The snow on Hanyun Peak never melted, resting on the eaves of the ancestral hall, the dim yellow candlelights flickered uncertainly. Fei Tongyu felt the cold for the first time since he began immortal cultivation, so cold that he shivered on the ground.

The corpse of his grandfather Fei Wangbai lay in the coffin before him. The flesh of a Foundation Establishment cultivator did not decay and looked as it had in life, except for a paleness and eyes tightly shut as if in deep slumber. 𝗳𝚛𝚎𝚎𝘄𝕖𝕓𝕟𝕠𝚟𝚎𝕝.𝗰𝕠𝐦

Fei Tongyu still couldn’t believe that his grandfather had died just like that, it all felt too unreal, so abrupt that Fei Tongyu thought it was a dream.

The day the news of Li Tongya’s sword slaying Maha reached them, the smile on Fei Wangbai’s face vanished instantly. With his eldest son Fei Yihe having gone to the Southern Border, he could only take Fei Tongyu’s hand, his direct grandson, and said in a heavy voice,

"Yu Yufeng is likely dead, probably killed by Li Chijin. Now the Li Family’s edge is too sharp; that’s not a good thing."

Fei Yihe’s sudden departure disrupted Fei Wangbai’s plans, forcing him to start over with Fei Tongyu. Fortunately, Fei Tongyu was hardworking and diligent, and it still seemed manageable.

As they were discussing, they had not expected the door to be gently pushed open, and a man in white robes walked in, his face covered with a veil. Fei Wangbai’s expression changed slightly, and he asked,

"Who goes there?"

The white-robed sword cultivator said nothing, glanced at the two of them, and focused on Fei Wangbai before drawing his sword and stabbing.

Although the Fei Clan’s "Cloud Wrapping the Southern Sky Great Formation" was not fully activated at that time, it was not something anyone could just come and go. Yet this man appeared like a ghost, employing a celestial swordsmanship at the pinnacle of Foundation Establishment level.

Fei Wangbai, only at the early stage of Foundation Establishment, lacking in both cultivation technique and spear technique, had his magic artifact destroyed in a few dozen moves. He managed to flee to the foot of the mountain, tumbling about for a while, only to have his head severed in a flash of sword light.

The vitality of a Foundation Establishment cultivator was vigorous, and Fei Wangbai did not die for a time, picking up his head to try and place it back on his neck. But the sword qi gushed at the wound, and after trying twice, he finally dropped his head and fell.

That head, lying in the snow, still shed tears, crying out,

"The pain is killing me!"

Fei Wangbai, who had been elegant and composed all his life, always careful about appearances, now had his head taken without dignity, under everyone’s gaze. His clothes, never soiled before, turned red with the fresh blood that spurted from his neck, his body falling twisted to the ground.

As the wind and snow grew fierce, a corner of his brocade clothes lifted in the wind, soon buried by the heavy snow. The Fei Clan members, struck as by a bolt from the blue, watched the sword cultivator in the sky incredulously.

They were either shivering, wailing madly, or attacking with their magic artifacts. The white-robed sword cultivator, floating effortlessly, countered dozens of spells with a single sword strike and said softly,

"Hear this well! Within eighty years, you are not allowed to cultivate the ’Long Brocade Heart-Questioning Technique’ to Foundation Establishment. Should anyone achieve the ’Brocade Within,’ they will end up like this man."

His tone was calm as if he was squishing an ant, showing no sense of triumph.

Immediately after, he rode the wind and left. The Fei Clan’s ancient formation, "Cloud Wrapping the Southern Sky Great Formation," was like scrap paper in front of this sword cultivator, as compliant as if the sword cultivator were the true master.

The "Long Brocade Heart-Questioning Technique" was the direct lineage cultivation technique of the Fei Clan, with which Fei Wangbai had established his foundation, achieving the "Brocade Within." With those words, the path for the entire direct lineage of the Fei Clan was severed.

Fei Tongyu broke down crying at that moment; the whole Fei Clan was in chaos. When he looked up again, "Cloud Wrapping the Southern Sky Great Formation" had been fully activated by Fei Tongxiao. By now, the fastest cultivator had only reached the peak, and not a single one had managed to fly away.

Refocusing on the pitch-black coffin in front of him, Fei Tongyu murmured,

"Father has gone to the Southern Border... Grandfather... I’m only at the Fetal Breathing Peak... What should I do..."

