Family Cultivation: Rise of the Wilderness

Chapter 324 Convergence
"Qiyun Pavilion?"

Li Xiangming stopped and looked around at the inconspicuous building.

The restaurant has only two floors, and its exterior walls are somewhat mottled, making it appear particularly simple compared to the magnificent shops in Yingyue Market.

However, the staff inside reacted quickly, and a middle-aged man in his thirties, who looked like the manager, came out to greet them.

The man, all smiles, first bowed to Han Yunhao, clearly recognizing him: "Immortal Master Han, your presence is an honor to our humble abode. May I ask if you would like to stay the night?"

Han Yunhao smiled and waved his hand: "I'm just accompanying this Master Li. He wants to visit a distinguished guest at Green Cloud Cave. You take him there."

Then, Han Yunhao turned to Li Xiangming: "I have other matters to attend to, so I won't disturb your sect's gathering any longer. If there's anything urgent, feel free to contact me using the transmission talisman."

Li Xiangming nodded in gratitude: "Thank you for your help, Fellow Daoist Han."

"a piece of cake."

After watching Han Yunhao leave, Li Xiangming looked at the middle-aged man.

To his surprise, it turned out to be a mortal.

After some questioning, Li Xiangming finally understood.

This person is indeed the manager of Qiyun Pavilion, and his surname is Min. He is a relative of Xuanli Zhenren.

In Yingyue Market, almost all shops have intricate connections with Hengyue Gate. In addition, the market is strictly managed, and disturbances are rare. Even ordinary people can do business here with peace of mind.

However, Qiyun Pavilion is not without cultivators stationed there.

These people all lived in underground caves.

Unless something major happens, he won't come out.

When the cave dwelling was mentioned, the innkeeper spoke at length: "Our cave dwelling at Qiyun Pavilion uses a second-order spirit-gathering array, and every guest who has stayed there has praised it highly."

"A second-tier spirit-gathering array?"

Even Li Xiangming was somewhat surprised when he heard this.

Surprisingly, the unassuming Qiyun Pavilion is quite "luxurious" inside.

The main body of Qiyun Pavilion is hidden underground, where a large spirit-gathering array is set up, dividing the underground space into dozens of individual rooms.

Each room is isolated by arrays and special building materials, such as Azure Demon Stone and Earth Treasury Stone.

Azure Demon Stone has a high resistance to magical power; engraving restrictions on it can withstand powerful magical impacts. Earthly Treasury Stone, on the other hand, has the miraculous effect of blocking divine sense. A wall constructed by combining the two often leaves even cultivators helpless.

However, neither of these materials is cheap, especially the Ksitigarbha stone, which is second only to the rare Maojing in price.

Using such materials to build a cave dwelling would undoubtedly be a huge expense.

The vast majority of cultivators would be reluctant to do so.

But Qiyun Pavilion has clearly gone to great lengths to boost its business.

Actually, there's nothing we can do about it. In a place like the market town, where all sorts of people mingle, it's hard to attract passing cultivators to stay without cave dwellings constructed from these two special materials.

"Here we are, right here!"

After walking for a while, the shopkeeper stopped.

Li Xiangming looked up and saw an ancient stone door at the end of the corridor, with the number "Bing Shiyi" engraved on it.

The shopkeeper tapped lightly on the wooden handle by the door, and the stone door made a low sound, but it did not open, seemingly only serving as a warning.

Then, the shopkeeper raised his voice: "Is the immortal master of Green Cloud Cave here? I am the shopkeeper of Qiyun Pavilion."

A moment later, a divine sense swept over.

Li Xiangming's heart stirred. The mechanism of this stone door was extremely ingenious. People inside could use their divine sense to explore the outside, while people outside could not see inside.

"Is it Junior Brother Yin?"

As his divine sense reached him, Li Xiangming asked aloud.

"Is that Senior Brother Li?"

A voice filled with surprise immediately came from behind the stone gate.

Immediately afterward, a young man in his early twenties pushed open the stone door and strode up to Li Xiangming, his face still showing undisguised excitement: "Senior Brother Li, you...you've finally arrived?"

Li Xiangming raised an eyebrow. Yin Feng used the word "finally," which meant that the other party knew he would come.

But most of the disciples of Green Cloud Cave should have been quite surprised by his arrival.

Because he lingered at the edge of Green Cloud Cave from beginning to end, only a few people had seen him.

