Cultivation begins with alchemy and collecting runes.

At this moment, the Ye and Xiao families finished counting the casualties and led the remaining cultivators toward Li Xiuyuan.

"Lord Li is young and promising; he should be the leader among our generation."

Ye Feng showered the flatterer with compliments as if they were free, showing no regard for his dignity as the head of a clan.

"Indeed, he is a true young hero. The move that Lord Li used to kill Liu Ye just now truly broadened our horizons."

Xiao Feng seemed to be venting his pent-up resentment of many years. He laughed heartily and walked over, imitating Ye Feng, to keep flattering Li Xiuyuan.

After witnessing Li Xiuyuan's strength, the two reached a consensus: Li Xiuyuan was no ordinary person; he possessed extraordinary talent and was certainly not someone to be underestimated.

They can only befriend them; they must never offend them.

Moreover, Li Xiuyuan was only here to carry out a mission, and he would return to his sect once the mission was completed. He had no vested interests with them, so neither family would dare to offend this powerful and well-connected sect cultivator.

"You flatter me, fellow Daoists. I, Xiu Yuan, have only done my best."

Li Xiuyuan smiled and exchanged pleasantries with Ye Feng and Xiao Feng.

Inquire about the casualties of both sides to facilitate the formulation of subsequent combat plans.

The Ye family lost one early-stage Qi Refining cultivator and injured two mid-stage cultivators, while the Xiao family lost two early-stage cultivators and had no mid-stage cultivators injured.

Fortunately, Xiao Feng and the other two were unharmed, so the overall combat strength of the team was not affected.

After pondering for a moment, Li Xiuyuan told the two of them the information he had gathered about the disciples of the Demon Flame Sect.

Xiao Feng and his companion naturally understood that only by eliminating the Demon Flame Sect cultivators could they report their achievements to the Blazing Fire Sect.

Only then can they openly and legitimately divide up the remaining resource points of the Liu family.

Otherwise, if Li Xiuyuan went back and reported to the sect, and the Blazing Fire Sect sent disciples to accept these resources, then all their efforts would have been in vain.

"An hour is enough for us to recover our mana and heal our injuries."

Li Xiuyuan pondered for a moment, nodded, and then discussed with the two the specific plan to deal with the Demon Flame Sect cultivators.

After a heated discussion, the unruly Demon Flame Sect cultivator was handed over to Li Xiuyuan to deal with, Xiao Feng and his companion were responsible for restraining the other two late-stage Qi Refining cultivators, and the remaining mid-stage cultivators were left to be dealt with by the clansmen.

Once Li Xiuyuan and the other two were free, they then attacked the remaining mid-stage cultivators.

Even so, it's a deal between you and me: we'll proceed according to plan.

Li Xiuyuan turned to the crowd below and announced loudly, "To avoid any unforeseen complications, we will head to the Southern Mountain in one hour to annihilate the Demon Flame Sect cultivators!"

The group set up camp on the spot and cleared out a space in the ruins of the Liu Family Ancestral Hall.

Each person sat cross-legged in their designated area, either practicing their internal energy or taking elixirs to restore their magical power.

……

Li Xiuyuan found a spacious area in the valley with the densest spiritual energy, set up the Green Wood Vine Armor Array, and then took out a futon and sat cross-legged.

This place is easy to defend and difficult to attack. Even if someone launches a sudden attack, he can react quickly while he is in a state of internal energy cultivation, so he won't be caught off guard.

Li Xiuyuan took out a high-grade Rejuvenation Pill from his storage bag and swallowed it.

He bought this pill at the market near the sect. It can quickly restore one-third of the mana of a late-stage Qi Refining cultivator. Each pill costs twenty spirit stones, which is very expensive.

Li calmed his mind and slowly refined the magical power within his abdomen, while constantly keeping a portion of his divine sense alert to his surroundings.

The alternating use of four high-grade and top-grade magic weapons was extremely taxing on him; in just half a quarter of an hour of fighting, two-thirds of the magic power in his dantian was drained.

The depletion of magical power meant weakness, a fatal feeling. Li Xiuyuan immediately took a Spirit Recovery Pill to recover his strength quickly.

……

One hour later.

