The establishment of the Celestial Dynasty began with the bestowal of the title upon the River God.

The handsome man carrying the pig demon was eight feet tall, wearing a sable cloak. His sharp, slanted eyes, along with his two sword-like eyebrows, resembled four horizontal swords.

The man beside him was in his forties or fifties, with an inconspicuous appearance, yet Li Yi instinctively felt a sense of unease.

"I am a scout from the Great Zhou Dynasty, ordered to search for the demons of Luopan Mountain. I thank you both in advance for killing the pig demon on my behalf."

The handsome man raised an eyebrow, making his already flamboyant eyebrows appear even more unruly.

"As expected of the Great Zhou's elegant words—I received the letter from the Great Yan requesting aid and went ahead to scout. I witnessed the might of the demons of Luopan Mountain and was just about to take action to slay them when I happened to run into you scouts. So I sat back and watched the tigers fight, and sure enough, I found a hero!"

The man's gaze was intense as he casually tossed the corpse of the Germanium Star aside.

"It seems that the Great Yan has already fallen. Our Great Li's renewed military campaign is not to aid the Great Yan, but to attack the Great Zhou?"

As they spoke, Zhu Xing stepped onto the wooden branches and came over. When he saw the two people opposite him, his gaze swept over the dead pig demon and he frowned.

Upon seeing Zhu Xing, Li Yi was terrified and quickly channeled his Wood Qi into her body, using his mental power to persuade her:

"These two are from Dali, and their cultivation is profound. Hurry, lest they discover your Earthly Deity form!"

Zhu Xing immediately felt as if he were facing a formidable enemy, his gaze fixed on the two people in front of him.

Unexpectedly, the man opposite him praised loudly, "The Earth God's 'Spiritual Root Treasure' technique is incredibly profound. His audacity in daring to break away from his jurisdiction is truly admirable. I admire him."

He gave a slight bow and then stared at Li Yi again.

"Our Great Li is not like the Great Yan. We don't take a local deity from an enemy country that seriously, and we wouldn't go so far as to kill him—who knows... we might even join hands with him in the future."

"Pah!"

Zhu Xing's face was filled with murderous intent. "What do you take me for?"

The person next to the man opposite suddenly spoke in a low voice:

"This child possesses extraordinary talent. If we do not eliminate him now, he will surely become a threat and a formidable enemy of our Great Li in the future!"

Before the middle-aged cultivator finished speaking, he shot out several feet in an instant, like an arrow released from a bow.

Li Yi's gaze sharpened, and suddenly a wide robe and sleeves fell in front of him. With a flick of his sleeve, he sent the Da Li cultivator flying.

The man with sword-like eyebrows opposite him remained calm and clasped his hands in greeting:

"I have long admired you, Master Xu. Meeting you today has put my mind at ease."

Li Yi looked closely and saw that the person blocking his way had prominent cheekbones and narrow eyes. It was none other than Xu Gong, Xu Xiaofeng, who had taught him to read and write the Nine Heavens!

"General!"

Xu Xiaofeng turned around and nodded, then looked at the person opposite her again and said calmly:

"Xu Weiyi was willing to send you here as a scout, isn't he afraid I'll slap you to death?"

The man smiled and clasped his hands in a fist salute, saying, "If I, Jiang Gaoqi, am fortunate enough to receive a slap from Master Xu, it will be considered a success in martial arts, and I will certainly be happy to accept it."

His gaze shifted slightly as he looked at Li Yi again. "Consider this pig demon a greeting gift. May I ask your name?"

Li Yi looked at him but did not say anything.

Jiang Gaoqi, receiving no response, remained smiling, his eyes still burning with fervor. He first bowed to Xu Xiaofeng, then turned and headed west, proclaiming loudly:

"One day, we will meet on the battlefield. Fellow Daoist, I await your Foundation Establishment!"

Only after the two figures disappeared from sight did Li Yi relax and prepare to report on the matter, but Xu Xiaofeng flicked her sleeve and cursed:

"What a terrible bastard! Why won't he even give his name?"

Li Yi was speechless for a moment, thinking to himself, "What's the big deal about me finding common ground with that enemy soldier?"

That Jiang Gaoqi guy, he looks like a madman, we should run away from him.

Xu Xiaofeng snorted coldly, "Since the pig demon didn't die at your hands, then the military merit will be credited to me—"

How can you, a commander-in-chief of a large army, steal credit from a lowly soldier?

