Stealing Heavenly Secrets from Covering the Heavens Section 22

Thus, it seems there is a large group of people secretly pursuing immortality in this world.

At the same time, the son of an old acquaintance arrived at the Xu Family's Jing'an Hall.

The visitor appeared to be around forty, the youngest son of Old Man Xu's former director, named Yao Le.

He had come specifically to visit Old Man Xu.

They conversed in Jing'an Hall's reception room. After the pleasantries, Yao Le said bluntly, "Uncle Xu, I hear your eldest and second sons are frantically searching for your third?"

Old Man Xu frowned, clearly displeased with Yao Le's interrogative tone, and replied, "Xiao Le, what do you mean by that?"

Yao Le smirked, "Uncle Xu, you're pretending not to know."

Old Man Xu's frown deepened. "Xiao Le, you didn't come here for my youngest son, did you?"

Yao Le nodded. "Uncle Xu, hand over the copy of the Longevity Sutra you have. Over the years, your youngest son Xu Jiping has been scouring for the missing parts of the scripture, nearly making it public knowledge. If my elder brother Director Yao hadn't been suppressing it, he'd probably be in jail by now."

Old Man Xu's face changed dramatically. "What exactly are you trying to do?"

Yao Le suddenly laughed. "Uncle Xu, stop now. Live as an ordinary civilian, and our Yao Family can pretend nothing happened. If your eldest and second sons keep messing around, Director Yao might have to come have a serious talk with you."

A flicker of shock and doubt passed through Old Man Xu's eyes, and he asked, "Have you found the complete scripture?"

Yao Le sneered, "Uncle Xu, at your age, don't you understand the meaning of 'ignorance is bliss'?"

At that moment, Old Man Xu seemed to have his bones pulled out, collapsing into his chair, muttering, "So that's it. Back then, Director Yao saw further than I did."

Yao Le said, "Uncle Xu, rest assured. Once our Yao Family produces a Cultivator, guaranteeing your Xu Family a lifetime of wealth won't be a problem."

Old Man Xu said weakly, "I'll call back the eldest and second. Xiao Le, can you tell me what happened to my third son?"

Yao Le replied bluntly, "Your third son is likely dead. A few months ago, someone secretly sold a full set of Bronze Ritual Vessels on the black market. Similar to the things your third son put out before."

Old Man Xu said, "Thank you for telling me."

Yao Le said, "Uncle Xu, remember what you promised me."

Old Man Xu said, "Follow me."

Then he led Yao Le to the Xu Family Ancestral Hall, retrieved the copy of the "Longevity Sutra," and handed it to Yao Le.

"Our family only has this one Longevity Sutra. The eldest and second have never seen it, nor do they know I have it. Only the third read it, but he's gone missing," Old Man Xu explained to Yao Le.

"I believe you."

Yao Le didn't even flip through it, just stuffed the "Longevity Sutra" into his bag.

Then he left the Xu residence.

Old Man Xu sat dazedly in the ancestral hall for an entire afternoon.

Then a glint of ruthlessness flashed in his eyes.

That Yao descendant became a high official, yet still wasn't satisfied, wanting to achieve immortality? This was unforgivable.

Back then, they had played him, taking the precious original away. Now it seemed the original held something he hadn't discovered.

"Since your Yao Family wants to cut off my Xu Family's path to immortality, don't blame this Old Man for being unkind." Old Man Xu hardened his resolve inwardly.

Then he dialed his eldest son Xu Jian's number, telling him to come back.

After that, he called his second son Xu Jisheng, ordering him to head straight to Jingcheng and await orders.

After hanging up, a contemptuous smile crossed Old Man Xu's face.

Then he retrieved a hidden box from beneath the ancestral hall's floor tiles.

Inside was another copy of the Longevity Sutra.

And compared to the one given to Yao Le, this one was more primitive.

Even the text was derived from rubbings.

This was the information he had specially transcribed from that Jade Scroll back then to ensure completeness.

Besides the text, he had also copied the patterns from the back of the Jade Scroll.

With the new year came a fresh start.

As the Lunar Year of the Rat arrived with the Spring Festival, Zhou Mei gave birth to a pair of children for Li Zhi.

Thus, the family gained a set of Dragon-Phoenix Twins.

Li Zhi named the elder brother Li Jizu and the younger sister Li Xian'er.

