Chapter 733 524: The Jade Person

"Li Xuanfeng."

A glint of pupil technique dharma light flickered faintly within Li Xuanfeng's eyes. No trace of his true body could be seen, yet upon hearing this man was surnamed Dongfang, it was likely he was connected to the Dragon Kind. With a nod, he replied:

"Taoist Fellow, are you of the Heshui Dragon Kind?"

Dongfang Heyun was dressed in blue and white, elegant in bearing, a proper smile on his lips as he politely said:

"Indeed, I am fortunate to owe all to the Dragon Lord's blessing—born of clouds and vapor, I serve the dragons of the East Sea, and was thus granted the Dongfang surname."

Li Xuanfeng was unsure what he was truly after and listened in silence, only to see Dongfang Heyun seat himself opposite, speaking gently:

"It is truly a coincidence. While patrolling near Qunyi Strait, I once saw a junior of your honored clan riding the rosy clouds in style—a fine sight. However, he strayed into our Dragon Territorial Boundary, so I invited him out."

'Xizhi...'

These days, Li Xuanfeng had been in the Southern Border and had only heard that Li Xizhi was outside on Xuan Yue Sect's behalf. He had not expected him to enter the Dragon Territorial Boundary. His eyes widened slightly as he replied:

"Oh? Then it was the younger generation who acted out of turn."

Dongfang Heyun smiled and shook his head, speaking softly:

"It was just such a matter. But he was injured in the process; I merely came to inquire about his condition."

Li Xuanfeng was somewhat surprised, and saw Dongfang Heyun say:

"If his wounds have largely healed, he is most welcome to stop by Heshui Sea at his leisure. There's a certain affinity between the rosy clouds' path and myself."

Uncertain of his intentions, Li Xuanfeng could only respond vaguely. Only then did Dongfang Heyun rise, offered a courteous salute, and vanished, transformed into wind and rain.

"This one is neither human nor dragon, but a creature born of heaven and earth—truly troublesome to contend with."

Watching his departing figure, Li Xuanfeng pondered for a while, his gaze fixed on the snowstorm outside the cave, calculating inwardly:

"How did he enter the Dragon Territorial Boundary? It seems there is something amiss with Xizhi's matter. When there is a chance, I must seek him out."

The news from this man was utterly different from what he had heard from the Ning Family. With keen intuition, he had sensed something was off. Knowing that child's thoughts were many, he feared to disrupt his plans rashly, and resolved to ask Li Xizhi in person.

He was about to close his eyes to cultivate, when he noticed someone had been silently watching for some time. Dressed all in white, with a middle-aged visage and sword at the waist, the figure approached briskly, laughing:

"Xuanfeng!"

"Senior, you've come!"

As Li Xuanfeng looked closely, he saw it was Xiao Yongling of the Xiao Family, an old friend of Li Tongya. Clad in white robes, Li Xuanfeng quickly rose and said softly:

"It has been some time since I last saw you, Senior."

Xiao Yongling's expression was somewhat somber. He regarded him for a moment, then said quietly:

"Since the affair at Qing Song Temple's Cave Heaven, I have not seen you. Your killing intent, Xuanfeng, grows ever heavier."

He sat to the side, a young woman in Xiangyi dress trailing after him—smiling sweetly and polite as she greeted:

"I am Kong Tingyun of Xuan Yue Sect. Greetings to Senior."

Li Xuanfeng, knowing well the ties between Xuan Yue Sect and his own, had also heard the name. He nodded slightly. The three sat atop the snowy peak; Kong Tingyun shook her head and smiled:

"This Beihuan Sect is truly amusing—heroes of the Immortal Path from all directions gather here, but they won't even set out a table or chairs, only open a tiny cave mansion for people to sit on the ground."

Xiao Yongling seemed to have been here for some time, stroking his beard as he said:

"Beihuan Sect is a most ancient Taoist Lineage, still retaining many old rules. They seldom leave the mountains, and their disciples number only a few dozen."

He cast his gaze briefly towards Xie Zhanchang, who stood upon the peak, and said in a low voice:

"That one is of Golden Core descent—a figure from the Xie Family of the Northern Sea. I do not know what lineage he cultivates under, but it is rare to see a descendant of a Perfected Lord."

Out of courtesy, Li Xuanfeng did not look too closely and discerned little of the man's mystical bearing. Kong Tingyun, with some mystery, said:

"It is said that Xie clan members, should they contest with spells, can manipulate the spirit mechanism—riding fog and clouds, they are masters in using techniques, and can even brew Talisman Water to heal wounds."

The mention of brewing Talisman Water seemed to touch on some memory within Li Xuanfeng, causing him to pause. The three spoke a little upon the peak, gazing northward, and Li Xuanfeng softly asked:

"Among all the world's Perfected Lords and Immortal Sects, besides the Wang and Xie families, how many others remain?"

Xiao Yongling pondered briefly, then replied:

"Once, in ancient times, there were many. Now, those that are known not to have vanished are fewer than five... the Wang and Xie are already the most renowned."

He seemed to hesitate, then whispered:

"In earlier years... there were also the Li Clan of Long Land and the Cui Clan, the Li Clan of Ning Country under Donghua Perfected Person, the Jing Ji branch of the Yang Family in South River—some weakened, some perished, and all have faded away."

"The others, like the Li Clan of Tan Mountain in Wu Country, Chen Clan of South River, my own Xiao Clan, the Shen Clan of North River... can only be counted as second rank, with modest reputation at best."

Kong Tingyun, listening at the side, noticed Xiao Yongling pause and softly added:

"If we have guessed correctly, your honored clan ought to be a remnant from the North—originally from the Wei Country nobility, and further back, traceable to the Li Clan of Long Land."

The two spoke methodically, yet Li Xuanfeng could not be sure. Others might not know, but he was well aware that his family had peasant origins—Li Mutian and those before him were all commoners, their genealogy merely a record of how wandering ancestors came to this place.

In the so-called Lijing uprising, several brothers bore the Spirit Aperture, all due to Talismans. The later sons' talents surpassed each generation, likewise owing to Talisman Seed and Immortal Techniques. Without these, their cultivation would be as slow as ordinary folk, and they were no scions of the Immortal Sects.

As for what the element divination deduced—the so-called Wei lineage—Li Xuanfeng felt at most his family could be counted a remote collateral branch of Wei. After all, the Weili had ruled for a thousand years, controlling lands from several counties to dominance over the North—who knew how many descendants there now were?

Only Li Zhouwei gave Li Xuanfeng cause for slight suspicion, a faint sense of strangeness arising within: