Clan Cultivation: Starting from Foundation Establishment on Mount Luoxia

The matter has come to an end.

Wu Ju successfully attained enlightenment, the Heaven Beyond Heaven opened up, tens of thousands of True Lords dispersed, and the people of Paradise also withdrew.

After Minghuang Zhenjun put away his Dharma form and handed over the sixty-odd Paradise players to the Fool, he led Yuanchen and Taiyao Zhenjun to begin the cleanup.

The three destroyed planes need to be reclaimed, the fifteen compensated planes need to be received, and the relocation and resettlement of billions of humans is an even more massive undertaking.

These matters are none of Li Xiaoyao's concern. As a mid-stage Purple Mansion cultivator, he is no match for Dao Embryos and True Monarchs.

"Young friend Shangyuan," True Monarch Minghuang called out to him, "Are you going back?"

Li Xiaoyao nodded: "Sixty years have passed, my family must be missing me."

True Monarch Minghuang smiled slightly and took out a jade slip from his sleeve, handing it to him: "This is from the Sect Leader. He said that you have made the greatest contribution this time, and once you are settled, you can return to the Immortal Sect to receive your reward at any time."

Li Xiaoyao took the jade slip and scanned it with his divine sense—it contained a long list: merits, cultivation techniques, spiritual materials, elixirs, and a separate blessed land. He paused for a moment, then looked up at True Monarch Minghuang.

"Too many..."

"Not much." True Monarch Minghuang waved his hand. "The intelligence you've gathered during your years as an undercover agent in Paradise is worth this price. The Sect Leader said this is just a deposit. There will be more once those fifteen planes are settled."

Li Xiaoyao opened his mouth, but ultimately did not refuse. He put the jade slip into the Four Seasons Mirror, cupped his hands in a salute, and said, "Thank you, Sect Leader, thank you, True Lord."

True Lord Minghuang patted him on the shoulder: "Go on. Get some rest. We'll take care of the rest."

Li Xiaoyao nodded, then turned and flew into the depths of the void.

He flew quite a distance before glancing back. True Monarch Minghuang was still standing there, waving at him. Beside him, True Monarch Wuju—the black-haired youth who had just attained enlightenment—also waved back.

Li Xiaoyao smiled, turned around, and disappeared into the void.

The return journey was much faster than the way there. On the way there, he had to conceal his strength, disguise himself as an ordinary player in the amusement park, and carefully complete his missions.

On the way back, he didn't need to worry about anything. He unleashed his full power as a mid-stage Purple Mansion cultivator, the void beneath his feet shrank, and the star field receded behind him.

His mind was a jumbled mess the whole way. Sixty years. He'd spent sixty years in Paradise; what had become of his home?

Is my elder brother still alive? At the peak of Foundation Establishment, one's lifespan is five hundred years. Sixty years is nothing to my elder brother, but what if? What if he doesn't live to see me return?

Li Xiaoyao shook his head, banishing the thought. No way. His elder brother was still waiting for him.

They had arrived at the void anchorage of the Sunset Realm. Li Xiaoyao stopped and looked at that familiar star field.

The Sunset Realm, the Rising Sun Realm, and the New Era Realm—these three planes are arranged in a triangle, connected by spiritual veins and sharing a common destiny. They are much more prosperous than when he left.

Flying boats occasionally shuttled through the void; those were the Li family transporting supplies and allocating manpower.

Li Xiaoyao took a deep breath and stepped into the Realm of Sunset Glow.

Qixia Peak, Chengxia Hall.

Li Mutian sat in the hall reviewing jade slips. Sixty years had passed; his hair had turned completely white, and his face was lined with wrinkles, but he was still in good spirits.

His cultivation level was stuck at the peak of Foundation Establishment, unable to advance or retreat. He wasn't in a hurry; he had focused his energy on his family these past few years, so whether he cultivated or not didn't matter to him.

Suddenly, a series of footsteps came from outside the hall; they were very light and quick.

Li Mutian looked up and saw a person standing at the entrance of the hall. White hair, green robe, an ancient token hanging at his waist, and a smile on his lips.

"Big brother, I'm back."

Li Mutian was stunned. The jade slip in his hand fell to the ground with a clatter. He stared blankly at the person at the door, his lips moved, but he couldn't utter a word for a long time.

