Admitting Defeat

“What do you want?!” Sun He demanded.

Li Miao aimed the weapon at him and said, “Fairy Ji, perhaps you should judge the power of this thing once more.”

A sharp hiss rang out as an ion beam shot forth instantly.

Although Sun He had already summoned all his true essence, fully prepared for an attack, he never expected the weapon in Li Miao’s hands to unleash such overwhelming destructive force. Under the onslaught of the blinding beam, his body had no time to dodge; his true essence shield lasted but a moment before shattering, and a fist-sized hole was blasted into his chest.

He stared in disbelief at the hot blood spurting from the wound, gasping, and collapsed to the ground, his eyes gradually glazing over.

The floating magnetic cannon had slain even the peak demon, the Crimson Flood Dragon; what chance did a mere early-stage Return-to-Origin cultivator have against it?

Until his last breath, Sun He could not comprehend why he had met such an end. The century-old Sun Family enterprise had crumbled to dust in the span of a single hour. Only three True Condensation cultivators and a handful of insignificant juniors remained alive.

With Sun He dealt with, Li Miao turned his gaze toward the other figure in the pavilion.

This man, with a venomous countenance, was Yuan Xing, a steward of the Thunderclap Sect, also at the early Return-to-Origin stage. He was somewhat stronger than Sun He, but not by much.

Feeling Li Miao’s sinister gaze, Yuan Xing’s heart tightened and he spoke coldly, “Every grievance has its perpetrator. Don’t take things too far. Disciples of the Thunderclap Sect fear no one!”

Though he spoke bravely, the trepidation in his eyes betrayed him. In this situation, being on Sun Family’s side, he was deeply anxious, afraid Li Miao would kill him on a whim.

Li Miao’s killing intent was strong, but his mind remained clear. He knew well that the Thunderclap Sect was not comparable to the Sun Family; if he killed Yuan Xing, he would never know peace.

Though he wished to slay this man who had watched coldly as Guo’er suffered, he ultimately refrained and merely asked, “With the Sun Family destroyed today, how will you explain yourself upon your return?”

It was well known that the Sun Family’s rise to power was largely due to the Thunderclap Sect’s support. Destroying a vassal family was akin to severing one of the Thunderclap Sect’s fingers—sure to provoke them.

Yuan Xing realized Li Miao was probing him. For the sake of his own life, he replied, “I will report the truth to the elders. Rest assured, Sun He brought this on himself by provoking you—our elders will not pursue this. Better to have less trouble than more. Though we Thunderclap are strong, we do not wish to provoke a Mystic Master for no reason.” His eyes carefully flicked toward Ji Lingyu.

His meaning was clear—he was yielding.

Li Miao nodded. “I hope your words match your actions.”

Yuan Xing forced a stiff smile. “We cultivators know when to yield.”

“You may go,” Li Miao said.

Yuan Xing could not wait to leave this blood-soaked place, but he had come to Longling County with a mission.

He hesitated. “I… came to Longling mainly to purchase spirit stones from the Sun Family. If I return empty-handed, I cannot explain myself.”

“Purchase spirit stones?” Li Miao was puzzled.

Liu Xuanfeng, weak but lucid, explained, “The items should be in Old Sun’s Sumeru artifact—search for them.”

He then recounted the origin of the relationship between the Thunderclap Sect and the Sun Family.

Spirit stones were the bond between them. They were among the most coveted items for cultivators, containing the essence of heaven and earth, used for arrays, cultivation, forging artifacts, and crafting talismans. Their utility was unrivaled among thousands of spirit materials.

In the western mountains of Longling County lay a precious spirit stone vein. Though only a low-grade, meagerly productive lode, for the local cultivators—whose strongest members were merely at the Return-to-Origin realm—it was of immense value.

When the vein was first discovered, both the Thunderclap Sect and the Qianyun Peak—two of the Four Great Sects of Pangshan Prefecture—tried more than once to seize it. It was only the united front of Longling’s factions that repelled the outsiders.

Eventually, it was agreed that the factions would jointly mine the spirit stone vein, dividing mining rights by competition, rotating every five years.

