CHAPTER 226: 164. THE PRELUDE SOUNDS, A NEW BATTLE OF LI WAI BEGINS_4

Li Zhusheng nodded slightly.

*The bad news was that Lei Jun had also been brought back to the sect and initiated into the Tao by Xu Yuanzhen.*

*The good news was, he wasn’t hanging in the air like Tang Xiaotang; he’d actually and truly become a disciple under Yuan Mobai’s tutelage.*

Over the years, he had always cultivated in a low-key manner, treating others kindly—he got along well with both Li disciples and outsiders.

His style was unlike Xu Yuanzhen or Tang Xiaotang; it was much more like his master, Yuan Mobai.

*That was honestly fantastic.*

*Even better, this junior brother Lei, while on the rise, remained low in his cultivation realm at the moment; at least, he hadn’t reached a level where he could determine the whole situation himself.*

*Of course, if more time passed, things would surely change.*

*But at least, it wasn’t as urgent as dealing with Xu Yuanzhen and Tang Xiaotang.*

*There was always an order of urgency when it came to matters...*

Within the Celestial Master Mansion, there had always been outside disciples friendly with the Li Clan.

The older generation like Liang Chen, and the younger ones like Qu Yong, were such people.

*Hopefully, this junior brother Lei could someday be like them too.*

"We’ll continue gathering news..." Liang Chen began, but suddenly paused.

He drew out his own Thousand-Mile Sound Transmission Talisman.

A moment later, both Liang Chen and Li Zhusheng’s expressions shifted noticeably.

News had come in from the ancestral courtyard of the sect.

According to various signs, Tang Xiaotang was very likely not busy searching for the Celestial Master’s Sword, but had secluded herself to attempt breaking through to the Eightfold Heavenly Divine Court realm.

It was imperative to quickly find her secret cultivation site outside the mountain.

Supreme Elder Li Song would leave the mountain in secret and personally take charge of this matter...

"Elder Liang, let’s link up with the grand master as soon as possible!" Li Zhusheng pressed eagerly.

*At that moment, Liang Chen felt overwhelmed by emotion.*

*Was Dragon Tiger Mountain about to face another bloody civil war again?*

*He wasn’t a Li by birth, but he was a personal disciple molded by Li Song and married into the Li Family—a position he had staked out long ago, and nothing could change that now.*

*But who knew how it would end this time?*

"Let’s go." Liang Chen’s feeling of lament lasted only a moment—soon, he stabilized his mind and set off together with Li Zhusheng and the other disciples.

......

Tang Xiaotang and Liang Chen arrived in succession, then left one by one, and Xianliu Mountain returned to its usual serenity.

Lei Jun, apart from his daily patrols, continued following his own routines—cultivating with a quiet heart.

As the Great Five Elements Creation Qi was continuously refined, the energy of Lei Jun’s five organs and five elements grew more and more abundant.

At last, the third northern Mysterious Underworld Taoist Palace had successfully been established.

Lei Jun sat cross-legged in his meditation chamber, radiance flickering above his head, with three ethereal Tao Palaces lined up vertically.

The black and white streams of mana intertwined and weaved together, flowing between the Southern Dragon Tiger Palace, Central Three Pure Ones Palace, and Northern Mysterious Underworld Taoist Palace.

Then, together, they refined and guided Lung Gold, generating Lesser Yin Qi—laying the foundation for condensing the Western Spiritual Officer Palace.

"Unknowingly, I’m almost thirty-two." Lei Jun did the math and couldn’t help sighing.

*He’d arrived in this world thirteen or fourteen years ago.*

*It’d gone by quickly, but the journey had been rich.*

*He was getting the feeling things were about to get even more interesting...*

This day, Lei Jun received a message from Master Yuan Mobai at the ancestral court, informing him someone would come to Xianliu Palace to take over his post—he could now return to Dragon Tiger Mountain.

Lei Jun started preparing—when the newly assigned elder arrived to take up residence at Xianliu Palace, he passed over the responsibility.

Yun Zhan and the rest specially descended the mountain to see him off.

Still, everyone was in good spirits.

Their stint training at Xianliu Palace was limited in duration anyway; in a year or two, they would report back, and there would be a chance to meet again then.

