The Imperial Sky Ship crossed the sky and soon appeared outside the Small Mountain Village.
"That Senior lives in seclusion here?"
Huo Ling'er was a little surprised.
The Small Mountain Village looked so ordinary.
"Princess, there's something I must tell you first."
At that moment, Wei Yushan spoke. "Senior Li is an unfathomable master. He now lives in seclusion in this village, among ordinary people, playing at life in the mortal world."
He paused. "So when you pay your respects to him, please don't act rashly or offend him."
Hearing Wei Yushan's earnest warning only made Huo Ling'er even more curious.
Playing at life in the mortal world!
Someone like that really did sound like a figure from legend.
The ship stopped outside the village.
Yu Qishui and the others led Huo Ling'er into the village.
"Oh, you're back again?" Uncle Zhang at the entrance saw them and smiled.
"We've come to pay our respects to Mr. Li."
Wei Yushan was very courteous, changing how he addressed Senior Li.
After discussing it, they had concluded that since Senior Li lived in seclusion in this village, he naturally didn't want the ordinary villagers to know of his peerless identity.
If they accidentally let it slip, and Senior Li flew into a rage, Lihuo Sect would be wiped off the face of the earth.
"Xiao Li's home. Go on in," Uncle Zhang said with a smile.
The group continued on.
"Hm? This ditch... there's something strange about it!"
Along the way, Huo Ling'er's pretty face suddenly changed. She went to the side of a ditch and studied the stones lining it. "There's actually Dao intent hidden in this ditch. Even ordinary water flowing through it gains a trace of spirituality..."
She took out a White Jade Bottle and filled it with water from the ditch.
"Worth studying!"
She was utterly serious.
Yu Qishui and the others wore complicated expressions. They, too, had been deeply shaken the first time they entered the Small Mountain Village.
Now it seemed that even the royal family would take the little touches Senior Li left behind very seriously.
They hadn't gone far when Huo Ling'er was shocked again.
"This tree... it's covered in Spirit Fruits?"
She pointed at the Pear Tree in the courtyard of an ordinary farmhouse.
Each pear was plump and gleaming.
In terms of spiritual energy, they were no worse than some of the treasures kept in the Fire Kingdom's palace.
What kind of place was this?
"This house is clearly a Daoist ground! Who lives here?"
"And this vegetable patch is growing Spirit Herbs?"
As they walked, Huo Ling'er grew more and more astonished.
" Sect Master Yu, could all of this... really be the work of that Senior?"
She could hardly believe it.
From the outside, the Small Mountain Village looked unremarkable. But once inside, she found it full of mysteries. Just what they had seen along the way was already on par with the Fire Kingdom Royal Family's foundations!
And she could hardly imagine how much more the entire village held.
It was terrifying.
That meant the Senior Li living in seclusion here was at least above the Mahayana Stage!
Those at the Integrated Body Realm could already be called Venerables, and those who reached the peak of the Integrated Body Realm became Supremes... Could a Venerable, or even a Supreme, really be hidden here?
"All of this is just Senior Li's casual work as he plays at life among mortals," Yu Qishui said, shaking his head.
He remembered what he had seen in Senior Li's home... Now that was truly terrifying.
Huo Ling'er grew even more solemn. It seemed this trip had truly been worthwhile.
Before long, they finally arrived outside Li Fan's Small Courtyard.
"Hm? This... such powerful spiritual aura... It seems to form a world of its own, beyond the mortal realm, unfathomable and forbidden to enter..."
A flash of crimson passed through Huo Ling'er's eyes. But the next moment, she hurriedly shut them, tears streaming down her beautiful face!
She had been unable to resist using her Eye of Blazing Fire to examine the Small Courtyard. But the moment she activated it, some force had blocked her!
If that force had meant her harm, she might have died on the spot!
How terrifying!
Seeing this, Yu Qishui couldn't help frowning. "Princess, you were far too reckless!"
How could she use a divine ability in front of Senior Li?
Was she trying to get herself killed?
Fortunately, Senior Li was magnanimous. Otherwise, Huo Ling'er, a peerless beauty, would now be nothing but a corpse!
Huo Ling'er hurriedly said, "It was my mistake. Please forgive me, Sect Master Yu!"
Tears kept falling from her eyes, and she couldn't stop them. It left her feeling miserable.
Though Yu Qishui was displeased, he still glanced at Mu Qianning.
They didn't dare approach. After all, Senior Li had only agreed that Mu Qianning could come visit him.
Mu Qianning took a deep breath and stepped forward.
Inside the Small Courtyard.
Li Fan was bored and tending the fire, cooking Cat Food.
Having Little White Cat around these past few days had made him quite happy.
The little cat was also very clingy, always burrowing into Li Fan's arms whenever she got the chance.
"You're snowy white all over, so I'll call you Little White, okay? How does that sound?"
Li Fan stroked the cat as he cooked, asking with a smile.
"Meow... Little White... isn't the nicest name," Bai Xiaoqing thought, blinking her lively eyes. Still, she answered with a meow.
Hmph. It's not like I'm afraid of your profound cultivation, Li Fan. I'm... I'm only doing this for the Cat Food...
Over the past few days, she had gradually realized that this terrifying person was actually easy to get along with. As long as she stuck to her role as a cat, she seemed to have a pretty good life. Even the ferocious beasts in the courtyard stopped acting fierce around her...
And she got to eat all kinds of fragrant Cat Food!
It was a cat's paradise! No... a tiger's paradise.
So she had wholeheartedly committed to being a cat.
Now, watching Li Fan cook a little pot of Cat Food, she was practically drooling.
"Look at you, so greedy. Aren't you worried you'll get fat?"
Li Fan chuckled.
Just then, a knock sounded, followed by a familiar voice. "Is Senior Li home?"
It was Mu Qianning...
"Come in. The door's unlocked," Li Fan called.
The door opened, and Mu Qianning and the others walked in. Li Fan looked over and saw that this time they had brought along another unfamiliar young woman!
Another great beauty? And she was every bit as beautiful as Mu Qianning!
This little courtyard of his really was being graced with honor.
But why did this beauty look like she'd been crying?
Was she here to ask him for something?
Li Fan wondered, then gestured. "Please sit. Let me feed the cat, and then I'll attend to you all."
Yu Qishui and the others sat respectfully beside the stone table beneath the Peach Tree. At the same time, they couldn't help looking at Li Fan's cat.
"Senior Li certainly knows how to enjoy himself. Keeping a cat to while away the time... how wonderful," Mu Qianning said, her beautiful eyes full of envy.
"Don't... don't say that..." Yu Qishui said, his voice trembling a little. "That isn't a cat. It's a tiger... and it seems to be a White Tiger!"
The others were stunned, staring at Bai Xiaoqing in disbelief.
Her coat was pure white, without a single speck of another color.
And Dao Rhyme seemed to flow faintly around her. Her aura was extraordinary!
Before you continue