Druid Fairy

Chapter 91 The Mu Family, Formation

"Thank you very much, Lord Mu."

Receiving an affirmative answer, Li Ping'an felt relieved. Thinking of his parents' joy upon hearing the news, his longing for home grew even stronger.

"Still calling me Lord Mu?" Mu Hong smiled and stroked his beard. "It's time to change how you address me."

Before he could finish speaking and Li Ping'an could respond, a clear yet slightly shy voice came from behind the screen: "Father, why are you in such a hurry?"

A slender young woman with snow-white skin walked out gracefully. She wore a light purple silk dress with several magnolia buds embroidered on the hem, which seemed to sway in the purple mist as she walked.

Her clear almond-shaped eyes, filled with a mixture of curiosity and nervousness, scrutinized the students in blue robes below. Her long eyelashes fluttered gently like butterfly wings, and her hands unconsciously twisted the silk sash around her waist.

This is Mu Wanqiu, the illegitimate daughter of the Mu family.

Upon seeing the girl, Li Ping'an's heart stirred slightly.

He came here for the sake of his future and family, and had no high expectations for his marriage partner. He only asked that she come from a respectable family and be virtuous. In his view, the benefits that a wife's status would bring were far more important than her appearance and temperament.

But the girl in front of me was not only beautiful and refined, but also gentle and charming. The shyness she revealed unintentionally was like the tenderest new green in spring, making people feel affection for her.

This was undoubtedly a pleasant surprise.

Li Ping'an remained calm on the surface, but in his heart he was already seven-tenths satisfied.

He cupped his hands and said, "Miss Mu."

Mu Wanqiu felt shy, but she still said gracefully, "Young Master Li."

Perhaps this is the demeanor of a lady from a prestigious family; she is more composed and acts more appropriately than any girl Li Ping'an has ever met in the towns and counties.

"Weining, the banquet is about to begin. Before that, let Wanqiu show you around my Mu family mansion," Mu Hong said with a smile.

The Mu family mansion houses several important family locations, including the Alchemy Hall, Martial Arts Hall, and Weapon Refining Hall.

This display was both a boast and a show of honesty, letting Li Ping'an understand the immense benefits he could gain from a marriage alliance with the Mu family.

Li Ping'an followed Mu Wanqiu through the winding corridor and across the white jade arch bridge.

The Mu family mansion was astonishingly large. The martial arts training ground alone was more spacious than any martial arts school in Yunshui County. The weapons racks were filled with the cold light of swords, spears, halberds and daggers. Many guards were fighting in pairs, their internal energy surging and their movements powerful. Most of them were experts at the Divine Fiend Realm.

Mu Wanqiu introduced, her tone filled with pride: "My Mu family's guards are all veterans who have fought in countless battles and made military achievements. They are more than capable of protecting my Mu family."

Afterwards, we visited the library, a three-story building filled with piles of books, covering everything from classics and historical texts to anecdotes and stories of the martial arts world. There were even a few tattered bamboo slips, said to be relics from a previous dynasty, recording long-lost secrets.

As Li Ping'an looked around, he became increasingly shocked. This was the foundation of a family that had been passed down for hundreds of years, far beyond what his so-called large families in Yunshui County could compare to.

As for the Li family, compared to them, they are worlds apart.

He thought to himself, 'I wonder when my Li family will ever be so powerful.'

Continue following Mu Wanqiu.

When they arrived at a secluded but heavily guarded courtyard, Li Ping'an truly witnessed the core strength of the Mu family.

The courtyard was sweltering, filled with a rich aroma of herbs mixed with the smell of burning. In the very center stood a massive alchemy furnace, beneath which roared a raging fire. An elderly man with white hair and beard, dressed in a gray Taoist robe, sat cross-legged with his eyes closed, controlling the intensity of the fire with one hand forming a hand seal.

"This is Master Sun, an extraordinary person whom my father befriended during his early travels. His alchemy skills are unparalleled."

Mu Wanqiu's tone was full of respect, and she treated Sun Danshi with the utmost respect, not daring to be negligent in the slightest.

Li Ping'an quickly followed suit and bowed.

Just then, Master Sun seemed to have completed a certain stage of his practice, slowly closing his eyes. He saw Mu Wanqiu, merely nodding casually as a greeting, his attitude extremely arrogant.

It should be noted that although Mu Wanqiu was a concubine's daughter, she was greatly favored by Mu Hong. She lived a life of luxury, with food, clothing, and daily necessities that were in no way inferior to those of the legitimate sons and daughters in the mansion.

Instead of being offended, Mu Wanqiu asked with a smile, "Master Sun, how did it go today in condensing this batch of 'Qi Condensation Pills'?"