Li Yi immediately became anxious, and his complaint was about to come out when Xu Xiaofeng pointed it back at him.

"Keep it to yourself!"

Xu Xiaofeng continued to probe forward with her index finger, pressing it against the corner of Li Yi's eye, at the pupil.

Immediately, a piece of knowledge entered his mind.

"This method of building a foundation with gallwood is a form of compensation—after returning to the army, do not boast about it; instead, focus on your cultivation and minimize social interactions."

After Xu Xiaofeng finished speaking, she put her hands behind her back, hunched her back, and walked away step by step until she was several meters away. With another step, it seemed as if she had crossed several meters; with another step, she was only the size of a grain of rice in Li Yi's eyes.

Li Yi withdrew his gaze and turned to look at Zhu Xing.

"Although there were some twists and turns, I have successfully completed my mission and avenged you."

Unexpectedly, Zhu Xing's mind was not on the Nian star at all. Pointing to the west, he said in astonishment:

"You don't recognize that person?"

Li Yi frowned slightly. "You mean Jiang Gaoqi? To be appreciated by Master Xu, he must have quite a reputation."

Zhu Xing covered her face. "That person is the last disciple of Xu Weiyi, the God of War of Dali. He is the most talented martial arts practitioner in the history of the entire Yuliang Continent!"

Li Yi then remembered that the other party had compared him to that person, and he never expected to see his true face today!

Zhu Xing continued to ramble on, recounting the stories He had heard.

"Jiang Gaoqi joined the army at the age of eighteen. After obtaining the Qi Absorption Technique, he entered the Dao on the same day. Within a year, he had the feat of slaying a Foundation Establishment demon and was taken in as the last disciple by the God of War. Now he is about the same age as you, but his cultivation is already unfathomable!"

Li Yi was amazed, but thought to himself, if he were Xu Gong, he would have captured the man on the spot. Why let the tiger return to the mountain?

He walked up to the corpse of the Germanium Star, squatted down to check its breath, and then picked it up.

Xiao Zhou, Zhong Wending, and the others arrived late and were all shocked when they saw the pig demon's corpse.

Li Yi raised his hand in greeting, his face showing admiration, "We were just showing signs of weakness, but fortunately the Commander-in-Chief arrived in person and killed the pig demon with his fists."

"General?!"

Everyone looked around, "Where?"

"He's gone first. The commander-in-chief moves a hundred zhang in one step, how dashing!"

Li Yi noticed a few claw marks on Xiao Zhou's cheeks, chest, and abdomen, so he channeled some wood energy into him and said:

"With the demons of Luopan Mountain leaderless, our mission must be complete. It's time to return to the city and report back."

Xiao Zhou nodded emphatically, his excitement evident in his voice, "This time we exceeded our quota, and our military merits will surely be considerable..."

Zhong Wending threw out a fire ring, which transformed into a three-meter square. He had Li Yi, Zhu Xing, and Xiao Zhou sit on it, using their Qi to control objects. They would occasionally exchange a few words, and soon they returned to Luopan Mountain to reunite with Erhu and the others.

Li Yi remained silent, lost in thought, his blood surging violently.

Zhu Xing saw this and couldn't help but chuckle to himself.

He didn't seem to care much on the surface, but in his heart he was probably already fighting with Jiang Gaoqi for several rounds.

The four jumped off the ring of fire and headed towards Erhu and the others.

The three men left behind at Sanyi Manor, along with Xiao Zhou's three trusted confidants, were guarding the remaining monster leaders.

After a brief conversation, the group returned to Dongshan, mounted their horses, and rode back to the city that very night.

A curfew had been imposed in the city, so Li Yi and his men could not return. They had no choice but to imprison the monster leaders and deal with them the next day.

Now that Zhu Xing has avenged his great enemy and fulfilled his wish, he clasped his hands in farewell to Li Yi at the foot of the inn:

"I, Zhu Xing, will remember this kindness."

Li Yi clasped his hands in response, watched the Earth God turn and leave, and then suddenly called out to him.

"Fifteen years ago, although the Great Yan Dynasty did not have a netherworld, the Golden City God had already begun to tour the underworld."

Laoni Village isn't far from Gui Village in Huai County. Have you asked about it, fellow Daoist?

Zhu Xing remained silent for a long while, then said in a low voice:

"I dare not."