Li Xiaoyao walked in and stopped in front of him: "Sixty years, I've kept you waiting."

Li Mutian finally came to his senses. He stood up, walked up to Li Xiaoyao, and looked him up and down. Then he reached out and patted him hard on the shoulder.

"It's good that you're back."

Her voice was a little hoarse, her eyes were a little red, but she had a smile on her face.

Li Xiaoyao smiled too. The two brothers exchanged a glance, said nothing, and sat down side by side.

The news spread quickly. In less than an hour, the entire Li family knew that their second uncle had returned.

Li Changhu was the first to arrive. Now in the late Foundation Establishment stage, his face was composed, bearing a resemblance to Li Mutian in his younger days. Upon seeing Li Xiaoyao, he quickly stepped forward and bowed deeply: "Second Uncle!"

Li Xiaoyao helped him up: "Changhu, you've worked hard."

Li Changhu shook his head, his eyes slightly red: "It's not hard work. It's Second Uncle who's had a hard time."

Immediately afterwards, Li Tongya, Li Xiangping, and Li Chijing also arrived.

Li Tongya remained silent, only nodding to Li Xiaoyao with a smile in his eyes.

As soon as Li Xiangping entered the door, he shouted, "Second Uncle! You're finally back! For sixty years, I thought you..." Before he could finish speaking, he was glared at by Li Mutian and shut up awkwardly.

Li Chijing stood at the back and smiled slightly at Li Xiaoyao: "Second Uncle."

Standing beside him was a man named Li Xuanjiao, now appearing to be in his thirties, with a calm and composed aura, and a cultivation level of the mid-Foundation Establishment stage. He stepped forward and respectfully kowtowed: "Xuanjiao greets Second Grandfather."

Li Xiaoyao helped him up, looked him up and down, and nodded: "Good, good. Better than your father was back then."

Li Xuanjiao smiled and stepped aside.

Then there are the Yuan generation. Yuan Xiu, Yuan Yun, Yuan Bao, Yuan Ping, Yuan Yu, Yuan Qing—these are all his grand-nephews and grand-nieces. The youngest is now over forty, and the oldest is nearing sixty.

Yuan Xiu and Yuan Yun are Li Xuanxuan's sons. Both of them are already in the early stage of Foundation Establishment and hold important positions in the family.

Yuanbao and Qinghe are Li Xuance's twin children. Yuanbao cultivates fire-attribute techniques and is on the verge of reaching the Foundation Establishment stage. Although Qinghe has no spiritual root, she manages the family's mundane affairs in an orderly manner.

Yuanping is Li Xuanling's son. He is taciturn and very much like his father.

Yuan Yu and Yuan Qing are Li Xuanfeng's two sons. They are broad-shouldered and burly, and look like they are good at martial arts.

They lined up and stepped forward one by one to pay their respects. Li Xiaoyao looked at them one by one and helped them up.

When he left, some of these children were still infants, while others had just learned to walk.

When we meet again now, they have all settled down, started families, and have their own children.

"Yuanxiu, how many children do you have?" Li Xiaoyao asked.

Yuan Xiu respectfully replied, "Reporting to Second Grandfather, there are two. The elder is named Xi Han, who is twenty-one years old and at the late stage of Qi Refining; the younger is named Xi Ming, who is eighteen years old and at the mid-stage of Qi Refining."

Yuan Yun also said, "I have three children: Xi Yuan, Xi Dao, and Xi Xuan. They are all boys, the eldest is nineteen."

Yuanbao chuckled: "Second Grandpa, there are two of us, Xichen and Xiyao. Qinghe has a daughter named Yueyao."

Yuan Ping was a man of few words, only saying, "Xi Yue, you're fifteen."

Yuan Yu and Yuan Qing also announced the names of their children, both of whom were male children of the "Xi" generation.

In an instant, more than a dozen names popped out of their mouths: Xi Han, Xi Ming, Xi Yuan, Xi Dao, Xi Xuan, Xi Chen, Xi Yao, Xi Yue... Li Xiaoyao nodded frequently as he listened.

"And there's more," Li Changhu said with a smile. "Xuanfeng's family has another child, born last year, named Xiheng. Xuanxuan's family also had a new addition, named Xiwen. And Xuanjiao's side of Chijing's family had a daughter last year, named Yuesheng."

