult to change their feelings.
"Go attend to your duties. Don't forget to cultivate. Sooner or later, you'll have to fight for me," Li Qingqiu said.
Hearing this, Chu Jing immediately assured him that he would not neglect his cultivation before taking his leave.
Not long after Chu Jing left, Xu Ning arrived.
"Master, I wish to descend the mountain for training and find a place with many ghosts to comprehend spells," Xu Ning said solemnly.
Li Qingqiu's remark that she was no match for the Desolate Nether Ghost King had deeply stimulated her. During this period, she had been reflecting on it constantly and had gained some insights. However, within Qingxiao Sect, there were not enough wandering souls for her to test herself against.
Upon hearing this, Li Qingqiu instinctively thought of the Soul-Refining Banner. Yet on second thought, the ghosts within it were all under his control and could hardly simulate a real scenario. Moreover, once he opened that door, what would he do when others came to him in the future?
In these troubled times, there was no shortage of wandering souls and wild ghosts across the world. If Xu Ning could exorcise and eliminate ghosts along the way, that would also be a good deed.
"Do not venture too far," Li Qingqiu instructed.
"Rest assured. I'll remain within Guzhou. If the sect encounters trouble, I can return within at most 2 hours," Xu Ning replied.
"Then go."
Li Qingqiu nodded. Her Heavenly Thunder spiritual root was inherently aligned with thunder. Lightning attributes naturally had a certain restraining effect on ghosts. He believed she could create powerful ghost-slaying spells, which would also benefit the sect.
Xu Ning raised her hand in salute, then directly executed the Art of Sword Control, leaping out of Lingxiao Courtyard and disappearing into the horizon.
Li Qingqiu stood up, preparing to return to his cave dwelling.
He had just taken a step when he suddenly sensed something and sat back down.
Xu Ning had only just left when Jiang Zhaoxia returned—what a coincidence.
While waiting, Li Qingqiu summoned the Dao Lineage panel and began checking the panels of the new disciples.
This year, the number of registered disciples saw an explosive surge, reaching 15,000. The number of menial disciples was even more enormous, and disciples at every realm had increased significantly. This further solidified Qingxiao Sect's rule over Jiuzhou.
The martial world sects no longer posed any threat to Qingxiao Sect. Under such circumstances, it was inevitable that some Qingxiao Sect disciples would bully members of martial world sects, greatly increasing the workload of the Law Enforcement Hall and the Sword Sect.
Even though their loyalty to Li Qingqiu was very high, anyone who made mistakes would still be handled according to sect rules.
Li Qingqiu believed that managing the sect through systems and regulations was better than relying on loyal individuals. Even Zhang Yuchun was subject to checks and balances.
After waiting for a while, Jiang Zhaoxia entered Lingxiao Courtyard.
His steps were quick. He came to the long table, sat down, poured himself a bowl of spirit wine, and drained it in one gulp.
Li Qingqiu chuckled and asked with a smile, "What? Did you gain a lot from this trip down the mountain?"
Jiang Zhaoxia had descended the mountain with Jian Du for training at the beginning of February. It had already been half a year.
Li Qingqiu had arranged for him to go mainly to test whether the [True Dragon in the Mortal World] Fate was truly powerful. Jian Du had merely been an excuse.
He had to persuade Jiang Zhaoxia somehow, since Jiang Zhaoxia had been holding back, eager to catch up to Xu Ning in cultivation.
"There were indeed gains. The most important gain was taking Jian Du as my disciple. The kid is quite good—very much to my liking," Jiang Zhaoxia laughed.
Of course he's to your liking—both of you are foul-tempered sword Dao prodigies who look down on everyone.
In Li Qingqiu's eyes, Jian Du was exactly what Jiang Zhaoxia had been like in his youth.
"That's it?"
Li Qingqiu felt somewhat disappointed and immediately removed the [True Dragon in the Mortal World] Fate from his selection list.
