Gou Zai created a blessed land in the immortal abode

Li Chengming walked on the water, going upstream against the current of the Yuan River.

The fog churned on the river surface, reducing visibility to an extremely low level. However, for cultivators at the late stage of Qi Refining, their spiritual sense was sufficient to penetrate the fog.

As Li Chengming walked, he recalled his earlier encounter with Zhou Xian and the other two.

The power of the "Sound Flowing Technique" was stronger than he had anticipated.

He originally thought that this technique was only for auxiliary purposes, and that its limit was to disrupt the opponent's mind in battle.

However, when he used it just now, he discovered that as his cultivation level broke through to the late stage of Qi Refining, the power of this technique had increased significantly. It could not only disturb the mind, but also directly impact the opponent's spiritual energy circulation.

"It seems that the potential of this technique is higher than I thought."

As for Zhou Xian's threat, he didn't take it too seriously.

Although the Zhou family is the most powerful force along the Yuanjiang River, it is only a Qi Refining family. The strongest cultivator in the family is only at the ninth level of Qi Refining, and no one has yet broken through to the Foundation Establishment stage.

As long as he doesn't venture deep into the Zhou family's core territory, it won't be so easy for the Zhou family to cause him trouble.

Moreover, he was about to return to the Kong family.

The Zhou family didn't dare to go to the Kong family to find someone.

After flying for a while and enjoying the ride, Li Chengming summoned his flying artifact and headed towards Guangling Mountain.

The speed of the flying artifact was still much faster than when he rode the wind himself.

…………

The Kong family.

Guangling Mountain.

Li Chengming put away his flying artifact and landed on the stone steps in front of the mountain gate.

"Master Li is back," a servant said respectfully.

Li Chengming still holds a high position in the Kong family, not only because of his status as an alchemist, but also because everyone says he is Kong Shaowen's son-in-law.

He would later be considered half a member of the Kong family.

Therefore, the servants, soldiers, and even some collateral relatives of the Kong family treated him with great courtesy.

Li Chengming nodded slightly and walked along the mountain path.

As he traveled, he noticed that the atmosphere within the Kong family was indeed different from before.

In the past, there were many busy cultivators on the mountain road, either patrolling or transporting supplies, and everything was in good order.

The people are still the same, but everyone's steps are much more hurried, and their faces have a more indescribable solemnity.

The demise of the Liu family brought a sense of urgency to the Kong family.

Li Chengming paid no attention to these things and walked straight towards the courtyard where he lived.

His courtyard was still in the same old place, and the green bamboo planted in front of the door had grown taller, with morning dew still clinging to its leaves.

Pushing open the courtyard gate, everything inside was as it had always been. The stone tables and benches were wiped clean, and even the tea set he hadn't had time to pack up when he left was still there, clearly indicating that someone cleaned it regularly.

It's Kong Xuan.

She sat in the pavilion, holding in her hands the imperial edict that Li Chengming had left for her when he left.

Li Chengming walked in slowly. Kong Xuan heard the footsteps behind her, turned around and saw the face of the person who came. It was the face she had been thinking about day and night. She was overjoyed and got up to greet him.

"You're back!"

Li Chengming nodded slightly and said:

"After breaking through to the late stage of Qi Refining, I returned."

"very nice."

Kong Xuan was happy for him, but when she thought about how she was only at the fourth level of Qi Refining, she immediately felt down.

"By the way, I heard that the Zhao family is cleaning up those forces that are affiliated with the Liu family?" Li Chengming asked about the important matter.

Upon hearing this, Kong Xuan's expression darkened slightly, and she sighed softly.

"During your month-long seclusion, the situation in Youyang County has changed more dramatically than you imagined."

She put down the book in her hand, walked to Li Chengming's side, and the two sat side by side on the stone bench in the pavilion.

"The Zhao family is indeed cleaning up the remaining forces of the Liu family, but that's just the surface story."

"The surface explanation?" Li Chengming raised an eyebrow.

Kong Xuan nodded and lowered her voice: "My father said that the Zhao family's real purpose is not to eliminate the remnants of the Liu family, but to use this as an excuse to swallow up those small forces that were originally neutral."

"If any power refuses to submit, the Zhao family will exterminate their entire clan and then refine all the cultivators who share the same path as them into blood pills."

"Now, all the factions within the county are in a state of panic."

Upon hearing this, Li Chengming's pupils contracted. Had the Zhao family patriarch become so blatant in consuming human pills?

"Isn't he afraid of really bringing disaster upon the immortal sects and clans?"

The forces that can be called immortal sects or immortal clans all have a Purple Mansion True Person in charge.

The decision to ban the use of human pills was made jointly by this group of great masters.

With the Zhao family patriarch so openly displaying his cannibalistic pills, isn't he afraid of attracting the attention of the Purple Mansion True Man?

"I don't know either." Kong Xuan shook her head.

She was just a mid-stage Qi Refining cultivator; how could she know such things? Even her father wouldn't tell her anything about this.

Upon hearing this, Li Chengming nodded slightly and then asked:

"So what do we do now? Just watch the Zhao family slaughter other forces?"

"Of course not," Kong Xuan said.

"My Kong family is now communicating with other forces, seeking to form an alliance of offense and defense. Currently, Youyang County is roughly divided into north and south."

The Zhao family is in the north, and the Kong family is in the south.

"North and South are in opposition..." Li Chengming repeated in a low voice, quickly sketching out the power structure of Youyang County in his mind.

"Both sides are now vying for more support," Kong Xuan continued. "My father has been meeting with the heads of other families these past few days, sometimes several groups of people a day."

After returning to the Kong family, Kong Shaoping and An Mingxin have been in seclusion, and Kong Chengheng has not yet broken through to the Foundation Establishment stage. Therefore, Kong Shaowen is currently acting as the clan leader of the Kong family.

Although the Kong family was actively trying to win over other forces and form alliances, Li Chengming was not optimistic about it.

Although both families now have two Foundation Establishment cultivators, Zhao Zhenshan, the patriarch of the Zhao family, possesses the strength of the late Foundation Establishment stage.

The Kong family currently has two Foundation Establishment cultivators, one in the middle stage and the other in the early stage.

Even though Kong Shaoping and An Mingxin, one with wind and the other with fire, could greatly increase the power of the fire by adding wind to it, they could only barely resist Zhao Zhenshan.

Who will deal with Zhao Zhenyue?

"Unless... we can have another early Foundation Establishment stage cultivator."

After much deliberation, Li Chengming concluded that the final variable lay with Kong Chengheng, the young patriarch of the Kong family.

Kong Chengheng is also a sword cultivator, and his understanding of the sword is even greater than that of Kong Chengli. If he can break through to the Foundation Establishment realm, his combat power will definitely be higher than that of ordinary early Foundation Establishment cultivators.

At that time, it will be a three-on-two situation.

Kong Shaoping and An Mingxin held off Zhao Zhenshan, while Kong Chengheng quickly dealt with Zhao Zhenyue. Then, with three against one, they would have a glimmer of hope.

"However... how long has Kong Chengheng been in seclusion? It must have been several years. I wonder when he will break through."

Breaking through to the Foundation Establishment stage is a major hurdle that countless cultivators have spent their entire lives trying to overcome, only to find themselves nearing death.

Li Chengming heard that when Kong Chengheng broke through to the Foundation Establishment stage during his seclusion, he had only just reached the ninth level of Qi Refining, which was still not perfect.

"Sigh, I don't know if it will be too late."

If the Kong family were to perish, Li Chengming would have no choice but to leave Youyang County and would never go to the dangerous place of the Zhao family.