Nearly a century had passed since, and the spirit stone vein had enriched many sects. The once-declining Sun Family had, by luck, unearthed a piece of spirit marrow eighty years ago, selling it to a Thunderclap elder for a trove of cultivation resources, and so had rapidly risen to become one of Longling’s four great powers.

Thereafter, the Sun Family established long-term cooperation with the Thunderclap Sect, selling sixty percent of their mined spirit stones every five years in exchange for treasures, elixirs, and secret manuals.

Hearing Liu Xuanfeng’s explanation, Li Miao finally understood.

No wonder the Thunderclap Sect supported the Sun Family—it was merely a matter of trade. Since their relationship was not especially intimate, Li Miao saw even less reason to kill Yuan Xing.

He entered the pavilion, searched Sun He’s corpse, and retrieved a Sumeru treasure—a jade thumb ring.

With its owner dead, any cultivator could now use it. Li Miao opened it to find a space large enough to contain a small mountain, filled with various items: from ordinary clothing and tools to jars of elixirs, to magical treasures and talismans of varying power.

Most eye-catching were the greenish-blue stones, identical in appearance to paving stones but exuding a dense spiritual aura, clearly of great value.

There were no few spirit stones; a rough count showed at least four or five thousand, each the size of an egg. Sun He had divided them into two piles—one larger, about three thousand pieces; the other smaller, less than two thousand. There was also a small batch of translucent stones, denser in energy—middle-grade spirit stones, perhaps thirty or forty in all, tucked into a corner of the Sumeru space, nearly invisible unless sought out.

Li Miao scanned the contents with his mind, quickly grasping the situation. He took out the smaller pile of lower-grade spirit stones and placed them on the stone table in the pavilion.

“Are these the ones?” he asked.

The surrounding spiritual energy immediately grew lively. Yuan Xing glanced at the pile, estimated the quantity was about what he usually acquired, and nodded slightly.

“Thank you for your understanding, friend. I’ll accept these spirit stones.”

Taking them, Yuan Xing bid farewell. Before leaving, he cupped his hands to Ji Lingyu. “Fairy, should you ever find time, you are welcome at Thunderclap Peak. All six thousand disciples of the Thunderclap Sect will be honored to receive you!”

With that, he mounted his sword and soared away into the sky.

As he left, there was a thinly veiled smile on his face. The fall of the Sun Family meant little to him—his own survival was all that mattered. In fact, with Sun He dead, he had directly acquired the spirit stones from Li Miao, saving himself the cost of treasures and elixirs he would have owed to the Sun Family—a tidy profit.

Watching Yuan Xing’s figure vanish into the horizon, Li Miao felt a weight lift from his heart. “At least no greater disaster has occurred.”

With Sun He dead, the Sun Family was little threat. Though three True Condensation cultivators and numerous lesser disciples remained, none could pose significant danger to him.

“Fairy Ji, Brother Liu, my deepest gratitude.” Li Miao bowed sincerely to the two.

Today’s events would have been impossible without their support—he could never have stormed the Sun Family and rescued Guo’er alone.

Though it had seemed easy, without Ji Lingyu backing him, Yuan Xing would have sided with Sun He. Two Return-to-Origin cultivators working together would have left him with no chance.

Liu Xuanfeng had risked his life to save Guo’er from Sun Hong’s violence—a debt deserving generous thanks.

As it happened, Sun He had left behind many fine treasures, so Li Miao, who had always been poor, would not be left empty-handed in expressing his gratitude.

The Sun Family’s century-old hoard was of immense value. The lower-grade spirit stones alone were worth as much as a Return-to-Origin cultivator’s entire fortune, not to mention three high-grade magical treasures and a dozen mid-grade ones.

He found no true spirit treasures, but such items were rare—requiring at least Mystic Master level to forge. Even the Hundred Herbs Sect, with centuries of history, had none; it was not surprising that Sun He had none either.

Li Miao took out two thousand lower-grade spirit stones for Liu Xuanfeng, along with two high-grade magical treasures he did not need and ten mid-grade ones, piling them before Liu Xuanfeng.

The latter gaped in astonishment at the mountain of stones and treasures.

“This… this is too much!”

