Family Cultivation: I Become a Mirror-Chapter 86 Prelude to the Great Battle

Li Xiangping arrived at the Lichuan Entrance when the battle was nearing its end, with Ahuilar brandishing his large hammer, chasing the enemy’s fleeing soldiers, standing out prominently.

In the past few years, there have been waves of fleeing Shanyue soldiers crossing the border, so Li Xiangping had called Ahuilar to the Lichuan Entrance to convince the familiar tribes; in various battles, he proved himself brave and won the respect of the clan soldiers, and Li Xiangping also came to trust him a lot more.

"How many waves of Shanyue have there been this year?"

Li Xiangping frowned as he looked toward the distant mountains, a wave of unease washing over him as he asked softly.

"Back to the Family Head! It’s been the sixth wave!"

Li Qiuyang, standing by his side, replied somberly, looking travel-weary, apparently having just arrived as well.

Li Qiuyang, now at the fourth layer of Fetal Breathing in terms of cultivation level, had married a girl from the Chen Family and had one son and one daughter, appearing much more mature.

Li Xiangping nodded and turned to enter the courtyard, leaving a message for Li Qiuyang:

"Have Ahuilar come to see me after cleaning up."

————

Li Xiangping put down the talisman brush in his hand and quietly observed the cloth on the table; he had broken through to the fifth layer of Fetal Breathing, the Yujing Wheel, a few years ago and was now at the peak of Fetal Breathing, already capable of writing talismans.

Li Jingtian was in the room adding oil to the lamps; the girl, now twelve years old, was growing fast and was very capable, having matured into a graceful and poised young lady.

Of the six Talisman Seeds from Lu Jiangxian, the three brothers of the Li Family each took one, and two of the remaining were used on Li Xuanxuan and Li Xuanfeng, and the last naturally was reserved for Li Tongya’s branch.

"Family Head! Ahuilar requests an audience!"

Chen Donghe, clad in leather armor with a sword at his waist, entered the courtyard energetically, his gaze lingering for a moment on the profile of Li Jingtian by the window, as he spoke with a low and steady voice.

The youth appeared to be seventeen or eighteen years old, his cultivation level already at the third layer of Fetal Breathing, and he was quite handsome, bearing some resemblance to Chen Erniu.

"Come in."

Ahuilar, now without the beast teeth adorning his person and instead clothed like the people of Lijing Town, entered the courtyard and loudly said:

"Great King! Great King! There’s trouble afoot!"

Behind him, Chen Donghe’s mouth twitched, restraining the urge to smack him on the back of the head, he secretly lowered his gaze, using Ahuilar’s large body to block Li Xiangping’s view, stealing glances at Li Jingtian with the corner of his eye.

Li Jingtian was by the window, trimming the wick of the lamp, the soft yellow light playing across her profile. Her beauty was not delicate, but clean-cut and striking, with a countenance full of vigor; only her eyes, inheriting the roundness of Tian Yun, seemed somewhat cute.

"What’s the matter?"

Li Xiangping looked briefly at Li Jingtian, who was carefully tending the candles by the window, a hint of amusement curling at his lips, a sense of humor striking him at heart. After breaking through to the fifth layer of Fetal Breathing and the Yujing Wheel, he had developed Spiritual Sense and no longer needed to see with his eyes to know everything that happened in the courtyard.

"My old brother crossed the Great Fish Creek; he came to inform me last night... he said... said that Ganixi has already heavily defeated the enemy forces and will be able to advance eastward any day now!"

Ahuilar’s words immediately caused a great stir, as Li Xiangping and Chen Donghe were both shocked, and even Li Jingtian by the window turned her head slightly, listening intently with concern.

"What is Ganixi’s current strength like?"

Li Xiangping, with a furrowed brow, asked in a deep voice.

