A Hidden Conspiracy

In the heavens.

A man dressed in splendid robes slowly extended his right hand toward the void.

The next moment, ripples spread through the void. The man stepped inside and merged with the heavens, leaving not the slightest trace.

Inside a magnificent, lavish hall.

Six experts with the presence of Saints stood respectfully on either side of the hall.

"Lord Sacred Envoy, Tang Xuan has returned."

A servant came to report.

In the seat of honor, a powerful middle-aged man in black slowly opened his eyes.

"Let him in."

Soon, the man in splendid robes strode inside.

"Sacred Envoy, Du Lie of the Azure Dragon Sect has entered seclusion to prepare for a breakthrough to the Saint Realm."

At this, the black-robed man's gaze darkened.

"I must say, this Du Lie is quite a genius. But why must you step into the Saint Realm? Wouldn't it be better to behave yourself and remain a sect master? How many years has it been? Finally, there's work again?"

The black-robed man sank into thought. The next moment-

"Tang Xuan, deal with the Azure Dragon Sect. In this Upper Realm, no one besides us is permitted to enter the Saint Realm, much less ascend."

"Also, quite a few old fellows are hiding in this plane. If you have time, find them one by one."

Hearing this, the man named Tang Xuan nodded in assent.

"Sacred Envoy, there is one more matter. The Pan Lineage has been destroyed."

The black-robed man paused, his brows furrowing slightly as he spoke.

"The Pan Lineage? A noble lineage was destroyed, so be it. What is strange about that?"

Tang Xuan waved his hand in disagreement, his expression grave.

"Sacred Envoy, rumor has it that the Pan Lineage was destroyed with two palm strikes. That person must be at least in the Half-Saint Realm. Everyone says it has something to do with the Li Lineage."

The envoy's expression darkened, and his full presence erupted.

"Are you all useless? Someone in these noble lineages reached the Half-Saint Realm, and you only just found out? Have you forgotten Li Yan of the Li Lineage a thousand years ago? What do I keep you around for?"

Below him, everyone turned pale, unable to breathe beneath that pressure.

A thousand years ago, Li Yan of the Li Lineage had possessed talent that even they feared, so they had struck in advance. As for Li Yijian, they had investigated him just in case; he would never be able to break through to the Saint Realm in his lifetime. Yet now, apart from those two, the Li Lineage had produced another Saint Realm cultivator. These great lineages truly could not be underestimated.

"Set this matter aside for now. We'll discuss it after dealing with that old fellow from the Azure Dragon Sect. Get out."

The Sacred Envoy swept his sleeve, sending the people below flying out, blood spilling from their mouths.

At the Li Lineage.

"Grandpa, I'm back."

Li Xiao returned from the Hundred Thousand Mountains.

Li Yijian and the others hurried out.

"Good, you're back, you're back. Xiao'er, how did it go?"

Li Yijian was the first to speak.

Li Xiao smiled. "A mere dragon vein-snatching it was as easy as reaching out my hand."

Li Yijian's face flushed red, and he asked again.

"And the demonic dragon?"

"The demonic dragon? Long Aotian, come here. Return to your true form."

Li Xiao tugged Long Aotian, who was the size of an earthworm behind him, forward.

The next moment, Long Aotian revealed his dragon form, his armor of jet-black dragon scales dazzling beneath the sunlight.

The enormous body of the demonic dragon startled everyone from the Li Lineage.

Even Li Yijian, who had lived for so many years, had never seen a dragon.

This monstrous descendant of his had actually brought back a dragon?

How could he not be astonished?

"Don't be afraid, everyone. His name is Long Aotian. From now on, he'll be our Li Lineage's guardian divine beast."

Li Xiao patted Long Aotian's body as he spoke.

"Ancestor, look at you, acting like you've never seen the world. Isn't it just a dragon?"

Hearing this, Li Yijian calmed down, then pointed at Li Xiao and laughingly scolded him.

"You little brat! Now you even dare tease your ancestor."

Everyone looked at Long Aotian before them and trembled, feeling immense pressure upon their bodies.

Who knew how many years this demonic dragon of the Hundred Thousand Mountains had lived?

The young master had actually subdued him. What was the young master's cultivation now?

Why couldn't they see through it?

Li Yijian did not think so much about it. His face filled with excitement as he laughed heartily.

"As expected of the qilin son of our Li Lineage! Hahaha! The Li Lineage will rise to greatness!"

"Gather everyone in the Li Lineage."

The next moment, in a large square within the Li Lineage grounds.

The members of the Li Lineage assembled one after another, staring at the scene before them in shock.

Seeing that everyone was present, Li Yijian spoke with a serious expression.

"From this moment onward, Li Xiao will succeed as head of the Li Lineage. Anyone who refuses to obey will be expelled."

Li Xiao stepped forward as a matter of course.

"You can keep calling me young master. The Li Lineage won't treat anyone poorly. From now on, your cultivation resources will increase tenfold. But if I discover anyone betraying the Li Lineage..."

At this point, Li Xiao paused. His expression darkened, and a trace of his peak Saint presence leaked out.

"They will be killed without mercy."

The next moment, Li Xiao restrained his presence, took out all kinds of pills from his system space, and tossed them toward the square.

A closer look revealed that every one of these pills bore nine pill markings.

Pill markings ranged from one to nine, and each additional marking increased a pill's medicinal potency.

Some powerful alchemists might never refine a pill with pill markings in their entire lives, much less one with nine markings.

Everyone caught the pills and stared at the pill markings inside the jade bottles, dumbfounded.

"Holy shit! Pills with pill markings-and nine of them!"

"Is this real? Nine-mark pills! Just seeing one leaves me with no regrets in this life."

"The young master is fucking awesome! If anyone lets the Li Lineage down in the future, I'll be the first to object."

Watching the scene before him, Li Xiao smiled faintly.

"Don't fight over them. There's a share for everyone."

These pills were far too potent. Some people merely opened the bottles and took a sniff, only to break through.

Such extravagance also shocked Li Kuangfeng beside him.

"My dear grandson, these... look..."

Li Kuangfeng gave a sheepish smile and rubbed his hands at Li Xiao.

With a generous flick of his hand, Li Xiao handed some over.

"Ah, enough, enough, enough."

"Little Kuangfeng, you can't handle these pills. Leave them to your ancestor."

Li Yijian snatched the jade bottles from Li Kuangfeng's hands and spoke with a serious expression.