novelraw Chapter 293 - 268 Beacon
Chapter 293 - 268 Beacon
Swaying along the journey, they finally arrived at Lijing Town. Xiao Xian was groggily awakened by the blaring suona and took out the wooden box to look inside; only the few pieces he had eaten when he had gotten on the carriage remained untouched—the rest were still neatly stacked, not a single one disturbed.
"Qingxiao, Qingxiao."
Xiao Xian hurriedly woke the girl. Li Qingxiao, still sleepy, stumbled down from the soft seat. The shrill, joyful sounds of the suona came from below, and a pair of large hands lifted the curtain, letting in the sunlight.
"Xiao’er."
"Father!"
This man was solemn and serious. It turned out to be Chen Donghe, anxious for his daughter, who had been waiting early in town. He channeled his mana to alleviate Li Qingxiao’s discomfort. Xiao Xian quickly said:
"From Lixia of the Xiao Family, Yue Mountain’s Xiao Xian, greets the senior."
"Hmm."
Chen Donghe politely responded with a single hum and said warmly:
"The guest quarters are up ahead, someone will come to guide our distinguished guests, please wait a moment."
After speaking, he dropped the curtain and walked away with Li Qingxiao in his arms, leaving Xiao Xian silently waiting in the carriage, alone and friendless, his loneliness and awkwardness indescribable.
"Hey!"
The curtain was pulled open again with a swish, and Li Qingxiao popped in with her face aglow in the golden sunlight. Though weary, she had a smile on her small face and called out:
"I’ll be on the mountain! Come find me when you have time."
Before leaving, she didn’t forget to pick up the wooden box from the ground, stuffed two pieces into Xiao Xian’s hands, and then hopped off the carriage.
Xiao Xian stood there holding the two pieces of cake, motionless for a dozen breaths, before he gently pinched the cake and slipped it into his sleeve, where a pocket had been stitched—fitting a piece of cake was naturally no problem. He carefully placed the cake inside and obediently sat down to wait.
Meanwhile, Chen Donghe, escorting Li Qingxiao, ascended the mountain. Li Qingxiao was very tired, so Chen Donghe decided to let his daughter rest in the courtyard first. Li Jingtian was arranging wooden slips in the courtyard when Chen Donghe stepped forward, embraced his wife, and saw her aloof expression, he asked softly:
"Why so listless today?"
Li Jingtian paused for a moment, her delicate hands holding a wooden slip from the desk, and simply answered:
"Decades of large and small affairs have finally been recorded. Yuanyun has taken over the duties; he will record the history. Now that I suddenly have so much time, I don’t know what to do."
Chen Donghe was silent, and Li Jingtian put down what she was holding and said, in a low voice:
"Without realizing it, Yuanjiao is also wed. I’ve spent most of my life, yet confined to these mountains, I feel so sad... It’s bad enough not to have ridden the winds or commanded qi, but I haven’t even stepped outside Lijing Mountain more than a few times."
She lifted her head, the marks of age on her face were faint, retaining her once beautiful features. Li Jingtian was eager, her voice soft:
"I have finished my work on the mountain. I am thinking, after Qingxiao is married, I will ask the elders if you and I could travel north, to see different sights for the remainder of our lives."
Chen Donghe, who adored his wife, found it impossible to resist her earnest gaze and could only nod sympathetically, replying:
"In a few more years, after Qingxiao is married and we have more Qi Cultivators in the family, I will make the request."
The couple looked at each other and Li Jingtian nodded with a smile, leaning against Chen Donghe’s chest, she said:
"It should be like this... It should be like this. We have been serving the family for over a decade, and once the clan stabilizes and all four territories are at peace, we will be able to think about ourselves."
She paused for a moment, then replied:
"Qinghong and Yuanjiao both have their own thoughts. The family today is not like the siblings we were back on the mountain, but the children are sensible and get along warmly. Qinghong wants to cultivate the ’Purple Thunder Secret Essence Technique’, and her second uncle has gone with her... They are warm today, but who knows about the future."