Jiang Zhaoxia was puzzled. Hadn't Eldest Senior Brother always prioritized the sect's development? Now that he had taken Jian Du as a disciple and would certainly cultivate him carefully, Jian Du would undoubtedly become a pillar of the sect in the future. Shouldn't Eldest Senior Brother be pleased?
As if remembering something, Jiang Zhaoxia reached into his storage bag and took out a sheepskin scroll, placing it on the table.
"I picked this up from a river on my way back. It seems to point somewhere. See if it's of any use," Jiang Zhaoxia explained.
Upon hearing this, Li Qingqiu immediately picked up the sheepskin scroll and unfolded it. It was a map, but drawn far too simply, making it difficult to match with any specific location.
He had just frowned and was about to speak when his eyes suddenly narrowed.
Hmm?
The sheepskin scroll actually concealed a restriction—extremely subtle. Even he, a cultivator at the Awakening Spirit realm, had nearly overlooked it.
He immediately sent his divine sense into it and saw a vast map. It displayed mountains and rivers across the land, and to the west there was an extremely brilliant light, as if guiding him toward a destination.
He raised his divine sense higher and discovered that the map was far larger than he had imagined. Although the mountains were not as grand as in reality, it indeed depicted the Taikun Mountain Range, and he himself was currently within that range.
The sensation was strange, as though he had entered a virtual map.
After quite some time, he finally withdrew his divine sense.
Jiang Zhaoxia noticed him blink and asked, "Well?"
"There's more within than meets the eye. It may truly conceal a great opportunity. Third Junior Brother, your luck is truly remarkable," Li Qingqiu praised.
Jiang Zhaoxia laughed. "Yes, come to think of it, I've felt my luck has been unusually good."
"When do you think it started?"
"Since childhood, perhaps. Though there was a period in the middle when I was rather unlucky."
"That makes sense. After meeting your senior brother—me—your luck became exceptionally good."
Jiang Zhaoxia's mouth twitched. He realized he still couldn't outdo Eldest Senior Brother in boasting.
"Alright, I'm going back to cultivate. I've already delayed half a year. Catching up to Xu Ning will be even harder now," Jiang Zhaoxia said as he stood up.
"Ning'er went down the mountain today."
"Really?"
Joy spread across Jiang Zhaoxia's face. He felt quite touched, believing that Eldest Senior Brother had deliberately arranged it this way.
Sure enough, in Eldest Senior Brother's heart, he was more important.
Li Qingqiu gave a reminder, "Since you've taken Jian Du as a disciple, teach him properly. Don't just let him grow on his own."
"I know."
Jiang Zhaoxia waved a hand and turned to leave.
Li Qingqiu looked at the sheepskin scroll on the table. After pondering for a moment, he transmitted his voice to Yuan Qi outside the courtyard, instructing him to summon Mingguang from the Heavenly Works Hall.
Putting aside whatever opportunity the map might point to, the restriction within it alone was worth studying.
Mingguang arrived quickly. He was covered in dust, with multiple charred patches on his robe, emitting a pungent odor. Who knew what he had been tinkering with earlier?
"There is a special restriction hidden within this hide. Take it back and study it. Remember, do not lose it," Li Qingqiu said, pointing at the sheepskin scroll on the table.
Mingguang's cultivation was not high—only at the 3rd layer of the Nurturing Essence realm. That was only because Li Qingqiu had forcefully raised it by feeding him spirit pills.
Fortunately, the Heavenly Works Hall already had many disciples jointly researching formations. Even if Mingguang were to pass away of old age, the sect would still be able to continue developing.
"Understood!"
Mingguang agreed immediately, not even asking about the scroll's origin.
After he left, Li Qingqiu also returned to his cave dwelling.
"The True Dragon in the Mortal World is indeed impressive, but it suits someone who trains outside. As Sect Master, I'm afraid it wouldn't be appropriate for me to frequently leave."
Li Qingqiu pondered silently, unexpectedly feeling troubled.