Chapter 59: Turning Tide in the Divine Way

Lu Chi watched impassively as the mountain-like Ogre slowly entered the room.

A brutal surge of mingled qi and blood energy spread out, sending shockwaves scattering wildly.

An inexplicable pressure made Lu Chi’s hair stand on end.

No way…

You weren’t kidding when you said twisting someone’s head felt fantastic in broad daylight, were you?

So, at night, are you really going to put that into practice?

Seated cross-legged on the bed, Lu Chi’s face trembled slightly, yet his cultivated divine nature was poised to erupt—as sparks danced in his eyes.

If Ogre truly intends to kill him, Lu Chi would summon [Third Prince]!

Li Che shot a glance at the taut, tense Lu Chi.

Of course, he hadn’t come to kill Lu Chi. As for Ogre… though he wasn’t exactly a saint, he wasn’t one to slaughter the innocent.

“What connection do you have with that elder?”

Li Che said in a deep tone.

At those words, Lu Chi immediately understood whom Li Che was referring to; his tension eased ever so slightly as he realized his master and Li Che had already conferred.

“That’s my master,” Lu Chi replied.

“Are you members of the Divine Sect?”

Li Che glanced at Lu Chi.

Inside, the wind howled furiously; outside, the storm raged on as a window was slammed open, its clamor echoing relentlessly.

Lu Chi stiffened momentarily, then gradually relaxed, choosing not to answer Li Che—someone else would soon do so.

Li Che’s eyes narrowed behind his mask. His five fingers clenched as a [Muduya] slipped from his sleeve onto his fingertips, while his other five flicked, releasing a taut, razor-sharp strand of [Thousand Spider Silk].

Suddenly, an unexpected figure appeared in the room.

A half-white-haired old man, his face etched with deep lines and a gentle smile, had mysteriously appeared.

Li Che hadn’t even noticed how the old man had entered!

“Young friend, there’s no need to worry. Even if I chose to deal with you, any resistance would be futile,” the old man said.

“But I must say, I’m quite surprised—how did you manage to kill Si Mu Bai?”

The old man chuckled warmly.

Beneath his black stretch suit, Li Che’s nine sinews tensed; every muscle roared like a coiled dragon as qi and blood intertwined around him.

“Though Si Mu Bai was knocked off balance by Lu Chi, he still possessed the peak prowess of ‘Nurturing Essence like a Stream’…”

“By all accounts, your cultivation of divine essence is incomplete—you had no chance of killing Si Mu Bai.”

The old man surveyed Li Che in astonishment.

Li Che’s fingers probed the Thousand Spider Silk as his eyes, hidden behind his mask, narrowed. “It was merely a surprise attack. Nothing to be so proud of.”

“A surprise attack on a divine cultivator? Their senses are so acute that even someone ten zhang away would notice your move. How can that be a surprise?”

The old man shook his head, though a flicker of concern crossed his mind.

Killing Si Mu Bai proved that Li Che’s martial prowess was admired throughout Feilei City.

Next, he intended to seek out the main altar of the Lingying Sect—a potential opportunity for collaboration.

“Li, my young friend, both Lu Chi and I hail from the Divine Sect. We were chosen as prodigies during this descent, arriving early in the city to avoid the notice of noble families and city lords,” the old man explained.

Indeed, they were affiliates of the Divine Sect!

A slight chill ran through Li Che’s heart, yet he remained on guard.

The old man chuckled, shaking off the rain from his clothes as he glanced at Li Che’s wary eyes. “There’s no need to fret. We divine cultivators aren’t overly concerned with your martial secret techniques. Your Breath Convergence and Bone Concealment Technique may be fine, but they hardly entice us.”

“It’s the Divine Secret Arts, the Nurturing Divine Artifacts, and Divine Weapons that we truly pursue.”

“Everything connected to divine essence far surpasses mere martial arts or raw qi and blood strength.”

“Allow me to introduce myself.”

“I am Li Qingshan, a cultivator from the Yunzhou branch of Qianyuan Divine Sect. This is my personal disciple, Lu Chi, who has attained the ‘Nurturing Essence like a River’ realm and belongs to our branch’s inner circle.”

The old man looked seriously at Li Che—a formal self-introduction.

Qianyuan Divine Sect!

A true heavyweight indeed—though Li Qingshan was only from a branch of Qianyuan Divine Sect, in Feilei City he was an imposing figure.

“The Dajing Dynasty comprises eleven circuits, thirty-six states, and one hundred twenty-six prefectures. Each circuit has its own Divine Sect, and each state a branch, collectively overseeing the Bizarre Temple with the Dajing Temple Authority.”

“Feilei City belongs to Jingguang Prefecture, which is situated in Yunzhou under the Lingnan Path; hence, it falls under the jurisdiction of the Qianyuan Divine Sect’s branch.”

Li Qingshan proceeded to brief Li Che on some geographical details.

