Family Cultivation: Rise of the Wilderness

Chapter 199 Rebellion
The outline of Danggui Mountain was faintly visible in the morning light.

In Changyang Valley, the annual gathering arrived as scheduled.

Unlike ordinary markets, every March, the Li family holds a small-scale magical contest open to all independent cultivators.

It is said that the champion of the minor martial arts competition will not only have the opportunity to be recruited by a Foundation Establishment family like the Li family and become a distinguished guest, enjoying glory and privileges; even if they do not wish to join, they can still choose tasks in the Service Academy and earn spirit stones with their own strength to improve their cultivation.

Therefore, every year at this time, countless independent cultivators flock to Changyang Valley like a tide, hoping to show their skills or find opportunities in this grand event.

"There are so many people this year."

Standing at the entrance of the valley, Chen Ling'er looked at the endless stream of people and couldn't help but sigh.

As a friendly neighbor of the Li family, the Chen family sends representatives to the gathering every year to show their goodwill.

However, this year the Chen family only sent Chen Ling'er and her elder brother Chen Gongchang.

Their arrival did not attract much attention.

Since the martial arts competition had not yet started and the valley was sealed off, Chen Gongchang accompanied his sister to stroll around the houses and various stalls that had spontaneously formed outside the valley.

At this moment, a young cultivator walked through the crowd and stood in front of them, asking, "I am Li Jihu. May I ask if you are the elder brother of the Chen family?"

Li Jihu has an ordinary appearance and is somewhat simple-minded, but his cultivation level is quite impressive, already at the sixth level of Qi Refining.

Chen Gongchang was secretly surprised, but quickly regained his composure and returned the greeting with a cupped hand: "It is indeed I, Chen. This is my younger sister."

Li Jihu's gaze swept lightly over Chen Ling'er before quickly withdrawing it, his words carrying a hint of apology: "There are many tourists at this year's gathering, and my family has been unable to welcome you from afar. Please forgive us."

"Young master, you're too kind."

Chen Gongchang laughed heartily, then lowered his voice and asked tentatively, "Young Master, I wonder if your family head will also be attending this gathering? The Chen family has important matters to discuss with the Li family."

“The patriarch attends every year; this is a grand event in Changyang Valley. I will first help these two distinguished guests settle in, and the patriarch will meet with you later.”

Led by Li Jihu, Chen Gongchang and Chen Ling'er walked through the bustling crowd and arrived at a quiet courtyard in the valley.

The environment here is wonderful, with birds singing and flowers blooming, making people feel relaxed and happy.

Both of them were satisfied, while Li Jihu reiterated the usual precautions before stepping away.

Watching Li Jihu's retreating figure, Chen Gongchang sighed, "The Li family truly produces outstanding individuals. Before them were Li Xiangming and Li Xiangcheng, and now Li Jihu; they are all rare talents."

Upon hearing Li Xiangcheng's name, a complex emotion flashed in Chen Ling'er's eyes.
-
After leaving Changyang Valley, Li Jihu continued to guard the valley entrance.

In the second half of last year, Bailumen completely opened up Dahuang Town.

With no restrictions placed on independent cultivators from Zhangning Prefecture and the other three counties of Shun'an Prefecture, they flocked to Pu County.

Pudong is adjacent to Puyin Mountain, so it naturally received a warm welcome from visiting monks.

These people not only enjoy hunting demons in the mountains, but also like to occupy mountain peaks and establish their own independent regimes.

Pudong is changing almost every day, with countless small sects and families springing up like mushrooms after rain.

These smaller factions compete and fight each other, demonstrating their ambition and strength, but they are still not up to the task at hand.

In this context, the Li family, being a local power and a Foundation Establishment force, naturally possesses an undeniable status, prestige, and influence.

The Changyang Valley Gathering, under the Li family's umbrella, has gained a reputation after five or six years of careful cultivation.

Once the event was held this year, it attracted countless cultivators from the surrounding area like a magnet.

Faced with such a massive influx of people, the Li family felt immense pressure and deployed a considerable number of people to Changyang Valley to maintain order and entertain distinguished guests.

Li Jihu, who is over eighteen years old, is one of them.

"Ji Hu!"