Li Xiaoyao was stunned: "Wait, the Xuanjiao already has children?"

Li Chijing smiled slightly and waved towards the door. A young woman walked in carrying a baby, who was exquisitely beautiful and sleeping soundly.

"Yuesheng," Li Chijing said softly, "has just turned one year old."

Li Xiaoyao stared at the infant, suddenly feeling a sense of disorientation. Sixty years. When he left, Xuanjiao hadn't even been born yet. Now, Xuanjiao even had a daughter.

He took the baby and carefully held her in his arms. Yue Sheng stirred, her little fists peeking out of the swaddling clothes, grasping at the air, then retreating back into her sleep.

Li Xiaoyao looked at that little face and suddenly smiled.

"Okay," he said. "All is well."

He handed the baby back to the woman and took out several jade pendants from his pocket—he always carried these small items, intending to use them when meeting younger generations. He gave them to Li Changhu: "One for each of the Xi generation. One for each of the Yue generation. If you need more, we'll make up the difference later."

Li Changhu accepted the jade pendant and nodded with a smile.

Looking at the people in the room, Li Xiaoyao suddenly felt a little dazed. More than a hundred years ago, the Li family was just a small clan of a few hundred people.

The direct line consisted of just the two brothers and a few children. Now? The direct and collateral lines combined number in the tens of millions, ruling over hundreds of millions of people across three planes. From the generation with the character "木" (Mu) to the generation with the character "兮" (Xi), a full five generations.

My older brother is getting old.

My nephews have all grown up.

My nephews and grandnephews have all gotten married and started their own families.

They even have great-great-grandchildren.

And he looks exactly the same as he did sixty years ago.

"Second Uncle?" Li Changhu called softly when he saw him in a daze.

Li Xiaoyao snapped out of his reverie and smiled, "It's nothing, I just feel... time really flies."

Li Mutian glanced at him but didn't say anything. He knew what his second brother was thinking.

After the excitement subsided, everyone dispersed. The children of the "Xi" generation were the last to leave, surrounding Li Xiaoyao and looking curiously at this legendary "Second Grandfather."

Li Xiaoyao gave each of them a jade pendant, and then casually conjured up a few rays of light, which swirled around his fingertips, making the children's eyes light up.

After everyone had left, Li Xiaoyao sat alone in the quiet room behind the mountain, watching the sunset glow outside the window. The sunset glow in Luoxia Realm was still as beautiful as ever.

Sixty years ago, he sought enlightenment here, deduced supernatural powers here, and watched his family grow stronger bit by bit here. Sixty years later, he returned, and everything seemed the same, yet everything also seemed to have changed.

The door was pushed open, and Li Mutian walked in.

"Can't you sleep, brother?" Li Xiaoyao asked.

Li Mutian sat down opposite him, remained silent for a while, and then suddenly said, "It's time for me to break through as well."

Li Xiaoyao was taken aback.

"For the past sixty years, I've kept this bottled up," Li Mutian said, "thinking I'd wait until you came back. In case I failed, there would still be people in the family to support me. Now that you're back, it's time for me to give it a try."

Li Xiaoyao looked at his elder brother's gray hair and wrinkles, and remained silent for a long time. The step from Foundation Establishment to Purple Mansion—this stage had killed countless people.

Given his elder brother's abilities, the chances of success weren't high. But he didn't try to dissuade him. Because he knew his brother wasn't discussing it with him, but telling him the truth.

"Alright," Li Xiaoyao said, "I'll protect you on your path."

Li Mutian smiled, a relaxed smile: "Then it's settled."

He stood up and walked towards the door. Reaching the door, he suddenly stopped, and without turning around, said, "Xiaoyao, everything has been fine at home for the past sixty years. You don't need to feel indebted to anyone."

Li Xiaoyao watched his elder brother's figure disappear through the door, remaining silent for a long time. Then he smiled. Sixty years had passed, and nothing had changed.

He stood up and walked to the window. Outside, the sunset painted the sky with vibrant colors. Tomorrow, he should go and see those two dimensions.

The day after tomorrow, it's time to go to the Immortal Sect to collect the reward.

The day after tomorrow, it's time to help my older brother prepare for his breakthrough.

There's still a lot to do. But tonight, he doesn't have to do anything. Tonight, he's just going home.