[Mana +1]

[Mana +1]

[Mana +1]

Li Xiuyuan exhaled a breath of stale air, his consciousness immersed in his sea of ​​consciousness, and opened the panel;

[Immortal Lord: Li Xiuyuan]

Lifespan: 37/107

[Realm Level: Qi Refining Level 8, 80/100]

[Technique: Golden Flame Heaven-Burning Technique, Advanced Level, 30/100]

[Spells: Fire Escape Technique (Minor Mastery), 250/300; Fire Sword Technique (Minor Mastery), 240/300; Fire Shield Technique (Minor Mastery), 290/300; Wind Control Technique (Major Mastery), 440/500; Concealment Technique (Major Mastery), 430/500]

【Beast Taming Technique (Minor Success), 270/300】

【Yi Wood Sword Technique (Minor Success), 200/300】

Looking at the numbers on the panel and feeling his mana restored to 70%, he couldn't help but feel overjoyed.

"I'm just one step away from reaching the ninth level of Qi Refining, and my fire magic is almost complete. This mission went smoothly, and once I get the Refining God Grass back, I can start preparing for Foundation Establishment."

Li Xiuyuan calculated his chances of reaching the Foundation Establishment stage. He had already completed the first stage of Body Refinement, and breaking through to the second stage was a natural progression.

He possesses the Divine Refinement Technique for overcoming the Divine Consciousness barrier; once he obtains the Divine Refinement Grass, the barrier will naturally be clear.

There's no need to worry about the barrier of magical power; he had no bottlenecks before cultivating the Golden Core of the [Golden Flame Burning Heaven Technique].

As long as he can refine more Azure Sun Spirit Fire and use this spiritual object to hone his magical power, his speed in advancing to the Qi Refining Perfection stage will be incredibly fast!

Li Xiuyuan finished his practice and stood up. He looked around and found that only a small number of cultivators had recovered their magic power and were talking to each other in low voices, while most of the cultivators were meditating.

That makes sense, considering they all have low-grade or mixed spiritual roots and their cultivation techniques are commonplace, so it's normal for them to recover slowly.

Not everyone can afford to consume a Spirit Recovery Pill that costs twenty spirit stones, just like him.

The cultivators who were talking to each other noticed Li Xiuyuan's gaze and turned their heads away or lowered their heads, their eyes filled with awe and fear, not daring to meet his eyes.

Many people witnessed Liu Ye being split in two, and those who were unaware were informed by their family members. Both families of cultivators treated the special envoy of the Blazing Fire Sect with utmost respect.

After all, Liu Ye was no nobody; he was a renowned expert within hundreds of miles of Black Wind City.

Li Xiuyuan smiled calmly, not taking it to heart.

He knew it was all due to his formidable strength, and he accepted it willingly.

With an hour to go before departure, and nothing else to do, Li Xiuyuan sat back down on his futon and took out a miscellaneous book about the cultivation world from his storage bag.

The book, titled "A Record of Customs and Traditions of the Northern Kingdoms," was a casual record of a Core Formation cultivator's travels through the mortal realm. Li Xiuyuan leisurely flipped through it to pass the time.

……

"The Chu Kingdom was originally just a corner of the Northern Heron Continent. There are countless cultivation kingdoms like the Chu and Qin Kingdoms on the Northern Heron Continent. If you go south through the Ten Thousand Demon Mountains that stretch across the Northern Region, there are even great immortal countries with Nascent Soul stage monsters in charge of the territory tens of thousands of miles away."

"I wonder what kind of sacred land or fairyland that is. I imagine there are countless people practicing Qi cultivation there, and Foundation Establishment cultivators are everywhere."

Hearing the sparse whispers around him, Li Xiuyuan finally snapped out of his reverie about time.

As he watched the two groups of cultivators gather before him, he saw that the surrounding valleys had been cleaned up, showing no signs of the great battle that had taken place there.

The wounded from the Xiao and Ye families brought the dead back to their clans. There were also more than ten cultivators on this trip.

"Speed ​​and cunning are the essence of warfare. While the Demon Flame Sect cultivators are still unaware of our intentions, let's launch a surprise attack and annihilate them!"

At this moment, the night wind howled, blowing Li Xiuyuan's black hair, the sound of the wind conveying his firm will.

"Lord Li is right. We have all made the necessary arrangements. Let's set off now!"

Xiao Feng and his companion looked at Li Xiuyuan and echoed him, showing an attitude of following Li Xiuyuan's lead.

The three of them took to the air and rode their magical artifacts toward Black Wind Market.

Although Li Xiuyuan possessed the top-grade flying magic artifact, the Azure Feather Robe, it consumed too much magic power and was not suitable for traveling. In order to conserve magic power, Li Xiuyuan still used the Golden Light Sword.

And so, the assault team, led by three streaks of light, followed by colorful streaks of light, disappeared into the valley in no time.

Only ruins remained, along with a silent valley, as if nothing had ever happened.