“Take them,” Li Miao said. “I’ve kept enough for myself.”

Liu Xuanfeng was visibly moved; the color even returned to his usually pale, weakened face. He saw that the pile of spirit stones Li Miao gave him was actually larger than what Yuan Xing had taken. Together with the magical treasures, this wealth was enough to drive many small sects mad.

Barely able to contain his excitement, Liu Xuanfeng stammered, “With these, our Lesser Yin Sect has hope of rising again. Lady Qi need no longer seek out men of abundant yang energy, and I needn’t humble myself before others… Li Miao, it is I who should thank you!”

Li Miao waved him off, not wanting to dwell on gratitude, and turned to Ji Lingyu.

She appeared calm, gently fanning herself, a faint smile on her lips.

Seeing him approach, she remarked, “You were radiating quite the killing intent just now, little one. What did you do before this?”

Earlier, when Li Miao saw Guo’er abused, his rage had been fierce, his killing intent boiling over. But now that the enemies were dead, he had reined it in, his demeanor calm.

This ability to control his murderous aura piqued Ji Lingyu’s curiosity.

Li Miao had no wish to explain his past and made up something on the spot. “A butcher. I slaughtered pigs.” He handed over the floating magnetic cannon.

An exchange—one life for one treasure—had been their agreement from the start.

To save Guo’er, he had given up his most powerful weapon. If he encountered another Return-to-Origin cultivator, he would have to rely on his own strength.

He did not regret it; the trade was worth it.

Ji Lingyu took the floating magnetic cannon, not believing his story for an instant. She pursed her lips. “If you won’t say, so be it. With matters here settled, there’s no reason to linger. If you ever acquire any strange and marvelous treasures, you can always find me on the boat. And… if you ever wish to share your secrets, I wouldn’t mind listening.”

With her discerning eye, it was easy to see the uniqueness of Li Miao’s power. The celestial energy within the floating magnetic cannon also proved he was no ordinary man.

But Ji Lingyu always styled herself a wandering cloud and wild crane, caring little for the affairs of others. If someone did not wish to speak, she would not press.

With that, she tapped lightly on her toes and floated away toward the city’s docks.

Halfway there, she seemed to recall something, glanced back at the Sun Family estate below, and flicked her feather fan.

Several streams of white light shot down from the sky, scattering throughout the Sun Family grounds.

Agonized screams echoed from within, then faded into silence.

“Almost forgot—since I helped with all my strength, I might as well help you root out the problem completely.”

Her voice, clear as spring water, lingered in the air, but her peerless figure was already gone.

Within the Sun Family compound, all was silent—not even the faintest breath could be heard.

Those streaks of white light meant death.

Liu Xuanfeng’s face showed his shock; he peered outside the garden, but saw not a living soul—only bodies strewn about.

“She… she slaughtered the entire Sun Family?” he gasped.

Li Miao’s face remained composed.

He had lived through far more brutal wars of race and faction; his heart was already as hard as iron, unmoved by such things.

Perhaps most in the Sun Family had done him no personal wrong.

But on the path of cultivation, there were no true innocents. With opposing sides, life and death were inevitable. Right and wrong mattered less than friend or foe.

Had Ji Lingyu not acted, the three surviving True Condensation cultivators and dozens of Qi Refining disciples remaining in the Sun Family would have made it difficult for him and Liu Xuanfeng to escape unscathed.

“What’s done is done. No use dwelling on it. Let’s find a place to recover.”

Li Miao picked up Guo’er and headed for the door.

Liu Xuanfeng hesitated, then followed.

“I have a house in the northern city—it’s quiet there.”

The two men walked side by side, exiting through the back gate, passing many corpses of Sun Family members along the way.

After this event, with the Sun Family wiped out, the power structure in Longling County would be shaken. The four great powers had become three, and the resources once belonging to the Sun Family would become prizes in a new scramble. Turmoil was inevitable.

Compounding this with the upheaval at Mount Qiankun, where many factions had lost their elite disciples, the dramatic changes of the past two days would greatly alter Longling County’s future.

But these were not Li Miao’s concerns.

Now, only two things mattered to him: his own cultivation, and Guo’er’s power.