"Unfortunately, if the Fire Edelweiss that your Mu family found had not been of a slightly inferior age, I would have already achieved the elixir."

Master Sun said irritably, but Mu Wanqiu didn't take it to heart and said in a tone that was meant to please an elder, "I'll tell Father right away and have him send over the precious herbs and spiritual plants from his storehouse."

"You're such a good girl."

Master Sun laughed and looked at the man beside Mu Wanqiu, "Is this the ideal husband your father found for you?" Mu Wanqiu blushed slightly at his words.

He scrutinized Li Ping'an again, saying critically, "You're a bit weak, kid."

Li Ping'an was speechless. He had been practicing Tree Breathing for many years and his body was actually quite strong, but he had been cramming for exams these past few days and hadn't had a good rest, so he did feel a bit drowsy.

Just as things were getting awkward, Master Sun flicked his finger and sent a green pill flying, which landed steadily in Li Ping'an's palm. "This is the Foundation Strengthening Pill, which can cleanse your body of impurities and strengthen your foundation."

Li Ping'an didn't understand pills, but Mu Wanqiu was pleasantly surprised. If a martial artist took the Foundation Strengthening Pill, he could break through a major realm on the spot and leap from the Acquired Realm to the Innate Realm. Creating an Innate Grandmaster was a testament to its preciousness.

Seeing the hint in Mu Wanqiu's eyes, Li Ping'an quickly thanked her and then respectfully followed Mu Wanqiu out of the area.

'An alchemist!'

Li Ping'an was deeply shocked.

The fact that an alchemist could be treated with such courtesy by a prominent family in the prefecture instantly dampened his pride at having passed the imperial examination.

While the path of a celestial official may bring glory to one's family, it ultimately operates within the rules of the dynasty. Alchemists, however, transcend worldly concerns through their unique skills, and are treated as honored guests even by powerful clans.

All other pursuits are inferior; only cultivating immortality is superior!
If only a cultivator could emerge from the Li family!

……

A few days later, Li Ping'an bid farewell to the Mu family and embarked on his journey home.

When the carriage bearing the Mu family emblem slowly drove into Peach Blossom Village, the entire village erupted in excitement. Li Rongzhou and Qin Shi had already led their entire family to the village entrance, eagerly awaiting its arrival.

"Mother, Father, Eldest Brother, Little Brother, Yuanyuan, I'm back."

Li Ping'an's eyes also welled up with tears. Looking at the familiar faces of his family, he felt instantly at ease.

Li Rongzhou laughed heartily: "It's good that you're back!"

"Ping An!" Qin's eyes reddened, and she quickly stepped forward, staring intently at Li Ping An as he stepped down from the carriage, as if to see if he had lost any weight.

Back home, the family sat together, and Li Ping'an recounted his experiences in the prefecture and his marriage to the Mu family in detail.

When Qin heard that Li Ping'an was about to marry the daughter of the prestigious Mu family in the prefecture and that he had been appointed as the registrar of Yunshui County, she was overjoyed. She clasped her hands together and said that she wanted to go to the Taoist temple to fulfill her vow.

Only Li Rongzhou, after his initial excitement, became serious. He called Li Pingfu and Li Pingcan, and the four of them went to the secret room.

“Ping An, you are now a celestial official and have been married into the Mu family. Your future is limitless. But there are some things that I must make sure you understand.”

Seeing his father's serious expression, Li Ping'an also suppressed his joy and said solemnly, "Father, please speak."

“My Li family is no longer an ordinary farming family.” Li Rongzhou spoke slowly, his voice deep and powerful. “Your eldest brother, Pingfu, is now a peak Divine Fiend Realm martial artist. And I, not long ago, also broke through and stepped into the Divine Fiend Realm.”

"what?"

Li Ping'an was taken aback. He knew his elder brother had amazing martial arts talent, but he never expected his father to be so...

"That's not all."

Li Rongzhou looked at his youngest son, a hint of pride flashing in his eyes. "Your third brother, Pingcan, may not show off, but his strength is probably even greater than your eldest brother's and mine. Our Li family now has three Divine Fiend Realm martial artists!"

Li Pingcan smiled slightly, looking at his second brother with a smug expression.

Surprised? While you were working so hard, the rest of our family was also striving and struggling!
"Father, elder brother, younger brother! You guys are too tight-lipped!" Li Ping'an complained after his initial shock, but his face was beaming with joy.

Li Pingfu laughed and said, "Isn't this because I was afraid of disturbing your concentration on your studies? Besides, there's a risk of the message being leaked if it's delivered by crows?"

