Chapter 1274: Discussion (I)

Li Jiangqian had waited for more than a day. Cui Jueyin hurried in from outside the hall, his emotions already steadied. He saluted, then calmly reported, "Family head, the second young master is outside the hall."

Li Jiangqian responded, "Let him in."

Cui Jueyin withdrew at once. After a moment, a man stepped in from outside the hall.

He wore simple cloth garments and plain boots, bearing nothing but a single sword at his waist. He was unadorned and humble, though already at the late stage of Qi Cultivation Realm. His brow carried an air of tranquility, like a rogue cultivator who had just walked out of a temple. He bowed before Li Jiangqian and greeted respectfully, "I greet the family head."

Over the years, Li Jianglong had governed Floating South into stability and prosperity. Not once had there been unrest from rogue cultivators or devil cultivators. He had not only kept Jiangbei's turbulence beyond the river, resolving the family's northern troubles, but had also brought in no small amount of spirit items. He could be said to be exceedingly competent.

He and their third brother, Li Jiangxia, had stabilized both fronts when Li Ximing and Li Zhouwei left one after another. It was hard to imagine how many more troubles the family would have faced without the three brothers.

Li Jiangqian glanced at him with a smile and waved lightly. The guards on both sides withdrew, shutting the main and side doors of the hall tight, and the spell lamps lit up. Only the two of them remained inside. Li Jiangqian let the smile fade, walked down from his seat, and helped Li Jianglong to his feet.

He said quietly, "I called you back this time because we must give up the Floating South territory."

The amount of effort Li Jianglong had poured into Floating South needed no elaboration. That one sentence nearly broke his composure. After steadying himself like he had taken a Mind Calming Pill, he frowned and asked, "Family head, what is this..."

Li Jiangqian said, "A True Monarch is to reincarnate in Jiangbei, in the land of the three streams."

Li Jianglong stared at him blankly.

Li Jiangqian shook his head as he continued, "It is a True Monarch from the Northern Upper Sect. Zhang Duanyan of the Golden Feather Sect personally delivered the decree."

Those two sentences shattered what was left of Li Jianglong's composure. His pupils dilated, disbelief spreading across his face. After several breaths, he finally asked, "Chu Yi from back then?"

"Correct." Li Jiangqian acknowledged.

He brought his brother forward, spread a map across the desk, and roughly explained the Golden Feather Sect's orders. A solemn heaviness settled into Li Jianglong's expression as he said, "If this matter is handled poorly, it could bring disaster upon millions and lead to the annihilation of our entire family."

Li Jiangqian nodded as he replied, "You understand Floating South better than anyone. Knowing the situation and how to divide things cleanly is the troublesome part."

Li Jianglong pondered for a moment as he studied the map, then said, "When Floating Cloud Cave collapsed, the people were taken by the two caves and have not recovered to this day. Our authority in that region revolves around the spirit fields and the spirit veins, which are mostly guarded by cultivators from other areas. Withdrawal will not be difficult. Once we pull out, the sparse population will not even be able to muster a few cultivators. With no support from anywhere, even self governance will be a problem.

"If our family abandons this land, the Capital Immortal Dao will abandon Hidden East as well. The families there are deeply entrenched, and many immortal sects and gates from Jiangnan and Jiangbei have placed their people within. The population is dense, so they will definitely swallow Floating South very quickly."

Hidden East was difficult to govern for two main reasons. The families there have enormous populations, and it served as the sects’ recruiting ground for direct lineage disciples, which in turn supported local powers to buy cheaply or seize Jiangbei's spiritual items.

Li Jiangqian understood and asked, "With your understanding of Jiangbei, how will the situation in Hidden East develop? Will those families learn of this?"

Li Jianglong thought for a moment. "They will not. All the sects will pull back. Local powers exist because their sect lineages are vast and spread everywhere. Their families never die out, so their quality varies greatly. They are hard to uproot, yet they also can never withdraw. Even if their family members cultivate in immortal gates, the lightest punishment is crippling, and the harshest is death."

