Green Pond Sect, Qing Sui Peak.

The little pavilion at the summit had changed owners several times, yet it still stood quietly in the snow. The Golden Sun leaped up, rainbow light scattering in all directions; inside, a green-robed youth sat cross-legged, silently absorbing Spiritual Energy.

Time flew by quickly. Li Xizhi had followed Yuan Tuan to the peak for cultivation for more than a year. Qing Sui Peak was rich in Spiritual Energy. When he first arrived, he'd just broken through to the third layer of Fetal Breathing; now, he was preparing to break through to the fourth cycle.

"Creak."

Yuan Tuan seemed to have just returned to the mountain, her attire sharp and neat, cuffs tightly fastened. She glanced into the pavilion; Li Xizhi was still quietly cultivating as always, prompting her to nod:

"Still so well-behaved, Xizhi."

This year, Yuan Tuan took on another disciple, one sent by the Yuan Family. Though she had some misgivings about them, she accepted the child anyway. Yet, the kid was unruly and likely wouldn't amount to much.

The Green Peak sword hung quietly on the wall, once wielded by Li Chijin in his youth. Yuan Tuan's gaze lingered on it for a while. At last, Li Xizhi awakened from meditation, hastily getting up and respectfully greeting:

"Master! You've returned."

Yuan Tuan nodded, asking: 𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝐰𝚎𝕓𝐧𝚘𝘃𝗲𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝕞

"How is your Sword Dao cultivation?"

"Sword Radiance has formed; there's still some distance to Sword Qi."

Li Xizhi answered, somewhat troubled, looking pressured as he said:

"There are always people in the sect coming to challenge me by name. If Master weren't away with the mountain gate sealed, I fear I'd have suffered."

Yuan Tuan smiled faintly:

"The Xiao Family was attacked. I went back to Mushroom Forest Plain a few days ago and handled some matters. Now, I'm a bit more at ease. Things are chaotic everywhere—Devil Cultivators rampage; it's not wise to stay out for long."

Back then, Yuan Tuan could survive on Qing Sui Peak alone, carve a path, and break through to Foundation Establishment—her sense of the situation was naturally keen, so she hurried back.

"How is the Xiao Family?"

As his mother, Xiao Guiluan, was of the Xiao Family—his maternal clan—Li Xizhi was naturally concerned, quickly asking.

"They're fine."

Yuan Tuan replied, taking down the sword from the wall to play with. Its cold gleam was fierce, but in her hands, it moved obediently. She continued:

"Chuting Perfected Person underestimated the Three Sects and Seven Doors' hatred toward the Chen Clan. He was trapped in the East Sea by Jin Yu Sect's Tianyuan and couldn't reinforce them; so the Xiao Family suffered a moderate loss."

"The Xiao Family is Green Pond's shield. Chuting Perfected Person's 'Old Man of the Creek' is key; they don't dare act rashly. All this effort—just to kill Chen Taojing."

Yuan Tuan's words were shocking. Li Xizhi only kept them in mind, about to interject when Yuan Tuan suddenly smiled and shifted the topic:

"Your Li Family should be fine. I was beside Guanyun Peak at that time, and used [QingXuan Yue] to pray thrice for those members of the Li family—should be your uncles and elders. At least it should keep him safe."

Li Xizhi was overjoyed, quickly saying:

"Thank you, Master!"

"No need for such gratitude."

Yuan Tuan twitched the corner of her mouth, smiling:

"I'm only at Taoist Foundation, not Divine Skills; at most, it's a bit of minor help, nothing major."

Li Xizhi said a few compliant words. Yuan Tuan seemed quite pleased, listening with enjoyment, when she suddenly asked:

"Li Tongya is likely gone, isn't he?"

Li Xizhi was still rejoicing, but this abrupt question made his hair stand on end. He answered almost at once:

"I've heard nothing… Master."

Li Xizhi's reaction was swift, but the body doesn't lie. Yuan Tuan saw it all, staring directly at him with a sigh:

"A pity."

Li Xizhi quietly lowered his head, suppressing his unease. He was just a boy of fourteen or fifteen—how could he fool Yuan Tuan? As he realized this, Yuan Tuan had mourned Li Tongya for two breaths, then spoke:

"If Li Tongya were alive, joining hands with Chen Taojing, they might have saved Guanyun Peak… From now on, flaws will multiply; hopefully your father can cover them for a few more years."

Seeing Li Xizhi's gloom, Yuan Tuan comforted:

"No need to worry. I've heard your cousin Li Xuanfeng has taken official leave at Yi Shan City to enter closed-door cultivation for Foundation Establishment. If he succeeds, he'll be a formidable hand."

Speaking of this, Li Xizhi could finally ask the question that had sat in his heart for long, quickly grasping the chance, lowering his voice:

"Master! Is there any precedent for foreign-named cultivators in Yi Shan City being recalled? If so, how is it done?"

Yuan Tuan paused briefly, thoughtful, then said quietly:

"In past years the sect also recalled cultivators. If the sect's own disciples go for a decade or so, they usually return. The drafted clan cultivators rarely last more than a few years… There are cases of release—usually after fifty to sixty years. If someone helps in the sect, pleading connections, perhaps it's possible."

Li Xizhi nodded thoughtfully. Yuan Tuan pondered for a few breaths, swallowing some words she shouldn't utter,

then changed the subject, estimating the time, and softly asked:

"Have you decided which Qi to gather for Qi Cultivation?"

Li Xizhi remained silent a long while. Thoughts flickered through his mind, his heart pounding. Finally, his face calmed and he smiled:

"Whichever cultivation technique is practiced by most in the sect, I'll cultivate that one."

"Oh? Why is that?"

Yuan Tuan looked at him deeply; Li Xizhi replied:

"With many cultivating it, the path may be smoother."

"Creeeak—"

Yuan Tuan had not yet answered when a creak sounded—a slow opening of the courtyard gate outside. Both faces changed; Li Xizhi frowned, while Yuan Tuan's face was full of alarm.

Li Xizhi, not yet having developed Spiritual Sense, thought it was Yuan Family's junior coming upstairs, but Yuan Tuan's Foundation Establishment-level Spiritual Sense swept out—only to find drifting white snow with not a soul present!

"How is that possible!"

Yuan Tuan was greatly shaken. For someone to escape her notice entirely, passing through Qing Sui Peak just as if strolling through their own courtyard—there was only one kind of person:

"Zifu Perfected Person?!"

Yuan Tuan's expression shifted sharply, terror billowing through her heart like mountains collapsing. In a flash, her mana stumbled, only a few thoughts flashing by…

Their expressions were different; the footsteps outside were like the wind—two steps brought the figure before the pavilion, shoes whispering off, striding inside with careless ease.

"Rustle…"

The bamboo curtain of the pavilion was flung open. In walked a handsomely refined green-robed cultivator, a jade pendant at his waist. Although he smiled, his eyes were cold as frost, stabbing straight toward Li Xizhi.

Yuan Tuan, the Peak Master, whose great formation sealed the peak, had a green-robed Taoist stride in, utterly silent. Li Xizhi was panicked, wanting to question, but found himself locked up and unable to move.

The scene before his eyes grew instantly dim and gray. Li Xizhi's gaze stiffened; seeing his master's frightened face, alarm blared in his mind. With what little awareness remained, he watched Yuan Tuan's vermilion lips move, forming the words:

"Buzi."

"Buzi?"