Chapter 718 516: Take Action

Chi Zhiyun's expression was fierce, his voice stern and sharp, forcing Chi Zhiyan to bow his head in silence. He paced twice atop the Jade Platform, plagued by restless annoyance. At his side, Ning Hejing's face was gloomy as he spoke:

"Now that we've offended him, Li Xizhi likely bears a deep grudge. Even if that man is dead, Li Xuanfeng will surely investigate. Should anything be uncovered, he'll come at us with all he's got."

"We might as well seize the momentum, wipe out the Li Family, dismantle Wangyue Lake, and deal with Li Xuanfeng as well…"

Chi Zhiyun pressed his hand against the Jade Throne, contemplating silently for a while. His broad brows rose slightly, white robes draped over the silver Immortal Seat. Still harboring some anger, he muttered in a low voice:

"If we really kill Li Xuanfeng, all our elaborate efforts so far would amount to pointless chaos! Dismantling Wangyue Lake is easy, but once we break with the Xiuyue Sect, who will serve as the pawn? Who will resist the southern advance of the Buddhist practitioners?"

"Nineteen of the Thirty-Six Peaks must defend the Four Seas, six are scattered among the marketplaces, the remaining eleven need to look after the Yuanxiu Perfected Person. Only six peaks can be used. Who do we send to resist the devil cultivators and Buddhist practitioners then?"

As he spoke, his words sped up, taking on a vicious hue. He shot a cold glance at Ning Hejing and asked:

"Should we send you?"

Ning Hejing naturally lowered his gaze and shook his head. While he wielded some power within the sect, his talent was mediocre—reaching Foundation Establishment was already a stretch. How could he be sent to handle such matters? He could only shake his head.

Chi Zhiyun then turned toward Chi Zhiyan and asked:

"Or do we send you?"

Chi Zhiyan remained equally silent. With his Zifu aspirations, he was busy enough with his own cultivation, let alone risking life and death on the front lines. Chi Zhiyun sneered coldly:

"Or shall we send a few elders of the clan? Who among them can we order about? Or perhaps send those few brothers—if a hair on their heads is harmed, their uncles will come demanding payment with lion's mouths agape."

"Or perhaps send the Yu Family? After Yu Yuxie was devoured by the Old Ancestor, the entire Yu Family scattered like chaff—who is left to be of any use? Should we send the Yuan Family? Yuan Tuan and Yuan Chengdun were both destroyed by the likes of you!"

"There are only a few geniuses left in the Jiachuan Lin Gu Family—pick one or two from Linhai County… but how could that possibly be enough?!"

Faced with his barrage of questions, Chi Zhiyan lost all face and was left speechless. At last he could only say:

"I was reckless… but… but forgive my frankness, how much responsibility for this mess really lies with us? Isn't it all because of the Old Ancestor…"

Chi Zhiyun shot him a fierce glare and replied:

"A pity Yu Muxian is dead… Only Tang Shedou and Yu Su remain…"

Truthfully, within the Green Pond Sect, there are very few who can truly be counted on. The Yuanxiu Perfected Person is reclusive in cultivation and stubborn by nature, wholly his own force—he's never dared to mobilize him.

Yuan Su now occupies the Southern Border. Although within a few years the Ning Family may bring it back under control, Chi Zhiyun only found it troublesome. He quietly asked:

"You sent him to find Yuan Tuan on purpose… most likely there's no way he's coming back alive…"

"Regardless of whether Li Xizhi is dead or not, someone has to be held accountable. None of these families are blind, especially the Yang Family—killing off their son-in-law…"

Head pounding, he could only wave his hand and sigh softly:

"Just find a scapegoat…"

The two men nodded hastily and withdrew. Only then did Chi Zhiyun slowly retake his seat, covering his forehead with his hand, eyes tightly shut, as if recalling something else piece by piece.

"The Dragon Kind have always hated the likes of us. The ones lurking around Thundercloud Temple are all descendants of Dragon Lords; how can we act recklessly? Brother Yan is far too naïve… Offend a Dragon Lord and disaster will soon be at your door!"

At this, Chi Zhiyun could no longer remain seated. He quickly picked up the Jade Slip on his desk, dispatched several people from within the sect, and sent them out to seek out clues.

...

Sect Spring Island.

Li Xizhi had been in seclusion for several days; his Spiritual Sense sank into his Sea of Qi Acupoint, where he saw a sea of rainbow clouds and mist, multicolored rays drifting about. Compared to the usual thick clouds and mist, it all seemed unusually thin, revealing signs that his injuries had not yet healed.

Within this deep sea of clouds, not only did colored lights float about, but strands of dark blue mist threaded through, pushing aside the other clouds and gathering together in one place.

Li Xizhi watched for a long time before sensing something amiss.

He had expected the mana injected by Dongfang Heyun to wreak havoc inside him, but instead found himself merely chilled throughout his body. Using Talisman Qi to dissolve and expel it, he'd soon cleared most of it away, with only these strands left in his Qi Sea.

This mana now spontaneously gathered, forming a cluster within his Qi Sea, obediently hovering amid the mist, utterly ethereal. With just his own mana, he could dissolve it, let alone employing Talisman Qi.

'What does this mean…'

Li Xizhi, well-read in Taoist scriptures, knew that foreign mana entering the body always scattered everywhere, infiltrating the organs and causing destruction. Never had it gathered together like this.

He looked closely for a while, feeling out the changes in the mana, realizing it wasn't an attack spell, but more like a sensing technique—and soon understood.

'Dongfang Heyun must want to know the situation inside Green Pond…'

Mu Hai achieved Zifu and is a Dragon Lord's descendent, rumored the seventh son of the present Dragon Palace ruler—not someone to be trifled with. How could he endure Green Pond's humiliation without retaliation?

On the surface, he'd sent Dongfang Heyun to chase down Li Xizhi, not only fulfilling an earlier agreement, but also taking the opportunity to plant eyes inside Green Pond, using Li Xizhi to monitor its movements.

Such unguarded posture was a blatant message to Li Xizhi:

'Escaping with your life from a Zifu cultivator is not something you'll get away with for free…'

Moreover, with such overt probing, it caused Li Xizhi to be wary, and he would not dare rashly seek out the Zifu to check it—everything was exceedingly clear.