Longzang

Chapter 1169 Visiting
"We should go," Li Zhi said.

"No, stay a little longer."

Li Zhi found it somewhat strange. He had seen what he needed to see, persuaded Wei Yuan, and even set the tone for future cooperation. So, having accomplished everything he needed to do, what was he still doing here?
“We should go back,” Li Zhi said again.

"You seem eager to go back?" Wei Yuan countered.

Li Zhi said, "You don't have much luck with you right now, and you're not in the Azure Netherworld, so you have no way to protect yourself. Do you think those immortals who came to our door would have done nothing after seeing you leave the Azure Netherworld? So it's better for both of us to go back sooner."

"How good am I to you?"

Li Zhi sighed, "I know a little about how those two immortal masters at the academy treated you in the past. If they were to make a move again, I would be in a difficult position. Besides, without you watching over me, I might not have been able to defeat the Ji Kingdom."

Wei Yuan smiled slightly and said, "It's rare to see you so humble."

"Only occasionally."

Wei Yuan then said, "Since we're already here, there's no need to rush to leave. Look over there."

Following the direction Wei Yuan pointed, Li Zhi saw several young cultivators in a group heading towards a flying boat in a county town a hundred miles away. They were overjoyed, their faces beaming with excitement.

Although they were hundreds of miles apart, Li Zhi's cultivation had already reached the late stage of the Dharma Aspect realm, and he possessed many unknown supernatural abilities, so he naturally overheard the conversation of those young people.

"We absolutely have to attend the Dharma Assembly for the Third Branch! Our family pulled countless strings to get a few seats so we can show our faces in front of that person."

"That's right. Others may not know, but how could we not? We heard that he's only in his early thirties, not fifty-seven as he claims to be."

A simple-minded young man asked in confusion, "Since you've been hiding your age, why not just keep it a secret? Why hold this Dharma Image Ceremony instead?"

"You don't know this. Why did the Immortal Ancestor designate the eldest son's branch as the successor before his fall? It was because there were several Dharma Aspects under the age of fifty in the eldest son's branch, and there was bound to be a seed of immortality among them. Now that such a genius has suddenly appeared in the third son's branch, it is natural that he wants to compete with the eldest son's branch."

The young man at the head of the group said mysteriously, "There's something else you don't know! This kind of grand ceremony gathers the most auspicious energy, and the third branch of the family also needs to use this ceremony to further enhance that person's foundation..."

Another, more mature-looking young man suddenly exclaimed, "How can you say something like that?!"

The person in front was startled and exclaimed, "Oh no! How did I let that slip out!"

A hundred miles away, Li Zhi turned to look at Wei Yuan. Wei Yuan simply smiled and said, "I always know something I should know. So since we're already here, we might as well stop by the Xu family's place."

"Isn't this a bad idea?" Li Zhi hesitated.

Wei Yuan laughed and said, "What's there to be afraid of? I've already killed all the living immortal ancestors, so why would I be afraid of a bunch of descendants who haven't ascended to immortality? If you don't want to go, you can leave first."

Li Zhi gritted his teeth and followed Wei Yuan, saying, "I'll go with you. With me here, at least the two immortal masters of the academy won't dare to make a move."

Wei Yuan nodded and then left with Li Zhi.

……

The ancestral home of the Xu family of Northern Qi is located in the southeast of Qi territory, nestled between mountains and the sea, a mountain range with breathtaking scenery. At the foot of the mountain, five cities were built in succession, each representing a branch of the bloodline left behind by the founding ancestor of the Xu family.

The city where the third house is located is obviously more prosperous than the other cities. At this moment, the city is decorated with lanterns and colorful decorations, and everywhere is filled with joy.

The city lord's immortal abode, nestled against the mountain, had its main gate wide open. The plazas in front of and to the left and right of the abode were filled with carriages and flying boats. From time to time, celestial light descended upon the city. Then, the cultivators walked to the abode, presenting their visiting cards and gifts. The head of the third branch of the family had already spread the word that this ceremony was extremely important, and the gifts must be of high value; there would be a reward afterward. Those who knew the inside story naturally did their utmost, while those who didn't, seeing the gifts prepared by others, quietly increased their own.

Thus, the gift list included rare and precious materials, valuable magical artifacts, and even ancient elixirs.

