After a long while, the Thirteenth Elder finally recovered from his shock, a complicated look flashing through his eyes.
"I never imagined that in this Age of Dharma's End, someone could still attain the Dao. Such a person would be hailed as an unparalleled prodigy even in the era of the Third Heaven and Earth Cataclysm."
The Grand Void Li Clan had risen during the Third Heaven and Earth Cataclysm and possessed an ancient lineage, far beyond the reach of a power like the Great Li Dynasty, which had existed for only a thousand years.
In the eyes of the secular world, the more the Age of Dharma's End progressed, the harder it became to attain the Dao, let alone reach the Heaven and Earth God Realm. To enter the realm of Dao Attainment in such an age was truly a defiance of heaven.
However, a dynasty with a mere thousand years of history had, after all, inherited too little. It knew only how difficult this was, not what it meant.
As the Thirteenth Elder of the Grand Void Li Clan, he naturally knew far more secrets than the Great Li did.
At the height of prosperity came decline; at the depths of decline came prosperity. The cycle turned without end—this was the eternal, unchanging law by which heaven and earth evolved.
When a prosperous era arrived, the spiritual tide surged like an ocean, and the Great Dao appeared throughout heaven and earth. This was the golden prosperous era that cultivators dreamed of. In such an age, cultivation was as easy as drinking water; even those with modest talent could fall into sudden enlightenment just by contemplating the Great Dao.
But the spiritual energy of heaven and earth was not inexhaustible. In an act of self-preservation, once heaven and earth had evolved to the height of their prosperity, a bottleneck emerged.
The spiritual energy of heaven and earth waned, and the Great Dao retreated. This meant the Age of Dharma's End had arrived.
As the Age of Dharma's End grew ever more severe, spiritual energy grew increasingly thin, and the path of the Great Dao became all but impossible to tread. No cultivator wanted to see such a scene.
Yet great tribulations also concealed great opportunities.
The first was that in the Age of Dharma's End, cultivators generally had a firmer foundation in both cultivation and realm, and were less likely to suffer cultivation deviation.
The second was the chance to attain the Dao, imprinting one's own path upon the Great Dao.
No one knew why attaining the Dao during the Age of Dharma's End brought such great opportunities. But Ancient Texts recorded that the later in the Age of Dharma's End one attained the Dao, the more powerful one would become upon reaching the Heaven and Earth God Realm, and the farther one could travel along the path of the Great Dao.
Back then, as the Third Age of Dharma's End deepened, several unparalleled prodigies attained the Dao. After reaching the Heaven and Earth God Realm, they soared forward by leaps and bounds, wielding terrifying power and traveling an extraordinary distance along the path of the Great Dao. The founder of the Grand Void Li Clan, Ancestor Li, was one of them.
According to the Li Clan's Ancient Texts, in that era, an unparalleled prodigy had successfully attained the Dao as the Age of Dharma's End reached its utmost extreme. He was the strongest among them, and his cultivation was enough to rival the Ancient Emperors.
Now, the Age of Dharma's End had evolved to such a degree that the spiritual energy of heaven and earth was nearly depleted. Yet the Sword Sect Master had still attained the Dao. If he did not perish along the way, his future achievements would surely rival Ancestor Li's, at the very least.
No wonder Li Lianying was so wary of the Sword Sect. With the Sword Sect Master's strength alone, no one in the entire Great Li could stand against him.
"Never mind. So what if the Sword Sect Master is a peerless powerhouse who has attained the Dao? Before my Grand Void Li Clan, what power does he have to resist?"
"Take me to the Sword Sect. I will personally capture Jian Xuzi and demand to know where the Innate Dao Body is."
To attain the Dao as the Age of Dharma's End reached its utmost extreme—there was no doubt about the Sword Sect Master's potential.
But potential was only potential. Turning it into the overwhelming power Ancestor Li possessed would take a long time. As things stood, the Grand Void Li Clan was a colossal force to the Sword Sect Master.
After giving Li Lianying his orders, the Thirteenth Elder suddenly remembered something and said, "Manager Li, I recall that this Innate Dao Body was a servant girl in a secular household. She grew up alongside her master, and the two shared a deep bond. Am I mistaken?"
Li Lianying replied, "You're not mistaken. This woman is indeed very close to Ye Jing."
A sharp glint flashed through the Thirteenth Elder's eyes. "Send people to capture him and keep him under strict guard."
"If that Innate Dao Body is so close to him, she surely won't stand by and watch him die."
"If the Innate Dao Body really is in the Sword Sect, perhaps he'll prove useful!"
"That would be unwise. This is absolutely not advisable, Thirteenth Elder. Such a move could alert the enemy."
Li Lianying did not agree with the Thirteenth Elder's proposal.
Though Li Lianying had rebuffed his suggestion, the Thirteenth Elder did not grow angry. Instead, he asked, "Manager Li, why would it be unwise?"
"What does the life of a mere commoner matter?"
Li Lianying was not concerned about Ye Jing's life. In his eyes, that worthless life was no more than an ant's.
"Thirteenth Elder, I believe there are two reasons this would be unwise."
"First, Ye Jing is merely an ant at the Qi Refining Fifth Layer, with no power to resist. And for now, we still cannot confirm whether the Innate Dao Body is in the Sword Sect."
"If she is there, things will be easy. We can use Ye Jing's life to force the Innate Dao Body to submit. If she refuses, we can simply kill Ye Jing and seize her by force."
"Second, if the Innate Dao Body was not taken by Jian Xuzi, our actions may alert the enemy."
Li Lianying continued to explain, "Thirteenth Elder, if the Innate Dao Body did not fall into Jian Xuzi's hands, then given her bond with Ye Jing, how could she leave him alone in the Imperial Capital?"
"Thirteenth Elder, you can send people to keep a close watch on Ye Jing. The Innate Dao Body may well return to Ye Manor in the Imperial Capital and try to take him away."
"After all, Ye Jing is only a Qi Refining cultivator. Even if he grew wings, he couldn't escape our grasp."
The Innate Dao Body was of great importance. The Thirteenth Elder did not want to overlook any possible way of finding her.
After hearing Li Lianying's analysis, the Thirteenth Elder agreed that he had a point. He sent several Mystic Bird Guards from the clan to keep Ye Manor under round-the-clock surveillance, then went with Li Lianying to the Sword Sect to demand the person.
Ye Jing had no idea that he had unknowingly taken a stroll along the Ghost Gate.
The spiritual energy in the Perfect Spirit Gathering Array had been completely drained, so Ye Jing could no longer continue cultivating. He went to sleep early.
Early the next morning, after eating the breakfast he had made himself, Ye Jing prepared to head to the Hanlin Academy for duty.
But as soon as he opened the gates of Ye Manor, a sudden sense of alarm rose in his heart.
Within several hundred meters of Ye Manor, several powerful, unfamiliar auras had appeared. Some of them had even locked their divine sense onto him.
Ye Jing was appalled. These unfamiliar auras were every bit as powerful as Jian Xuzi's.
What had happened? Why had the Great Li Imperial Family deployed such a massive force? Had the truth been exposed?
But that didn't make sense! If it had been exposed, they should have arrested him. Why were they merely watching him?
Ye Jing was bewildered, but he kept his expression unchanged. After closing the gates of Ye Manor, he headed toward the Hanlin Academy as if nothing had happened.
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