"Having seen the secret histories of many families, not a single one wasn’t harmonious and united in the beginning but ended up fractured with success. The path ahead, I’m afraid, won’t be easy."
Li Jingtian, after all, had read many history books and seen much, and with worries in her heart, Chen Donghe kissed her forehead and answered:
"Each generation faces its own challenges. Only a man like old Master Li could worry about five generations ahead. We needn’t fret over this, let’s see how Yuanjiao and Qinghong handle it."
————
"The Xiao Family’s marriage alliance, the Zifu Immortal Clan giving their daughter in marriage... What is Xiao Chuting thinking!"
Yu Mugao stood in the sky, carried by the wind. His face was unsightly, and the people standing behind him were all silently watching the procession below through the mist. After watching for a long time, Yu Mugao still couldn’t believe it and said:
"Li Chijin has been out of news for decades. Does the Xiao Family really believe that the Li Family will succeed?!"
Everyone was silent, and Yu Mugao clenched his teeth. Unaware of how many Foundation Establishment cultivators were watching from below, he held back his myriad plans in his heart, staring blankly at the procession without a word.
"Xiao Chuting is a man of deep schemes and long-term vision. To give his daughter in marriage like this, Li Chijin must not only be fine but also not far from Zifu. After all the calculations across the lake, they still fall short of a single casual word from Zifu."
Yu Mugao had managed the Yu Family for many years, faced the Fei Clan’s scheming, the rising Li Family, internal constraints from clan elders and uncles, and Yu Yufeng’s yearly blood sacrifices. Having gone through so much hardship to take control of the Yu Family, and just as he was prepared for a major undertaking, the Li Family allied with the Zifu Immortal Clan, crushing his grand ambitions and leaving him utterly disheartened, he said:
"What plans, what struggles? It is nothing but a stroke of bad luck for the Yu Family, not something human effort can salvage. Even if I strategize for years and exhaust my vitality, what’s the use? The momentum is broken, and further scheming is just clinging on vainly. Thirty years of planning wasted, leaving us in a dead end."
The people behind him were shaken by his words. Several stepped forward to console him, but Yu Mugao stayed silent until finally saying:
"What’s there to say? Best to lead the clan north, climb over mountains and hills, hide away in Xu Country or Qi Country, and never return. There’s still a glimmer of hope. In our current state, we’re just waiting for death."
"Mugao... even if we hold the East Bank, with Muxian within the sect, we can still linger for a few hundred years at worst. Surely the Li Family’s momentum will pass; why be so mournful..."
The clan members below were moved by his words and stepped forward to persuade him, but Yu Mugao only shook his head and sighed, replying:
"You don’t see the clear situation."
"Li Tongya is a sly snake, slippery and cunning. When he was just a Qi Cultivator, we could do nothing against him. Now that I hear he’s reached Foundation Establishment, what can we do about him?"
"Li Yuanjiao and Li Qinghong are talents of a rare kind, nearly becoming Qi Cultivators at just over twenty. Once they grow, where will we stand against the Li Family? Li Yuanxiu is even more thoughtful and distinguished. If it weren’t for our doing, do you think we could stand here unscathed? More likely, we’d be in utter disarray, distressed and hard-pressed."
Yu Mugao looked tired, hands clasped behind his back as he gazed into the distance and continued:
"I see it clearly now. The state of the Li Family today is the result of our relentless suppression when their fortunes were low... If back then Ganixi went north, Yu Muxuan hesitated, Li Chijin returned home... none of them would compare to today’s Li Family."
The crowd felt anxious, accompanying Yu Mugao for a while until a Yu Family cultivator flew from afar, landing hurriedly in front of him with joyful news:
"Family Head! Family Head! The Immortal Master is arriving soon! The beacon of the Rosy Cloud Boat from Green Pond Sect has lit up. In less than three days, the sect’s Immortal Master will arrive!"
People of the Yu Family immediately showed delight, congratulating each other, while Yu Mugao’s face also brightened, and he replied:
"At least there’s some good news. Let’s wait and see what the Immortal Master has to say. Muxian is full of confidence; perhaps there’s some information."