Ahuilar bowed his head and replied gloomily:

"Ganixi should be at the Middle Stage of Qi Cultivation, having integrated a hundred thousand Shanyue from the entire North Foothills of Li Mountain. He should have five to six thousand movable troops and now commands four shamans who have consumed nature’s spiritual energy and are at the Qi Cultivation Stage, as for the Unit Generals at Fetal Breathing Realm, there should be several dozen of them too, but thankfully these people are stationed in various places in the North Foothills and have not joined the army."

Upon hearing this, Li Xiangping became stiff, and with a knitted brow, he said sternly:

"My Li Family makes yearly offerings to the Green Pond Sect as a family under its governance. Ganixi is but a band of Shanyue; his rampaging in the North Foothills was one matter, but to have the audacity to invade further east? Does he take the Green Pond Sect for dead?"

Ahuilar knelt down hastily, his head pressed tightly against the ground as he spoke with a trembling voice:

"According to the tribespeople who escaped from the west, the Demon Sect ... the Green Pond Sect won’t intervene ..."

Li Xiangping lowered his head slightly, a sense of impotence rising in his heart. Even the lowliest soldiers of Shanyue knew that the Green Pond Sect wouldn’t take action, yet he, as the Clan Leader of a family under the Green Pond Sect’s rule, was completely oblivious to whatever transaction the two sides had reached.

"You may all leave now ..."

Ahuilar and Chen Donghe quickly excused themselves, and after they had left, Li Xiangping then slowly sat back down in the main seat and closed his eyes, saying nothing.

"Father."

Li Jingtian called out softly, approached Li Xiangping, and gently knelt down beside him, whispering:

"Our family may become others’ prey; we must make early preparations."

Li Xiangping raised his eyebrows wearily and said in a deep voice:

"Continue."

Li Jingtian lowered her eyebrows, speaking quietly:

"Ganixi dares to advance eastward wantonly, because there must be a consensus reached between the Green Pond Sect and the great shaman of the Shanyue tribe, agreeing on a territorial handover to the mortals, yet they have not notified our Li Family, which indicates they don’t want us to react ..."

"You mean our Li Family has already become the goods for this exchange."

Li Xiangping raised his eyebrows, looking down at his eldest daughter.

"In my daughter’s view, our Li Family faces the risk of losing wealth and exhausting the people, yet there is no danger of family extinction."

"With our distant father still in the sect and our marriage alliance with the Xiao Family, the Green Pond Sect shouldn’t abandon our family without a word, presumably only granting the Shanyue tribe’s incursion and plunder, but not intending to annihilate our entire Li Family."

Li Jingtian raised her eyebrows, looked up at Li Xiangping, and responded softly:

"The Green Pond Sect’s territories intertwine with those of various Shanyue clans, involving many families, and since a deal has been made, they can only pretend to be unaware of the Shanyue crossing the border, leaving each family to fend for themselves with their own capabilities."

After Li Jingtian finished speaking, Li Xiangping put away the wooden slip in his hands, raised his head, and asked:

"What do you think our Li Family should do?"

"Abandon the commoners under our rule and hide the entire family. The Shanyue plunderers will not linger here; they should return to Lijing Mountain within a day at most."

Li Jingtian stared directly at Li Xiangping, testing the waters as she spoke.

"No!"

Seeing Li Xiangping shake his head firmly, a smile suddenly blossomed on Li Jingtian’s face, making her round eyes all the more adorable.

"If so, there would be no difference between our Li Family and the Green Pond Sect!"

Li Xiangping shook his head, looking somewhat weary. As Li Jingtian opened her mouth to speak again, he waved his hand to interrupt her and said in a deep voice:

"I understand, you should first return to Lijing Mountain."

Li Jingtian obediently nodded and excused herself, while Li Xiangping turned and walked slowly out of the courtyard, gazing at the moonlit forest.

He felt a strong premonition that Ganixi was the most formidable opponent he had encountered over the years; this young Shanyue not only had a keen instinct for war, a cunning mind, but also overwhelming strength.

"What kind of bottom line has the Green Pond Sect drawn for Shanyue, and how much time have they given you ..."