Li Jiangqian considered aloud, "Destroying them outright has its problems. If their family declines because of it, and the Mandate of Heaven falls upon that land, it will lead to disaster instead. Since the order says to move toward the land of Qi and Lu, then we head toward the land of Qi and Lu. What we must fear most are the northern powers. The immortal gates will sever ties cleanly but will not be overly ruthless. They will leave themselves a retreat."

Li Jianglong looked at his elder brother and replied, "I did not think that thoroughly. Then we do not need to convict anyone. It is enough to let someone bring harm upon them. If something happens in the future, we raise a scapegoat. Since we are not heading south, this makes for a convenient explanation."

"That is reasonable."

The two brothers stared at the map. Li Jianglong mused, "Floating South does not involve much, but there are still a few local family cultivators who are difficult to handle. Still, we have an easy excuse. Give them spirit items and send them off. After some time, tell them in advance that our family will withdraw and that the Capital Immortal Dao will arrive. They will flee with their families on their own.

"There are also several cultivators who settled locally and have children. They count among Jiangbei's rogue cultivators. Take them along with their entire villages, leaving not even a dog or a duck behind."

The Li Family had many cultivators from Jiangbei, though most were rogue cultivators and easy to handle. Li Jiangqian quietly nodded, but then a soft sound came from the hall doors.

Qu Buzhi entered with a face full of shock and confusion, "Family head, that utterly shameless Capital Immortal Dao has sent a devil Dao guest cultivator to pay a visit!"

Li Jiangqian frowned and asked, "So early? That should not be. How many people did Daoist Guan bring? It has not spread, has it?"

Qu Buzhi looked like he had seen a ghost and almost bit his tongue. He hesitated and said, "That dev... no... that Capital Immortal Dao man came alone. He appeared outside the island and asked someone to deliver the message secretly. This old servant understands the gravity of the matter, so no one else has seen him."

Relief washed through Li Jiangqian. He said, "Have him come through the side hall. Do not let anyone see him."

Qu Buzhi hurried away. Fifteen minutes later, a middle aged man entered the hall. He had been dressed in elegant white before, but the moment he stepped inside, his appearance changed, revealing high brows and deep set eyes, a black Daoist robe and a silk belt at his waist.

When he reached the center of the hall, his face was full of bitterness as he sighed, "I greet the family head."

Li Jiangqian nodded slightly. "So it is the Gate Master of Capital Immortal Dao."

It was truly Guan Gongxiao, the Gate Master of Capital Immortal Dao, who had come in person.

Guan Gongxiao had no temper left now. He had always been good tempered, so he said very little. He shook his head as he replied, "With this matter arriving at our door, there is no grievance between our two houses worth mentioning. Our gate came hastily from the outer-sea and has never encountered something like this. I received the order and immediately came to meet the family head."

The Capital Immortal Dao's territory was even farther north of the three streams, and their situation was far more difficult than the Li Family's. Guan Gongxiao was naturally in a panic, and Xuanmiao Temple and Chengyun Gate were likely in no better shape.

Li Jiangqian did not argue with him and simply asked, "Does your Daoist Master have any orders?"

Guan Gongxiao silently shook his head, paused for a moment, and answered, "Our Daoist Master has been in seclusion for many years and is not in Jiangbei."

Yehui’s absence was not something that needed concealing. Many sects had Purple Mansion Realm cultivators who spent years outside. Sects without a renowned Supreme Yang Dao lineage had even fewer Purple Mansion Realm cultivators, and they rarely stayed in one place. Daoist Master Xiao of the Xiao Family had not returned to Jiangnan for many years, yet the Xiao Family remained steady as Mount Tai.

But when Li Jiangqian heard this, he had already figured things out,

No wonder this man rushed over so anxiously. So the Daoist Master went into seclusion outside, and it is unknown how many years will pass once in seclusion. This matter is not simple. It is entirely possible that Yehui will remain in seclusion for ten years, and when he finally emerges, everyone surnamed Guan in the Baiye region will be gone.

It seems the Golden Feather Sect has essentially saved the Capital Immortal Dao lineage.