Li Ping'an knew perfectly well that his family's refusal to tell him wasn't out of exclusion, but rather a form of protection. Sometimes, knowing too much isn't necessarily a good thing.

"I never imagined that everyone in our Li family would become like a dragon!"

Li Ping'an said, "Father, the Mu family has a deep foundation. This time I came back not only to arrange the engagement, but also to explore many avenues. In the future, I will be able to obtain the resources we need for cultivation, whether it be precious medicines or weapons. I even... I have also found out that there are channels to exchange for some basic spiritual materials for setting up a house-protecting formation!"

Using formations to ward off evil spirits and bring prosperity to the family was one of the most favored methods of the Great Yu Dynasty families.

Li Pingcan's heart skipped a beat. He had a book called "The Mysterious Record of Blessed Heaven Spirits" in his hand, which seemed to be some kind of concealment formation. He had been struggling to find suitable spiritual materials before, but perhaps through his second brother's connections, he could try to practice formations?
…………

The Li family held a grand banquet for ten days and ten nights before gradually returning to normalcy.

After marrying Mu Wanqiu, Li Ping'an will take up his post and settle in Yunshui County.

After all, she was a woman from a truly prominent family. Compared to her, Jiang Ling'er, who came from humble origins, was still quite different and dared not slack off.

Putting aside family matters, Li Rongzhou and Qin Shi were quite satisfied with Mu Wanqiu. She had a calm demeanor and showed no dissatisfaction even when she saw the "leaky room" in Peach Blossom Village. She knelt respectfully on the bricks to serve tea to her parents-in-law, without any of the spoiled airs of aristocratic families.

Li Pingcan could tell that his second sister-in-law was not pretending and was indeed a good person, so he felt relieved.

Several decades have passed in the blink of an eye.

Deep in the mountains, Li Pingcan held the old mulberry leaf in his hand, his face filled with doubt.

"Strange, could it be that my cultivation level is not high enough to activate this token?" The nightingale hovered in the air, completely puzzled.

No matter how he activated his spiritual energy or how he sensed it, that area remained an ordinary mountain forest, and he couldn't find any trace of the mist array.

Forcing a search is probably not going to work.

Unfortunately, his attempt with "The Mysterious Records of Futianling" was unsuccessful.

Indeed, it is a formation that has fallen into the hands of mortals, and it is more like a rudimentary formation of geomancy, which is not a proper match for the Mist Formation.

After much thought, he thought of a person—or rather, a snake.

"Lady White!"

When Lady White Snake was suppressed by the immortals with the "Spirit-Locking Nails," those nails were inscribed with complex array runes. At the time, my cultivation was too weak to break them.

Originally, I planned to use the spiritual energy of Mount Ling to reach the second level of Qi Refining with more confidence, but it seems that this is a long way off.

At the first level of Qi Refining, or the level of a Body Refining Grandmaster, one might be able to give it a try.

More importantly, Lady White Snake is knowledgeable and experienced, and may know the secrets of the formation.

Having made up his mind, Li Pingcan no longer hesitated and flew towards Longquan Town.

It wasn't the time for moon worship, so Longquan Town was much quieter. He easily found his way to Longquan Lake, dived into the water, and looked into the distance, where a huge circular "island" came into view.

Stepping onto the island in the water, following the route in my memory, I soon arrived at the cave on the island in the middle of the lake.

"Lady Bai, your humble servant Li Pingcan has come to pay his respects!"

His voice echoed in the empty cave.

"hiss……"

A long, drawn-out hiss, tinged with a hint of surprise, rang out, and the white snake slowly emerged from behind the stone pillar.

"It's you, little one." The white snake recognized Li Pingcan at a glance, her eyes shining brightly. "You have indeed embarked on the path of immortality!"

The black tortoise poked its head out, surprised but wearing a sour face, and snorted coldly: "Hmph, human cultivators, not a single one of them is good. What are you doing here? You should have gotten your benefits and gotten lost, yet you dare to come back?"

Li Pingcan then noticed that a white snake was peering out from beside the white snake. He was slightly alarmed, realizing that his animal instincts had failed to detect it, indicating that the snake's ability to conceal its presence was far superior to his own.

There are always people more capable than humans, and immortals more powerful than immortals!
His expression grew even more respectful. "Back then, I was not skilled enough to help Your Majesty. Now I have come again, willing to do my utmost to remove this Spirit-Locking Nail for Your Majesty!"

A hint of emotion and expectation flashed in the white snake's eerie green eyes. It had helped so many people and things, but how many could respond to its expectations?
Sometimes it's not that those people are unwilling, but rather that they lack the ability.