Suppressing his thoughts, Li Xiangming smiled and asked, "What is it like to meet an old friend in a foreign land?"

Yin Feng was taken aback for a moment, then burst into laughter: "Good, excellent!"

However, when his gaze turned to Cao Yanjun, a hint of wariness appeared. Li Xiangming gently squeezed Cao Yanjun's hand and introduced her to Yin Feng, "This is my Daoist partner, Cao Yanjun. Senior Sister Zhang should have mentioned her to you, right?"

Yin Feng straightened up and quickly bowed, "So it's my sister-in-law. I'm sorry for my rudeness. Please forgive me."

Cao Yanjun smiled slightly and replied, "It's alright. You must be Junior Brother Yin. Xiangming often mentions you."

"He must be talking about something embarrassing about me."

Yin Feng chuckled self-deprecatingly, then nodded to the shopkeeper.

The shopkeeper was a sensible man, and seeing this, he wisely withdrew.

Yin Feng then invited Li Xiangming and Cao Yanjun into the cave.

A strange look flashed in Li Xiangming's eyes. His junior brother, who was favored at a young age, had decent talent but was rather shallow and acted rashly. Now, after experiencing a series of hardships, he had grown a lot and become more sensible in handling matters.

"Senior Brother Li has come to visit us!"

As soon as Yin Fengfu stepped into the cave, he shouted loudly.

The disciples of Green Cloud Cave, who had already heard the commotion, rushed over.

Li Xiangming counted them and found there were seventeen people, which made him frown slightly.

Although "Bing Shiyi" is a large cave, it is still not easy to squeeze in so many people.

Many disciples could only find a place in the cave, sitting cross-legged on a futon.

Once upon a time, Green Cloud Cave had hundreds of disciples, with places to cultivate both inside and outside the cave. Although cultivation was arduous, there was no worry about making a living.

Now, the disciples have dwindled, leaving only a dozen or so, crammed into this rented, cramped cave.

Even Li Xiangming, who was mentally prepared, couldn't help but sigh.

"Thank you for your hard work."

Li Xiangming sighed softly. The disciples of Green Cloud Cave understood the deeper meaning in his words. The original clamor gradually subsided, and a sorrowful atmosphere filled the cave.

At this moment, a middle-aged cultivator dressed in a scholar's robe broke the silence: "Junior Brother Li, why have you come to Hengyue Sect?"

Li Xiangming looked at the other person and saw that it was Mao Jingze, the second true disciple of Green Cloud Cave.

Since Yin Feng knew he would come, it was impossible for Mao Jingze to be completely unaware.

His question was simply an attempt to test my intentions, clearly indicating a lack of trust in me.

Li Xiangming didn't mind and answered frankly, "I came here for you."

"Coming for us?"

A murmur rippled through the cave.

"Where is Senior Sister Zhang Min?"

Li Xiangming looked around, but he hadn't seen Zhang Min since the beginning of the session.

"Senior Sister Zhang is still outside."

Yin Feng interjected, "Judging by the time, she should be back by now."

Before he could finish speaking, footsteps could be heard outside the cave.

Yin Feng immediately jumped up, ran quickly to the stone gate, and said excitedly, "It really is Senior Sister Zhang!"

The stone door slowly opened, and two young cultivators walked in, the one in the lead being Zhang Min. She wore a green robe, her brows furrowed with deep sorrow, and her face appeared somewhat haggard, a stark contrast to the dashing figure she had been two years ago at Dangui Mountain.

But she still maintained the keen senses of a cultivator and noticed Li Xiangming in the crowd as soon as she entered.

"Junior Brother Li?"

Zhang Min rushed to Li Xiangming, grabbed his arm tightly, and asked anxiously, "You've finally arrived? Where's Master?"

Li Xiangming sighed and turned his head slightly: "My master has passed away."

These words were like a bombshell, causing an uproar in the cave.

Yin Feng immediately shouted angrily, "Impossible! Master is incredibly powerful, how could she have passed away? She must be hiding somewhere, waiting to make a comeback!"

"That's right, Master is definitely still alive!"

"Junior Brother Li, stop talking nonsense!"

The cave was filled with commotion. Only Zhang Min seemed dazed and involuntarily stumbled backward, almost falling, but was fortunately caught by the young man behind her.

Li Xiangming looked over and frowned slightly.

The other person also looked back, their expression equally solemn.

(End of this chapter)