Fei Tongyu knelt quietly on the ground, watching the flickering incense on the table. The body of Fei Wangbai inside the coffin was dismembered, covered with a white cloth, barely concealing it.

"It wouldn’t join back together..."

Fei Tongyu closed his eyes in pain; the sword qi left by the sword cultivator surged at Fei Wangbai’s neck, shattering more than a dozen coffins, leaving no choice but to bury the dismembered body.

Fei Tongyu lowered his head and wept, while behind him, Fei Tongxiao, wearing Jade Armor, looked on with a calm expression. The boyish air had vanished from his face overnight, replaced by a mature concern and unease.

Hardship can completely change a person, and Fei Tongxiao’s eyes had grown dimmer yet more focused and determined. Staring at the memorial tablet above, he said in a deep voice,

"Brother! This is no way to go on!"

"What can you do?!"

Fei Tongyu glared back bitterly, sneering as he said,

"Notify the Li Family? I’d rather trust those Foundation Establishment cultivators than those starving wolves from the Li Family!"

Fei Tongxiao remained silent for a long while before he finally said,

"Yu Mugao will make his move sooner or later."

"So what if he does?!"

Fei Tongyu suddenly turned around and said fiercely,

"There isn’t a single person in the Fei family who fears death! Let him come!"

Fei Tongxiao shook his head and said in a low voice,

"Big brother... don’t act impulsively anymore! No matter how much we hate... our only wish is to live, only if we have life do we have a future, whether it’s for revenge... or for..."

"Those Foundation Establishment cultivators have elusive movements, one seclusion is several years. My family has kept the Formation active for several months; everyone around Wangyue Lake knows about it, yet not a single one has come to our door... Only the Li Family has sent people a few times, now, only the Li Family!"

Fei Tongyu collapsed to the ground, and after a long time, he said in a muffled voice,

"Notify the Li Family..."

————

Secret Forest County.

After years of slaughter and reorganization by Yu Mugao, the lives of the common people are much better. The profligate members of the Yu Family had mostly been beheaded, and even three of Yu Mugao’s own illegitimate children had died.

By killing his kinsmen and dividing the land, Yu Mugao significantly slowed the process of land annexation among the Yu Family members, reaching the peak of his popularity among the common people. Therefore, the current conscription was going very smoothly.

"These mortals..."

Yu Mugao looked at the faces that admired him from below, a complex emotion surged in his heart, and for a moment, he didn’t know what to feel. Yu Xiaogui, by his side, snorted and answered,

"What use are these mortals? They’re only good for helping out a little. With a single spell, the Fei territory, which has completely lost control, can be dealt with—something a few Qi cultivators could handle."

Yu Mugao was jolted by his words, his eyes regaining calmness and malevolence. He spoke in a low voice,

"We still need these mortals to maintain the order of the towns we’ve taken over... With just a little bit of petty profit, they will form their own classes and manage everything in good order. No spell is more useful than these people!"

Yu Xiaogui flew with the wind, and upon hearing these words, he laughed disdainfully,

"As long as you know it! Just don’t put the cart before the horse and end up like the Li Family!"

"The Li Family’s heavily relying on outsiders is akin to playing with fire, unlike us."

Yu Mugao shook his head while Yu Xiaogui turned his head away as if the words "heavily relying on outsiders" had touched upon a humiliating memory. Both, with a group of Guest Elders and Yu Family members, flew silently, with Hanyun Peak already emerging in front of them.

The glowing white "Cloud-Encompassing Formation of the Southern Sky" appeared before them, with complex Formation Patterns surging in the air. Yu Xiaogui silently glanced at it, a look of emotion on his face as he said in a low voice,

"This Formation has stood tall on Hanyun Peak since the time of my grandfather. It lay buried in the earth, allowing that Fei Tianxuan to take advantage and establish the Fei family on that very spot..."

Yu Mugao stood with his hands behind his back, speaking in a gentle voice,

"Back then, only the Jiang Family was in the entire southeast coast, right?"

At these words, Yu Xiaogui turned his head to look at him. Since the eldest son had managed the family for many years, it was not surprising that he knew this. Yu Mugui immediately gazed toward Hanyun Peak and said,

"Correct."

As the Yu Family members began to descend before the "Cloud-Encompassing Formation of the Southern Sky," Yu Xiaogui spoke in a soft voice,

"Before my grandfather committed fratricide and matricide, I was still part of the Jiang Family."