[Grade 2 Spiritual Object: Heavenly Dao Divine Heart]
[When substituted into the heart, one can perceive the Vitality of Heaven and Earth and devour the Qi-Destiny of living beings. With the Divine Heart within, one can create life!]
The beating heart lay right before their eyes; indeed, it did not seem like an object belonging to the mortal realm.
A Grade 2 object was already extraordinary, yet the members of the Li family viewed it as something demonic and evil.
Its origins were extraordinary. Even when they asked Fang Linglong—that living fossil from the Thunder Fire Devil Cave—she couldn't explain exactly what it was.
She only said that if the beating "Heavenly Dao Divine Heart" were used well, it would be a supreme treasure.
But if one harbored malicious intent, the final fate of the Zhao clan served as a vivid warning right before their eyes.
The members of the Li family looked at one another in dismay; no one dared to claim it.
They knew their own nature well.
The family had persisted for hundreds of years, and everyone present had fought and killed their way to this point.
They had even committed acts that the world would consider morally corrupt.
No one could guarantee that if they truly assimilated this "Heavenly Dao Divine Heart," they would be able to resist the temptation to wantonly devour Qi-Destiny.
Just then, the sound of metal clashing rang out.
Li Yaoqing paused, stunned, as her Master's voice transmission reached her ears.
"In all the world, only those with a 'Heart of Innocence' can utilize this object.
Their hearts are dedicated solely to the Dao; they can distinguish between good and evil, and their desires are far fewer than those of others."
These words reached the ears of the clansmen.
Immediately, Li Dalong collected the corpse of the Zhao Clan Patriarch and exited the Void Refining Space together with the rest of the family.
Upon arriving at the Immortal Domain Grotto-Heaven, they found the younger generation and the family servants busy clearing out the grotto-heaven, moving like a colony of ants transporting their home.
Although they had long predicted the wealth of the Immortal Zhao Clan, when they truly sensed the lingering Spiritual Qi of Heaven and Earth and the layers of formation arrays remaining within the Immortal Domain Grotto-Heaven, they could not help but be utterly astonished.
When the juniors of Li Xinnian's generation and younger saw the family elders approaching, every one of them wore an expression of reverence, bowing to the elders in succession.
This return had been immediately followed by the great battle, leaving the elders no time to meet with the children until now.
When the family elders had left all those years ago, Li Xinnian had only just become the Family Head.
Seeing him now, the lad Li Xinnian had truly matured.
Li Dalong waved his hand, sweeping Li Zhiheng—who was standing beside Li Xinnian—into the Void Refining Space.
"This child pays respects to the Ancestor!"
Li Zhiheng hurriedly paid his respects.
This was the first time in his life he had met the Distant Ancestor, yet he remained neither humble nor arrogant.
He merely glanced at the Ancestor from time to time, his expression filled with puzzlement.
He had grown up listening to stories from the clan elders; legend had it that the Ancestor was the Sea-Calming Needle of the Azure Cloud.
Even in the family portraits, he was depicted as a rugged, rough-hewn man.
Yet now, the Distant Ancestor was clad in black robes, and his appearance was actually quite effeminate.
However, the years of an Immortal are long, and the world is ever-changing; Li Zhiheng quickly accepted the discrepancy between the legends and reality.
"Not bad." Li Dalong could not suppress his appreciation for Li Zhiheng.
He felt a touch of sentimentality in his heart; every generation had its differences, and there was a gap of eight generations between him and Zhiheng.
Facing this lad with the pure gaze, Li Dalong was reminded of Yunbing from all those years ago.
He murmured inwardly that the Heavens had finally shown mercy to his descendants, sparing them from walking the same old path as their elders.
Immediately, Li Dalong grew increasingly fond of Li Zhiheng.
He produced the Divine Heart and handed it to him, explaining the nature of the object as well as its advantages and disadvantages.
Unexpectedly, Li Zhiheng accepted the Heavenly Dao Divine Heart and merely offered a single word of thanks.
Li Dalong frowned. "Have you seriously considered whether you can control it?"
Li Zhiheng replied, "I have not. However, since the Ancestor and the other Ancestors are bestowing this item upon me, there must be wisdom in the elders' decision.
I am also aware of what happened to the Immortal Zhao Clan.
Since the Ancestors were capable of killing the Zhao Clan Patriarch, if I were to ever become a person like him, I implore the Ancestor not to hesitate when that time comes."
When the two emerged, Li Zhiheng acted as if nothing had happened, though he occasionally pressed his hand against his heart.
"Father, regarding Zhiheng..." Li Yaozu frowned.
"Good lad."
Li Dalong responded with just a single phrase.
From the moment Li Zhiheng swallowed the "Heavenly Dao Divine Heart" without the slightest hesitation, Dalong knew that this item had not been entrusted to the wrong person.
[Your descendant Li Zhiheng has received a family gift and obtained the Trait: Heavenly Dao Divine Heart!]
[Can perceive Qi-Destiny, devour Qi-Destiny, create life, cultivation speed increased by 100%, potential reaches the Body Integration realm!]
...
Seeing Heng'er summoned by the Great Ancestor, Li Xinnian and his wife exchanged a look of relief.
It was funny to think about it now; when Heng'er first came crying into this world, and for several years afterward, Li Xinnian had thought the child suffered from a congenital deficiency in intelligence.
Yet, he was ultimately their own blood, the very flesh that had fallen from his wife's body, so they had taught him with endless patience despite a thousand difficulties.
That foolish child eventually married, had children of his own, and managed a massive family estate, establishing a lineage of his own.
Li Xinnian smiled.
"Heavenly Ancestor Yunbing was right all those years ago.
Not letting Heng'er get involved in family affairs and allowing him to focus wholeheartedly on cultivation... that was the true stroke of fortune for him."
"You..." Nangong Qingya rolled her eyes at her husband in reproach.
"When the child was young, you called him stupid and clumsy, saying he couldn't inherit your position.
You would punish him for three to five years at a time!
Is a child's character something that can be shaped by punishment alone?
It is only because Heng'er possesses a Heart of Innocence; otherwise, who knows what kind of state he would have been frightened into by a father like you."
Li Xinnian frowned.
"That he is the way he is today... is because he inherited my benevolence."
"Fine, fine, fine." Nangong Qingya knew well that her husband rarely admitted his faults.
She dropped the subject and pointed toward the Immortal Domain.
"You should get busy."
Following the direction his wife was pointing, Li Xinnian's expression changed drastically.
The elders returning from the great battle seemed to possess inexhaustible energy.
After battling the Zhao Clan Patriarch, everyone else in Azure Cloud Prefecture was exhausted.
Yet, the Seven Ironclads, Li Yaoqing, Li Yaotie, and the Three Scoundrels—who usually cultivated underground in the Merit Grotto-Heaven—had charged into the Immortal Domain Grotto-Heaven like hungry tigers pouncing on their prey.
One look revealed that Ancestor Yaotie had already taken out his iron hammer, looking for all the world as if he intended to dismantle the Grotto-Heaven entirely.
The trapped Red Ginseng King had already been grabbed by one of its legs and was about to be stuffed into High Ancestor Tianyi's mouth.
Watching this chaotic scene, Li Xinnian realized that while the elders were truly mighty figures in the eyes of their descendants, they were also veritable urchins at heart, capable of acts that would simply astound the heavens.
"Elders, stay your hands! It's a waste, a massive waste!"
The Family Head scurried about like a common lackey, sweat pouring from his forehead.
Yet, who in the world could do anything about it?
These people had all been spoiled by the Old Ancestor.
The Immortal Domain Grotto-Heaven instantly descended into utter chaos.