The ceremony for the third branch of the family to receive Buddhist statues was extremely grand. Gifts were collected for seven days before the main ceremony. This day marked the seventh day, and also the last day for collecting gifts.

There are nine gift collection points around the Immortal Abode, with the one at the main gate being the largest. If the gift is not valuable enough, the Xu family members will not be polite.

At this moment, several young and handsome male and female disciples of the Xu family were receiving gifts one by one and checking the gift list. Two young cultivators came together, and one of them presented an ancient wooden gift box. The gift box was simple and unadorned, the only noteworthy thing was that it still had a fresh fragrance of wood.

Fortunately, the person who greeted them happened to be a female disciple, and seeing that the two young men in front of her were somewhat handsome, she took the wooden box and casually remarked, "The box is rather novel..."

She opened the box and was immediately stunned. Inside was a handful of grass leaves, the cut ends of which were fresh, clearly just picked from the ground.

After being shocked, the female disciple did not make a sound. Instead, she lowered her voice and said urgently, "You two have some nerve! You want to freeload without even knowing where you are! You should leave now. There's a banquet in the south of the city. Although there aren't any fancy dishes, at least the rice is made with spirit rice."

One of the young cultivators seemed to find it somewhat amusing, curiously sizing up the young female disciple. Another young cultivator chuckled and said, "We're here to deliver gifts; these are the presents we've prepared."

The female disciple from the Xu family finally realized something was wrong, her face darkened, and she said, "Trying to cause trouble? Are you sent by the eldest branch of the family?"

The handsome young cultivator replied, "We are who we are, and we have nothing to do with the eldest branch. Aren't our names written on the gift box?"

The female disciple then noticed that the name was indeed engraved on the inside of the box lid, and read it aloud: "Qingming Weiyuan... Weiyuan!?"

She screamed and threw the box into the air, then fell to the ground and crawled away backwards, as if she had seen a flood or a ferocious beast. This dignified Foundation Establishment cultivator couldn't even stand up straight.

The four words "Qingming Weiyuan" were like a thunderclap, instantly alarming the entire Immortal Palace.

The two young cultivators walked towards the gate of the immortal mansion, simultaneously removing their disguises. A group of people rushed out of the mansion, with an elderly man of Dharma form blocking their way. He said with a stiff upper lip, "This is the territory of the Xu family of Northern Qi! You two are not welcome. Please leave on your own, otherwise, it will not be pleasant if things get unpleasant!"

Wei Yuan smiled enigmatically and said, "You won't let me in?"

The old man with the Dharma-like appearance forced a smile and said, "This is, after all, the Xu family's residence, not the Wei family's..."

Before he could finish speaking, there was a loud bang, and he was sent flying backward, smashing through the screen wall and crashing in front of the main hall! No one around saw how Wei Yuan made his move.

Around Wei Yuan, the screen wall, the main gate, the courtyard wall, the gatehouse, all the buildings, along with the base of the protective array, began to crumble and turn into sand. However, those standing within the area were all safe and sound, and did not even feel any fluctuations in the power of the Dao.

Everyone was dumbfounded. Even a high-ranking cultivator from the Imperial Realm who rushed out from the back hall simply stood silently to the side without saying a word, watching Wei Yuan directly demolish the gate of the Immortal Mansion.

Wei Yuan looked around and smiled, "The Xu family of Northern Qi is now my Wei family's back garden. I can wander around as I please! By the way, I heard that your branch of the family just produced a seed for cultivating immortality. Such a good thing, if you don't obediently send it to me, are you planning to keep it for yourselves?"

After saying this, Wei Yuan walked towards the main hall of the Immortal Mansion. Several young members of the Xu family, full of youthful vigor, rushed towards Wei Yuan, but they had only just lifted their feet and had not taken a single step when they suddenly collapsed to the ground, turning into a pile of sand.

Wei Yuan strolled leisurely through the crowd of Xu family members and slowly entered the main hall.

Inside the central magic array in the main hall sat a young girl, who had reached a crucial stage in her cultivation. Her Dharma form was actually a small dragon, except that the latter part of its body was merely an illusion.

Upon seeing Wei Yuan, the small white dragon let out a mournful cry and was about to flee when a massive hand descended and seized it.

(End of this chapter)