"Whether I should return to the Spring Autumn Sect still needs careful consideration! But I've been away from Peach Blossom Village for eight years. I might as well go back and take a look while I'm here. I wonder how that boy Li Yun is doing!"
Li Qingshan thought to himself, his eyes full of anticipation.
After leaving the ancient battlefield, his one remaining attachment to the mortal world grew clear in his heart.
Peach Blossom Village was only a little over a thousand li away, stirring the longing and concern within him.
He activated the Lesser Heaven-Veiling Secret Art, keeping his appearance that of an ordinary wandering physician in his thirties. He concealed his cultivation so completely that not a trace of it showed, then followed the direction he remembered, riding an inconspicuous streak of light toward Peach Blossom Village in Qing Province.
A few years were no more than a finger snap to cultivators, but for mortals, they were enough to change everything. Peach Blossom Village seemed a little more prosperous. There were a few more houses, and the old peach tree at the village entrance was still flourishing.
Li Qingshan didn't disturb anyone. Like a true passerby, he walked soundlessly along the village paths.
He stirred his divine sense, and the villagers' idle chatter about their families and daily lives came clearly to his ears.
"...I tell you, Peach Blossom Village's ancestors must have had smoke rising from their graves! Who would've thought that little Er Ya would become a female immortal?"
"That's right! I heard Er Ya came back a couple of years ago and gave Widow Wang all sorts of miraculous pills and medicines. After Widow Wang took them, she got a lot younger and even more radiant!"
"That's nothing we can envy. Our children weren't born with spiritual roots!"
"And it's not just Er Ya. There's that centenarian, Old Master Qingshan. And now his grandson, Lord Li Yun, is even more remarkable!"
"That's right, that's right! I heard he's become a high official in the capital! He passed the imperial examinations and was personally honored by the emperor!"
"More than that! He married the prime minister's daughter, and in just a few years, he's already the Vice Minister of Justice! He must be the reincarnation of the Star of Literary Brilliance!"
"The Li Clan must have done a mountain of good deeds..."
Listening to their words, brimming with envy and pride, a faint, comforted smile appeared in Li Qingshan's weathered eyes.
Gouwa... had indeed made something of himself.
He didn't enter the village. His figure blurred, and he vanished from the spot, heading toward the capital.
The capital was far more prosperous than the prefectural city.
Carriages and horses flowed through the streets, crowds streamed past, and the atmosphere of the mortal world was thick.
Li Qingshan easily found the imposing Residence of the Vice Minister of Justice.
He didn't barge in. Instead, he sat down in a nearby teahouse and silently spread his divine sense over the entire residence, focusing on the young vice minister.
During the day, Li Yun was busy with official duties, receiving visitors and handling documents. His every move carried authority, and he was nothing like the young man who had once studied by lamplight.
But as Li Qingshan examined him closely with his divine sense, his brow gradually furrowed.
He sensed an extremely faint yet exceptionally cold demonic aura on Li Yun!
The aura clung to the sea of consciousness between his brows. It hadn't completely eroded his mind, but it was subtly influencing his temperament, causing him to occasionally show an unnoticeable restlessness and hostility.
"Li Yun is just a mortal. How did he become tainted with demonic aura? What exactly is going on?"
Li Qingshan's heart sank.
By the dead of night, Li Yun was still in his study, reviewing documents beneath the wavering candlelight. When his mind grew weary, the demonic aura seemed to become a little more active.
Li Qingshan didn't hesitate any longer. His figure melted into the night like a wisp of smoke, and he silently appeared in the study, waving a hand to set up a simple soundproofing ward.
Li Yun, who had been rubbing his weary brow, jolted in surprise and looked up. Someone had appeared in the room without him noticing.
He was just about to bark a rebuke when he recognized the visitor's somewhat familiar face—only far too young. He was struck as if by lightning and leapt to his feet, knocking over the teacup beside him without even noticing.
"You... you are..."
Li Yun's voice trembled with disbelief, his eyes wide.
Li Qingshan looked at him with affection and emotion in his eyes. He slowly spoke, his voice still carrying the old, familiar tone etched into Li Yun's memory: "Gouwa, don't you recognize your grandfather?"
"Grand... Grandfather?! It really is you?!"
Li Yun hurried around the desk and rushed over, studying Li Qingshan's face. Though he looked much younger, there was no mistaking those eyes and that voice!
His excitement made his voice crack. "You... how did you... become so... young? Have you really become an immortal?!"
Joy, excitement, and disbelief flooded his heart.
Eight years ago, Li Yun had heard that his grandfather had joined the Spring Autumn Sect to pursue the path of cultivation. He had been filled with endless worry and reluctance.
He had even thought he might never see his grandfather again.
He had never imagined that eight years later, he would see Li Qingshan again—and that he would look so young.
Li Qingshan smiled faintly and patted his shoulder. "The immortal path is uncertain. Your grandfather was merely lucky enough to step through its gates and extend his life and preserve his youth. I came back to see you, only to discover you'd been tainted by foul energy. It threatens your lifespan and could affect your temperament."
As he spoke, he joined his fingers like a sword and gently touched Li Yun's brow.
Pure, surging Longevity True Essence flowed into him, carrying abundant vitality and the power to ward off evil. The wisp of cold demonic aura clinging to him was like snow beneath the sun. It let out a faint hiss, then was completely cleansed and dispelled.
Li Yun felt his mind clear in an instant. The restlessness and anxiety that had built up over the years swept away, leaving him refreshed and his thoughts much sharper.
Only then did he belatedly realize just how vast the warm force he had felt was. He regarded his grandfather with even greater reverence, as though he were a god.
"Thank you, Grandfather!" Li Yun exclaimed, about to bow.
Li Qingshan steadied him, his tone turning serious. "We're grandfather and grandson. There's no need for that. Tell me, have you recently come into contact with anyone unusual? Or visited any strange places? This foul energy isn't caused by an ordinary illness."
Li Yun's expression turned grave as he thought it over. "As an official, I deal with all sorts of people... If I had to name anyone unusual... Over the past six months, I've spent quite a bit of time with several disciples under the Imperial Preceptor. His Majesty has relied heavily on the Imperial Preceptor in recent years, so we officials can hardly avoid dealing with him."
"The Imperial Preceptor?"
Li Qingshan furrowed his brow. "The Imperial Preceptor of the Yan Kingdom should, by rights, be someone stationed here by the Spring Autumn Sect. He ought to cultivate orthodox mysticism. How could his disciples carry... this kind of aura?"
He deliberately left the words "demonic aura" unspoken.
Li Yun lowered his voice. "There's something you don't know, Grandfather. His Majesty personally invited the current Imperial Preceptor here three years ago. He wasn't sent by the Spring Autumn Sect.
"They say he has immense magical powers: he can summon wind and rain and refine immortal pills. His Majesty trusts him deeply, and his disciples are no ordinary people either. It's just... sometimes, after spending time with them, I find myself becoming easily irritated. I thought it was because of the pressures of office, but now that I think about it..."
Alarm bells rang in Li Qingshan's heart.
The Yan Kingdom had traditionally been within the Spring Autumn Sect's sphere of influence. The position of Imperial Preceptor in the mortal dynasty had always been filled by a disciple appointed by the sect, as a sign of protection and oversight.
Now, it had fallen under the control of an Imperial Preceptor of unknown origin, whose disciples carried demonic aura?
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