"Alright, give it a try. But if you fail to pull out the Soul-Locking Nail the second time, the backlash will be tremendous. You must be extremely careful."

Li Pingcan took a deep breath and walked to the belly of the white snake.

The thick copper nail was still firmly embedded there, its runes gleaming with a chilling light.

Unlike last time, he no longer tried to pry it open with external force. Instead, he sat cross-legged and circulated the "Earth God Qi Refining Technique," slowly extending his thick earth-elemental spiritual energy, like gentle water flowing, to softly envelop the Spirit-Locking Nail.

What he needs to do is not to "pull out," but to "untie."

He immersed his divine sense into it, carefully observing the operating rules of those runes. These runes formed a miniature array that circulated endlessly, drawing power from the earth's veins and suppressing the white snake's spiritual power.

"The core of this formation is 'suppression' and 'locking,' but everything in the universe has its counterparts; where there is suppression, there is also a way to guide and channel."

A sudden inspiration struck Li Pingcan. Instead of resisting the suppressing force, he followed its flow, cleverly injecting his earth-elemental spiritual energy into one of the nodes. He didn't intend to destroy the formation, but rather to become part of it, thus disrupting its balance from within.

"Buzz!"

The runes on the Soul-Locking Nail shone brightly, and the remaining immortal essence seemed to sense the intruder, unleashing a strong repulsive force.

"It's now!"

Li Pingcan's eyes widened as the druid's [Earth Shaping] ability perfectly combined with the cultivator's magic. He was no longer manipulating ordinary soil, but the entire rocky ley lines of the island in the middle of the lake!

"rise!"

He gave a low shout, and the rocks around the Spirit-Locking Nail seemed to come alive, vibrating with an extremely mysterious rhythm, precisely severing several key connections between the formation and the earth's veins.

Without the continuous supply of earth vein power, the runes on the Soul-Locking Nail dimmed instantly.

"open!"

Seizing this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, Li Pingcan reached out and grasped the nail, unleashing the physical strength of a Grandmaster and the magical power of a Qi Refining cultivator simultaneously!
"Crack!"

A crisp sound rang out, and the Spirit-Locking Nail that had troubled the White Snake for three hundred years was actually pulled out an inch!
"hiss!"

The white snake's massive body trembled violently, and joy flashed in its eyes.

However, the immortal's true intent would not give up so easily. A point of brilliant golden true intent was pointed at Li Pingcan!
At this critical moment, the white snake suddenly raised its head and spat out a crystal-clear white pearl. The pearl emitted a soft light, which barely blocked the immortal's finger.

This is the inner elixir of the White Snake!

"Now, little guy, pull it out!"

Li Pingcan gritted his teeth and pushed all his strength to the limit.

"Come out!"

With a roar, the Spirit-Locking Nail was finally pulled out completely, transforming into a streak of light as it tried to escape. The white snake, however, was prepared. With a flick of its tail, it trapped the nail tightly, then opened its mouth and swallowed the Spirit-Locking Nail, slowly refining it with its own spiritual power.

"call……"

Li Pingcan plopped down on the ground, panting heavily. The series of actions he had just performed had almost completely exhausted his energy.

"Thank you, little one!"

"Your Majesty is too kind. It is my honor to be able to share your burdens."

Lady White's gratitude and joy flowed into Li Pingcan's heart like a vast ocean, and Li Pingcan smiled, feeling warm inside.

The white snake gently rubbed its tail against Li Pingcan, its aura rising steadily, showing signs of a potential breakthrough.

The black tortoise standing to the side was also dumbfounded, muttering, "Really... the seal has been broken?" There are actually people among the human race who are grateful for their abilities.
“Little one, you helped me out of trouble, this kindness is greater than heaven. Tell me, what do you want? As long as it is within my power, I will not refuse.”

Li Pingcan was overjoyed and respectfully said, "Your Majesty, I have always longed to learn about formations, but I have no way of doing so. I wonder if Your Majesty could give me some guidance?"

"Array?"

Upon hearing this, the white snake revealed a smile in its snake eyes, "This matter is not difficult for me. I happen to have a secret technique for array formations... You certainly know how to choose."

After saying that, a beam of white light flew out from between her eyebrows and entered Li Pingcan's mind.

In an instant, a massive amount of information about array formations flooded in, from the most basic array flags and array plate making to the array arrangement that draws in the spiritual energy of heaven and earth, and the various wonderful array diagram changes, which captivated Li Pingcan.

This manual is no ordinary book!

Li Pingcan was overjoyed and bowed deeply in gratitude.

"Thank you for your generous gift, Your Majesty!"

(End of this chapter)