Lei Jun didn’t linger, said his farewells, and set out toward Dragon Tiger Mountain.

The major battle with the Jiangzhou Lin Clan had all but ended, so with the world so vast, Lei Jun could pick any route to return.

He chose a shorter path.

At first, all went well—he didn’t run into any enemies, nor did he cross paths with Yongxiang Monk or other Buddhist sect figures.

But while he was making his way through the mountains, a glowing orb suddenly flickered in his mind.

*Why now? The omen-scrying activated out of the blue, which surprised Lei Jun.*

He focused and read the words on the glowing orb,

[Some bear a Heavenly Net, disaster like the Earth’s web—Heaven doesn’t cut off people, life lies in the south.]

*Just that was enough for Lei Jun to sense something was off.*

Next, five lines of divination shot out from the orb all at once.

After reading them, Lei Jun’s scalp prickled,

[Moderately good lot: Head south through Dengfeng Ridge, follow opportunity—there will be some ups and downs, risk, but a chance for a Fourth Rank Opportunity, fortunate.]

[Moderately unlucky lot: Head east through Yuxiu Mountain range, gain nothing—risk hidden, inauspicious.]

[The worst lot: Head north through Longqing River, a chance at a Sixth-Rank Opportunity, but in extreme peril—no hope of survival, dire misfortune!]

[The worst lot: Head west, retrace your steps—but there is no path back, death in every corner, dire misfortune!]

[The worst lot: Stay put, seek to hide—disaster comes on its own, extreme danger, certain death, dire misfortune!]

...Three whole "worst lots"!?

*What the hell was going on today?*

*Lei Jun was shocked—he’d holed up in Xianliu Mountain all this time without trouble, and now the one time he tried heading back to Dragon Tiger Mountain, he stepped right into a deadly environment.*

*Since he’d started drawing lots, this was the first time he’d ever gotten three "worst lots" at once.*

*On top of those three, only one was just a moderately unlucky lot.*

*From another angle, could this be considered a type of luck?*

*Were people from Jiangzhou Lin Clan, Yellow Sky Sect, or some other enemies lying in wait for me?*

*Or was it that the Li Clan couldn’t tolerate me and wanted to get rid of me ahead of schedule?*

*A thousand thoughts flashed through Lei Jun’s mind.*

Though startled, Lei Jun quickly regained his composure.

He carefully studied the lines, "Some bear a Heavenly Net, disaster like the Earth’s web..." Was this saying that calamities both man-made and natural were forming an impenetrable net, or did "Heavenly Net" have another meaning?

Lei Jun recalled he’d seen the term "Heavenly Net" in the sect’s classics.

There was a certain treasure by that name.

Its use was tracking someone down.

*If that was what this "Heavenly Net" meant, was it being used to find me...?* Lei Jun speculated.

*Too bad time was short—he didn’t have room for more research.*

Lei Jun immediately changed direction and headed south.

He couldn’t just stay put either.

That also meant huge danger—it was a certain-death, worst lot.

For now, Dragon Tiger Mountain was east of him.

That wasn’t covered under the worst lot, but the moderately unlucky fate didn’t sound great either.

Heaven doesn’t cut off people, life lies in the south.

Even putting aside the promise of a Fourth Rank Opportunity, heading south was his only way out—the sole moderately good lot.

Lei Jun made his move, cloaked in the Night Wind technique from his Wind and Thunder Hall, vanishing quietly from sight.

He wove through the mountains, seemingly leaving no trace behind.

But he stumbled upon others.

"Is this a coincidence?" Lei Jun raised his brows slightly.

He actually saw Liang Chen here.

This Elder Liang, along with several other disciples of Dragon Tiger Mountain Celestial Master Mansion, was also weaving through the mountains at the moment.

It was dangerous to linger here, but to avoid being spotted by Liang Chen and the rest, Lei Jun paused and used the Breathing Soil Banner to cover his tracks.

*Was the danger coming from Liang Chen and his group, or from their superiors?*

Lei Jun quieted his aura and watched for a while, but soon realized things weren’t as he’d thought.

Liang Chen and friends were searching for someone, but apparently not him, Lei Jun.

They were looking for Tang Xiaotang.

*So, Little Senior Sister’s secluded training site was somewhere nearby...* Lei Jun guessed internally.