At this moment, a similarly young cultivator, with obvious anxiety and panic on his face, rushed towards Li Jihu and grabbed his arm tightly: "Xiang Yan is in trouble."

"Xiang Yan?" Li Jihu frowned, a sense of foreboding rising in his heart: "What happened? Wasn't Xiang Yan with Yu Chong? Could they have encountered a late-stage Qi Refining cultivator?"

Li Xiangyan was a member of the same cohort of students at the Qingmiao Academy as Li Jihu. Although the two often fought when they were young, they became good friends as adults.

Now that Li Jihu has come out to work for the family, Li Xiangyan will naturally not remain in the Qingmiao Courtyard.

According to the family's arrangements, Li Xiangyan should be escorting a batch of Huangyadan back to Changyang Valley from Qingyang Temple for the Li family to sell on their behalf.

"It's either Jie Xiu or Yu Chong!"

Li Xiangxin's face was filled with anxiety: "Yu Chong has betrayed us! He stole the elixir!"

Rebellion?

These words struck Li Jihu like a bolt from the blue, turning his face instantly pale.

"And what about Xiang Yanren?"

His voice was almost squeezed out from between his teeth, tinged with fear and anger.

"They've already been taken back to Tailai Peak by the family, but..."

Li Xiangxin didn't finish his sentence, but the unspoken meaning made Li Jihu's heart sink to the bottom.

Now that Yu Chong has chosen to betray us, Li Xiangyan's safety is at stake.
Li Jihu clenched his fists so tightly that his nails almost dug into his flesh.

"Which way did Yu Chong run off to?"

"It should be Puyin Mountain, as it's a good place to hide from people."

"Wait, Ji Hu!"

"The family has already sent people to arrest Yu Chong."

Before Li Xiangxin could finish speaking, Li Jihu had already soared into the sky, transforming into a streak of light and disappearing into the horizon of Changyang Valley.
-
In the shadow of Puyin Mountain, in an unnamed forest, Ji Shilun and Chi Laiyong stood under a dark patch of trees, their gazes piercing through the sparse branches and leaves, fixed on the distant mountains.

Ji Shilun frowned, his voice tinged with hesitation and worry: "Laiyong, this Yu Chong is said to be the champion of the Changyang Valley martial arts competition two years ago, with a Qi Refining level of seven. Is it necessary for the two of us to take the lead?"

"What are you afraid of? Yu Chong is fleeing for his life in a panic, and he is nervous. His strength must not be as good as before."

Chi Laiyong, however, did not take it seriously. He put a piece of tender grass root in his mouth and mumbled, "If we can capture or kill Yu Chong, we will have made a great contribution. We can choose any kind of pills and spiritual materials we want, and there is a reward of 500 spirit stones."

"Once the leader and the others arrive, it will be the achievement of the demon-hunting team. How much benefit will you and I get from this bounty?"

Ji Shilun curled his lip, disagreeing with Chi Laiyong's view: "You're making Yu Chong sound like a pushover. What if the two of us can't beat Yu Chong?"

"Then let's settle for second best and wait for the captain and the others to arrive. I'll exchange for a set of array plates, which should be enough to hold off Yu Chong."

Chi Laiyong grinned, as if he had been prepared for this.

"What's the point of doing this? In the end, won't everyone just have to come together?"

"There's a big difference between them."

Before Ji Shilun could finish speaking, he was interrupted by Chi Laiyong, who pretended to be relaxed but said with a firm tone: "Even if we can't kill Yu Chong, as long as we fight for a while, we will be the vanguard. We will get more credit and more spirit stones."

"If we wait for the regimental commander to arrive before we take action, our contribution won't be much greater than Yang Yun's."

Ji Shilun was speechless. Yang Yun's cultivation level was low; he was just the mascot of the group. He only did odd jobs like carrying things when he went into the mountains. The group leader never took Yang Yun on important missions like this.

He understood what Chi Laiyong meant. Without special contributions, who could see one's efforts in a cold, hard report of victory?

What Chi Laiyong wanted was not just the bounty of spirit stones and pills, but the appreciation of the Li family.

Perhaps, he wanted the favor of the head of the Li family.

(End of this chapter)