Zhou Mei initially thought the names were old-fashioned, but after hearing Li Zhi's explanation, she quickly accepted them.

He named his son Li Jizu to ensure he never forgot his ancestral legacy, inherit the family business, and carry on the Li lineage for generations.

Li Xian'er embodied Li Zhi's hopes for achieving immortality and enlightenment.

As the Golden Age approached, Heavenly Prides from various eras emerged one after another, yet in the end, only Ye Fan's wife and daughter ascended to immortality.

It was, no doubt, a profound irony for those Emperors who had used the Self-Severing Strike to hide in the Forbidden Zones.

It was a resounding slap in the face for those Heavenly Prides striving to Struggle Across and become Emperors.

Li Zhi wasn't sure what level he could reach in the future, but he still hoped to become an Emperor or even an immortal in the mortal world.

But he would never be blindly confident that he was destined to become an emperor.

He wasn't the son of a true immortal, nor a descendant of an Immortal King, and he certainly didn't have a Great Emperor for a sister.

Everything depended on him fighting for it himself, crossing every hurdle alone.

To settle any lingering concerns, Li Zhi quietly got a marriage certificate with Zhou Mei before she gave birth, and they held a simple wedding ceremony.

It was also a way to give Li Jizu and Li Xian'er a legitimate status.

As for the two children, Li Zhi held no hope of them entering the Dao.

If he achieved great success in cultivation in the future, he might return to guide them onto the path. But if his journey on the immortal road was fraught with hardship, there was no need to drag them into the danger.

He planned to let them walk their own path in life.

The arrival of two little ones made the household incredibly lively.

To care for them, Li Zhi hired four childcare nannies.

With professional nannies handling the chores, Li Zhi and Zhou Mei weren't bogged down by trivial matters—they simply enjoyed the joy the two new lives brought them.

Every day, Li Zhi diligently practiced the Breathing Method, the Longevity Art, and the Xingyi Twelve Forms Fist.

He also tried teaching Zhou Mei the Breathing Method to help her recover faster.

Whether due to differences in physique or limitations in talent, Zhou Mei's results from practicing were negligible.

It was about as effective as doing morning calisthenics.

After sticking with it for a few days, Zhou Mei gave up on the Breathing Method.

Instead, she followed the expensive yoga teacher they'd hired to exercise and get her figure back.

Li Zhi had been practicing the Breathing Method for over a year now, yet he still hadn't sensed the Bitter Sea. He had only grown much stronger—his deadlift finally broke the five-hundred-kilogram limit and was charging steadily toward six hundred kilograms.

He was even vaguely catching up to Ye Fan.

This secretly thrilled Li Zhi.

Sometimes, Li Zhi even felt his body had surpassed the limits of a Mortal Physique, advancing toward the strength of a Thousand Jin Single Arm.

Though he wasn't sure if his current state counted as stepping onto the path of cultivation, his vitality was surging and his energy was abundant—he no longer seemed like an ordinary person.

With the birth of Li Jizu and Li Xian'er, it seemed the family's fortune had also improved.

Before the New Year was even over, Li Dapeng brought him good news.

The people secretly searching for Xu Jiping had been found.

And a melodramatic scene had played out.

The clash between the Xu and Yao families had finally come to an end.

The Yao family, who had warned Old Man Xu, took a massive fall.

Perhaps Yao Le's warning had directly enraged Old Man Xu. He teamed up with his students to deliver a devastating backstab to the Yao family.

In the end, the Yao Family Eldest not only lost his position but was also sent to prison.

The arrogant Yao Le was so frightened he fled abroad.

But even after toppling the Yao family, the Xu family didn't gain much.

The Jade Scroll in the Yao family's possession had vanished without a trace. Even with orders from higher-ups, the original copy of that Cultivation Method couldn't be found.

Old Man Xu voluntarily confessed his own issues, handed over a transcribed copy, and the higher-ups chose not to pursue the matter.

It seemed that, to those above, such ancient inherited Cultivation Methods weren't all that rare.

The storm settled without implicating Li Zhi.

It was as if the ritual Li Zhi had performed that day played a key role, dissolving all related karma.

On the afternoon of the eighth day of the new year, Li Zhi was watching TV with Zhou Mei in the living room when he got another call from Li Dapeng.