Li Che felt as if a vast, untamed wilderness had suddenly swept over him.

“XiXi’s talent is exceptional—perfect for cultivating our sect’s Furious Divine Essence lineage. That’s why I sought you out: to ask if XiXi could join our Qianyuan Divine Sect branch…”

“With XiXi’s gift, if she can establish her divine foundation before turning eighteen, she stands a chance of entering the main Divine Sect.”

Li Qingshan stroked his beard and smiled.

“Establishing a divine foundation by eighteen?” Li Che felt a jolt of shock.

“Establishing a divine foundation by eighteen is the very basic requirement for any branch to enter the main Divine Sect… XiXi has promise; I’ve assessed her divine essence—she’s a top-tier prodigy!”

“Top-tier prodigy? Isn’t the Xu Family already claiming she’s of the highest quality?”

“Those born with innate divine essence, untainted by later cultivation, are what we call prodigies…”

Li Qingshan burst out laughing, saying, “My Qianyuan Sect’s [Divination of Essence] can pierce through to the source—it surpasses the keen perception of any provincial divine cultivator.”

“Young friend, would you be willing to send XiXi to join our Divine Sect?”

Li Qingshan asked again, while Lu Chi, seated on the bed, opened his eyes wide in curious anticipation.

After a moment’s thought, Li Che inquired, “Allowing XiXi to join the Divine Sect is, of course, acceptable, but I do have one question.”

“Go ahead,” came the reply.

“Is there a provision in the Divine Sect for accompanying cultivation? I wish to join XiXi in training—would that be allowed?”

Li Che was uneasy about XiXi training alone in the Divine Sect; if he couldn’t accompany her, he’d rather she not go at all.

XiXi being too far from him left him with no sense of security.

At those words, Li Qingshan paused, then smiled and shook his head. “Of course it’s possible—indeed, not only that… Although my descent to Feilei City was a bit delayed, allowing the Lingying Sect to run amok for a while, I still managed to secure a few promising prodigies.”

“XiXi is one of them; several prominent noble families have also selected a few, and there’s one more…”

After finishing his sentence, Li Qingshan’s eyes shone even more brightly as his gaze fell upon Li Che, who was donning a Cute Cow Mask and had activated the Dragon Elephant Vajra—his frame as imposing as a mountain.

“That one is you.”

“The twenty-one-year-old prodigy.”

……

……

Time slipped away like sand through one’s fingers.

In the blink of an eye, it was gone.

Ever since Li Qingshan laid his cards on the table with Li Che last time, Li Che’s mind had been buzzing.

He never imagined… not only had Li Qingshan taken a fancy to his daughter, but he wasn’t even sparing Li Che.

A twenty-one-year-old prodigy?

The remark sounded bizarre—like comparing him to a twenty-one-year-old virgin; it stung with low prestige and a deep insult.

Li Qingshan mentioned that Li Che possessed pure divine essence, and it became clear that it was due to the Pure Heart Dao Fruit he naturally absorbed—an aspect that had caught Li Qingshan’s attention through [Divination of Essence].

Strictly speaking, the divine essence accumulated after the emergence of the Pure Heart was indeed fresh—it could rightly be called that of a prodigy.

In other words, Li Qingshan intended to take both Li Che and his daughter, having them cultivate together in the sect.

Li Che grimaced at the thought of training in a courtyard with a bunch of kids hardly reaching his knees…

The whole scenario struck him as inexplicably amusing.

Before he knew it, another six months had passed.

Since the last Divine Foundation battle, the Si Family had fallen—completely reduced to spoils to be divided among several noble families. Though the Si Family still lingered, it had lost its elite status.

All its valuable assets had been plundered; the loss of their Divine Essence Technique left the Si Family utterly bereft.

After the fall of the Si Family, Feilei City enjoyed a period of calm.

Yet in truth, the calm was only the prelude to an even greater storm brewing.

Lu Chi had taken up permanent residence in Li Che’s home—an arrangement by Li Qingshan to protect XiXi—while Li Qingshan himself was investigating the Outer City’s Bizarre Temple and matters concerning the Lingying Sect.

He informed Li Che that the Lingying Sect was expanding and transforming the Bizarre Temple outside the city.

Thus, he was secretly searching for the main altar of the Lingying Sect while also testing whether he could subdue the temple spirit on the verge of revival in the Bizarre Temple.

As for Li Che and XiXi’s plan to cultivate in the Divine Sect, Li Qingshan stated they would have to wait until the sect officially recruited disciples—they couldn’t bypass the rules.

Li Che, however, wasn’t too concerned.

Days passed calmly, one after the other.

Time waits for no one, as the seasons flow by.

The chilly wind brushed past, carrying a biting cold.

Before long, another winter of fierce snow had arrived.

XiXi had turned three.

“Chase after the next read, chase after the next read, chase after the next read! Reflect on yourself every day! And everyone, please don’t hoard your books!”